Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-02-25
At School in Switzerland.

Ncafly ninety per cent of the. teach
efs IN switzerland are men,, said w.
n. ATE, supervisor of rural schools in
south carolina. at conference Of edu-
Gators at the United States Bureau of
Education. Mr. Tate has inst return
ed from three months investigation
in Switzerland and under the auspices
OF the bureau. Five hundred dollars is
considered a good salary for a teacher
After 4 lifetime Of service he may go
as high as eight hundred dollars. LN-
ing s. cheaper there than here, how
ever. and in addition 10 his salary ie is
/ furnished with 4 dwelling. a certain
amount of garden land and wood for
fuel His dwelling is generally in the
same building with the school. His po-
! sition is OF considerable local import
ancc. Aside from ms duties in the
| schoolroom he is often secretary of the
| local creamery association. leader of
| the village band, organist in The church
and general intellectual guide Ton the
community. When 4 teacher is engag
| cd for n position II is for life or a long
term Of years. lie settles down with
the people whose children he teaches,
and generally expects to make tina;
particular job his life work And he
Stays. Changes are rare. Twelve new
teachers in one year was oonsidere1
very unusual The record for continued
service in the same village is held hy a
teacher in Thurgau, who has occupied
he same position for sixty-lve years
one teacher that visited has held his
EoSiiiCn for twenty four years and his
father held the same position for thir-
ty-five years before him. one Of the
most attractive features of the Swiss
schools is the cordial personal relation
that exists between teacher and pupil.
There is nothing Of the military in the
discipline Of the school, no lining up,
no marching 10 classes. When the chill
Gren go to the class room. they shake
hands with the teacher, greeting him
as if they had not seen him for q long
time and are really glad II see him.
The whole relation is one Of charming
naturalnesS and kindliness on both
sides. In the Swiss cantons school is in
session from eight To four in winter,
with an intermission Of two hours at
noon nhroe hours for the younger chill
dren) In summer the children have
to be ut school at : \. NJ. Failure to
be promoted IS rare. After the four
years of elementary training in the
primary school, prescribed for every
body, the children proceed into schools
that gre carefully differentiated for the
various types of children. Some OF the
children enter upon a technical train
ing, others ere sent through the gym
nasium and ultimately To the universe
ty and still others are prepared for
business life or any other suitable ca
reer. according to the ability and APP
titudc of the individual boy or girl"
Commissioner ClaXton, who introduced
the speaker. said he believed Ameri-
mans would derive much benefit from
MIR. Tate'S study of conditions in Swift
Ze"land which will soon be published
as Il bullctin of the Bureau of Educa
ton, In switzerland" said DR. Clax-
ton, IT'S a case Of the school for the
people, rot the people for the school
We can lsSrn much from Switzerland
more, perhaps. that from some of the
larger countries of Europe. ''-PeoriH
star