The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-06-02
BAD SCHOOL MANAGEMENT.
Washington School Board Gets An.
other Deserved "Roast."
Washington Post.

W
If Congress needs any further evidence
of the imperious and immediate necessity
for a change in the management and the
methods of our public school establishment
the Post is prepared to furnish II. To that
end we call attention TO two circulars re-
Gently distributed among the teachers.
They are designated, respectively, az
Form c. and Form D." and they re-
quire the teachers TO obtain from their pu-
pills certain which, in our opin-
ION, the superintendent has no sort OF right
to seek, and the mere seeking of which Is
a vile and insolent outrage upon the chill
dren and their parents.
We have had an opportunity of examin-
ing these two circulars. and We take this
occasion to reproduce a few specimen
queries which the teachers are expected to
respond to-of course, by questioning the
children themselves or their parents. for
naturally the teachers could not possibly
speak of their own knowledge:
Smoke cigarettes habitually?"
Smoke cigarettes sometimesy'
ATTEND theaters and parties frequent
ly?"
Father illiterate or nearly SOP
Father lazy and inprovident?'
Father a drunkard?"
Mother illiterate or nearly soT"
Mother intemperatey'
1t must be understood that these inter.
rogatories are put TO boys and girls alike
and in equal numbers. BY way Of delicate
consideration the superintendent attaches
to each form" a slip warning the teachers
to exercise the utmost discretion" In pur-
suit of the information required. and clos
ing with this h~igh-minded injunction:
direct questions likely to lower the
pupils estimate of parent or parents must
be carefully avoided"
You can ask a child whether its father
or mother is illiterate or a drunkard. but
by no means put a query calculated TO
wound the tenderest sensibilities'
Then comes a series of inquiries OF spe-
cial interest to those who have daughters
at school. We give a few OF the points
upon which Superintendent Powell wishes
to be informed:
"Other perceptible mental or bodily de-
feet"
Mature of this bodily or mental de-
feet"
Increase in measurement Of chest since
Oct. IL, 1899"
Increase in measurement around the
hips since Oct. II, 1899"
There are other interrogatories. much
more shocking I'm their fmpudent fndeli-
Cacy-so shocking. indeed. that We prefer
to leave them 10 an imagination which
must by this time be equal TO any demand
upon its resources. We have given enough.
we think, to convince the most unwilling
that our schools are I'm thoroughly in
competent hands; that the methods pur-
sued constitute a mixture of insolence.
brutality and despotism so revolving that
one can scarcely speak OF II with temper.
ance. Such a system. so inspired ane
operated, cannot possibly fall TO destroy
the modesty and self-respect of the pupils
and TO degrade their parents. The mere
fact that the school authorities sanction
so vile a thing is proof enough that they
are unworthy even OF our liberation.
Congress should transform itself into a
Hercules and cleanse the Augean stables,
no matter at what cost.
This inuuisition By superintendent Pow
ell, with all that IL implies. Is enough to
fire a revolution.