Digitized by tine Internet Arcliive in 2010 witli funding from CARLI: Consortium of Academic and Researcli Libraries in Illinois http://www.archive.org/details/reportofpresidenOOchic h(li%A -^f-^Ait ^ f ^ -^ ^ * t^> ^^ AA«A .^i. A ^ iAi Am^ -A-Ad t dt^A Am %.. ^ feprtment of public Jnstructton, CITY OF CHICAGO REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT BOARD OF EDUCATION, FIFTH ANNUAL REPORT OP THE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS, FOR THE "ITE-A.!^ EilSriDIilSra- fee. 1, 1859. • • • JThicaoo BOOK AND JOB PRiNTi:?G OFFICE OF SCOTT & CO. 1859. X: f^artmijnt of |itljlir Jnstntfticn, CITY OP CHICAGO. REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT BOARD OF EDUCATION, FIFTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS, FOR THE -^:hj^ti EnsriDiKro- fee. i, issa. CHICAGO: BOOK AND JOB PRINTING OFFICE OF SCOTT & CO. 1859. CITY OF CHICAGO. At a meeting of the Board of Education, March 19, 1859, it was Voted, That eight thousand copies of the Reports of the President of the Board and the Superintendent of Public Schools be printed for distribution. Attest : W. H. WELLS, Secretary, REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT. To the Board of Education of Chicago : Gentlemen : I am aware that it has not been cus- tomary for any officer of this Board, except the Superintendent, to present a report at the close of our school year ; still it has appeared to me, as it has to others, that it would not be inappropriate, at the present time, to suggest some matters worthy of consideration. I need say nothing to you of the importance of the position which we hold as Directors of the Public Schools of our city. The moral and educational interests of twelve thousand children are, in a great measure, placed in our hands, and the destiny of many of these children will be decided by the manner in which we discharge the trusts imposed on us. If we neglect to employ the best teachers we can command, or if we neglect the proper supervision of the teachers and of the schools, we neglect a duty for which no subsequent regrets or labor can atone. We cannot restore the lost or misspent time of the pupil, who from indigence or other causes has but a limited opportunity to com- plete his school education ; neither can we eradicate the bad habits of the teacher or the pupil which needed but our early attention to secure their cor- rection, and to give such a direction to the efforts of PUBLIC SCHOOLS. both teacher and pupil, that the greatest amount of improvement might have been attained in the least possible time. It is a matter of great satisfaction to know that our schools, now the pride of our city, are in so prosperous a condition. During the past year, addi- tions have been made to our accommodations of fourteen hundred seats. Faithful and accomplished teachers are now employed in most of these new school-rooms, and discharging, in most instances, their several duties in a manner deserving the approbation of the Board. But notwithstanding these large additions, many of our schools are still so over-crowded that satisfactory progress is entirely out of the question. Hundreds — I may say thousands of children, due at the school-room, are on the streets, and are kept at home by their parents, either because there are no seats for them in their several districts, or from the unwillingness of parents to place their children in rooms so crowded, and where so many are necessarily placed in charge of a single teacher, (in some instances not less that one hundred and fifty,) and where so little instruction can be given, and even this little at so great a disadvantage. That all the children of a community, of suitable age, must be educated, is a fact which at this day and in this country, admits of no question or debate. Provision must then be made for their education. If there were no question of political economy con- nected with the subject, none of morals, humanity or religion, there is one of a pecuniary character which every well-regulated town, city and State will always respect. Ignorance and crime go hand in PRESIDENT S REPORT. hand ; and if a community neglects to provide for the education of all of suitable age to attend school, or provides so illy for their accommodation that no valuable progress can be made, those children, so neglected, or so imperfectly provided for, will educate themselves, or be educated, in a way prejudicial to the best interests of society. Recruits from these same neglected ones are to fill our reform schools, bridewells and penitentiaries ; and the community that neglects to provide for the moral and intellectual training of the rising generation, must provide the means of sustaining many of them in some reforma- tory or penal institution. The amount of money now spent in this city, in sustaining the police, is nearly or quite double the amount spent in sustain- ing the public schools ; thus showing that it costs more to punish crime, after it has been committed, than to provide the means of its prevention. Pun- ishment will, of itself, never prevent crime. Educa- tion, such as this city can and should furnish, will prove far more effectual in diminishing the expense of our criminal code, than all the penal enactments and establishments that ever were devised or ever can be. Let us look at a few facts bearing on this question. The most accurate and carefully prepared statistics of crime in our own country and in Europe, go to show that if you " train up a child in the way he should go, when he is old he will not depart from it.'"-' In 1847, 1,122 persons were convicted of crime in the several counties of the State of New York. Of these * See Sixteenth Annual Report of the New York Board of Education. 6 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. only six were reported as well educated, and only twenty-two as having received a common school education. In 1848, 1,345 persons were returned as criminals in the same State. Of these, ten were reported as having a good education, and only twenty- three as having received the advantages of common schools. For nine consecutive years, in the same State, from 1840 to 1849, inclusive, 27,949 persons were returned as having been convicted of crime ; and of these, 128 were "well educated;" one-half of the remainder could only read and write ; and the balance, 13,112, were entirely destitute of any edu- cation whatever. The same is true of other States, and the history of criminals, wherever found, presents the same dark picture for our consideration. Our own reform school, bridewell and alms-house, form no exception to the rule — the same relation existing between ignorance, poverty and crime, on the one hand, and education, thrift and virtue on the other. Who then can doubt what the result would be, if a seat was provided for every child between the ages of six and twenty, and every seat occupied ; and a competent, faithful and devoted teacher provided for every sixty pupils ? The testimony of able and ex- perienced educators is worth something upon this subject. AVhat is that testimony ? Horace Mann, while Secretary of the Massachusetts Board of Education, addressed a circular letter to many of the most prominent and successful teachers in our land, men who had devoted their lives to the subject and studied it as a profession, asking their opinion of what would be the result, if our schools were what they should be, and what all of them president's report. 7 might soon become, if the public should only demand it ; closing his letter with the pertinent and import- ant inquiry : " How much improvement in the upright conduct and good morals of the community might we expect should all of our schools be kept by teachers of high intellectual and moral qualifications, and should all the children in the community be brought within these schools for ten months in the year, from the age of four to that of sixteen ; then what proportion, what per centage, of such children as you have under your care, could, in your opinion, be so educated and trained, that their existence, on going out into the world, would be a benefit and not a detriment, an honor and not a shame, to society ? " Responses almost unanimous came, in answer to this circular, confirming that early learned but soon forgotten precept, "Just as the twig is bent, the tree's inclined." I will quote only a few of them \ but such as from their long standing, and long tried and faithful ser- vices in the school-room, entitle their opinions to the fullest confidence. One, a teacher of both sexes and of all ages, and after an experience of more than forty years, says. " that under the conditions mentioned, he would not expect more than two per cent, of those submitted to the experiment would be irreclaimable nuisances to society, and that ninety-five per cent, w^ould be supporters of the moral welfare of the community." Another, of the highest rank as an educator, and after an experience of more than twenty years, re- PUBLIC SCHOOLS. plies, " I should scarcely expect, after the first gen- eration of children submitted to the experiment, to fail in a sincjle instance to secure the results you have named." He goes on to say, " I should not forgive myself, nor think myself longer fit to be a teacher, if, with all the aids and influences supposed, I should fail in one case in a hundred to rear up children who, when they should become men, would become honest dealers, conscientious jurors, true witnesses, incor- ruptible voters or magistrates, good parents, good neighbors, good members of society." Another, with an experience of twenty-four years in the profession, says, " So far as my own experi- ence goes, so far as my knowledge of the experience of others extends, so far as the statistics of crime throw any light on the subject, I should confidently expect that ninety-nine in a hundred — and I should think even more — with such means of education as you have supposed, and with such divine favor as we are authorized to expect, would become good mem- bers of society, the supporters of order, and law, and truth, and justice, and all righteousness." Another says, " If all of our schools were under the charge of teachers possessing what I regard as the right intel- lectual and moral qualifications, and if all the chil- dren of the community were brought under the in- fluences of these schools, 'for ten months in the year,' I think the work of training up the ivhole community to intelligence and virtue would soon be accomplished, as completely as any human end could be obtained by human means." Another, of the highest standing in New England, president's report. 9 and after an experience of more than twenty years, says, " If, as I fully believe, it is in the power of the people of any State, by means so simple as your questions suppose, and so completely in their own power as these obviously are, so to change the whole face of society, in a single generation, that scarcely one or ttvo per cent, of really incorrigible members shall be found, it cannot be that so great a good will con- tinue to be neglected, and the means of its attain- ment longer unemployed." I need quote no more ; but with such testimony as this before us, with the concurrent testimony of our own observation and experience, with the united tes- timony of intelligent men from all parts of the civilized world, can we be faithfully discharging the trusts committed to our hands, unless we urge, and so far as is proper for us, demand that suitable accom- modations for all the children in our city, of suitable age to attend school, shall he provided^ and competent teachers furnished, and this with the least jjossihle delay ? Surely this community will prefer to pay for school-houses and teachers, rather than for bridewells and prisons, and their hosts of keepers. As the school-houses increase, the occupants for prisons decrease ; and should the whole community become as thoroughly educated as it is in the power of this State to educate, and of every State which chooses, the expense for penal establishments and for police regulations would be very materially lessened. The number of our public schools is rapidly increas- ing. The expense of labor and supplies, the increased and increasing number of our teachers, draw heavily 10 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. upon our funds, and the limit of taxation to which the Council is confined by the charter, renders the question, How shall a sufficient number of school houses and teachers be provided to meet the present pressing demand of our city, one of deep and absorb- ing interest. Two new houses must be built the coming season. All, who have given the matter any thought, agree in this. From three to five thousand children in our midst, are to-day out of school, for the reason that we have no seats for them ; and their demand for a place must not be thrust aside or neglected. To meet this necessity, the two mills tax is insuffi- cient. Will the Council, then, authorize the issuing of bonds for such a sum as will, when added to our two mills tax, enable the Board to go forward and put up the two houses desired the coming season ? The interest on these bonds can be paid from the two mills tax fund ; and then, if there be no better way of meeting them when they become due, there are, belonging to the school property, two lots, very un- suitable for school purposes now, and daily becoming more so. I refer to the lots where the Dearborn and Jones school-houses are located, and which might be sold to meet the payment. These two lots are now worth two or three times the amount we need, to accomplish all we desire. The sale of these grounds, in the manner and for the purposes here proposed, would be only changing property now unsuitable to school purposes, for other and more desirable lots, which the great change in the past few j^ears, president's report. 11 in business and residence property, now renders imperative. Should the Council acquiesce in these views, steps should immediately be taken to put the buildings under contract, so that we can have them for use the coming fall or winter. I have perhaps dwelt at more length upon this matter than is necessary ; but its pressing importance, and so many interests vital to the well being of our city, are involved in it, that I could not refrain from calling your most serious and earnest consideration to the subject; trusting that through you, the Coun- cil and this whole community may see and under- stand this matter in its true Hght, and seeing, aid us in carrying forward the object we all so much desire. This subject is discussed in the very able and valu- able report of our Superintendent, herewith pre- sented, to which I would call your special attention, and for which I would ask a careful consideration. It affords me much pleasure to call the attention of the Board to the account current of labor and sup- plies, as presented by the City Comptroller, and by our owm books. It will be seen that our expenses in this department have been very materially diminished, and much money has been saved, to be appropriated for other and important purposes. The new building at the corner of Willow and Orchard Streets, is a model school-house. Its halls are spacious and airy ; the rooms in height, form and light, all that can be desired ; the modes of ingress and egress, ample and convenient ; and it affords sufficient accommodation for twelve hundred children. This building was com- menced during the last year, and finished in a most 12 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. thorough and workmanlike manner, and at a cost of less than $25,000. Each of the four houses built before this, cost more money, and neither of them will accommodate but one-half the number of pupils. A frame house was likewise erected at the corner of Twelfth Street and Wabash Avenue, sufficiently large to accommodate nearly two hundred pupils. It is now filled to overflowing, and further accommoda- tions must be speedily furnished for this portion of the city, which has for a long time been too much neglected. I deem it proper here to say, that for the econom- ical and efficient manner in which this part of our duties has been conducted, we are in a great measure indebted to the untiring and devoted labors of the chairman of our building committee. In the course of studies prescribed by the Board, and the demands which we make upon our teachers, it has appeared to me that v/e are in danger of losing sight of one subject, which is of far more importance to the pupil in his subsequent course, than all per centage tables of his intellectual attainments, how- ever valuable those may be. There are influences in the school-room, subtle in themselves, very difficult to describe, but which it is impossible not to feel, whenever a school-room is entered, by every person at all experienced in these matters. In some school- rooms, one feels as though introduced into the parlor of a refined and accomplished family. The manner in which the pupils occupy their seats, their inter- course with each other and with their teacher, are all characterized by that accomplishment of manner president's report. 13 which always marks the educated, the refined and the good. The very atmosphere about some persons seems redolent of refinement and cultivation, while, at the same time, we witness that energy and deci- sion of character which are so absolutely essential to a well-developed man or woman. Fortunate is that Board of Education which is able to secure the ser- vices of such, as teachers in the public schools; but more fortunate far, are those pupils who are brought up in such an atmosphere, and are moulded under such influences. It is true of many who seek to be teachers — educated men and women, as the phrase is — that they are sadly deficient in the refinements of life. An incident which recently occurred in one of our own schools, will partly illustrate my idea. The teacher dropped a book on the floor, when a beautiful little girl, who was sitting near, and who had evidently been trained to habits of politeness at home, advanced to pick it up, but instead of a smile of approval from the teacher for this spontaneous mark of kindness and good breeding, she was met with a stern " Take your seat ; I did n't ask you to come out here." The class of teachers to which I refer, oftentimes are able to pass an excellent exami- nation by the books ; they seem to " Know all learning, and all science know ; " but when we look at their manners, and know their habits of thought and expression, their ivaiis of say- ing and doing things, and then ask ourselves, do we want such as teachers for our children, as model educators ? we instinctively answer, No ! Give us men and women for such a service, accomplished^ 14 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. refined, having far liigher aims, and nobler aspira- tions, than an exhibition of high figures in the per centage table; those who believe, and act on the belief, that their pupils have hearts as well as heads to be educated, and who see many things in their pupils to be accomplished, above and beyond all class marks or tabulated figures. Have we not thought too much about that part of education which can be shown by figures, and be displayed by diagrams, to the exclusion or neglect of that more important part, which no figures or diagrams can exhibit ? We want our sons, and daughters too, polished and refined, and in the world of mind and morals irresistible in power. Such, few of them will ever become, unless we place before them living examples in the persons of their teachers. I know that this is asking much at the hands of our teachers, and I am happy to be able to say, that the Board has in its employ, many who are doing all that ought to be expected of them in meeting the want here indicated. Still there is room for im- provement, and very much might be accomplished in the right direction, were proper time given our Su- perintendent to meet the teachers, classified as should seem best to him, in a free, familiar and frank expo- sition of such habits, and manners, and ivays^ as are objectionable, and such as a kind word, in a proper way and place, would tend greatly to correct. Intimately connected with this subject is the proper management of our Normal School, a school espe- cially established as a " Teachers' Department ;" but as it is not my purpose to discuss the particular con- president's report. 15 clition of the different schools, I desire to call your special attention to this. You are well aware that the Normal Department of the High School has, in a great degree, failed to realize the just expectations of the Board, and the age and maturity of the class of pupils now connect- ed with this department, are not such as to give promise of any better results in the future. Not only are many of the seats occupied by those who have no special adaptation to the profession of teaching, but one-fourth of the seats in this depart- ment have not yet been filled at all. It appears to me that an immediate and radical change of some kind is required in the administration of this depart- ment of our High School, and I would suggest the expediency of placing it under the special super- vision of the Superintendent, with authority to adopt such measures in relation to the admission and dis- charge of pupils, as he may deem best suited to ad- vance the objects for w^hich this branch of the High School was established. His experience and success in conducting one of the State Normal Schools of Massachusetts are a sufficient guarantee that our own Normal School would not suffer under his direction. The year now closing has been one of great pros- perity to the public schools of our city. No political, sectarian or sectional interest has for a moment marred the action of the Board ; and far distant may the day be when any man shall find his way into this Board, who has any interests to serve save the best interests of our schools, and may all seek those in- terests, regardless of parties or of persons. 16 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. In conclusion permit me to say, that while we con- gratulate ourselves upon what our schools have done and are doing, I trust none of us are satisfied with present attainments. Much yet remains to be done; and with the same unity of action which has hitherto marked our deliberations, very much may be done the coming year to raise the standard of our schools still higher, and secure for them the continued con- fidence of our citizens. LUTHER HAVEN, President of the Board of Education. REPORT OF THE SURERIXTEXDENT. To the Board of Education of the City of CMcac/o : Gentlemen: In the following RejDort, I have en- deavored to present a general view of the condition of our public schools, and to point out some of the impediments which still retard their progress. PRIMARY SCHOOLS. The Board of Education has spared no pains to incorporate in our system of public instruction the best elements of the best systems of other and older cities, and w^e have been fortunate in securing the services of a body of faithful and efficient teachers. The classification of the pupils is uniform and thor- ough. In the general organization of the schools, it does not appear to me that any important changes are desirable. The two upper grades are accomplish- ing very fully and satisfactorily the work for which they were established. But while we are permitted to refer with pride to the success of our Grammar Schools and High School, we cannot conceal from ourselves nor from this community the fact, that in the Primary Schools there exist some very serious and radical defects. Inadequate Siipjili/ of Teachers and Booms. — The car- dinal evil which is undermining the very foundation 2 18 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. of our public school system, is the inadequate pro- vision that is made for the accommodation and in- struction of the Primary Schools. I have discussed this subject before, and would fain pass it by in the present Report ; but it is forced upon me and cannot be disregarded. It is vain for us to expect any satis- factory results till this evil is in some way met and removed. Our Primary Schools are the basis of our whole system. If evils are suffered to exist here, they will manifest themselves in all the higher stages of the pupil's progress, and cling to him through life. " Scratch the green rind of a sapling, or wantonly twist it in the soil ; The scarred and crooked oak will tell of thee for centuries to come." It is in the Primary Schools that more than half of all our public instruction is imparted, and a large portion of the children gathered here do not remain in school long enough to pass into the higher depart- ments at all. While there are many principles relating to the management of schools, on which different educators are not yet agreed, there are, fortunately, some which may be regarded as settled. Among those about which there appears to be no dispute, is the prin- ciple that one teacher cannot profitably instruct more than sixty different pupils at a time. Whenever the number is increased beyond this limit, the loss to the first sixty is greater than the gain to those that are added. There is not a city of any importance in the country in which this principle has not been recog- nized ; and our own Board has fully indorsed it when- ever the school accommodations have been sufficient to carry it into effect. The only question is, w^hether superintendent's report. 19 the number, especially in the Primary Schools, should not be placed considerably below sixty. In the ten largest cities of the United States, the average number belonging to each teacher in the Grammar and Primary departments, is at the present time less than fifty-five.'-' I have chosen, however, to place the limit at sixty, beyond which there can be no question that all increase is on the whole a loss, and not a gain. It is humiliating to acknowledge, that our Primary Schools still present examples in which a single teacher is made responsible for the sole instruction of more than one hundred and fiftv children. But I will not dwell upon evils which were but too apparent before ; the practical question for us to meet, is the possibility of providing a remedy. I have shown, in a former Report, that our two mills tax and the income of the school fund, are suf- ficient to meet the school expenses that legitimately belong to any one year, and provide ample room for all the children that desire to attend the public schools. We have now the smallest amount of room, and the smallest number of teachers in proportion to the number of pupils, of any city in the Union, simply because the population of our city has increased faster than that of any other. This rapid increase of population requires a much larger investment in new buildings at the j)resent time, than the average investment of a long jDcriod of years. The permanent investments of the city in school buildings, and grounds, and furniture, during * Whatever may be the number of pupils assigned to one teacher, the esti- mate should be based upon the actual membership of the school, and not upon the average attendance. The absence of a pupil for one or more days, if he still retains his connection with the school, does not lessen the labors of the teacher. 20 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. the last three years, araount to more than 1160,000, or an average of more than 1 5 3,0 00 a year. This sum would pay the annual rent of the best accommo- dations for more than twice the number of pupils than have belonged to our schools during this period. But while we have actually paid for more than twice the room we required, we have not received in return accommodations sufficient to meet our most urgent necessities. Let me not be misunderstood on this point. The average number belonging to our schools during the year 1858, was about 5,500. The annual increase in the average membership of our schools, is about 1,000. If we estimate the amount of investment required for each year, to furnish perpetual accommodations for all the schools, we shall find that our proportion for a single year does not exceed $25,000. But we have paid, during the last three years, an average of $53,000. In other words, we have paid all our own expenses, and an average of $28,000 a year for those who are to have the use of the buildings and grounds in years yet to come. This, certainly, is not just to ourselves, nor to our children, and it seems to me that an imperative duty is imposed on us, to devise some means by which this expenditure may be more equi- tably distributed. I can conceive of only one way in which this ob- ject can be accomplished, and that is, by the Coun- cil's issuing bonds for such an amount as may be necessary, to aid the school tax fmid in erecting the buildings that are required for immediate use, leaving it for those who share with us in the use of the build- ings, to share also in the expense of their erection. superintendent's report. 21 If the school tax fund could receive sufficient aid the present year, to furnish one such house as that erected in the North Division during the last year, the fund itself would afford the means of erecting another of equal capacity ; and these two, with a few changes in district limits, and with such additional rooms as might, in special cases, be hired temporarily, would change the whole aspect of our Primary Schools. • By adopting the plan here proposed, we save our- selves from the reproach of committing from one hundred to one hundred and fifty children to the care of a sino;le teacher. We save the children from the manifest exposure of health, which now results from the practice of crowding four or five scholars upon a seat intended for only two. We obviate the neces- sity of having two classes recite in the same room at the same time, to the great annoyance and detriment of both. And we save the necessity for one-half the severity of discipline that is now required to preserve order in many of the Primary rooms. In short, we remove the ])lague spot that now rests upon our school system. We bring the Primary Schools up to the same level of opportunities and advantages enjoyed by the other grades of schools, and give completeness and symmetry to our whole system of public instruc- tion. I cannot but hope that the views I have ex- pressed on this subject, will meet the favorable regard of the Board of Education and the Common Council, and that some measiu^es will be taken without loss of time, to relieve the Primary Schools from their pres- ent depressed condition. In the estimates I have made respecting the sup- 22 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. port of the schools, I have taken for granted that the full two mills tax is to be continued. To cut off any portion of this, when the schools are already strug- gling for existence, would give a fatal blow to all the efforts which are made for their improvement. I am sure that our Common Council have too much regard for the interests of the schools, to adopt any measures which would be fraught with consequences so disastrous. Age of Admission. — There is another point of con- siderable importance in its relation to the prosperity of the Primary Schools, to which I beg leave to call the attention of the Board. By the present school law of this State, children are admitted to the public schools at five years of age. In St. Louis, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Louisville, Washington, Charleston, New Orleans, and most other cities out of New England, the age of admission is limited to six years instead of fivQ. For the purpose of ascertaining the sentiments of different School Boards, respecting the best limit to be adopted, I recently addressed letters to about forty of the principal cities of the Union, containing the fol- lowing inquiry : " Are the advantages of admitting pupils under six years, in the estimation of your School Board, as great as the disadvantages?" The answer received, in nearly every instance, was an emphatic negative. The example of some of the eastern cities is not a safe guide for us in this particular. Li Boston, chil- dren are often received as young as four years. If superintendent's report. 23 we had means to provide schools for children of four or five years, where they could be preserved from the unfavorable influences of the streets, and have the benefit of a simple and easy course of oral and slate instruction, Avith frequent interchange of recre- ation, for three or four hours a day, it would un- doubtedly be a great relief to parents, and, in many instances, would be far better for the children than to remain at home. But it is obvious that children of this age cannot profitably or safely be subjected to the regular drill and discipline of the school-room. The effects would be alike injurious both to body and mind. The time may come when we can afibrd to indulge in the luxury of Infant Schools, but it is manifestly unjust in the present crowded state of our rooms, to receive children at five, and thereby exclude those who are old enough to receive the full benefit of school discipline and instruction. It is to be hoped, that at the next session of our State Legislature, either the school law or our city charter will be so modified, that the Common Coun- cil will have authority to exclude from the public schools all children under six years of age. Primary ScJiool Teachers. — I trust I shall be par- doned if I suggest that our Primary Schools are suf- fering from the general impression that the teachers occupy a position less important than that of assist- ants in the Grammar Schools. It is no disparagement to the Primary teachers to say, that the Primary classes are not, as a whole, taught so well as the 24 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. Grammar classes, even after we have made all due allowance for the inconvenience of crowded rooms.* This would probably still be true, if the Primary classes were taught by the Grammar teachers. Of all the applicants examined by the committee of the Board, there are more who are qualified to teach in the Grammar departments than there are who are qualified to teach in the Primary departments.-}* To excel as a Primary teacher, requires peculiar natural gifts, a thorough acquaintance with the first principles of knowledge, special fondness for young children, and an abiding consciousness that there is really no higher department of useful labor than that of giving direction to the first efforts of minds that are opening to an endless existence. There is no other grade of schools in which the personal character of the teacher is so directly felt, as in the Primary. In the Grammar School, lessons are learned from text-books, and very much of the pupil's progress is made without the direct assistance of the teacher. But in the Primary Schools, the teacher is herself the text-book, the living oracle ; and nearly all the impressions received by the pupil are a direct reflection from her own mind and heart. But a teacher may possess every desirable mental and moral endowment, and yet, if a position in a * " The weakest point in the whole system of American education, is its deficiency in thoroughness in all the elementary courses." — Dr. Sears. t "In my search for teachers to fill vacancies, I find ten qualified to teach Geometry in a High School, to one who is qualified to teach reading in a Pri- mary School ; and in general, it is more difficult to find teachers adapted to give instruction in the lower grades, than in the higlier." — A. Freeze, Supt. of Schools, Cleveland. superintendent's report. 25 Primary School is regarded as secondary in import- ance, and a situation in a Grammar department is continually before the mind as an object of ambition and desire, it is vain to expect the same degree of success that would be realized if no such distinction existed. In the last report of the schools of St. Louis, I find the following : " It will be observed by the scale of teachers' salaries, that they are alike in the Pri- mary and Grammar grades. This wise arrangement makes the two grades equally honorable, and serves to secure in each the teachers best qualified for it." The question is worthy of the consideration of this Board, whether in making future appointments of assistants in the Grammar and Primary depart- ments, it may not be desirable to give the Primary assistants, in all respects, the same rank as the Gram- mar assistants. It is to be regretted that so few of our Primary teachers receive any special training before entering upon the peculiar duties of their office. They are generally well educated, but their education has been conducted without any particular reference to the positions they are called to occupy. It is seldom that an examination of teachers occurs, in which a ma- jority of the applicants are not found to be radically deficient in some of the elementary principles of primary instruction. Examples are constantly pre- sented, in which a candidate, who is requested to give the sounds of the letters as they occur in some common word, replies with the utmost composure, that she has never attended to the sounds of the 26 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. letters. Many applicants seem wholly unconscious that there is any necessary connection between their familiarity with the rudiments of learning and their fitness to teach a Primary School. I am happy to be able to say, that in the Normal Department of our High School, these first princi- ples are thoroughly taught, and I trust the time will come, when a majority of our female teachers wdll be furnished by our own Normal School. It is due to the present body of Primary teachers to remark, that there are among them a large num- ber of model teachers, thoroughly furnished for their work. Many also, that entered upon their duties with inadequate preparation, have shown a very commendable zeal in putting forth efforts to qualify themselves for the duties that devolve upon them. If some special provision was made by which our Primary teachers could receive normal instruction, in connection with model classes in one or more of the Primary Schools, I am sure they would be most happy to avail themselves of the opportunity; and I be- lieve that the schools might be materially benefited by adopting such a measure. I would then respect- fully recommend, that the Superintendent be author- ized to dismiss all but one of the Primary Schools in each division of the city, one-half day in a term, for the purpose of calling together all the Primary teachers, to witness exercises and receive sugges- tions relating to the peculiar wants of the Primary Schools. Frhnary Instruction. — The first year spent by a child in a Primary School, should be regarded as a bridge superintendent's report. 27 from the liberty of home life to the regular disci- pline of the school-room ; and all the efforts of the teacher should be specially adapted to this peculiar condition of the pupil. Children at this age should not be expected to sit without moving a muscle. The nervous system of a child five or six years old, is more than three times as large in proportion to the body, as that of an adult. The demand for fre- quent physical exercise is imperative, and cannot safely be disregarded. And yet a child should commence learning as soon as he enters the school-room. Tasks he should know nothing of, but useful and instructive exercises of various kinds should be commenced immediately. He needs no text-book, but a slate and pencil are indispensable.'^' The course of instruction for this class of pupils should consist of familiar conversations upon common objects, giving clear ideas of their various properties, forms, colors, uses, etc., and cultivating a familiar and accurate acquaintance with the words employed to describe them ; simple exercises on the slate or black- board, imitating some letter, or word, or drawing 5 singing ; repeating verses, singly and in concert ; counting ; learning words and letters, and their uses, from the black-board and from cards; with frequent interchanges of physical exercises and recreations. Let it be understood from the beginning, that readiness and precision in the use of language are among the first and most important objects to be * " I never saw a Prussian school, above an infant school, in which any child was unprovided with a slate and pencil." — Mann. 28 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. sought 3 and let every question receive a complete and grammatical answer/^' Ohjed Lessons. — No form of instruction is better adapted to the Primary room, than that which is usu- ally denominated "Object Lessons."f These lessons admit of an endless variet}^ in their application to the objects of common life, and furnish the happiest and most certain means of imparting useful knowledge. They educate the perceptive faculties of the pupil, develo23 his common sense, cultivate habits of careful observation and reflection, and give a more ready command of language than can be acquired by any other means. Many of the Primary teachers of this city have already introduced this class of exercises very successfully into their course of instruction. Conversational teaching has at all times been re- garded by eminent educators as the most effective process of early education. Pestalozzi and Fellen- berg made it their great instrument of instruction ; and it has long been employed in all the best ele- mentary schools of Europe. It was introduced about * " In this, as well as in all other schools, a complete answer was always required. For instance, if the teacher asks, 'what are houses made of?' he does not accept the answer 'of wood,' or 'of stone;' but he requires a full, complete answer, as, 'a house is made of wood.' The answer must always contain an intelligible proposition without reference to the words of the ques- tion." — Prussian Schools, bij Horace Mann. t "Much may be done both in our Primary and Intermediate Schools, by means of oral instruction concerning the various objects and phenomena of nature, the practical arts and business of life, the departments of physiology, botany, history, etc., both in connection with, and independently of the text- books in daily use ; and this mode of instruction seems to be peculiarly appro- priate to these schools. The plain and simple teachings suggested by what we see and hear every day, will be listened to with far more interest, and generally be followed by more valuable results, than many of the formal instructions that are given by teachers from books in the way of precise questions and answers.' — Report of School Committee, Springfield, Mass. superintendent's report. 29 ten years since in Upper Canada, and since that time it has been very extensively adopted in the schools of the United States. As some of our teachers are not familiar with the process of conducting an object lesson, I take the liberty to introduce a few hints which may serve to aid those who are just commencing this class of ex- ercises. It should; however, be borne in mind, that no second-hand models can be safely relied on. The teacher must carefully study each subject herself, and adopt a system and method of her own. The origin of our ideas is in our senses. In all lano-uao-es, the words which stand for immaterial ob- jects are borrowed from those which are applied to objects of perception.* It is then of the greatest importance, that a child should acquire clear ideas of things^ as a preparation for a knowledge of tuords, and the uses to which they are to be applied. Words should never be taught apart from the ideas signified. One of the best methods of introducing these developing exercises, is to teach the properties of objects separately. By directing the attention of a child for a considerable time to a single property, a distinct and lasting impression is made. Thus, one or more lessons may be devoted to form, others to size, color, iveight, motion, mimher, taste, sound, etc. * " The cultivation of the senses has, practically, received little attention, and no systematic means are used for studying and naming the several objects of the senses. Erom this great defect in early education, the vocabulary of most people is, strange as it may appear, very meagre upon all objects of the senses. And this meagreness of language, and of knowledge of external objects, al- most necessarily leads to meagreness of language for those classes of intellec- tual and spiritual subjects, in speaking of which we are obliged to use words borrowed originally from the outer world." — G. B. Emerson. 80 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. Young, in his Teacher' 8 Manual^ remarks, "We have found, in practice, that/orwi is the most striking quality of bodies, and therefore the best to commence with, as, from its being capable of clearer definition, it is more easily comprehended than any other." The first exercise may be devoted to lengthy or ex- tension in one direction. The teacher draws a fine, straight line on the black-board, and explains that it has length, but no breadth or thickness. He then measures it, and gives various illustrations of length, as the length of the floor, the height of a man, the distance across a field, etc. A mrface^ which has lengili and hreadth, may be ex- plained and illustrated in a similar manner ; and from these the teacher will pass, by natural and easy steps, to lines, and their various relations and conditions, as horizonial, jperpendicular, oblique, 'parallel, diverging, curved, tvaving, spiral, etc.; to angles — right, acute, obtuse; to plane figures — the triangle, square, rectangle, rhombus, oblong, rhomboid, trapezium, pentagon, hexagon, heptagon, octagon, circle, ellipse ; and finally to the different forms of solids — tetrahedron, pyramid, prism, cube, cylinder, cone, sphere, spheroid. As the pupils advance they will be able to study the parts of which an object is composed, and exam- ine its properties in their various combinations and relations. They will learn to distinguish animal, vegetahle and mineral substances, and to make a cor- rect application of such terms as natural and artificial, simple and compound, native and foreign, indigenous and exotic, " Every new discovery which results from the investigation of objects, exercises the understanding, leads to a knoAvledge of the true essence of things, superintendent's report. 31 and stores the memory with adjectives and abstract nouns, the chief materials of descriptive and philo- sophical language." ^' Object lessons should always be brief, especially with the youngest pupils. They should be so inter- spersed among the other exercises of the day, as to afford an agreeable variety and relaxation to the learner, and prepare his mind to engage more heartily and successfully in other duties.f * Marcel. t The following sketch is adapted to the more advanced pupils of a Primary School. It was prepared for use at one of our monthly Teachers' Institutes, and is introduced here as a specimen lesson, in the hope that it may afford some practical hints that will be of service to inexperienced teachers. A BOOK. [Holding a book before the class.] Teacher — What are the parts of which this book is composed? Pupils — Cover, paper, leaves, back, printing, ink, pages, etc. T. — Let us examine the covers of books ; what are they composed of ? P. — Leather, cloth, paper, pasteboard, glue, gilding, etc. T. — What kinds of leather are used in binding books? P. — Sheepskin, calf, Russia, Morocco, etc. T. — Which are the strongest kinds of binding? P. — Russia and calf. T. — What leather is used most in binding ? P. — Sheep. T. — Why ? P. — Because it is the cheapest. (Passing a booh in Russia binding around the class.) T. — What do you find peculiar in Russia leather ? P. — It smells different from other leather. T. — Can you tell me what gives it this peculiar odor? P. — We don't know. T. — It is the oil of the bark of the birch tree, that is used in currying it. Do you know what ci(rn/ means ? P. — It means to dress the leather, to cleanse and color it, and prepare it to be used. T. — Russia leather is veiy much valued in binding, because it is not liable to mould, and insects never injure it. T. — Are all books bound in leather ? P. — Some are bound in cloth and some in paper ; some have leather backs and cloth or paper side covers. (Exhibit specimens.) T. — What is used to give strength and firmness to the cover of a book ? P. — Pasteboard. (Exhibit different kinds and qualities of pasteboard.) T. — What is used to fasten the cloth or paper to the pasteboard ? P. — Paste. T. — Of what is paste made ? P. — Flour and water, boiled. T. — What is used to fasten the cover to the back of a book ? P. — Glue. 32 ' PUBLIC SCHOOLS. Special pains should be taken in all these develop- ing lessons, to secure as complete and accurate an answer as possible to every question. In the sketch given belowj the answers have necessarily been con- siderably abridged; but this should not be allowed in the answers given by the children. As fast as new words are learned, the pupils should be required to (Exhibit a piece of glue.) T. — Of what is glue made ? P. — We do n't know. T. — It is made of the clippings of hides and hoofs of animals, by boiling them to a jelly. (Put a piece of glue hetioeen two booJcs or pieces of paper.) T. — Why do not these books stick together ? P. — Because the glue has to be softened first in water, and then heated. T. — Can ycTu think of anything that resembles glue? P. — Jujube paste re- sembles glue. (Exhibit specimen of jujube.) T. — In what are they alike, and in what unlike 1 (Examine and test their properties, and introduce and explain the words adhesive, brittle, flexible, elastic, edible, animal, vegetable, etc. Compare also with other adhesive substances, as shoemakers' wax, wafers, gum ardbic, mortar, solder, etc.) T. — What are the letters on the back of the book made of? One pupil says, gold ; another says, I do n't think it is real gold. T. — Yes, it is genuine gold. Gold leaf is first spread over the back of the cover, and then the letters are stamped down through it into the leather or cloth. P. — I should think it would cost a good deal. T. — Gold leaf is very thin. (Exhibit a specimen.) It would take 280,000 leaves to make the thickness of a single inch. This would be more than you could count in two days. Of course one thickness of it would not be very costly. T. — What is the use of the book cover? P. — To preserve the book and keep it neat. T. — What do you call the person that covers books ? P. — Bookbinder. In a similar manner the teacher can proceed to speak of the ink employed in printing a book, and compare printers' ink with writing ink. Ditferent kinds of books may be explained and illustrated, as writing books, account books, blank books, pass books, pocket books, etc. The terms_/o/?b, quarto, octavo and duodecimo, ma.y here be learned and applied; also the words author, compiler, editor, publisher, copyright, the difference between publisher and bookseller, etc. The attention of the pupils may be called to the title page, the phrases^rsf edition, stereotype edition, revised edition, prface, dedication, running title, table of contents, index, margin, signatures at the bottom of the pages, etc. The value and uses of books will also furnish a fruitful topic of useful conversation. Children will be interested in talking of the books that are most read — the Bible, Pilgrim's Progress, Robinson Crusoe, etc. The manufacture of paper, of which books are chiefly composed, will, of itself, furnish a theme sufficient for one or more object lessons, and the fore- going sketch covers ground enough for six or eight separate exercises. superintendent's report. 33 embody them in spoken or written sentences, and thus fasten their meaning and uses securely in the memory. The first efforts of children in the art of composition, should consist of the easiest forms of simple sentences, but a shade removed from common conversation. These may first be given orally, and afterwards copied on a slate or on paper. By this means, the pupils will not only be spared the troubles that usually accompany the first introduction to this art, but they will probablj^ find some difficulty in fixing the exact point at which they really com- mence writing compositions. WRITING AND DRAWING. The rudiments of drawing and writing should re- ceive early and constant attention in the Primary School. As soon as children are able to read the simplest words, they should be taught to print or write them on their slates. They have time enough and to spare ; and some portion of it may be more profitably devoted to the use of the pencil and crayon than to any other employment. Special care should be taken to furnish pupils with long pencils. Short pencils lay the foundation of bad habits in holding the pen. Any teacher who is willing to spend a little time in studying the principles of linear and geometrical drawing, can readily qualify herself to teach the rudiments of this art to a class of beginners.* * "Linear drawing, which supplies the deficiencies of descriptive language, is an acquirement indispensable to the instructor. It may be made a most useful instrument of teaching, even in the humblest school. In the exact, the natural, and the experimental sciences, especially, he who has command of this art, is never at a loss how to render the most intricate details clear, intelligible, and interesting." — Marcel. 3 34 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. Drawing is generally more pleasing to children than writing ; and as an exercise for their construc- tive and imitative faculties^ it is decidedly superior. It affords important aid in learning to WTite, by giv- ing the pupil more freedom of hand and correctness of eye.* Drawing also serves to lead the young mind to observe and analyze the forms of things, and to cul- tivate the taste. Elementary lessons in geometrical drawing are an important preliminary to map draw- ing and other illustrative exercises in the higher departments of instruction. READING AND SPELLING. Eeading, the most important branch of school instruction, is generally the most imperfectly taught, especially in the Primary Schools. If we listen to a child who is reading the most colloquial piece that can be chosen, how marked do we find the difference in most cases, between the tones and modulations he employs and those of common conversation. And why do we not find the same natural and easy tones and inflections in reading as in conversation ? The answer is a sad reflection upon the manner in which reading is generally taught in elementary schools. That this evil is necessary, no intelligent teacher believes. If we look for the seat of the difficulty, * " Such excellent hand- writing as I saw in the Prussian schools, I never saw before. I can hardly express myself too strongly on this point. In Great Britain, France, or in our own country, I have never seen any schools worthy to be compared with theirs in this respect. This excellence must be referred in a great degree to the universal practice of learning to draw, contempo- raneously with learning to write. I believe a child will learn both to draw and to write sooner and with more ease, than he will learn to write alone." — Mann. superintendent's report. 35 we shall probably find the principal cause in the fact that most children are first taught to call the names of a large portion of the words they read, without understanding their meaning. The remedy of the evil is suggested by the cause. Let no unmeaning words be presented to the young learner, and let no word ever be read without being understood. It is not enough that the word has a meaning, and that the child is presumed to understand what it is- the teacher should be sure that the child actually does understand every word that is read. The first words introduced should always be the names of common and familiar objects. The objects themselves should be referred to, and if possible presented to the test of the senses. The teacher should talk with the pupils about the objects, and employ the words in simple and familiar sentences, so that the reading may be associated with common conversation, and be made as nearly like it as possible. These directions are very few and very simple, and they have been given, substantially, many times before, and yet, if they had been faithfully followed in all the elementary schools of the country, we should probably find less than half the unnatural reading which we nov/ witness. In respect to the manner of giving children their first lessons in reading, a considerable diversity of practice still exists in different places. Some teach- ers still adhere to the system of teaching the alphcibet first, then short syllables, and then words and senten- ces. Others commence with the sounds of the letters, and then proceed to their combination in words. Others commence with luords, and afterwards intro- duce the sounds and names of the letters of which 36 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. they are composed. Others teach a few letters firsts by their names, and then proceed to combine these letters in simple words ; thus teaching the alphabet and words simultaneously. There is, however, at the present time, a very decided tendency to what is called the ivord method. Wherever this method has been tried, it has been found to possess important advantages over all other systems, and it is safe to predict that it will soon find its way into all the best elementary schools of the country. Words have meaning ; letters have none. Words are as easily learned as letters, and they naturally precede letters. It is to be hoped that the time is not distant when the philosophy of education will be better understood, and when all teachers will learn that it is safe to fol- low nature in our efforts to cultivate the minds of children. Who would think of teachins; a child the different parts of which a tree is composed, before he has learned to distinguish the tree itself? A child does not learn to call the name of a house b}^ study- ing the windows, doors, chimneys, roof, etc., but he first learns to recognize the house as a whole, and the parts that compose it are learned afterwards. So in reading, the natural order is to learn the whole word first, and afterwards to learn the names and sounds of the letters composing it.* =* " When I first began to visit the Prussian schools, I uniformly inquired of the teachers, whether, in teaching children to read, they began Avith the names of the letters, as given in the alphabet. Being delighted with the prompt negative which I invariably received, I persevered in making the in- quir}^, until I began to perceive a look and tone on their part not very flattering to my intelligence, in considering a point so well settled as this, to be any longer a subject of discussion or doubt. The uniform statement was, that the alphabet, as such, had ceased to be taught as an exercise preliminary to reading, for the last fifteen or twenty years, by every teacher in the kingdom." — Mann's Seventh Annual Report to the Massachusetts Board of Education, 1844. superintendent's report. 37 But the best recommendation of the tuord method^ is the success that has attended its introduction. We have, in our own schools, some very marked exam- ples illustrating the superiority of this system. Sev- eral of our teachers have, during the last year, by employing this method, advanced their classes more rapidly and successfully than would have been pos- sible by any other means. One great excellence of the system is the aid it affords in teaching children to read naturally and with correct expression. If no other object were accomplished, this alone w^ould be sufficient to recommend it to the favorable regard of school officers and teachers. The exact point at w^hich the names of the letters are to be introduced, is not a matter of much im- portance, so that we preserve the main features of the system unimpaired. The natural order of the different steps is manifestly the following : First, the object itself is presented to the senses ; next, the name of the object is pronounced and learned. As the spoken word consists of sounds^ the next step in order is to analyze the sounds and utter them separately. After this, the names of the letters are to be learned. If any teachers prefer to teach the names of the letters as fast as they occur in the words learned, no harm can result from such a course. But the sounds of the letters, which are the real elements of all spoken words, should by all means be learned as early as the names."^ * " The old, and in many places obsolete method, first, of teaching the al- phabet by showing the letters, causing their names to be repeated without any regard to the sounds they represent, and then of teaching spelling by calling the names of certain letters in combination, and of pronouncing the syllable or word without any reference to the separate elementary sounds which, when united, constitute the word, will now find but few^intelligent defenders." — Dk. Sears. 38 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. If, in any case, a teacher has not herself been ac- customed to give the elementary sounds of the letters, she can easily acquire this power, by first pronouncing a word slowly and distinctly, fixing the attention upon the sound of any particular letter, and then, while this sound is still on the ear, utter- ins; it alone. If it is desired to learn the sound of a in «//, first speak the word all^ and then commence the word and stop on the first sound. So also, if the sound of r, as in harm^ is to be learned ; first speak the word with the attention directed to the sound of r, then speak the first part of the word, stopping with the sound of r, and finally utter the sound of r by itself Any teacher may, in this way, become her own instructor, and if she is able to utter cor- rectly all the sounds of a word as they occur in combination, she will readily learn to give them separately.* The charts prescribed by the Board of Education for the use of our Primary Schools, are a very suc- cessful embodiment of the ivord method of teaching, and the schools have already derived material benefit from them. In a few instances, teachers, who were * " To teach enunciation and articulation properly, the teacher needs to be able criticall}' to analyze words, so that he can detect the precise fault of his pupil. That the word does not sound correctly to his ear, and to repeat it for the imitation of the scholar, is not enough. He must be able to show him just what organs of speech are employed in the pronunciation, and to train him in their proper use. For instance, a pupil pronounces the word divide, diwide. To repeat the word correctly a hundred times, in his hearing, is scarcely of any avail. He does not know how to use the ton(jue, teeth and lips. His teacher detecting in Avhat syllable and in what sound the difficulty lies, must show him that the lower lip must be placed under the upper teeth, and the upper lip kept from touching it, by the fore finger, if necessary, and that the organs being thus held, he can hardly help giving the sound correctly." — Report of A. J. RiCKOFF, Superintendent of Common Schools, Cincinnati. superintendent's report. 39 not accustomed to this method, have reversed the order of the charts, and commenced with No. 6, which embraces the alphabet, instead of No. 1, which is com- posed mostly of words. The directions at the bottom of each chart are so plain and full, that it is difficult to account for any such mistake in regard to the proper manner of using them. Another important direction to be observed in teaching the elements of reading, is to give constant and special attention to articulation. There can be no good reading without correctness of articulation ; and it is far easier to form good habits at first, than to correct bad ones at a later period. I am happy to be able to speak in terms of the highest commenda- tion of many of our Primary teachers, in this par- ticular. In several instances, teachers who are verv unfavorably situated, have triumphed over all obsta- cles, and imparted to their pupils a uniform habit of accurate and distinct articulation. Whole classes of children, who at home speak and hear only a foreign language, have been taught to enunciate English words with the greatest clearness and precision. There are, however, other examples, in which much less attention is given to this subject than it deserves. As fast as words are learned and the names and sounds of the letters composing them, the pupils should be taught to spell the words, both by the sounds and by the names of the letters; and this practice should be carried forward simultaneously with the exercises in reading. It can hardly be necessary to say, that while a class is engaged in reading, it should receive the undivided attention of the teacher. If the teacher 40 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. is necessarilj^ called away, by all means suspend the exercise. It is far better to omit a lesson altogether^ than to leave the pupils to read by themselves. The voice of the teacher should be frequently heard in every reading exercise, as an example for the scholars to imitate. It is by imitation that children learn to talk, and their skill and accuracy in reading will depend mainly upon the character of the models which are brought before them. A child may make a dozen trials in reading a sentence, and not only fail every time, but read it worse and worse, if he does not hear it read correctly by the teacher or by some member of the class. So also, in preparing an exercise in spelling, it is highly important that young pupils should hear the words pronounced by the teacher. A very useful method is, for the teacher first to pronounce all the words of the lesson dis- tinctly, while the pupils listen attentively and point to the words in their books, as they are pronounced. Next, the teacher pronounces one word, which is repeated by the first scholar in the class; then another word, which is repeated by the second scholar, and so on. After this, the teacher and the class pronounce in concert, and then the class pronounce in concert without the teacher. The exercise may be varied, by having the first scholar pronounce a word, which is repeated by the class in concert ; the next scholar the second word, which is repeated by the class, and so on. Or the scholars collectively may alternate with the teacher, she pronouncing one word, and the class the next."^ * See Bumstead's Spelling and Tliinldng Combined. superintendent's report. 41 The following method will be found highly useful in securing the attention of Primer classes, and giving to each pupil the benefit of reading the whole lesson, or such portion of it as may be desired : Let one scholar read the first sentence ; then let the class follow, reading the same in concert, and pointing to all the words as they read. Let the next scholar read the second sentence, and the class follow in concert as before, and so on. If this exercise is properly conducted, it will advance a class very much faster than the method of hearing each pupil read a sentence in turn, without the concert practice. Great care should be taken, in all concert exercises, to secure free and natural tones of voice. It is always better to dispense with exercises in concert, than to have them become a means of forming bad habits in modulation and inflection. We have in our schools a large number of teachers for whom this caution is specially intended. The most marked examples of these unnatural tones and modula- tions, are witnessed in the classes that repeat in concert the arithmetical tables and the sounds of the letters. I have dwelt at considerable length upon the Primary Schools, because they are of primary import- ance, and because I believe they have not hitherto received their due share of attention. I wall only add, that these schools are suffering very much from the want of a few simple articles of illustrative apparatus. Notwithstanding the pressing calls in other directions for the use of all our funds, I feel constrained to ask for each of the Primary Schools a Numeral Frame and a small Box of Geometrical 42 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. Diagrams and Solids. The cost for each set will not exceed five dollars. GRAMMAR SCHOOLS. • The Grammar Schools are less crowded than the Primary Schools, and their progress during the past year has furnished abundant evidence of the untiring assiduity of both teachers and pupils. Penmanship. — In the department of writing, the effort made during the present term, by a special course of lessons, has been attended with the happiest results. In many of the schools, the standard of excellence had fallen very low ; but the writing is now uniformly good in all the schools, and in most of them the degree of improvement is such as is rarely witnessed in so short a period of time. I would again invite the attention of the Board to the im- portance of employing a teacher of penmanship, who may pass from school to school, and devote all his time to this branch of instruction. It is doubtful whether we shall ever be able to secure a satisfactory standard in writing, unless such a measure is adopted. Reciting ly Topics, — A system of reciting by Topics has been introduced by many of the teachers of the more advanced divisions, in connection with the study of Geography, History, and some other branch- es. This mode of reciting leaves the pupils mostly to their own resources. It secures a more thorough and systematic preparation of the lessons, and fur- nishes important aid in imparting that discipline of mind which is more valuable than knowledge. It is to be hoped that this system will be adopted still more extensively in our Grammar Schools. superintendent's report. 43 General Supervision hy Principals. — In several of the new school buildings, the number of teachers and pupils is now so large, that a considerable portion of the Principal's time is consumed in attending to matters of general oversight, and in giving such aid to the other teachers as may be necessary to secure uniformity and efficiency in all the different depart- ments. This militates seriously against the successful progress of the master's division ; and I would sug- gest that it may be desirable to make some special provision by which the Principals of the larger schools will be relieved from the immediate charge of their own rooms during a portion of each day, for the purpose of attending to the general interests of their respective schools. While it is true that in some of the schools these frequent demands upon the master's time in the other divisions greatly im- pede the progress of his own classes, it is also true that in other cases the subordinate departments are left to suffer, because the Principal does not feel at liberty to leave his own room and give them the attention which they require. Whatever policy may be adopted in respect to the amount of time which the Principals shall be expected to give to the rooms of the other teachers, it is important that there should be a more definite understanding on this point and greater uniformity of practice^ than now exists.* * "A considerable difference was observed in the amount of personal atten- tion bestowed by the Principals upon the lower classes of their schools. In some schools, a portion of each day, and in certain others, one or two half days in each week, are set apart for the inspection and examination of the lower classes. This, an excellent practice, should be encouraged. Every head assistant should be capable of managing and teaching the first division, during 44 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. The Grammar Scliools, with a single exception, are still suffering from an almost entire destitution of reference books and apparatus. If each school could be suj)plied with only a globe of moderate size, and a co|)y of Lippincott's Gazetteer, it would greatly facilitate the labors of both teachers and pupils. HIGH SCHOOL. It is now nearly three years since this institution was organized, and it is already firmly implanted in the confidence and affections of the city. The course of instruction and discipline is thorough and com- plete, and challenges comparison with that of the best High Schools of the country. The valuable Philosophical and Chemical Apparatus recently pro- cured, at an expense of one thousand dollars, through the kindness and liberality of the friends of the School, and the donation of a large and powerful Oxy-Hydrogen Microscope, and accompanying dia- grams, by Samuel Hoard, Esq., have removed the greatest obstacle to the success of the School that has heretofore existed. I am happy to be able to record, in this connection, the generous donation of two hundred and fifty dol- lars by Thomas B. Bryan, Esq., the interest of which is to be appropriated annually to constitute the most deserving graduate of the High School a life member of the Young Men's Association of Chicago. The Normal Department of the High School was established for the special purpose of training female the master's absence from the room, so as to allow him the necessary time for this important work. This is the only practical method of securing a uniform and harmonious progress in a large school, instructed by a number of teachers.' — J. D. Philbrick, Superintendent of Public Schools, Boston. superintendent's report. 45 teachers for our own schools. It has now been in operation two years and a half, and it must be con- fessed that the results of the enterprise thus far, have not equalled our expectations. It has furnished us with a few excellent teachers, but the number of this class is by no means answerable to the out- lay required in sustaining the department. The number of pupils is now somewhat increased, but the prospect of an increased supply of the class of teach- ers that we require, is not, I regret to say, very much improved. The obstacles to success in this department are not in the instructions furnished, for these have uniformly been of the highest order ; but they are, as I believe, mostly to be found in the conditions of membership. The average age of the pupils is now several months lower than it was two years ago, and it w^as then too low by two or three years. The terms of admission are still such, that a considerable portion of those who would derive the greatest benefit from normal instruction, are effectually excluded, wdiile many of those who now belong to the Normal School are en- tirely out of place, and should be transferred to the other departments. The form of examination prescribed for the admis- sion of pupils to the Classical and English Depart- ments of the High School, is a very unsatisfactory test of fitness to enter the Normal Department. A high rank of scholarship is often found associated with an entire destitution of those peculiar qualities of mind and heart which are essential to success in discharging the duties of the teacher.' 46 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. I would respectfully recommend that the minimum age of admission to the Normal Department be here- after changed from fifteen to sixteen years ; that the examination of candidates be disconnected entirely from the examinations for admission to the other departments, and that, in special cases, pupils be re- ceived at other times than the two regular periods of examination, provided there are vacant seats, and the candidates are prepared to enter existing classes. For more particular information respecting the High School, permit me to refer to the Report of the Principal. MUSIC. The movement in favor of introducing vocal music as a branch of Public School Instruction in this coun- try, was first made in Boston, in 1837. At the pres- ent time there are very few good schools to be found in which this branch does not receive more or less attention. The time devoted to Music in the Public Schools of this city, is not sufficient to enable the pupils to master the subject, but the progress made during the past year has been very commendable, both in the theory and practice of this important art. The sys- tem adopted by the teacher of music is substantially the same as that of Lowell Mason, which has been received with general favor in the schools of Massa- chusetts and other Eastern States. The first lessons, especially in the Primary Schools, consist chiefly of practicing songs and hymns by rote^ but the pupils are early introduced to scale exercises, first by rote, and afterwards by dictation. These exercises are of such a nature as to lead the pupils superintendent's report. 47 to an appreciation of the relations of pitch. When these relations are so well understood that the learn- er is able to sing correctly by dictation, he is carried forward to the sight representation by the degrees of the staff. Considerable time is necessarily devoted to pieces for recreation and for devotional purposes. These are first learned by rote, and afterwards analyzed for the purpose of deducing the general principles by which the pupil is to be guided in singing at sight. As early as practicable, the classes are advanced from the written forms of tunes previously learned by rote, to the reading of those which are entirely new. By adopting this course of instruction, a large por- tion of the more advanced pupils acquire the ability to perform the exercises intelligently, and to read music with a good degree of facility and accuracy. ATTENDANCE. Membership. — The average niimher of pupils belonging to all the schools, including the High School, during the year 1858, , was 5,516 Avera< ^e number belonging in 1857, 4,464 a a 6i « 1856, 3,688 u CC CC " 1855, 2,154 cc CC CC " 1854, 1,629 C6 CC CC " 1853, 1,795