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The following list of subjects and the number of papers in each, omitting discussions, will give a good idea of the character and scope of work that has been done in this department:

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Papers

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25. Normal and Training Schools

27. Psychology and Pedagogy

28. Qualifications of Principals and Teachers

29. Reading Circles

30. Supervision of City Schools

31. School Organization and Territorial Units

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5

6

5

26

7

12

13

8

7

9

15

3

7

41. Technical and Special Lines of Education

42. Withdrawal of Pupils from School

Total

2

12

I

345

Some of these subjects, it will be observed, never possessed any very great interest, either local or general, while others again have occupied a large sphere of the educational thought of this country. For instance, the discussion of manual training, which ran thru a period of eighteen.

years, containing eighteen set papers, besides voluminous discussions and suggestions, forms one of the most complete treatises on that subject, from a pedagogical standpoint, that have appeared in print.

Another very important subject that has received very full treatment is the supervision of city schools, beginning in 1868 and still continuing, having covered a period of thirty-one years. It is presented in twenty-six different papers, a number of them of very great value. Could these papers and discussions be bound into a volume for the use of town, county, and city superintendents, it would be an invaluable contribution to the pedagogic literature of this country. Such a treatise is greatly needed, since we have nothing approaching a standard work on this subject. Nearly every imaginable phase of the subject is herein treated with. great fullness.

I hope the Board of Trustees of the National Educational Association will take action upon this matter at an early date, authorizing the publication of such a volume.

The discussion of elementary schools, covering a period of sixteen years, is another contribution well worthy of publication. It has received. the attention its importance demanded, and yet the last word has not been spoken upon courses of study, methods of instruction, or the taxpaying power of a community. Sixteen papers have been formally presented and discussed by a strong array of teaching talent. It is one of the subjects at present still requiring further consideration. In the words of President Garfield: "When an elementary course is spread out too much it becomes exceedingly thin." The thickening and thinning processes are with us now.

County supervision and rural schools first came on the program in 1868, and continued till 1896. Sixteen different papers contain what has been advanced upon this topic. This field of work has been well mapped out, but leaving much to be done along the lines of modifying courses of study in rural schools, the consolidation of school districts, massing pupils in public schools in the sparsely settled communities by conveying them from remote distances to the schoolhouses at public expense, and the establishment of township high schools. While these questions have been thoughtfully considered in some localities, they are destined in the near future to come more prominently before the public for discussion and action. Already some of them have passed into the realm of business economy and common-sense.

National aid to education from 1872 to 1890 was continually in the foreground. The subject was one of great historic interest, and occupied. a much wider range in discussion than some other questions of more vital importance. As a matter of history, illustrating one phase of educational thought, the discussion possesses now a permanent value, owing to the legal issues involved. The condition which produced it having passed

away, it may be assigned to the realm of dead issues, liable, however, to be resurrected under some other, and unlooked-for, form.

Colleges and universities, by virtue of their character and great educational value, have ever held a prominent place in the department. Some of the ablest men in the nation have contributed very scholarly articles, and the discussion now going on presents new and unexpected phases each year. The transformations have been so rapidly pushed forward during the last two decades in college and university work that, compared with the former conservatism which had prevailed, it seems almost revolutionary to many, particularly in regard to elective courses and major and minor subjects for graduation and degrees. A strong reaction in some quarters is beginning to set in, and further concessions in the direction of conservatism will probably be made. College work, however, has been more sharply cut out from university work, and yet the line is a wavy one even on paper. The indications now are that each kind of institution will settle down into its own legitimate sphere, and neither will do the work that belongs strictly to the other. The weakest spot in our universities today is the vast amount of instruction assigned to tutors. As a matter of fact, the students do not come into close enough mental contact with men of superior attainments. The universities will adjust themselves to their work in due time. True manhood is an element of such vital importance that it must not be neglected in the training of young men.

The high-school question has called forth some of the best papers presented during the existence of the National Educational Association. While these contributions have not been so extensive, yet those presented possess great merit. There are many serious questions connected with high schools that remain to be solved. The legitimate function of the high school is certainly not in a state of stable equilibrium. There is a furious striving among too many of them to be more than high schools. A well-grounded feeling exists in many quarters that the sails are catching too much wind, and need shortening. One thing is certain: the high schools should teach some things well, and not attempt to have the pupils absorb a little something of everything without knowing any one thing well. Another grave question is the proper adjustment of the pupils to the courses of study, so that those who can complete the work in four years may do so, and those who require five years should not be rushed thru it in four years. Another adjustment should come at the end of the seventh year in the ward schools, at which time pupils of average attainments are prepared, or should be well enough prepared, to enter upon high-school work. Six years in ward schools, followed by six years in high schools, would prove poor economy in any community, and would be injurious to the pupils.

The subject of high-school statistics is also in a chaotic condition,

altho I endeavored last year to initiate a movement which will give, if generally adopted, results more trustworthy than those heretofore published.

Normal schools have been most fully treated in eleven articles, the first by Dr. Philbrick thirty years ago, and the last in 1898. The articles constitute a distinct and valuable treatise, notwithstanding what has been done in the Normal Department and in the National Council in this special line of work.

Ten excellent articles, spread over a period of thirty-two years, have been presented before the department on education in foreign countries, two of these articles being by foreigners and the others by Americans. In recent years this subject has been most ably summarized by the present Commissioner of Education in his excellent annual reports.

Another subject that has received generous treatment is that of schoolhouses and school sanitation, in twelve articles, some of which are by experts. Unless the subject shall be more completely worked out in the National Council, thru its present Committee on School Hygiene, it will admit of further elucidation. The present status of this subject is represented by the word "unfinished," and the same remark applies to several other topics that have been partially treated.

The South and her educational problem, under different titles, has occupied much space, but not more than its importance demands. It was an absorbing educational topic for years, and one of deep interest. The heroic efforts of the southern people to work out the problem in their own way, and in harmony with their local conditions, is destined to constitute one of the most remarkable chapters in American history. The southern people are handling this complicated question successfully and much better than other people could do it for them. Thru indomitable will-power, coupled with remarkable sagacity, they are accomplishing a great deal educationally, religiously, and socially for millions of people who can help themselves but little.

School boards, school units, school organization, and school administration, in this department as well as in the National Council, have engaged the best and most experienced thought of educators for nearly thirty years, and it is still a matter of very earnest and deep discussion. Every definite deliverance, to the present, is no more than a tentative experiment to hit upon a workable, satisfactory plan of adjustment to social and economic conditions.

Ten papers have been published on grading and promoting pupils, and the subject is still undecided.

It is pertinent to remark that in the general association, or in some of the other departments, several topics have been more fully discussed than in the Department of Superintendence, and in arranging programs this fact has been kept in view each year by the president. This accounts

for the meager treatment of some phases of education in the scheme I have condensed.

In my opinion the following topics will admit of much fuller treatment: child study on a rational and scientific basis; moral education, especially of the feelings; what school statistics ought to be collected; a more satisfactory and rational method of teaching the English language in the rural and city schools; an economic basis of conducting a system of public schools as dependent on the taxpaying power of a community; the relation of the superintendent to the board of education, with a view to avoiding useless and reckless expenditures and the exploitation of fads and frills; how to diffuse each year among the common-school teachers the best information published in the annual reports of the Commissioner of Education; at what hours should ward schools and high schools open and close each day, and what are the best periods for intermission? what effect does the change of teachers in the high schools have on the pupils in regard to the eighth commandment? a clear deliverance in regard to the subjects that are purely informational and those that are culture studies, or the difference between form and content studies; courses of study for elementary schools, including what subjects shall be in the course, and what shall be the aim and scope of the treatment; how shall small graded schools be best supervised, and what kind of course of study is best adapted to the needs of such communities? the ways and means to secure the best results in manual training in the grades so as not to detract from the efficiency of the regular work; what, how much, when, and by whom shall this be done? how much of domestic science and agriculture should be taught in the rural schools? what is the educational value of marking cadets at West Point and Annapolis? have examinations a legitimate place in the public schools?

Some of these subjects should be referred to committees for special investigation, and others assigned to individuals for additional discussion at future meetings of this department.

DISCUSSION

SUPERINTENDENT FRANK B. COOPER, Salt Lake City, Utah.-It seems to me that this body rests under much obligation to Superintendent Greenwood for the pains and labor taken by him in preparing a résumé of the work of this department, so concise and satisfactory. It would have been interesting and beneficial if one so conversant with the department and so long identified with its meetings could have included in his analysis an estimate of how far the discussion of these thirty-five years has affected the development of supervision.

This department has three well-defined functions. It exercises thru its social features, as well as thru the medium of its programs, an inspirational influence especially valuable; it has a didactic and instructive function afforded by addresses and discussions; it also has a definitive function exercised thru its declarations. The first

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