Morning journal and courier., 1883-10-20

r,srture, but few staid and discussed the question of manual training schools in an in | formal manner.
 me capacity of the High School hall was | tested to its utmost last evening. The exers cises were opened by singing by the High l school The selection was "On,to Gloxy,s from Lucia do Lammermoor. The commit tee in necrology said that they had no report | to make Miss Lizzie Gaffney and MT. B. E. Bushnell sang Mendelssohn's Evening Song and the Voyage. It was rendered with un- 1 usual grace and effect and received pre- sss Pres. Porter then occupied the platform for a brief season. He said he had been un- able to find the paper he read at previous convention, but would try to do what be could in the short time allotted to him. He spoke on the subject of The Personal Ele- nnent in Teachine" He said that the ten- deney was to dispense with the personal ele-
 ment especially in teaching. Many think
 that teaching does not require personality, that anyone can turn the machine. The
 methods of teaching have been greatly i'm
 proved. From the perfection of these meth
 ods has sprung the opinion that 1t is of little consequence who the teacher is if the machine is kept in good running order. But is 1t not
 true that the more complicated the machine
 the greater skill must be displayed in US
 management? The perfection of the ma
 chine calls for greater potency in the maehln-
 ist So in teaching, if the analogy IS worth anything. :. The teacher has to do with Individuals with every variety of temperament, unequal in their previous training and their individual capacity. Every man has way of his own | of looking at truths; no matter what he teaches, he has all the indictment to ! which he can respond to bring to the mind of the pupil the contents of the
 text book. And here he has an unlimited opportunity for skill Individuality and inven- r. kion poora auanlA all tha arT1QFak T1G ! which is put under his hand, the greater de- l mand upon his genius. He must excite the
 various dispositions of his pupils to interest. It is often work of years to obtain the power of doing this. The perfection of what | is called German teaching is the arousing of
 the whole class to an excited interest, all at- l tent all on the alert, ready to hear and
 more ready to be heard. Turning now to the emotional element, we find that personality is more signally called for. Many teacher lacks the genius for
 sympathy with the pupil, and he will soon | be mortified by his own failure. Success in | teaching is generally due to an intense per
 sonal sympathy and an indomitable purpose | to succeed.
 The obligation of a teacher appeals to us to
 bring as far as possible our personality to
 the work of teaching. What stimulus can be more powerful than that which is brought to bear on the teachers to maintain ardor and enthusiasm? The teacher knows that he is the most important actor on the stage or thlS generation and that his influence has an inn l portant bearing on the next generation. A 1 teacher must also master the subject matter
 which he teaches, not the text book. 1 AS to what is to come of the public school system of the future we can hardly predict ! If it lives up to it's high standard it will com
 mand the respect of the community. The teacher should care not only for the routine | work If he does the institution will die. | The speaker said he knew what | it was to hear blundering rec
 itations and have to deal with dull minds,
 but he knew also that the reward of patience
 and assiduity was ample in the love that the scholars bear for their teacher. The school sang 'sHe is Watching Over
 Israel, !" and that closed the evening session.
 The programme for this morning is as fol l lows:
 | 9:0O.-Devotional exercises, Rev. Edwin s. Lines. 9:15.-"Reading in Primary and Gram mar Grades, y
 A. B. Stevens, principal of Grammar s:hooi, Stam- l ford.
 | 9:z5.-Discussfon of the subject, to be opened by ! ". F. Gordy, Ansonia.
 10:I5-Recess.
 | 1O:2O-''The Public School System of To-day; it's Aims and Methods" O. F. Carroll, principal State Normal school New Britain.
 ". l. TwitcheIl, Hartford, J. K. BuckIyn, My stie. | 11:20-RecesR
 1 11:30-Report of committees. Election of officers. l 12.00-Doxology. Adjournment.