Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1897-01-19


Instead of .onesvery great normal school.
! system of normal schools. less ambi-
/ tious in ofaa nizatiori, with numbers of
students bearing such ratio to the size of
4 the practice schools as 10 assure oppor-
| tunity for adequate training. I could
| quote In favor of this view letter from
| DIR. Sheldon. fot. thirty-four years presi-
| dent of the 0swego Normal school, in
New York, and also the normal school
| system in France &C. C. Rounds, chair
man subcommittee on supply of teach
| ers. <4se=
Is there need to add to the testimony al
| ready addneed?
| Because of such belief, as set forth in
the views of the worlds greatest edu-
Gators, the normal school seed, planted in
| Massachusetts In the first quarter OF the
Nineteenth century, sprang up, grew,
spread it's branches toward the warm
and the setting sun, let down its roots
one OF many-in almost every state in
the union; till today, less than seventy
-fve-years after its termination, 1t stands
the wonderful Banyan-in the shade of
whose protection. every child of America
may rest.
The figure is not overdrawn. The
normal training movement has unified
the educational forces of America-forces
heretofore antagonistic and repellent.
Though there be many trunks, the living
sap is one. In none of its bowers is per-
mitted tyranny over childhood. Pleas
ure succeeds pain. Love displaces nate.
Permit me to see hundreds of children
running to embrace their teachers each
morning, while I know that the spirit
which brought about and which fosters
this affection is that of the normal School
and no arguments of dollars and cents
even though put into the State Herald
can make me risk the danger of return
to the old system; nor do believe that
the average parent is poorer OF heart tnan
of pocket.
Beside, the dollar and cent theory so
lavishly advanced is by no means proven
to be saving after all. 1t is the expe-
riencei of superintendentsa and principals
to say nothing of teachers themselves
that a raw recruit from college, hign
school or elsewhere, on the average, VIII
be two years in becoming successful. Inc
normal trained become successful in from
six to twelve months. This taxes INTO
account those of both classes VINO VIII
totally fail; but the percentage of failure
in raw recruits is far higher than in the
normal trained,
Imitation is such a marked character
istic of the human race, that one of the
chief benefits to be derived from normal
schools is the fact that few earnest,
well trained, successful teachers scat
tered here and there over the state become
types which hundreds of unframed teach,
ers follow. While this is one of the good
effects, yet it is but secondary to the ne
cessity for giving to each child the best
opportunity, educationally, possible I'M
itation should be rational, not traai-
tionaL 81 A :.
If the state attempts to educate, 1t
should provide the best teachers in its
power. Given 1000 men and women,
equally educated in the branches, to be
taught, 1000 Immediately on ceaslng TO
| be pupils becometeacherS; l 900 spending
| two years in study of mind, history of
| educators and methods, becoming famft-
| iar with the worlds past and present sys-
| TENS of education-their merits and rail-
| ures, studying the affections, fears, mo-
tives and acts of children so that dfscip-
line becomes a rational means to civil
izng end-to deny that the latter two
will do far greater good in much less
time to the communities when they teach
than will, or can, the former 1000, is TO
show one to be so encased in tradition
as to be impregna ble-and inert-as the
rock of Gibralter.
While the Lord is having mercy upon
some of the tickling legislators" 1t
would be well for the state If he would
+ extend his arms of compassion SO as to
embrace few of the time servers, who
| pander to the prejudice and ignorance
| of the people. The people are little
enough instructed in the education of
| their children as 1t is, but heaven for
bid that any one processing to be a
| teacher should stand in high places and
| humble in the hearing of the populace,
! "Your teachers are good enough; your
children are getting the best instructions;
| you have done all your civilization de-
| mands of God"
| The trouble is not that normal-trained
| teachers are so worthless, but that the
state, while preparing for normal train
| ing, still permits hundreds and thousands
| of the traditional kind to teach in its
| schools. Third-grade license brings to its
| holder equal remuneration to that second
| or first-grade license would bring. The
| fountain does not rise higher than the
source of the supply, but good force
pump in the shape of a stringent statute
would soon send the streams to heights
| that are dizzy as seen from our present
| level. Do away with the misserably in
| efficient place-holders in our schools and
| the Surplus of teachers" so boasted. of
| by the State Herald's correspondent will
collapse like bursted toy-balloon.