The Abbeville messenger. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1884-1887, 1885-07-29
THE TEACHERS INSTITUTE.

House. A goodly number of our citizens
out to hear the opening address Of
the Rev. W. d. Gricr. A larger mum
Der Of teachers than had evcr attended
one Of these institutes, was noticed
throughout the audience. Comment
npon DR.. Gricr's address is altogether
unnecessary, M the people Of Able
vile County and every other place that
has heard him. know he never says
any thing that is not worth listening to.
DR.. Grier spoke in substance as fol-
lows:
The Claims of Mcdiocrity.
We arc met in the interest of education in
general, and of the common school in partic-
ular."
There n number of possible meanings
which may attach to the word "common''
when applied to schools.
1t may mean ordinary. The word is fire.
qncntly used in this sense We speak Of a
common preacher, q common doctor or q com
ing evidently is, commonplace, ordinary. 1t
is possible that there are schools in this coun-
try, perhaps there are some in Abbevillc
County to which the term may be apTt$jdku
this sense. They are commonplace sch"6ls.
The teulhcr is aversc to anything unusual.
lie makes no special effort to instruct the pu-
pills, and they haye enough of our common
humanity in chem to be satisfied with this ar
rangcmcnt. Both parties act upon the prin-
ciple of mutual and equal rights, asking only
to be let alone the teacher in his indolcncc
aud Indifference and the pupil in his steady
deviation to play. Let us f%csvcntiy hope that
such common schools are not common.
Another sense in which the term may be
.,e,,l 9. khnk .vtsnl, 1n1x,, - -.... .-l A..
which all have equal rights md privileges.
Now the thought which we wish to present
is that the common school, the school that be-
longs to the public and to whose privileges
aud opportunities many citizens have an equal
right, this common sho0l is for common chill
dren. II Is not for the specially bright aud
gifted !: it is not for apt scholars who so inter
est us BY their rapid progress, but rather for
those who have no unusual application and
whose home-surroundings Ife not favorable
to study. Our plea is In behalf of mediocre
The mcdiocres constitute the large majnri-
ty in many schools. They are to be the prin-
cipal element in our %sncictv. A few Noun
Mt. Gaurasnnker, of the Hlnulayas. attract
the attention of all travellers. They are
among the wonders of nature. Bnt they mnst
have IL base to rest upou. Underneath their
lofty and snowy attitudes there is a strong,
compact stratum of solid granite. In it's
lowly bed it nurses these Gslinths of rock
and ice, and, concealed from observation, it
has it's just praise from some patient miner or
gcologist. The noblest institutions of our
society find their base In those Flooding boys
and girls who must needs wreStle for weeks
with the multiplication tab &C and who, only
after much painstaking master the rudiments
Of grammar. These dull scholars build slow
ly, but they build well.
LIST. They justly claim extra textual help.
No Textbook furnishes a comdletc statement
even Of the elements Of u particular subject.
Their authors assume that there is a teacher
back of them who will supplement what .is
stated in nero outline. All the essential
princieles NAV BE- there-there in their lopi-
cal order and set forth with technical accura-
cy. But this will leave much for the teacher
to explain aud illustrate. II you have ever
tried to learn a language, ancient or modern,
dead or living, simply from grau.mars and
primers, 20" know what a difficult and unsat-
isfactory method It Is. After you have done
your best and when you congratulate your
self thus upon your a~ttninmcnts, then intro
duce a thoroughly capable teachers, and it will
be like letting i'll n beam Of light into a room,
full Of dust. The deficiencies will appear in
every quarter, pronunciation, translation and
construction.
The teacher cannot III fcly dispense with n
good text book but it viii be his guide and
not his master.
Mediocrity will call for help additional to its
necessarily brief SUMMARIZE.
There is u language Of signs and symbols;
there are methods of illustration which pre,
sent truth much more intelligibly, especially
to young persons, than any abstract. state
ment however full and accurate.
I'd. Mcdiocri,y has n claim to a considera-
ton of it's individual needs. Mental philoso-
piers tell us that, some knowledge 0f mind.
Of. lis faculties, its modes of operation is
necessary to the work of the teacher. It is a
scholar, aud that is all there is of it. All the
subtle and innumerable influences which af-
feet individuals, which separate men from
eaoh other In temperament, mental habit and
ptofcssIonil bias, all thes e begin to operate
at o very early age and they must be rccop-
nized in all the work of the teacher. Physi-
clans have found that remedies which are nd
MirablY suited to certain persons are entirely
unsatisfactory, if not dangerous in the same
disease with other persons. Results which
rience with others are not realized. br.
Trumbell tells Of q distinguished physician
who waA a witness in a case where q person
mud been given poison. One of the LAWYERS
by way Of ridiculc, asked the physician if he
could tell how much Of the poison in question
would be required to kill a fly. q" think |
could" said The "doctnr, "but I should need
TO know something about the particular y nm
der treatment. l should want to know his
size, his age, his habits of life, whether he
primary school as well as the college profess
snr, must learn the lesson Of the wise physi-
clan.
General rules are a necessity, but they
ought to be few and simple. In their applica-
ton there ought to be a mcrciful fcxibility.
That discipline which is the needed spur IN
one particular case, would completely nm
nerve another. The fright and apprehension
would render a satisfactory recitation limos
sible. Those who make n business of taminy
wild animals find that they have to learn
heir lesson anew with almost every animal.
Sd. Another claim Of mediocritv is that Of
constant review and repetition. The adyan.
tagc of reviews, frequent and thorough, even
to the brightest pupils is apparent and deci-
dcd. To those who do not apprehend readily
they are essential to all real progress. The
desire Of the teacher to advance his pupils
rapidly, to push: them through, their text
books may tempt him 20 forego this import
ant exercise. The parents, too, often-tfmes
unwiscly con- plain If their children are NOT
constantly turning leaves, forgetting TINT the
most substantial acquisitions may result from
an almost impercel tible abundance. The in.
junction "hnstcn slowly" has its unauaIi6ed
application to learning.
Earnest and intelligent teachers who have
fdr years been going over the same ground
find that they learn something with every re-
view.
The process of complete mental appropria-
tiOn il slow, All nublic apeakeru