The Virginia enterprise., 1908-12-04

roundings of the child. She ca,
avoid bad air, too long standing O
sitting, harsh grating tones, darl
cold rooms, and the requirement o
tasks which the pupil is in no sens,
able to perform, or upon which hi,
mind is able to dwell only for yer,
brief time.
1t may be said that the evils her,
referred to have in a large n,easur>
disappeared from our schools, bu'
they will never entirely disappea,
until more teachers practice -wlla,
they preach. l sometimes thiul
that the sin of. inertia is' greater
than the sin of ignorance among
teachers.
But after the things pertaining tc
natural ability and physical aids
and comforts are attended to, there
are other obstructions to clear
away. There are few children that
are not much interested in thinKs
outside of the school, and things
not calculated to aid to develop
strong moral character, which is a
true result of right education To
many pupils, land l am cory to
have to say to some teachers) school
is of secondary importance. 1t ia
hard for the teacher, when the boy
sits listlessly with his work before
him, thinking of the good time he
is to have that very evening at the
roller skating rink, and watching
the hour hand of the clock as it
leisurely moves to the "IV" mark
on the dial plate, and his gentle
sister thrums the desk top with her
bejewelied fingers thinking of the
new gown she is to wear to the next
evening party. How is the teacher
to wrest these listless minds from
their deep interest in trivial things
and enable them to lay hold of the
things of solidity and worth.
TRUE AIN OF EDUCATION.
= The true aim of education ia
character, pure, strong, symmetri-
cal, beautiful. 1t is to make men
and women good and reasonable,
not to make them smart. The true
measure of man is his strength and
richness of soul. The child should
be trained to habits of honesty, OF
industry and of good behavior,
even if it must be done at the sacri.
flee of mental discipline and the
knowledge of the sciences and
mathematics.
Among the qualities of good
character are truthfulness, honesty,
cleanliness, contentment, self.re-
lance, self-respect. self.control,
obedience, courtesy, and cheerful.
ness. 1t is for the teacher to cult.
vate these by judicious exercise
and eradicate their opposites by
suppression, or lack OF exercise. This
exercise, il must be remembered,
often requires courage. self control,
and selfdeniaI on the part of the
pupil.
l have attempted to outline in a
brief and imperfect manner, some
idea of the child as he comes to the
teacher. the aim of his school edu.
cation, and the means at the teach.
er's command to accomplish the
same. She must see those things
clearly, in their proper relation, aud
then by wisdom and patient labor
bring about the desired result.
GENERAL TONE AND SPIRITUAL At
nOsPHERE NEEDED.
One of the things to receive at
tention as a means of helping the
boy or girl is the general tone or
spiritual atmosphere of the school
1t should be alive with curiosity
energy, vigor and application
Pupils should be on their nerve
Under such conditions, lessons will
be better learned, future habits OF
study will be better formed, and
those intellectual and moral condi
tions will be esta bIished which are
conducive to mental health On the
other hand, in the feeble. slipshod
nerveless school, the intellectual
and moral vices find a thrifty
growth. The teacher must arouse
curiosity, thereby awakening q
desire for knowledge. She must lead
in observation. She must create the
habit of careful and systemati tic
study. For this there is no lack o.
material. Nature, history, and al
other subjects in the course art
replete with it: Emerson says
"Every object of nature serves 70,
use, for beauty, for language or 70,
discipline". He also says: "Al
nature is saturated with the mora
law. BY patient intelligent labo
the teacher makes use of the mater
ials and forces of nature, 'avaiiina
1 l.