iiiii#d!;: MANA( ;i-:ment Mi ' i i i i ii n i iii mi< i | iii|ii I I I) III i j i |yi'| ii » ^... 5AMUEL X DUTTON i Hbuj fork Hatt OfoUegg of Agriculture At ajornell IniuetaitH Sibratjj LB 301 1.D9T" ""'""""' '■*"'>' ^"^llimwiSiSnl?,'' P™"'"' suggestions 3 1924 013 014 679 Cornell University Library The original of tliis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924013014679 SCHOOL MANAGEMENT School Management PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS CONOERNINa THE CONDUCT AND LIFE OP THE SCHOOL BT SAMUEL T. BUTTON FB0FEB80B OP SCHOOL ADUINISTBATION IN TEAOHSBS* COLLEttB, COLUKBIA CMIVBBBITT, AND BnTERINTENDENT OF THE COUiEGE SCHOOLS ADTHOB or "eOGUL FHABES OV BDUCATIOX" NEW YOEK OHAELBS SCEIBNER'S SONS 1911 COPTBISHT. 1903. B* CHAELBS SCKIBNBK'S SON* THOSE PBIKOIPALB, TEACHERS, AND STUDENTS OF EDUCATION WITH WHOM I HATE WOBKED IN THE PAST, THIS BOOK IS APPECTIONATSLY INSCBIBED PREFACE Thk purpose of this volume is to state in as concise and definite form as possible the problems of school management, and to make helpful suggestions looking to their solution. This work is not composed of lectures, but is a special treatment designed to aid teachers in all kinds of schools, as well as students of education. The topics treated comprise a portion only of the field covered by the au- thor in his courses at Columbia University. A later volume will deal with school administration in its his- torical, political, economic, and supervisory aspects. The life of the teacher is too crowded and the issues of practical education too serious to warrant the use of unnecessarily technical or abstruse terms. Whatever defects this book may have, it is believed that every sentence is so clear and distinct that its meaning can be readily understood. The author acknowledges his indebtedness to Mr. Jesse D. Burks, Principal of the Training School, Pat- erson, N. J., for substantial assistance in the prepara- tion of this volume. Thanks are also due to Miss Mary McSkimmon and Mr. John C. Packard of Brookline, Mass., and Miss Caroline W. Hotchkiss of the Teach- ers College, New York, for outlines of lessons contained in the Appendix. CONTENTS INTRODUCTORY— THE NATURE AND SCOPE OF SCHOOL MANAGEMENT i (1) Changed Conception of the School (2) The School is Complex . . (3) Changes in its Structure (4) The New School Government (5) The School Bears Eelations to the Community (6) Value of Public Sentiment . (7) New Ideals of Efficiency (8) Factory Methods not Possible (9) The Modem Teacher - . . (10) Uniformity not Desirable . FAGS 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 II. THE TEACHER; (1) The Power of Personality . . . (2) Importance of Good Health . . (3) Duties Out of School (4) Intellectual Fitness of the Teacher (5) Moral Qualities Needed .... (6) Sincerity (7) Honesty 16 17 21 22 22 23 24 X Contents II. THE TEACHER (CowTDfUBD) : ^^^ (8) The Teacher as a Social Force . . 25 (9) Temperament 37 (10) The Selection of Teachers .... 27 (11) Methods of Certificating 29 (12) Terms of Probation 30 ra. THE GROWTH OF THE TEACHER: (1) Cultivate the Social Life (2) Seek Desirable Friendships (3) Eead Many Books . . . (4) Visit the Best Schools . (5) Institutes and Conrentions (6) Teachers' Meetings . . . (7) Travel as a Means of Growth (8) Freedom Facilitates Growth 33 34 34 37 40 42 45 46 rv. PHYSICAL CONDITIONS: (1) The School Site and Grounds ... 49 (2) The School Building 51 (3) The School-room 52 (4) Seating 53 (5) Lighting 54 (6) Cloak-rooms 65 (7) Corridors 55 (8) Staircases 56 (9) Other Features 56 (10) Heating and Ventilation 67 Contents xi ▼. PHYSICAL CONDITIONS (CoMxiNnED): PASS (1) Methods of Heating and Ventilation. 61 (2) Janitor- Service 64 (3) General Sanitation and Hygiene . . 67 (4) General Suggestions 70 VL ORGANIZATION OF THE SCHOOL: (1) Distribution of Authority .... 74 (2) Meetings of Principals 76 (3) Grading of Pupils 77 (4) The Promotion of Pupils .... 84 Vn. THE GOVERNMENT OF THE SCHOOL: (1) The Power of Personality .... 86 (2) Plan with Care 87 (3) Act with Courage 88 (4) Be Kind and Sympathetic .... 89 (5) The School Virtues 89 (6) Self-control and Self-government . . 92 (7) The School City Plan 93 (8) Democracy and Law 94 (9) The Incorrigible 95 (10) Character the End of Discipline . . 96 Vm. SCHOOL INCENTIVES: (1) Artificial and Objectionable Incentives 100 (2) Natural and Worthy Incentives . . 105 xii Contents EX. THE CDEEICULUM: TAOE (1) Making the Carricnlnm Ill (2) Using the Curriculum 118 X. THE DAILY PKOGRAMMB: (1) The Programme a Oross-section of the School 125 (3) The Opening of School 126 (3) The Length of Sessions 127 (4) The Number of Classes 129 (5) Study, Recitation, and Recreation . 130 (6) "Work and Fatigue 131 (7) Gymnastics and Games 133 (8) Out-of-door Games 136 (9) School-room Games 137 (10) The Automatic Element 137 (11) Planning and Adaptation .... 138 XI. THE RECITATION: (1) The Doctrine of Interest 141 (2) Preparation by Teacher ..... 144 (3) Plans of Lessons 146 (4) Method 147 (5) Teaching Devices 149 (6) Illustrative Material 150 (7) The Assignment of Lessons .... 151 (8) Preparation by Pupils 152 Contents xiii Xn. THE RECITATION (Continced): (1) The Goal of Instruction 154 (2) The Problem of Method 156 (3) Apperception 158 (4) Summary of Principles 160 (5) Herbart's Five Formal Steps . . .161 Xni. TRAIOTNG PUPILS TO STUDY i (1) Some Difficulties in Learning to Study 168 (2) Methods of Securing Application and Concentration 170 XIV REVIEWS AND EXAMINATIONS: (1) The Value of Thoroughness . . .175 (2) Oral and Written Tests 176 (3) Educative Examinations 178 (4) Advantages to Pupils 179 (5) Advantages to the Teacher .... 180 (6) Suggestions to Teachers 181 XV. SCHOOL GARDENS, PLAYGROUNDS, AND VACA- TION SCHOOLS: (1) School Gardens 187 (2) Educative Factors 187 (3) Equipment 189 (4) Playgrounds and Play.centres . . . 189 (5) Eeasons for Vacation Schools . . .192 (6) Aims 193 (7) Methods 193 (8) Results 195 XIV Contents XVI. THE SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY (1) The School and the Church . (2) The School and the Home . , (3) The School and the Library . (4) The School and the Museum . (5) The School and the Newspaper (6) The School and Industry . . (7) The School and Government . PAas 200 201 204 206 207 208 211 XVn. THE SCHOOL AS A SOCIAL CENTBE: (1) Uniform Practice not Desirable . . 215 (2) The Principle of School Extension . 216 (3) Free Lectures 217 (4) Playgrounds 218 (5) Parents' Associations 218 (6) Education Societies 219 (7) School Decoration 223 XVllL AJPILIATED IUTERE8TS: (1) Athletics 226 (2) Literary Societies 228 (3) The School Paper 230 (4) Musical Clubs 231 (5) The Summer Camp 232 (6) The Alumni Association 232 XIX. SUPERVISION: (1) The Superintendent. 235 (2) Need of a Definite Policy .... 235 Contents xv XJX. SUPERVISION (CoNTiNCED): lAea (3) Eelation to the School-Board . . 236 (4) Belation to the Commnnity .... 237 (5) Belation to Principals and Teachers. 238 (6) The Principal 241 (7) The Gonclasiou of the Whole Matter 244 APPENDIX Outlines of Lessons 249 Bibliography 276 SCHOOL MANAGEMENT CHAPTER I INTRODUCTORY THE NATURE AND SCOPE OF SCHOOL MANAGEMENT In a land where education holds a supreme place in the ideals and aspirations of the people the work of the school becomes of intrinsic importance. The spirit in which the teacher works and the knowledge and skill he employs are of infinite concern, not only to himself but to those for whom he labors. School management, broadly speaking, relates to the conditions affecting the school, as well as to everything that takes place there. Physical and social conditions, the personality and equipment of the teacher, the ideals and standards of the school, and the means and meth- ods employed in their accomplishment are all to be considered. Account must be taken also of those human relations, so vital and imminent, which give to the problems of school training their professional char- acter and dignity. 1. — Changed Conception of the School. It must be confessed that some of the books bear- ing the title of " School Management," written two or three decades ago, seem inadequate and out of date. It 3 4 School Management is no fault of their authors that they are so, for they were distinguished teachers in their time. Many of the principles they laid down are universal and are as sound to-day as ever, but marvellous changes have taken place in a quarter of a century, and the conduct of the modem school must be treated in the light of those changes. Is there a single profession the members of which can be guided by the rules and practices of twenty-five years ago ? There are underlying every profession and voca- tion certain broad general truths which we must not discard, but in the application of those truths we have to think of modern needs and modern conditions. The doctor, the clergyman, the lawyer, the merchant, the banker, and the manufacturer must hew closely to a line, and that line must be the latest discovery and the finest possible adaptation of means to end. It is the age of the specialist and the inventor. Multitudes are engaged in tireless investigation and research. No sooner is new truth brought to light than it must be utilized iu the department to which it belongs. Who- ever follows the methods of the past, instead of the present, is sure to meet with catastrophe ; the physi- cian loses his patients, the lawyer his clients, the preacher his congregation, and the merchant his cus- tomers. 2. — The School is Complex. Education is also manifold in its relations, and must take account of all forms of progress, and invoke the aid of every discovery in the realm of man and nat- ure. The subject of school management, therefore, can no longer be restricted to rules and devices more Introductory 5 or less mechanical and arbitrary, but must rather take a comprehensive view of human development in the whole range of its possibilities. In the school of to-day feeling and sentiment are to be cultivated no less than thought and expression. Spontaneous self-directed conduct is more important than passive obedience. There must be abounding interest and alertness, even if some portion of knowledge is sacrificed. Character is to be recognized and respected, although the youth may not be able to pass an examination in the higher mathe- matics. Honest effort is to be held at a high valuation, and honesty in the smallest details of school work is to be preferred to mere scholarship. 3. — Changes in its Structure. But very definite changes have been taking place in the structure of the school itself. Nearly every State in the Union has passed laws to protect the child from labor, and requiring his attendance at school. Wher- ever there is backwardness in this direction a storm of protest is raised, either from within or from without. Physical and manual training have been adopted not as incidental forms of amusement but as fundamental means of development. Various kinds of handwork are being organized to-day, not only as a means of securing executive ability and manual skill, but in order that youth may acquire an insight into the elements of in- dustry, and may be acquainted with household arts and economics. Nature study, with all its possibility of out-of-door life and intimate knowledge of plants, birds, animals, soil, 6 School Management and climate, has assumed an important place. With it has come the school-garden, bringing a new interest in agriculture to the city child, affording opportunity for the applications of simple chemistry and physics, a knowledge of the economic questions involved, a sense of the dignity of labor, and the meaning of social co- operation. Out of biology and child study has grown a new gospel of the physical nature of the child and the hygiene of study and play. Physical education is no longer a matter of formal drill, but is related to the whole regimen of the child — his food, dress, bathing, sleep, his tasks, and his games. 4. — The New School Governmerti. The whole theory of school government has changed. While law and order are still enthroned in the school, the teacher is no longer the sole interpreter of law and the arbitrary dispenser of justice. Both teacher and pupil are members of a social community, whose wel- fare and happiness are the dominant aims of all the members, where the teacher is loved and respected ac- cording as he loves and respects his pupils. An offence is regarded as committed against the community rather than against the teacher, and the offender is treated with such good sense and discrimination as to awaken sin- cere regret on his part, and to strengthen the bonds of good feeling and high purpose among all the members of the school circle. Physical punishment may some- times be necessary, but it is the merest makeshift in any attempt to reach the higher nature and summon the Introductory 7 will to resolute well-doing. Penal reform to-day is not satisfied until the treatment of the criminal is of such a character as to arouse his better nature and to make him hope for the opportunity of becoming a self-respect- ing and self-controlled person. How much more should the modem school, in dealing with those whose minds are sensitive and impressible, be free of harshness and severity. School management has to do with character in the mating, and no teacher will long be tolerated who does not take the pupil into his confidence and make him an active participant in the task of preserving law and order. 5. — The School Bears Relations to the Community. As the government of a nation sustains relations with other powers, makes treaties with them, and establishes relations of intercourse and co-operation, so the author- ities of the school and its teachers have a sphere of in- fluence and effort outside of the school-room. The children whom they teach do not belong to the school exclusively, but to the home, the church, and society as weU. The school cannot be regarded as something apart from them, but rather as their closest ally. One of the teacher's first duties is to know the parents of his pupils and to consult with them freely regarding all their interests. There should be a sort of compact be- tween the teacher and every parent, whereby it is agreed that aU differences shall be settled by mutual conference, and that no misunderstanding shall be permitted to exist. While the teacher may not be able to visit the home often, he may arrange for an occasional visit to 8 School Management the school by some representative of the home. The cordiality and sympathy thus established between the home and school are a vital element in school manage- ment. Moreover, there are many ways in which the school stands related to the larger life of the community, which are of no little importance. The proper use of the public library and its reading-rooms, the enjoyment of public parks and playgrounds, respect for property, public and private, conduct of pupils on the street and in public places — all these things must be kept in mind by the teacher and school oflScers, in order that the school may do its part in securing a quiet neighborhood and those pleasant relations which make citizenship self- respecting and agreeable. 6. — Value of Pvhlic Sentiment As every teacher respects his profession and desires to have it grow in the estimation of the people, he will spare no pains in educating his patrons and acquaint- ances to the highest ideals, in order that there may be a public sentiment strong and effective, and favorable to the most progressive measures. It is remarkable how a corps of teachers with common aims and ideals, who are loyal to each other and the cause which they are serving, can indoctrinate an entire community, and secure a generous and sympathetic attitude. Thus it is seen that the management of the modem school has a wide field of activity, and cannot be blind to any interest belonging to the moral and social wel- fare of the community. Its routine is important, and Introductory 9 its machinery must be well oiled and cared for, but the teacher must have a horizon reaching far beyond the school-room, and must work shoulder to shoulder with others who are seeking a better public life. As the school of to-day seeks the most symmetrical growth of the individual, so that in body, mind, and spirit he is fully alive and alert, professional freedom must be granted the teacher, so that he may be governed by in- sight and judgment rather than by inflexible rules. 7. — New Ideals of Efficiency. As the function of the school has been enlarged in recent years, so that its conduct presents many new and complex problems, so new standards of efficiency must be recognized. It is interesting to study the organiza- tion of a great commercial or industrial business and see what suggestion we may get to help us in the school In the factory we find everything reduced to system ; each department has its head, who is held re- sponsible for every bit of material used. He has to see that nothing is wasted, that the machinery is kept in perfect order, that the work done is carefully tested. He records the time given by the employees, and any failure in duty or any inferiority of workmanship is re- ported to the head of the establishment. We see that here the element of system is of transcendent impor- tance. The margin of profit is close, and it is only by the most rigid care and economy in the use of time and materials that there is any profit whatever. In several lines of manufacturiag the net earnings come from cer- tain by-products. 10 School Management The value of system in the schools cannot be mini- mized ; at the same time the school is not a factory, and the foreman in the cotton mills, according to the modem standards, would make a poor schoolmaster. In the factory, attention is riveted upon material things, their qualities, the processes to which they are subject- ed, and the uses to which they are to be put. In the school the emphasis is* laid upon the things which are moral and spiritual. The factory system applied to a school, while presenting an attractive exterior, is deaden- ing as regards those finer products of feeling, taste, in- terest, and ambition which the school ought to nurture. It is distressing to see a schoolmaster to-day exhibit- ing his school to visitors in their concerted movements of sitting, rising, marching, and reciting, as though such results of military drill were of very great moment. While certain movements of the school may well be carried on with promptness and precision, they are but a poor test of the real efficiency of the master or teacher. 8. — Factory Methods not Possible. In the factory a record is kept of the piece-work accomplished by the several operatives. Here we have a kind of marking system which determines the amount of compensation the workers are to receive. This is a just and equitable arrangement; each one is paid for the work he does. He has no ground for dissatis- faction if he fails to receive as much as his neighbor ; the result, being based upon definite measurement of what is produced, determines the reward with justice and impartiality. But how is it in the school ? Can Introductory 11 the e£forts or even the accomplishments of the pupils be reduced to piece-work ? Can credit for work at- tempted or performed be assigned with anything like the precision that is possible in the factory? If we employ a rigid marking system to determine the stand- ing of our pupils, are we not likely to ignore those mani- fold fruits of the spirit and of the imagination which are the most precious flowers of education and culture ? Are we not forced to say that the ideals of efficiency of the tridy modern school are greatly changed since the time when mere system and uniformity were dominant aims? If this statement seems revolutionary at first, let it be considered in all its bearings before judgment is rendered. Certain it is, that many teachers and edu- cators, if they must pursue the methods of the factory, would prefer to go into manufacturing, where the emolu- ments are usually greater than in teaching. 9. — The Modern Teacher. Another field we have to explore is the life and growth of the teacher. He who manages the school must first manage himseM. He must be sane and healthy. His outlook upon life must be hopeful. When we come to discuss the means of professional and personal growth of the teacher, we shall find that in his need of general culture and breadth of view he is not unlike men in other professions. New ideals confront us, not merely because the school must be a better school than for- merly, but because it is possible to live a richer life, and draw from many more sources of nourishment and in- spiration. Cheap books and magazines, post-office, and 12 School Management the travelling library, as well as ease of travel, bring the teacher into closer touch with his fellow-men, and give him superior opportunities of growth. No longer is the schoolmaster caricatured in litera- ture, and made the butt of ridicule; no longer is he a social cipher. On the contrary, he is in the ascendant to-day, for he is believed to hold a strategic position and to set the pace for social and educational work. We must also carry our investigation into those means and materials which constitute the curriculum of the school. The great change to be noted here is that the require- ments in subject-matter are more qualitative and less quantitative. This remark applies both to recitations and examinations. The spirit with which the child does his work and the interest with which he regards it are acknowledged to be of more account than any fixed amount of acquisition. Superintendents of schools are not infallible, and are often more insistent upon the letter that killeth than upon the spirit that maketh alive. The individual teacher is comparatively helpless in the pursuit of high ideals, provided he is attached to a system which is unmindful of what those ideals de- mand. 10. — Uniformity not Desirable. The best course of study is one which springs from the good judgment and experience of the teachers, and hence has their entire approval ; even then there should be permitted large freedom in its application. It may not be wise for the different schools of the town to do exactly the same work either in kind or amount. The teacher often finds one class less capable than another, Introductory 13 and the situation becomes painful when the supervisor comes in with his measuring-rod and expresses dissat- isfaction with the result. Hence it is that the most current conception of an efficient supervisor or superin- tendent is that of one who claims freedom for himself and grants it to others ; who believes in flexibility, and is ready to commend the teacher who, in respect to the class and to the individual members of the class, is able to differentiate upon the basis of capacity and ability. When we come to devote several chapters to teaching and recitation it would seem that we are entering a field where there is little new and where we can follow only well-beaten paths. There is some force in this, and if we could only fully possess ourselves of the spirit and method of a Socrates or an Arnold, we would doubtless become eminent in our profession. But the greatest and most successful teachers have not become so by imitation. That is only one factor and one less impor- tant than others. Thorough scholarship, vigorous per- sonality, profound sympathy, and tactful efficiency all enter into teaching and transcend in importance any particular method. The teacher of to-day must have a certain all-roundedness possessed by few of those of the past, however great they were. The doctrines of self- activity and the interdependence of the motor powers and brain-centres have well-nigh revolutionized all teach- ing. It is said that a man receiving a salary of $50,000 a year said, not long since: "I am paid this annual stipend for the mistakes I do not make." In other words, his value consisted largely in what he refrained from doing. Is not this in accord with the idea that the modem teacher is skilful according as he refrains from 14 School Management doing what his pupils can do for themselves. If we fully accept this suggestion we shall find in our study of this important department of school management the press- ing need of a new set of cautions and precepts. Our most serious attention is directed to the child rather than to the subject-matter. Through an intimate ac- quaintance with his nature and his needs the teacher is able to supply the right nutrition at the right time. In the chapters which follow we have to discuss the programme, incentiTes used in the school, the nature and method of the recitation, the functions of apperception and interest, and the five formal steps. Practical illus- trations in the organization of subjects for teaching will be given. Here, as in the methods of training pupils to study, plans for examinations, and methods of pro- motion, we are not obliged to follow beaten paths. The school is a growing institution, and adopts new forms and practices according as pedagogical insight is given free play. The school and community are inseparable forces, and our labor will not be complete until we have brought to light all those relationships, so subtle and influential, which, if rightly regarded, bring satisfaction and happiness to all concerned. In all that follows we prefer to avoid that dogmatic form of statement which results in a form of text not unlike the ten commandments or the sayings of Poor Bichard. Paradoxical as it may seem, many things are true to-day that may not be true to-morrow. We use the best light we have and constantly seek for more. In the days of wireless telegraphy and the air-ship it pays to be expectant. Introductory 15 TOPICAL REVIEW t. The scope of school management. a. What social changes have affected the school ? 3. New moral aims. 4. New studies. A recognition of the physical and psychical nature of the child. 5. The relation of teacher and parent. 6. Why must the school help the community ? 7. Distinguish between the methods of the factory and those of the school. 8. New opportunities for the teacher. ^ CHAPTERH THE TEACHER The teacher is the dominant force in every school. Hence the questions, what the teacher should be, and how he should attain the highest usefulness, are among the first we have to consider. The skilled superin- tendent shows his sagacity in nothing so much as in the selection of teachers. All intending to enter the profession, as well as those duly installed in it, may well try to see themselves as others see them. There are many steps in the ladder which lead from the low- salaried places in the smaller communities to those commanding positions in educational work which both men and women may attain. 1. — The Power of Personality. Every young person should realize that the greatest factor in his success is his own personal charm and ability. If, as is often the case, he is not rated as high as he thinks he deserves, he must look for some weak- ness or limitation in himself, of which he has perhaps hitherto been unconscious. The achievements of man or woman can only be understood by taking into account the personal factor. This is especially true in teaching; in fact, it can be laid 18 The Teacher 17 down as one of those pedagogic proverbs that are likely to endure. The teacher makes the school because his presence, his sympathy, his siacere interest and helpful- ness are ever operating upon his pupils. He draws them to himself according as he possesses magnetic power. Can this ability to attract, to hold, and to in- spire pupils be acquired ? If it can, there are abundant reasons for beginning our treatment of school manage- ment with a kind of character study. We may thus be able to define the qualities belonging to the successful teacher so clearly as to make ambitious beginners eager to possess them. 2. — Importance of Good Health. The teacher should be well and strong. He needs for his work the joy in life that goes with a sound body, trained to perform every function in a perfect manner. The school should never be a hospital for weak or dis- eased people. It is bad for the pupils, and they are the chief concern. A teacher whose health is imder- mined is almost sure to grow worse and to become a victim of those conditions which often tempt us to undertake what we should not. Physical examinations for teachers are quite as desirable as any other, and are likely in time to be universally required. Poor health in the teacher often implies impairment of the nervous system and a lack of self-control and re- pose of manner, which are absolutely fatal to the best interests of the school. The person whose digestion is bad, who cannot sleep well, or who for any cause is unable to exercise in the open air, seldom has a sweet 18 School Management temper or calm judgment. Such teachers unwittingly arouse antagonisms in their pupils which are reflected at home, and the relations between the home and the school become anything but agreeable. I have known of more than one case where the teacher's health was so delicate as to require a much higher temperature in the room than was good for the pupils, or was favorable for the cheerful performance of their work. This portion of the subject naturally addresses itself not only to teachers themselves but to school authorities who permit such a state of things to exist. However hard it may be for weak, diseased, or disabled teachers to relin- quish their positions, I believe in the end they will be gainers rather than losers. A case is recalled where a teacher in poor health showed a morbid unwillingness to resign, but was finally persuaded to do so. While for some time she maintained anjair of bitterness toward the superintendent, after having regained her health, and finding a new joy in life, she came and thanked him for what he had done. But, turning from this phase of the subject to one which is more hopeful and constructive, let it be under- stood that, in the vast number of cases, the teacher, as far as health is concerned, is master of his own destiny. The first years of teaching are often a crucial test of a young person's good sense and foresightedness. It is then that he is laying the foundations of his career. Health and vigor are his chief assets ; even scholarship and professional training avail little unless accompanied by physical stamina. Let us try to formulate this matter in a few suggestions that are comprehensive and universal. The Teacher 19 1. The teacher needs the comforts of a good home. This should include a quiet, sunny room, which is well warmed in winter, so that preparation for each day's work may be made under the best possible conditions ; and, in passing, it should be said that thorough prep- aration for daily work is distinctly a health precaution. It gives satisfaction and confidence, prevents worry, and leads to conscious success. 2. The teacher needs also nutritious, appetizing food served at regular hours. Intemperance and irregu- larities of all kinds are inconsistent with those stand- ards of conduct and character which should govern the teacher of youth. The frequent violations of this prin- ciple are a stain on the profession. ^Persistent selfish indulgence leaves its mark upon many countenances and leads to impaired usefulness and lessened respect in the community. 3. The teacher cannot afford habitually to deprive himself of necessary sleep, even for the sake of study or social pleasure. As long as he was a student solely, he could burn the midnight oil without harming anyone but himself ; but now he is a public servant and needs to have reserve force for those emergencies and off-days which come in every teacher's experience. The laws of nature are inexorable, and no guilty person can hope to escape the penalties consequent upon their violation. In nine cases out of ten, both as teacher and student, the person will accomplish more that is worth doing with a full quota of sleep and with reduced hours for study. There is a morbid conscientiousness which leads teachers to spend dreary hours in examining and marking papers when the best interests of their pupils 20 School Management demand they should be in bed and asleep. Teachers who do this are not only sinning against themselves but against their pupils, for they are depriving them of that experience, so valuable, which would make them com- petent to criticise and correct their own work. Befer- ence will be made to this subject in a later chapter. 4. Of equal importance to the teacher is out-of-door life. The intrinsic value of fresh air and exercise to sedentary workers is too well understood to need ex- planation. We are children of nature, but are so hedged about by the artificialities of our modern life that we lose to a large extent the exhilaration of life. We do not, like the Indian, enjoy the abundance of sunlight and air which the Creator intended for us, but rather take them as medicine and often only upon the doctor's prescription. Out-of-door sports and athletics afford special opportunities to teachers. There is nothing more hopeful in our modem life than the sight of men and women of all ages enjoying golf, tennis, to say nothing of boating, riding, and walking. The teacher who does not have a scheme of daily life which includes regular exercise is willingly assuming a handicap which may cost him the race. The trolley-car may prove a menace to good health if it becomes a substitute for the morning or afternoon walk. There are many claims of a private and professional nature for the free hours of the Saturday holiday, all of which are legitimate, but a portion of it should be devoted to some pleasurable out-of-door diversion. The Teacher 21 3. — Duties Out of School. Teachers receiving limited compensation are often tempted to engage in occupations out of school which make too heavy a drain upon their time and energies. One cannot wisely undertake to be a housekeeper, a nurse, or an editor without discounting his success in the school. He may render incidental assistance in any of these activities and find it profitable diver- sion. Ought a teacher to engage in Sunday-school work ? is a question which must usually be referred to private judgment. The need is very great for sound religious instruction, and nobody is so well equipped for this work as the day-school teacher. It brings him into a closer and more personal touch with the young, and gives him a fresh consciousness of those deeper life problems which belong to all true education. Doubtless many teachers need this experience, and are helped and re- freshed by it ; others have so little reserve force that they need absolute rest on Sunday and should not per- mit a morbid conscientiousness to overpower better judgment. Pastors and Christian leaders are often im- bued with the idea that there is no salvation for the young anywhere but in the Sunday-school, but the ethical possibilities of the day-school are becoming greater year by year, as increasing attention is given to character-building, and all the means and appliances of the school are made to foster this end. We do not therefore hesitate to say that the question whether the day-school teacher shall engage in Sunday-school work should be considered without sentiment or emotion after 22 School Management a careful weighing of practical considerations of health and duty. 4. — Intellectual Fitness of the Teacher. Many people drift into their vocation along the lines of least resistance, thus becoming teachers almost by accident. If any profession is worthy of good mental equipment it is teaching. Fortunately, while persons of inferior ability are almost sure to be found in the lower ranks of the profession, there are now so many checks upon advancement, and standards are being raised so rapidly, that only those of real intellectual worth are likely to reach the better paid and more hon- ored positions. The world seems to have places for all its inhabitants provided those places are diligently sought. For those of mediocre ability there are call- ings where deep thinking, imagination, and constructive genius are not required. The man of one talent need not dig in the earth and hide his treasure, neither may he seek to fill a position where five talents are essential and where ten may be used to advantage. 5. — Moral Qualities Needed. The present emphasis given to imitation and sugges- tion constitute a claim for moral uprightness in the teacher that is almost startling. The student of child- hood observes how sensitive the child is to personality. While children are at home they are to a good extent faithful copies of father or mother. It is an open ques- tion whether the results of imitation are not greater The Teacher 23 than those of heredity. The expression, the tone, the walk, and the disposition are like those of the parent, simply because the child follows the pattern which is so constantly before him. The more isolated families are, the more significant and specialized become the family traits. When the child enters school he be- comes subject to the dominating influence of a new per- sonality. According as he loves his teacher he will imi- tate her and become fashioned after her pattern. This phenomenon, while affording a most valuable opportunity to the teacher, and giving him a special function as leader, imposes moral responsibility of the most serious sort. It is a compliment to say of a teach- er, " He has put his stamp upon every pupil," only when that stamp expresses nobility and righteousness. We see, then, how necessary it is that the teacher |jecome the complete man or the complete woman, willing and able to stand for the right at all hazards, the champion of every good cause, and a worker for it as welL 6. — Sincerity. Children are not easily deceived. If it were right for a person to be other than sincere, it is certainly not safe to try repeatedly the experiment in the school- room. Let any pretence or sham on the part of the teacher be recognized and become a subject of gossip in the school, the teacher's moral stock is at once rated low. He has been weighed in the balance and found wanting. Anyone whose besetting sin is to try to seem different from what he is, or seem to be able to do what he cannot do, has indeed a hard battle on his hands and 24 School Management one from which he had better retreat. Overpraise of the efforts or work of a pupU is just as bad as undue criticism. Moderate reserve is better than excessive compliment. To say always to pupils what is fair and just tends to establish confidence and respect, without which a teacher can accomplish but little. .fT 7. — Honesty. This plain, every-day word may be regarded as in- cluding many minor traits of character which are intrin- sic in the school. Instead of making a finer analysis we will say once for all, the teacher must be honest. Whether the Father of his Country injured the cherry- tree or told the exact truth about it is of far less ac- count than the fact that the story of his truthfulness has become a national idyl and has made honesty a great cardinal virtue of the American people. There are only two kinds of politicians, the honest and dis- honest ; so with merchants, clergymen, journalists, and teachers. If a man is not honest he is a cipher in the moral scale ; and so if we can apply the test of honesty to ourselves and to our fellow-teachers we shall soon know who are accredited and accounted fit to be lead- ers of children and youth. The application of this principle is wide and varied. It begins in the morniag hours and stands guard throughout the day. It reveals itself in countenance and voice, and gives steadiness and proportion to all work. Honesty begets honesty, and the honest teach- er makes the honest pupil. The lad in the school is the future citizen, and he will be a good citizen only as The Teacher 25 honesty becomes a habit inseparable from his whole Ufe. Promises in the school as elsewhere are sacred and must be kept. In evil report as well as in good reporf; principles are to be defended and truth is to stand. All work is to be honestly done. So staunch must be this doctrine that it reaches the home and restrains parents from unduly aiding their children in their school tasks. All spurious exhibitions of school work, for the sake of public notice, should be tabooed both by teacher and pupil. The teacher whose conduct toward the child of the rich or influential is marked by any special cour- tesy or partiality loses measurably his popularity and influence. The American public school is the purest type of democracy and equality which modern civiliza- tion presents. He who violates its first principles and is dishonest for the sake of some personal advantage is unworthy of his profession. 8. — The Teacher as a Social Force. The school exists to create a better social life, hence the teacher must be strong on the social side. His self- respect and dignity of bearing must be such as to make him esteemed and beloved in all circles. He should be broadly interested in the community life about him, in the daily employments of the people, in their various enterprises and undertakings. Every community is a sort of economic microcosm of the world ; as an educa- tor he should study and understand the industrial, com- mercial, and social life about him with their various in- terpretations. He should earnestly co-operate in all 26 School Management efforts to further public sanitation and civic progress. He should be ready to combine with others at all times for every sort of human betterment. Unselfish social conduct tends to react upon any person, and make him more sympathetic and kind- hearted. Practice of social virtue implies social growth in the qualities that are specially needful ia a teacher. There is all the difference ia the world between the teacher who is instinctively social and the one who is strongly individualistic. The one adapts himself to cir- cumstances and the other is a martinet. For example : a child enters school late in the morning, and the teacher knows the mother is iU ; she may inquire kindly after the sick parent and say nothing about tardiness, or she may remind the child that he must remain after school as a punishment. The latter course would not be un- usual, but it can hardly be called social. Again, a boy or girl struggling to assist in the home and at the same time continue at school gets less sleep than he needs, and consequently does poor work in his studies. In such a case the teacher reveals himself as social or un- social. He is exhibiting himself as human and kind, or as hard-hearted and indifferent. Many other instances might be cited where this test operates ; in fact, the whole stream of life in the school is filled with such incidents. Pupils have their own nomenclature for the words and acts of the teacher which seem to them to merit cen- sure. The word "unsocial" is a gentlemanly name for a variety of offences against good society, which too often mar the beauty of the school life and blight the influence of the teacher. The Teacher 27 9. — Temperament. Much that constitutes the individuality of the person is ascribed to temperament. This is not in any sense a distinct and separate attribute, but is a sort of complex product partly physical, partly mental and moral. It will readily be agreed that a teacher should possess a sanguine, hopeful temperament. Is it not fair to assume that every young person may cultivate those traits of character that shall result in a disposition that is whole- some and cheerful ? To this end he should summon all the energies of mind, heart, and will. He should always be the master of himself, and the divine goodness that is in him, even though it be but a spark, should be kindled into a flame, fusing every impulse and emotion, and making it pliable and obedient to his best judgment. 10. — The Selection of Teachers. Every superintendent or member of a school board in our smaller communities, who can go out and freely choose teachers for vacant places, feels sure that this is the ideal method of selection. It oflfers to young teach- ers in the smaller communities the opportunity of ad- vancement to more desirable positions. Thus they are stimulated to excel, and to use all available means of professional growth. This freedom of selection operat- ing in towns and villages, East and West, has produced school-systems of the highest grade. There are some drawbacks to this method. 1. Towns of limited financial ability sometimes lose their best teachers to such an extent as to cripple se- 28 School Management riously the schools. Under these conditions the super- intendent has a constant struggle to keep his schools up to a moderate level of efficiency. 2. Young teachers of pleasing personality and promise are often pushed on too rapidly, and, being ambitious to maintain themselves, draw too heavily upon their health and vitality. In some instances, after gaining the de- sired position, they relax their efforts and growth ceases. 3. Freedom of selection makes school committees subject to the importunity of local candidates, w^ho may or may not be competent. The position of teacher has a dazzling attractiveness for people who have not at- tained marked success in life, and who wish to see their children able to live without manual toil. Girls who have graduated from the public schools are thought to have earned a right to be teachers, as though a commu- nity which gives a free education to its children should also furnish a livelihood. Nothing in the life of our American communities has created more bitter feeling and antagonism than the appointment of teachers. In the larger cities, where school affairs were managed by ward committees, the situation became intolerable. Gradually the appointment of teachers has been hedged about by rules and regulations that prevent the possi- bility of favoritism or political influence. The special object of treating this subject in a work addressed primarily to teachers is that all members of the pro- fession are or should be interested in everything that relates to the validity and dignity of their calling. Working unitedly they may do much to strengthen a public sentiment in favor of those methods which are best for a given community. In many States this mat- The Teacher 29 ter is controlled by statute, and several of our large cities have recently obtained new charters which pro- vide for the administration of the schools on strictly business principles. 11. — Methods of Certificating. The new methods of school administration are copied largely from the civil service rules, which have long been used successfully in Europe, and are now well established in a policy of our national and State gov- ernments. The cardinal idea is merit. Examinations to determine the competency of applicants, and the assigimient of those who are successful to an eligible Ust, are the chief working features of the plan. Taking the country as a whole, there are several current methods of certificating teachers which are more or less efBca- cious in thwarting personal influence and " pull." 1. The requirement of a normal school diploma. 2. Gradua- tion from a high school and a normal school diploma. 3. Graduation from a high school, and diploma from a local training school. 4. Examination by a duly constituted board, with an eligible list. 5. Examina- tion by State or county board, which may be accepted by a local committee. 6. Sundry regulations in the use of an eligible list. 7. A fixed term of probation, upon the result of which the candidate may receive regular appointment. Here, as in other departments, the lack of a centralized system permits much experimentation and variation in practice. This will prove beneficial in the end, for the methods found to be best will eventually become uni- 30 School Management versal. Whatever the general method of certificating is, it should always be possible for a school board to go out into the open market when positions of peculiar technical difficulty are to be filled. 12. — Terms of Probation. Teachers who have received the best normal training have still to gain real professional ability by experience. The first year, at least, should be a time of probation. The salary should be smaller and the duties less exact- ing than afterward. In college teaching, the young person must needs have several years as assistant tutor and instructor before he is eligible to the position of assistant professor. The beginner in a primary, gram- mar, or high school should not give his time grudgingly to this preparatory work. He will wisely make the most careful preparation of the lessons he is to teach, and will observe the work of the best teachers as closely as possible. He will carefuUy measure himself in his work ; he will solicit criticism from the principal and superintendent ; he will establish pleasant relations with his pupils ; in short, leave no stone ^mt^Imed in doing his work thoroughly and well. If this first year of teaching, difficult and trying though it may be, brings him out victorious at the end, he will enter upon his second year with a confidence and satisfaction which could have been found in no other way. We have thus enumerated some of the qualities which the teacher should possess and which he should try to cultivate during his professional career. We have endeavored to suggest that these qualities which The Teacher 31 enter into temperament and character are not fixed quantities. They are susceptible to change and devel- opment under favoring conditions whenever there is in- telligent purpose and persistency. What has been said along this line as well as regarding the conditions ud- der which the teacher enters the profession is prelim- inary to a consideration of the means of growth open to the teacher, which will be treated in the following chapter. TOPICAL REVIBW I. The inflaence of personality. a. Ways of preserving health. 3. Activities outside of the school. 4. Desirable mental and moral traits. 5. The teacher as a social factor. 6. Can temperament be changed ? 7. Why should teachers be carefully selected? 8. Some ways of entering the profession. CHAPTER m THE GROWTH OF THE TEACHER Gbowth is the necessary attendant of life. When a plant stops growing it begins to die. It is doubtful if there is in the life of any organism a period when it is absolutely stationary. We cannot always tell by look- ing at it whether it is still growing, or has turned the point of its highest development and commenced its career of decadence. But we know that the period which marks the divide has no appreciable magni- tude. The human organism, in spite of all caution and care, passes through the same cycle of development and de- cay. It is clear also that the mind is so wedded to the body as to make it a dependent subject. Whenever the body is impaired the mind suffers with it. There are, however, two fundamental truths which offer en- couragement to all who cherish life, and especially the life of the intellect : First, every individual, by obeying the laws of health, can measurably facilitate growth, in- crease his potentiality, and postpone the hour when de- terioration begins. Secondly, he can give such suprem- acy to mind, conscience, and will as to make the soul, to a good degree, defiant of bodily ailments, and keep con- stantly growing as long as life lasts. These truths, so rich in value to all people, are espe- 32 The Growth of the Teacher 33 daily valuable to teachers. How then, let us ask, can teachers make a steady increase of mental and spiritual power ? 1. — Cultivate the Social Life. The teacher needs to know himian life in the con- crete. He needs to enter into sympathy with all kinds of people. If he visits the homes of his pupils he is Kkely to know a variety of persons, and the acquaint- ances thus made will serve more than one purpose. By knowing parents he can the more readily influence their children. His acquaintance tends to give him a recog- nized place in the community, makes him familiar with his environment, and furnishes him needed local data for his work. Moreover, the teacher needs that particular kind of stimulus that is implied in the term " going into soci- ety." The teacher usually needs cultivation on the human side. He knows more of books than of people. In some circles he is apt to be awkward and ill at ease. This is soon overcome by experience, and the ability to move among people with grace and dignity is an accom- plishment not to be despised. Social Hfe in the best sense is a good tonic for the mind, an antidote to morbidness, broadens one's interests, and makes him more sane and companionable. The clannishness of some teachers is fatal to their best growth. They have an idea that by reason of their calling they are discounted in social circles. This has been more or less true in the past, but is seldom so to- day. The teacher owes it to his profession to esteem himself as fit for any society. Every time he worthily 34 School Management represents his profession he is contributing something to its repute and standing. 2. — Seek Desirable Friendships. Over and above what has been said about acquaint- ance with common people, and conventional social intercourse, the teacher particularly needs those close, intimate friendships which, to the young at least, are among the most significant means of personal growth. The teacher must occasionally throw off restraint and lapse into a sort of childlike freedom. At such times he needs the attrition of kindred spirits. It is often better if the intimate friend pursues another calling and has diverse interests. Thus we learn many facts quite outside of our own experience, and our thoughts are turned into new and fresh channels. Our pedantry and conceit are properly corrected, and we gain fresh courage and condition for our work by learning what is being achieved in other departments of effort. One cannot have many intimate friends. They should be carefully chosen, and their confidence and sympathy, when once secured, should be guarded as a peculiar and precious possession. In these rare and exceptional friendships the deeper feelings and aspirations find ex- pression, and the best that is in us is brought out and made to do us service. 3. — Bead Many Books. " Reading," said Lord Bacon, " maketh a full man." Perhaps if he were living to-day he would say good read- ing, for the range of choice is much greater than it was, The GrTowth of the Teacher 35 and the danger of dissipation is increased. As the ex- perience of the race is preserved to us in books, the teacher, for the sake of knowledge and professional power, must read widely. 1. The subject-matter of teaching is ever broadening and changing, so that the teacher must do a good deal of reading on the informational side. His knowledge of the subject he teaches should be far beyond that of the pupil. Nothing is more pitiable and unprofessional than the instructor who is contented to know simply what he has to teach. There are now great modem works in geography, history, and science, which con- stitute a treasure-house to any teacher who has access to them. 2. Next in importance is that professional reading which furnishes a broad view of educational history and ideals. Properly speaking, the history of education com- prises the story of human progress. It also presents a record of the great educational leaders, who, far in ad- vance of their time, have been centres of influence and light through the centuries. Neither general history nor the theories of the reformers can be safely ignored. It is not unusual to hear some rising pedagogue ex- ploiting ideas which were preached by Kabelais, Mon- taigne, Comenius, or Eousseau. A good knowledge of educational history gives one a deeper respect for the past and makes him more modest and more teachable. 3. The growing teacher will read psychology, particu- larly as it reveals the nature of mind and is applicable to methods of instruction. No teacher, for instance, can afford to be without Professor James's " Talks on Psychology, and Life's Ideals." Hand in hand with 36 School Management sucli reading comes the study of individual children, and a growing recognition of the need of adaptation and individual treatment. 4. The general literature of our time is not likely to be neglected, for it is quite disconcerting and inconven- ient to be ignorant of what is produced in this field. There is even some danger, with the wealth of fiction which now crowds our library shelves, to say nothing of history, travel, or sociology, that general reading may compete too sharply with that of a professional sort. It is not wise, however, to draw too sharp a line be- tween professional and general reading. The treatment of social questions of the day is largely educational, and almost any study of ethical, social, or economic problems contains educational elements which readily fit into a broad scheme of pedagogy. A social settlement in Boston, New York, or Chicago is distinctly an educa- tional institution. The same may be said of very many churches. Some of our great writers of fiction, like Charles Dickens, Victor Hugo, and Charles Eeade, have greatly enriched the literature of education. Dickens's "Hard Times," for instance, presents a plea for the nurt- ure of the imagination and fancy in childhood which has never been surpassed. So it can be said with truth that pedagogy cannot be separated from human history and human experience any more than religion can be separated from life. 5. The teacher must be informed in current history as presented in newspapers and magazines. It seems only just to say that such reading is of less account than any other, and should be incidental and restricted. Nothing can be more debilitating for the mind than to absorb the The Growth of the Teacher 37 trashy contents of some of these publications. Journals and magazines render a great service in bringing to us the raw materials of information. It is possible to be- come enslaved to this kind of literature to such an extent as to an-est that higher development which a better class of reading gives. Enough has been said to enforce the idea that a teacher's reading should by no means be narrow, but should be selected from all fields of good literature, giv- ing, of course, special emphasis to those books and articles which have to do with methods of teaching, educating, and uplifting the young. To illustrate more clearly what is meant by a broad selection the following list of ten books is given. Each one is a type of the best material to be found in the particular field which it represents. ■ The Growth of the Brain. Donaldson. Talks to Teachers, and Life's Ideals. James. Apperception. Lange. History of Pedagogy. Compayre. Illustrations of Universal Progress. Spencer. School and Society. Dewey. Hard Times. Dickens. Lectures on Teaching. Fitch. General Method. McMurry. School Hygiene. Shaw. 4i — Visit the Best Schools. Here we have a practical means of professional growth which is too often neglected. School officials forget that an entire school may often be closed, and the 38 School Management teacher sent to visit other schools, with very little loss so far as the pupils are concerned. Quality is better than quantity, and teachers frequently return from such visits with renewed courage and enterprise, and the school is at once a better school. Some foolish and undesirable things occur when teachers visit other schools, and a few suggestions relative to those who re- ceive visitors as well as those who visit are in order. 1. Principals and teachers who entertain visiting teachers should let all the affairs of the school move on in their regular way. The visitor does not wish to see an exhibition of unusual and special exercises, but rather the every-day work. Do not, therefore, change the programme unless requested to do so by the super- intendent or principal, and he, if wise, will make this request only in rare instances. 2. Do not ask the visitor to examine an enormous mass of written papers. A few typical papers should always be at hand for visitors to see if they choose to do so. Not wishing to offend they will inspect a large number, but it is a thankless task, and is not what they came for. The real object of interest to the visitor is the pupils ; the manner in which they study and recite ; the kind of co-operation existing between them and their teachers ; the degree of promptness and despatch with which the work is carried on ; the methods and de- vices used ; and the general deportment of the school. 3. Another mistake is to hurry visitors from room to room, and from one attraction to another, not giving them the opportunity to see anything thoughtfiilly or thoroughly. 4. It is a bad practice to send word through the The Growth of the Teacher 39 school that visitors have arrived and are to make the rounds. It is the first step toward making a show of the school, which too easily affects teachers and pupils. 5. The practice of calling only on the brightest pupils when visitors are present is vicious, for it is too well understood by pupils, and gives them an opinion of the teacher which he cannot afford to have them hold. Those who visit need also to avoid a few mistakes. 1. If possible they should arrive in time to see the school open, and should remain during the entire ses- sion. 2. They should pass quietly from room to room without asking for introductions. 3. Ask no questions while recitations are in progress, but make notes and seek information either at recess or at the close of school. 4. See everything. Count nothing of small impor- tance. While visiting another school a teacher is really looking in a mirror. He will, perchance, see some things that he will wish to avoid in the future — or, in other words, he will become conscious of his own faults. 5. Do not go home and speak disparagingly of what you have seen. If called upon to report your visit do it with such fairness as to leave no stigma upon the teacher concerned. Be sure that if you have seen nothing to commend there is some fault in yourself. 6. It is well to visit other grades than your own. The kindergartner should observe carefully the develop- ment of the work in the primary grades. Every pri- mary teacher, on the other hand, should observe the kindergarten as well as the work which follows and precedes her own. Grammar and high school teachers 40 School Management may profitably visit any class where good work is being done. Young, inexperienced instructors in college, who probably are the poorest teachers extant, lose an oppor- tunity and do an injustice to themselves and their stu- dents if they fail to study the methods used in the best secondary schools. Educators and teachers of all grades may learn much by visiting schools for defective children ; institutions for the care of the deaf, dumb, and blind ; reformatories like those at Elmira, Concord, and Sherbum, Mass. ; industrial schools for backward peoples, like Hampton, Tuskegee, and Carlisle ; as well as various trade-schools, technical schools, and schools of applied art. In an experience covering thirty years of school supervision the writer has noticed that many teachers are contented to go on year after year without visiting other schools. As a rule their work is not of the highest order. It is evident, therefore, that superin- tendents and principals must organize a scheme of regular visitation. Every teacher should have at least two days in each year for this purpose, and, when the vacation permits it, he should be expected to devote some small fraction of his time in the same way. Ee- ports made at a teachers' meeting of what has been seen during such visits are an important feature of the plan. 5. — Institutes and Conventions. Normal institutes have been a decided factor in the development of the American teacher. During that period when normal schools were largely academic The Growth of the Teacher 41 in their character, and when a very large percentage of teachers received no professional training, the State and county institute, continuing for several days, at- tendance upon which was required, has been of untold value. If the time comes when, as in Germany, all teachers are required to have preliminary training in normal schools, the institute will become of less ac- count, but even then there will be a place for such con- vocations. The opportunity for mutual acquaintance, the inspiration derived from the eloquent instructors, and the satisfaction that comes from knowing and hearing those accounted as leaders, will always make the in- stitute a means of improving schools. The great conventions which are held by nearly every State and the National Education Association have also contributed their part to educational progress. Teach- ers from distant portions of the United States who at- tended the great convention in Boston, in 1903, re- returned to their homes with a new sense of pride and dignity, and with many impressions of New England life and achievement which will be a pleasant memory in their future work. It is no reflection upon Boston, or upon her people, to say that the schools of that city will reap a considerable benefit through the awakened interest of the teachers, who, by their generous hos- pitality and cordial greeting to the teachers of the country, did so much to make the convention a success. Many helpful addresses were heard with interest, but they did not constitute the most valuable part of the programme. There is one caution to be observed by those who attend meetings of an inspirational character. Speakers often go to extremes in emphasizing the par- 42 School Management ticular side of a subject which they are treating. It sometimes happens that several people take opposite points of view. Extreme statements are made, and one's credulity is often taxed severely in trying to ac- cept what is urged. All this requires that teachers should weigh evidence carefully, and reserve judgment on questions not clear. Such discussions enlarge one's horizon and extend the knowledge of the subject, but should not lead to hasty conclusions. It has been well said that it is better to know less than too much of what is untrue. 6. — Teachers' Meetings. In all large schools and systems of schools the teach- ers' meeting is often the key to freedom and progress. It is as vital to the welfare of the school as the Sunday service is to that of the church. It often serves a pur- pose not unlike that of a consultation of physicians, in- asmuch as special cases of inaptness and misconduct, which baffle the individual teacher, are successfully diagnosed through the wisdom of several. There are two distinct kinds of teachers' meetings. One includes all in the system, and its purpose is to develop com- mon aims and ideals, and secure perfect understanding touching the practical work to be accomplished. Such a meeting may be conducted in an infinite number of ways, and still accomplish its purpose. In this, as in all other meetings, let there be informality and freedom. An ordinary class-room is not a good place in which to assemble. A room furnished with loose chairs, so that all can group around the leader in a social way, is far Aetter. Questions or suggestions should always be in The Growth of the Teacher 43 order at every point. Even if the superintendent or the principal is lecturing he does not wish to pose as an oracle, or to deliver an address so polished that it slips through the minds of his hearers without having made any definite impression. The true method of the teachers' meeting is that of conference. The subject should be announced in advance, and in many instances a series of meetings would be required in which the in- terest and discussion should be continuous and progres- sive. Some outside reading should be suggested, and brief, definite reports from persons specially designated are an advantage. These are some of the topics which have been found fruitful at such meetings : Evolution in its relation to education. Sense and motor activity. Culture of the feelings and imaigination. The doctrine of interest. Apperception. The five formal steps of education. The hygiene of study and fatigue. How to train pupils to study. Amount and kinds of home-work. School housekeeping. Self-government : Its possibilities and limits. An occasional lecturer from outside is a welcome feature, but for the most part such meetings should be carried on by home talent. These general meetings are often held monthly. They serve to develop unity, and give some direction to the professional study and thought of the teachers. It is better that such meetings be held in the afternoon at the close of school. This is usually more agreeable 44 School Management to teachers than to be called together on Saturday. The meetings should not continue for more than an hour. Everything unnecessary and trivial should be omitted, and there should be the most earnest concen- tration on the subject in hand. Frequent violations of this rule make many teachers' meetings a dreary waste of time and distasteful to aU concerned. An afternoon tea at the close of the meeting facili- tates acquaintance and is always enjoyed. This feature becomes still pleasanter when, in succession during the year, several ladies and gentlemen in the community are invited to be present and make the acquaintance of the teachers. This plan has been known to result in many pleasant friendships between teachers and citizens, and the opening of the homes to teachers. Another class of meetings is that for teachers of a grade, or for a group of those teaching the same subject, as, for example, in the high school. Here there should be even greater informality and individual initiative. The superintendent or principal may wisely let some mem- ber of the grade or group conduct the meeting while he becomes a listener, taking part as opportunity may offer. This is the time for considering, step by step, the several parts of the curriculum, in respect of ma- terial, and the correlation of one subject with another. This study should be intensive and thorough. Discus- sion should not be checked until all possible light has been brought to bear and some definite conclusions are reached and formulated. Methods of teaching with illustrated lessons, teaching plans, devices, and illustra- tive material may all be brought into these meetings. Something is accomplished by having the teachers The Growth of the Teacher 45 bring into each meeting some specimens of the work of their pupils. The special teachers of mnsic, art, physical training, handwork, or nature study should find in the grade meeting opportunity for explaining their plans and se- curing intelligent co-operation. Frank suggestion and criticism on both sides are far better than misunder- standing and lack of cordiality which often creep into a school and mar the pleasure of working. In short, these meetings should be a clearing-house for all details of management and teaching. Teachers will attend them cheerfully, as they furnish specific directions and suggestions for every side of their work. 7. — Travel as a Means of Gfrowth. To visit the great cities of our own country, to behold its great mountains, rivers, prairies, and forests is a means of culture to any teacher. To cross the ocean and see the old countries and view their treasures of art and their historic monuments is of still greater value. He who esteems highly such means of pleasure and growth does weU to practise economy, and lay aside something for this purpose. Viewed simply as academic education, the knowledge of history, geography, art, and human progress gained by travel is far more serviceable than that learned from books. It is real, and bears the same relation to what one reads about such things that a great painting, glorious in color, bears to a photograph or wood engraving. Viewed from a pedagogic stand- point, the teacher who travels can teach with more con- fidence and enthusiasm, and will impart to his pupils 46 School Management somewhat of the reality of things which he himself feels. Moreover, he finds a new joy in his work, and can exert a wider influence among his associates and patrons. 8. — Freedom Facilitates Growth. School officers cannot afford to shackle their teachers or impose irksome rules and regulations. Emancipation is the order of our time. To rise in the morning and feel that we can give free rein to our best impulses, and that even our dreams may be transmuted into real achievements, affords us the keenest satisfaction that life can give. Under such conditions the worker, who- soever he may be, becomes the artist, putting a little of himself into his daily task, giving it the stamp of in- dividuality which differentiates it from the work of everyone else. Red tape, precedents, and officialism are a kind of dry rot in any school system. As the large majority of teachers are women, who are naturally conscientious, yielding, and obedient, the evil becomes still greater. All the sources of growth and culture we have heretofore enumerated are of little consequence if the teacher must always hear the clatter of official machinery. She soon ceases to be the artist and becomes simply an operative. Organization is good and there must be some system in every large enterprise. But as education has to do largely with motive, sentiment, and spirit, the more simplicity and directness there is in requirements, and the more freedom of individual judgments, the better, American schools to-day need less of humdrum and routine and more, of scientific adaptation of means to The Growth of the Teacher 47 ends. It is only through free, individual initiative that the teacher can address himself unreservedly to the child for whom the school exists. TOPICAL REVIEW 1. The law of growth and decay. a. Why a teacher should seek society. 3. The value of intimate friends. 4. What should a teacher read, and why? 5. School visiting. What has your experience fhownf 6. Institutes as a pedagogic stimulus. 7. Why do teachers' meetings often lack interest? 8. The teacher's right to freedom. CHAPTER IV PHYSICAL CONDITIONS The health of the child is always of first account, whether in the home or ib. the school. Conditions have often been so unfavorable in the schools of the past that it is a question whether the value of the formal educa- tion received compensated for the injury done to the health. During the last century the world has ad- vanced rapidly toward a better knowledge of the laws of health, and in the utilization of the discoveries made by science. School boards and teachers assume a grave responsi- bility in the care of children, and the use they mate of means at their disposal to this end is of first considera- tion in school management. Not only should teachers be thoughtful and intelligent in all matters of hygiene and sanitation, but they should enlist the interest of their pupils to the same end. The ordinary means employed to promote health and prevent disease are of the highest educational importance, and not beyond the comprehension of pupils in the elementary schools. Carefully prepared rules relating to contagious diseases and the necessary precautions to be taken should be distributed to all homes, and the co-operation of parents should be solicited. A book on the physical nature of the child, by Stewart H. Kowe, contains in its closing 48 Physical Conditions 49 chapter a large number of questions relating to food, clothing, care of the skin, breathing exercises, sleep, and the miscellaneous habits of children, which may wisely be used in calling the attention of parents to some of the more common dangers, and as a means of educating the popular mind in the more elementary principles of hygiene. This is not the place for an exhaustive treatment of school construction and the scientific reasons for the in- tricate and elaborate provisions now made for heating, ventilating, and plumbing in school-houses. Teachers are usually called to work where the conditions are largely established, and even if new buildings are to be erected their advice is too seldom sought. The chief emphasis here is laid on the right use of such means as are at hand for conserving bodily health and comfort in the school. At the same time some of the general and more practical considerations are given with the hope that they may assist teachers in understanding, and helping their pupils to understand better, the problems which they have to solve. 1. — The School Site and Grouvds. The selection of the school site is a fair index of the wisdom and generous tendencies of the school board. In growing towns and cities, as fast as the areas of future expansion are determined, tracts of land should be secured at low prices, large enough to provide for future school buUdings, and for ample playgrounds for the people of the several neighborhoods. To make the school, as is now so often proposed, a community centre, 50 School Management implies that playgrounds are to be used by adults as well as children. For those people who are confined the great- er part of the time in unhygienic shops and factories, the need of out-of-door diversion becomes imperative. The school should be located on high ground, away from all objectionable noises and all unsanitary condi- tions. The soil should be natural, dry, and such as can be easily drained. There are at least four features in the ideal school lot: 1. The ground upon which the building stands, 2. Such open space in front as permits landscape gar- dening suflScient to insure attractive entrances and approaches to the building. 3. The school garden. 4. The playground. When the school-house is already established consideration can usually be given to the second and third, and the fourth when there is sufficient space. There are few school-houses where something cannot be done to beautify its approaches by means of trees, lawn, shrubs, and flowers, tastefully arranged. If the building stands, as is often the case, on one side of the lot, so that there is considerable space on the other, a school garden can be organized as well as a playground, if this is feasible. It is not necessary here to go into detail respecting the method of laying out the grounds or the garden. Many articles have already been written in magazines and school journals, and in nearly every community there are examples of good taste in landscape architect- ure which school officers and teachers can study in working out the proper scheme. The principle of self- activity should have some influence in this connection. For example, in the development of the school garden it Physical Conditions 51 would be a waste of opportnnity to have all the plans made by the teacher, and simply permit the pupils to obey directions. Bather let the school garden grow out of investigations by the pupils into the methods of agri- culture. Let them consult farmers and gardeners on the best way of growing different crops, and the best kinds of soil and fertilizers to be used. A reasonable degree of rivalry adds interest here, as in other forms of school work. Results of these inquiries, with varying degrees of success and failure, will give real education, and make the school garden a good type of industrial and scientific training. The various problems in arithmetic and science which arise are excellent for the pupils to solve, because they are real 2. — The School Building. School architecture has progressed rapidly in recent years. Certain principles are coming to be recognized generally. It is commonly agreed that the school-house should be simple and, as far as possible, expressive of the purpose for which it exists. Occasionally good taste is violated by too elaborate design, over-ornamentation, and in- harmonious colors, but an examination of a large num- ber of prints of modem schools shows a similarity of type and an evident subordination of design to utility. It is agreed, also, that the building shoidd be planned from within outward, the school-room being regarded as the unit. When the school-rooms have been planned and arranged with reference to lighting and conven- ience the architect is less likely to err in completing the rest of the scheme. 52 School Management 3. — The School-Boom. Much thought has been given to the form and size of the school-room. Whatever may be the character of a room where a teacher does his work, he should make a careful study of it, to see that the best possible results are obtained in respect of lighting, fresh air, conven- ience and good taste. Every teacher should know what standards are generally accepted. It is understood that in cities, where space is very expensive, there is more crowding than under other conditions. A room 28 X 32 feet is considered a good size for any grade of school. If, as is desirable, the long side of the room is exposed to the light, the rows of desks may be so placed as to leave some vacant space in front and on the side farthest from the windows for tables and other useful furniture. A minimum height of first-story rooms is 13 feet. As the light is usually superior on the second floor, the height may properly be 12 feet. Natural slate blackboards should be placed on all wall space not occupied by doors. These should be from ^^ to 4 feet in width. For primary pupils they should be placed 2 feet and 3 inches from the floor. For gram- mar and high school pupils from 3 feet to 3 feet 6 inches. These boards should be closely fitted together and cemented. Chalk receivers should be beneath the blackboards. These should have a wire covering at- tached by hinges so that when they are in use no dust may be disturbed, and they may be conveniently cleaned. The floor of the school-room, as of all parts of the Physical Conditions 53 building, should be of maple or hard pine, selected stock, grooved, and closely fitted to prevent cracks for the accumulation of dust. For wainscoting, some of the best authorities recommend hard plaster well painted without gloss, to give a hard, durable surface. 4. — Seating. The best school furniture yet devised is the single, adjustable desk and chair. This is constructed in vari- ous styles, but the differences in them are not marked. Special care should be taken that the seat is comfort- able, properly supporting the back and shoulders. A desk designed by the late Dr. Shaw has some advan- tages, as the top slips back and forth, affording minus distance for reading and plus distance for writing. It has a slant of 15°, but may be raised to a level when the nature of the work requires it. The seat should be adjusted so that, with the feet of the pupH on the floor, the lower limbs will be directly at right angles to the thigh, which is level. It is very important that when adjustable furniture is provided the adjustments be promptly and carefully made. The maker usually provides a measuring-rod and definite directions as to its use. The writer remem- bers visiting a new highschool building toward the end of the year when no adjustments had been made. Such oversight is inexcusable. It shows the absence of care for the welfare of the pupils. In case furniture that is not adjustable is used there should be at least three sizes placed in rows, so that the smaller pupils come in front. This permits consider- 54 School Management able adaptation to the size of desks and makes the room present a good appearance. 6. — Lighting. "When the planning of the building permits school- rooms oblong in shape, it is desirable that all the light should come from one side, with an arrangement of seats so that the pupils get the light from the left. The more completely that side is filled with glass the better. There should be a minimum of from one-fourth to one- fifth of the floor space. The windows should have square heads which should reach to the top of the room, and should extend to about three and a quarter feet of the floor. In some cases iron muUions are used, thus precluding the use of brick or timber work, which ob- structs the light. All kinds of inside blinds are objectionable. Opaque shades of an ^cru or greenish tint, running either from the top or the bottom, afford the best means of control- ling the light. Authorities differ as to which method is better. The objection to having the shades run from the bottom is that teachers wish to have window-boxes, and in the care of plants the shades become injured. Experience has shown that shades attached at the top can be made to serve every purpose. When the shades are large tint cloth is more durable than hoUand. In dealing with old buildings where there is insufficient light, factory ribbed glass in the upper sashes is found helpful. The tinting of the walls of the school-room play an important part, not only in its attractiveness, but in Physical Conditions 55 making the light agreeable. The ceiling should be white or a light cream color. In school-rooms where there is plenty of sunhght gi-een tints aro most dura- ble. Booms having a northerly exposure are made to seem more home-Hke by being tinted in warmer colors, as a yellowish gray or light terra-cotta. 6. — Cloah-Booma, Cloak-rooms may be placed either along the corridor or in separate rooms adjacent to the school-rooms. In either case thorough heating and ventilation should be provided. If placed in the corridors they should be connected with the school-rooms and should be locked when not in use to prevent thieving. Each child should have a separate locker or cubicle divided off by parti- tions, with a shelf at the bottom for rubbers, and one at the top for lunch-box or books. Corridor wardrobes are often partitioned off with wire-mesh set in frames, thus permitting the better circulation of air, and a more complete drying of clothing in damp weather. 7. — Corridors. The ideal type of school building has class-rooms along the sunny side with corridors, offices, and other rooms on the other side. However large the building, this type in its main features may be preserved. The corridors should be at least nine feet wide, and, in the case of large buildings containing several himdred pu- pils, may well be as much as twelve feet in width. They should be well lighted, and the walls may be tinted in richer tones than are used in the class-rooms. 56 School Management 8. — Staircases. Staircases should be placed at either end of the buUding. There should be no open wells. Each stair- way should have at least one platform or landing for every story. The risers should be 6 to 6^ inches high, and the tread from 10 to 12 inches wide. Hand-rails should be provided on either side, firmly bolted to the walls. There should be windows upon the landings, elevated at least four feet from the floor. Staircases should be either of fire-proof or slow-burning construc- tion. 9. — Other Features. Doors leading to class-rooms should be made to swing both ways by means of a spring check. Glass panels are necessary in such doors, and, in short, are found to be convenient in doors of different construction. Any means of preventing noise or confusion, like the fre- quent opening and shutting of doors, contributes to the success of the school. When a school-house is being designed, those who are to occupy it should insist upon economy in the planning of both basement and attic. A dry, well- lighted basement, if reasonably free from supporting timbers and masonry, and if weU warmed and venti- lated, may be put to a variety of purposes, as play- and lunch-rooms, manual training shops, and gymnasiums. The attic also may be so free from timber work as to provide excellent rooms for domestic art and science, clay work, and all sorts of games and occupations suit- Physical Conditions 67 able for young children, which are becoming a promi- nent feature in school life. The most satisfactory finish for a school building is oak or ash. White wood, however, if properly treated, so that the siu:face is perfectly hard and without polish, is quite durable, and can easily be kept clean. Every school building should have a small reception- room, neatly furnished, where the principal or teachers may meet parents or other visitors. It is convenient to have this room adjacent to the school office. The principal should have communication with his teachers either by telephones or speaking-tubes. Before each entrance there stould be a large steel mat, and just inside the door one or more woven mats, both of which the pupils should be trained to use. 10. — Heating and Ventilation. This subject is so vast and so vital to the best inter- ests of the school that a separate treatise is needed for the use of those who are to study it carefully. " The Ventilation and Heating of School Buildings" by Morrison, and the treatment given by Kottlemann and Shaw in their several works entitled " School Hygiene," contain the essential facts. The heating of the school-house should be such as to secure uniform temperature of 64° to 70° Fahrenheit, there being some variation according to the age of the pupils, the younger children needing a somewhat warmer temperature than the older ones. The ventila- tion of the school-house involves the removal of air that has become vitiated by breathing, and the introduc- 58 School Management tion of pure, warm air in its place. Thus heatiag and ventilating constitute one process, and this proc ess requires the application of a definite amount of power. By long experience and many experiments it has been found that thirty cubic feet of fresh air per minute is the minimum for each person. Many modern school buildings now provide fifty cubic feet per minute. Tak- ing the smaller quantity, we can readily see that the amount required for fifty pupils for one hour is 90,000 cubic feet, and, if we take the larger amoimt of fifty cu- bic feet per minute, the enormous mass of 150,000 cu- bic feet of fresh air per hour for every fiJty pupils. But what are we to say in regard to school-rooms where not more than one-half, one-third, or one-fourth of the nec- essary amount of air is furnished ? Or where, because of the inadequacy of the ventilating plant, or some fault in its working, there is little or no change of air, unless, perchance, the windows are opened, or the pu- pils sent out-of-doors. This brings us face to face with two significant facts : 1. The inadequate ventilation of a school-room under- mines the health and leads the way to many forms of disease. 2. It is equally harmful in a pedagogic sense, for it makes it impossible for teachers and pupils to do good mental work. Let us briefly consider this situation in some of its more common aspects. " There are many substances," says Morrison,* " con- stantly passing into the air, tending to make it unfit for respiration. Those which more especially concern us * " The Ventilation and Heating of School Buildings," Morrison. Physical Conditions 59 in consideration of the condition of our school-housea are vapors and gases from the skin and lungs, princi- pally Co, and vapor of water, solid particles of scaly epiphelium from the skin, fibres of cotton, wool, etc., bits of hair, wood, coal, chalk-dust, and many other things which have a tendency to enter the blood through the delicate air-cells in the lungs, if gaseous, and to lodge in the air-passages, or be diawninto the lungs, if solid, there to irritate by their presence, and poison the system by their decay." There are also many micro-organisms in the air. Kottlemann* tells of an instance where in every cubic metre of air there were 2,000 bacteria before school began, and 35,000 at the end of school hours. In a small, compact volume entitled " Dust and its Dangers," Dr. T. Mitchel Prudden treats this matter exhaustively, and, while showing that nature has several definite methods of preventing serious injury to the human organism by bacteria, it is made clear that too great care cannot be taken in providing air that is free from disease germs. Much trouble with the bronchial tubes, throat, and larynx is caused those who teach in ill-ventilated and dusty school-rooms. Many of those noxious and poisonous elements which find their way into the air of the school-room are illu- sive and not easily measured. As the chief element of impurity is carbonic acid, this is commonly taken as a measure of impurity and various tests are used to deter- mine the amount. Pure air contains 4 volumes of carbonic acid gas in 10,000, and 8 in 10,000 is the highest allowed for good sanitation. Not long ago a * " School Hygiene," Kottlemann. 60 School Management State inspector in Massachusetts ordered new ventilation apparatus for a new school building. According to law an appeal was made to the local board of health, who, after a hearing, reported that the order was unnecessary. The State examiner made tests of air from each floor with the following results : Air from the first floor, where there were thirty-nine children, contained 15 volumes of carbonic acid in 10,- 000. The air from the second-floor room, occupied by forty-four children, contained 32 volumes. That from another first-floor room yielded 36 volumes. These facts are the more startling when we are told that the samples were taken in November, the first after the windows had been closed for ten minutes, the second while the windows were open four inches, and the third after the windows had been closed for twenty minutes. It is evident that in each case the air was unfit for respiration. It should be kept in mind also that people assembled at any time, as in church or in school, are not conscious of the deterioration of the air, because it is gradual, unless they pass out of the room and return. TOPICAL REVIEW 1. Hygiene as a matter of private and pablic concern, a. The educational use of school grounds. 3. The school-room. Arrangement of furniture, etc. 4. Windows and shades. 5. The use of corridors and staircases. 6. What details make a school-house home-like ? 7. The relation of ventilation to respiration. CHAPTER V PHYSICAL CONDITIONS (Continued) 1. — Methods of Heating and Ventilation. The large open fireplace used in the one-roomed school-house of twenty years ago is conceded to have afforded excellent ventilation. It cannot be praised as highly as a means of heating. The air-tight stove which succeeded it, whether used in the dwelling-house or in the school, had little to commend it. Practically the same air was heated over and over. Many rural schools still have nothing better than this. When proper thought is given to the subject, however, the stove is provided with a jacket extending from the floor one- half the way to the ceiling. At the floor is a register with a fresh-air duct extending under the floor to the outer wall of the building. The air thus enclosed be- tween the stove and its jacket passes up into the room, and fresh air is drawn in from outside to take its place. The open draught of the stove draws out the vitiated air near the floor, thus creating circulation. A foul-air duct at the floor, connected with the chimney which is warm, is better for the egress of bad air than the stove draught. In the construction of rural schools of one room, especially when fuel is plentiful, a fireplace should be 61 62 School Management provided and used during the spring and antumn, when only a small amount of heat is required. In large school-houses, heated by steam or hot water, both direct and indirect methods of heating are used. The first, which employs pipes or registers, may be used only to supplement indirect heating. In the cold- est weather, and at night, it is an economical method of keeping up the temperature. By the indirect method fresh air is carried into the building through large ducts, containing stacks of radi- ating surface, and directly into the rooms through regis- ters which are usually placed near the ceiling. The impure air is carried out through a register usually placed directly underneath the incoming air, by means of separate ducts made somewhat larger than those pro- vided for fresh air. Thus a school-room, heated and ventilated in this way, has a volume of fresh air con- stantly entering the room and an equal volume of im- pure air constantly passing out. A gravity system is one where the draught necessary for withdrawing the foul air is caused by a heated chim- ney or duct. In every large building this method is not adequate or reliable, and ventilating fans are used either as a means of forcing the fresh air into the build- ing, or of drawing out the foul air, or both. In thus stating in the briefest manner possible some of the main facts connected with warming and ventilat- ing, it is assumed that teachers wiU study carefully, in connection with their principal, the particular system upon which they have to depend. Ignorance and neg- lect too often prevent the successful working of the ven- tilating apparatus, while care and attention will secure Physical ConditioJis 63 favorable results. Artificially heated air is usually too dry and tends to affect unfavorably the membrane of the mouth, the throat, and the lungs. Yarious meth- ods have been employed to himiidify the air of school- rooms, none of which is altogether satisfactory. The best plan is probably that of discharging steam, in mod- erate quantities, into the cold-air duct. The practical end to be obtained is to make the inside air conform as nearly as possible in respect to humidity to that out- side, so that persons passing in and out are not subject to too sudden changes. Even when the building is poorly equipped for ven- tilation a great deal can be done by teachers to prevent injury to health. Windows and doors may be opened every half hour while the pupils engage in marching, light games, or gymnastics. Boards, five or six inches in width, placed under the windows are a well-known device. Still better are hoods at the top of the win- dows, closely fitting the sash, so that when the windows are opened from the top the air is deflected toward the ceiling, and is gradually diffused throughout the room without falling too directly on the heads of the pupils. In all this work of securing pure air of the proper quality pupils should be asked to co-operate and should assist the teacher in every effort to secure the best that is possible from the facilities at hand. In the high- school, pupils pursuing chemistry and physics may find a variety of problems in testing air, under various con- ditions, in respect to dryness and purity, the amount received and discharged, and the conditions in these respects as affected by the weather and prevailing winds. 64 School Management 2. — Janitor Service. Under this heading we may include everything per- taining to the care of the building which is beyond the function of the teachers. In the first place, the office of janitor should be given the importance it deserves. He should be a man of intelligence, courteous bearing, good habits, thoroughly faithful and interested in his work, with some mechanical ability, and prompt and energetic in responding to every just call. He should be treated with respect by teachers and pupils, and some effort should be made to show just appreciation when imusually good service is given. A superintendent does well to call together his jani- tors from time to time in somewhat the same way that he does his teachers, and consider with them the various kinds of work they have to perform. They are glad to compare notes respecting their methods of sweeping and cleaning, and helpful suggestions are often made. The chief advantage of such meetings is that the service is elevated and dignified, and so janitors come to have in- creased pride in their vocation. Colonel Waring suc- ceeded in lifting the subject of street cleaning in New York City to a plane of scientific and economic impor- tance, and in one way and another made all his workers share in the feeling that they were responsible for the lives and health of the people to a great extent. So it should be in every school. No degradation or disre- spect should be attached to a class of manual toil which is indispensable to health, to comfort, and the proper care of school property. The janitor should be appointed upon the recommenda- Physical Conditions 65 tion of the principal and should be directly responsible to him. The principal is, of course, in turn responsi- ble for the care of the building to the superintendent and school board. A system which places the janitors and care of the buildings under some other municipal authority is -vicious and should be sharply attacked. How important an oflSce the janitor fills appears if we enumerate the duties which properly belong to him. 1. He should have entire charge of the school build- ing and grounds. He should be responsible for their care at all times. He should see that everything is kept in proper order, and should promptly report to the prin- cipal all injuries to the property whether wilful or ac- cidental. 2. All corridors and staircases need to be swept daily. School-rooms should be swept at least three times a week, and daily if circumstances require it. The jani- tor, as in ordinary housekeeping, should have cloths to throw over teachers' desks and tables containing books and other apparatus. The best rule for sweeping and dusting is a general one which calls for a high standard and permits the jaliitor to use his best judgment. It has been found by experience that a school-house is much better cared for when its tidiness becomes a mat- ter of personal pride with the janitor. 3. It is desirable that corridors, staircases, and class- rooms be washed as often as once a week. A few years ago, in some cities, the washing of the school-room floors was unheard of. Sanitary science, working through health boards, has brought about a marked change in this direction, and in some towns and cities the house- keeping in the schools is equal to that in the best 66 School Management homes. Windows, as a rule, need to be washed once a month. Furniture of various kinds, including pupils' desks and chairs, should be wiped over with sulpho- napthol, or some other authorized antiseptic, at least twice a year, and oftener where contagious diseases are prevalent. Banisters, hand-rails, and door-knobs should be cleaned weekly in the same way. Crude oil, which is comparatively inexpensive, may be used for this purpose. Furniture should be wiped with a dry cloth after oil has been applied. Just before the summer vacation, all iron and other metal work should be wiped with the same material. Crude oil has also been found excellent for the floors. By introducing a small amount of -burnt umber, the color of the floors may be darkened to match the wainscot- ing. A small quantity of the oil should be applied to the floor by means of a mop, and afterward the floor should be thoroughly wiped with a dry mop or cloth. If the floors are thus treated once or twice each term, there is comparatively little dust, and as little injury to clothing as from any of the floor preparations now on the market. Emphasis is given to this side of the janitor's work because dust has been an ever-present and insidious form of evil in the school-house, producing distress and disease. It has been discovered within the last few years that many of the infectious diseases, such as con- sumption, typhoid fever, Asiatic cholera, and diphtheria, are caused by bacteria which live and float in the air. In order to overcome the pestilential influence of germ- bearing dust in the school, it is found wise, in the care of large buildings, to provide the janitor with one or Physical Conditions 67 more assistants whose whole time is spent in scrubbing and cleaning. 4. The janitor must usually take charge of the heat- ing plant and give special attention to the heatiag and ventilating of the several rooms. He has to visit the different rooms as occasion requires and see to the temperature, and that all fresh-air ducts and inlets are perfectly clean and wholesome. He must also regularly inspect the sanitaries, and use scrupulous care in keep- ing them as clean and odorless as possible. 5. The janitor must have charge of the yard and grounds, and, with such assistance as may be furnished him by pupils and others, must care for shrubs, flowers, and grass. On public occasions he should aid in every possible way in making visitors welcome and comfort- able. Thus it can be seen that a wise and efficient janitor is hardly second to the principal in promoting the health and welfare of all in the school. A high grade of talent is needed for such positions. The compensa- tion should be such as to make the incumbent self-re- specting, and enable him to support a family in comfort. 3. — General Sanitation and Hygiene. This is an appropriate time to mention some of the ways in which the school may conserve health by giving pupils practical experience in matters of hygiene. 1. As a nature lesson pupils should be instructed in water supply, and the importance of drinking only that which is pure. Wells which have been closed and not emptied for a long time are full of danger. Children 68 School Management should be frequently cautioned in regard to when and where they should drink. Individual drinking-cups are indispensable it the best care is to be used. 2. It should be remembered that in many schools, as in many homes, the lighting is bad, and care should be taken in the use of books not to strain the eyes. Pupils should be trained to sit and hold the book at a proper distance from the eye so the light will come from the left. Every teacher should use the ordinary test-cards, containing different sizes of print, to discover any cases of near-sightedness, or of eyesight otherwise defective, that may happen to be in the class. Such cases should be reported promptly to parents, who should be urged to consult an oculist. Such children should also be seated as near the front as possible. Simple tests of hearing made by holding a watch at different distances will enable the teacher to easily detect any defect that there may be in this sense. The general use of free books and pencils has tended to increase the danger of infection. It is desirable that pupils should use their own or the same pencils. Phy- sicians recommend that both books and pencils be dis- infected from time to time, by the use of a light recepta- cle in which they are subjected to some disinfectant, as formaline vapor. While the general use of blackboards is valuable in the school there is no reason why a large portion of the written work should not be done upon paper, thus avoiding to a large extent the chalk-dust, which is espe- cially injurious to sensitive throats and lungs. The use of slates is accompanied by objectionable and filthy habits, and the fact that they are being rap Physical Conditions 69 idly discarded in all schools marks an important ad- Tance in the practice of hygiene. Teachers are justified in insisting that pupils should be sent to school in a cleanly condition. Not only should the clothing be decent, but the children should be required to bathe at home, and the parents should be expected to see that this requirement is carried out. If the homes of the children are such that this is im- possible it is apparent that the school cannot be decent and healthful unless it is provided with baths. The schools of Europe have made more progress in this di- rection than has been made here, but in the future the school-house located in the slums of our cities cannot be classed as complete unless it has simple yet effective bathing facilities. Of equal importance is the question of proper nu- trition. Many years ago it was found necessary, in the poorer sections of London, to provide children with at least one palatable meal during the school day. The writer remembers visiting a large school in Stockholm, where, during the noon-hour, in a large hall on the upper floor, several hundred school children were given a lunch which they themselves had assisted in prepar- ing. It is evident that children whose bodies are poorly nourished derive little benefit from the school, and that when circumstances demand it free food is just as appropriate as free books. However much our reason may dissent from the idea of free baths and free lunches, certain it is that we cannot have free common- school education universally and successfully applied without them. The study of physiology and hygiene, with attention to 70 School Management the evil effects of alcohol and narcotics, should be part of every corriculum. Concerning the quantity and qual- ity of this instruction there is the widest difference of opinion. A committee of twelve persons, the chairman of which is the Secretary of the State Board of Education in Massachusetts, has made a preliminary report on a course of study for the Massachusetts public schools which avoids extremes and yet covers the essential points. Introductory to that report are certain general suggestions which are given here as indicating the atti- tude to be desired on the part of both teacher and pupil. 4. — General Suggestions. 1. The child's interests and point of view should always be kept in mind. 2. The work should be formal in the sense of hav- ing definite times and places for enough lessons to cover the subject. 3. In addition to the formal work, much incidental and related work should be done. 4. Both the formal and the incidental work should grow out of the child's every-day life in the school, on the playground, and in the home. 5. The teacher should be on the watch for opportu- nities to inculcate hygienic ideas of living. 6. The lessons should be brief, simple, and conver- sational in form. 7. The teacher should be a model of hygienic living. Bad postures, untidiness in person or dress, the use of tobacco or of alcoholic drinks — all such things in the Physical Conditions 71 teacher are serious handicaps to good hygienic work with the child. 8. The school-room should be a model in all that re- lates to cleanliness, order, ventilation, heating, and light- ing. The children should help to keep it so, and un- derstand how and why everything is done for that purpose. Note. — ^Every primary teacher should know enough of chemistry and physics to be able to understand thor- oughly the heating, ventilating, and lighting of her own school-room. 9. The children should be led to practise with pleas- ure the laws of personal hygiene which they learn. 10. Mothers' meetings may be profitably held for the discussion of the physical well-being of the children. When parents find that children are being taught things that wiU make them stronger and healthier, they are usually glad to co-operate with such teaching. 11. The teacher should judiciously consider the home conditions of each child. 12. Special lessons should be arranged to meet such adverse conditions as may be found in the home ; but great care and tact should be exercised that the child shall not be led to feel that his own home and parents are subjected to criticism. Note. — The fact that parents may not use good Eng- lish should not prevent teaching the child correct lan- guage, neither should the use of alcohol or tobacco or other violation of hygienic laws by anyone in the home prevent teaching the child in school the danger thus involved. 13. The teacher should take the children precisely 72 School Management where they are, and help them to grow into better hab- its of physical life. Evolution, and not revolution, is the natural method of development. 14. Instruction should be mainly positive, and of a character to guide in the formation of right habits. 15. Other things being equal, that teacher will accom- plish most for the children who has the largest sympa- thies, and keeps in the closest touch with both children and parents. 16. Such simple anatomical and physiological ex- planations should be given as are within the grasp of the children, and as are necessary to make the teaching clear. TOPICAL REVIEW I. Direct and indirect heating. 2 The principle of the gravity system. 3 Relations of teachers and janitors. 4. Relation of pupils to janitors. 5. Cleanliness of pupils. 6. Definite means of improving the hygiene of the school CHAPTER VI ORGANIZATION OF THE SCHOOL The school board, the superintendent, the principal, and the teachers are all factors in the organization of the school. The welfare of every pupil is involved, so that all patrons are deeply concerned in the nature and the kind of mechanism which the school becomes. That in the past too much attention has been given to perfecting the machinery, and too little to individual opportunity, is generally agreed. In the rapid growth of cities the graded system sprang into existence as the best method of caring for large numbers of children. During its earlier stages, principals and teachers were often untrained ; their knowledge of the child, his nat- ure, and his interests was limited ; methods and appli- ances were crude, and, in the rather servile deference to the idea of a graded system, lamentable errors were committed. Now there is a large volume of experience at hand. We are no longer worshipping the fetich of system, but are humbly and thoughtfully studying the needs of children, and are trying to adapt means to end in a great variety of ways. In respect of grading, pro- motions, discipline, and incentives, professional judg- ment and common-sense are brought to bear, not merely upon the mass, but upon the individual. Formerly a 73 74 School Management child's fate was settled before his case was considered, now it is not settled until after consideration, and, even then, is often reopened and reconsidered as occasion may require. This view of present conditions implies flexibility and broad-mindedness in all school organization. It implies also an avoidance of extreme measures, and the ardent advocates of specially unique and peculiar ways of do- ing things must not be offended if schools generally seek to extract the best from all methods, yet decline to commit themselves to schemes which may be surpass- ingly excellent in one or two particulars, but fail to do justice in other respects. We should never be ashamed to discard the old for the new, if we are sure it is better ; but wise people will avoid those sudden shifts and erratic tendencies which do harm to the schools, and tend to discountenance them in the public eye. 1. — Distribution of Authority. In rural schools where there is little supervision the teacher has large freedom and responsibility in classify- ing his school and arranging his work. In town and city schools there is a sequence of authority and respon- sibility which is always to be kept in mind. The school boards are responsible to the people who elected them. The superintendent derives his authority from the school board, by whom he is held responsible for what he does. The superintendent, in turn, delegates power and authority to the principals, for the exercise of which he holds them responsible. The principals interpret the general policy of the administration to the teachers. Organization of' the School 75 and it becomes their duty to see that they conform to the general plan. It is apparent that the best results cannot be expected unless there is loyalty and integrity in every link of this chain of responsibility. Teachers must be loyal to the principal; the principal to the superintendent; the superintendent to the school board, and the school board to the citizens. Furthermore, the authority must be so distributed that all, within proper limits, have freedom of action. The school board that does not give the superintendent both freedom and power commits a fundamental error, and one that has proved an obstacle to progress in many localities. The principal both needs and deserves to have elbow-room, while faithfully and loyally supporting the superintendent in his general policy, and he should be encouraged to take the initiative in any plan that will make the life in his school stronger and richer. What freedom means to the teacher has been considered in a former chapter. It may be said, in passing, that the efficacy of a cen- tralized school management, such as several large American cities have adopted, will be tested by the de- gree to which the superintendent succeeds in controlling the huge forces under his command without excessive red tape. If centralization of power should mean such a refinement of rules, and such curtailment of individual freedom, and such exasperating espionage as to depress the spirits and cripple the free action of teachers, there would certainly be a reaction in favor of the earlier and more democratic methods. 76 School Management 2. — Meetings of Principals. A superintendent is powerless unless the principals second his efforts, and, being loyal and faithful them- selTes, bring their teachers into the same attitude. Con- versely, the superintendent cannot expect the support of his principals unless he takes them into his confidence, consults with them frequently, and inspires in them both respect and affection. The schools of a community well express in their or- ganization and working what is wholesome and health- ful only when superintendent and principals are in frequent conference and consider together in turn all vital questions. A principal, in hearing a problem dis- cussed from different points of view, will often see things in a broader light and will revise his opinions. For the sake of reasonable uniformity, there should always be mutual concession and willingness to abide by the de- cision of the superintendent after all have had their say. Superintendents and principals cannot successfully co-operate in the supervision of teaching unless there is practical agreement on their part respecting the ends to be sought. Teachers should never be permitted to dis- cover any lack of harmony or concert of action in the supervising officers. This suggests that supervision should address itself to things that are fundamental and important and that miuor details should be left largely to teachers. Organization of the School 77 3. — Grading of Pupils. In rural schools the classification of pupils is often difficult. If close grading is attempted too many divis- ions is the result. It has been found by experience that a teacher can have four or five divisions or classes in the essential studies, provided the recitation periods are made short, say, ten minutes in the lower classes, and fifteen to twenty minutes in the higher classes. In aU schools pupils do not require close grading in music, drawing, writing, handwork, and nature study. Under the right conditions, forty pupils belonging to the same grade in an average city school can work together successfully. But in the more central studies, we will say, as reading, mathematics, geography, history, or language, the problem of grading becomes more pressing. Here, also, experience has been valuable. The evils growing out of grading by years, with its accompanying platoon and lock-step movement, have been greatly miti- gated. The marking system, with its terrifying percent- ages, has either been abolished or has been modified so as to serve simply as a record for teachers and parents. Annual uniform examinations for promotion, or those held at stated times for the same purpose, have largely given way to written exercises and tests which are un- announced and which are for the purposes of teaching and training. Courses of study are broader, richer, and more flexible. But the greatest change has come in the fact that educators see that the school has a moral rather than a scholastic aim. They see that the best fruits of the school cannot be tested by a written ex- 78 School Management amination or measured by a system of marks. Would that these changes, which mean so much to the welfare of children, were universal. Were it so, much less would be written about the grading of pupils, for that is always done upon a purely scholastic basis. There is considerable literature on the subject of grading and the promotion of pupils, and a variety of plans are advocated, all of which have something to commend them. We will briefly examine some of them. 1. The Individual or Pueblo method.* This would to a large extent abolish class recitations and substitute longer study periods in which the individual student does advance work under the general direction of the teacher. This method, if logically applied, puts each student in a class by himself. It is claimed that imder this system a pupil becomes more interested, enthusi- astic, and self-reliant. Not being required to work out of school, he has better health. It is also claimed a pupil does more work and becomes better able to master difficulties. This plan has met with considerable approval, but in certain quarters has been received with objections and even with derision. Its more obvious merits are that it permits quiet study under the eye of the teacher. As in the old-fashioned country school, it permits the in- dividual to go as fast as he is able and to acquire a mo- mentum that is not possible under ordinary circum- stances. It fails, however, to recognize the school as a social whole in which the members are working for others as well as for themselves. It also mini- • " The Ideal School," Preston W. Search. Organization of the School 79 mizes the value of the recitation, which affords the best possible opportunity not only for social co-operation but for mental stimulus and attrition. To wholly ac- «ept or reject this method is evidently a pedagogical error. Frequent silent-study periods, with the indi- vidual opportunity which they provide, should be a part of every school programme. In other words, the sacred principle that the individual should be respected and should not be made to conform to any pattern, ex- cept his own, is sound. 2. The Elizabeth plan.* Under this plan the pupils in a school-room are divided into four or five groups, and, by a frequent reclassification, those of similar ability are made to work together. Thus bright pupils are enabled to go on somewhat faster. When the plan is consistently carried out, groups of pupils are admitted to the high school whenever they are able to take up the work to be done there. It is claimed that under this plan time is saved for many pupils and thus the schools are administered more economically. The fact that younger pupils are often pushed beyond those of their own age has seemed to some to be an objection. There also appears to be a good deal of emphasis upon a purely knowledge standard, and it is claimed that if more attention were given to a character standard, there would be little demand for frequent classification, and the apparent differences in the abilities of children would not be so great. One of the best features of this method is that pupils have a larger proportion of their time in school in which to prepare their lessons, whereas in many schools nearly * " The Grading of Schools," William J. Shearer. 80 School Management all the time is given to recitations, and the pupils have to do most of their studying out of school. J g „ „ 3. The Cambridge or S S 8 8 double-track plan.* This is best described by quoting ^ from the report of School ! Committee. 4i A A >k JIT} Dira 55 X fij Arrow No. 1 indicates the 4 years' course ; grades A, B, C, D. Arrow No. 2 indicates one of the 5 years' courses; grades A, B, 7, 8, 9. Arrow No. 3 indicates the other 5 years' course; grades 4, 5, 6, C, D. Arrow No. 4 indicates the 6 years' course ; grades 4, 6, 6, 7, 8, 9. Promotions in the Grammar Schools. The course of study is di- vided in two ways: (1) into six sections ; (2) into four sections ; each section cover- ing a year's work. Pupils taking the course in six years are classified in six grades, called the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth grades. Those taking it in four years are classified in four grades, called grades A, B, C, and D. When pupils are promoted to the grammar schools they begin the first year's work together. After two or three months they are separated into two divisions. One division advances more * Report of School Committee, 1897. — Cambridge, Mass, Organization of the School 81 rapidly than the other, and during the year completes one-fourth of the whole course of study. The other di- vision completes one-sixth of the course. During the second year the pupils in grade B are in the same room with the sixth grade. At the beginning of the year they are five months (one-half the school year) behind those iu the sixth grade. After two or three months grade B is able to recite with the sixth grade, and at the end of the year both divisions have completed one-half the course of study — the one in two years, and the other in three years. The plan for the last half of the course is the same as for the first half, the grades being known as the seventh, eighth, and ninth in the one case, and as C and D in the other. There are also two ways of completing the course in five years : (1) any pupU who has completed one-half the course in two years may at the end of that time be transferred to the seventh grade, and finish the course in three years ; (2) any pupU who has completed one- half the course in three years may at the end of that time be transferred to grade C, and finish the course in two years. In both cases these changes can be made without omitting or repeating any part of the course. It is apparent that this method permits the able pupils to gain time, and that it facilitates grading. Whenever it is put in operation in a large school, one or more extra teachers are required. This is a worthy attempt to meet individual needs without seriously disturbing the school machinery. 4. An old and very common method is that of divid- ing the pupils of a room into two or three divisions in 82 School Management the essential studies, yet keeping them together in others. It is customary in the first grade to have groups of not more than ten children ; in the second grade there are frequently divisions of fifteen pupils; in grades above, the more common practice is to have two divisions, one studying while the other is reciting. Keclassifications and promotions are effected either an- nually or semi-annually. Instead of promoting to the high school at mid-year, the advanced division is given additional work and the entire class goes forward to- gether. 5. One class in a room above the primary, with occa- sional individual promotions from class to class when ability has been shown and sufficient advance has been performed to warrant promotion. This plan has failed to give the best results, because the course of study has often been lacking in breadth and richness, and teachers have been made to feel that all pupils must do precisely the same work in kind and amount. This is a good time to suggest that in all elementary teaching the course of study should bp so flexible and the daily les- sons so arranged that the brighter and stronger pupils may do more than those less able. In all the world's activity this is a universal rule. It is, therefore, wise to have in any school supplementary exercises to fill up the waiting moments of the quicker pupils, as, for in- stance, extra copies to be written, more specimens to be examined, additional models to be constructed, more complex objects to be drawn, correlated questions in geography and history to be investigated and reported upon. It being always understood that the additional work is not to be undertaken until the regular prescribed Organization of the School 83 task has been performed. This is a telling way of moderating the evils of the graded system, and is specially applicable to the plan of grading last de- scribed. The advocates of individualism and frequent reclassi- fication overlook the fact that bright pupils can make progress in more than one direction. There is value in breadth and intensity of study as well as in mere exten- sion. A person may travel around the world in sixty days and have less to show for it than he who spends the same length of time travelling from Naples to Flor- ence, wisely employing his faculties in trying to inter- pret what he sees and hears. It is evident that all the plans of grading heretofore described have excellent features. It is a mistake, how- ever, to claim too much for any one of them. The spirit in which it is interpreted and applied determines the success of any plan. Able pupils, like able men, have other missions than simply pushing themselves forward. The world to-day is suffering from an excess of selfish- ness. The highest and best things in life are under- valued. Altruism is too little in evidence. There is little virtue in a hurried journey through school and college ; it too often results in a physical breakdown or in an impairment of the nervous system, while the slow boy who was left behind in the grammar school, goes on and is graduated from the high school with muscle and nerve in good condition for life's battle. It is the old story of the hare and the tortoise. We have given quite enough space to this subject of grading. Due consideration for the human, the moral, the social, and the hygienic aims of education will ever 84 School Management tend to lessen the emphasis given to mere form and system. The increased attention now given to all kinds of handwork, including gardening and household economy, as well as to art, music, and nature study brings into stronger relief the fact that mere acquisition is only an incident in the truest development of the individual. 4. — The Promotion of Pupils. After what has been said this topic needs no extended treatment. The things most important to be kept in mind may be briefly summarized : 1. Groups of pupils of about the same age and ability should work together for a reasonable length of time, doing their work faith- fully, helping each other, aiding the teacher ; thus gain- ing not only knowledge and power but also social con- sciousness and strength. 2. Pupils should be promoted to do other and higher work when they have proved their fitness by doing faithfully and well what has been assigned them. 3. The teacher's judgment, based upon the observation of pupils in their daily work of study and reciting, should be the determining factor. 4. A final examination as a test for promotion either from grammar or high school or from high school to college has many objections. It is too often unfairly adminis- tered. It practically ignores the moral element in educa- tion. It enslaves the teacher and narrows teaching. It is unhygienic, as it causes anxiety and worry and puts too great strain upon a child when he is least able to bear it, Even if the institution to which the pupil is accredited does require an examination, a great deal of deference should, be paid to the opinion of his former Organization of the School 85 teachers, and if that is favorable he should at least be taken upon probation. Further reference will be made to this subject under the heads of " Incentives " and " Examinations." The more we study the subject of grading and promotion the more clearly we shall see that it becomes of less con- sequence in proportion as we comprehend the social and ethical factors in the school, and give due valuation to the potencies of the child's higher nature which find expression through the head, the hand, and the heart. TOPICAL REVIEW 1. Has there been too much system in schools ? 2. Are school teachers too conservative, and why? 3. The sense of responsibility as a stimulus to good work, 4. The true field of supervision. 5. Things to be considered in grading pupils. In what sense ia the school both individual and social? 6. How may some pupils do more work than others? CHAPTER Vn THE GOVERNMENT OF THE SCHOOL School government, while as important as ever, re- ceives far less attention as a distinct purpose, and is accomplished by far different methods than formerly. In no other respect does the modern school differ so much from that of former times. In the good school of to-day the teacher seeks to promote a life so full of interest, application, and industry, that the energies of the pupils are absorbed, so that there is little time or opportunity for misconduct. Good manners and orderly conduct are simply incidental features to great under- takings, which cannot be carried on without them. The modern curriculum provides abundant work, and this is the true preventive of idleness and disorder. 1. — The Power of Personality. In Chapters IV. and V. qualifications of a good teacher are enumerated. Possessed of these he can assume the leadership so essential in every school-room. He will rule, not by fear but by love, and " Perfect love casteth out fear," as well as many other evil tendencies which are contrary to right feeling and living. The teacher should, therefore, from the very begin- ning of his acquaintance with a new class, put his best 86 T'he Government of the School 87 self at work, and, by the power of his own personality, seek to enlist the hearty, cheerful co-operation of every papU. 2. — Plan with Care. It should not be inferred from what has been said that the principal or the teacher can afford to over- look any practical details affecting the school. Gen- ius when analyzed is usually found to consist in foresight and careful planning. It is so in miUtary affairs and in trade. The wise teacher will, therefore, plan his campaign even to the smallest detail, so that he can conduct the business of the school with despatch, and so that every emergency is provided for. He must not be taken off his guard, at least until he has thorough control. Orators, musicians, and poets, who do fine things so easily and so naturally that they seem to be inspired, are usually those who have labored in solitude, and have learned to give every piece of work their most patient and solicitous care. How often have teachers been known to conduct a devotional exercise at the opening of school, with such evident lack of preparation and such apparent indiffer- ence to its real purpose, that not only pupils but visitors are impressed most unfavorably. It is said that the late Edwin Booth, the great actor, once recited the Lord's Prayer in a theatre so that many in the great audience were moved to tears. A principal or teacher may open the school in the morning in a manner so impressive and helpful as to set the pace for the entire day. Every movement and every exercise needs to be carefully con- sidered and arranged. 88 School Management 3. — Act with Courage. The weak, timid teacher is a failure from the start. Unless he can overcome his faint-heartedness he would better change his vocation. The teacher knowing what he wishes to do should set about it bravely and ener- getically. Knowing what commands he is to give, he should give them in a tone of voice to be heard and obeyed by all. As a rule, it is a mistake to repeat di- rections or commands. Pupils should be trained to hear and to act when the direction is given. With this suggestion as to the absolute need of cour- age should go an intimation in favor of plenty of reserve. The garrulous, nagging teacher causes disaster and ruin. In school as elsewhere, "A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver." Place Confidence in Pupils. The wise teacher will, from the first, not only trust pupils who are undoubtedly loyal, but will also show his confidence in those who are either reserved or who show some signs of opposition to his policy. He can afford to wait for such, and while waiting show them that he is both generous and expectant. It is not well to make a personal issue of every act not strictly in accord with the standards of the school. In fact, the more imper- sonal the discipline of the school is the better. We often make people better by believing in them, and by letting them know that we believe in them. A kind word spoken to a doubtful pupil often conquers him. What a doleful mistake it is to scold individual pupils The Government of the School 89 in the presence of the whole class ! At such times a teacher too often exceeds justice, and speaks bitter words which leave a sting behind difficult to be effaced. As far as possible all serious breaches of conduct on the part of individual pupils are to be treated privately, when by tact and skill the teacher will win the pupil's confidence, and make him his strong and ardent ally. 4. — Be Kind and Sympathetic. How little a teacher knows of the sorrows, frailties, and trials hidden in the breasts of those who come under his charge. Every home has its adversities and distresses. Some even have disasters and miseries, and in these the children share, and often bear the marks of them in their faces, and the burdens of them in their hearts. Kich and poor live under shadows which can- not be escaped, and which affect the disposition and the temper. Kindness and sympathy pay large dividends in every walk in life, and especially in the school. The touch of a kind-hearted teacher is a power at once subtle and unique. 5. — The School Virtues. It has been thought necessary in the past to give special attention to certain forms of conduct and traits of character, and to teach them by means of precepts and concrete examples. While the writer believes that these virtues are the fruit of life, and are developed not by teaching, but by living and practising them, it seems well at this point to enumerate them, so that as we pro- 90 School Management ceed to consider the larger phases of school government, these school virtues will not be overlooked or neglected. Their chief importance lies in the fact that they stand for those fundamental habits which form so large a part of our higher life. 1. Promptness and punctuality. These virtues were never more essential than to-day, for life is rapid, things must be done quickly and on time, minutes and even seconds have definite value, and only he who is prompt and punctual can fit into the modem scheme. 2. Care, neatness, and economy. The habit of thrift is of universal worth. It prevents haste, waste, and im- providence. It induces thoughtfulness and artistic ex- cellence in respect of personal effort as well as in what pertains to the welfare of the school community. Pu- pils should be neat, cleanly, and painstaking in all their work. 3. Silence and obedience. We have already spoken of the necessity of reserve on the part of the teacher. How important that the child should early learn to restrain his impulse to speak, and should be quick to respond to the wishes and the directions of the teacher ! The old adage that "Speech is silver and silence is golden " has a wide application in the school. In this respect, as well as in regard to obedience, it is to be feared that the American home is deficient. The school must therefore be the more assiduous in promoting these virtues. Without obedience to law there can be no government, and no genuine social life. 4 Attention and industry. These traits of character are also essential to success. They are perhaps com- The Government of the School 91 prised in the word " strenuousness," so popular at present. The habit of alertness and unwearied exertion marks all those who win the great prizes in life, as well as that larger number who gain an honorable competence and confer benefits on their fellow-men. This habit should be gained in the school, and eyery activity in which the pupil engages should be an opportunity for adding something to it. 5. Kindness and courtesy. These virtues are to be practised by pupils in their relations to teachers and each other. Pupils are also to be encouraged to act kindly and courteously at home and elsewhere. In the good school it is often observed that pupils seem to find pleasure in gentlemanly bearing and conduct. How delightful school life becomes when, in the class-rooms and halls, and on the playgrounds, gentle manners and mutual respect seem to be fixed habits. 6. Truthfulness. Here certainly is a virtue which cannot be taught by precept or any other device. It represents rather a state of mind and heart which is to be reached by growth under the right conditions. The very young child does not apprehend the nature of truth, and no greater mistake can be made than to accuse him of lying or punish him. The entire school life should be so full of frankness and open-heartedness, and such a high premium should be given to truthfulness in its every form, that even those who are naturally weak in" this virtue will become strong, and will learn to hate every kind of falsehood. It is readily seen that these school virtues are not to be treated apart from the daily life. Habits based upon them can be formed only slowly and gradually. There 92 School Management will be frequent lapses and many discouragements, both for the individual and the teacher, and considerable faith is needed for carrying on this work of moral improve;^ ment. 6. — Self-control and Self-government. As self-activity and self-development are the corner- stones of education, so self-control is the very beginning of right discipline. In former times the teacher sought to control his pupils, the modem aim is to have pupils control themselves. This can happen only when the teacher gives abundant opportunity for free choice. A virtue, like one's arm, will not grow and be strong without exercise. So growth, in all the virtues we have enumer- ated, is to be attained by finding constant occasion in the school life for their practice. The teacher will even permit pupils to make mistakes in order that they may correct them, and so become more thoughtful and care- ful. It is well to have a good understanding with pupils, explain to them frequently the nature and importance of self-control and self-direction, and even ask them to suggest ways in which they think they can improve and gain power in this direction. The teacher should re- frain from criticism or comment of a personal character, which would tend in any way to discourage effort. If a pupil needs to be reminded of his privilege and duty, a look is often much better than a word. In the sileiit-study period as well as in the recitation there is unceasing demand for self-control and self-repression. All the conditions, physical and moral, should be favor- able. Every encouragement should be given by the teacher, for success here means a successful school. TJie Government of the School 93 Games and excursions give another set of opportunities, somewhat different, but none the less valuable. By these means self-government may be obtained in the school, and by no others. In its attainment there is constant appeal to those qualities which make the good citizen, and the school becomes less artificial and more like a type of free, self -governed society. 7.— The School City Plan. It is quite a number of years since certain schools and colleges began to experiment in various plans for self- government. The one best known, which has gained considerable favor, is called the School City. It has been tried in grammar, high, and normal schools with quite a little success. Although varying somewhat in details, this plan usually provides a representative gov- ernment, organized and carried on by the pupils. The several classes elect delegates to a general assembly or coimcil, which elects the necessary executive officers and makes laws which they are to execute. In some in- stances the scheme has been elaborated so as to provide two legislative bodies, resembling the Senate and House of Representatives of a State, or the Common Council and Board of Aldermen of a city. The principal of a school often has the right of veto. There is sometimes a Court of Appeals, of which the teachers are members. This plan of the School City has met with varying success, according as the teachers have shown good judgment, and have given the right guidance and over- sight. Perhaps the most striking instance of this kind of organization, as a means of moral betterment, is seen 94 School Management in the George Junior Republic. Here a considerable number of boys of rather unfortunate heritage and train- ing haye gained experience in self-control and in con- formiag to laws, thus acquiring good moral standards, and laying the foundations of a good Ufe. 8. — Democracy and Law. Many failures have resulted ia attempting to establish self-government in schools. Frequently a too sudden transition has been made from the old forms of disci- pline where pupils were held with an iron hand, to the new, where they were thrown somewhat upon their own devices. It has been found that backward peoples, like the Filipinos, cannot be given all the functions of democratic government too suddenly. They must learn what free government implies, and must be permitted to acquire ability to govern themselves by gradual ex- perience. So it is with youth, and especially with those whose education has been largely upon the streets, or who have hitherto received no culture in responsible conduct. Moreover, it has often occurred that the school, in at- tempting to realize the conception of true self-govern- ment, has exceeded those limitations which long ex- perience has found to be necessary in all democratic society. For example : Every citizen in America is by no means free to do as he pleases or as he thinks proper. Far from it. He is hedged about by a complex network of laws of the national. State, and municipal govern- ments, the violation of which is attended with severe penalties. Courts of justice stand ready to deal prompt- The Government of the School 95 ly and sternly with all offenders. The right-minded citizen, pursuing the round of his daily duties, is not con- scious that grim justice is thus enthroned. If he thinks of it at all, he realizes that through laws his rights and privileges are protected, and because of them he lives in safety and security. In other words, democracy and law are not incompatible, but are rather complementary to each other. The school may wisely adopt the forms of civic order, but this should be done under such restric- tions, and with such provisions for final justice, that the system will not break down, because freedom has been turned into license, and democracy into anarchy. Back of all the activities of the school are the authority and power which reside in the principal and his assist- ants. There are also the common laws of decency, hon- esty, and good behavior, which are in force always and everywhere. 9. — The Incorrigible. Is the presence of the incorrigible an indication that something is wrong in the school ? Doubtless it is so in many cases, but not always. Every possible effort should be made to save to the school those who are handicapped by bad heredity, evil habits, and vicious dispositions. The teacher will endeavor by private ap- peal and kindly intercourse, not only in the school but outside of it, to reach such. He will try to have his best pupils assist in this endeavor. But there is a limit beyond which he cannot go. The good of the whole school must be taken into account, and if its good repute and moral tone require it, the incorrigible one must be eliminated. This act is sometimes too long delayed, 96 School Management both for the welfare of the school and the individual in question. Nearly all large communities make some pro- vision for such cases in parental or reform schools. It cannot be urged too strongly that an incorrigible youth, who perchance is so by reason of some infirmity for which he is hardly responsible, shall be placed in a home school where there are only a few others, and where at the hands of a kindly Christian teacher, under a system of firm moral training, he is started upon the road to a good and useful life. 10. — Character the End of Bisdpline, We seek to have good schools and are ever seeking to make them better, but the real purpose of school gov- ernment is not the school merely, but the building of character in each individual pupil. We use discipline for that purpose. Many people in their superficial view of things are enthusiastic in their praise of schools which appear well because there is good order. The teacher may be a martinet, and discipline may be ob- tained through repressive or coercive measures, yet the power of tradition and custom is so strong, and people are so short-sighted and ignorant, that they esteem highly what in reality should be condemned. Even those who are not the most devoted followers of Herbart will admit that the great central aim of education is character. How, then, can we approve the methods of discipline which not only prevent the exercise of right motives and noble aims but discourage and thwart the child in his natural and spontaneous efforts to do right ? We have suggested in a former chapter that a school must The Government of the School 97 not be over-systematized. This is applicable in any at- tempts to make discipline a means of character-building. Some movements and exercises in the school may be reduced to military precision, and become as it were au- tomatic, but the teacher's good judgment must decide when this kind of work is to end, for it certainly must end somewhere. The easiest way of disciplining a school is to reduce everything to mechanism, but this method offers the least opportunities for individual choice and initiative. It helps the teacher, but if carried too far does not help the pupil ia character-building. He does well while the system is on, but when released from school, having little power of self-control, he is apt to be turbulent and lawless. There should be a good understanding between parents and teachers. The school and the home should not draw apart in the moral training of the young. Noth- ing but persistent and continuous practice in weU-doing will produce that staying power which efficient char- acter requires. TOPICAL REVIEW I. The true aim of school government, s. The value of thought beforehand. 3. Courage and respect go together. 4. How may pupils and teachers come to understand each other 7 5. Other school virtues. 6. The factors in self-government. 7. The strength and weakness of the " School City." 8. The limitations of self-government. g. Are some pupils unsuited to the school ? 10. Character-building through the exercise of freedom. CHAPTER Vm SCHOOL INCENTIVES Keeping in mind that the chief aim of the school i3 moral culture based upon self-control and social effi- ciency, we may hope to consider this topic with fairness. With the better light of the present time it is easy to see how many sins have been committed in the name of education. To win at any cost has been the motto of the old-time schoolmaster. The old pedagogy, like the old theology, did not deal in a large constructive way with human motive and ambition. It appealed to fear and selfishness rather than to love and honor. Some of the devices employed in earlier schools were not wanting in quaintness and humor. A certain New England school- master, who had obtained considerable reputation be- cause of his ability to control schools where others had failed, was engaged to complete a term at a coimtry school where the master had been forced out. He ap- peared at the school late one Monday morning, shook hands all around with the pupils, apologized for being tardy, and explained that he had tarried at a neigh- boring village to make arrangements for some coffins which would shortly be sent to the school. This method of approach, which can be excused in this instance, was often pursued with such severity as to make school life anything but attractive. School Incentives 99 But, strange to say, there are types of school discipline still prevalent both in Europe and America which re- veal the rudiments of a former and more barbaric age. Moreover, there has been shown remarkable vis inertice in any movement toward a more wholesome method of moral trainiag. The teacher, instead of assuming lead- ership and sxunmoning his pupils to brave and chivabic conduct, has been contented to work upon the low plane of cheap devices and sordid motives. He has been slow to see, slow to understand that self-realization does not mean selfish realization, that it means rather the con- sciousness of will to attempt and power to achieve. It means a continuous play of high and noble motives. Another obstacle, perhaps, to breadth and common- sense in school discipline has been the tendency to mystify the subject by injecting into it a scheme of moral philosophy with all its subtle and analytic reasoning. Better than any abstract ethical scheme is a thorough acquaintance with the child and a skilful use of common- sense in helping him to conquer himself and stand for what is good and true. Again, the new education has set in motion new forces both in the school and in the home, so that the child is induced to do well through the incentive of interesting and inspiring work, rather than by moral precepts ac- companied possibly by inducements of a less worthy sort. It is less important that the child understand the philosophy of conduct and life, than that he forms the habit of well-doing from the love of it. Let us briefly examine, somewhat critically, some of the incentives that are available in the school life. 100 School Management 1. — Artificial and Objedionable Incentives. 1. Marks. This incentive is widely used, and cannot be wholly condemned. It affords a means of keeping some record of the pupil's efforts and attainments to which the teacher can refer, and by means of which he may make some report to the parents. But working for marks, simply to do as well or better than others, is a low motive, and when teachers allude often to the marks and hold them over their pupils with frequent reminders of the judgment-day to come, they carry a whole train of evils. In the first place it should be understood that pupils differ greatly in ability as well as in physical strength. God has made them so, and to attempt to eradicate these differences is contrary to nature. The bright child should not have his conceit continually fostered by high marks, neither should the slow child be forever oppressed and humiliated by low ones. It is not unusual for children to think so continually, night and day, of the marks they receive and the effect they are to have on their future standing, that they become morbid, unhappy, and suffer partial loss of appetite and possibly of sleep. They are sometimes ashamed to tell at home what the trouble is, so parents, who are often too ambitious for their children, show their displeasure when the monthly card is received, and the child's marks are not satisfactory. This, of course, increases the difficulty, breeds unhappiness in the home, and, when parents finally conclude, as they usually do, that the low marks are the fault of the school rather than of the child, the situation becomes acute. In short, it is apparent that the marking system as an School Incentives 101 incentiTe is not a healthy or proper stimulus. There is nothing quite like it in real life, and, if properly analyzed, it is seen to be quite out of place in a school which is conducted under the idea that education is life. In Smith College, while marks are used as a means of keeping a record of the work done, no student at any time during her course, or even at the close of it, knows anything about her standing unless it falls below the required grade. If such care is taken with students of college age, how much greater is the need of caution in the care of those in school ! It is earnestly recommended that marks be kept en- tirely under cover, and that other and higher forms of incentive be employed. 2. Prizes. The custom of offering prizes in all kinds of schools is one of long standing, and it is likely to be some time before the practice of giving them is aban- doned. So many people who have but little money to give away and yet wish to have their names connected with some school or college, establish prizes without giving the slightest thought to the question whether they are going to work good or ill. If prizes are given to those who attain some definite result in a given time, or who reach a certain standard of excellence, or if, in other words, a prize is given for good work continued through a considerable period of time, it is less objec- tionable, as it may not necessarily affect health or foster the desire to surpass someone else. To be more precise : if a prize in a given school is offered to those whose work in English or history at the end of the year should be pronounced very creditable, the sole desire aroused is to reach that standard and not to surpass anyone 102 School Management else. Even this plan of prize-giving should only be ap- proved in schools with exceeding care and modera- tion. When, however, prizes are offered for the best examination in a given subject, said examination to come near the end of the year, and to occupy two or three hours, the plan cannot be defended. What is needed is moral courage to oppose the establishment of such prizes. The writer confesses that he once failed to meet such an emergency squarely. The chief fault with prizes is that they stimulate only a very few, and those are the ones who are working hard enough. The large majority in the class make little if any effort to attain them, and those who need the incentive most are absolutely indifferent. The late Dr. White, one of the wisest and most conservative schoolmen that America has produced, says : " that the prize system has an appalling list of victims who have died early, or who are invalids for life. Superiority in scholastic attainments is dearly bought at the sacrifice of health and physical vigor." 3. Special privileges and favors. Under this head would come early dismissals and holidays for good con- duct and good work. This means of inciting pupils to do well is not so reprehensible, and may be justified when the school has not reached that moral state where higher incentives are available, but the promise of special privileges to those who are perfect in attend- ance, or who reach a certain standing in their lessons, is attended with evil results and often with injustice. The writer remembers that once upon a very stormy day he saw two boys entering the school somewhat after nine o'clock. It turned out that their teacher was trying to School Incentives 103 secure 100 per cent, in attendance, and had sent one of the boys out in the rain to get the other one, who was on the verge of sickness with a threatening cold, and really ought to have been in bed. This suggests the idea that 100 per cent, in attendance may cover a multitude of sios. It is entirely creditable for a child to remain at home when he is too ill to attend school, and it is creditable also to the parents who keep him there. If the promise of a holiday, or immunity from any task or of other privilege, induces a child to risk his health, a great wrong is committed. Again, such privileges extended on the ground of excellence in scholarship overlook the claims of the slower but none the less faithful students who, doing their best, yet cannot attain the required standard. What monstrous wrongs have been committed in this way ! The writer recalls an instance in the high school of a city where there was no public library. The school possessed one of its own ; but no pupil gaining a mark less than sixty-five per cent, was permitted to use the library. Those who, by reason of limited home advantages, were the most illiterate, and especially needed to make the acquaintance of good books, were prevented from doing so. In the same high school all were seated in their several rooms according to their standing, and there were other devices for emphasizing the difference between bright and slow pupils equally objectionable. But such instances are rare at the pres- ent time, and, as exceptions, are useful only as showing that progress is really being made. 4. Commendation and reproof. Actual experience has shown that constant reminders of one's faults in the 104 School Management form of rebuke are poor incentives toward well-doing. To refrain from reproof is often more helpful than to voice what the pupil knows well enough. Wise com- mendation is vastly better, if care is taken to say always what is strictly true and in such a way as not to occasion jealousy and sense of partiality. 5. Punishments. We will not quarrel with those who have an elaborate creed concerning penalties, and appeal to Scripture or the moral code to substantiate their position. There is no doubt that in all nature there are penalties for wrong-doing, and children may well suffer and through their suffering learn to refrain from evil practices. But punishments as an incentive «)ften produce a negative result and fail entirely in their object. Punishments should be natural, reasonable, and applicable to the offence. A positive and constructive policy in the school will find little need of corporal pvmishment. Theoretically there are extreme cases where it is needed for the good of the offender and as a deterrent to others. If all teachers could be trusted to resort to that measure only in the case of that incorrigible, defiant, and insulting boy whose salvation is at stake, it would be an error to forbid the use of corporal punishment. But many towns and cities have abolished it, and in so doing have chosen the least of two evils. Whenever this is done the teachers are relieved of responsibility in the use of extreme measures, and are obliged to exercise the high- est skill in preserving their authority. Thus it is seen that these forms of artificial incentive, while not to be condemned wholly, are tainted by such evil reputation and dangerous associations that they are School Incentives 105 to be looked upon with suspicion and used only guard- edly and sparingly. There is a fundamental principle that may well be enxinciated here : that in all moral, intellectual, and aesthetic progress there is a movement upward from lower to higher incentives. The moment the inferior means of advancement has served its purpose it is to be discarded and higher and better means are to be sub- stituted. Thus the personality is trained, disciplined, and brought nearer to perfection. The higher moral aim takes the place of the lower one. The book of higher order supplants the inferior one. Works of art become attractive and interesting according as the pupil has reached their altitude by easy steps. 2. — Natural and Worthy Incentives. 1. Bespect and regard for teachers. Here is a thoroughly normal and proper incentive. It harmo- nizes with what is current in daily life. Employers of labor, officers in the army, and leaders of political parties may offer strong incentives in themselves if they are manly. If they are known to be generous and true- hearted, those belonging to their shop, or their regiment, or their party wiU work and do battle for them. We have shown in Chapters I. and II. what a teacher should be by nature and cultivation. It is suggested also in the last chapter that the personality of the teacher is the most potent factor in school government. It is so because it offers one of the very strongest incentives that the school can give. To work for the teacher and for the sake of his approbation is not perhaps the high- 106 School Management est motive, but it is certainly a natural one, and sad indeed is the state of a school where this incentive does not operate. 2. The esteem of fellow-pupils. In life we desire to stand well with our associates and neighbors. We wish to have a good reputation in the community. We strive to perform all our duties as citizen, as parent, as a man of business, in such a manner that men believe in our honesty, respect our abilities, and count it a pleasure to number us among their friends. This kind of incentive is most desirable in the school. The teacher should foster it, and should do nothing or say nothing to make one portion of the school think ill of any member. If a pupil is conscious of having lost the respect and confidence of his mates, one strong in- centive in his case is gone, and the whole school is the sufferer thereby. The more loyal the members of a class are to each other the more they esteem the school. Dean Briggs, of Harvard University, speaking on Discipline, at a recent meeting, says : " In every school there should be an effort from the start to make a youth imbibe that wonderful tonic called school spirit, to make him feel that from the moment he enters a school he has become forever a part of it, one of its makers, and that throughout his life, wherever he goes, he takes with him, dragging or exalting it, as the case may be, the name of his school. Once again a deep loyalty, and the problem of discipline is gone." 3. Interest in school work. Another legitimate and powerful incentive is love for the work we are doing and interest in it. The convict in the prison who is compelled to do uninteresting work day after day finds School Incentives 107 no incentive in it. Sad it is that, under the present sys- tem of division of labor, multitudes of men and women find little interest in their work except that it furnishes them a livelihood and supports the home, which is, it must be admitted, an important incentive. But a strong incentive in life and in service is vocational inter- est, foimded upon the intrinsic nature of the work done, the attractiveness of it, the variety of its processes, and the beauty and worth of the product. The world will never be satisfied until such interest attaches to all labor. In the modem school-house there is every opportu- nity to make work interesting, and thus to evoke a high order of effort. The greatest change from the old edu- cation to the new has consisted in transferring the em- phasis from the questions of order and discipline to those of fi-uitful and inspiring work. Give children enough to do of what they like to do, and idleness and wrong-doing are banished. Handwork and art are incentives in themselves. Says Dr. John Dewey : " There are certain reasons for believing that the type of interest along with these oc- cupations is of a thoroughly healthy, permanent, and really educative sort ; and that by giving a larger place to occupations, we find an excellent, perhaps the very best way of making an appeal to the child's spontane- ous interest, and yet have, at the same time, some guar- antee that we are not dealing with what is merely pleas- ure-giving, exciting, and transient." The skill of the teacher in making work various, not too difficult, and well organized helps to utilize this incentive of interest, and make it more steady and con- tinuous. 108 School Management 4. Partnership and profit-sharing. The few busi- ness establishments in this country that have adopted the principle of profit-sharing, and distribute to all, even the humblest employees, a certain portion of what is gained, have prospered immensely. They have been free from strikes and have been able to count upon their employees for the most cheerful and unreserving service. The school affords considerable opportunity for employing this incentive. We have already alluded in the previous chapter to School City plans of govern- ment. This form of incentive appears to work well there. There are many ways in which the pupils may share in the management of the school beyond the mere questions of good government. The room is to be kept in order. The waUs are to be decorated. Visitors are to be courteously received and entertained. Pupils are to bring to the school their choicest books, pictures, and toys for the pleasure of others. An excursion is to be planned. A debating society to be organized An athletic club is to be supported. Every single pupil in the room should be on some committee or should be a member of some organization. He should feel a degree of responsibility for what is done, and should share in the satisfaction and credit which foUow good work of any sort. 5. Consciousness of doing right. This is a sort of blanket provision and is submitted as a concession to those who are accustomed to formulate the subject of incentives under the head of various abstract moral qualities. The pleasure of doing right is undoubtedly a real pleasure. It is associated more or less with all those incentives which we have classified as natural and School Incentives 109 legitimate. It is doubted if the conduct or endeavors of pupils, especially the very young, are controlled by the question of right and wrong, but the satisfaction which everyone receives from right doing, while it may be more or less unconscious, is still a growing incentive, and in maturer life may become the dominating one. The classification of incentives which we have given is believed to be candid and just. The reasons for re- jecting those which are artificial and for intensifying and strengthening those that are natural have been frankly stated. It is most encouraging to believe that American schools are progressing rapidly in the direc- tion of higher incentives, for in this way the school may more easily become the ally of the home and the church, and may do its perfect work in training the young to seek with all their heart the good, the beauti- ful, and the true. In closing this topic it is interesting to note that the most advanced theories of pedagogy are not at variance with the dictates of humanity and common-sense. We are able to reduce the problem of school government to much simpler terms than formerly, because we can view it through the lens of real life, and a life that is strongly tinctured by philanthropy. There is a vast difference, however, between a school for children and that most humane and admirably managed reformatory for youths at Elmira. A recent writer, describing that institution, places at the head of a list of incentives which operate there as remedies for crime, "the desire to get out." There have been schools, and doubtless there are some to-day, where the desire to get out has been a dominant and ever-present one ; but in numberless schools there 110 School Management are now to be seen pupils so happy, so loyal, so enthu- siastic in their work, that the thought of getting out seldom enters their minds. School management has at- tained a high standard of perfection when every child has been reached, when the school in its sentiments and purpose is a unit, and all desire to stay in. TOPICAL REVIEW 1. The relation of leadership to moral training. 2. Add to the list of objectionable incentives given. 3. The relation of moral progress to incentives. 4. What incentives are most helpful in character training ? 5. Why is interest a good incentive ? 6. The satisfaction of well-doing. CHAPTER K THE CURRICULUM 1. — Making the Currixyulv/m. Next in importance to the personality of the teacher and a knowledge of the child is the selection and ar- rangement of materials for instruction. The quality of daily life in the school is clearly dependent upon the course of study from which the teacher must get his guiding points. If this has been prepared with intelli- gence and offers broad, fruitful, and interesting work, the teacher has the opportunity of making a good school. If, on the other hand, the prescribed course is narrow, poorly arranged, and lacking in suggestiveness and richness, even the best teacher will be seriously handicapped. The only palliative is the privilege, stated or implied, that the teacher may use the curricu- lum any way he pleases. Dr. W. T. Harris has formulated the axiom that the course of study should present at all points a cross-sec- tion of human knowledge and experience. This should not be taken too literally, for it does not mean that at every stage all parts of knowledge should have equal place, or that they should be treated with equal fulness. It does, however, point to the idea that all sides of the child's nature are to be considered at every stage in his 111 112 School Management education ; that no power is to become atrophied from disuse, and that his interests are to be very influential as a guide to his teachers. For illustration : Art has made a place for itself at every point in the curriculimi, but it is the art suited to that particular age, deter- mined by what the child can express by means of pencil or brush, and what he can appreciate and enjoy in the way of art objects. There must be very careful adapta- tion based upon the experience of many people who have made observations in this field. This is a practi- cal kind of child-study, and it is through the compari- son of data collected by diflferent persons that we get the perfect adaptation desired. Think of the attempts to prepare courses of study in music ! If there is an educational quagmire anywhere it may be found here. The cause is that directors of music, with very limited experience with young children, make a scheme which seems to them logical and is so in a technical sense. It is not psychological, however, because it fails to interest the child in music; it often causes him to hate it. The best authorities in this matter are those elementary teachers who have made discoveries in methods of musical instruction and whose children are delighted not only to sing, but to know something about the steps in musical notation. The special teacher or director is in this, as in any other subject, the one to gather these bits of experience and give them unified, progressive, and consistent form. Perhaps the best illustration of the progress which has been made in adapting materials of thought and study to the capacity and interest of children is seen in reading-books. We may go back less than a century The Curriculum 113 and find that the reading-book for higher classes con- tained largely abstract and ethical instruction, with here and there a piece containing information. There was little which we would call literature to-day. For young children the attempt was made to dilute and simplify these same ethical ideas, and the matter thus produced, it seems to us, was quite inane, not to say ludicrous. Children's literature to-day is indeed like a garden full of beauty and attractiveness. In the same way, if we were to examine the material needed to reach every growing taste and aptitude, we should find that much has been accomplished in the at- tempt to have breadth without prolixity and confusion. The occasional grumbling to be heard to the effect that too many things are taught is not usually weU-founded. The fault is in the selection, arrangement, and method of interpretation of the curriculum. Too often it is the lack of tact and good judgment on the part of the teacher. Here, then, we have a very practical part of school man- agement. The making of the curriculum cannot be as- sumed by an outside person entirely, be it a county board or a city superintendent. Every teacher is inter- ested in it, for he has much at stake. The curriculum must manifestly be a joint product. It should be a progressive, growing thing, and even at its best should always be the servant of the teacher and never his mas- ter. Let us now attempt to formulate some of the most important considerations to be kept in mind while making a curriculum. 1. The social aim should dominate. It should not be a catalogue of facts or even of investigations, but should be a plan for social experience, involving action, experi- 114 School Management ment, doing, constructing, inventing, comparing, ob- servation, and research. It should be human in its trend, and should lead pupils to see and understand men and things as they are, and to know something of the means and processes that have made them so. As Dr. Butler has pointed out,* self-activity and evolution are great words in education and in life. They should guide us in framing a curriculum. The development of the child and the satisfaction of his needs are funda- mental ideas. Healthful industry and social co-opera- tion are watchwords of the new education. If the full force of the industrial idea is brought to bear in making the curriculum the schools will come to have a new tone. There will be no break from the kindergarten to the primary school. It will not be necessary to set off one or two periods a week for handwork. There will be more or less handwork, but some handwork will be pretty nearly continuous. 2. The course of study should have some local signifi- cance. Different sections of the country have varying climate, productions, and industries. Cities and towns often have a distinctive field for their manufactures. The studies of the school should open the minds of the pupils to what is going on around them. If the place is a railroad centre they should know something about the traffic which is provided for. If it is a port of entry some place should be given to the consideration of im- ports, the conditions causing such importations, and the uses which they serve. Each section has its own historic coloring, and it is right that the children should be imbued with the tra- * " The Meaning of Education." The Curriculum 115 ditions and spirit of their own town, county, or State. The history of the Civil War, designed for all sec- tions, should be entirely fair in presenting the particu- lar kind of patriotism which operated respectively in the North and South. The fauna and flora of every locality should appear in the school curriculum. It has also come to be felt that courses for rural schools should present a field of study appropriate to agricult- ural pursuits. The arithmetic should not deal wholly with buying and selling, but with the many quantitative problems of the soil, of stock-raising, of supply and de- mand, of yield and profit. The nature study should enter into the chemistry of soils and the particular in- gredients required for different crops, fertilizers and the relative value of farm products, stock-feeding, etc. All these things may have high educational value, and at the same time make school-work more useful and helpful in fostering the productive life of the community. 3. The law of association must be respected. There must be as much natural correlation as possible. This is economical ; it is also consistent with the doctrine of interest. There should be threads of correlation mak- ing the work of each week, each month, and each term more or less a unit. Geography, however scientific it may be, is still a background for history. "We do not know any portion of the earth thoroughly until we see what human life it has produced and how people and environment have reacted upon each other. Reading, drawing, and language come to the aid of every other subject. The child needs them and so we supply the need. Both in grammar and secondary schools this principle is too milch neglected. Departmental teach- 116 School Management ing does not favor correlation unless special provision is made whereby teachers of subjects confer together and agree to correlate. 4. The course should have continuity. Care should be taken that the child's interests should be consulted, rather than the teacher's. Some of the courses con- structed upon the evolutionary culture epoch basis have not been tested long enough to substantiate their claim to primacy. Nothing could be more interesting to the adult mind than to trace the progress of mankind through its several stages of culture. There is proba- bly no objection to arranging a course of study for primary schools upon this plan, provided those ideal forms of life and activity are followed which are possi- ble with children. A strictly logical course is apt to fail in meeting the needs of the young, so that this kind of continuity cannot be arbitrarily enforced. Each subject has its natural unfolding, and there is an order of subjects which experience has found to be fea- sible. For the sake of correlation, however, it is often wise to break an historical or even a geographical se- quence. It would be folly to teach literature in the common schools according to a chronological scheme. Usually the reading may be selected with reference to illuminating and enriching the other subjects, although there are many exceptions to this rule. There are mas- terpieces of literature so full of inspiration and beauty that a teacher will wish to use them independently and freely for the sake not only of what they teach, but for the tone they give to the school. 5. The course of study should be prepared by the superintendent assisted by his principals. The princi- The Curriculum 117 pals in turn should gather from their teachers as many suggestions as possible, dictated by their experience, and should make the best possible use of them. The reasons for this plan have already been suggested. If all have a part, and realize that they have a part, in framing the curriculum, there wiU be a sense of pro- prietorship and approval which is needed to make it a success. Presumably there will be new experience and new suggestions so that a revision is needed at least once in two years. In this way interest is kept alive, mistakes are corrected, the work of new teachers is recognized, and so there is no stagnation. 6. It should be flexible. While the course as a skele- ton should be quite binding, it should be framed so that in minor details considerable freedom is left to the teacher. In Chapter IV., on grading and promotion, we have advocated supplementary topics so that abler pupils may always be employed in a more intensive study of the subject. In planning a curriculum some attention should be given to this feature, although for the most part the teacher himself must organize and carry out this idea. Although a course of study for a town or city may be used in all schools, it should be understood that both in a quantitative and a qualitative sense some schools can do more than others. In this sense, therefore, the course must be flexible, and principals and teachers are to administer it in accordance with their environment and the degree of home culture which the children bring with them. 7. There may be rotation. To avoid overcrowding, 118 School Management it is justifiable to omit a given subject for a year or half- year. This practice in some quarters has been called "rotation of crops." Is there any good reason why arithmetic should command so much time every year of the child's life ? Might not geography alternate with nature study for a half-year, and could not even music and drawing, in their technical phases at least, have their turn ? This suggests that educators need to be open-minded and ready to reconsider any questions affecting the life, health, and nurture of children, even though they have to discard old practices. 2. — Using the Gurriculvm. The value of anything consists in the way it is used. Any machine, if not properly understood, is often of very little service. This is especially true of such ed- ucational means as a curriculum, which, in itself, is a dead thing, and must be clothed before it has meaning and value. The teacher must put energy and life into it, in order to make it yield its proper fruit. Edu- cation is a vital process, and is largely accomplished by one living soul acting upon another. The Committee of twelve on rural schools introduces a sample course of study as follows : " The course of study is the measur- ing-rod or scale to determine at what point in the ele- mentary course a pupil's work has arrived. It should not be used as the procrnstean bed on which to stretch the work of the school in order to give uniformity." This may be taken as the attitude of educators gener- ally in regard to the function of the course of study as restricting the teacher. Courage and enterprise on the The Curriculum 119 part of principals and teachers are needed in order that every curriculiun may be intei-preted in the spirit of the words above quoted. There are various ways in which a course of study may be used successfully. 1. There should be a comprehension of the whole scheme. Every teacher belonging to a school system should read with care the whole curriculum, giving at- tention to the order of topics in the several subjects and the various opportunities for correlation which are manifest. In the more essential subjects of geography, history, and science it would seem wise for etery teacher, even the kindergartner, to have a good working knowledge of each subject from beginning to end. This would mean some work for several years, possibly, but it could be pursued in such an interesting manner as to afford much satisfaction. This is one way in which the teacher would be able to approach the ideal suggested in Chapter III. 2. The teacher should explore thoroughly the particu- lar field in which he is working. By no other means can he know what the curriculum offers, and the best way to select material for daily use. For example : If the teacher is to deal with Indian life he would want to read the best authorities, and visit museums where he can study at first hand Indian clothing, implements, and methods of domestic life. With the aid of pupils quite a collection of materials can be made, and so a respec- table Indian museum can be formed. Supposing the teacher has to cover some portion of American history, there is opened a wide field for study and reading. Not only history, but oratory, poetry, and historical fiction 120 School Management are to be included. In short, every teacher should be* come, to a good extent, a specialist in that portion of the curriculum assigned to him, in whatever grade it may be. 3. Not only in making but in using the curriculum there should be selection and elimination. The teacher, having a better knowledge of his own domain than those who framed the course of study, is permitted both to add and to subtract. He will use this privilege in such a way as to meet the requirements of his own class with- out going too far from the general plan. Some courses offer twice as much as a teacher can expect to teach weU. He must assume the right to use some discretion here. 4. A good means of economy in teaching is the use of types. Those should be selected which are repre- sentative of a large class of facts and which are rich in illustration of the characteristics of that class. In teaching cities, Lowell, Bochester, Minneapohs, Kansas City, Atlanta, Memphis, and Los Angeles would serve as types of a considerable number of cities having the same or similar natural advantages, as well as like com- mercial and industrial interests. Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Washington, and Chicago are sui generis, and may be taught with special attention to those feat- ures for which they have an exclusive claim. The same principle applies in nature study, in biography, and the study of institutions. It may also be applied in litera- ture, architecture, sculpture, and painting. It may be made a means of organizing in the mind clearly defined standards, as well as a working nomenclature. This is closely related to correlation, for through intensive The Curriculum 121 study of men and things we can trace more thoroughly the relations which the child bears to the industrial life of the village or city in which he lives, or to the farm where he gets, possibly, the better part of his educa- tion. The writer has never been able to discover the slightest contradiction between that correlation which binds one piece of knowledge to another and those manifold relationships which connect the child with his environment and through an acquaintance of which he gains self-realization. Dr. Charles McMurry * declares that : " Correlation at once discards the idea of encyclo- pasdic knowledge as an aim of school education. It puts a higher estimate upon related ideas and a lower one upon that of complete or encyclopaedic information. All the cardinal branches of education, indeed, shall be taught in the school ; but only the essential, the typi- cal, win be selected, and an exhaustive knowledge of any subject is out of the question. Correlation wiU put a constant check upon over-accumulation of facts, and will rather seek to strengthen an idea by association with familiar things than to add a new fact to it." 5. The best teachers keep a plan and progress book. This is a significant means of using the course of study skilfuUy. After gaining a full knowledge of the field it is well to place in a blank-book a plan of teaching for a week or a month. This may be amplified and worked out in detail for each day's teaching. Mr. Burtis C. Ma- gee t writes upon the subject of plan-bpoks as follows : "It is seen more clearly that they offer, when well * " Elements of General Method." t "Plan and Progress Books," in School Work for June, 1902. 122 School Management done, a metliod of preparation of the lessons, a means of giving content to the grades, and of dovetailing the subjects to one another, that would scarcely be accom- plished as well by other means. The great danger to be avoided in arranging a system of plan-books is to prevent an unreasonable amount of clerical labor, and of research, from falling upon class teachers. After a set of plans and prospectuses have once been arranged, however, the labor of their preparation is reduced to a minimum. " Experience shows that young teachers meet with their chief difficulty in instruction and consequent difficulty in discipline from lack of systematic and progressive outline and plan work. To such a teacher a daily plan book prepared with some detail is a great help. Such a book may be examined by the principal daily, or at frequent intervals, and suggestions and directions may be made therein by the principal. It affords an oppor- tunity for the teacher and the principal to meet on the common ground of a concrete difficulty whenever one occurs. Much time and energy is likely to be saved by this means, which otherwise might be devoted to matters upon which the teacher needed no assistance." What has been said about the course of study belongs to that middle ground which separates the teacher from the actual work of teaching. If there were no course of study, and in many cases it would be quite as well if there were none, the teacher's relation to the child would be short-circuited, and the instruction would be at first hand, but when teachers are acting under commission by a central authority it becomes very necessary