The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1902-05-28
EDUCATIONAL COLUMN.
SCHOOL REGISTERS.

DltA bilt HNbIdRt COunbIy SCuOOl itdOll-
er must be numbered the making out
of the register at the end of the term.
An experience of several years as
clerk of a Vermont school board has
taught me that less than half of the
registers are returned to me in the
condition that they should be to fulfill
their purpose
There are all sorts of mistakes made
by our teachers, some resulting from
carelessness, some from lack of ac-
curacy and many from failure to un-
derstand what is required. | am in
clined to think that the root of the
matter lies at the door of the clerk
of the board rather than at that of
the teachers. | have always found our
teachers ready to accept any sugRes-
tions that | made concerning the regis
ters and willing to try to make an
Improvement in them the following
term. But | have also been told many
times, when | had explained why q
certain point was not correct, "Why,
| have always made out my register
that way in other towns and no fault
was found with it, ~
When clerks of school boards are
willing TO make sure of what regis
ter should be in every particular and
then insist that mistakes shall be at
once corrected before the teacher is
given an order in payment for her ser
vices, then | am sure that there will
be marked Improvement in the way
school registers are filed out When
little is expected, it usually follows
that little is received. l consider it
the business of every clerk to know
first what is correct in a register and
then see to it that no errors shall pass
unchallenged. But perhaps someone
will say, Il didn't suppose the regis
ter was anything of much account,
anyway" Perhaps it is not III itself.
But is it not the basis from which
must be collected nearly all of our
statistics concerning our public schools ?
And If the information that 1t gives
is incomplete or inaccurate, what of
the value of any'summary of a. town
or of the entire State? 1t may be said
too,that teacher should know how to
make out her register without any as
sistance or criticism from any quar-
ter. Granted. But the law of the
State, (Sec. 1860 requires the clerk to
Examine the register and if it is
properly filled out and properly GER
titled to by the teacher, he shall give
Il
can the clerk give such a certificate
if he does not know whether the regis
ter is correct or not? 1t may be sim
ply coincidence, but have never yet
found teacher whose register was
defaced by blots and erasures, care
lessly written and hopelessly inaccu-
rate, who was worth retaining a sec.
ond term.
Straws show which way the wind
blows, and if a due amount of care,
tidiness and orderly arrangement are
shown in the returns made by teach
err you may confidently expect good
work in the schoolroom. Sham, shall
lowness and superfciality are to be
discountenanced wherever met. |
once knew teacher whose standing
orders to her pupils were, IF com
pany comes into school, we will have
again the lessons of yesterday. y
What a lesson in deceit that was
That teacher had never learned that
an honest failure was better than an
undeserved success.
But to return to my topic. Admit
ting the fact that there is need of an
Improvement in the manner of filling
out registers, how can this change be
best brought about? | suggest three
things.
First, more care and attention to be
given on the part of teachers them
selves. The Directions to teachers
in the register should be studied and
understood By consulting Section
725, VS., we may find that the du-
tiesof a teacher with reference to the
register are four III number: to pro.
cure the register from the clerk OF
school board before commencing tC
| keep therein "a record of the daily at
tendance of each pupil to enter cor.
rect answers to certain questions anc
| to return the register to clerk OF
board at the end of the term.
AS matter of fact, the register II
usually carried to the teachers by
either clerk or superintendent at the
beginning of the term with other need
ed supplies. 1t seems to me that i
would be well to amend the law by
making it the duty of one of these Off
GERS to do this, so that the law anC
common practice should coincide
Second, clerks of school boards ough
to be more careful in examinin,
registers so that errors by young ant
inexperienced teachers shall not b.
repeated term after term as is oftel
the case He is authority on tn
question as to the proper filling GU
of the records and should know hoy
it should be done and then insist tina
it be done right. The value of GU
school statistics depends largely o.
the returns made by each school
small and unimportant though it ma
seem.
Third, Normal and training school
should give instruction in the matte
of the proper filling out of registers
This is an important part of teach
er's duty and there is no reason fo
it's omission from the studies of
school that is supposed to prepar
teachers for their work. In towr
that have a superintendent that
sufficiently alive to the interests {
the schools to hold teachers meeting
regularly, as should be done in ever
town in the State, he may give a tai