The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-06-04

|
The Hieh-School and the Traininc-School.
| TO the Editor of the Indianapolis Journal:
| Parson Goodwin's letter in Sundays issue is
not ''good won" this time. as you'll see for your
self If you read it a second time. fear the Par
sons mind Is fun OF cross-purposes, and his con-
illusions do not have that consistency and
| level-headedness usually characteristic of
his writing on social, political and
educational topics. Mr. Goodwin does
| not condemn the High-sehool entirely.
How can he. when he knows the solid education
| of three members of his family was acquired
| there2 The High-schoo has had few better
| patrons or uphoders in the past than Mr.. Good
win. His timely suggestion to not abandon 1t.
but to modify it according to present means and
income has already been adopted by the Boar9.
and essential savings will be made in the future
| by increasing the size of regular classes and
cutting off some of the optional studies.
| What the school board needs at the present
| juncture is the kindly aid and sympathy of ali
interested in our system of public schools. They
| do not go much need increased tax levy as
| they do harmony among themselves If they
bend to the work in hand, saving wherever DOS
sible for q few years. all obligations
may be met. But the saving must be at
every point; every leak must be stopped.
A or 10 per cent reduction all salaries paid
may be necessary to keep within the limits.
Perhaps some of the present officers may De dis
pensed with. The schools are evidently doing as
well now when, under Mr.. Tarbell they en-
| ployed an assistant superintendent and pri-
| mary superintendent, although now the schools
| have neither of these 1t may be that some of
the supervising principles may be dispensed
| with.
| The attack on the training school mot by Mr.
| Geodwln) should certainly be conducted with
! caution. Over half the city teachers are gradu-
| ates of the Hlgh-school and of the training
school. This is the main reason why we are
enabled to do with so little expensive supervision
at present The superintendent knows his
| teachers as he has been q teacher over three
| ffths of them. They understand him and he
| them and he can do more to aid them in five min
utes' conversation than stranger could in an
hour.
| Another point as to the training school: It's
graduates are the daughters of our own people;
| all the money they earn is expended at home;
not one dollar in ten leaves the city, would be
! the case if the training school were abandoned
and the city depended the colleges and normal
schools OF outside cities TO train teachers for US.
Moreover. these teachers know people; their
| own flesh and blood are in the system; they
| readily make adjustments and temper peculiar
| cases to both discipline and instruc-
| tion that outside teachers could not do.
1t is useless to say, "Let them get their educa-
| tion elsewhere. and then come home to teach;'
| it sounds well, but it does not work or pay in
| practice Teachers are, as rule, poor people
| If they save and build homes as teachers. it is
| by personal thrift and frugalitv. Girls of the
refined and wealthy classes do not teach in our
| schools the comedy and most desirable ones of
| the poorer classes are soon mated and mar
| ried out. If they do teach for a year
| or two it is for a wedding journey or
tronsseau, and so, by process of natural
| selection. the plainest and poorest, but not by
| any the less worthy and respectable
women are left in our schools as teachers. It is
| the wisest economy TO see that they educated
in the rudiments of the work they have to do,
| for that peculiar beauty and rneness of charac-
| ter and culture that comes with wealth. leisure
/ to read liberal college education and travel, we
| cannot look for in the great mass Of our teach
/ ers even If it were desirable.
| The best results in city education have always
| come with home-educated teachers. B.