San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1889-04-23
THE CITY SCHOOLS.
Progress Continually Made To-
wards EFFICIENCY.

wal uS EllICISIlCy'
The public schools of his city are develop
ing increased efficiency from year to year
Galveston the onl city in the state whict
two years since led san Antonio schools in the
higher grade of scuOOl work, has been unable
TO maintain her supremacy and has fairly fal
leu into second place. The work IN the grades
UP to fifth. with the exception of language
work, is well systemstized and is progress Dc
satisfactorily. The language work will be re
formed next year and then the whole bust
ness of the grades will be in the cOndit Oh
which it has been the aim OF Superintendent
Smith to reach. The principal idea has Deen
system, organization, regular graduation
These results are now nearly reached, anC
the whole school work made uniform and
successive from the primary grades to the
III sh school departments.
Special attention is being directed to Ian.
guage work. to the teaching of expression
and quite astonishing results have been
reached in some of the high school classes.
The attention being paid to this very I'M por-
tant matter of English composition cannot be
too highly commended. The necessity of thor
oughly ingraining into the consciousness of
the pupils the salient points of all matters
that come before ,hem in their readings, and
training the mind to express as well as re-
caiVC cannot be too strongly impressed. To
this work the SCHOOLS OF this city are giving
specific attention, and the results are quite
satisfactory.
To show how this is attempted a cursory re-
view OF the course laid down for the high
school grades is sufficient. The Seiections for
the exercises are all masterpieces of good
ella Ssit al English, with such authors as Gold
smith, Gray, Irving. Milton. Shakespeare, Ba
con Tennvson, etc. These selections
are read, and critically read, with re
terence to the life and writings nj
the author and his contemporaries: the
formation of his words, the construction of
his sentences and tue expression of his
thoughts. This is followed by close study of
his illusions biographical, historical. classical;
with the scenes. characters and events intro
duced. The style, its peculiar characteristics
and the rhetorical figures employed are CON
mended, and the pupils frequently required
to present written analy sis of the subjects or
oral discussions upon the same. To these are
added frequent written exercises on topics
which the pupil has been taught TO consider
fully.
This work has only been Systematically
undertaken within the last year TIE work
there is carried on as in our colleges aud
academies. tOpicaIlv, each teacher having his
own branch of study and is therefore always
better equipped for successful teaching, hav
ing his entire attention and energy d rected to
one special branch of instruction.
what is true of the department of English
competition holds good throughout and San
Antonio can congratulate herself on the I'm
disputed fact that year by year her school
grade rises in thOrOughness and efficiency as
well as in scholarship.
The excessive rains and the mise rable side
walks, or rather lack of them, in many places
have seriously interferred with the atten
dance, but the enrolment to date is over 4, To-
Tor the t1fst half year. as compared TO SEQ
Tor the entire year 1888 The staff of teachers
last year numb cred Is and this year there are
70 with one more required for efficient work
in the gh school.