Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1914-02-18
SCHOOL NEWS.

Mr.. G. 2. Cary, state superintend-
ent of education, has sent a cir
cular letter to the principals and
teachers outlining the points which
he instructs the state inspectors to
consider when visiting any school.
1t indicates the principal lines of
investigation that inspectors will
follow in their visits. 1t is printed
here, in part, that patrons may
know by what standard they are to
judge their own schools. if they
wish to know their worth.
1.-The most important thing about
school is it's spirit. This is felt
rather than seen. A good spirit in
a school means harmony, good will,
team work, guod order without any
creaking of the machinery. A good
spirit includes the spirit of earnest
work. The school is a workshop
where everybody attends to his
own business and has plenty to do.
Do not mistake football enthusiasm
or undue expenditure of energy and
time in social affairs for good
spirit"
1t is on this matter Of spirit that
the inspectors have criticised the
high school ever since Mr.. Duncalf
can remember. They say that the
pupils are listless and lack agrees
iveness, without enthusiasm for
life in general, a criticism which
the remarks of the speaker before
the high school assembly a short
time ago seem to corroborate.
Many attempts by the school faculty
in the past five years have been
made to correct this but objections
still come, though the last in
spector, in March, 1913, admitted
that the last day before a vacation
was poor time to judge school.
The criticism that the pupils are
not earnest about their work, every
teacher knows to be true, but
knows equally well is not char
acteristic Of Lancaster alone, but of
any high school. Boys and girls
are not in high school because they
are consumed with burning desire
for more knowledge, but because it
is ''the Thing" to do.
IA good school should show good
housekeeping. Are the janitor, the
principal, and the teachers good
housekeepers?"
IA good school should show a
good attendance record" There is
surely no complaint to find with
local high school or the grades on
this point; report of the excellent
attendance records has been made
in this column several times
''Have the principal and the
board exercised good judgement in
selecting teachers? II not, what
was the TROUBLED"
REGULATIONS Were they thought
provoking? Was the subject mat
ter of the lessons evidently worth
while, or did you have your doubts?
Was the method used appropriate
to the class and the topic? If a
drill exercise, was it sharp, incisive
and rapid? If development lesson,
was time given for thought, and
was thoughtfulness manifest on the
part of all or nearly all the mem
bers of the class during the whole
period? Was the period of the
proper length? Did the teacher
utilize properly the past experience
of the pupils? Did she illustrate
well? Did she use the blackboard
or material OF any sort, or was it all
verbal? Did the teacher succeed in
getting the pupils to do a large
share of the work? By many ques-
tons or by few? Did she show skill
in guiding the thought Of pupils in
the right direction? Did she show
skill and Judgement in assigning
the next lesson? Were the pupils
beyond their depth?'
Does study in this school mean
memorizing? Do the pupils seem to
be working on real problems in
which they take vital interest, or
is the school work Improbable so
far as they can see. Are the teach
ers of the perfunctory, routine sort?
Are they too lightweight for the
task they have undertaken? Are
the pupils entering high school well
prepared? Is the grade work in
good hands and well supervised"