The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-06-28

fessior is not a very remunerative one.
but it is at least as profitable pecuniarily
as any other in which women engage
and the majority of teachers are women.
The stenographer gets from five to ten
dollars a week. sometimes fifteen or
twenty: she must work every week day,
and her leave lasts fortnight. She has
no time to replenish her wardrobe or to
improve her mind except in the evening
and her chances of saving money and get
ting on in the world are less than il she
had long vacation. even without pay to
devote to her own purposes. The woman
physician has an uncertain position. and
her duties are arduous. Tho same is true
OF the trained nurse. Why, then, should
the teacher be so terribly overworked? 1t
is doubtful if the children of today are
much better educated than those of fifty
years since. and in those days teachers did
not have nervous prostration.
The reason is, in a Nutshell, that in addi-
ton to the necessary work of education,
the teacher is obliged to spend an i'm
mense amount of time on trash, and the
work which she is required to do in the
few hours in which she is teaching is more
than any sane human being could do In
twice the time. and do it well. In 1t she
must have the cooperation of from thirty
to fifty unframed and more or less indif-
ferent young minds. and it is the duel
between their incinations and hers which
wears her out. The remedy for this state
of things is not in shorter hours and long
er vacations. 1t is in lengthening the
school year to respectable limit, making
the time spent in school each day long
enough to accomplish all that is necessary
without hurry or fret. and reducing the
curriculum to collection of absolutely
necessary studies. to be pursued in the
manner involving the least strain on the
nervous systems of both teachers and
scholars. There is 10 reason why all chill
dren of thirteen should not be able under
a good public school system, to read, write
solve any ordinary arithmetical problem
and give reasonably correct account of
the world in which they live and the his
tory of their own country. Along with this,
in desultory fashion. through reading les.
sons and occasional talks. they should have
gathered some information about Europ-
can history and certain branches OF
science; and from the very first they
polite and orderly behavior. They will
then be ready for high school studies,
should their parents desire them to go
further, or for an industrial education
combined with home study or the night
school, if they must work with their
hands. But instead of this, we have
what?
A teacher gave this brief resume of her
weeks work to the author of the Allan
tic article:
1.-TWO classes reading; try to study authors
meaning, give expression to same; tell about au-
thor; phonics in lower grades. Two classes spell
ing: definition; OF words in sentences. Two
classes (pbysicaD geography. Two classes history.
Two classes grammar. Two classes arithmetic
Thee classes constitute the regular programme.
Add to these the following extras:
.'On Mondays have the American Citizen
Write Greek stories each week. Twice each week,
writing. Once a week, physiology, including ny
giene and temperance. Twice term study some
poem and send the result TO superintendent. Our
music teacher comes once III Two NtthS- hc ST.
lects one or two pieces of music and we teach
the pupils. In two weeks more he comes to see
the results of our work. Pupils must sing every
day. The special teacher in gymnastics comes
once in two weeks and takes the class herself,
after which We give lessons each day until she
comes again Our next extra teacher is in me-
chanical drawing. We have had no instruction in
geometry He went to the board and drew
equiateral triangle, tried to get the name from
pupils | finally told him l doubted If they had
ever heard the word. He said they would have To
do most OF the figures by copying them. We
have also questions in physics. copied on cards and
sent to the principals of each grammar grade.
Instead of examinations at the end Of the term a.
formerly now give tests each month, so that
] always have sets Of papers to be corrected and
ranked. We get the total average of ALL the av-
erage Of each study, the class standing, our esti-
mate of each pupil-which we guess at-and then
the general average. II you add TO course
some Of the requirements OF the larger cities,
manual training, sewing, cooking, algebra. Latin.
science. and geometry, you can ste how the gram
mar school course has been vercrowded-eniiched
they call it
And all this examining has to be done In
three school terms of ten or twelve weeks
each, five days a week; the school hours
being in some cases from nine to half-past
one, without long recess, or from nine 10
four, with a recess OF from one to two
hours at noon. 1t It to be wondered at
that teachers break down? 1t is the pace
that kris"