The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1908-10-21
OUR SCHOOLS.
take to teach all these books to an,
PAPER NO. ].
BY PROF. WILLIAM H. HAND.


take to teach all these books to any
one child in the allotted time woul1
make old Socrates catch his breath.
In the first last it would seem that
the course given was measured by
the physical endurance of the teach
ers-ten teachers pitted against ten
sets of children. In the second case
the physical endurance Of the teach
ers was no limit-four teachers pit
ted against ten sets Of children.
am far from advocating only the
three Rs in the common schools, but
our schools are undertaking too much
in the quantity of work and the kind
Of work. School work must be cir
cumscrlbed by time, space, and the
ability Of the pupil. Take the Sth
grade course already mentioned. OF
he eleven texts prescribed, nine ar.
O be pursued at the same time. it
Is no figure Of speech to say that
Z a child's time is the dividend OF
, long division, the quotfent, or re-
suit, must be small. For instance.
n the first two years of a child's
chool life the schools very properly
'evote much time and energy to oral
'eading. But by the time he reaches
he fifth grade, SO many things arc
'rowded upon him that he does but
title oral reading while under in
"truction-a few minutes each day,
perhaps. Hence when he reaches
he high school his oral reading j,
-carcely ineligible, and he Is often
,nable to get through from the print
I'd page. Indeed, many a college
student and not a few teachers In
our common schools can not read
as they should read on entering the
high school.
These crowded courses Of study
have another fatal weakness. In the
same school and in the same classes
g a wide range Of ability, taste, ami
opportunity, among the pupils. The
bright and ]precocious mind. the slug
gish but r~etentive mind, and the dull
mind are found side by side. The
nupil Of robust body and vigorous
health, the one Of feeble body AMI
| delicate health, and the one with
,mple time for every task and the
one with scant time for any task
I'll 60 to the same school. The uu-
nardonable sin Of the schools Is t.
bunch them together, give them the
same work. and require all to meas
| IRE up to a common standard. Col
made them in different molds, and
it is useless for the schools to try
TO ignore the differences. 1t is un-
natural and 1t is wrong. To march
| abreast twenty-five children in one
grade up to a given dead-line &
neither possible nor desirable. Chill
dren with diverse abilities, tastes.
and opportunities should not be re.
nufred to progress with even ster
through such diverse subjects as
mathematics. language, history, and
drawing. If a boy can do the Ian
| guage work Of the 9Th grade. but
Is prepared for only the 4th In math-
!'ematics, put him just where he IS
fitted to go. ooh, he would not
fit into my program" says som"
me-. Then make the program fit the
boy. The possibility Of doing this
is one Of the great advantages that
the small country school has over
the closely graded school.
There Is another thing which needs
to be dinned into the ears Of oprica
both teachers and patrons-tha'
1t ia folly for a school with nins
grades and two teachers to under
take to do what a school with nine
grades and six teachers accomplished.
The t~wo-teacher school nay be the
better school within its limitations.
but it must keep within these limi-
tatious. A one-horse farmer who
would claim to be able to grow a.
MANY crops and as large or Ups as Q
four-horse farmer would grow, woul4
be laughed at. Little David could
not fight in big Saul's heavy and
cumbersome armor, but with a sling
and a pebble he dia effective work.
WILLIAM H. HAND.
University Of South Carolina. q