WHITTIER'S CENTENNIAL HYMN. Our fathers' God! from out whose hand And loyal to our land and Thee, Here where of old, by Thy design, Be with us while the new world greets Thou who hast here in concord furled For art and labor met in truce, We thank Thee, while withal we crave The austere virtues strong to save, The honor proof to place or gold, The manhood never bought or sold! Oh, make Thou us, through centuries long, In peace secure, and justice strong; Let the new cycle shame the old! -Kentucky Normal School graduated its first class at the close of the schoolyear, July 6. The class consisted of one female and eight males, Diplomas, with the degree of Master of Elements, (M. E.) were conferred. Diplomas from this institution are equivalent to State Certificates. THE BOOK QUESTION. BY DELIA A. LATHROP. THER HERE is a growing conviction in the minds of those who give most thought to educational matters, that more should be done to call the attention of pupils to things. Books are so abundant and so cheap; they are so entertaining in matter, and so beautiful in mechanical execution, that there is real cause of alarm, lest, relying solely upon them as the educational means our children grow up mere quoters of the opinions of men, with neither impulse nor ability to see or judge for themselves. There is no question that the constantly increasing tendency toward an absorbing devotion to text-books in school, and to library books and periodicals out of school, is to stultify thought and repress investigation. "The book says so " becomes, to our young people, the end of all search for truth. So patent is this, that the induction might pass into a proverb, "children who read most, think least." And for this reason: Reading implies only the receiving attitude of mind, and in mind, as in physics, the condition of receptivity is a restful one. There is only that degree of mental excitement in following through a well presented statement of fact, seasoned with incident and illustration, which is thoroughly grateful and soothing. "Man is a lazy animal," and if the beneficent public would shelter, feed and clothe him, he would contentedly sit and let it be done. Likewise, if the public will bring all science and philosophy into his study, not only served in the most charming fashion, but hashed so fine that he is relieved of the rather laborious process of mastication, be assured he will be quite as prone to lay back in his easy chair, and unquestioningly swallow the free collation. But more vigorous work must be done to secure the mental stimulous and tone which is essential to growth and productive effort. Rather than this extreme of passive reliance upon authority, we had better have the other, the absence of all text-books from our schools. Let the schools be places sacred to the investigation of things, and make books the recreation, when real work is done. But here, as elsewhere, the best lies between the extremes. Books are not necessarily stultifiers of thought nor the enemies of investigation. The evils incident to them are the result of their exclusive use and their misuse. These must be corrected by the increasing professional wisdom of teachers and school officers. They must understand more clearly the province of a book." Books are but accumulations of words. Words are marks or signs of ideas, and, as such, have an inestimable value. Words, as the marks of ideas, are the representatives of knowledge; and books which contain them become the invaluable depositories of the world's accumulating thought. But words are not ideas; they are only the symbols of ideas. Language is not knowledge, but the representative of it. Labels have [only] a value of convenience, which depends upon the intrinsic value of what they point out. Now there is a constant and insidious tendency to invert these relations-to exalt the truth above its contents, the tools above their work, the label above its object, words above the things for which they stand. The means of culture thus become the ends of culture, and education is emptied of its substantial purpose. Such language as the preceding must not only receive the assent of the head, but its truth must be transformed into a conviction of the heart, and the moral sense must recognize a professional duty growing out of it. The true and the false must become in the strongest sense the right and the wrong. Then will arise an earnest, practical protest against this rapidly growing evil of trust in words, which will avail something. When the reaction really comes, it will be in favor of a philosophical union of all that is best in the use of books, with the best features of objective teaching. Text-books are now (it is humiliating to confess it) the defences behind which teachers plant themselves to cover their lack of preparation for their work. The argument most fatal to any pressure of the claims of an objective course of study is the incompetency of teachers. Oral instruction is declared to be impracticable because teachers have not the requisite knowledge to prepare, or ability profitably to present lessons. It ought to be accepted as a professional maxim, that "the teacher who is not able to teach without the text-book, is not fit to teach with one." Moreover, the way to secure better work is not to accommodate our convictions of what should be done to the agents we have for doing it, but unhesitatingly to lift the standard of professional demand toward our ideal. The supply will never precede the demand; it, however, invariably follows. The feeblest teacher is conscious that he can do better than he is doing. That authority becomes his benefactor that demands his utmost endeavor. And if some of the profession fall out, what then? Those who have not the energy to win success from temporary failure are not worth regretting. That man is an enemy to the best interests of our profession, who would lower the standard of philosophical teaching by a hair's breadth, to accommodate the stature of any in it. As it becomes a broader field, and demands more talent, much that goes in other directions will come to us. We can well afford to lose some regiments at the lower extreme, if by exalting our work we secure as many at the upper one.— National Teacher. EDUCATORS IN COUNCIL. EDITORIAL CORRESPONDENCE. PHILADELPHIA, July 18, 1876. N international educational conference, comprising a number of American afternoon. The conference is the result of the efforts of a number of persons interested in education now in attendance at the Exhibtion, and was recommended to be held by the National Educational Convention recently in session at Baltimore. Among the foreign gentlemen interested in education who were present yesterday were the following: Dr. F. Migerka, of Austria; Dr. C. J. Meyerberg, of Sweden; Hon. C. H. Hitchcock, of the Hawaiian Islands; Hon. F. M. Tanaka, of Japan; Dr. Da Motta, of Brazil; Dr. David Murray, of Japan; Hon. J. George Hodgins, of Canada. Among the Americans were Prof. E. E. White, president of Pardue University, Indiana; Hon. Mr. Hagar, principal of Normal School at Salem, Mass.; Mr. Crossway, of Iowa; Dr. Tappan of Kenyon College; Hon. Jas. H. Smart, Superintendent Public Instruction of Indiana; N. J. Peck, of Cleveland and Professor S. P. Thompson, of the State Normal School, Nebraska. The conference was called to order by Hon. Wm. D. Phelps, principal of the State Normal School at Winona, Minn., and president of the National Educational Association. He briefly alluded to the conference as the first of its kind, and the desire of those assembled, as educators of the youngest nation, to learn from others whose wisdom and experience have garnered up the rcih fruits which in this field, time alone could yield. He then called upon General Eaton, United States Commissioner of Education, to state with more particularity the objects of the conference. General Eaton said that the educators of the United States since the opening of the Exhibition had been anxious to initiate some means by which the cause of education should receive a new impulse. The first topic of the programme was then introduced by Dr. W. T. Harris, supt. city schools, St. Louis, Mo., the subject being "Courses of Study." Dr. Da Motta, of Brazil was the next speaker. His subject was the educational system of Brazil,in which the grades are the primary, secondary, or preparatory, and the higher-these corresponding to the American. In the primary schools are taught reading, writing, notions of grammar, the first four rules of arithmetic, the outlines of the system of weights and measures and the catechism. In the next grade are taught the national language and a beginning in French and English, arithmetic, geometry, geography, history and the religion of Brazil, music, singing, gymnastics and notions of natural science. Hon. C. H. Hitchcock, of the Hawaiian Islands, gave a brief sketch of their educational system, which partakes much of the nature of the American system. The English language is taught as the basis of further progress. Dr. Murray, of Japan, was the next speaker. He said the present school system of that country, which aims to give an education to every child in the land, is a great departure from the old usages, and was rendered necessary by the inroad of Europeans and European ways, which the Japanese, as a nation, have received so well. The Chinese characters which form the written language of Japan are still taught in the elementary schools. After a few remarks from Prof. White, of Ohio, favoring a thorough discussion of the important paper of Prof. Harris. The convention adjourned to meet to-day at 10 A. M. The International Educational Convention reassembled to-day at 10 A. M., in the Pennsylvania Educational building on the grounds, Hon. William D. Phelps, of Winona, Minn., presiding. Nearly all of the distinguished gentlemen identified with educational interests who were mentioned as in attendance at the opening session were present. Hon. Geo. Hodgins, of Canada, was the first speaker, his remarks being descriptive of the normal schools of Canada, which were represented as being founded upon the principles of the best of like institutions in this country. They are provided with model schools, in which the normal school students can acquire a practical knowledge of teaching. So popular are they in Canada, the speaker said, that at the oldest established one there were constantly from five to six hundred more applicants for admission to the normal school than could be received. In the Canadian school system the teacher's duties are clearly defined, and his rights guaranteed him by law, so that he is secure in his pay up to the end of the year and the following vacation, or to the end of the year. Prof. Wickersham next occupied a few minutes in brief explanation of our public school system, which he thought would seem somewhat anomalous to European visitors. He explained many points of dissimilarity from the systems of Europe, one being that few of our young public school teachers purpose to follow the profession during life and few do so. There is thus a constant accession of vigorous young blood. A large number of our most distinguished men have began life as teachers in our public schools. Owing to the unexpectedly large number of speeches the regular order of the day was not reached until shortly before the hour for adjournment. The regular order was a discussion upon the supervision and inspection of schools Under this head Dr. Meyerberg of Stockholm, spoke of the school system of Sweden. Dr. Murray, of Japan, speaking of the school system of Japan, said it was well understood there, as well as elsewhere, that the inspection and supervision of the schools is the most important element in the school system. There are seven normal schools in Japan, of which the principal one, founded four years ago, has sent out teachers to all parts of the country. The teachers thus sent out have engaged in organizing schools, and the normal school has not been able to furnish teachers rapidly enough to meet the demand for them in the newly-developed school system. At the close of 1874 there were in Japan, of the public schools, 20,688, an increase of 7,595 in one year, while the number of teachers for the same year was 38,365. The estimate of the number at present, being from incomplete statistics, show 30, 000 schools. The number of pupils at the end of 1874 was 1,739,422, an increase in that year of 402,118. The present estimate of the number of pupils is about two millions. At the afternoon session, which convened at 3 o'clock the first subject considered was "Pedagogical Museums and Cabinets." Dr. J. George Hodgins, of Canada, gave an interesting sketch of the museum at Toronto. Dr. Seelhorst, of Berlin, was next introduced, and spoke in German. He gave an account of the museum of Nuremburg. Dr. Mijerka, of Austria, next spoke on the system of public education in that country, his remarks were also in German. Prof. Hoyt, of Michigan, said he hoped the time would soon come when there would be a comprehensive museum in each State of the apparatus and the work of schools -a real "pedagogical" museum. The house at the National Capital occupied by the Bureau of Education, he said, is a poor, miserable little place, jammed full of objects that cannot be seen. Dr. Kennedy, president of the Polytechnic College at Philadelphia, next spoke briefly on the general subject of polytechnic schools. The conference then adjourned. Additional meetings will hereafter be held, but these will be of p informal or conversational character. -Prof. Vance will conduct the Bracken County Teachers' Institute, co... ing August 21. -Mason County Teachers' Institute will commence August 14. |