VOL. XIX.
■■v      * * * i
INDIANAPOLIS, IND., SATURDAY, OCT. lc, 1884.
NO. 42.
THE COMMON SCHOOLS;
Bow School Houses Shonld be Jjoca
ted and Built.
l>'ew Organization of the System Needed.
BY DR. T. C. HUNTER, WABASH, IND. .
The ideal school house Is located upon a
jomewhat elevated site, which has a gravely subsoil, and has been thoroughly
drained upon the surface, and if it has a
_? subsoil, has been well underdrained
tv drain tile placed from three to five feet
slider ground, with sufficient descent and
outlet, to carry off the water rapidly and
completely. There should be no swampy
or Wet land, in the immediate vicinity,
neither should there be any dense timber
jerynear. The ground surrounding the
tuiiding should not be too heavily shaded.
There should be an abundance of air and
lanlight about the building. The lower
joor should be at least two or three feet
from the ground. If the walls are made
of brick or stone, there should be a layer
of asphalt, or some other substance impervious to water, In the walls, below the
floor. The walls should be hollow,}. e.
hire a space of two or more inches be-
tueen tbe inner and outer wall, with perforated brick here and there in the outer
null to admit a free circulation of air between the walls. This would keep the Inner wall entirely free from moisture.
THE DIMENSIONS OP THE SCHOOL BOOM
ihould be in the proportion of ten, seven,
four. A room 36 feet long, 25 feet wide
ind 13 feet high, is as large as is profitable
j build. A room larger than this, would
lose in value, by reason of the increased
difficulty in lighting and ventilating. Such
iroom will accommodate 40 or at most 50
scholars. The window space should be
not loss than one-sixth as much as the
Joor space. The windows should be on
lie left and behind the pupils, but never
a the right or front. The window sills
ihoald be at least 40 inches above the floor,
md the top of the window should be as
near the ceiling as possible. There should
to no projection over the windows on the
ide, that would interfere with the
light. The glass should be stained a light
bluish-violent, or there should be curtains
of that shade. Inside shutters should have
rolling slats, so that the light could be directed upward or downward at will, and
«the same time admit the fresh air, in
wm weather when desirable. If shutters are used, the glass surface should be
increased correspondingly. The ceiling
should be a pure white, and the walls of
■ neutral gray.
HOW HEATED.
Our ideal school room is heated by steam,
through a perforated ceiling, over which
•"he air chamber containing the steam
». These air chambers receive air
from a point 10 or 15 feet above the ground,
border to avoid malaria as much as pos-
flto. The heated air thus admitted,would
kfreout the foul and cold alrof the room,
-rough registers placed in the floor, or in
ie walls just above the floor, and which
*ould be connected with pipes, which
*si downward with egress near the
Sound.  The carbonio acid and other Im
purities, would not be carried up by ascending currents of heated air, as in the
common plan, and thus mixed with the
pure air at the top of the room, but would
be pressed out below. This would effect a
considerable saving of fire. The temperature of the room at the height of four feet
from the floor, should range from 64" to 68°
F. 3,500 cubic feet of pure air every hour,
for each occupant is required for perfect
ventilation. Our ideal school room.will
of course be provided with that amount.
This will make the expense greater than
that of a poorly ventilated room, but the
patrons of the school value the health of
their children, who are to be their successors In the arena of life's battle, more than
they do a few paltry dollars.
The seats should be of such a height that
the pupil can rest both feet squarely on the
floor, without elevating the knees. The
desk should be somewhat sloping, and
should project one inch over the front edge
of the seat. Each desk should be provided
with a book rest,which could be set at any
angle, so that the printed page would be
at right angles to the line of sight, when
the pupil is sitting erect. This would prevent a stopping position, and would also
be much easier to the eyes. The seats
should be of various heights to suit the
different sizes of scholars. We have now
built pur ideal school room. Let us now
try to place in It
AN IDEAL SCHOOL.
We would not permit any pupils, who
are under eight years of ago,to be confined
in the school room more than two hours
per day, aud would not permit them to
devote more than 15 minutes at one time
to study or recitation. Those from 8 to 10
years of age, would not be confined in the
school room more than two and a half
hours each day, with not more than 20
minutes at one time devoted to study or
recitation. Those whose ages are between
10 and 12 years, would be confined, not to
exceed three hours a day with 30 minutes
of continuous mental effort. Those be-
tween-the ages of 12 and 16 years,would be
confined not more than four hours per day
with 40 minutes only of steady intellectual
work. If it should be possible that there
would be any who had not finished the
curriculum of the public schools, at the
age of 16, we would permit them to study
out of school hours. With this exception
we would allow no study out of school
hours, upon pain of expulsion. Instead
we would recommend a large amount of
out door instruction and study from the
book of nature. Many parents would object to our ideal school, because it would
not keep theehildren "out of the way"
long enough; but as our school is not a
nursery, we will dismiss the pupils at the
appropriate time.
Our ideal school is also a graded school;
but not of the cast iron type. Our beginners are not to be in the same room with
the more advanced scholars. A pupil who
learns his lessons every day, Is not to be
held back by one learns who it only after
two days study. We will be likely therefore, to have small classes, which are always of more advantage than large ones.
We would have sufficient teaching force
to enable us to do this. We would by this
method of grading permit every pupil to
advance  according to his ability and in
dustry. During the first 12 years of our
pupils' lives, we would not have anything
taught them, which would require the exercise of the reasoning faculties to any
great extent.
REASONING FACULTIES.
Our reason for this is that children do
not have their reasoning faculties developed, until an average age of about 12
years. Hence the folly of trying to teach
them subjects which require the active use
of these faculties. We all reason from a
basis of known facts. The child spends
the first 12 years of its life in acquiring a
sufficient number of facts to form a basis
upon which reason can operate. If you
think your bright little boy or girl of nine
years of age, can reason, just try him with
a proposition which requires an effort of
reason to reach a logical conclusion. If he
fails to answer it logically don't think he
is a fool. Before you come to that conclusion, just consider a moment and see if the
fool is not at the other end of the line.
Teaching by rote will not be tolerated in
our ideal school. Our pupils will only be
taught such things as they can comprehend, and it will be the duty of our teachers to so simplify and illustrate every subject taught, as to bring it entirely within
the comprehension of the pupil. They
will be all interested in their studies, because they will understand what they are
doing; and if the teachers cannot so interest their pupils, as to set them to inquiring and observing on their own part,
their term of service will be short, as we
will conclude that they have mistaken
their vocation. Our pupils will bo taught
to use their eyes and ears understanding-
ly, and will thus enter upon a course of
self instruction which will only end with
life.
The term education is claimed by some
to be derived from e tlnco, and by others
from editco. The former seems to convey
the idea of a single effort atdrawing forth;
while the latter rather conveys the idea of
a continuous drawing forth, and is I think
the proper derivation of the term. We believe our. education will never be completed as long as thero is anything to
learn. All progress is from the simple to
the complete, from the concrete to the abstract. These axioms will be observed by
the teachers in our school. Therefore facts
will be taught first; principles afterward.
Grammar will therefore come late in our
curriculum; so will mathematics, unless
it may be the multiplication table, and
perhaps the tables of weights, measures,
etc., which will be illustrated as far as
possible.
When our pupils begin the study of
arithmetic, they will be kept on the four
simple rules, until they are so thoroughly
expert that mistakes will seldom occur.
This will seem tedious and irksome to
those who have been half way through
their arithmetic, but are not able to read
and write numbers with facility, and who
cannot add a column of figures either rapidly or accurately. As we consider a good
foundation necessary before rearing the
superstructure,we will adhere to our plan.
After we have thus laid our foundation in
addition, subtraction, multiplication and
division, we expect the remainder of their
mathematical studies will be pleasant and
profitable to both teacher and pupil.   Our
teachers will not require their pupils to
commit rules to memory to any great extent, as they will so direct their thoughts,
as to enable them to discover principles,
and thus construct their own rules.
OENERAL PRINCIPLES.
Generalizations will not be allowed,until
all the subjects included are thoroughly
understood. As science is organized >
knowledge, we will strive to have our pupils gain as large a fund of facts and observation as possible, before we attempt to
crystallize these facts by reasoning. As
education is a process of self development,
our teachers will not be allowed to impart
much instruction directly, but will be required to strive by all means in their power
to lead the minds of their pupils to such
points of observation as will make it easy'
for them to generalize facts, and to discover the principles which may be concealed in these facts, for themselves and
and their professional advancement will
depend upon their success in doing this.
We believe that humanity has never made"
any substantial progress, except by the
aid of self instruction, and that to achieve
the best results, man must be in a great
measure self taught, 1. e., he must have a
habit of independent thought and investigation. For this reason we believe in self
made men. By self made men we do not
mean those who have gained a smattering
of knowledge, and some pecuniary success in the world, but rather those more
modest ones, who are never satisfied with
present acquirements, but are always
striving for higher and more extended
achievements.
TnE GREAT END SOUGHT
in our ideal school, will be to teach our
pupils to think for themselves, to have the
power of collecting their thoughts and
concentrating them upon a single point,
and holding them there as long as they desire. When this is done the work of our
teachers will be very far advanced. Our
pupils will go on in this process of self
education as long as they live. They may
progress slowly sometimes, but it will be
surely, and when they arrive at any
given point, they will be more sure
of their position,than those who have
had the road made smooth and easy
for them, and who are not accustomed to
help themselves. We do not propose to
have any indolent scholars in our school
for indolence is not the normal condition
of youth. If, therefore, our pupils do not
feel interested in their studies, we will try
to discover the cause. It will doubtless be
found, that either the method of teaching
is wrong, or that an improper selection of
studies has been made. In feeding either
body or mind, food must be selected that
is both palatable and nutritious; for this
reason, the studies pursued must be such
as will afford pleasure to the pupil and
which will- show them the mind at the
same time.
A man in Connecticut wanted to put a
water pipe through a drain several feet below the surface of the ground, without
digging up the drain. To accomplish it,
he tied a string to a cat's leg, thrust her
into one end of the drain, and giving a
terrific "scat" the feline appeared at the
other end. • The pipe was drawn through
the drain by means of the line, thus saving
considerable expense.