Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1911-12-28
The Ideal Public School System and the
Adaptation of the High Schools Cur
riculum to Economic Conditions.
BY JUSTUS A. MILLER.

scnotls, Poor instruction is disasterou
IN our primary schools. The necesslt
of trained teachers is apparant whe
we consider that the first steps of tn
child are most important, as well as tn
most difficult. Then it is that the ski
and experience of our best teacher
should be applied. 1t is great mistake
to suppose that any one can teach pri
malv school, and AS a result of placinG
mere novices in charge of young child
rem, incalculab injury is often done
The Importance Of ding good work IN
the public school is evident, and 1t is
equally clear that special training, cut
ture and discipline of the teachers are
necessary to produce the best results.
The typical Eastern Oregon rural
school, especially that OF Morrow county
is an earnest, indurtrious and cheerful
community wi ere the ideal and tine
teacher and pupils work together with
definite purpose in view and in harmony
of spirit. The typical Morrow county
farming community furnishes excellent
conditions for such ideal rural schools.
From such environments, bathed in
Gods pure atmosphere, climate tenn
perate with cool and inYigorating zephyr
breezes, come our future true men and
true women that are the greatest bless
ing to Oregon. They are God-send to
mankind.
The building OF moral cI aracter is of
very great Importance in our public
school.
Let the pupils learn, from history and
biography, by putting concrete examples
OF true men and true women before
them, and thus incnlcae into the plas-
tic minds of the pupils all that is true,
sincere, upright and uplifting to the wei
fa'e Of humanity.
The teacher whom you remember with
love, with ef'ectiop and gratitude IN
your heart, will live IN your memory
long after the feeting and pleasant
school.days are gone iUto oblivion. II
is not alone for well-taught lessons We
received at his or her hand. but your
heart goes out in deep gratitude for the
man or the woman, who first taught you
to see the beauty of earthly life and
who inspired you to lay the foundation
of good moral character which will
survive the cold, bleak and barren grave
at the time when you come in contact
with the stern reality of physical death.
There is something inherently praise
worthy in the typical Eastern Oregon
school boys haired of the betrayal OF
bov by his schoo mate, for with Linn the
mere tattling is stamped with dishonor !
Let the teacher never tempt the boy t
holding this praisworthy ideal, to betray {
his mate, but let him or her, as the
case may be, rather respect the boys
sense of right and justice. In some way a
we must call into activity the hidden n
springs of the latent soul qualities a
end thus bring into manifestation the {
mysterious and inherent individuality, ?
so essenhsl in every walk of life. From C
mere external directions and outside C
restraint alone, moral courage and SELF e
can never come. When face to Il
face with life's stern realities, these q
,hll iren Of ours, the prospective nation, d
must be prepared for the ardent task by C
parental and edsgogical training. q
The development OF intelligence in the
pupil, is another important ctor which a
,onfronts the true and ideal school b
eacher. e.
In the vast domain of nature there is e
profuse and magnificent display of a
millions of different forms of 8,
ife. As no two trees, no two blades Of tt
,rass are exactly alike, so no two Ii
luman beings are exactly alike in DIS N
position, characteristics, temperament,
tic II
Every child is endowed by the Divine nj
)reator with originality and individual te
" in all lts traits, and we venture to sf
ay that, under natu al conditions and pl
-ell directed instruction and guidance, W
very pupil. having reached a certain te
tage OF educational development can be ne
lade to contribute it's share, whether an
real or small, to the endless chain OF or
uman achievements.
Nature never copies. She is Infinitely VIZ
asourceiul in her multitudinous forms wi
f life, both in the animal and plant is
ingdoms, that she never uses the same ca
attern twice.
Here, then, We have lesson to be OBJ sci
erYed By tine student of nature and to CO.
be careful reader of these statements. zel
Why should We seek dead level OF we
among the pupils of our nc
,hools when variation is the keynote tn,
lroughout the infinite realms of Gods an
onderful universe.
Every true and ideal teacher should
g a practical psychologist. He or she
louId apply practical Psychology to his sh
her individual pupils IN order to make
le most Of their latent abilities. Nature W.
Is equipped every pupil, as all students Rs