New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1885-04-22
Professional Knowledge and
The Institutes.

FTOJe06eO71OI AnOWISQ0e ana
The Institutes.
No one needs professional knowledge
more than school teachers, yet no one has
less than many of them do; this is es-
pecially true with the majority of teach
ers in district schools. Scholarship has
been the chief consideration with cOun-
ty superintendent before licensing such
teachers; while professional knowledge
has been almost entirely neglected by
both school boards and county super
intendents; whereas it should have been
required by both.
Scholarship is necessary before one
can teach at all, professional knowledge
before he can teach well, and expert
ence before he can become an accomp-
lished teacher. Professional knowledge
should embrace not only the best me-
thods of teaching and the principles
that underlie them, but also fair
knowledge of the science, philosophy
and history of teaching.
Having now called attention to SUBJ
ject in which many teachers are sadly
ignorant and which ali teachers should
know; it leads US to inquire whether
Institutes have done much for teachers
in regard to this all important question,
to which it must be admitted that they
have not: first, because a large part
of what has been taught and suggested
at institutes has little or no application
in district schools, because it supposes
too many conditions that do not exist;
secondly, all that has been taught
which is valuable may be written in
very small compass,
Some of the methods suppose that
the scholar knows ten times as much
as he actually does. for example, it is
said that scholar knows from 200 to
500 words when he first enters school;
but if he is a Bohemian or Scandinavia
an, in all probability. be- does not know
more than dozen English words, and
perhaps no more than two, viz, yes and
no.
Many other examples might be cited
it space would permit.
Some of the methods suppose that the
scholars attend regularly, and that the
parents are willing to supply them with
whatever the teacher suggests they
should have, which is not true by any
means. Other methods suppose that
the school is we'll supplied with appa-
ratus, which is also false in the majori-
ty Of cases. Some of their methods are
not philosophically sound, for example,
the phonic method of learning to read.
A grave objection to the entire work
of institutes may be urged on the ground
that all the valuable knowledge taught
at them may be learned by taking a
couple of good educational journals.
To require teachers to attend an. insti-
tute yearly to hear somebody talk over
what they have read in educational
journals is about as reasonable as~to re-
quire the farmers to meet once year
to listen to some one talk over what has
been published in their county newspa-
per.
Many Of the institute instructors have
not been in district school for ten or
fifteen years, and some of them have
never taught in such 4 school in their
lives; hence they know very little about
the condition and needs in such schools.
If institute instructors expect to be of
any great service to teachers in district
schools, it seems eminently fitting that
they should visit such schools and show
the utility of their methods by putting
them into practical operations in. the
schoolroom. We have no desire to, de-
molish Institutes but we have a right
to ask them to accomplish the end for
which they::were designed or at least to
accomplish something that shall be- AN
equivalent of their expense.
Professional knowledgeis what teach
ers need. and we have a right to- re-
quire it of them; and, if they cannot
get it at the institutes, they must get it
somewhere4else One of the best ways,
perhaps. of raising the grade Of
teachers in. this respect is for county
superintendents to require teachers to
pass an examination in this subject the
same as arithmetic, geography, history
etc., letting at least one half of the ex-
animation be on this subject; moreover
every teacher should invest five or six
dollars in purchasing professional
books and educational journals.
1t may be objected that many teach
ers will not invest in books and Jour.
nails, to which it may be replied that
they will have to, if they expect to pass
the inevitable examination.
If teachers ever expect TO amount to
anything, they must study and read to
keep up with the times.
THEo. ToB1As.
Golden Gate Ne,vsZet&
Mr.. c, Sterling has arrived from the