Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1900-11-02

Inls is matter OF very grea
moment to the teacher, for upor
this depends greatly his success al
an instructor. Share with them il
their sports and aniusements; sym
pathize with them in their little
sorrows and when they bring theil
complaints give them a patient hear
ing and redress their grievances as
prudence and discretion may demand
The teacher will thus find himself
in possession of a. key with which
he can unlock the hearts of his
pupils and enter at will. But
when he finds that he has gained
their esteem, let him take heed, lest
ne rule as tyrautj let the same
desire, the desire to enlighten and
elevate, govern his ruling as oon-
trolled his entrance into their hearts.
Happy the teacher and proud ought
he to be who thus finds himself in
treDched in the affections of his class.
Certainly he can find but little
difficulty in gaining and fixing their
attention, thereby inclting In them
an interest to study, and 'swaking
up their minds to the Importance of
the acquisition OF knowledge" Rut
in order that the teacher may attain
to this end more perfectly, it is quite
necessary that he should be firm.
Firmness does not mean tyranny,
such as the despotic king exercises
over his sgbjects or the pufeeling
master over his slaves, but firmness
tempered with gentleness and kind
ness and bearing the impress of
noble impulses, is such as The teacher
should exercise over his class. It
sometimes becomes necessary to In
ilict corporal punishment and this
should be done from a sense of duty,
and not merely to glut passion; let
him show to the offending pupil that
to him it is q painful duty and per-
formed only for his (the pupil's) good.
A teacher must have rules and
see that they are obeyed. 1t is
symply impossible to govern a school
without discipline. A class must be
obedient, or else they will neither fear
nor respect their teacher, and conse-
quently will make no advancement in
their studies. Lessons are often learn
ed under painful circumstances and
from slavish fear, but when thus
learned, there Is no mental good
derived; such learning is purely
mechanical without any development
of mind.
The formation of correct habits,
the amount and character of the
knowledge acquired the progress
and rapidity and propriety of intel
lectual development, are all largely
dependant upon the manner in which
the teacher conducts himself before
and that firmness with which he
deals with his class.
The teacher teacher wherever he
is, whether on the play ground or in
the school room. Every act he per-
forms, every word he utters, every
thought he cherishes," has its influnce
and is more readily interpreted by his
pupils than he may imagine. Let him
then be ever on his guard if he would
wish to live in the confidence of his
class. In passing on I remark, in
the next place, the teacher should
be cheerful.
Great is the power of cheerful
ness to Danish sighs aud yarns, to
quicken the memory, and render
sensitive the perceptive faculties, to
moderate the vanity of the sanguine
and to stimulate the dull.
Instead of entering the school room
with a saddened visage, as though
the weight of nation burdened him,
let him enter with step elastic and
greet his pupils with genial
smile. Let him not be cast down if
great boys and girls with whose
training he had nothing to do are
not all he would wish, but let him
deal with them as they are and
rejoice it they grow not worse.
Finally; let him be good.
We know of no more potent
auxiliary in this matter than a econ
viction on the part of his pupils that
he is really good" There is NO
child SO obstinate, or mischievous
or dull but will yield to
goodness. And, moreover, it is the
means by which he is to meet his
responsibility to that numerous class,
that, tottering on the verge of
an abyss, he is to attract to himself
and save or repel, TO be lost forever
We believe by observing the hints
thus briefly given the teacher will
exert that influence over his class,
which will enable him to gain and
fix their attention at his will. II
may cost him some anxious care to
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