The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-10-30
HOW IDAHO is TAKING FIRST
RANK IN EDUCATIONAL WORK

state institutions. and in addition, one
outsidc lecturer. These meetings are
held annually at Pocatcllo. Boise and
Couer d Alcne City; and attendance of
these terms is optional with the
teachers of the state.
The state appropriates money for the
cost OF this summer school The aver
age attendance at each of these sum
MGR schools this year was about 100,
| n new law TO our educational svs-
TEN, passed by the last legislature,
made radical change in the system
Of grading applicants papers. In the
previous law, the state superintendent
passed the examination questions TO the
county superintendent of each county
in the state. where they were opened
IN the presence of the applicants.
Each applicant writes under a mum.
Der and when all are through, the en-
tire papers of the various counties are
mailed TO the state superintendent, the
county superintendent only retaining
the name TO which the plumbers on each
paper belongs. Thus. the state Office
can have no knowledge Of The person
VINO wrote any particular paper. By
The timc these papers reach the capital
the state superintendent has, by pre-
Vlous appointment, assembled corps
OF qualified educators 10 pass on thc
papers. One Will take The entire his
tory set, another tic grammar and thus
through he entire list. the cxamiua-
tion papers arc all marked and returned
to the county superintendent when the
respective grades are attached to the
numbers aud the applicant is given the
result of the markings,
No one ever filed an Office of ex-
aminer of county teachers without bav-
nf dos,
who arc keen to use influence to get
son, daughter, sister, brother or friend
through the examination, if any sort of
influence can he eXertod TO accomplish
the result. This new law struck the
roots Of this Iniqultous system The
state superintendent stated to us to-
day that at the first examination held
under this modified system. in August
of this year, she received over 100
letters urging her 10 bc sure to see
th1t tins one or that one was passed
to ccrti6caton
There was no chance, had the super.
lntcudcnt so desired, for her to tell
whose papers her ten examiners were
marking; but the effort Of these inter
estcd friends, proved TO Miss Chamber
lam The entire righteousness of the
new provision.
Another. new law affecting the
schools, which is undergoing trial TO
The delight of the state and county au.
pcrntcndents who supervise the schools |
or the state, is the District Trustees
association,
The supcrintenGents of the various
counties arc required TO call together |
annually, at the county seat, one trus- |
tee from each district in the county to |
bc chosen by tho three, whose expenses |
shall be paid by thc district. and 81 |
per diem, Tor a session of not 10 exceed |
TWO days, for general conference rs ]
TO their respective duties to the schools |
of their districts
So popular have been the trustees
meetings thus far. that there is Il smart |
rivalry among them as to who shall |
attend. and III MANY eases, all the trus-
tees have been present at these new
meetings of school boards.
In speaking of necessary edition
10 the school lazy. which conditions seem
TO warrant, the stare superintendenf
said: "The school law OF Idaho should
he so amended as to provide for a
Ugh school inspector. whose duty il
should be TO grade and accrcdit the
high schools of the state. BY such "A
plan higher standard of scholarship |
would obtain and with more uniformity
than under the present system, with
".
normal schools and. the academy"
a board Of revision of the school
laws of the state was created last |
winter, consisting of Miss Chamberlain,
Walter Il. Siders of the |
Pocatello schools and President George |
II. Black of the Lewiston normal
This board had one meeting III Au-
gust and divided the work among the
and adjourned to meet and
compare the result of their individual |
efforts the Inst week in November.
Since 1898, when the Idaho consti-
tuition was so amended that equal suf- |
trage was extended, Idaho has had a |
woman state superintendent, and the |
largo majority Of tho counties of the |
state NOW have women county superin.
and have had during these |
years.
Miss Permesl French. Miss Mae Scott
and Miss Belle Chamberlain have each |
been elected and reelected 10 the of
fee Of state superintendent Of public |
obstruction.