East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1910-03-25

are either better or worse a. a class
than they were last year, or the last
decade, or the last generation. No
body knows.
What is their condition today is to
some extent another question. Even
upon this point We can do little than
guess our way along, for lack of ade-
quate, impartial, scientific inspection
of all local systems.
In connection with other duties, 1
have visited school rooms observing
the conditions of buildings, outhouses,
school rooms. and s~anitaries, the at
titude and spirit of the children, the
subjects taught, the methods of the
teacher and in a large number of in
stances l have tested the children's at
tainments. These schools have rang
ed from what seem to me to have been
the best, to what seems the worst
school l have ever seen. The schools
were Of all types, city, village and ru-
raj, graded and ungraded, supervised
and unsupervised. under normal
| graduates, and under pesons ignorant
not only of teaching but Of the sub
jects taught.
school Districts Classified.
I should divide the districts repre-
sented, as to the excellence of school
work, into two classes. The first
| class would contain all those schools
in which an effort seems to be made
by the teacher to stimulate pupils to
think with, or course, varying de-
grees of success The second class
would include those schools in which
the teacher appears to have no con-
ception whatever of his or her office,
merely mills for grinding out memor-
lied recitations, schools in which II
the pupil grows at all in power to
think he does SO in spite of the school
rather than with the help of the
school. The remark Of one teacher
as l left the school is significant OF
the attitude of these teachers as 6
class. She said, "They would be al
right If they would get down tc
study" 1t seemed not to have occur
red to her that it was in any way a
part Of her duty to make. them "get
down to study"
OF course a dividing line cannot be
drawn SO that it can be said thai
schools of the first class all occur in
certain districts and schools of the
second class in certain other districts
Schools of the second class may bt
dismissed from further discussion
for, as to schoolroom work, there IL
little in them worthy of the name Of
Iteaching or study.
Importance Of Reading.
- ~ lI.A-1aA. "a A. fi.n,
mentioned class reading is taught II
such a way as to give the pupil pow
ed to read the thought from the
printed page, a rare accomplishment
with adults This once done, 1t be-
comes increasingly easy, especially in
a state so bountifully supplied with
literary books, to arm the pupil with
the love Of good reading, one Of his
best future safeguards. This is the
aim Of the state and the record Of
children's use of the literary books
shows that it is taking effect.
Again, to a greater or less extent
music and drawing are being made
parts Of the regular round of work
in these schools. The broadening and
refining influence Of these studies Is
well known and the effect al hard
ly fail to be a pronounced uplift tc
the public taste in the next genera.
ton.
The character of the school build
ings and school rooms is constantly
improving. The new buildings are
almost uniformly erected with an eye
to architectural beauty as well as n.y.
gienic excellence, with a commend
able degree Of success. The interiors
Of the school rooms are usually dec
Grated by the teachers themselves OF
by the pupils, with results often crude
it Is true, but a marked improve
ment over the squalid neglect for
merly so widely prevalent and still sc
prevalent in districts Of the other
class. A tasteful school o can
hardly fail to exercise upon the home
Of the future and in the direction OF
enhanced sweetness and refinement
in the character of the coming gener-
alton.
School Management Good.
The school management of districts