, 1892-04-01
THE STATE TEACHERS
They Met In Annual Convention at
Laramie Yesterday.
The Practical Side of a Public
School Education.
10 II Being Reached Under the Sys-
tenn Now in User

The state teachers association met in
Laramie at 10 O'Clock Yesterday morning.
Large delegations of teachers and those
interested IN education were present from
Evanston. Green River, Rawlins. Iron
Mountain, Buffalo and Cheyenne. The
meeting occurred in the opera house.
which was filled with delegates and visit
on. DR.. A.. A. johnson of Laramie
was elected temporary chairman and
Prof. Churchill Of CHEYENNE secretary
pro tenn. Alter devotional exercises
Prot. Lee, superintendent of the Laramie
public schools. delivered the principal
address of welcome. which was responded
to by Prot. Churchill.
One of the moet practical addresses OF
the session was that read BY Miss Estelle
Reel, county superintendent of Laramie
county schools. The subject was: What
branches shall be taught in our high
schools2" One of the absorbing ques-
lions of the present. time with reference
to high school work and studies Is:
Should the high school pupil receive a
liberal or a practical education?" She
said: For a number Of years the tend
ENJOY of high school methods in all parts
of the country has been in the direction
OF . liberal education for those who take
the high school course. 1t is . noticeable
fact that as high schools have drifted in
this direction in the same proportion
have they ceased to become popular
schools with the masses, and statistics
show that in proportion to the total num-
ber OF pupils attending public schools the
percentage of those finishing their public
school work when through the grammar
school course is steadily becoming larger.
The high schools Of the country are
steadily eneroaohing upon the curriculum
Of the college and university. This is
causing the question to be seriously con-
sidered in many parts Of the east of With
drawing the high schools from the benefits
of the free school system and having the
pupils pay tuition fees. So noted an
educator rs Prof. @. W. Elliot. president
of Harvard college, holds this view.
He said in an interview recently: Il
think . tair way would be to require
the parents Of children attending the high
school to pay q portion of the expense.
The primary and the government schools
are essentially for the whole people.
Only . small portion can 70 to high
schools. There could be scholarships, or
free places for small children whose par
ents cannot afford to pay tuition. The
statement that the high school is the Door
mans college is not true. The high school
il . school. not q college"
That such opinions exist is an alarming
indication that there is danger of our
high schools losing their place in our
grand system of free education and be-
coming special training schools to be util-
ICED only by the wealthy. With these
feap in mind there are many friends ofthe
high school among educators who are
urging the abandonment of the attempt
to impart a liberal education to it's pupils
and q return to the methods BY which .
severely practical education will be taught.
What is a liberal eduoation2 President
Gilman of the Johns Hopkins university
says: "a literally educated man must
have knowledge OF his W physical ma
ture; Of his " tongue and of modern
tongues; an acquaintance with the princi-
pies and methods of scientific inquiry and
should kno1 oomafbipo offha await ttor.