St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-09-02
According to the Superintendent Of
Schools.
ADVICE TO THE TEACHERS.
Everything in Readiness for Opening
the Various Buildings To-
morrow.

absenteeS being those teachers who are
out of town and have not returned from
their vacation. The superintendent of
musicled the company in singing, and
a thoughtful address followed, by Su-
perintendent Taylor. This address Gre
ated an excellent impression, it being
replete in timely advice and pertinent
suggestions.
Prof. Taylor first dilated upon the re-
! SpOnSibilitieS and duties of teachers,
and expressed decided opinion of the
advantages accruing from a well spent
vacation. He proceeded to advise teach
erS in the coming term to ascertain the
cause of all absenteeism among their
pupils, and urged that in the general
discipline of the school-roOm there
should be great carefulneSS exercised:
| there should be more firmneSS combined
with government. and firmneSS with
kindness. 1t lifted the school by CIV
ing it healthy tone. All believed in
government. What was a nation, a
state or city without it? 1t was as es-
sential for a school as for either of the
aforementioned bodies. 1t might be
said that the method in use did not pro-
duce the desired effect. Possibly not;
but if it did not, teachers who had done
CiOi OOou uOllC MlluJ COulu
BE EXPECTED OF THEM.
A teachers attention should not be
given specially to single study to the
crowding out of others. Different
teachers had different likes and diSlikes
in studies, and those which were best
liked received most attention. This was
wrong. Each study in the curriculum
of school should receive its proper at
tentlon. Having, during the past year
had the matter of reading in the pri-
mary under consideration, he desired to
bring it to the attention of teachers of
all the grades of the city schools. He
was convinced that this subject was one
OF the real essentials of public school
education, and instanced Lord Bacon's
famous saying that Reading makes
fuIl man, writing an exact man, and
speaking ready man." Its importance
was shown to a sufficient degree by the
efforts made and that We're being made,
to have the methods of teaching
this subject upon lines of mental
development. A pupil was not a
good reader until he could not only give
ideas from the printed page, but could
impart those ideas in clear, ineligible
and pleasing manner. Proper instruc-
ton and drill should give pupils this
power of grasping thought and joining
expression to it. The fact that good
readers were rare in the schools only in
creased the obligation of teachers, not
only to themselves, but to those under
their charge. Correct reading had
much to do with solving the question of
the appreciation and love of good litera-
ture. Here was field which had been
most neglected in the past, and the i'm
portance of which could hardly be over
estimated. Teachers might make ju-
dlclOus selection of books for their pu-
pills and counsel them in regard to the
same: such counsel, given in right
spirit, would invariably be needed, and
thus taste for good reading correctly
formed. If teachers did this the danger
of their pupils drifting into the habit of
reading cheap and sensational stuff,
which
CREATED DIsTAsTE FOR STUDY,
debased and demoralized the mind and
tended to crime, might be greatly
lessened. The best ordered rooms were
governed by the quieteSt teachers. 1t
did not follow, however, that all quiet
teachers were good discipilariaus, but it
generally was true that noisy teacher
was not. A disorderly school was due
to one or two things: A too laxative
teacher, or to poor ventilation, or to both
combined. Good discipline was the
keynote to successful school. Not that
he was believer in the rod of iron form
of discipline, because the correct princi-
pie was to cultivate the moral qualities
of the pupils and take their cOnscienceS
and honor into consideration in plan
ming and carrying out forms of
study. Mental Impressions were
far more lasting than the sting
of the flesh. He was opposed
to Overpressure, and urged that chill
dren should not be kept after school to
study unless the teacher was well salts
fed that failure of pupils to keep up
with their class had arisen from neglect
or laziness, and that they would not suf-
fer any bodily effects from it. Even
this practice should be the exception
and not the rule. Extra home tasks
should not be imposed, and he had no
sympathy with the hot house forcing of
intellectual growth. Two examinations
were now being held yearly, each at
the end of five months, but he thought
arrangements might be made so that
large amount of strain in these exam
nations might be removed from the
pnpils-say an examination upon one
subject each month. After pointing
out that one of the objects of public
schools should be to make good citizens,
and that sure practical methods of
teaching were needed against teaching
mere memory rather than mind he con-
Guided: Teachers, the ground to be
occupied is
READY FOR THE SOWING.
Weigh well your responsibilities, con-
slider well your methods, teach with a
kindliness and energy and perseverance
the cause and the pupils demand, and
may the year be full of the best results
to you ALL"
Supt. Taylor closed his address amid
the hearty plaudits of those present,
and the assembly broke up with the
completion of arrangements for holding
the teachers general meetings. Each
teacher was supplied with copy of the
annual report of the education board,
which was published yesterday.
A large number of parents of prospec-
tive pupils visited the school superin-
tendent yesterday afternoon. and his of
flee presented lively appearance.
With the exception of the Albert Schef-
fer, all the schools are ready for re-
opening tomorrow, and it will be in
teresting to many parents and guardians
to reproduce rule AZ of the education
board: during the first week. of each
term, and on each Monday thereafter,
pupils in all respects qualified may en-
ter the schools by applying to the prin-
cipal at the school building. A pupil
applying for admission for the first
time must be accompanied by parent
or guardian, who shall give satisfactory
evidence that the child il Siy vaarc ola