The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1898-12-18
EDUCATORS
Meet to Discuss HighSc
Methods.

The ANNUAL sinstitute Of the high
school leachers Of the State was held
yesterday at the English high school
tvlong, and was very largely at
tended. Interesting programs had been
prepared, and the various methods of
tsach.ng Were. fully discussed by learn
ed superintendent Of schools, school
principals and teachers.
at the morning session, which began
at O'Clock, j. w Mcdonald, agent Of
iia state board, spoke for nearly an
hour or The formation of good hab
lis as an aim in teaching" Miss Alice
G Jones Of the Sprin field high school
read papcr on Literature" setting
forth the methods in teaching that sub
eel which seemed productive Of the
best results. The foundations must
be begun, said Miss Jones, when the
Pupil is studying grammar, and more
PARTICULARLY rhetoric. The work of
,he teacher of literature is difficult.
Some have said that 1t is a subject
lAat cannot be taught, and, while this
not true, it is still a fact that it
annot he taught by ordinary methods.
The teacher must learn to know as well
aS possible the characters Of those un-
der her
To do this, Miss Jones finds it good
nan to prepare a list of questions de-
signed to find out what each pupil has
.ead, az o. what he likes best. The in
lmatons OF the pupil listihg beendis-
.gNefed IN this way, it is best to direct
nls reading in the channels he would
naturally Follow + If be is set to read
As The life, say of Shelley, and in con-
lr'tlun with itgthose bits Of mis- poetry
y winch lle seemed to prophesy his ear
. ana tragic death, the interest of the
PUBL will be 0rawn unconsciously to
po'try In atWord. the teacher should
.se the best possible means, which vary
deeoTdln9o to, the temperament and
'naractersof tie pupil.
IN regard to novels, while there is
aol tIlne 10 Rad many, they must be
NuQied as being one type of literary
s4MeSsion. Mcmorizing is to be en-
yyUraged and to a greater extent, read
ing aloud. History may be profitably
Nuuled in connection with literature.
= Is often necessary to a thorough un-
%ISJandine Of the latter subject, as in
u case OF the French revolution and
7 romantic movement, and besides,
nT pupils mind is sometimes turned
" ~. literature through history as a me-
A, Dr lyman c. Newell Of the Lowell
, SG}rmal school read a paper on 'Physi-
,I selence. He Said that statlsucs
n aIoN that in the majority of schools
rtuyS'cs and chemistry come in the
r m,au year and in this order, The most
moulable order is elementary physics
blaeAllstrX and advanced physics; first
s',y use elementary physics contains
uoleft matter indispensable to
YH'Se Of chemistry: second, because
~ FINISHES a wide field for laboratory
,,oA thereby giving the preliminary
IHIIs essential 10 chemistry and adj
,aneed physics; and, finally, because
lam PORTIONS of physics are more
vt, I9lly understood il the course is di-
m9ed and chemistry comes between
us order As, also preferred by teachers
40 acquainted With the possibilities
", 10Th subjects. The ideal method Of
E.gSen ing the dsubject should include
ittt9tes Illustrated by experiments, rec
ro'. IONS discussions, quiz2es, written
nn,F"s' problems and laboratory work.
loa 'Pers were read by William G. Col
c1 "eadmaSter of the RoXbury Latlii
n '0ol, who discussed the advantages
in 4Eht reading and good translation
ro Latlnn1 He pointed out that there
tba three great difficulties attending
soG lranslation of Latin by the high
H,iI'ei pupil. His own vocabulary Is
nll'leu; the conditions under which he
" works are hard, in that so many Latin
avtQS have no exact English equiya-
is sHls' and the order of Latin thought
ti,, com usingsu and he. is worried con-
ds ,uaily by a, feeling that he must rem
me Latin construction.
do.' - Ellis, head of the commercial
goi tment of the Springfield high
poae read a paper on "a model bust
so,' course, and Miss Anna b. Thomp-
or OF Thayer Academy Braintree one
to,,. .he best methods of teaching ms