Educational Meetings

Every district should have its teachers' organization. This organization should consist of all the teachers in the district and the directors, if they can be induced to join. The officers should consist of President, Vice President, and Treasurer. Such an organization can be of real, vital significance in the district if it will just comprehend its opportunities. The results of the School Fairs are sufficient evidence to the teachers who held one.

This organization need not be limited as to what it may do. Anything that will improve educational sentiment, buildings, grounds, method, social center work, club organization work, etc., will easily fit their sphere of usefulness. Here, however, we desire that this organization plan for the local institute. The Superintendent's office will give all the aid it can but must rely upon the teachers to plan the meetings and advertise them. Three meetings of the nature mentioned here have already been held and the results were encouraging. At Sligo there were over forty teachers in attendance and a spirited and profitable meeting resulted. At Hawthorn there were twenty teachers and many children and parents present. On December 3 and 4 the teachers of Limestone will hold a meeting at Frogtown and we expect to see a splendid meeting.

We are going to suggest the following plan for the method of procedure in these meetings:

Three sessions should be held. On Friday evening a lecture or local talent entertainment may be given or a combination of both. On Saturday morning, we believe the meeting should be exclusively for the teachers and directors. We find that more can be accomplished for the teachers by getting them together in the nature of a round table conference and having a heart-to-heart talk concerning school matters. This was a feature of the Sligo and Hawthorn meetings and it was the best part of each meeting. Saturday afternoon should be open to the entire community and questions of a community nature should be discussed. Let us give this plan a good trial this year and see if we cannot get better results than we have ever gotten before.

Local committees will notify the Superintendent's office as soon as they have arranged a meeting and we shall notify the teachers who can conveniently attend that we shall expect them to attend. A record of the teachers attendance at these meetings will be kept and reported to the school boards.

We feel sure that the high school teachers will be glad to aid in these meetings as they have always done. It has been through their efforts that the borough schools have reaped such an abundant harvest of rural pupils for high schools.

We give below a list of questions that may be discussed in the round table session, and every teacher should be prepared to discuss any of the following questions when called upon.

Topics for Round Table Conference

Physical Equipment

1. What should be the minimum equipment for each school?
2. How secure what is needed?
3. How beautify and make cheerful the school room?
4. How beautify the school grounds?
5. What has each one of you done to beautify and make cheerful your school room and school ground. Let each one tell.
6. School libraries.
7. What books should be added.
8. How get them?
9. Supplementary reading for the grades. What? and how to get it?

Method

1. In Reading.
2. In Spelling.
3. In Writing.
4. In Arithmetic.
5. In Geography.
6. In History.
7. In Grammar and Language.
8. In Physiology and Hygiene.
9. In Agriculture.

Miscellaneous

1. Standardization of rural schools.
2. How secure better attendance.
3. Problems of discipline.
4. The Course of Study.
5. Assigning the lesson.
6. Seat work for pupils.
7. The daily program.
8. How deal with backward pupils?
9. When is a school well governed?
10. When is a class well taught?
11. What should beginners accomplish in the first term?
12. How many recitations do your beginners have daily?
13. Suggestions for making our teaching more effective.
14. Organizing various kinds of clubs.
15. Can Manual Training be taught in rural schools?
16. Can Domestic Science be taught?
17. What pupils should be recommended to take the High School Entrance Examinations?
18. Monthly examinations?
19. Monthly reports to children.