The Republican journal., 1896-07-09
Politics in the Public Schools.
Confessions of SuperlntendeHts and Teachers.
How PosterIty Is Dwarfed for the Benefit of
Small Politicians.

Confessions of superintendent and Teachers
/ How PosterIty is Dwarfed for the Benefit OF
Small Politicians.
The Atlantic Monthly for July publishes
the frank confessions of half dozen sue
cessful superintendents and teachers in
the public schools in the West, and the
writer's make very startling revelations in
the most matter of fact way re garding the
evil of political influences on school man
agement.
One teacher. who is now city superin-
tendent. writes:
SIN several cities in which have taught,
the superintendent of schools has made no
pretension to be schoolman; he is poll
tician, elected sometimes by the people,
sometimes by the common council, with
practically no educational duties. The
salary is few hundred dollars, enough
to piece out the income of some decayed
local politician.
"My experience as superintendent of
schools shows that, under present con-
ditions, the superintendent is compelled
to be a politician. To what amount of
Misunderstanding and hobnobbing he shall
submit depends on his tastes and his
skill. The point is, that a certain amount
of it is necessary to keep his place and to
secure an opportunity to work. | have
succeeded fairly we'll in keeping in touch
with the ruling elements in the manage
ment of the schools, but there has never
been day when | would not gladly have
been rid of work required to do this Re-
lief from such necessity would have al
lowed more time for study, and made me
4 man of much greater professional value
a woman S experience is as follows:
During the period of my preliminary
service as teacher in the public schools,
my name was reported for permanent
place, and was 'on the slate when it left
the teachers committee. Of course, my
father was voter with the party in pow
er. But the teacher who was number five
on the list had kinsman on the board,
who saw that unless she was appointed
during his term she might never be- One
of the trustees, therefore, brought in a
charge of cruelty to boy against me,
and, without an investigation, my name
was taken off, and number five was elect
ed To have any one believe that | pulled
a boys ears till he could not put his head
on pillow hurt me deeply. | began an
investigation on my own account, and |
discovered that number ive's sister was
the guilty teacher. The boys father ap-
peared before the board and explained
The teacher was not even censured; but |
had lost the permanent position
But the most amazing experience of all
is this one:
Il saw an advertisement of the school
board in growing city of 80, 600 inhab-
itants announcing an examination to fill
vacancies. Five or six principals and
forty or fifty teachers were wanted. |
sent an application which | followed in
person. l was examined most thorough
ly Il wrote answers to questions for five
days, ten hours each day.
An old army comrade of mine was a
member of the board. He took me aside,
on the first day, and tried to induce me to
go home. He told me contidentially that
the whole affair was a mere form to sat
isfy three 'reformers' who had lately
come into the board; it was intended to
demonstrate to these gentlemen that the
teachers were thoroughly qualified for
their posts. My friend and his party,
the 'hold-overs,' were pledged, he as
sured me, to elect the old teachers But
they had promised the 'reformers' to elect
principals according to the record made
in examination and on this chance | re-
NAMED. These willy 'hold-overs' had
not risked much in giving that promise,
for they had obtained the questions from
the examiners a week in advance, and
had given them to the old principals. |
owed my election to the fact that made
the best averages notwithstanding the adj
vantage that they had over me.
WARD politics governed school appro-
prlatons in this city. The next year
every principal salary WAS reduced 500.
This motion to reduced them was cham
pioned by my army friend. He gave as
his excuse, when | protested against it,
that one of the principals had bought a
baby buggy at another store after bargain
ing for one at his place; he was determin-
ed to get even with that man. After an
other year and another reduction. and
after being assessed Il refused to pay the
assessment to help elect the old council,
| secured an appointment in another city,"
One teacher writes: 1.-The school book
business is portentous evil Few people
know of this OF are willing to acknowl-
edge it. There was a time when text
books We're selected upon merit. If one
had confidential information upon this
point to-day from the superintendents
throughout the country, believe that it
would be clear that merit is of secondary
Importance. Indeed, if one will but get
an agent to tell him his experience for ten
years, he will be convinced without other
testimony. could unfold startling array
of facts to sustain the assertion that
majority of superintendent of small
cities and counties owe their positions to
pulls organized by publishing houses to
whose books they were friendly
A superintendent says: Zone of the
most difficult problems that | have en-
countered is the textbook problem. The
adoption of books for term of years has
uniformly proved to be an evil. 1t opens
a Pandora's box of ills, chief of which
are the busness-li like methods of book
houses and their agents. In my present
position the matter has been so managed
that no adoptions for specified times have
taken place. The book supply has been
entirely entrusted to the superintendent
This plan rids us of the demoralizing i'm
portunities of agents, is economical and
satisfactory, and seems to be rational
solution of the problem
A third says: 1.-The influence of GER
tain publishing houses was always strong
er than the recommendations of the su-
perintendent in the matter Of textbooks,
but we had money enough, and | used to