Arizona weekly citizen., 1882-06-25
EDUCATIONAL CoLUxy.
Gro. c. HAl1. EpIron.
Communications for this department should be addressed to its Editor.

Communications for this department
 should be addressed to its Editor.
 THE PUBLIC SCHOOL sTsrsN or ks1zoEA.
 The first steps toward Che orsauiza- 1 ton of Territorial system of public
 schools have been taken ID thead Dtion
 of @ series of textbooks to be used .a
 all the schools Of the Territory, and .n
 the preparation of Q course of study as a guide to teachers 10 the organization 05
 schools. and in the kud, order and
 methods of instruction tp be given iH
 them. The books adopted are, as a
 whole, good. That some 0s them are
 inferior is also true; but. in our opinion,
 the excellence of the instruction given
 in the '7ss-rOom depends much more
 upon the ability of the teacher, than
 upOa the character of the textbooks
 used. We believe, furthermore, that frequent changes of textbooks tend tO
 unsetile the course of instruction. aud
 Co impose unnecessary expense upon
 patrons of scnocl-. Such changes are
 certainly wrong wii.e schools are iu
 tLeir iufaGcy and are barely able 60
 maintain an existence, us is the case
 with many schools ID this Territory.
 The course Of study adopted by the
 Territorial Board "i Edgcation has very
 many excellent features and would be
 practical ID thickly populated districts,
 where schools have long been estah-
 lshed but it Is diEcult tp carry out those instructions i0 the schools oi tlis
 Territory, where Jne populltiuu is souu- stable and cosmopolitan. and where tue length ot school terms varies SD greariy; there being iu some districts three
 moDths' school. m some ..x months and in others Zen months. We dp not write this in a faultiudirg spirit uu
 merely to indicate some of the diH- entities with vlicL ;le Department ri Public Iastru-tion Las had Co contend ana which stili exist.
 < classification oi the schools accord ing to the studies pursued in them, into two OF more divisions or grad g. as primary, grammar and high school, COZ responding to the s5si les oc ce-,iicais- to be issued Go teachers, auI a careful adaptatiou of course of instruction [, the wants oi country. as well as city schools, may Ice approzimatedo and vou,- be productive of good results.
 What the schools of the TerutoV most uecd is thorough suacrv.siaa- IT. aI che oLce of ogpari.. Jendeut Of Schools sh1.li b- sufficient to iustify him in dsy0tio- all bis time t this work. By supervision We do DO mean merely visiting schools but th. spending Of sufficient time iu each dis trict to organize its school, where organ izGtiou is lacking, and Co pe,ec it wLe- it already exists. School supervision C, . be productive Of good results, sLoui . be in the hands ot practical eiuca51r Bv practical educators k meant thas, who are actively engacediu school worb !. and not those who, at some period Q their lives, have taught school as a mar, Supervision implies au abi.- ity tocoanseIaud suggest improvements. and for persons, not practical educators. to attempt this work is plece of p.e sumption, the like oi which would uo' be tolerated iu any profession otherthu that cf teaching AS vesaid in form- editorial. teaching is as much pruie- sion as is the practice ot medicine or lIv As we'll appoint teacher Go supervis, the practice ol i9v, as 1ITo!ut lav yer to supervise the work uf tie ,each5r Trua ths lawyer m-v have received b educau u in tine schools, but thIs a. hm no more for school supervision tha . attendance at court for a few session . would fit teacher for the beach. h : order to supervise properly the work o. | the superintendent must hay, .. a-tical knowledge of the methods must understand .cLu,l e,yI . umy and EeTcrIve the lIiEcUlile. atteh- Iuu tLe work ci ius:lUctob-
 iu most Ct the states. tbe wvro q school supervision is u tb- hands tcacLer- Of long rErl-eIce, Ebu Ga-. made teaching Ike rr.ie>sI aLd a. uy other interests. Il. work tt -urelLteIa.ug tle schools e state or territory i~ ui such Iuporia.e as to claim -he undivided attention those haurEIt iu charge. The fact -l. ;Ee supervision Ui schools & a.metluc :. placed Iu tL- hands .- Uouurlfgs,Iori . men IS owing tl party domination. lH . public -esuul -g gs-ru .lo.ld u' gr.ira. . free ii1m -erjau.ay. ..ulral r,Hs.