The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1913-12-04
EDUCATIONAL COLUMN.
BY Mabel Horner, County Supt.

years ago.
The memory of the writer doe:
not 60 back that far, but from wha
We can learn through secondar!
\ sources of conditions then together
ST with what we know of conditions
now, we are merely convinced thai
then, as now, there were rura
schools and rural schools.
During the past month a citizen
of the county told us of the country
school he taught forty years ago. He
had an average attendance of fifty
n His pupils could spell from ''kiver to
kiver" Of McGuffeys speller without
missing word They knew the
diacritical markings and all the rules
for spelling that the old speller con-
tanned. The analyzed the long intri-
i cate problems in Rays Second part.
They knew all the rules of syntaX in
Murray and Quackenbor and could
analyze and diagram such winding
y sentences as ITO him who in the
love of nature, holds communion
d with her visible forms she speaks a
1 various language" If these things
are true, and we are convinced that
they are, we must admit that We
have not found a school in Decatu
county, yet, that combines all these
excellences. We asked if there were
many schools in his county that
measured up to this standard of ex-
cellence and the speaker, who was
comparing present conditions with
those of the good old days, admitted
that there were not.
We are inclined to believe that
judging by Decatur county, rural
schools are no better than they were
twenty-five or fifty years ago, if We
make thoroughness and efficiency in
the common branches the basis of
comparison. If not why not? This
is a problem not alone for teachers
and county superintendent, but for
all good citizens as we'll. In the face
of evidence on every hand there is
no denying that our rural schools
are not what they ought to be, and
that they have not kept pace with
the material improvements of rural
life.
Some OF the causes for the present
status of schools may be found in
economic conditions that may be be-
& yond the power of educators or legis-
lators to remedy. Others are found
in the inability of the school to adj
just itself to new and changing So
cial conditions. and to adopt itself
to new educational policies. We are
in season of transition, between
hay and grass.
Old methods, such as the A. B. c.
methods of learning to read, have
been tabooed, and many teachers
have not yet mastered new ones.
When the teacher may be the master
of the methods employed, they are
not always able to use them effective
ly, because patrons are skeptical and
critical OF the new ways and thus
prevent the pupil from giving him
self freely and confidently to the
teachers leading. The three RS
which once constructed the curricu-
lum, have been added to, until now
we have no less than ten so-called
common branches, with agriculture
and domestic science still to be add
ed. This has complicated the prob
lem of classification to such an eX-
tent that some less conscientious
teachers have not tried to solve it,
and teachers coming into new schools
find them selves with nothing but the
word of the pupils to aid them in
the organizing of their work.
The graded system wisely adopted !
and used is a benefit to any school, !
but an abuse of the graded system is
little short Of a curse. This abuse /
of the graded system more than any
one thing is sapping the vitality of
our school in country and town. All /!
over Decatur county pupils are far
Their along in their classification than
they ought to be. Children are STUN ,
bling through the sixth reader when
they can not read in the fourth. They
are 'working?" long division, when
they do not know multiplication and
subtraction They arc struggling
with applications of percentage be-
fore they have learned the meaning
of decimals. The slogan seems to
be mot how we'll but how much"
The teacher in the school room,
and the parent in the home have
little to do with the shaping of edu-
cational policies, and the enactment
OF school legislation, wise or I'M
wise. But they and they alone can
correct this evil arising from the
abuse of the graded system While
we are waiting for the good things,
new policies may bring us. or that
proper adjustment to present poll
cies and conditions may hold, we
should be getting ready for them,
BY giving the boys and girls a thor
Ough understanding of whatever
they study be it much or little, in
stead of superficial smattering.
The habits and ideals the pupils ac-
Quire through working for thorough
ness and efficiency will be even a
greater factor toward equipment for
life than the knowledge gained
through the mastery of the task.
81 Many teachers recognize the need
Of Redistribution of their schools,
but are hindered from accomplish
ment of it through the opposition of
parents. And this leads us to say that
for which this article is written: The
great and crying need of our Deca-
tur county schools is the active and
sympathetic cooperation of parents
and teachers.
u ALI educational meetings, when
school matters are considered should
be attended by parents as much as