Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-11-08
ION OF
TEACHERS
COMES TO. CLOSE
Afternoon Meet Scores Mar
row Salary Policies and
Insists on Having
More Pay

tGouaihsed From fases qns.,
If McCook, submitted amendments
to the old constitution.
The principal concession was on
election of officers. The proposed
new constitution took away the. ret
erenduin vote, on this and was at
tackled because in so doing ID was
undempcratic. The executive COM
mittee placed in the. proposed con-
stitution a provision that officers
shall be elected by referendum
vote. III
Says Concessions Made.
"We made other concessions
ALSO" ..said President F. N. Gregg,
which bring the proposed constit1-
ton close to the old one
Those who want to retain the
old constitution propose to amend
it 50, as to, permit the formation OF
district associations throughout the
state such as are provided tor IN
the new constitution.
Five candidates for each Office are
to be nominated by the legislative
council, according to this amend
ment.s At present nominations also
are made by the teachers.
Another important amendment IN
serted m the proposed constitution
provides shat AMENDMENTS to the
constitution can be made by ma
jority vote instead Of by a two
thirds vote. Amendments must be
proposed in writing and signed by
at least 400 teachers.
With these concessions as basis
enlargement, the debate an the Au-
ditorium went on for nearly an hour.
q Those who favor the new consti-
tuition say it will bring to Omaha
sjust IS big meetings as are held
here st present. District meetings
win BE held in various parts OF the
state. .,,
20 Have Paid Secretary.
The legislative council will meet
in some large city and the head
Quarters OF the association with a
paid secretary in charge will be de-
/ cided upon if the proposed reorgani-
xztion carries when the proposition
liz submitted to the teachers by a
1referendum vote through the mails
within. the next so days.
1t il admitted by those who are
seeking to bring about reorganiza-
ton that the plan will meet with
violent opposition. There is z
strong party working against it and
seeking to bring about much the
same results by amending the pres
s&nt constitution.
The Auditorium was crowded to
the doors yesterday morning by the
5000 teachers and their friends in
attendance at the first day mass ses-
sion Of the convention;
Prof. p. w. Dykema of the Uni
versity of Wisconsin. led the COM
nIunity singing and DR.. c. H. Judd
OF the School OF Education, Chi
cago. made an address on Training
for Citizenship in Democracy"
Long Been Recognized.
y "The use Of schools as means of
training communities has long been
recognized" said DR.. Judd. "The
church discovered in the middle ages
that it could control belief and per-
sonal practices best by training chill
dren. European governments have
long used the schools as means Of
fostering devotion to the state.
"The type of nationalism and
sectafianism which grows up when
the school is used fol, narrow pur-
roses cannot be defended, but t fur
enishes the strongest kind OF evidence
that IN idea planted in the minds Of
pupils 10 . powerful means Of social
| reform. Ii is no accident that just
genera ton after alcohol physiology
|iwas introduced into American
schools, the country passed pro-
hibition amendment.
American schools have been lax
in their realization of their response
biiity and opportunity. There have
been efforts to cultivate the spirit
NJ Americanism by the introduction
Acf history into the curriculum. In
Need, state legislatures are easily
prevailed upon to pass laws requir.
ing schools to teach the history OF
Ftbe country. Some have gone so
fzr as to require the teaching Of
the history Of the state. But history,
especially OF the type common in
the text books, is not a suitable
medium for education in the institu-
lions Of democracy.
Discussion is Needed.
"What is needed in the United
States is a discussion Of the every
day life of the common people.
What are the institutions which
control the production and the in
come OF, the common man! What
are the forces of government which
operate when congress is not in ses-
sion? These are not questions OF
the remote past and they canpot be
answered BY recounting the bio
Rrapfies of political leaders or the
story of wars.
"Let Us consider some OF the
changes which have come in mod.
ern life through the development OF
the steel industries in the sos.
These changes have been funda-
mental not only in determining the
material surroundings in which we
live, but also in recognizing the
nations mode Of doing business.
The steel industries have given us
new type Of building and a new
mode of business organization.
"Other examples can be drawn
from study Of the executive de-
partments OF the federal govern
ment. The Department of the In
terror and the Department of Agri-
culture have made American insti-
tutions. The former has distribu-
ted the public domain in such a
way that American land ownership
IS absolutely different from that Of
Europe. The latter has brought to-
gether producers and consumers
4.