|
 It
is "School Days again, and as I watch the buses gather the
sheaves of this generation, another generation comes to mind.
Reluctant boys walked through Bryant's meadow, and dropped books
to throw green walnuts.
Male
teachers were "Professors" in those days. Sounds stiff
and formal, but actually' they were quite, human. For a
three-question Latin quiz we were told each question would grade
30%, and neatness made the other 10%. I knew nothing, but copied
the questions carefully, decorating my paper with Spenserian
shades and curves. Professor Hinton gave me only 8's, and when I
complained (naturally), his eyes twinkled as he said, "You
signed the paper on the wrong side."
Prof.
Bryant was “Mr. School" in our town. If Calister ' missed
a question he'd say, "Laymon, stand up and answer that
question so you can laugh at Cal." And if Laymon did it,
he'd say, "Oh, you're a dandy! If I had 40 boy's I'd name
37 of them Laymon Then he'd give Cal another chance.
Two
boys asked to be excused one afternoon so they could attend a
big "Meeting" at the Methodist church. He let them go.
'Then, the next afternoon he asked the boys to stand and tell
the class what the
| |
preacher had said. They did, in great
detail. Whereupon Prof. Bryant praises this as a remarkable
feat, inasmuch as the big "Meeting" had closed the day
before the boys asked to be excused.
Educational
philosophies continue to cycle: old math, new math, and back to
old math. The one-room class gave way to careful student
grading, which gave way to one-room class, and now some more
grading. The old discipline was "cruel", the new
freedom "deprived the youngsters of needed
discipline," so the latest thing is the old discipline.
Even in our Bible classes, "modern methods" often turn
out to be loaves and fishes borrowed from denominations, where
they failed. The best teacher seems to be the living example of
dedication to learning and living. This teacher attracts the
pupil who wants to learn, and those two can have school on a
log.
A
certain grandpa "tested" two young would-be fishermen
by placing a can of worms on one side of the porch and an empty
can on the other. Squeamish youngsters had to carry the worms,
one at the time, across the porch. It separated the fishermen
(persons).
[Previous
Article] [Next
Article]
|
