Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-03-08

ENCE-NANY ORIGINAL IDEAS ADVANCED AND
FoRcIBLY PRESENTED.
The third and last days session Of the De-
partrnent of Superintendent was held to-day
at the national museum. The first paper read
elected long and interesting discussion. 1t
was on teachers examinations, and was read by
NJ. A. Newell, state superintendent of public
instruction. Maryland. In the course Of the
paper he said the teachers should be examined.
because in all professions course Of prepara-
ton is exacted and the proficiency of the
students tested by examination and attested by
the examining body. The examiners should be
teachers. Farmers sitting down to
would be comical, he thought, il
the results were not SO often tragicaL The
diploma of high school or college recognized
by the state should be regarded as evidence Of
fitness for teaching. He spoke in favor of the
REORGANIZATION of teachers lawyers physicians.
and ministers are not obliged to undergo this
additional test, but the necessity in the case of
teachers arises from the fact that young people
often begin to teach just when they are begin
ming to learn. 1t is necessary that the habits
of a student be kept up by external stimulus
until the internal stimulus has been brought
into action and the habit of
STUDY BECOMES SECOND HABIT.
This process of denomination should have a
definite termination, say four years. The
speaker favored the examination of teachers ON
the subjects they are required to teach. They
should also be tested outside of school text
books on matters of general information which
all well-informed persons are expected TO know.
DIR. Newell thought state uniformity in examin-
ations was not practicable, and county uniform
ity only partially so. The same man may mark
the same paper differently, according to the
state OF his digestive apparatus. The standard
of marking must be uniform and then the same
standard must be set up for all localities
Many places that most need a teacher would
not be able to find one. Even if the salaries
are equalized the difficulty would not be re-
moved for their are districts in every state in
which no highly qualified teachers would con-
sent to live for any compensation that the dis
trict or county could give him.
When there is but one examining authority
county uniformity in examinations can be
secured partially. But even in a county some
regard must be paid to localities. 1t need not
be added that where salaries differ it is absurd
to expect qualifications to be the same.
EXAMINATION FOR PROMOTION
was the theme of the next paper, which was
read by VIM. De Witt Hyde, president of Bow
doin college. Brunswick, Me. He said: This is
a question on which the greatest diversity,
both in theory and practice, prevails. The OBJ
jectlons mad against examinations as they
have been conducted are valid. The remedy,
however, is not to be found in abandoning ex-
animation. Examinations must be improved.
1t Is an absurdity and imposition on pupils
to give an examination at the end of term
or year, concerning all the minute details
gone over in this long period. There are at
least three ways in which knowledge may be
held in a pupils mind. These are: Simple ap
prehension, power to apply, and comprehension.
Now. examination should test all these three
processes of knowledge. The tests of simple
apprehension of daily lessons should be fire.
quent reviews. They should cover only small
period of work. The power of pupil to make
PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF HIS KNOWLEDGE
should be tested by giving him work to do at
his leisure. and to hand in for inspection, and
this is the sort of test the pupil will meet in
real life. 1t shows what he can do with his
knowledge. 1t trains him at the same time in
accuracy, neatness and form. The testing of
the pupils comprehension of the broad bear
ings and leading features of subject is the
province, and the only prorince of the final ex-
animation. The questions should never go into
details. should never care for memorizing of
isolated facts; but should be based on topics
dwelt on by the teacher in the final review.
BY combining these three kinds of examination
you give every type of mind fair chance; you
avoid cram and worry; you insur. an education
that is thorough, without burdening the men,
DRY with an excessive load of minute details;
you insure an education which can put its
knowledge into practice; you insure an educa-
ton which comprehends the meaning of the
subjects studied and you do all this without
injuring or worrying the pupil; without dis
trusting and hampering the teacher. Such
method OF examination recognizes that there
are more than one type of mind, and more
than one process Of knowledge. 1t gives due
weight to each, and holds all in subopdination
to the great aim of education which is to
develop in sympathy and harmony the minds
of all its pupils.
nanar on the sor,a sub;act mos rood nv
VIM. NJ. GIFFIN, OF NEWARK, Nj
He said Examinations, as ordinarily con-
Quoted, do not give the results of good teach
ing, because they are based upon the SUPPOSE
ton that book-knowledge is everything.
cross selfish, and even brutal teacher may
make good textbook scholars. We are running
wild over strength of body and mind, and ne
glecting the culture of the soul. There are
thousands of teachers who are wild over facts.
..where2" ''which?S "when?" "How?' Special
results stand at the end of all thier ideas of
school work.
How absurd to judge of the competency of
the teacher by the results she may obtain from
term or annual examination. Such teachers
give as much time to the G. c. d. and L. G. NJ,
and that old father of frauds, allegation, as to
the practical principles of arithmetic, fearing
they NAV be in the Official examination, while
all the dates from Christopher Columbus to
Benjamin Harrison are stored away IN the
memory, taking the place of better things.
child should never be refused promotion be-
cause of failure in some one study, providing
he shows a good knowledge of the other SUBJ
jects. DIR. John Locke. the author of that
mastery work, ION the UNDERSTANDING" never
mastered the multiplication table.
/ protest against being obliged to test a class
with set of questions prepared by disinter-
ested non-professional committee man, who
has no more knowledge of the principles of
tenn of singing. and who is just about as success
protest against promoting any pupil, be his
record ever so high in textbook knowledge.
when he has spent the whole year in
ACTS OF PURE CUssEDNEss,
using up more of the teachers nerve force than
any other half dozen pupils, because he sat up
till midnight during the last month of the
school year learning the words of his textbook
by heart, and answering a sufficient number of
the questions to obtain his IS per cent average.
Such system simply impresses on the minds
of the pupils that it is not our daily life that is
of importance, but all Is to be summed up at
the eleventh hour. Thousands Of our young
men have thus learned TO take their
chances when they came in contact with the
world; nor is it surprising, inasmuch their
whole education had tended to impress them
that such is life. Hundreds of children in our
country every day have no idea of the true
value Of an education.
Their idea of it is to get per cent in exam
nation. II given their choice in knowing
much, and ranking low in their class. or know
ing little and ranking high, they would unhes-