Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-07-09

Is no authority on school dra wing. IL we
study the child and his method Of learning
everything we shall not crush his eager
ambition to represent things alive by CIV
ing him numerous type solids to roll, pat,
model and draw.
Two Important Necessities.
Two things the supervisor must do when
ever possible-work for greater power in
artistic creation and expression and study
pedagogy. An important supervisory duty
is conducting teachers meetings. Some
teachers have had no opportunity to learn
to draw. Others have had state courses,
which are often so mechanical and far be-
hind the times that, aside from giving al
most nothing of real value for future teach
Ing, they are especially adapted to crush
out any love for art. But because state
authorities are not always capable of plan
nlng course other than a lamentable col
lection of confusing theories supervisors
are forced to recognize that state courses
where the god, Examination is ever appar-
ent are useless-and sometimes worse.
Ieachers and pupils have been made to
feel that drawing Is a science and that
they cannot draw because they do not know
the correct rule for the given object. The
theory of drawing has been used as a
crutch to such an extent that reasoning has
usurped the place of the sense Of sight.
The actual illustrative sketching, making
OF designs, etc, by the teacher is what is
needed
MRS. rulers Address.
In discussing the same subject Mrs. s. Z.
w. Fuller, director of drawing of this city,
considered first the varying conditions to
which supervisors are subjected. These
seriously affect the conduct of their work,
hence the futility of anything that can be
said in regard to details. Every super
visor must know that each teacher car
ries out the program assigned to the grade
and pn6paUOr nv
and love of the subject to infuse into the
work of each that life without which the
best course of instruction becomes a skele-
ton of dry bones.
His use of the usual methods of Going
this, as giving lessons in the school room,
grade meetings, examining work of pupils
helpful criticism of methods, or judicious
use of all these means depends largely
upon which weapon he finds most efficient
If wise he will also consider the indi-
viduaity of the teacher he attempts to
guide 1t Is the teacher through whom he
reaches the child.
Teacher Study n Requisite.
Hence to the qualifications of the super
visor as summed up by Mr.. Daniels should
be added that of teacher study-the best
help for one may not be the best for an
other. In the formative period through
which organization of this work has pass
ed the supervisor has done more than this
o
rect, to select to modify, often to arrange
entirely the course of study sometimes to
instruct the teachers in elementary draw
ing AT present published courses are
largely the result of the experience of such
supervisors. This has been referred to IN
the paper to which We have Just listened
as hope for the future; my experience
leads me to consider it a past and present
condition and a cause of the very changes
70 which that paper refers as failures
Ihese changes indicate life and capability
of development.
Changes should not discourage Us A
vital good lies at the root of all these
movements. To seize upon and retain this
is TO be In the line of progress. Subjects
are only opportunities Foundations lilo
deeper.
When we sure that we have a. true
psychology to guide US and are wise enough
to frame upon 1t our pedagogics the re-
SUIT VIII be a system strong, but elastic;
an art product with the essentials of unity
ana variety, unity of principals variety of
subjects; the strength of eternal law with
It's elastic quality of adaptations to states
The Teaching of Drawing.
Prof. NJ. V. O'Shea of the University ~
Wisconsin followed He said that in dis
cuss1ng the teaching Of drawing careful
distinction should be made between the
means Of expression and the thing to be
expressed. Drawing, like language. had
mechanical as well as a content or spr-
itual size. The failure to make this dis
tinction in discussing drawing has led to a
vast amount of confusion.
II should be recognized at the outset that
in the teaching Of drawing the method
OF procedure is not distinct IN all respects
from that Of other subjects There are
certain principles of universal validity in
teaching which apply in this particular
instance as well as in others In the first
place the logical or formal arrangement
n rnrtr niy,ln 81
of instruction Is not ordinarily II ever
the proper teaching order, an excellent il
lustration of which is afforded in the case
OF reading. The logical development of
this subject requires that the pupil first
learn the letters of the alphabet, then
combine these into words, the words into
sentences, the sentences into paragraphs,
and finally the paragraphs into DISCOURSE;
but in the teaching OF this subject now
no competent person follows this method.
The teaching of drawing should have a
formal arrangement Of topics. Beginning
with the most simple structurally, as the
drawing of lines or reproducing fiat copy
is not the best method of procedure; that
which Is nearest to the child should con-
stitute the point Of departure.
Valuable suggest1ons.
The particular difficulty which the child
has in drawing is due to his inability to
see for purposes of representation. He has
employed Lis sight so long in getting taste
knowledge Of objects and touch knowledge
and other knowledges, that when he enters
school he Is unable to get sight knowledge
in and for itself, which is the primary re-
quisite in drawing. In teaching the child
to see fiat copy is OF little value, since
form divorced from concrete objects is
simply separate and distinct form. No
matter how skillfully he could represent
fat copy he would not be aided thereby
in seeing the actual object when it was
before him. The use of type forms is far
more valuable; but drawing directly from
nature under the guidance of skliful
teaching is the most profitable way in
which to learn to draw.
In acquiring the manual part in express
sion too greatest success may be obtained
while actually representing objects in the
environment. And when it is remembered
that the child is principally interested in
this work, 1t may be seen that the prin-
cIples governing the teaching of drawing
may be really summarized into this one:
First give the child rich thoughts to ex-
press the drawing; then aid him in acqur-
ing the means of expression, always, how
ever keeping the context and form to-
gether the latter dependent upon the for
mer.
The Library and Art.
The report of committee on the relation