Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1895-06-04

day institutes. If it is evidence of error
on our part for us to differ from Supt
Stone and the Manchester Journal and
an occasional teacher or citizen who
took part in the meetings we criticised,
then of course we are wrong. 1t gives
us some satisfaction, however, to know
that William I. Harris, the U. S. Com
missioner of Education, President An
drew S. Draper, the most famous State
superintendent in America, DR.. Emerson
E, White of Columbus, and the most
eminent school men in Massachusetts,
and New York and Pennsylvania and
Ohio are onlrecord as saying again and
again that institutes like those held in
this county last week are practically a
cational value commensurate with their
cost. Our position is likewise supported
by the educational journals of the whole
country. The New York School Journal
one of the leading educational papers of
the world maintains that teachers insti-
stitutes lasting one, two or three days,
the exercises consisting of the exposition
of theories. papers devoted to methods,
talks" by school officials and pseudo
educators, have small educational value.
These things may properly belong to
teachers associations, organized and
maintained by teachers for teachers, but
they do not come within the scope and
purpose of an institute maintained by
the peoples money for the instruction of
teachers. The contention of the Man
chester Journal that the interest of the
general public needs to be awakened as
much as teachers need to be educated
may be true. That, however, is not the
point. The law says that institutes are
to be maintained for the instruction of
teachers. The law does not, so far as
we know, warrant the expenditure of
peoples money by the State SupeIin-
tendent or any one else for meeting to
awaken public interest in school mat
ters." 1t is vicious and immoral to hold
meetings for such purpose under the
pretense that they are institutes. That
the public funds are being used to Gin
terest' few citizens in various locali-
ties is the Journals frank admission,
and our contention is that the money set
apart by the State for the instruction of
teachers in county institutes should not
be thus perverted. Educate or teach
ers for their work, demand high stand
ard of qualifications and they will give
us good schools, and that will awaken
public INTEREST. The Hindoos and the
Chinese have been the most conspicu-
Gus in refusing in all matters to profit by
the mistakes of the fathers. Brass band
institutes, aiming to awaken the peo-
ple," by placing official educators on ex-
teachers force 'sat in a row" and look
ed on and listened, prevailed in New
York and other States for twenty years,
cost the people millions of dollars and
sunk the schools to the lowest point.
Much of that has passed away in other
States, and shall we in the spirit of ori-
entail lethargy shut our eyes to their ed
ucational failures and insist upon prac.
ticing their educational follies. A
State superintendent should be familiar
with the pitfalls that lie along the edu-
cational highway. But we must judge
officials by what they do. If the State
Superintendent seems blind to the fun
damental facts of educational practice,
we trust that no citizen will question
our right to state what all educators
with their eyes open know to be facts.
Institutes such as we oppose have been
tried and they have been pronounced
failures by the best educators of our day
and time. In conclusion we venture the
opinion that no school man of extended
reputation can be found to say that the
experience of the most advanced educa
t.onal localities is not an unqualified
justification of the position we hold.