A. The hand as well as the ear and the eye should constantly be brought into requisition in school exercises. A parent would justly complain if his boy wrought no examples himself, in written arithmetic - only saw them wrought and heard them explained. Map drawing is in like manner a legitimate part of learning geography, and may reasonably be required. Q. A boy - an orphan - having a guardian in another state, lives in this district. Should he be admitted free of tuition ? ? A. If it is known that he has a regular home elsewhere, and is but a temporary sojourner in the district, for the purpose of attending school, he is not entitled to free tuition. But if he lives wherever he can find employment, has no settled home, he should be admitted. His guardian may have no home in particular. If there is any doubt about such a case, the pupil should have the benefit of it; should be enumerated and treated as a resident of the district. Q. Suppose a teacher admits non-resident pupils, without the authority of the board, what is to be done — can they be excluded ? A. The action of the teacher amounts to nothing. Pupils not admitted by the board, and clearly not entitled to free tuition in the district, should be so informed, and requested to leave. They may be excluded, if they persist in coming. But the board in such cases should act with due caution and gentleness. It is of course proper to communicate with the parents. Q. We learn that in some cities in the state children under six are not admitted to the public schools. As we are crowded, we should exclude them perhaps, if we have power. Can we do so? A. The Constitution forbids. No city or district can have any such power unless that is changed, however profoundly convinced that children are too young to attend school, until six years old. HOLIDAYS. Q. As the 22d of February comes this year on Saturday, is a teacher entitled to another day in place of it? A. No, the conjunction of the holiday and the vacant day confers no right to an extra holiday. Saturday is a perpetual vacation day, and the teacher is not required by law to teach but twenty days for a month. Q. By request of the board, I closed the school during the two wec':sembracing Christmas and New Years; am I not entitled to two days in place of them? A. This would not seem unfair; but you cannot claim them if you made no such stipulation in consenting to the vacation. TEXT-BOOK ADOPTION AND PURCHASE. Q. Sundry publishing houses offer books at very low rates to districts, if adopted by the board, and if the districts authorize the boards to deal directly with the houses, and they promise to continue the low rates as long as the adoption continues. But many boards and districts are afraid that the adoption once made, and the books once introduced, the prices will be put up; and so they continue to buy of local dealers, without any adoption, and pay the old high prices. Now what I wish to know is, will these houses act in good faith and carry out their pledges? A. This question is somewhat outside the school law. It is the duty of the board to adopt. It is the privilege of the district to authorize district purchase. In doing this, they will get the books at about half the usual cost, in the long run, as there will be no change for at least three years. No respectable house will fail to keep its pledges as to price. It cannot afford to do otherwise. To break its pledges would simply have the effect to destroy its own good name and its business. There need be no fear or hesitancy in adopting good books; still less in adopting the policy of district purchase. The publishers we mean all well known and respectable ones will unquestionably do as they agree. The three things to be carefully attended to are: 1. To know that the publishing house is respectable, and the books issued by it approved by the State Superintendent. 2. To know that the agent representing the house, or claiming to is reliable. 3. To proceed strictly according to law. It is best to have nothing to do with any agent who is unknown, and has no satisfactory credentiils, and especially who countenances unlawful modes of procedure, and represents obscure publishers. The following are the western addresses of the firms which supply most of the school books used in this state: D. Appleton & Co., 117 State St., Chicago. do so, Sheldon & Co., 117 State St., Chicago. Van Antwerp, Bragg & Co., Cincinnati, Ohio. (Address H. A. Boyce, Milwaukee, or F. A. Hutchins, Madison, as agents for the latter house). A request by postal card, addressed as above, will bring price lists, etc. Q. If new laws are passed this winter as to text-books, will that not interfere with the adoptions made under the present laws? A. If the legislature takes any action in this matter, it will doubtless provide for the continuance in force of adoptions already made, until the time expires. EDUCATIONAL MEETINGS. PRINCIPALS' ASSOCIATION. Minutes of the Session of 1878. MADISON, Wis., Dec. 26th, 1878. Meeting was called to order by Prest. S. Shaw, of Madison. Sec'y E. R. Smith being absent, W. G. Clough, ot Portage, was appointed secretary pro tem. Pursuant to programme, Prof. R. W. Burton, of Janesville, read a paper on "Nominal Superintendents,” of wbich the following is but an imperfect synopsis: The most general form of school supervision is to have a principal at the head of the school, who is able in management and qualified to instruct. In connection with him is a superintendent, a person who generally takes an interest in education, and who has spare time to devote to this work, in addition to the duties of another and regular calling. This system is found to be inefficacious, since the superintendent has not that intimate acquaintance with the needs of the scbool which will render his work most beneficial in results. It is also obstructive, as the superintendent has the power, which he not iofrequently exercises, to obstruct the principal, whose directions are disregarded. Such a system is the semblance of things without the substance. The superintendent should know the details of the work. To be skillful involv.s much energy, education, and study, which bis attendant calling does not admit of being given. Further, the usual salary is no compensation for the work, or, if it is, the work must be of doubtful character. Here ihe speaker digressed, to consider the purpose of school instruction. He holds that forty per cent. ot the cost of schools is swailowed up in the work of bigher instruction; tbat the studies should be limited to those that are of a practical nature; that, while the city is willing to pay for educating children for the practical work of life, it does not wish to furnish instruction in ornamental studies; that the higher branches have no business in the common school. He thinks there is too much cant on the subject of popular education; that com. pulsory education is talked of as if the state were above the people; that this idea comes from the old world, and grows out of the principle of paternalism in government. While its advocates hold that knowledge is power, that the republic is in danger of being destroyed by the ignorance of the people, they forget that the greater the knowledge tbe greater the power of evil; that human power has more often been used for bad ends than for good; that all history abounds with illustrations to show that education does not, necessarily, work for virtue and morality. Reverting to his subject, the speaker beld that nominal superintendency fails of conformity to skillful practice. It is not the principle we carry out in other callings. Again, it is adverse to the true principle of economy. Such economy is false, and drives out the teaching ability which demands a compensation for its work. The speaker also considered that much of the money spent in school reports could be expended in other directions with better results. Among the duties, resting on a superintendent, are those of furnishing and maintaining a proper course of instruction, examining teachers, giving general inspection to their work, assisting them in disciplining scholars, enforcing a due observance of rules, and presiding at teachers' meetings. Such work requires executive ability, wide knowledge and culture, and close relations with the Board of Education. The superintendent's time is inadequate for the work, and the whole arrangement is an empty show, a cheap system of espionage. It lays too much respon. sibility on the principal without giving him power to accredit himself. Efforts should be made to secure the repeal of existing laws on this subject, and our body should take action and lend our power and pens to decry the practice. Prin. I. N. Stewart, of Berlin, is fortunate in having a superintendent who is skilled in his work, but thinks that an unskilled superintendent might be a great detriment. When much work devolves upon the superintendent, the system is not best. Prin. Burton holds the double office of superintendent and principal. The principal's work is reduced to a minimum, while the balance of the time is spent in leading the force and inspecting work. He has pleasant relations with the school board, and tainks that for cities above 5,000 the system he works un. der the best. Supt. Westcott, of Racine, facetiously said that it was a dangerous topic to dis. He holds the double office of superintendent, and principal of high school. His city is looking to a nominal superintendency. While there is a little fric. tion, he finds things agreeable in Racine. He thinks there are two sides to the question; that the principal of the high school is not always the best superintendent, not always given to executive work. He himself prefers school work. Prin. W. H. Beach, of Beloit, has taught where there has been no superintendent, but where the board exercised this power. They usually accepted the suggestions offered by the principal. At presept he has as nominal superinten. dent, a gentleman of culture and long experience, and in sympathy with teachers, cuss. His owu work in superintending is bries, while grave matters are referred to the superintendent. Supt. C. W. Roby, of La Crosse, is pleased with holding the single office of superintendent, and thinks there are good reasons for keeping the offices sepa. rate. He does not see the force of Prof. Burton's argument in regard to the saving on school reports. In general, the duties of superintendence allow no time for instruction. Prin. W. H. De La Matyr, Spring Green, thinks that the sys!em of nominal superintending does not fix the responsibility. Prin. T. F. Frawley, of Eau Claire, is satisfied with the arrangements at Eau Claire, where each principal is responsible for his work. He thinks that, in general, the superintendent should be principal, and have a voice in the selection of the lower teachers. Prin. A. R. Sprague, of Evansville, works under the district system. He regards it essential that the lower schools be as well taught as the high school, and that the trouble does not lie so much in the inefficiency of subordinates as in the want of good supervision. Another principal said that observation shows that that is best done which is done with oneness of purpose and design. If the school work is not so extensive as to demand all of one person's time, let it devolve on the prin. cipal. In the absence of Prin. E. R. Smith, of Burlington, who was to read a paper on “Inducements to Teach,” Prin. 0. S. Westcott, of Racine, opened the dis ssion on the subject. He thinks the primary inducement to teach is to support one's self and fam. ily. Incidentally, there are many other reasons. He would advise every young lady to teach school for her own benefit. One year in teaching school will give as much development as two years in the high school. Again, vacations are an advantage — the teacher's prerogative. Teaching affords abundance of time for outside study. Teachers ought to use well their opportunities, make new investigations, rise to a higher plane, and add each year to previous attainments. Prin. W. H. Beach, of Beloit, opened a discussion on state certificates. He thinks teachers are apt to fall into the ruts, and he looks to state certificates as an inducement for something new. Some characters make no advance, move in a circle, and lose all their life. They need exercise to quicken the circulation, So with teachers. They need something to awaken them to new efforts. He thinks successful teaching should stand on equal level with better educa. tional advantages; that the chief essential for success is not so much a peculiar culture, as broad, liberal common sense. As Prof. Salisbury was at a loss to know what Prof. Beach meant by putting all on a level, the latter responded that he would not give certificates to any ex. cept those having passed examinations. Prin. Shaw, of Madison, thinks a person holding a state certificate is entitled to be proud. Such certificates are an incentive to pursue a wider range of study than usual, and should privilege their holders from re-examination. Certificates are given to graduates of normal schools which furnish an English education |