The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-12-30
REVIEW.

the teachers convention, which closed
in this city Saturday evening last,
would require more space provided all
the good things were mentioned, h
the limits of this article will permit.
In the first place. the convention
clearly demonstrated the necessity of
many changes in the present school
system of the state. although it must
be admitted that it is by no means a
bad system now.
One change necessary is an advance
IN the standard of excellence required
of those desiring to become teachers
IL the public schools. The word "eX-
cellence" is used in place of a more ap-
propriate word because 1t is not the
purpose TO be unnecessarily harsh IN
the treatment of the subject. 1t is not
every man or woman who can pass
the necessary mental examination who
is capable Of being a teacher in the
public schools. To know what is in
the books: that is. to have everything
committed to memoir like a recita-
tion. does not alone qualify anyone to
teach school,. A thorough teacher
possesses the natural ability to each
it cannot be acquired from books. Pro-
fessor Paul will doubtless object to
this. because it combats his argument
that there is no such thing as genius.
Without charging upon this matter.
the writer will say that many who
hold certificates today and are teach
erS in the public schools of Utah had
best ADOPT Professor Paurs theory and
first find out what they are fit for and
then become a genius. If they do, they
Will find that their forte is not school
teaching.
No n who attended the convention
and gave close attention to all that was
said can overlook the Importance of
the high school as a part and parcel
of the public school system of the
state. Professor Malone's paper and
the able discussion of the same by
Judge Wilson in his paper called out
many wise suggestions on this all
important subject.
Mr.. Malone seemed to carry the idea
that the high school should be the con-
Meeting link between the common
school n the university or college.
There is n objection to this PROPOSE
ton. which. While it combats his
theory as to the function of the high
school. does not detract in the least
from the force of his argument in ia
Nor of it's maintenance. The difficulty
is this: The high school should not be
a connecting link with anything. 1t
should be the end. and so organized
that the scholar who graduates from
it will be finished.
The great majority of students of the
public schools never enter a university
or college. and according to Professor
Paul a college education is not neces-
sary for the thorough student. There
fore it should be the purpose of the
state to place the mean Of a COM
plete education within the reach of
every scholar in the public schools,
n-bi1t cho,II a,l -;+, +lo l;,b rahno1
1t does not follow that higher edu-
cation UGH as can be obtained only in
the university or college should not be
encouraged by the state, yet there
should be liked grades of educational
advancement. and n grade should n
with the high school, which Should be
complete as far as it goes. The STU
dent should not leave the school on the
day of his graduation with the impress
sion that his education is unfinished:
that a few loose ends rave been left
sticking out, where a college or univer-
sity education can be hitched on and
that he must go to college and finish
up or be Obliged to go through life I'M
able to hide the marks where the col
lege attachment belongs.
President Kerr, of the B. Y. acade-
my at Logan, in his able lecture on
Signs and Symbols in Mathematics"
emphasized one fact that has been
mentioned before, which is to know by
heart what is in the books is not Suffi-
Gent to constitute any person a teach
er. OF course it is not to be expected
that every teacher can, even by years
of study, delve down as deep into the
science of mathematics as the professor
has been able to go. They ought, how
ever, to be complete masters of the
subject so far as they have gone.
Mr.. Kerr's lecture calls to mind an
ILL., +l,o+ m, rod in n ~ 90 storm
country school many years ago.
A travelling Snowman was going
through the country giving entertain
ments at the district school houses.
and, as was his custom, he appeared at
a country school one afternoon for the
purpose Of entertaining the scholars,
so he said, III in reality to advertise
his show that evening.
He professed to be a lightning cal
culator, and in fact was quite an ex-
pert with figures. So he astonished the
school children with some wonderful
examples of addition, multiplication
and division. He requested the boys
and girls to take their books and read
off examples for him to solve, and he
would dash down the answer almost
before they had finished stating the
proposition.
Sam and Ezra, two of the largest and
brightest scholars of the school had
each taken their urn in propounding
examples. After the performance they
were discussing the matter very earn
estly when Sam said: Say, Ez, did
you notice that chap did not follow the
book at all?'
Thunder said Ezra, that fellow
don't need no book. Why, he could
write a book himself"
one of the broadest and ablest papers
presented during the progress OF the
convention was Recent Changes in
Primary Methods by Miss NJ. Ade-
iaide Holton. The talented ~authoress
certainly understands the science of
teaching. Her ideal Of the primary
teacher, or rather her ideal primary
teacher, is by no means an impossible
ity. That the best is none too
good for the scholars of the
primary grade is a self evident
proposition, to those who have given
the matter the least consideration. The
suggestion that the boy who played
truant and rolled in the grass In the
shade by some sparkling stream on a
bright summers day rather than while
away the weary hours in a school room
with an uninteresting teacher prob
ably learned more than the good boy
who endured the torture, is a fac
which min out of every ten grown up
school boys and girls can verify. An
able primary teacher is worth her
weight in gold nan times over. And
in the nguag of Miss Holton there
is no coin small enough in value to pay
~nN~ Nrsr ~