The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1890-07-24

nishes opportunity for their exercise.
The power to do or the willingness to
abstain in opposition to the pressure OF
inclination cannot be bestowed upon the
child; it cannot be taught him; it is the
attribute of no form of knowledge; nor is
the secret of imparting it, with the pas
sive acquiescence of the person to be IN
vested, known to any philosopher or
priest. The skillful teacher directs the
activities of the child into channels OF
development and the pupil gains strength
to overcome the difficulties which the
future may bring by meeting bravely and
conscientiously those which the present
offers.
The first requisite of good teaching is
to realize fully that the instruction given
is to aid in the mental and moral growth
of the pupil The next, to understand
that this growth comes through activity
of mind and conscience. To think and
act for the child is to train him to be
weakling; to accept hasty or imperfect
work is to educate him to be shallow IN
his thought, Indifferent in his investiga-
lions and reluctant to fully discharge any
obligation resting upon him. There must
be form, substance and completeness IN
what the child thinks and does or he be-
comes a delinquent mentally and the
canker CT dishonesty soon reaches his
moral nature. Moral teaching as well as
mental, consists in having the child act
and feel and not in having him repeat.
The feeling of accountabilityscan in no
other way be so we'll implanted as by
holding the child to strict, thorough,
prompt and conscientious performance
of the task assigned him. The character
of the future man and woman is largely
fashioned in the school room. There he
is first taught that the indulgence
of individual preferences must yield
to the higher demands of public good
and there a sense of duty is substi.
tuted for the truant feeling of irresponsi-
bility. II this is done wisely and with
tact every act will bear the stamp OF en-
lightened conscience and the growth to-
ward maturity will not be in years alone.
The teachers we want are those whose
conception OF the work to be done IN
cludes something more than imparting
| knowledge of the common school branches
with reference to their value in COM
| Il III Of Mi ~
is the commonly accepted one by patrons
as the object of the school. But to the
| true teacher it is more an incident than
an end. The discipline is.what he regards
as the valuable product of the work done
under his supervision. The word dis
| cipline" in this connection must be di-
vested of its can't significance and allah
sorbing generality. What discipline does
| for the child may be outlined as follows:
% Teaches him to recognize the
claims which duty has on him.
(2) Binds the ''highty purpose" to
work toward the attainment of certain
end
(3) Teaches him to analyze carefully
the nature of that which he intends to
perform and to master in detail the diff
culties it presents.
"a Teaches him to study conditions
with view to employing means suitable
to their requirements.
g Teaches him to be methodical and
logical in all his operations so that the
efforts mrde will have direction toward
the end sought.
Co Inculcates habits of honesty in
thought, word and deed; insures recog-
milton of~duty toward society and aids in
witkstanding temptation to do anything
unmanly or mean.
It is evident that discipline is not Sc
cured when the teachers purpose is
limited 10 dealing ont fragments of
knowledge simplifed to degree which
makes digestion unnecessary or in such
crude form as TO make digestion impos-
sible Bat the school board often as
sumes that the backwardness OF the
school Is measure of the qualifications
OF the teacher needed, and the trained
teacher who can draw ont the faculties
of the child and strengthen them by ex-
ercise, must give way ia the novice who
can ''teach reading, writing and a little
arithmetic that We want in our
school" There IS nothing stimulating
in tie work ola teacher whose quaiifca-
tons are dependent upon the lack of
scholarship in the school to be Taught.
Good teaching consists in the manner In
which instruction is given, tie purpose
which it is intended TO serve and It's
adaptation to the ends sol. ht The
ratio of adaptability tothe subject is con-
slant in all grades and the purpose