Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-11-23
An Educational Curtosi,y.

EDITORS HERALD-I recently visited
countysseat not a hundred miles from
Los Angeles. Disinterested motives led
me to spend an hour in certain private
school. The town has every visible
facility for good public school. but lack
of faith in the ability of the primary
teachers moved number OF parents to
Withdraw their children from the public
and support this 'select" school.
1t ia undeniably select l am free to
state that while have occasionally met
with curiosity OF this sort in the ''effete
Eaet," as Caljfornians delighI to call the
region beyond the mountains, never
found its equal, never eaw the amount
OF instruction reduced to such minimum,
or the quality 60 thoroughly diluted. The
regent OF the institution is undoubtedly
homeopathic, so far as quantity is
concerned. Thst such schools are
uncommon in the progressive West
l am glad to believe; it is as rare plant
that exhibit it. A reading class stood
about eight feet from the teacher tho
lesson was a story from the facile pen of
Louise M. Alcott. After few rounds of
msnotonous reading, the teacher turned
her book toward the class, pointed to
something and asked: "What's that?"
There was q craning of necks like 30
many hungry geese, then turning to
their books for closer scrutiny; some
answered comma" some "period," ac-
cording to their notion of locality. This
was followed by emphatic instruction to
count one at comma, two at a colon,
etc. Again che asked: "What's that"
There was dead silence. Cant any
of you tell? For shame! Look at your
books" Another close scanning OF the
page, and a little girl raiaed her hand
meekly. "Well, what is it?" "A STOP"
was the answer. "No, no; that's an
interrogation point" impatiently cried
the teacher; "don't you know anything
What's this one? San acclamation
point" That answer was allowed to
pass unchallenged. "Look at the mark
in the word 'shan't;' what is it?" No
one knew. "That is a contraction, and
don't you forget it," saw the effort of
the class 20 fix in mind that the name of
the mark SO like a comma was "con-
traction" After delivering a scathing
rebUke to Miss Alcott for using 80 many
''shan'ts" and "won'ts" in describing
children's conversation, the class was
dismissed. Had the rebuks been uttered
earlier and acted upon Miss Alcott might
have left us less real children.
Two scared midgets were called up to
recite the Primer lesson. The primitive
method of the teacher holding the book
and pointing with pencil was continued.
After vainly trying to get them to spell
out a sentence, she said emphatically,
"Look here, that is n, that is n, that is
&C, that is 'g;' now, what is that ?'' No re.
ply. IT just told you; now tell me-" One
timidly hszarded "h," the other as tim
idly hszarded en-" ''No; that is 'g;'
will you never learn? Anna, what makes
you 80 stupid? l want you to concen-
trate your mental faculties upon this
lesson" The infant looked at her, and
twisted the corner of her tiny apron,
whether in compliance with her own in
depreciation of the big-worded command
or nervousness is uncertain. "Leaye
your apron alone; fix your clothes at an-
other time, and tell me what this letter
is."
Every attempt to secure prone. re.
sponge was failure, and the little folks
went to their seats discouraged. The
Whole proceeding was laughable, had I
not been 30 deeply impressed with the
cruel injustice done to those children.
Our public schools have many de.
fects, but ! doubt if worse school
habits and less learning could
be acquired under any public school
teacher. Seriously, one of the ways
good psople "offend agains. the little
ones" is neglecting to know what they
learn and how they learn it. after
wards learned that there was an annex
attached to the school visited, in which
was an instrument of torture-an iron
rod fastened six inches from the floor;
on this the children were forced to stand
for VARYING lengths of time on penalty
OF severe fogging. How the souls of
Pestalozzi and FI0ble must vince il they
witness these things! can imagine the
wide-eyed horror Of Herbert Spencer
that such state of things can exist in
Americs, under nineteenth century
civilization.
Parents cannot sympathizo too deeply
nor cooperate too heavily with the true