| Show EDUOAT10N SALT LAKE CITY Dec 80 1882 Editors Herald I should be pleased through tits medium of your popular paper to present a few educational facts for I the con sideration of the public I There is nothing worthy of more thought than that of the education of the young It affects the whole social intelligent and physical con itions of the human race The people of our Territory may boast of their many schools and low per cent of illiteracy still this is no argument that there is not an abundance of room for improvement improve-ment In order that a mechanic be successful suc-cessful in the construction of any piece of mechanism it is necessary that he have a plan ot that which he wishes to construct Tho archi tect in the construction of a building build-ing must know where to place every piece of material of which the structure is composed If in the common vocation of life a plan or system is essential then how important im-portant is it that there should be system in the direction and development I devel-opment of the immortal mind which affects the whole condition of the human race both individually individu-ally and collectively We have a school system in our Territory yet it is far from being complete is only a fragment True we have some good schools j but if these schools are not properly directed if there is enmity existing exist-ing one working against another can we expect the beneficial results that would follow if every part of the system were properly adjusted and working to accomplish the same end We acknowle Ige the University of Deseret as our governmental gov-ernmental schoolour normal school Can that institution do the good it is designed whett Bother popular schools of our Teriitorv are working against it In fact should we have more than one normal school It may be said that the demand for teachers requires more but could not teachers be prepared as well if not better in one school as another The public demands a school system sys-tem that works for the interest of of the whole territory and to the interest of any particular county to the disadvantage of another All the grades of our schools should be bound in one system the elementary elemen-tary school the high school and the university Pupils after completing complet-ing the course of instruction given in the elementary school coula then enter the high school and from there to the university Never will we have a thorough school system until we have school officers who understand the various departments of education Experts should direct in every department It would be folly to employ preachers preach-ers toconstruct railroadsor farmers to direct manufactures but persons per-sons are held as superintendents of schools who probably have never taught school a day in their lives or if they have it has been so long ago that they know nothing of the present educational advancement Their principal labor consists in making out their reports and drawing draw-ing their salary we need superintendents superin-tendents who are orhave been practical prac-tical teachers Because a man has a college education it does not qualify him to be a superindent of district schools One great fault with many of our present school books is that they are written by educated men and not practical teachers A county or territorial superintendent should be such a person that on entering a school he can tell whether the teacher is really educating his I pupils or cramming their minds i and making machines of them I must say a word in regard to our school books Recently the educational convention met and adopted certain books to be used in our district schools for five years Some of these books no doubt are the finest that could be chosenwhile others are certainly inferior Books are tools for pupils to use and great discretion should be used in their choice The Independent series of readers was adopted which does not give the satisfaction There are other readers considered by the best educational men of our country coun-try as much better What induced the convention to adopt them Was it because they thought these readers were cheap and a I free exchange was offered If so I why could the company selling them afford to do better than other publishing companies Was it the good quality of the Readers that made such ademand or have they been rejected by the intelligent states of our country and the company com-pany not being able to dispose of them and having a large stock on hand shipped them off to our Territory Ter-ritory as a cheap article and we were eager enough to take them The Independent Readers are not of modern style and ha e not the benefit of our late educational advancement ad-vancement like the Appleton Lip pincott or Monroe series It never pays to buy an article because of its cheapness Respectfully AN EDUCATOR |
