The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1897-03-10
THOUGHTS ON EDUCATION.

/ EDITOR NEws.-It has been my desire
for some time to write something for
/ your columns in the interest of
| education, and now, if you will kindly
permit me, l will try to do so.
! | have selected from this broad ques.
ton topic that applies directly to our
schools, viz: the cooperation of parents
with teachers. Teaching is an arduous
task and assumes its most difficult pro-
portions when its responsibilities are not
appreciated by parents. We cannnct
/ hope for any rapid strides in education
SO long as parents do not CO. pperate with
their teachers. The man can do nothing
with the pillow without the horse, and the
horse can do nothing with the pillow
with out the aid of the man. The teach
er's most sanguine expectations are
doomed to disappointment right where
the germ should take root.
! Now, l do not assume the idea that
this condition is wholly prevalent; Meth
er do | believe they willfully exist, but
come from another source. | fear that
the prevailing idea among our people of
the object of life is at fault. The real
object of life is to make men and not to
make money; and yet we find our boys
engrOssed in all sorts of schemes to make
money! Why? might enlarge on the
answer to this query until had ex-
hausted my vocabulary and then not be
able to explain it, nor do l presume that
| am fully calculated to do so; but |
leaye it for you to think about with just
this line, if you please-the atmosphere
in which they move is illuring!
Education is the basis of all prosperity.
II is the axis upon which the wheel of
of progress must turn. Our country
may be teemlng with undeveloped re-
sources and, unless there is knowledge
to make them useful, it will remain I'M
developed unto eternity. Would the iron
ore ever be stirred from it's mountain
bed if there were no knowledge of it's
usefulness? Could the farmer sell his
cotton if there were no knowledge of
how TO make it useful?
But the question arises to the parent,
HOW am | to cooperate with the teach
er?' Right here let me whisper to you:
| talk education 10 your children. 1t is one
of the grandest privileges you have, and
you can use it. If you raise the child to
think that education it something sub
lime, if you raise the child in an atmos-
| phere where education is the ruling idea,
you have done half the work-he will
have it at all hazards; you cannot keep
him from It, If one half the time spent
by our boys in idly lounging around,
hunting, fishing, ETC., was spent in read
ing some profitable literature the tables
of illiteracy would soon be altered.
Then send him to school, and send him
regularly when you do. By this you
encourage your teacher. 'But," you
say,'I canno5 send him to school; can
not spare him from the field" What's
that! Here, hold on a minute; whose
good are you striving for, my friends, for
your own financial good or for the good
OF your posterity? That boys time is
worth infinitely more than you suppose.
His days work in the field is not
worth much now and can new
er be worth any more, but that day in
school might be worth more to him in
the future than all the millions you could
give him.
Again, your teacher asks for books,
states, etc. Get them. Did you ever
think how necessary these items are?
You cannot cultivate your farm without
tools. l might keep on naming various
ways in which you could aid your teach
er, but allow me to say one thing more
and quit: Do anything in your power to
do that the teacher calls for. Do you
suppose he will want anything done of
you that is unnecessary? IF you have
not the confidence in him to trust hi m
this far you had better get some one else.
repeat, talk education to your chill
dren. G. r. BARFIELD.
ParrOtt Ga