The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1885-06-25

brothers at asking such questions, that
he, remained silent and awaited results,
Gow,~Is would like to tellyou Of the
dismal failure that college president
made how the students Of the institu
tion disobeyed every moral law aud made
themselves the terror Of the community ;
leaving heBle moral young. men with the
intention OF preparing for the ministry
and coming homo reprobates, outlaws
and moral lepers; but if were TO give
you the details 1t is possible that my
subject might be recognized, and ! pre-.
fer not 20 do him any more harm he
has done himself too much harm already
by accepting q position for which he and
his earnest friend ought to have known,
he was wholly unfit. But my learned
friend had an idea. II was that every
man that is a good scholar and is big
enough to thrash the biggest boys will
necessarily be good teacher. Nothing,
Of course, could be more erroneous than
this. But, after all, isn't this just the
idea on which Pennsylvania teachers'
examinations are based? What under
the sun is the relation between profound
scholarship. and aptness to teach? Some
of the brigEtcst scholars are the worst
failures ia the school. room. Imagine
Locke, Sir William Hamilton, or Lap.
lace, in the kindergarten or teaching
beginners to read We have no doubt
they would have failed. Nothing is
more certain than that to teach well one
must bring himself to his pupils level.
One Of tho troubles of our overwise men
is that they shoot over the heads of their
pupils and fail to impart instruction in q
shape ineligible to the learner Every
teacher knows that often when ali bis
own ingenuity and patience have been
exhausted in trying unsucceesfully to
explain o point to n pupil, that same
pupil will catch hint from an associate
which clears up the difficulty at once.
think II is All outrage upon Pennsyl-
vnnia teachers that they are subjected to
80 many examinations, when the result
OF the examination means so little. 1t
the teacher could begeen at his work for
an hour, or if o special class or two we're
brought in and he were required to teach
half hour, an intelligent board Of direc.
tors would be able in less than ten min
utes to determine whether or not ho
would be successful in their school room.
agree with you that ssuperintendents
| should bs empowered tofensw oil grades
| of certificates the PROFESSIONALS from year
to year, unless the candidate himself
prefer to go into the examination to
! securc better certificate than he held
before.
Just as soon rs the standard is fixed at
the professional certificate, or when it is
| understood that as soon as teacher
reaches one and a.half, allowing that one
| half for excitement, confusion from the
presence OF visitors, improper questions
by the examining officer, etc, he need
pass no further examination in that
branch, we shall have ten anxious for the
examination where now nine detest it
and worry about it, while possibly one is
willing to undergo the ordeal. If teach.
| ers must be examined and examined, let
1t be not as to their scholarship but as to
| their fitness to teach and their success in
| the actual work of teaching.
/ hope, Mr.. Editor, that w..;.s YOUR
article has set me To thinking and talk
ing that my little effort may not fail In
helping teachers and ,superiuIendents to
SEQ this question in its true light. We
have been taking our, case too long in
this Stnte 1t is limo that We move for.
ward. Our prejudiccs are strong, know,
but thoy are not worthy of us. We old
men are partially to blame because we do
not give the youngsters more encourage.
mentto take hand In the fight.
Yours for improvement,
L. THOMSON, ESQUIRE.