MANUAL TRAINING.

The subject of manual training in the public schools or in schools established specially for this purpose is now receiving much attention. While other States are making great advances in educational matters it does not become West Virginia to be lagging in the rear, and so it is advisable that a committee be appointed to investigate the subject of industrial education, as to whether it should be ingrafted upon the public school system or separate schools be established for the purpose.

RECOMMENDATIONS.

The following recommendations are made by the superintendent: That the employment of children under a certain age in factories, mills, or mines during the time the schools are in session be prohibited.

That boards of education be authorized to provide books and stationery for indigent pupils.

That the four years' certificates of teachers be renewable after the expiration of three years.

That the State board of education be authorized to establish a graded course of study for ungraded schools.

WISCONSIN.

[From Report for 1886-87 and 1887-388 of State Superintendent Jesse B. Thayer.]

SCHOOL ATTENDANCE.

The statistics of the year 1886-87 presented some remarkable and unexpected features, as they showed a decrease in all the items concerning which statistics were collected; even a decrease in the number of children of school age in the State, while it is well known that the population of the State has been rapidly increasing. This apparent decrease in the school population is very likely due to the system of joint school districts, the clerks of different districts being required to report the facts relating to schools to the town clerks, and it is very probable that many duplications were made. The law recently passed requiring the clerks when taking the census to take the name and age of each person, and with whom the same resides, very probably was the means of preventing many persons from being reported twice. The statistics of the cities did not show any decrease, but only the rural districts.

The attendance at school was smaller than in the previous year, and was occasioned to a large extent by the deep snows and stormy weather of the winter of 1886-87. In many instances the trustees were compelled to close the schools for one or two months, thus shortening the school term to that extent.

It is thought, too, that a larger number of children than usual attended private and parochial schools; but as no reports from these are made, although the law requires all chartered institutions to do so, it was impossible to ascertain the exact number of children attending them. Superintendent Thayer thinks that all such schools should be required to report at least the number of children attending them.

After all due allowance, however, has been made for these causes, the fact remains that the number of children attending the schools, and the number of days the schools were in operation, were much below what might reasonably be expected; and it should be ascertained whether this is due to anything connected with the schools, and, if so, in what way it might be corrected. In all the States there is a large number of children who do not attend school, and this should especially be expected in a new State like Wisconsin, where the people are constantly pushing farther out into the unoccupied lands where there are no schools, and even if there were the amount of work to be done in preparing land for cultivation, in building houses, etc., would be so great that little opportunity could be afforded children to attend school.

TOWNSHIP DISTRICTS.

Superintendent Thayer thinks that it should be considered whether the schools are not failing to accomplish what should be expected of them on account of their adhering to the old district system, a system which may have served a useful purpose in its time, but which is now being abandoned in many States, and in others the propriety of doing so is being considered. The district system requires the appointment of about eighteen thousand men in the State to attend to school affairs, and it is very probable that if fewer such officers were needed better men would be found, and the schools would soon begin to improve in many respects. The appointment of intelligent men who were interested in the success and prosperity of the schools would prove highly advantageous to them.

COURSE OF STUDY FOR UNGRADED SCHOOLS.

Much attention was given to the subject of establishing a regular course of study for ungraded schools, and so far as adopted it proved of great advantage in securing systematic and progressive work; and the desire of children to complete the course and to be able to stand a successful examination before the county superintendent, and to receive a certificate thereof, proved a valuable incentive to study. It is thought, too, that the adoption of such a course would be of great assistance to young teachers, as it would be a valuable guide to them in outlining the work to be accomplished.

TEACHERS.

The great majority of applications for teachers' certificates made and granted are for those of the lowest grade; of the 8,826 certificates granted during the past year only 435 were of the first grade and 1,058 of the second grade, and in the previous year still fewer first and second-grade certificates were issued. It is thought that the law of 1887, giving greater value to first and second-grade certificates, will induce teachers to make greater efforts to obtain them.

The requirement of the law that teachers shall pass a satisfactory examination in physiology and hygiene, and other studies, did not diminish the number of teachers receiving licenses, for the persons wishing to receive teachers' certificates at once began to qualify themselves in these branches. Superintendent Thayer thinks that some other studies should be added to the list required, namely, botany, elementary physics, and that branch of physiology which treats of animal life generally, and the laws of growth and health of domestic animals. It is thought that by including these in the commonschool curriculum, the instruction would be of a more practical character, and thereby be of greater interest to the pupils.

HIGH SCHOOLS.

A larger number of free high schools is reported than heretofore, and there is a larger attendance upon them. Their establishment has not interfered at all with the graded schools, and the appreciation of them is increasing. It is to be regretted that a larger number of towns, where there are no graded schools, have not availed themselves of the aid offered by the State for the establishment of high schools.

SCHOOL EXHIBIT.

The Legislature appropriated two thousand dollars for the purpose of making an exhibit of the work and condition of the public schools of Wisconsin at the National Centenary School Exposition held in Chicago, in July, 1887, in connection with the annual meeting of the National Educational Association. An extensive, well-arranged, and creditable exhibit was made of work of the public schools, normal schools, and State institutions, and at the close of the exposition at Chicago, the material was shipped to Milwaukee, where it was exhibited during the months of September and October, and afterwards returned to the contributors.

LIBRARIES FOR SCHOOLS.

Not much has yet been done towards establishing libraries under the recently enacted law, about thirty per cent. of the towns of the State having taken some steps in this direction. Some defects have been encountered in the administration of the law, but they may be easily remedied.

WYOMING.

[From Report of the Governor to the Secretary of the Interior, September 19, 1888.]

"The public schools in Wyoming are well attended considering all things, and are an honor and credit to the Territory. The superintendents, principals, and teachers are earnestly devoted to their work, and will compare favorably with those of any State or Territory." The leasing of the school lands can be made to yield a large fund for schools, and relieve the tax-payers of much of their public burden.

CHAPTER V.

DISCUSSIONS OF EDUCATIONAL QUESTIONS, CHIEFLY BY STATE SUPERINTENDENTS.

ADMINISTRATION-Arbor Day-Compulsory Attendance-Discipline-Education-Evening Schools— Graded Schools-High Schools-Hygiene-Irregular Attendance-Language of the Public SchoolsLibraries for Schools-Manual Training-Moral Training-National Aid-Private Schools-Prizes-Public Schools-Revenue-School-Houses - Supervision Teachers- Temperance Instruction― TextBooks-What shall be Taught in the Public Schools-Word Method of Teaching Reading.

I.-ADMINISTRATION.

Township districts adopted in Indiana.-Superintendent Holcombe, of Indiana: At first every school district was independent, with a school board of its own. This plan was found to be ineffective, wasteful, and extravagant. All the districts of a township were, therefore, united into a school corporation under a single responsible trustee. This was a great step in advance. Order began to prevail and some life appeared in the schools. Township districts favored in Missouri.-Superintendent Coleman, of Missouri: I greatly favor the township as the unit for the district. We have too many districts and, therefore, too many school boards. One board in a township, and a township tax to maintain the schools, would greatly simplify our system, giving more uniformity to the schools, length of term, and efficiency of school work and discipline.

Give satisfaction in Rhode Island.-Superintendent Stock well, of Rhode Island: So far as the towns have changed (to the township plan), the people are thoroughly satisfied that they get better schools for less money. I do not believe that there is a single advantage to be secured by the so-called district system as a system.

What would be secured.-Superintendent Thayer, of Wisconsin: I am most cordially in favor of an obligatory township system of school government. I am of the opinion that: (a) It would greatly equalize the cost of public schools.

(b) It would almost entirely remedy the evil of inconvenience to school-houses by permitting every child to attend where most convenient.

(c) It would do away very largely with the controversies over boundaries of school districts and the location of school-house sites.

(d) It would secure better school-houses and better appointments.

(e) It would secure better teachers by diminishing the opportunity for the prevalence of unworthy motives; would make it easier to secure uniformity and free supply of textbooks; would promote the efficiency of the township system of libraries; would promote some measure of local supervision; would insure the adoption of a course of study in ungraded schools.

(f) It would especially be useful in the way of such disposition of the available teaching force in the town that the greatest utility would result. The "mistits" of teachers

and districts are a large factor in the failure of schools.

Some of the advantages. -Superintendent Hine, of Connecticut: The township system has the following advantages:

(a) Greater efficiency of management.

(b) Because the system is co-ordinate and not dislocated.

(e) More public interest in schools, because the matter is of greater importance.

(d) There results always more schooling for the children.

(e) Equality of advantages, continuation of teachers in more places.

(f) A course of study pursued continuously to the end.

(g) Better buildings and material.

Better men could be secured as directors.-Superintendent Smith, of Tennessee: The township district is decidedly the plan for Tennessee. I favor the township plan because we have several object-lessons in Tennessee that speak louder than words.

The

fewer men you have to manage the schools, the better. We can secure good directors on the township plan with but little troubic; the other plan gives much trouble.

Gives satisfaction in Alabama.-Superintendent Palmer, of Alabama: By our fundamental law every township is a school district and a body corporate, and there has been no disposition to change it, and the system gives satisfaction.

Advantages of.-Superintendent Thompson, of Arkansas: In the township a larger number of voters would give a more general expression of the popular will, and more interest would be manifested in selecting good men for school directors. The township as the school district would do away with the necessity of transferring from one district to another; the schools would be as convenient as they are under the present system, the people would retain the same absolute control over the schools, and equal privileges be secured to all. At present, locality determines the length of the school term and other privileges; for instance, one district has a school for eight or nine months, with a comfortable house and excellent teacher, and in the same neighborhood, in another district, though the number of children is greater, there is only a three months' term.

How it works in New Hampshire.-Superintendent Patterson, of New Hampshire: It will no longer be possible for a rich district, by squandering surplus funds on a few pupils, to deprive all the other scholars in town of a portion of their legitimate schooling. It will no longer be possible for the village child, unless under special act, to secure thirty or forty weeks of schooling, while the boy or girl on the farm gets but ten or fifteen because he happens to live in a poor district. It will no longer be possible to limit a heavy tax-payer in a poor district to half the schooling of a non-taxpayer in a rich one. The law makes the town as at first the political unit of the State, and is in the interest of equality and fair play.

No law ever encountered at the outset, greater or more groundless prejudices than this, and none ever disarmed opposition more quickly, and demonstrated its power to benefit the State. Though the sum paid teachers is $10,328 less than last year, the average length of school has been two weeks more. There has been a more equitable distribution of educational opportunities than formerly, and, as a rule, better teachers have been employed.

The reports from the school boards generally indicate that the new law is settling down into an efficient and orderly system, and that the people, as they become accustomed to it and recognize its power to eliminate chronic evils and vitalize the schools, are disposed to cherish and maintain it.

In favor of it.-Superintendent Draper, of New York: I am myself inclined to favor the proposition, in the belief that it would result in securing a better class of men for trustees in the rural districts, and that the levying of a tax upon the entire town for the support of the schools of the town would operate to the advantage of the weaker outlying districts.

What might be expected of it.-Superintendent Edwards, of Illinois: As a consequence of the establishment of this system, I should expect to see better organization, better grading, an elevation of the standard of teachers' qualifications, more methodical and efficient work in the schools. Under that system schools would not be isolated as they are now. They would be each a part of a reasonable system.

A county system in Maryland.-Superintendent Newell, of Maryland: There are no townships in Maryland nor, so far as I know, in any of the Southern States. The unit of authority and direction for schools and other purposes is the county. I am glad that such a monstrosity as the district system has never been known among us. If we had it we should make every effort to get rid of it.

Township districts will be adopted.-Superintendent Estabrook, of Michigan: The system is sure to prevail. We shall come to look on our present system as if under dark ages. The merits of the system cannot fail to commend themselves to the judgment of all who will give it their careful and candid consideration.

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Works well in Massachusetts.-Superintendent Dickinson, of Massachusetts: The township system works infinitely better than did the district system.

Secures good local management.-Superintendent Morgan, of West Virginia: Under this system our schools have the advantage of a careful local management and all the advantages of the district system.

Gives satisfaction.-Deputy Superintendent Stewart, of Pennsylvania: The township system is entirely satisfactory.

Is being adopted in Maine.-Superintendent Luce, of Maine: The increase of fifteen in the number of towns that have discarded the district system-a very marked increase as compared with the number abolishing in any previous year-is, therefore, evidence of better schools in as many towns. It is also evidence of the growth of a public recognition of the need of reform in this direction, and is thus a promise of better things to

come. The Legislature of 1887 can do no more beneficent work for the State than to wipe from the statutes every provision therein, under and by which the school-district system exists.

All experience goes to prove beyond possibility of disproof that schools managed on the town plan are more economically managed, and are in every way more efficient than those managed on the district plan.

Desired in Vermont.-Superintendent Dartt, of Vermont: The experience of another two years in the common schools of the State has still more fully convinced me of the utter inefficiency of our plan of district management. A large number of our people have felt this to be true for some time, and have urged a change throughout the whole State. These people are intelligent; they are actuated by unselfish motives, and have a strong desire to see our schools lifted out of this low and unsatisfactory condition to one of efficiency, strength, and progress. No movement was ever advocated with a more patriotic spirit than this one for the improvement of our system of education for the children of our commonwealth, and none is worthier of the careful, unprejudiced, and thoughtful consideration of our citizens.

It is worthy of note that most of the teachers and nearly all others who have been practically connected with the schools, favor the change of the district for the town management. Nearly every gathering of teachers in the country has indorsed this movement. * *Not only is the district system inefficient, but it is inequitable and unjust. It discriminates against the poor in favor of the rich, and gives no equality of opportunities, having wholly outlived its usefulness as a promoter of intelligence among the people.

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There are now in Vermont thirty towns using this system, and it is working well. As for myself I believe in the town system. The old district system has served its day and should be now made to give place to a better. * * This town system is right in the line of progress and it can not be stopped. It will move on in spite of ignorance, prejudice, and parsimony. Let us work for it. We are right, and I believe the right will prevail. Township districts desired in Texas. -Superintendent Cooper, of Texas: In the States which have been divided into townships, the town has been found to be the most satisfactory unit for the subdivision of the county for school purposes. The plan of forming districts so small that one school for each race will supply the needs of all the children in the district has been found to be liable to nearly the same objections which have been found to lie against the community system in Texas. The North-western States, where we find the best system of rural schools, are gradually abandoning the one-school district for the township district, containing from five to fifteen schools. Some of the Southern States have adopted the township district, notably Alabama, and all find it the best possible unit. This instructive fact will furnish us with a safe guide in fixing the general size of school districts. The area of the township is about 36 square miles.

II. ARBOR DAY.

Why we should have an Arbor day.—Superintendent Hoitt, of California: We have heard much and read more of the wanton destruction of our forests. Our schools can not protect the forests, but they can raise up a generation which will not leave our hill-sides and mountains treeless; a generation which will frown upon and rebuke the wanton destruction of our forest trees. There is no spot on earth that may not be made more beautiful by the help of trees and flowers. If, under the influence of a manifest destiny, the child must inevitably leave the home of his childhood, we may at least surround the home with beauty and make it attractive, so that his heart, in whatever distant land it beats, shall, like the sea-shell far from its ocean bed, retain some faint whispers of its early dwelling place.

Trees everywhere exert a controlling moral influence. We may not be able to tell why or how it is done, but the fact we know and feel in our every day's existence. Every sapling which we plant in our door yard or upon the naked sidewalk in front of our dwellings makes, with every spreading branch, expanding leaf, and opening blossom, home pleasanter and recollections of it stronger. Our schools bear a near relation to the State, but a much closer relation to the family, and when school opens the family life of the whole district is stirred up as if it were a festival day. We should not be satisfied till the school grounds, as well as our homes, are such in themselves and in their surroundings as shall not only be attractive, but shall surely tend to strengthen, elevate, and ennoble human character.

Let us have a legally appointed "Arbor day," and take the children out of our schools, and, ander proper directions, teach them how to plant shade trees, shrubbery, and flowers. Teach them how to prepare and plant the lawn with their own hands, and to care