Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1881-10-17
Communicated
Normal Beheels.

Last Friday evening. al the regular
meeting Of the Storey County Teaohsrs'
Institute. held In the High School room
Of Gold Hill. Professor T. P. Mcdonald
read a carefully prepared essay on "Nor.
nal Schools" he gave . short history
OF the normal schools In this country,
and dwslt at length upon the influence
they have sxsrtsd In ~slsvaiing the stand.
ard qualifications Of teachers. and In
introducing new methods Of impartins
textbook knowledge. In oil the older
States, where the State school system
has approached almost perfection, nor.
NAL schools are yearly growing In num-
bers and In popularity. He had author
ity for saying that not than twenty
Der cent. Of the teachers Of this country
we're good teachers, most Of them being
raw recruits. from 16 to 20 years OF ago.
and being not only without experiences.
but without any professional training.
In this, % In ill other professions. he
advocated . special preparation tor the
the work. and closed BY saying. PRO
fsssional training absolutely demands
normal schools"
A discussion OF the paper followed.
Professor Mills Van Wsgenen une-
q~uivoeally opposed normal schools. He
cited cases TO prove that more teachers
educated In this way failed than those OF
high schools and colleges, mentioning
the teachers Of Wisconsin and Nevads %
eNmples. He said, contrary to nature,
ali normal school students are taught to
do exactly alike; to teach by some par.
tiouhr msthsd, thus losing their indi'
viduslity. . requisite 80 essential to The
success OF any teacher.
Professor T. j. Beohsr, himself being
q normal school graduate, took just the
opposite view. favorisg tho normal
methods OF instruction and the means
By which these methods were spread
broadcast over the land. He stated that
In the East Q normal school diploma IL
to its possesssr an almost sure passport
into some paying school position.
Professor T. B. Gray thought natural
fitness aud natural ability only make
good teachers. actual experience being
the only training school worthy the
name. He coincidrd with the view
taken By Professor Van Wsgsnen. that
money spent in training teachers was
wasted. II not worse than wasted.
Teachers thus trained, he thinks, lose
all individuality. for oil sach teachers
seem 10 use the same methods.
Mrs. Swift thought that u these
methods be good. IL 10 better that all
teachers know them than to enter the
school room, % many young teachers
do, without system and without meth
DDS OF any kind.
Miss Nicholson said that there 10 time
enough to develop originality after leav.
ing school. She could not understand
how u kind Of an education would
destroy Independence OF thought and
action In the sohoolroom, or anywhere
else. =,
Professor s. G. Cossrovs regarded
normal training q help. but the real sue.
cess Of any teacher must depend upon
his scholarship, and his natural fitness
to impart his knowledge to others. BY
attending normal schools q or more
years after finishing Q technical educa.
lion. girls acquired greater age. and he
was rather partial to old maids for
teachers. He condemned the action OF
School Boards for turning women out Of
school simply because they are married.
Hs had aeeu evidence for the assertion
that tho normal school system has been
9 means Of great good to the public
schools.
Miss Csshion thought the Virginia
High School graduates are as cempetsnt
and as we'll qualified to teach - normal
schosl graduates. She said the evening
had been spent 10 talking about the
schools Of the East, and she would like
to hear something about the schools OF
the West.
supt. W. ". Boohsr thought NO mi
had intended to speak unoompliuentary
Of the schools here; and he thought no
schools Of the United States were su.
perior to those Of Storey county. He
then gave the Institute the benefit Of
his observation in somo Of the schools
Of the East while on o visit there last
summer.
Superintendent Booher next took up
the subject OF fractions, and explained,
by use OF the blackboard, two ways OF
illustrating the subjscts-addihon. sub
traction, multiplication and division.
Several new practical ideas were ad.
yauosd by the speaker. He then gave
the members OF the Institute an oppor.
tunity to ask him questions on the sub
jsct, and q general talk ensued.
On the whole, the meeting was un-
usually interesting. It was . disappoint.
meut to the members OF the Institute
that 20 few Of the citizens OF Gold Hill
were In attendance, since this session
was held here In compliance with the
special request OF the Geld Hill teachers
and their friends.
THE best argument against normal
schools. according to the opinion Of an
a,tachs Of the News. appears 10 have
been overlooked in the discussion re-
ported above. 1t Ia held BY many
persons who have given educational mat
tsrs much study aud thought that the
State has no more moral right to spend
the msnsy Of its taxpayers In fitting
young ladies' and young men to teach
than Il has 10 at yousg men to become
lawyers. physicians or journalists at the
public expense. It 10 the duty OF the
State to give the children Of Its citizens
the rudiments OF q good English eduoa.
ton, but nothing more. and II any desire
Injuries, or TO ftthemsslvss for teaching