teaching, this being specially noticeable in moral training, reading, language, and geography. In all branches and grades there was an increasing use of methods that look to right training rather than to preparation of pupils to pass stated examinations.

It goes without saying that the success of the plan was greatest in the schools favored with principals who saw most clearly its ends and principles, and earnestly worked to realize them. It requires deeper pedagogical insight and higher intelligence to administer any rational system than is necessary "to run a machine," especially such a machine as the "examination grind" once was in Cincinnati.

It should be added that the plan was popular with the patrons of the schools. The year closed without the excitement and worry of the written examination and the consequent overtaxing of nervous energy. The teachers were also relieved of the "drudge work" of reading thousands of examination papers that disclose nothing not already known, and that throw little light on the one question to be decided-the fitness of pupils for promotion. The year closed with fresh and profitable instruction.

The above test of the reliability of the judgment of teachers was made under somewhat unfavorable circumstances. Most of the teachers had been schooled under the examination system, and had taught under it. They had learned the art of preparing pupils for examinations, and few had relied on their judgment in determining the success or standing of their pupils. Moreover, written examinations had been largely relied upon as a spur and stimulus in daily work, and “ per cents" had been kept before the minds of pupils as the ends of effort. The new plan changed all this. It dethroned the examination idol, “100 per cent.," and necessitated reliance on other and higher motives. It took time for principals and teachers to adjust themselves to the new order of things; but a praiseworthy effort to give the new system a fair trial removed "the lions in the way," one by one, and begat confidence and skill, and, in the short period of 23 years, an unlooked for success was attained. Of course, more time than this was required to perfect the system in all its details and also to secure desired skill on the part of all the teachers, and especially was this true in a city in which the superintendent has no assistant.

PLANS OF USING TEACHERS' JUDGMENT.

The returns before us show that different plans are used in different cities, and in the several schools or grades in the same city, to ascertain the judgment of teachers respecting the fitness of pupils for promotion; in other words, the judgment of teachers respecting the success of pupils in daily work. One of these plans involves the daily marking of pupils, another weekly or monthly reviews by teachers, another themaking of estimates once a week or once a month, another the making of estimates once a quarter or term, etc.

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The simplest of all these plans is the making of a list of the pupils qualified for promotion at the time. This involves no marking or record of any kind, except the record that "keeps itself," in the teacher's memory. Several of the smaller cities promote pupils in this way, and it is used in most cities in the two or three lower primary grades. The teacher's judgment at the time of promotion is approved and honored by the principal or superintendent.

At the opposite extreme is the daily marking of the pupil's success on a numerical scale or otherwise. This "marking system," as it is called, came from the colleges into the academies and high schools, and from them into the lower schools. It was once a common college practice to mark students as they recite, but the marking is now more commonly done at the close of the exercise or close of the day.

The daily marking of pupils should be abandoned in all public schools. It not only limits the freedom and power of the teacher, but it dissipates his energy and wastes precious time. No teacher can give his whole strength to instruction and drill and at the same time estimate and record the value of the pupil's work. The two things are incompatible. The more attention that is given to marking, the less will be given to teaching. We have never seen a "marking teacher" give a live and skillful lesson in any grade of school. In a few excep

tional cases we have seen a vigorous test exercise attended with marking with little apparent loss of power, but there are very few teachers capable of such double work, even in a test exercise. The marking of pupils as they recite kills true teaching, especially in large classes.

Moreover, most class exercises in elementary schools are lessons combining instruction and drill with, at best, but a small element of testing. It is not only useless to attempt to mark the work of pupils in such an exercise, but the attempt kills the lesson. It is for this reason that the marking system has so small a place in elementary lessons in science, and especially in laboratory instruction. A few years since nearly all class exercises in the colleges and academies were recitations, i. e., tests of the pupil's study, and the marking system was devised as a numerical record of these test results. Its use in lessons is a perversion of its original purpose, as well as a waste of time and energy.

Between these two extreme practices is the plan which makes and records one or more estimates of the pupil's proficiency prior to the time of promotion. These estimates may be made at the close of each term or quarter, or bimonthly or monthly, or weekly-probably the monthly estimate is the better practice. Experience shows that the success of pupils in daily work can be estimated as accurately at the close of a week or month as at the close of each day. The longer period not only includes several test exercises, but the testing of all the pupils in the class. This is not true of a single exercise or the exercises of a day.

The special purpose of these recorded estimates is to pass judgment on the fidelity and success of pupils during the period for which they are made. They are not primarily judgments respecting the fitness of pupils for promotion, but they afford an intelligent basis for such a judgment when the time for promotion comes.

It is obvious that in making estimates of pupils' success prior to their promotion, the teacher's judgment is less likely to be influenced by sympathy and other personal motives than when made with direct reference to their promotion. It is also obvious that such a record may be a needed assurance to the teacher and also a means of defense in case the accuracy of his judgment is questioned. Besides, these several estimates give pupils information respecting their success, and, when failure is due to a lack of application, it gives parents an opportunity to secure its correction before it is too late.

THE MONTHLY ESTIMATE PLAN.

For the information of those who may be considering the adoption of the estimate plan, we give here, somewhat in detail, the plan of making and recording estimates adopted in Cincinnati in 1887.

The teachers in the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth grades (not in first and second grades) were required to make and record at the close of each month careful estimates of the pupils' fidelity and success in the several branches, and, as before stated, the rules required these estimates to be made without daily marking and without monthly or other stated examinations for the purpose.

These monthly estimates were made on the scale of 1 to 10, the number 4 and below denoting very poor work (failure), 5 poor, 6 tolerable* (not positively good or poor), 7 good, 8 very good, 9 excellent, and 10 perfect (little used, excellent being the highest mark). To avoid the evils of the per cent. comparison of pupils, prevalent in the schools, the initial letters were used in making the estimate record; very poor work being entered P; poor work, P; tolerable,* T; good, G; very good, G; excellent, E; and perfect, Pr.

The teachers were instructed to estimate the success of pupils primarily as excellent or good or poor, these distinctions being easily made and also being sufficient for all practical purposes. The other grades of estimate, as T and G, were to be used only when greater accuracy was desired.

To enable the teachers to record and average these monthly estimates with the least possible labor, a record book was devised which permitted the recording of ten estimates without rewriting the pupils' names and without turning leaves, and in a form convenient for averaging, and also for use in promoting pupils. The page was so ruled as to permit the entry of the yearly record of seven pupils on a page.

*The word fair (F) is preferable to "tolerable," but there were reasons for not using it in Cincinnati.

The following diagram* (one-seventh of record page) represents the ruling, the method of entering estimates, averaging, etc.:

The estimates for the first five months are recorded at the left of the double line, and those for second five months on the right. The averages for each five months are written on the sixth horizontal line and the averages for the year on the seventh line.t

In averaging estimates the corresponding numbers may be mentally substitued for the letters, and the letter that represents a value nearest the result recorded. The exponent 2 attached to a letter, as G2, indicates that the average is one-half added to the value of the letter, thus: G2 denotes 74; G2, 84, etc. Fractions more or less than one-half are discarded.

At the close of the year the pupils are promoted on these recorded estimates, a standing of good (7) or higher in each branch entitling a pupil to promotion, and this record standing may be seen almost at a glance. In case a pupil stands below good (7) in one or two branches he may also be promoted on his record, provided that these lower estimates are not in the daily and more essential branches.

Pupils not entitled to promotion on their record standing may be promoted on the judgment of the teacher and principal that they are able to do successfully the work in the next higher grade. In making such exceptional promotions the superintendent or principal takes into consideration the pupil's habitual diligence in study, good conduct, age, length of time in grade, prior school advantages, future opportunities, etc.-in a word, the pupil's true interests.

In case of dissatisfaction, as before stated, a pupil's fitness for promotion may, on application of parent or guardian, be further determined by a written examination, the results being considered as additional evidence.

*A monthly record on this plan is published by the American Book Company, New York.

+ The above form may readily be used for recording bimonthly, quarterly, or term estimates, or the results of examinations.

TEACHING EXAMINATIONS.

We now come to a closing inquiry respecting the use of examinations for teaching purposes, i. e., examinations instituted for the one purpose of aiding and improving instruction and study. To distinguish an examination held for such a purpose from the promotion examination, we designate it a teaching examination.

It is not assumed in this distinction that promotion examinations do not also influence teaching and study, or that this may not be in the mind of the examiner. Too much space has already been devoted to a consideration of their evil influence in these directions to permit such an assumption here. In a certain sense even promotion examinations may be regarded as an element of teaching; but we are now to consider the use and value of the examination when completely divorced from promotion and used solely as an element of teaching.

As a further preliminary to the inquiry before us it seems proper to observe that the chief argument used by the advocates of promotion examinations is their assumed utility as a means of improving teaching and study. One advocate insists that they are needed as "a guide and spur to school work;" another that they are needed "to disclose to teachers and pupils alike their actual success," and still another that they are needed as "a means of self-knowledge to teacher and pupil."

On the other hand, the value of the test as an aid to teaching and study is conceded by the most extreme opponents of examinations when used as a basis of promotion, rank, honors, etc. In his trenchant paper on the "Sacrifice of Education to Examination," Frederick Harrison, of England, says:

I do not deny that teachers may usefully examine their own students as a help to their own teaching. * Examination, like so many other things, is useful so long as it is spontaneous, occasional, simple. Its mischief begins when it grows to be organized into a trade.

It is hoped that it may appear as we proceed that all the beneficial results claimed can be best secured by examinations instituted and used solely for teaching purposes. It will certainly be made clear that the disuse of promotion examinations does not involve in any degree the disuse of tests, oral or written.

THE TEST A TEACHING PROCESS.

The first fact to be noted in our inquiry is that the test is one of three cardinal teaching processes. Its immediate purpose is to disclose the results of instruction and drill-the other teaching processes-and also of study, the pupil's effort. This disclosure of results is essential to all successful teaching, and this is especially true in secondary and elementary schools. It is not possible for the teacher to determine when to take a step in advance, or how best to take it, if he is ignorant of the results of the steps already taken. In disclosing what has been