Durango semi-weekly herald., 1905-11-30

of La Plata county last Saturday af
ternoon at the high school building IL
Durango, II had remained for a little
teacher from the country to take the
plum. Miss Nedry, who teaches the
modest school at Hermosa, had some
ideas and opinions which she had gar
nered from ner experience that should
entertain many of the people who
nave undertaken to study the econo
my of education. Miss Nedry's ideas
Will be better given in her own Ian.
suage as follows:
The problems of the rural teacher
are as many as the small stones alonp
the mountain roadsides. The journals
are full of solutions for the problems
we find inside of the school room, so
/ VIII only deal with those outside.
is the small stones that make our
road rough. Some are so well worn
with frequent passage that they are
smooth and slick, so when we reach
out for them they elude our grasp.
and little farther down the road
lie ready to trip us. Then there is
the innocent looking stone that we
can easily evade, but If we are care.
less and run against it what a Jolt
we get.
Ny first impression of rural work
was that of a monster with triple.
grizzly mead and more than seventy
eyes. each seeming to detect what a
coward was at heart and how little
I $50 >
BY the end of the first week the mon
ster had disappeared and in its place
We're rs individuals, each endowed
with power to do things | never
dreamed Of and leave undone those
that seemed Of vital Importance. So
| tried persuasion, then | tried force.
Then one day II came to me now Jo,
in Little Women" first drilled the
children in calisthenics until they
We're glad 10 sit still while she gave
them their lessons. Then my inside
problems We're solved, by that rule. |
kept them busy. allowing them 10
have their way, as long as that way
didn't interfere with other people.
Keeping sharp eye on the leaders,
that they 20 in the right direction,
things have always gone fairly smooth
in my rural work.
Asking pardon for this allusion 10
my individual experience, | will now
take some of the problems that meet
the new teacher in rural districts.
The first person the teacher comes
in contact with is the director. The
directors are usually representative
men of the district; also usually sue
cessful men in their business. So
We have men of positive opinions who
know great deal more about many
things, and especially how school
should be conducted, than any teach
er can ever hope to know.
The strange thing is that three such
wise men should not be able to agree
o. this trivial matter of running
school. for 1t often happens that II
the teacher chances to meet the ap.
proval of one man, or even two some
times, the third can find no good what
ever in that particular teachers work.
So the problem comes of meeting
the approval of these three wise men,
or perhaps not being able to hold
your place. Then. poor teacher, what
can you do for your bread and but
ter? Sometimes we have the direct
or who has taught school himself and
a successful one, too. For who ever
met person who had quit teaching
who had not been wonderfully sue
cessful teacher during the time he was
engaged in that profession? So he
wants to tell you just how he man
aged: expects you to adopt all OF his
suggestions. and II by chance you
should be tempted to try some of them
with dire results the fault is in you
not In the plans.
Then we have the director Whe
thinks any one can teach the little
folks. So we find the cheap teacher
and the cheap salary encouraged. An
other director is the stingy one. wac
doesn't believe in using money 10
anything except to hire teacher ant
provide a little fuel; who consider
book book. and one as good a
another, SO there is no use in buyin
new books. 1t doesn't matter hoy
the school room looks; to get new cul
tains all around when only two ar
gone is wasteful; SO he buys two ne'
yellow ones to go with the other oil
gray or green or brown ones.
Another is the man who in his bo.
hood has gone to a fine school, so b
has ideals and regardless of cond
tions and environments expects yo
to model after his plan. Another
the man who doesn't know and doesn
care, so long as he is not bothere
SO we find him most frequent.
Another Is the man who is tyral
at home-ilis wife and daughter a
his slaves. So II the teacher Is
woman she must tremble also wh'
he speaks.
There are SO many different kin
ct directors. but fortunately they =