The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1893-08-02
THE DEAF-MUqE SCHOOL.
Interesting Report of the
Institution by Superin-
tendent W. jenkins.
THE MANNER OF TEACHING.
The Task a Difficult One. But the
Teachers Surmount lt-In-
dustrial Training.
THE MANNER OF TEACHING
spseia, to The Jersey City News.

and interesting report about the institu-
J ton to the State Board OF Education. He
[ says, among other things
although the New Jersey School for
Deaf Mutes is of quite recent origin, its
establishment by Law dating only from
the year 1852, and its first pupils having
been received in 1888. the work to which
this institution is devoted has for more
than half a century received the atten-
tion and support of the State. The
Demonstration by the elder Gallaudet, in
the asylum ut Hartford. of the possibility
of educating the deaf. was followed. in a
few years, by the founding of Institutions
for this class of children in New York
and Philadelphia.
WTne Legislature of New Jersey made
provisions in 1858 for the support. at
| State expense. In these institutions Of
| deaf mute children OF suitable age and
capacity, whose parents or guardians
should be unable TO bear the charge OF
such support.
SIN order to make clear the proprietv
of this expenditure OF the part Of the
public, it is necessary to state fully the
| problem presented to the philanthropfst
and to the condition of the de { mute
child.
land first it Is to be noted that the
sole defect. physical or. mental. under
which, at the outset. persons OF this class
labor Is the lack OF the sense of hearing.
All discussion of their conditi0n, there
fore. which proceeds upon the assump-
tlon of certain p~ecnliarities OF the deaf
mute mind is altogether wide OF the
mark.
.It remains to be shown how it is that
tho want of his sense should render chill
| dram Tina afHict0d 81 ctaag AnQrG- Sn9ClaIlV
In need Of skilled instruction and spe-
cially deserving of State help.
lin view of the special difficulties
which bsset the deaf mute in solving the
question of self support, and or tine edu-
| cational value of manual work. if rightly
directed, Industrial training also claims q
place in a school for Deaf mute children.
1.-THE most ready way to develop in the
deaf-mute child the power of connected
thought, and to convey to him those
ideas which, essential to man as a socia!
being. are the common possession of
wise and of simple alike. has seemed to
many teachers to lie through the x
pansion Of his own crude language OF
| gestures.
DIFFICULTY OF THE TASK.
s"rhe difficulty of the task of teacher
and of pupil In the acquisition of Ian
guage by the deaf mute can hardly be
oversstfmated. The pupil begins the task
at an age when the initiative propensity.
SO great an aid TO the little child In learn
| ing to speak, has somewhat weakened!
Rhyme and rhythm. SO largely aud so
helpfuliy used Ia the nursery and III the
| Kindergarten, cannot reacn him.. He can
learn nothing by the purely receptive
process which plays 50 great \ part at
this stage Of the hearing child's educa-
ton, but every step be taken by d
conscious effort. His instruction In
language 10 mostly confined to the few
hours daily spent In the schoolroo N,
and, even when receiving instruction,
by writing. by inRer-spslling. or by
speech, only very slowly as compared
with the rapidity Of ordinary conversa-
ton.
s.rne pupils are encouraged to relate as
best as they may the little events OF their
daily life, and to observe and describe all
that they eau of the facts of nature and
the dotngs of those around them.
~"Idiomatic phrases. directions and ques-
tons, such as they find occasion for, out
which they cannor as yet fit In with the
formulas OF language which they have
learned. are memorized and kept IN shape
for ready reference.
Geography is begun by teaching the
points Of The compass ana units of length
the foot and the pace as applied to the
school-room aud the grounds, the mile
when longer distances are in question.
"Tne mar of the State, on d scale large
enough TO show plainly distances which
the pupils nave walked, and with railroad
lines clearly marked on 1t. likes the no.
ions of direction aud distance, and en-
abIes the pupils to find their. respective
b ONES and TO recognize natural features
of the country with which they are ia
millar. Arithmetic is taken up by anal
wing the numbers with whic b the pupil
Is already acquainted. and ex tending the
process to larger numbers.
This number work is applied at first
chiefly to measurements, aud TO the ac-
count OF such small money transactions
as the pupils are familiar With.
THE NEWS OF THE DAY EXPLAINED.
"The comlnon forms OF language and q
fairly large vocabulary having now been
mastered. the news OF the day. as given
In the papers. receives attention, and,
with the help OF maps, pictures apd ex-
plantations by the teacher. does much to
give an understanding of the world and
Of it's people.
Text books are used In the school only
to . limited extent, out pictures OF plant
and animal life, of scenery and of the
processes in arts and manufactures, as
we'll as specimens OF food stuffs and
materials OF clothing are kept in variety
and are constantly employed.
Among the text books most used are
Miss Fulier's and Miss Swett's Readers
Iva d2ak SuAAuAOut MibS ouItOu5 A1u-
guaQs Lessons In Arithm etic, Baldwin's
Industrial Primary Arithmetic, Potter's
Geography and Monteith's Popular
Science. In the teaching Of geography and
history, text books OF several different
Kinds and books or magazines containing
information on tue subject OF the
lesson are placed within reach of the
clase, and each pupil is required to find
what be can from any or all of these
sources on ths subject. 1t has been
found that our pupils In study Ing a fixed
Lesson in n particular book will almost
inevitably fix their attention on the mere
words. which they can often memurize
with surprising facility, while they fail
TO attach any clear meaning to what they
have studied aud recited.
by the side of the instruction 10
language 10 given training OF the senses
and Of the muscles. Form study is con
unued through the course by means Of
clay modelling, paper cutting and told
ing, drawing, mad, with g part of thu
pupils jotnery and wood carving. Color
instruction Is given with tablets anc
tissue paper, water color work, and IL
special classes of girls combination O
II col0rs Is taught in connections with dress.
making. Designing and china painting
are taught with, such success that gradu-
atss OF the school have been able to fol-
low these occupations as means Of sup
port.
"The faculty of observation is trained
BY lessons adapted to the capacity of tn,
pupils. The collecting Of natural object'
and noting their qualities. the Watching
the growth OF plants from their seeds,
the performing and recording OF simpl,