The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1900-04-20
Teachers, Institute.


The feature of the week among
Cecil county school teachers was
the annual institute hold at Elkton
opening on Tuesday. The attend
ance was large each day. There
were lib public school teachers of
the county present on Tuesday, as
follows: First district, IL; Second,
II; Third, "a; Fourth, 10; Fifth,
20; Sixth, 13; Seventh, 10; Eighth,
5; Ninth, 5.
The feature of the opening meet
ing was the address by George A.
Blake, Esq, President of the Board
of School Commissioners. The fol-
lowing are some of the mole salient
points of the address:
During the year two new schoolhouses
had been built, one at Conowingo and
one at Cecilton; others are needed, but
will it not be better in some instances to
''double up by disseminating schools
where the centres of population had
changed and erecting larger buildings at
more central points, establishing graded
schools.
He deprecated the fact that In some
parts of the county, especially at the be-
ginning of the school year, the attend
ance had been greatly below the average.
He said that the increased disposition of
many parents to sacrifice the training
and education of their children for the
chance to gain few dollars from their
labor is to be deplored and is bringing US
to consider whether or not here, as in
Ohio, Massachusetts land New York, a
compulsory and educational law may not
be necessary in the near future.
He referred to two criticisms which
have been made upon the public school
system. One of these is an old one, but
in some quarters Is still reiterated. This
criticism is that the character of the
studies in our schools, aud the nature OF
the training therein, is such that it units
the children for the practical duties OF
life when they become men and women,
especially as :it furnishes them with no
equipment for earning livelihood. Mr..
Blake said that possibly some ground for
this criticism had been furnished by the
fact that In instances children had been
pushed too rapidly, SO that in the effort
to cover lengthy curriculum in few
years the primary studies and essential
ones had been to an extent neglected
He referred to the fact that in Chicago
and Washington the charge had been re-
Gently made that children who had passed
into or through grades of higher studio.
were utterly deficient in spelling, reading
and arithmetic. This constituted ths
second criticism. He expressed the hops
that under our present system ofsendins
the children In Cecil county from thu
lower schools TO the high schools at thu
end of the sixth grade, we should not fal
into the same error.
He expressed the belief that this coult
in large measure be avoided by requir.
ing that children remain two years in the
sixth grade instead of one.
He said that the opinion had been ex
pressed to him that Teachers Institute
are of no practical value, and that it wopl'
be better to have the time taken up b,
them used by the teachers In conducting
school as usual, rather than, as now, t
have the scholars turned adrift for week
He said that that Is serious charge, an
If true, the Institutes had better be abau
doned. However, he did not believe tn
same 3 correct. He thought that mos
valuable results would follow from tn
Institutes if the teachers viii avail then
selves cfthe opportunities afforded.