Letters to a young teacher

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Letter I. Inteoduction

Mr. Editor : — In quitting the position of a teacher, which I have occupied for over forty years, I find myself not wholly free from the feelings that induced the veteran retiring tallov/ chandler to solicit the privilege from his successor, of being allowed on dipping days, to go into the shop and lend a hand in the prosecution of his long accustomed craft. But presuming that such an arrangement might not be satisfactory to my successors in the school-room, T ask the privilege of contributing some of my notions on the subject of scJiool-keeping, to the pages of your Journal.

I claim little originality of method in the processes I adopted, or in the details of my routine of labor, which the ardent and conscientious teacher would not, as a general thing, find to result from a long course of determined efforts in the management and instruction of a large school. Still, my younger brethren, however gifted by nature, and improved by education and the study of books, and even with the advantages which result from the Normal School — that blessed institution of modern days — an institution whose aid every indi^adual, male or female, who intends to become a teacher, should if possible secure, cannot reasonably be supposed to anticipate all the variety of mental machinery which it is necessary to put in operation, to secure the results at which the educator should aim, in adopting as his regular vocation, this important department of human labor. He may have a love for imparting knowledge : he may be ambitious of writing his name on the roll of fame, side by side with those who by the common consent of civilized man, have made the world their debtors, by their successful efforts for the improvement of the race. Still, something more is requisite — is indispensable to the complete success at which every teacher should aim— ;should resolve on at the outset of his course.

It would be almost unpardonable, at this period of the world's history, to attempt to show the necessity of education, the value of knowledge, the woi-th of sound principle, the advantages of self-control, the heaven -described requisition of " purity in the inward parts ; '* and all those subjects connected with the intellectual, moral, and social nature of man, which so propei-ly enter into the school training of the youth of our country at the present time. This, therefore, is taken for granted ; but, is it equally obvious that the young teacher has adopted this sentiment? Has made it the very basis of his action in the school-roora ? Has settled it in his resolution or purpose, that all these things are to be indissolutely connected with his plan of action ? If he has not done this, his programme is essentially defective ; and, if he has, the probability is that he will be aided to no inconsiderable extent, in the pursuit of his object, by the suggestions that experience may make, thus sparing him many a toilsome year of experiment, and saving his pupils from the disadvantages of inevitable faikires, and, perhaps, from the infliction of unintentional injustice at his hands.

With these views, and for the satisfaction of still doing something in the way of instructing the race, — when I shall no longer be, Sir Walter Scott's " tyrant of childhood," — I propose, by your permission, Mr. Editor, to furnish a few letters for successive numbers of your periodical, addressed to a young teacher, in the hope of aiding, indirectly, the youth of our country in their efforts to become what that country has a right to hope and expect from them, when they shall enter on the duties of adult life, and, in their turn, help to shape the destinies of their native land, and of the world.

Letter II. Self-examination And Self-discipline

Having, in my opening letter, very briefly touched upon the general subject of school-keeping, I propose now to indicate more particularly what steps are to be taken to secure success in the objects at which you will aim. And, in my view, self-examination, self-discipline, self-government, self-renunciation, to a great extent, comprise the most obvious and certain means at your command. These will do more to promote the successful management of your school, than any set of rules, however well conceived or rigidly enforced.

To ascertain and explore the springs of action in one's own mind, is to obtain possession of the key that will unlock the minds of others ; than which nothing is more important in the business you have undertaken ; and nothing will give more effectual control over those intrusted to your care. And, as this is a leading object with the teacher, and one on which his usefulness mainly depends, it should be, first of all, secured. There are ten persons who fail in school-government, to one who fails in mere instruction. The extent of classical and scientific preparation is of little moment, where the capacity for government is deficient.

Self-examination, if faithfully carried out, will unfold to you natural biases and motives, of which you may now be wholly unaware. You may have been drifting forward on the stream of life, like a deserted ship on the bosom of a mighty river, heedless of your course, and trusting that the right haven would be found at last, without any special agency on your part to avoid the shoals and whirlpools, the obstructions and rocks, that lie exposed or hidden before you. You feel no " compunctious visitings " at this state of things ; for you have never been roused to their contemplation. Your attention has never been called to an investigation of those ruling influences which, unknown to yourself, have hitherto led you onward in time's pathway.

You have felt no responsibility, for you have acted for yourself alone; and being, as you supposed, an exemplar or model to no other, have made no effort to alter your course.

The case is now wholly changed. What you are in motive, princi pie, habit, manners, will the pupils under your charge, to a greater or less degree, become. There may be points exhibited by you before your school, which in word you steadily condemn ; but powerless and ineffective will be that precept which your example opposes with its living force. Hence the necessity of this personal inspection. •■'Know thyself" was the injunction of an ancient philosopher; and it has been reiterated by many among the wise of modern days.

Most of those traits which make up what we call character in a man, are the results of education as developed not only by the processes of school instruction, but by whatever passes before the eye, whatever sounds upon the ear, excites the imagination, warms the heart, or moves the various 'passions within us; and the more frequently the mind falls under the same set of influences, the greater the probability that the character will take a stamp conformably to such influences. Hence we perceive, although with some exceptions, a marked similarity in individuals of the same parentage. But there are traits inherent in the human constitution, and widely differing from each other, as strongly marked as the instincts of animals, which lead one species to seek the air, and another the water, without any teaching whatever.

The man of nervous temperament will exhibit conduct conformable to it ; the phlegmatic, to it. The acquisitive tendency produces' the avaricious man ; the taciturn, the silent man. Although the operations of these original elements in our species can, perhaps, never be entirely reversed, they may, under faithful training, be so qualified as to make them subserve the cause of duty and humanity ; for we are never to admit that the great Creator made anything but for the promotion of the ultimate well-being of his creatures. As, on the corapletion of his six days' work, he saw that " it was very good," we are bound to believe that every element in man's nature, whether physical, moral, social, or intellectual, was intended to become the instrument of good in some department' of the great system of things, however perversion or excessive indulgence may sometimes produce the very opposite effects. To say otherwise, would be like asserting that light is no blessing, because it may dazzle or blind the eye ; or that fire is a curse, because it sometimes consumes our dwellings or destroys our treasures ; or that water is our foe, because it may drown us.

It being established, then, that ours is a complex nature, and that, without an adequate knowledge of it, as existing in ourselves individually, we cannot do all in our sphere, of which we are capable, for the benefit of our fellow-beings, the acquisition of this knowledge becomes our first duty ; and, especially, when we put ourselves in a position to stamp an image of our spiritual selves upon those who are committed to our influence and our traininir.

LETTERS TO A YOUNG TEACHER. H

Our first care, then, in this business of self-inspectton, is to ascertain whether we have any tendencies or proclivities that militate with our highest idea of a perfect man ; whether our motives are loftj, our aifections holy, our principles upright, our feelings and tastes pure, our intentions unselfish, our habits such as they should be. Every one has a beau ideal in his own mind ; and, if we fall below it in any of these particulars, we are to set about bringing ourselves up to the standard we have assumed.

In this great work we shall need aid beyond ourselves. In fact, self-love will be continually blinding us, or leading us astray from a strict and righteous judgment ; and, to enable us to be just, we must as constantly seek for aid where only it is to be found.

Having, then, ascertained the defects in our character, our next step is to impose that self-discipline which reformation requires. It may be difficult, — it doubtless will be ; but the result will be worth more than its cost. The work must be commenced in strong faith, with an unyielding will ; and a resolute perseverance will achieve the victory.

Have you doubts as to how you shall begin upon the new course ? Phrenology teaches that every organ has one antagonistic to it ; and that by exercising it, and suiFering its opposite to lie dormant, the former will enlarge, and the latter shrivel for want of exercise. Take a hint from this. Have you discovered that your motives centre in self? Seek every opportunity for benefiting others, even at some personal sacrifice. Have you found yourself indulging . in any passion ? Cultivate a feeling of gentleness and forbearance. Put yourself in the way of meeting provocation, that you may learn, by practical experience, to resist the temptation to the evil. Have you detected a love of ease, or of inaction, or indolence? Xerve yourself to a vigorous attack upon the propensity or hahit, if it has already become such, assured that, if continued, it will prove fatal to every noble purpose. Have you accustomed yourself to speak ill of others, or encouraged slander or gossip in your associates ? Resolve to check it where you can, whether in the domestic circle, or abroad among strangers ; and resolve, as a general rule, to be silent where you cannot commend. If others are unjust to you, be forgiving and generous to them. If the cost or inconvenience be great, the discipline will be all the better and more useful. It is by such trials that the character is to be improved and perfected. It was not sleeping on beds of down that prepared the men of '76 to endure the unutterable hardships of those days ; but a long and severe training in the rigorous school of adversity and self-denial. It is the wielding of the heav}^ sledge that imparts vigor to the arm of the smith ; while the same brawny limb, coiifined iii a sling, would soon wither into imbecility.

Thus, then, sire you to treat propensities and habits, and every sin or defect, which you find besetting you or opposing your progress towards the standard you have set up for your own attainment.

A discipline like this terminates at last in that self-conquest so important in every situation of life, and is of unspeakable advantage to him who is the guide of the young in the beginning of their career.

The importance of self-government has been proverbial from the days of Solomon. It enables its possessor to make the best use of his powers under any circumstances that may arise. It decides the contest between two individuals, in other respects equal, declaring for him " who ruleth his own spirit." Nay, it comes, in lieu of intellectual power, in the dispute, and secures the victory to him who is in other respects the weaker man. It is highly useful in every sphere ; and, in that of the teacher, is in requisition every hour of every day.

The last of these elements of preparation is self-renunciation, or self-sacrifice, a state of mind the most difficult to reach, and yet the noblest of all ; for it was the leading characteristic in the Great Teacher — the purest, safest model for every other teacher.

You will, very naturally, in the outset of your pedagogical course, feel jealous of your authority and dignity, and require a deference and respect from your pupils, which, if withheld or rendered tardily, you may be disposed to resent or make the occasion of severe discipline to the offender. It is fitting that this point should not be neglected ; but be not hasty to act or to adopt extreme measures in such a case. Assure yourself first that disrespect was intended. The low state of manners at this day is notorious. In many families, of good standing in the world, it is a subject that scarcely comes within the cognizance, or, apparently, the thought of parents. The children are not trained to observe the courtesies of civilized society, but actually grow up like the untutored savage of our western wilds. If any refinement exists around them, they are somewhat affected by it ; but they do and speak as others — leading individuals in the families — do. Hence, many a noble-spirited boy enters the school-room practically unconscious of the claims of the teacher to any token of respect from him, that had never been required around the hearth-stone of his own home. Consequently, his manner may be rough, his tones loud and coarse, his language ill-chosen, his carriage clownish, even on his first introduction to the teacher. Should such a one come under your observation, judge him not hastily ; check him not harshly. There may lie within that repulsive exterior the best elements of our nature ; and he may be wholly unconscious that he has infringed any of the laws of civility. Ascertain, therefore, the facts in the case, before you arraign him for his delinquency.

Every variety of temperament, too, may "be found among your pupils. The merry, the daring, the timid, the artful ; one, so overrunning with fun and frolic, that he commits many a breach of good manners quite involuntarily ; another, easily excited by passion, answers rudely, under its impulse, when, in his sober judgment, he would stand self-condemned, although his pride might forbid his acknowledging his fault.

Cases will be continually occurring to test the principle of self-sacrifice within you ; and well will it be for your own happiness, and better still for your pupils, if you shall have so firmly established it, as to enable you to endure from them, for a time, what you would, perhaps, be disposed, if coming from others, to consider an insult.

But do not misunderstand me. I would have your pupils behave with strict propriety ; would have you enforce it as a rule. My object in these remarks is to guard against precipitate action ; nay, to prepare you to carry the martyr-spirit into your government, when the welfare of the children shall require it. The mother sometimes comes to her knees before her offending child. The spirit that dictates such an act should move the teacher in cases demanding it. Cases so extreme would rarely occur in school ; but when they do happen, he should be prepared to meet them in this maternal spirit.

When the first Napoleon had an object to gain, whether it was the carrying of a bridge, the taking of a city, or the subduing of a kingdom, difficulties did not daunt him, nor the cost in men or treasure cause him to waver in his purpose. The only question was, " how many men will it cost ? " and they were detached for the service. With a similar determination, but for a far nobler end, the teacher is to ask himself, " what amount of labor, what degree of personal sacrifice, will it require of me to save this child?" The question being solved, the generous effort is, with Bonapartean promptness, to be commenced. The debasing passion is subdued ; the repulsive habit reformed; the evil tendency put in check, — and the boy is redeemed!

Do you ask m.e if this is the preparation for keeping school ? I answer, the course I have recommended comprises the initiatory steps. They are the most necessary ones of all ; first, because they involve the highest good of a human being ; and, secondly, because they come not within the scope of the examination of school committees, either at the time the teacher receives his certificate of competency to take charge of a school, or at the public examinations, when he appears before the people, to prove or disprove the accuracy of the committee's written opinion.

I am well aware of the check that this perversion of the relative

14 LETTERS TO A YOUNG TEACHEK.

value of things among School Committees, must have a tendency to impose on the ardor of a joung teacher of high aims ; and how great the danger to discouragement that he must have to encounter as he anticipates the non-appreciation of his acquirements in 'his school of self-discipline, among those who are to be his publicly constituted legal advisers or directors. Still, I cannot consent that he should lov/er his standard. If he adopts the teacher's vocation as a permanent one, these things will be needful to his complete success ; and he should be ambitious, foi the benefit he may confer on his pupils, as well as for his own fame, to leave such marks of his training and careful instruction on their feelings, habits, and principles, as will show to the good and wise that he measured his duty in the school-room by a standard more lofty, more grand, than that which is satisfied with a moderate acquaintance with grammar, geography, and arithmetic. These in their order. I would not derogate an iota from their true value ; but I would have, without any compromise whatever, those things take the first place, on which the character, integrity, moral worth, and that happiness which springs from pure fountains, and which is alone worth striving for, depend.

The teacher who conscientiously believes this, and has made a faithful efibrt to fit himself to carry out the views presented in this letter, is worthy to mould the rising race, — to fit the embryo men to become voters under a free government, to become legislators capable of making wise laws, and upright magistrates to execute thern.

Such teachers the republic emphatically needs. ' Such must be had, if we would perpetuate the glorious institutions of our Heaven-favored country. Prosperity in commerce, in wealth, in power, in fame, in population, is of little value, if there be not a foundation in something more substantial — more enduring ; if, in short, public and private virtue be not the grand basis — " the stability of our land."

The foundation of all practical education must be in the department of morals ; and this should be insisted on by all supervisors of schools throughout the land. Teachers should be examined in this as " the principal thing ; " and, if found deficient, whatever their attainments in science, should be rejected. It is full time that some practical use should be made of the doctrine assented to by all, that the moral and social nature should be educated ; and this can be best secured by engaging the services of persons who have made it a matter of particular attention.

Letter III. Manners

BefoPvE attempting to illustrate the principles laid down in mj May letter, and show their application to the business of the school-room, I will devote one letter mainly to the subject of manners ; a subject scarcely inferior in importance to that of morals themselves. Morals form the basis of human character ; but manners are its decorations, and aids to its developments. Morals are the staple of human laws, the grand regulators (or should be) of human governments; manners are their gildings, which tend to soften their asperities, and win a more ready acquiescence in their observance. Morals are the solid bullion, forming the foundation of the currency of a community ; manners, the small notes or coins, ever ready for use, and without v/hich the business intercourse of mankind must cease, or retrograde to the condition of things that existed in the world's infancy. In fine, morals are the sun behind a cloud, which, though giving light to the world, lacks the genial force of its shining face : manners are the agencies that displace the cloud, and reveal the glorious orb in all its Original power.

We hence perceive an intimate connection between the two. Neither is complete in itself. One is the complement of the other. They should not be separated. Morals divorced from manners, would be cold and repulsive ; united to them, they become attractive and pleasing. While manners, unasoociated with morals, degenerate into hypocrisy — furnishing an illustration of the " whited sepulchre'' of the New Testament.

Let it be understood, then, that in speiiking of manners, civility, courtesy, or politeness, — for I shall use them synonymously, — I allude to them as having a right foundation, and as belonging to moral duty. They give a charm to social intercourse, which nothing else can supply. This is a fact universally admitted ; and yet one that seems to be less practised upon, in each succeeding year of our nation's history.

It was once a sufficient guaranty for gentlemanly manners, that the individual had been reared by respectable parents. This is now by no means a conclusive inference. Family training, in many instances, — perhaps in a majority, — has fallen into disuse ; and chance, or the will of the young, has taken its place. The respect always due to parents, to seniors in age, to superiors in station, in wisdom, and virtue, has so nearly died out in this country, as to have undermined the very foundation of that for which I am pleading. For, if from those whose claims are of a paramount nature, the ordinary civilities of refined life are withheld, it is in vain to expect they will be extended to the stranger, encountered in the marts of business, the walks of pleasure, or the rounds of general intercourse.

An apostle, in writing to a young friend, says, in speaking of children, " let them learn to show piety at home," — meaning duty to parents, or those in superior relation. Here, then, at home, is where the sentiment is to take root, be nurtured, and made to grow. Its influence will then go forth with the young, controlling their behavior towards others, and checking that rudeness which has become a reproach to our country among the more civilized nations of the earth.

Since, then, this duty has come to be so much neglected by those on whom it naturally devolves, the teacher is to exercise double diligence in its inculcation. And, although it may be very discouraging, especially at the outset of your teaching, to think that you work singlehanded, let me entreat you to take courage ; to assure you that, in most cases, your efforts will be appreciated and seconded at the homes of the pupils. It is not that fathers and mothers do not wish to have their children grow up, adorned with the graces, as well as imbued with the good morals, properly belonging to a Christian community : they are very glad to have this boon bestowed upon them ; but the pursuit of business — the accumulation of wealth — engrosses the father's attention, absorbs his time, and leaves him no leisure for the home instruction of his children. The mother may do what she can, but without her husband's cooperation, her best endeavors are often neutralized. When, however, she finds the work begun at school, she is eager in assisting the teacher to carry out his plans. Ascertaining what they are, she strives to enforce them when the children are in her presence, and each aids the other in the good work.

Bat how are the details in this training to be carried into practice? To answer this, involves numerous particulars. To teach penmanship well, a man must write well himself; to make good readers, he must read well ; to make good mathematicians, he must understand well the subject. " As is the teacher, so is the school." The aim and effort of the man, who would impress the stamp of the Christian gentleman upon the manners, habits, and character, of each one of his pupils, must be to deserve that appellation himself! In proportion as he merits this, will he succeed in multiplying the copies of so desirable a work.

Let us now ascertain the elements of genuine politeness. The counterfeit we should eschew as we would a spurious bank-note. It can have no connection with morals ; and it is politeness, as coadjutor with morals, which it is our purpose to encourage and promote.

Politeness, or good manners, th^n, we consider as the offspring of benevolence, love, or kindness of heart. Its aim is to make others happy ; to smooth down the rough edges and sharp points to be met in our collisions with society, and thus to prevent that friction from human intercourse which is inevitable without the exercise of this meliorating grace. From the uncouth bearing of many individuals, it may be deemed impossible, in their cases, to add or develop this grace ; and it is admitted that the task will not be a light one. But there is a germ of the " raw material " in every human soul ; and the business of the educator is to unfold, to form, and direct it. This will be difficult or easy, according to the temperament of the respective subjects; but, be assured, it is invariably attainable, although not in equal degrees. E.very one may be taught, by proper attention and needful skill, to write well ; but no human power can make elegant penmen of all. Some have an innate incapacity for the perfection of the art. So it is with forming the manners. Still, this should furnish no excuse for omitting the attempt. The effort is all the more necessary. When Lowell Mason, nearly thirty years ago, introduced instruction in vocal music into the school with which I was then connected, in trying the voices of the pupils, he discovered that some possessed very limited vocal power — capable of sounding no more than three notes of the scale ; but he did not turn them aside, saying, — as had been the practice with his predecessors in teaching the art, — that " they had no voice, and could never make singers ; " no ; he said, wisely, that they needed instruction and training so much the more, that their natural deficiencies might be, to some extent, counteracted; and the result proved the soundness of his judgment. In six months they had nearly doubled their power, and could sound, some five, some six notes.

Some persons are, apparently, horn ladies or gentlemen, and require little or no direction from others. Some, with an intuitive faculty of imitation, take on the most agreeable and finished manners, from being surrounded by suitable examples. Others, of an easy and goodnatured temperament, float on under its influonce, securing the good will of their associates, quite unconsciously and without effort.

18 LETTERS TO A YOUNG TEACH EB.

But a large majority of children, at the school-going age, are (to borrow Addison's idea) like the marble in the quarry, and need the hand of the polisher to develop their latent capabilities.

Impressed, then, with these truths, I would say to you, my young brother, let the Courtesy of the Heart distinguish your whole deportment — when instructing a class, as well as when in private conversation with their parents or others ; at home and abroad ; in your own study, and at the public exhibition. Have not one code of manners for the fireside or the school-room, and another for company ; excepting in the degrees of deference which different ages and stations demand. These are recognized and claimed by the hand-book of our divine religion. Never lose your self-respect, your good language, your temper, nor your philanthropy. To do either of these would undo the beneficial efiect of a long course of verbal instruction.

Many young men, at college and elsewhere, away from the restraining and refining influence of the gentler sex, acquire ungainly habits, which they afterwards continue to practise, perhaps unconsciously, even when they have become teachers, — such as throwing the chair back and causing it to rest on its two hind legs ; putting the feet, raised breast-high, on the desk or form in the school-room ; cutting and scraping the nails in company, &c., very much to the scandal of the profession, and highly derogatory to the delinquents. I need not say how ill-bred, how disgusting such habits are.