St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-01-02
The PEDACOGIC Cry.
Educationists Take Important
Stand Upon the VeXed
Text Book Law.
Free Text. Books Demanded
and a Series Of Complicat-
ed Bodies Suggested,
AS Well as an Extra S45, 900
Appropriation for Train
ing Teachers.
Child Labor Denounced and
Other Questions SKINNED
Over.

OXGHs
The sessions OF the Educational as
ISOLATION and the Association of County
Superintendent ended yesterday after
noon, and late last evening the trains
bound north, south, east and west were
heavily freighted with the pedagogues.
The meetings OF the two associations
were declared TO have been exceedingly
profitable and interesting. That of the
Association Of County superintendent
Yesterday was of considerable interest
to citizens, as the veXed text book law
came up for discussion. The recon-
mendations made respecting this law
are of a wide-reaching character. The
machinery which, if the recommends
tons were framed into bill. it is pro-
posed to be created for the working of
text book law is so cumbersome as to
seriously weight it, and may be ultl-
mately kill it when discussed in the
legislature. The recommendations are:
l. That a state text book commission
he created, consisting of the state super
intendent of public instruction. who
shall be secretary; one president OF the
normal schools, to be chosen by lot; the
superintendent OF st. Paul or Minneap-
oils schools. to be chosen by lot; the
Superintendent of a state high school,
to be chosen by lot, and two county
superintendent, to be chosen by lot
from among those who have been re-
elected. 1t shall be the duty OF this
commission to select not less than five
nor more than seven text books or
series of text books on each subject
pursued in the common and graded
schools of Minnesota and to make con
tracts with the publisher. The books
selected and contracted for by said
commission shall be the text books for
use in all public schools of the state
below the nigh school, for the term of
six years Immediately following their
selection.
2. That county text book commits
sion shall be created, consisting of the
county superintendent of schools, county
auditor. chairman Of the board OF county
commissioners, and superintendent OF
high school in the county returning the
largest enrolment of pupils, and one
teacher whom they shall choose from
those who have taught in the county at
least nine months. That in those coun-
ties where no state high school exists,
the county superintendent of schools,
county auditor and chairman of the
board of county commissioners shall
choose two teachers from those who
have taught within the county at least
nine months to complete the commits
sion. 1t shall be the duty of the county
text book commission to select from the
books selected by the state book COM
mission one book or one series OF books
on each subject pursued i'll the public
schools of said county below the state
high school, and the list of books so
chosen shall be binding upon said county
for term Of six years. Provided any
school district may at any time purchase
such books as it may desire for supple
mentary reading and work in literature:
and, provided further, any of those dis
tricts in which state high schools are es-
tabiished shall have power to purchase
at any time such text books as the sup
erntendent and board of education in
charge of such schools shall decide to
use in those branches appertalnlng to
the high school course of study.
3. The county superintendent or
schools, county auditor and chairman of
the board of county commissioners shall
constitute a purchasing board, whose
duty it shall be to purchase all books i'll
common and graded schools in the
county, and all orders for such books
not signed by at least two members OF
this board shall be null and void. 1t
shall further be the duty of this pur-
chasing board to keep reasonable sup
ply of the books in use i'll the county in
stock in the office Of the county treas
urer, from whom the districts shall pur-
chase their supply of books.
T. That III all common, independent
and special school districts the text
books shall be purchased by the dis
trict in which they are used, and shall
be the property of said district. And
we respectfully ask the Legislature, in
making provision for the establishment
of a new text book law, that it make a
standing appropriation as shall enable
the state to pay one-half the cost of
such books; the other half to be paid
by the districts.
The committee making these recon-
mendatiouS was composed OF Alvin
Braley. w. F. Rochelan, J. @. McIn-
tosh, NJ. A. Stone, l.. Bliss, F. B.
| Chaplin, and E, L. Fitsch.
To Train Teachers.
But this was not the only important
subject handled by the superintendent.
as will be seen from the following reSo-
lutionS:
Resolved, That there exists an I'M
perative demand for better provision for
the preparation of the 1900 teachers
that annually enter for the first time
upon the work of common school teach
| ing;
Resolved, That this preparation shall
| consist of, first, thorough review of the
| common school branches; second, of OBJ
| servation and practice in the different
grades of the schools; and, third, of an
| elementary course in the theory and
| practice of teaching; and,
| Resolved, That we ask the legislature
| to make provision by sufficient appro-
| priation to award $500 to each county in
! the state that eau and will do the work
| hereinbefore specified to the satisfac-
ton of board designated for that pur-
| pose.
There was a spirited discussion over
! this. in which the following partici-
| pated Superintendents Engstrom,
Chapman, Gaines, Mitchell. Mcconnell,
Schultz, Bargen, Covel, Hammer, Nc
| Kelvey, Winnings, ClInch, Davis. Ed
wards, Miss Barker and President Scar
ing, of Mankato normal. The resolu-
| tons were adopted.
| Having done this, the superintendent
| elected officers of their association for
| the ensuing year: j. II. Chapman, of
| Rochester, president; F. B. Chaplin, of
Detroit, vice president; Gertrude E.
Ellis, of Austin, secretary: f. B. Nc
| KeJyey, of LakeVille, treasurer