Grand Rapids herald. [volume] (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 1892-1959, 1892-02-06
HE USED TO TEACH
A Chicago Man Tells About the
Old Ways
COMPARING THEM WITH NEW
How the Children are Forced Into Studies
Far Beyond Their Capabilities
Other Hotel Glesnings-

al used 10 teach school once" re-
marked II. q. Seaman, = Chicago at
torney at sweets yesterday. THAT
Was long before the days of the new
education,' ss some lis devotees are
pleased 10 term II, and so l would
probably be considered an educational
back number; but IA ere are two classes
of people that. from an educational
standpoint. fatigue me exceedingly.
One class is those who are always
claiming our school system 10 be the
bezt ever known. and the other 10 com
posed of those pesslmlslic Old grum-
blers who think IT Is rank failure.
that modern children don't learn any
thing and that We are all gong TO the
demnition bow-wows. Both are en-
tirely and completely wrong. Our
school system isn't very good and IT
isn't very bad. Like Jack Spratt's pig,
it 10 just far average. To say tnat
the children OF today aren't learning
anything is to state faischood.
/ don't think children ever
learned more in the same length
of time than they do today.
To question the practlbilty of many Of
the things they learn is perfectly lsgi-
innate. From the standpoint OF prac-
tical utility, much that modern educa-
ton teaches is utterly useless and some
of il is absolutely harmful. Our edu-
cational system isn't balanced. We
wavcr between the condemnation Of
the cranks and the dazzling theories Of
the enthusiasts. The cranks have an
infinite series of grievances and the
panaceas of the enthusiasts are as
numberIess as the eands of the sea
shore. We try TO establish an educa-
tionai system that will enfold and
cover these countless divergent the
ories, and as a result We make q mess
of it. The children learn because they
can't help learning.
Taught . University Course.
They are taught SO many things that
it would be strange indeed If some of
them didn't remain in their minds.
We establish high school and in less
than five years are teaching the rudi-
ments OF everything that ,s taught in a
university. That doesn't satisfy us and
SO we extend the curricula to cover the
freshman and sophomore years of an
ordinary college.
In our primary schools We teach
everything from reading to botany and
from mud pie making to zoology. We
'study the child" you know, and re-
duce him to a thumb rule. When we
have thoroughly analyzcd him and un-
derstand HIM, we teach him in systc-
matte manner. A teacher who isn't
thoroughly and progressively syate-
matte has no business in q modern
school room. The superintendent is
the regular fountain head of all cduca-
tionai wisdom and every teacher must
follow in the rut he makes. IL he says
the children must learn 300 words IN
certain length of time, they must be
taught that number whether they are
able to learn twenty or not. / think
these are the two real defects of our
educational systcm-we teach too much
and We try to follow cast iron rules too
much. When these two vices are
eliminated, think We shall have an
ideal system. Pm not prophesying
when the elimination will take place.
One thing now is certain. Our eys-
tenn isn't practical enough to meet the
requirements Of every day life. don't
mean practical in a business sense, bat
IN the broad general sense of fitness.
Despite the theories Of Comenius and
the principles of PestalozzI. the Athc-
man boy who learned only the songs Of
the Grecian bards and chantcd "the
tale of Troy divine" was better fitted
for his life's work than our high school
graduate. unless this high school grad
uA.c knows q mighty sight more Of
practical life than my boys know"