The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1920-09-03
ACHING COUNTRY School GOOD
JOB if It IS UNDERTAKEN RIGHT.

-
ask him why he sits next the child
and listens to all that goes on he
Will tell you he wants to learn,
wants to know about all that is 60
Ing on these younger days, wants
to know what sort OF influence you
have over the little people. the
great difficulty with many rural
teachers is that they bundle them
selves up IN dignity and never get
next to actual rural conditions.
The greatest blessing that comes
to humanity comes from the train.
ed child and school children III
every community represent about
! a fifth OF the population so that IN
teaching them you are teaching
the community.
Prof. Allison related story IL
Illustrating how teachers were some.
times hOOted out OF class. There
, was one special big boy who trieo
1t. Prof. Allison said nothing at all
about It at the time or afterwards
in class. He did however write the
boy q letter telling him that some
day the lad would very likely need
friend and that he stood ready to
be that friend. The day came
when the boy was brought before
III eJuVenile court and Prof. ALE.
son was asked to plead for his pn.
role to keep him out of the Reform
school. The day he brought the
parole to the boy the lad almos:
hugged him. A teachers response
bility for her pupils never ceases.
in spite Of anything which happens,
Prof. Addison touched on the chas-
aCter of the people OF long ago,
feeling sure that deprivations tend.
ed to make for better. more worthy
character. He ended by reading
poem about a Cowpath which
showed how easy others make
paths which we follow. The path
made by a certain calf in the poem
had been followed for many, many
years, even though it led round.
about way over rough roads. i,
The last lecture today was given
by Superintendent o. G. Wilson,
Superintendent OF Fairmont 1nde'
pendent district. everybody was
anxious to hear Prof. Wilson and
there Immediately was heard a
low murmur OF approval and
changing Of position in readiness
for the following:
"TeachinE does not mean point
ing out mistakes. have watched
q number Of teachers who believed
that 1t did. 1t always reminded
of Sunnybrook Farm" who was al
ways looking for the cobwebs IN
stead of the bright places. Nor
does teaching consist in assign
Ing lessons and asking questions.
Children taught in this manner
never get along very well.
Prof. Wilson condemned In Rddi-
ton the teachers who did all the
work herself telling the pupils
the lesson over and over aSaiEri
believing that teaching means tell
ing, feeling she is doing right IN
being master OF the situation. Such
teachers do not favor supervised
study Education Is from within
outward, affirms Prof. Wilson, and
not from the outside inward. A
boy doesn't learn without respons-
es, recitations. Pupils can't learn
unless they participate.
Prot Wilson advocates the jam
theory Of education. The higher.
you place it the more reaching the
child will do. He told OF the man
who cracked all the nuts for his
squirrel believeing he was doing
the squirrel faovr. only to find
that after time the teeth OF the
little animal grew so long he could
never again crack nuts. Teaching
means reflective thinking and when
such thinking is not done. little
Of the lesson is being learned.
When a pupil moves his lips con-
tinually while learning lesson he
Is not thinking but memorizing-a
bad thing.
Prof. Wilson paid special atten-
tion to the assigning OF lessons.
Anyone can assign a lesson from
page to page-even a policeman
1t takes a person Of high intelli.
gence TO assign 1t In the proper
way. Some small amount of teach.
Ing should accompany the assign
ment. The big words in a geogra-
ply lesson should. be picked out
and explained, as Biographies to-
day contain many hard words.
Something Of the text Nof the les.
son should be touched upon to pre-.
pare and interest the pupil for the
studying Of it. The very first step
In properly studying a lesson lies
In the right assignment OF that
! lesson. II boy can't study it is
/ a reflection on the teacher and a
teacher who knows how can so
Continued on page four.)