The Weiser signal. [volume] (Weiser, Idaho) 1890-1904, 1891-03-26
The WEISER SIGNAL.
THURSDAY, MARCH &c, 1891
Monthly Recommendations.

Few people who are not pro-
fessional educators understand how
valuble, educationally, examinations
can be made, ana therefore | take
advantage Of the space the SIGNAL
has so kindly allowed me, to present
its merits to the parents Of the dis
trict in order to secure their cooper
alton. For without their cooperation
any school work can Of course be
only partially successful.
OF the many advantages OF exami-
nations | would mention first that it
gives the pupil an incentive to work.
Very few people have such & natural
desire for knowledge as to perseyere
long in difficult course without an
outside incentive. Cast glance
back to the time when, urged by that
mobiles. Of motives, desire for improve
ment, you started course of study
by yourself / know not what it
was, algebra perhaps bookkeeping,
French, short hand, or literature.
How long did you keep It up? A
month? Yet if you had been in
class, with regular Rotations you
would have mastered it.
Last fall | borrowed a pony to 90
to Salubria. He was good pony
but he had no ambition to 90 fast
when he knew not where he was
going, and so, for the first mile or
two, | had to use the whip pretty
freely, Then | fell in with two other
horsemen, and 10, the pony kept up
with scarce an effort on my part
So it is with the pupil. Left to
himself; he will lag grow weary, cease
studying altogether. For this reason
Indiana has course of study and
diploma for even her county schools.
Just here the examination helps the
pupil. AS the pony was spurred on
by desire to keep abreast Of his
companions, so the pupil is. Exam
nation furnishes him with a standard
by when he can measure himself
with his fellows. And this is no slight
incentive Half the fun of most
games, baseball, tennis, checkers,
consists in the pleasure of outstripping
your. adversary. Why not utilize
this principle for a more useful
purpose?
Another way in which the pupil is
stimulated TO new efforts is in meas
uring with himself. In other words
the love of advance. This is not as
strong as the other in the young, but
the germs of it are there, and in later
life it becomes ruling motive. The
lawyer, the doctor, watches day by
day to see how he is advancing in his
profession; the merchants counts over
his sales at night to see whether they
are greater than those of yesterday.
No desire can be nobler than this
of going forward, of becoming better
and ADLER.
The thing however which usually |
affects the pupils most in his edu-
cational life is Che influence of his
parents. If they are careless whether
he learn or not, he will in all
probability be the same. If they
take q lively interest in his progress,
ask him every evening how he pro-
crossed that day, look over his hard
problems with him question him about
his geography, study will take on a
new interest and higher importance
to him. Here again, the examination
helps. With its help the report card
land report cards cannot be true
lndices of progress without exami-
nations) tells the parent what record
The pupil is making for himself
The father learns that his boy likes
and doesn't like grammar
And then he shows him how necessary
1t is, if he Is to be the man he can be
TO be able to use his native language
correctly, both with tongue and pen.
Then too, when he has studied long
and earnestly, and comes home at the
end Of the month does it not help
him to be able to show high record to
bis rejoicing parents? The happiness
Of giving pleasure to our loved ones
is as high and pure as il is strong.
And is educational in itself.
An examination rightly conducted,
IS best kind Of review. Recitation
IS valuable chiefly because in telling
a fact it becomes fixed in She memory.
Napoleon used to write the name of
4 person intoduced to him, on a slip
81 paper and then throw it away