Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-09-30
EDUCATIONAL MATTERS.

| EDUCATIONAL MATTERS.
State Superintendent Cooper's schoo
report just issued, reviewing the educa-
tional work of the past two years, dis
cusses variety of topics any one 'oi
which is by itself worthy of editorial
| notice and comment. This Is especially
true Of the method Of granting certifi-
| Gates TO applicants who think-often
erroneously-thatt they have in them the
stuff teachers are made of. There is
certainly an urgent demand for improve
ment in this branch OF the service. Other
important topics discussed are, the
organization of school districts, local
taxation for school purposes-a very
important matter, If the coming race is
to be anywise improved intellectually or
other, over its subtreasury, government
loan parentage of to-day.
There is also very timely chapter on
ga more effective supervision of country
schools. 3" Under the existing tax hap
hazard and inadequate fashion of ap-
pointing school teachers without rigid
scrutiny as to qualifications, the need
for county supervision is absolutely i'm
perative. True enough, the county
judge is ex-officio county superintendent
of schools with authority to maintain q
general supervision over them, and see
that they fulfill the requirements of the
law. But how often is it that, O county
judge, elected to that Office without any
sort of reference to his knowledge of edu-
cational matters, is really qualified to
exercise that intelligent supervision that
none but trained educator dare at
dred perhaps is the county judge
trained educator, and master of the de-
tails of school work. Many of them
doubtless, where there is no county
superintendent, render valuable aid, as
far as their other duties will permit, to
the schools In their respective counties;
but If ever so we'll qualified, they have
not the time to visit the schools within
their jurisdiction as should be done fire.
quently, and make such alterations and
notifications, such changes and reforms
as are woefully needed in many of them.
Hence the imperative need in counties
of say, 1000 school population,
of q superintendent whose business
it shall be to devote his entire time to the
Improvement of county schools by weed
ing out worthless teachers-of which it is
judged from Mr.. Cooper's report there is
an abundance-and by reforming old and
obsolete methods of instruction, or WHIP
ing them out altogether.
1t is very clear that until two things are
acne, the rural schools of Texas are
bound to be largely inefficient, worthless
and wasteful. These are first, the en-
! loymeut of intelligent supervision, and
seconly, a change in the manner of ex-
aminng and accreditIng school teachers.
The present method OF examining appli-
cants is so loose and irregular that there
can be said to be no standard whatever,
and all sorts of persons with the slightest
smattering Of the three "R's'' find il
not difficult frequently to break into the
school room, where they are as little
qualified to do any service whatever, or
accomplish any earthly good, as they are
to conceive divine comedies, CT paint
The money pail such
teachers had better be exploded in fire
crackers, and the pupils sent into the
cotton fields, instead of being herded in
worse than idleness, by Jim crow teach
ers, that are no teachers at all, anymore
than they are sculptors and painters,
Raphaels and Correggios.
Other topics of the report touching
finances, taxation and kindred matters,
may call for future comment.