The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1908-12-23

Is able to accomplish. Almost with
out exception in any particular school
i'm this State the person responsible for
.he high school course is responsible
for the elementary course leading to
1t. What are We to suppose a teach
er's educational creed to be when he
has his eighth grade and his tenth
grade studying the same history and
reciting rs pages apart? Or. when
he regularly follows Bain's Latin Book
by Collar & 'Daniells? Or, when
Buehler's English Grammar is regu-
larly followed by Maxwell or some
other Of the same grade. Or when
botany and physics alternate with
| each other In the same grade with no
science In the previous year? Or. what
Is the explanation of the eighth. ninth
and tenth grades studying the same
arithmetic at the same time and all
beginning at about the same place +?
Something Is radically wrong when It
becomes necessary for the tenth grade
to review common fractions in arith-
metic.
when the joint committee appoint
ed by the State Teachers Association
and the Association of Colleges made
Its recommendation to this board
something more than two years ago,
1t recommended that a two-year high
school must make units, a three
year high school IL units and a
four-year high school Is units,
and at the same time recon-
mended the content Of these
units. These recommendations were
based upon the system in general use
through the East. North and North.
west. 1t must be borne in mind that
this system made no credit allowance
for English grammar or arithmetic,
both Of which are credited in Table 1
at the request Of this board. A refer
ence to Table shows that there are
lO1 schools reported and divided as
follows: One school claiming a one
year course, % schools claiming a
three-year course. So schools claiming
a three-year course. and 10 schools
(including Memminger) claiming a
four-year course. In 90 OF these
schools English grammar was taught,
and In 81 arithmetic was taught. With
the additional credit Of these two sub
jects let US see how the schools stand:
or the 10 schools claiming a four-year
course schools made the required Is
units; Of the 81 claiming a thres-year
course IL made the required IL units;
OF the 2S claiming a two-year course 8
made the required 8 units; leaving one
school with q one-year course. These
figures show that 7s per cent. Of the
high schools OF the State are falling
below the standard set up by the
teachers NJ the State, ond below their
own claims. IL Il now pertinent to
ask IL this standard Is impossible or
unreasonable. II II?
mo high school In the State runs
less than four and one-haif years ac-
tual teaching time in the daily sessions
exclusive or all recess time. In such
a school ak 45-minute recitations can
be heard by each teacher every day
II is done throughout the State. Un-
der such conditions. q high school with
a three-year course and two teachers
make IL units Of credit by econonflx-
Ing time. These two teachers can
Jointly give IL recitations each day.
four recitations to each of the three
classes. With 45-minute periods five
times a week for SO weeks. any COM
petent teacher can do the work re-
quired to make any unit In the scheme
If the pupils have been prepared to
do high school work when they were
put there. Some one at once protests
that Pains Latin Book cannot be COM
pleted In one year. No, not with 30
minute recitations. and six other SUBJ
jects for study. The author, with
thirteen years experience In second
ary teaching. says that it can be done.
However, he does not say that a
twelve-year-old boy unable to separate
the subject from the predicate in a
simple sentence In English can COM
plete his book in one year-in fact,
ne does not insist that such a boy
VIII ever complete the book. Another
objects that you cannot carry a class
to auadratics In algebra in one year.
NO; that would be impossible perhaps
with boys before reaching percentage
In arithmetic; II Is more than proba BILE
that seventh grade pupils could not
reach quadratics in one year.