Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-07-07
PACKED PEDAG0GUES
At the State Teachers Association
at Beaver Falls.
A NEW SYSTEM OF INSTRUCTION,
As Developed by Miss Elizabeth Funden-
berg, Of Pittsburg.
TEACHERS DOINGS OF THE SECOND DAY

ers in attendance at the thirty-eighth annual
meeting Of the Pennsylvania State Teach
ers' Association, and it's hotels are neither
numerous nor large. Pittsburg's quota by
the early trains was the last straw. Hotel
clerks, naughty with knowledge of house
filled from garret to cellar, turned dollars
worth of patronage from their doors to the
cold comfort of a possible prospect of a
chance boarding house.
The teacher was everywhere; the city
representative, in his or her jaunty negli-
gee shirt; the grave-faced young man from
the country district, in his clerical Prince
Albert and cool straw hat, and his sweet
faced, demure, young, feminine co-laborer,
who is delighted with the crowd, yet bit
confused by it, and thinks an institute is
quite wild sort of dissipation. From
the Burgess down to the street-car conduc-
tor Beaver Falls came out on the street and
made the visitor welcome within its gates.
The two official headquarters for the asso-
citation are the Sixth Avenue Opera House
and the public school building at the corner
of Eleventh street. In the first the associa-
tion is holding its three days session. The
exhaustive exhibition from Western Penn
sylvania, and particularly the voluminous
display from Pittsburg and Allegheny, oc-
cupies fully the big school building and
attracts the overflow and something more
of the attendance from the convention.
Study in the Public Schools.
Yesterday mornings session opened at
9 o'clock with an address on cart Study in
Public Schools by Art Director H. T.
Bailey, of Massachusetts,, who drew the lar
gest gathering of the day, owing to the
present intense belief in artistic influence
on education. Two more papers of
value followed that of "Reading in the
Public Schools: by Miss Coffin, of Beaver
Falls, and Educational Progress by Mr.
Chapman, of Pittsburg. The remainder of
the morning was consumed by the discus
sion of an amendment to the constitution
cancelling the position of ticket agent, to
cut down an unnecessary expense, and
which was carried by an almost unanimous
vote; and the display of the result of first
years education in a Pittsburg school
under the direction of Miss Elizabeth Fl.
Fundenberg, of the Osceola School.
This was the drawing card of the day.
Not teacher was missing when the an
nouncement that the Pittsburg class was
ready for its exhibition. Miss Funden-
berg's work had been the talk of the con-
vention, and the name of Pittsburg's day
was given to yesterdays session principally
on that account.
Priz, Glass Of Scholars
In twinkle the stage of the Opera House
was trantormed into q schoo1rOom, and a
dozen or SO bright faced, well-bred looking
little boys and girls filed into their seats,
followed by Miss Fundenberg and Superin-
tendent Luckey, of Pittsburg, the latter in
Producing the lady to her audience and then
retiring.
Miss Fundenberg's "scheme" of educa-
tion represents q phase of what in educa-
method. She fosters the inquisitiveness of
the raw material put In her charge, de-
velopes its powers of observation, and by
the phonetic methods teaches the applica-
tion in writing.
Miss Fundenburg illustrated day in her
schoolroom. At her request 10 articles
chosen by teachers in the audience were
handed up in few minutes Mr.. Luckey
was loaded down by a miscellaneous collec.
tion of hats, umbrellas, bells, knives and
other goods and chattels to be divided
among the children for description.
These small people were all between the
ages of and 8, and had never been in
school longer than the ten months of one
school year.
A busy scene ensued. The children ex-
amined' their articles; wrote OF what they
saw and thought concerning them upon their
states, flying to the board when new word
proved stumbling block, and working it
out there with hint from the teacher.
Miss Fundenberg claims that these little
children can make probable correct stagger
at almost any of the more ordinary words in
Webster's dictionary by means of her ap-
plication of the phonetic system. In every
description written yesterday new words
were used and spelled and applied properly.
AS further example of their work in the
afternoon, with the addition of memory cul
tivation, the class was made to write story
told to them by DR.. Snyder, of Colorado
Little j uthor's Essay.
The following example illustrates the gen.
eral work of the class, and was produced by
q little lad, Master Leighton H. Campbell,
only years of age. 1t is reproduced ex-
actly as it was written:
THE TRIP IN THE MoUNTAIN-I live in Colo
rata and nave little boy and girl. One
day my girl came in my office and said,
"Papa, let us go up in tine mountain" "Oh
yes,". said the little boy. We got some
bread and butter and some eggs and some
salt and then we went. We got up and saw
the flowers coming out OF the snow. The
little girl caught fish in stream and
the boy caught a fish. The boys name WAS
Tim and the girls name was Laura. The
boy he saw a bear and he said it was dog.
Laura said that's bear. We had a very De-
lightful time. When we came home we
were very tired. think the boy was afraid.
If had q gun ! would killed the bear,
wouldn't you MIR. Luckey?
Superintendent LucIkey Was Proud.
The exhibition was as instructive as it
was entertaining, and Miss Fundenberg
was besieged by inquiries, while Nh. Luckey
moved about like benefcent spirit, bless
ing and being blessed, so delighted was he
with his Pittsburg school.
The remainder of the afternoon was dis |
posed of to a number of speakers and the
of officers, whose elections will |
be held to-day. A paper on "Systematic |
Music Instruction" written by Mr.. Jones,
of West Chester, was, on account of that |
gentleman's illness, read by Mr.. Smith. |
Dr. Mofatt, of Washington and Jefferson
College, replaced DR.. George Reed, of |
Dickinson College and spoke on ''The High
School From the College Presidents Stand
point" making an earnest plea for the in
tellectual benefit reaped by the study of
dead languages, for which he was frequently
applauded. Prof Shearer, of York, took
the reverse side OF the subject, "The Col
lege From the High School Principals
on which he spoke both |