The Superintendent and the Teacher

The Superintendent and the Teacher By D. T. Praigg It was Saturday afternoon and the Teacher sat in the office of the School Superintendent. She had telephoned that she would he there at 2 o'clock, and as the minute hand on the office clock drew nearer and nearer the hour, she felt depressed and almost wished she hadn't come. She looked out of the window, then at the door leading to the Superintendent's private office, and counted over and over again the things she would say to him. For one thing, she was determined to get rid of that Boy. And she intended to insist that he be dismissed from the school as incorrigible. In the midst of these meditations, the door opened and the Superintendent entered. His cheery smile as he extended his hand reassured her and she felt genuine relief as he seated himself at a table opposite and turned an inquiring eye upon her. His voice contained a helpful note and his smile was en- gaging, when he said: "So you are having trouble, are you?" "Yes, and I am at my wits' end to know what to do," she replied. "I have tried every expedient with that boy, and it is impossible to do anything with him. He is simply incor- rigible." "Yes, you wrote me about him and I intended visiting you, but the roads are so bad and you are so far out I couldn't pos- sibly get to your school." "I looked for you every day," smiled the teacher wearily, "and as you didn't some, I thought I'd come to you." "I am glad you have. I am always glad of an opportunity to consult with our teachers. Let me see! You wrote me that the boy is incorrigible. Is he really mean or is he simply mischievous?" . . . "I don't know what you'd call it, but he is always making trouble. I can't turn my back but he^ is up to some kind of trick that makes discipline impossible." "And that, of course, has a bad effect upon the school as a "Yes, and already some of the younger children have be- gun to mimic him." "Do you like him?" The question was direct and unex-

728 IMPROVEMENT ERA pected and the eyes fixed on the Teacher were searching. She hesitated, seemed confused and stammered: "I don't see how I could when he makes so much trouble. Do you think anyone could like such a boy?" The question was ignored, but the Superintendent's next query was not less pointed: "Do you dislike him?" he asked. "No-o, I can't say I really dislike him," was the hesitating reply. "But you are not absolutely sure? At least, you don't have the same feelings towards him that you have towards others, do you?" Again the Teacher countered. "How could I?" she asked. "I think we have found the key to your trouble," said the Superintendent, as he leaned back in his chair and smiled genially, "and if we have, we'll be pretty sure to find the remedy. There are two things of which you may be certain — if you don't like him you can't conceal the fact from him and from the other pupils, and, if he and they know it, he does not feel under obligation to assist you in making your school a success. But one further question — How does he get along with his studies?" "I have no complaint to make on that score. He leads his classes and, when he is always in some kind of meanness, I don't see where he gets the time for study." "I don't think I'd call it meanness yet," said the Super- intendent, "but we'll let that pass for the present. We now know that you don't like him, and it follows naturally that he doesn't like you. It also follows that, being unable to con- ceal your dislike from him and his fellow-pupils, he is care- less both of your good opinion and theirs. But he has self-; pride, which is shown in a desire to lead his classes, and he is intelligent and studious and masters his lessons easily, and still has time to show the other pupils that he doesn't like his teacher; for that is what it amounts to in the end. "We also know," continued the Superintendent, "that your attitude towards him and his attitude towards you are having a bad effect upon your school. Now, I don't want to criticize you, but you must change your attitude toward that Boy, and you must do it at once. Your success as a teacher, your influence for good in the school and in the community, and that Boy's future all depend on a change in you. When you dislike him, you can't expect him to like you and be responsive to your teaching, nor can you expect this mutual dislike to escape the notice of the other pupils. There are here two dangers to be feared; some of the pupils like the boy you dislike. As their

THE SUPERINTENDENT AND THE TEACHER 729 sympathies are aroused in his behalf, the influence of the teacher over them decreases. The boy thus enters upon leader- ship and pretty soon the discipline of the school is destroyed; and he supplants the teacher in the estimation of the pupils and they follow his example rather than her precepts. "If he were dull, if he had no ambition to lead his classes, we might despair of him, but when he has ambition, when he has so much self-pride that he wants to stand at the head of his classes, despite the fact that his teacher doesn't like him, you may be sure there is that in him which is worth all the sac- rifices you can make to bring his better impulses to the sur- face and make him an example to the school." "You think, then, the fault is all in me?" asked the Teacher. "No, I would not say that. But you have not studied the boy. You have not tried to develop his best side. He is mis- chievous. Let us grant that. But he stands well in his classes. That shows self-pride. Why doesn't it extend to his deport- ment? That is the question you should ask yourself, and for which you should find an answer. And you will find it both in yourself and in him. Don't think he is not worthy of the most patient study. Why, that boy is a jewel! He's one in a thousand, and you didn't know it! Think of the situation just for a moment. A boy who is ambitious to learn. Then a boy, who is so full of energy that he finds time from his studies for mischief. And this boy not liked by his teacher, not cultivated by his teacher, not encouraged by his teacher! Get at his good side! Turn his energy for mischief into energy for further study. But, above all, learn to like him, let him know you like him and, depend upon it, he will learn to like you." "But how can I do that?" asked the Teacher. "How can you do that? "echoed the Superintendent. "How can you do that? Cultivate him. Make it a point to show interest in him. Talk with him at recess, on the way from school. Ask him what he proposes to do in life. Suggest what business, profession or occupation he ought to pursue. Let him know you feel an interest in him. He isn't mean. There isn't anything low and groveling in a Boy of that kind. He's ambitious. It's your duty as his teacher to develop that am- bition into paths that will make it a blessing to him and to others. Where there are energy and ambition in a child there are great possibilities for such traits in him as a man. What he needs now is a directing hand. Yours is a position of grave responsibility. The seeds you sow in your school should germ- inate and bring honor, self-respect and character to the future citizenship of our state." "Yes, I know that," confessed the teacher.

736 IMPROVEMENT ERA "But you know it now as a theory only," replied the Super- intendent. "There is one thing you should keep always in mind — the boy is the man in embryo, the girl, the woman, and, as the impulses of the boy and girl are directed into channels of good, as they are led by the hand of sympathy and cheered by the voice of encouragement, they develop greater good and become a blessing to themselves and to those with whom they associate. The teacher has passed that period in our develop- ment when she can give to all the same educational catholicon. What meets the case of one child may nauseate another. You must realize that every child has a possible future, and you must see that it goes out from your tuition with the best possible equipment both of knowledge and character that you are ca- pable of giving. If he then fail in the great world struggle, you have at least the consolation that your duty was well per- formed ; if he succeeds, it is your pleasure to know that you lent an impetus to his ambition and proved a potent factor in the building of the sturdy character which overcame the obstacles in his upward path. There are many discouragements which we as teachers must meet and overcome, but the teacher, who takes upon himself the responsibility of developing the mind of the child, is not equipped for the high office of leader, counselor, director and friend, unless he makes a patient and honest study of those under his care. But I intended to ask: Do the Boy's parents visit the school?" "Yes, occasionally, but they are the only ones who do." "And when they are present he gives you no trouble?" "None in the least. In fact, he's a model of propriety when we have visitors," smiled the Teacher. "That speaks well for the Boy, for it shows that the home discipline reaches him in school when his parents are present. And it also shows that the home discipline, for some reason, is better than the school discipline. We thus have this situation: The Boy likes his parents and wants to appear well in their eyes. He knows his teacher does not like him and even his self-pride is impotent to conform his deportment in school in their absence to what it is when they are present. Take this lesson to heart. Study it carefully, and govern yourself by it. And always bear in mind that kindness begets kindness, inter- est begets interest, confidence begets confidence, and respect begets respect. Invoke these sentiments in their fulness, and you will win a great victory over the Boy, but your triumph will not be his defeat but his victory also." The Superintendent and the Teacher arose as he ceased speaking. They looked at each other across the table. His face wore a smile, her's was serious and thoughtful.

THE SUPERINTENDENT AND THE TEACHER 731 "Yes," she said, nodding her head, "I understand now and I'll do it." "I want to impress one thought before you go," the Super- intendent resumed; "Teachers are too apt to think their whole duty is discharged when they develop the minds of their pupils within the mental environment provided in the course of study. The fact is that what the child learns from study of the books in school is the smallest part of his education, unless it becomes through the teacher's tuition the foundation for character building, both in school and in after life. A study of the texts may develop the child intellectually and add to the fund of useful knowledge he may carry into the world with him as a man, but what is its value to him or to society, if it be not fortified by that sterling worth of character on which all real success in life is founded? It follows, then, that we as teachers sustain to parent and pupil a relation of far more importance than that of merely developing the mind, for we fall far short of our duty if we fail to see that larger horizon that lies be- yond the schoolroom and into whose broader expanse the child will go when his school days are over. You are going with the Boy into that larger sphere. Begin the journey now, so that he will feel the pressure of your guiding hand even to the end." As the teacher drove home that afternoon she thought long and seriously over all the Superintendent had said. She was glad she had not suggested that the Boy be dismissed from school as incorrigible. "Yes," she said musingly, "I now see I have not studied the Boy as I should have done. I ought to have made him my friend. I have conquered myself and I am going to conquer him." And unconsciously she urged old Del into a faster trot, so anxious was she to get home and mature her plans in the quiet and seclusion of her own room. Indianapolis, Ind. New Hope When evening comes, my love, When evening comes, my love, After the toil of day, Wait for the morning; Look to the light above The night wind's wildest moan And silently pray; Dies with the dawning; Turn your eyes to lightest West, Gloom fades from memory Out there sad hearts find rest, sweet On the morn of eternity, rest. Herald, Lethbridge, Canada Frank C. Steele