Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1886-09-17


teacher bears the same relation to the
board as the president to congress
The teacher is the executive, the
the board the legislative. There
can be no successful administration,
if these departments play at cross
purposes. There must be
COOPERATION,
co-cilicicncy, co-partncrship. So,
too, the teacher and patrons
must 90 hand in hand each having
the welfare of the pupil at heart.
There are many who think that the
teacher is to be held responsible for
the whole training of the child
mental, physical, moral, as long as
he is under the teachers care.
This is grave mistake. The
work of the teacher is supplemcn-
tary to that Of the parent and he
should be held amcnablc only for
that part he is in duty bound to do.
1t is unfair to make him the scapc-
goat to bear the mistakes of the
community, besides bearing his own.
Parents should share the response
bility and be answerablc for the part
they take in educating the young.
The cooperation of the patrons
may be secured in variety of ways.
Suffice it for me to mention two.
Firstly visiting with them both
MS teacher and a friend. Not con
timing the conversation TO school
matters, but freely discussing matters
of general interest; for teachers
should be informed on other sub ects
than teaching and teachers work.
They ought to be prepared to talk
of finance, religion, politics, litcra-
ture, topics of the time, great men,
inventions, countries, people etc
in fact about all matters of general
tercst and importance a. well as ped
adgogics
Second-this cooperation may be
obtained by inducing the patrons TO
visit the school. Sometimes
cordial invitation will be
all that is necessary. Again il
may be nccdful to have special cNcr
ci,cs like rhetoricals, celebrations OF
poets days, competition exercises
etc. to get them to come.
There is a way (and not belit
ting, patronizing one) to make tic
patrons feel a deep concern in the
welfare of the school and happy j,
the teacher who finds it. Whcnevel
patron does visit the school, the
teacher ought to be cordial, willing
to explain the workings of the de
partmcnt, meet suggestions half way
take unfayorable criticisms kindly
and unhcSitatingly counsel the pa
pills best interest, remembering thai
there are things about his pupils thai
he can learn in no other way, thar
through their parents.
Another of the necessary element,
of success in teaching and perhap'
the most important Is
CHARACTER.
Emerson saws Character is mora
order seen through the medium oil
an individual nature-mcn Of charac
ter are the conscience of the society
to which they belong" Martin Luth
or says "The prosperity of a country
/ depends not on the abundance of it,
revenues, nor the strength Of its for
/ tihcationS, nor on the beauty of it,
public buildings; but it consists in the
number of It's cultivated citizens, in
its men Of education, enlightenment
and character; here are to be found
its true interest, its chief strength.
its real power Samuel Smiles says
Character embodied in thought and
deed is Of the nature of immortal
ty.' How necessary 10 teacher, is
character. How indispensable to
success. Character is moral rccti-
tudc Character is well intcntioncd,
heaven born, praiscworthy. Is not
vicious, unprincipalcd, lost to virtue.
Character scorns TO do base deeds.
does not reveal the cloven foot upon
the closest scrutiny, does not sneak
around and 90 up the back stairs.
Great men are great because of char.
acter, rs is proven by the fact that
the .olitary thought of a great think
er viii dwell in the minds of men
for centuries, until it becomes EN-
bodied in their daily lives and prac-
tees. 1t lives through ages inhu-
encing men to noblcr thoughts and
deeds speaking a. a voice from the
dead. Thus Moses, David, solomon.
Plato, Socrates, Seneca and Cicero
are still speaking TO Us from their
tombs-theirlives, thoughts, motives
are moving Us today. Some one has
truly said that every institution is but
the lengthened shadow of some great
man-as lslamism of Mohammed.
Puritanism Of Calvin, Jesuitism of
Loyola, Quakeri>m Of Fox, Method
ism of Wesley, Abolitionism of
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