The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-12-27
PAPERS YESTERDAY
PROBLEMS IN PEDAGOGY DIS
CUssED ny EMINENT STATE y
- EDUCATIONIsTs
PRESIDENTS ANNUAL ADDRESS
w. A. Shoemaker, OF ST. Cloud, Rec
views Current Conditions and i
Makes Valuable Suggestions
-TOday's Programme.

Nearly 800 teachers are in attendance
at the thirty-eighth annual convention
of the Minnesota Educational association,
which commenced in this city yesterday
morning, tie preliminary organic ng WORK
being done at the Central Presbyterian
church.
The programme mapped out for the day
was successfully carried out, the only
speaker not appearing being Supt. Lev
iston, who is sick. Several Of the papers
read in the afternoon were scholarly and
exhaustive, showing that the subjects
had been carefully prepared.
Two very pleasant features were the
lectures delivered by Profs. Burton and
Winchester. Both were listened to by
large audiences, and both were Interest,"
ing and instructive. At the morning ses-
sion ]. Adam Bede delivered a witty adj
dress on the subject Enthusiasm for
Life"
Immediately after the preliminary work
in the morning, DR.. Burton was introduce
ed to lecture upon Enthusiasm for Lit
erature."
He was at his best in treating his favor
lite subject, and repeated rounds of ape
plause testified to the appreciation Of
those present.
At the outset he suggested as a de1ni-
ton for culture an enthusiasm for the
right thing, although this was not the
most common one. With many people
the word enthusiasm had bad name,
being regarded as a kind Of cloak for
/ ignorance. 1t was too often regarded as
a cheap, nasty substitute for knowledge
During the past fifty years they had
come to a better, broader and more ac-
curate conception of education because
| they were emphasizing more the intui-
| tive side OF human nature. This was
a most potent and significant thought
In pedagogy In the past the emotion
al was given a subsidiary place in litera-
| ture. The fact was that the emotions
ruled our life and directed three-fourths
of our self-conscious existence. The
emotions ruled us and made LIFE either
livable or unlivable.
Culture in its true sense was not head
| knowledge or anything that begot wear.
| mess or criticism in the censori JUS sense.
Prof. Burton criticised some pubIoa-
tions which made their book reviews a
vehicle for petty fault-fnding, whie the
good points were passed in silence. He
made mention of the Nation In this be-
half. The motive force that should move
knowledge was love. Love was behind all
good teaching.
Enthusiasm was the solvent into which
knowledge must be put to make it pal
atable. Method was much, but it was not
everything.
One of the great p ob'ems in teaching
was what to do with the laundering rank
and file.
The personal equation must always be
kept In mind in teaching.
Much of our knowledge was derived
from sources only half Trustworthy Be-
cause of such knowledge people were
wont to regard the Slavic race nations
as dominant, whereas if the truth were
known, many of the so-called decadent
peoples were virile with latent power and
knowledge.
literature
thusiasm. 1t was one of the few great
channels where the power of beauty was
apprehended in man. Literature was lie
seen through the medium of a powerful
lens
Mr.. ]. A. Bede, with a short address,
and Al Flournoy, with some witty s or es
closed the morning session, after whi-h
lunch was served by the ladies in the
church paTlors.
The afternoon session commenced at
23C After b:ief prayer by Rev. DR..
Medium, the president of the as -ooiation,
w. A. Shoemaker, of St Cloud, delivered
his address. In part he spoke as follows:
PRESIDENTS ADDRESS.
At the opening of the largest and I
the NJ T. %; A an association which
has increased its membership from us
to loo in single year, l wish to express
my thanks to the executive committees
for their wise council and energetic az
| ton, without which it would have been
| Impossible so to increase cur member
ship: Thanks are especially due to Prof
| u. -. CIoyd, our able secretary, whose
unt1ring zeal and Astounding energy has
! borne such noble fruit.
II shall not weary you with a lcngthy
| dlsqulsltlon ON any specific topic of edu-
| cation L shall cOnfna myself to a w
| remarks upon a phase Of education viii h
! does not seem to me to fall und r ~
| topic on the printed programme
Will W q 10 =
| er the various means provided the
public for the training of teachers a
critique on present edu ti.nal deaf,
! also forecasts Of what we shall be; the
! main problems that confront the SUPER
| intendent, the high school principal; re
| Ports on course of study in various hiah
Again, in the graded school sect n the
| burning question of instruction in English
will be handled by distinguished special
lists. All should be interested in the n o.
prammc in the child study section. There
you will find q body of sympathetic work
crs trying to discover more of that great
est of all subjects-child nature. One
could wish for no better motto for all
true teachers than this, and a lit
child shall lead them Our musical kin
dergarten friends, and last, but not asst
our school board friends each have a
feast to set before us.
But though we should gain the uest
Philosophy of teaching-though we e
though We have an abiding faith in air
| that is mentioned above and have not
charity, it shall profit US nothing. Char
ity suffereth long and is k nd and it
needs to be when We take into con sidera-
ton the number of interpretations that
people have seen fit to foist upon st.
Charity is inspiring love, generous 81 M
pathy, and self-sacrifcing devotion; yea
more than this, it is habitual cheerful
ness ard generous forgiveness.
II know tinid girls who do more good
than many learned professor. Oh, that
l had a thousand tongues to c y cut
against dry, souliess teaching. a friend
of mine made this remark: DO some
thing occasionally that you don't dare to
do If a pupil says a really BRIGHT
thing. laugh with him. If you frown or
look worried, you are the victim of a
lost opportunity. Unfortunately many
young people are still trained to connect
learning with that which Is soDba", col ,,
forbiddfng and exacting. The normal
child loves to lean. The teacher with
false notion of dignity, whose counte-
nance doth cream and mantle as the
standing pond, who deems that a bit OF
iolhty in the school room Is sin, makes
hooks distasteful and all lear1ing bore.
The merry face and hearty laueh, the
bounding interest in the thing at hand,
Continued on Eighth Page.