The Aberdeen Democrat. (Aberdeen, South Dakota) 1???-1909, 1906-01-05
Subscription Price-One Year, $40
ABERDEEN, S. D., JAN. 5, 1906
Educational Stupidity

of the policy pursued by the
county superintendent of schools
in this county, and to these
criticisms the editor of the
DEMOCRAT has considered it his
duty to give currency. But the
fact of the matter is that the
criticisms, however just they
are, should not be aimed at Mr..
Eddy but at the vicious system
which has robbed the county
superintendent of a discretion
which he must exercise if he ad-
ministers the affairs of his office
in the best interests of the people
of his county. The worst that
can be said of MIR. Eddy is that
he gives his approval to the mis-
chievous policy enforced by legal
enactments which he strives to
conform to, some provisions of
which he would honor himself
more in the breach of than the
observance. It is possible that
he is too much Of a stickler for
non-essentials.
The gravest fault of the sys-
tenn under criticism is that the
applicants qualification for teach
ing is made to depend entirely
upon the showing of the written
examination, and, in order to
guard against anything else
being considered, the eXamina-
ton papers of all applicants for
first and second grade certificates
are sent away to the state capital
to be marked up by a person hav-
ing no knowledge of the anteced-
ents, character or personal APP
pearance of the applicant. If
these papers were to be acted
upon by the county superintend-
ent who might know what oppor-
tunities the applicant may have
had for fitting himself for the &C.
cupation of teacher; how success
full he may have been if previous
ly a teacher in the county; and,
coming in contact with the appli-
cant, has an opportunity to Judge
character by personal appear
ance and demeanor; then many
good teach ers, now rejected,
might be permitted to give good
service in schools that remain
closed too long because of scars.
ity of teachers.
In the case of applicants fol
third grade certificates, which
the county superintendent passes
upon, he finds his hands tied by
rigid requirements imposed by
the state superintendent. The
examination questions are furn.
ished by the state superintendent
and made unnecessarily difficult
A rigid requirement of non
essential branches and certain
percentages are established t
rob him of the exercise of his
own judgement and discretion
In proof of this the fact can be
cited that at the regular teachers
examination held at the opening
OF the present school year these
hard requirements compelled thu
superintendent of this county t.
refuse certificates to a larg,
majority of applicants for thirt
grade. In fact the certificate:
issued in all grades to applicant:
at that examination were not suf
6cient to fill more than 60 pc.
cent of the schools of the county
Now, what has been the result i,
this county? Fully seyent,
schools we're left to depend upo,
the chance conner into tn,
county or other accidental han
penings for teachers. It wa
then that Superintendent Edd,
had to bow to the law of neces
sity, a higher law than any en-
acted at Pierre. He has sat i,
his Office, holding private examj
nations, instead of visitin,
schools, for nearly h,1f ~