Daily Republican., 1881-04-15
Miss Frazer and the Board "t Eau
cation.

thought that there Is SolhelH'h- '"''
cally wrong in the mode or manner "t
and qualifying teachers Tor
tbe nublic schools. The cause when,
according to her statement, leh I" 'ae
v;rtnal RESIGNATION of Miss Frazer was
the forcing of incompetent teachers upon
her from the training s"hool-teacherS
who had not only signally failed in at
taining a creditablr record OF mental
ability but who We're physically nls-
qualified as well. In order that the
trouble may I've properly understood %-
tween Miss Frazer and the Board OF
Education, it is necessary to kno" that
No. 9 school, at Eighth and Wollaston'
is An execution 10 all the other schools
in the city in that ii is a training or
rather a trial school for teachers
Though there is no actual la" on the
subject, yet it has become an almost IN
exorable rule that no person however
well qualified can be appointed AZ Il
teacher in the public schools unless she
has graduated from the High School,
and taught two months on trial in tram
ing school No. 9, and the other extreme
is that the person who graduates ana
passes her two months in the training
school goes on the list OF acc"ptNi teach
ers, and when the time comes that she
is needed as a teacher she gets the ap-
pointment in regular rotation no matter
how many other names there may he on
the list who are much hetter qualified.
For instance if an applicant for teach
er's position passes through the training
school with an average merit OF % or
40, she is appointed to vacant position
in preference to the one who has aver
age merit credits reaching 20 or 100,
simply because her name comes first on
the list of accepted teachers. In the
case of the difficulty with Miss Frazer
who is principal of the training school,
it seems that two wears ago young
lady graduated from the High School
and was soan afterwards admitted to the
training school where. under Miss Fra
ger, she was according to the almost in
exorahle rules Of the Board to teach
two moHths in one of the primary grades
for nothing before her name could he
placed upon the accepted list of teach
ers. This lady it seems failed to come
MP to the requirements of the estab-
lished rules in Miss Frazrr'S opinion
barely reAching the lowest allowable
merit marks in mental ability and ut
terly failing on account of a physical
disqualification in the very important
point of keeping order. When we are
9old that "Order is Heavens first law
we may have some conception Of the
Importance of having order and disci-
pliue in the public schools. The de-
partmant taught by this young lady it
seems was terribly demorai2ed through
the utter Inability Of the teacher to keep
order and the principal was kept in a
continual hot water stew by large num-
bers Of parents calling and making com
plants that were very diSagreeablC and
uncomplimentary. Miss Frazer was
not alone in heriudgment Of the incom-
potency Of the lady but several promi-
nent members of the Board shared that
belief, but Notwithstanding all this the
name was placed upon the accepted
the first vacancy that should occur. In
the rotation Of two years many changes
occurred amongst the hundred and odd
teachers of the public schools, Teach
EgS die like other people and some Of
them get married, continually making
changes and vacancies in the schools.
These vacancies are filled with the
graduates from the training school in
regular rotation as their names appear
on the accepted list, and by and by, n
vacancy occurred in Miss Frazer school
and as if there was q manifest destiny
in it, the same Objectionable lady tc
Miss Frazer turns up rs teacher in
her own school, and hence the t-Ouble,
Miss Frazer refusing to submit, TO what
she deemed manifest injustice. Per,
sonally we know nothing Of the merits
or dement's of the lady that is the
cause Of Miss Frazer'S present with
drawal as principal from No. . school;
but it is only the system adopted by the
Board is objectionable when enforced in
the appointment of new teachers. 1t
looks to us as if it was equally as unjust
to the schools as to the teachers. If
only an applicant by hook and crook,
and often by the favOritiSm of members
Of the Board Of Education, passes
through the training school and gets
her name placed on the accepted list of
teachers, she is sure Of an appointment
to school sometime, even if that time
should be as much ~ five years or more
distant. This is an injustice to the ap-
plicant, as the expectation of getting
position in the schools keeps her from
engaging in other employment, and
thus whole years of an important period
in life is thrown away.
The system is also unjust because
compels graduates from the High Sci
to teach two months in the ira a
school for nothing. The great Il"
justice of all is subjecting q Sc
two months to the mere tri
ability of an applicant TO te 49,.
is too precious to MANY WI