Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1909-01-28
FOURTH annual
Convention

Inc 1Ourtn annual convention OF tne
Montour county school directors as
sociation was held in the court house
yesterday. OF the seventy. five direct
ors of the county but ten were absent
during the opening session.
The convention was called to order
by DR.. l. g. Barber, president of the
school directors association, at ten
o'clock. B. L. Diehl was elected sec
retary pro. tenn. W. H. Orth, the reg
ular secretary, arrived later and took
charge.
Professor Lose, uperinteudento of the
schools of Williamsport, was intro
duced as the first speaker. He is man
of many years experience in school
work. He has practical ideas relating
both to methods of teaching and the
conduct of schools by directors he is
a ready and foroeful speaker and his
addresses OH such occasions as yester-
day are always looked forward to
with real interest and pleasure by the
friends Of education.
Professor Loses subject yesterday
morning was, Business Principles
in the Management of Schools.
The school board, he said, must act
as board" and not as individuals.
No question. whether of teachers,
books or apparatus, should be consid-
cred or discussed by the directors as
individuals, but only as a school board.
1t is when acting as individuals. in
the selection of teachers, especially,
that the school directors are apt to
make grave mistake. 1t is bad
practice to permit certain members of
the board through courtesy to control
certain schools of the district. These
are all matters OF sufficient import
ance to require the consideration and
sanction Of the school board as a
whole. 1t is such boards, where the
members act as individuals, that are
the most easily victimized by agents
that seek to introduce costly and we'll
nigh useless school apparatus.
1t is the business OF the school board
to know the law governing the schools.
No business concern would think of
doing business without a full knowl-
edge of the law relating to it, 1t is
unfortunate, the speaker said, that
there are some directors who are an
tagonistio to the law in some relations
and throw obstacles in the way Of its
enforcement There should be no pla e
for such man in the school board.
Directors must not dictate to super
iutendents and teachers on matters on
which the latter know the most
Teaching and consequently the teach
er existed long before tie office -
school director vas created. There l g
some privileges that belong to the
teacher that the director can not te Ee
away. Tie wise school board, there
fore, will not dicta'e to teachers rs
to school books ,methuds Of work ar-
l'''"'' N>''' ''tG ''a' lI'N
must teach this way or chat way, Int
II VIII rather yield to the preference
OF TIE teachers in these respects, eS
planning, however, that it will holI
them responsible for good results
The business Of the schoul beard
must be done with proml tncss. Build
lngs should be repaired and all books
and supplies purchased in good time
TO the end that there may be no delay
IN opening the schools.
a school district should always live
within its income. il frequently hap.
pens that where 0ue generation Of
children receive more than tie dis-
tr CT can atfori tha unXt generation Is
APP '' receive JOSS 80 IL q sam" time
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