The Portland daily press., 1900-04-21
Theories That Are
Not Practical.
Specimens From Recent Written
Examinations.
uPxcrAL 70 THE rnEssI

w
BILE overhsuline BY State committee,
especially Ia regard 90 tire system of
teaching. Some Of the members OF the
Sensts committee took issue with the
claims Of those managing the schools
that the system Of teaching was-ths one
hest adapted to train the minds OF child :
rem and youth, to tsaoh thsm to think
and 10 express themselves clearly. IL
was held by the members Of the board ef
school trustees. and by those who defend
the schools, that cling was test
learned incidentally, and not by tina use
Of the spelling box; .taat arithmesio
was to he acqu'r d test by method that
eliminates the drudgary, and that the
oral teaching CT grammar 10 superior to
the use OF the Textbook. On ths other
hand. complaint was made by many
parents and en- plcyers that, howe yer OK
osllsnt the above entioned theories may
be, the result is tina. the children and
youth In the Washington public schools
are rot able to use correctly the Enali sh
language ana are unable to do simple
examples In arithmetic-in short, that
they are not fitted to be- ONE otiics boys,
oler ks, etc.
In the Washington schools history 10
begun in the Ct iTd grade with the study
Of the lives of Washington and Capt.
John smith; In the fourth and fifth
grades 1t lie Continued. and In the sixth
grade (whsn the child is IL years old) the
hardest werk' ~ done, no fewer than
four textbook being used. Ths Trustees
Report for 1860, says that tho child was
here given the narrative from the begin
ming to the end, SO that he possessed
clear, connected, ssqusntial view OF the
whole SUM- sot''
In the seventh grade the history Of the
United States from the Revolution was
studied, and in thu eighth English his
tory 10 In the courss. The same report
states that in arithmetic the pupils Of
the fifth grade begin to study percentage.
and that mphasls 10 "iaid upon powers
and roots. square MEASURE. cubic meas
ure, cube root The sighth-grade work
includes review of arithmetic aud alge-
bra, as far As fractions.
Civil government In taken up In the very
tirGt grade, when the nhild Is SIX yeas
old; In the third grade the children visit
the Capitol In order that they may see
the Senate, the House Of Reprs ssntatives
and the Supreme Court In ssssiop. At
the age of II the child learns Of the gov
eminent of the Saxons, Normans.
Britons, and American indians their
manner, habits, pastimes, and ocoups-
lions; at 10 he studies the discovery snd
colonization OF Amefi,s; at ID he studiss
the Government of the United States
under the various presidential admins
trations.
10 test the efficacy OF the system Of
education sn examination was held under
supervision of the chief examiner OF the
civi, service commission, and with the
assist anoe of the teachers and superin-
tendents In the schools.
As result Of these examinations the
committee came to the following con-
clusions:
"The results Of the examinations
would seem to prove that the instrnction
in the lower grades Of tbs District schools
does not ft the average pupil to use the
English langu age correctly and tiuently
nor does 1t give him a good training In
arithmetic. In SO far as English IL con-
cerned, the testimony given before the
subcommittee went to show that written
exercises were seldom resor ted to; that
such exercises were not corrected by the
teachert and returned to the pupils to be
rewritten. The spelling book has been
discarded, and the pupil has nothing In
its place. Moreover. there would seem to
be no uniform tests for advancement from
grade to grade, or for entrance to the
high school.
STARTLING as the results Of these ex-
aminations are, similar results Will be
obtained probably In the majority OF
cities East and West. II IL only within
the past few years that ths colleges, by
conosrted action, have undertaken to ..in-
sist on better instruction In English.
The method adopted to sscure the result
is q demand that frequent written exer-
cisss be required of pupils, and that
every suoh exeroiss-whether In history.
In physics. or In trAnslations from
modern or from ancient larguagss--shali
BE- written In correct English.
/ "Again, there IL q widespread revolt
against the multiplicity OF studies, and
the demand that the fundamentals Of
education shall be learned ~ task-that
the pupil shall have detinits WORK for
which he Is to be held responsible. He ID
to be taught ssif-rslianss. tina economy
OF time IN study, and the high value Of
definite attainment In knowlsdss. Kis'
dergarten methods and the amusement
OF the child ara not TO BE- carried through
the grades. but definite drill and prscis'
dafinitton are TO be insisted upon."
The COMMITTEES append to their report