The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1921-01-03


the present system, he thinks he
could make couple OF thousand
dollars a year out of 1t. He says
there are too many loose ends and
too many loose bargains that are not
checked up and followed thru to
the finish to see that they are lived
up to as they ought to be.
School Teacher Talks
In a recent issue, of our paper we
expressed the sentiment of man
from Springfield who Is a trustee and
felt that the trustees had not SUI
ficient authority in managing school
business or that the teachers as
sumed too much authority and man
aged things too much to suit them
selves, with a disregard for everybody
else. Last Friday Professor Langton,
superintendent of the Shelley schools
was in Blackfoot and he came in to
talk to us about some of these mat
! ters He said that in such cases as
the Springfield man mentioned, the
trustees. should assert their authority
more than they evidently do. /. They
have a contract from the teacher and
there should be a definite under
standing as to just what the teacher
was employed to do or they should
look up the statutes on the question
and find that she had certain hours
to devote to work in the school room.
1t should be well understood that
the teacher should have school in
operation the particular hours pre-
scribed by the statute and for which
she sells her service. If she is not
able to carry out that schedule, if
prevented by illness, she should no
tify the board so that some action
might be taken to have someone else
do it. 1t is not a legitimate ex
cuse that the teacher wants to 60 to
Blackfoot or anywhere else on train
that leaves before school is out. Her
time for one hour does not represent
much in salary, but that is not the
question. 1t is the time of all the
pupils in the school for that one
hour. She has no right to take away
from them without their consent and
it is not within the scope of their
activities to consent to having some
thing taken away from them. Pro-
fessor Langton says, tho, that the
public are very much at fault as we'll
as the trustees. So long as the par
ents keep their children out Of school
for trivial matters it is a constant
reminder to the teacher that the par
ents and the people who foot the bills
for the school do not value it highly
and that they are Indifferent about
what is done with their money and
with the time of the teacher and
pupils. He says there are parents in
his school district who keep their
pupils out Of school on every single
thought or pretext and he is sure it
it is the same in all other districts
He says that fond mother wishing
to get some shoes or something for
her children and thinking she can
do her shopping to better advantage
or to better satisfaction in Idaho
Falls, will board the morning train
and spend all the forenoon and part
of the afternoon in Idaho Falls, ar
irving back home about the time
school is out and the children accom-
panying her have lost the day in
school. She thereby teaches those
children that going out to do some
shopping is more important than get
ting an education She might make
the trip on Saturday, but chooses to
make it on some other day. She
thereby notify the children and the
school teachers and school trustees
that she has little regard for an edu-
cation for her children, or on t'e
other hand she nctifiss them that she
hC.ds her shopping nore important
than the education. In either event
she is wrong and it tears down the
standard of the school. Until such
time, rs the parents are convinced
that schools are important and worth
while and that the plans Of the
school are important enough to be
observed and carried out by all con-
cerned, they need not be surprised
If the school teachers are Indifferent
and as ready to inflict losses, upon
the pupils as are the parents them
selves. The attitude of the public |
towards the schools and the teachers
is not what it ought to be-. There
is too much Of opposition to the
schools and the plans of the school
teachers and officers. So long as the
public are fighting the teachers, the |
teachers are apt to take the fighting
attitude toward the public. When
the public are constantly squander-
ing the school opportunities and
rendering them null, they need not |
be surprised at school teachers fall
ing into the same habit.
Passenger trains are operated on !
a schedule and they do their best
service to the whole public when |
they are kept to the schedule. Trains
that are running of schedule render
less service to the public and cause |
greater losses to the public. The |
school is in a certain sense like a
passenger train and must be run on
a certain schedule and that schedule |
must be observed or there will be
losses to the public. There is GER
tain discipline to the mind and to
the individual habits in observing a
fixed schedule and certain standard
Of service Or activity A part OF the
work of the schools is to discipline
the country and it cannot be done by
running schols on a haphazard plan.
The Shelley Vacation
Regarding the Christmas vacation,
Professor Langton said they dis