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Las imagas iuivantas ont M raproduitas avae la plus grand soin, compta tanu da la condition at da la nattat* da raxamplair* filmi, at an conformit* avac laa conditions du contrat da filmaga. Original copias in printad papar covors ara fllmad baginning with tha front covar and anding on tha last paga with a printad or illuatratad impraa- slen, or tha back covar whan appropriata. All othar original copiaa ara filmsd oaginning on tha first paga with a printad or lllustratad impraa- sion, and anding on tha laat paga with a printad or Illuatratad impraasion. La* axampiaira* originaux dont la eouvartur* an papiar a*t ImprimAa sont filmi* an commancant par la pramiar plat at an tarminant soit par la darnitra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'impra**ion ou d'illu*tr*tlon. soit p*r la lacond plat, (alon la ca*. Tou* la* *utra* axampiaira* originaux sont fllmts an commancant par la pramiAra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'lmpraasion ou d'illustration at an tarminant par la darnMra paga qui comporta una talla amprainta. Tha laat racordad frama on aach microflcha •hall contain tha symbol — ^ (moaning "CON- TINUED"), or tha aymbol V (moaning "END"), whichavar applia*. Un da* symbolas suivants spparaitra sur la darniira imaga da chaqua microflcha. salon la cas: la symbola ^^ signifia "A SUIVRE ', la symbols Y signifia "FIN". Maps, platas. chart*, ate may ba filmad at ditfarant raduction ratio*. Tho** too larga to ba antlraiy inctudad in on* axpoaura ara filmad baginning in tha uppar laft hand cornar. laft to right and top to bottom, a* many frama* ** raquirad. Tha following diagram* illuatrata tha mathod; La* carta*, planchas, tablaaux, ate. pauvant itra fllmts * daa taux da raduction difftrants. Lorsqua la documant ast trop grand pour Atra raproduit an un saul cllcht, il ast film* t partir da t'angia auptriaur gaucha. da gaueha k droit*. at da haut an bas. an pranant la nombra d'imagas nOcassaira. Las diagrammas suivants illu*trant la mOthoda. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 Mtaocowr iisouiTioN tbt chart (ANSI OFid ISO TEST CHART No. 3} 1.0 us. M2S niUi 12.2 I.I !m ill u I 1.8 m m ill 1.6 .S -fPPUED IMHGE In. (7]6) ZflB - 59B9 ~ The Public School Question By Goldwin Smith, D.C.L ( RtpuUuhed by permssim from " The Canadian Uagatim" ) TORONTO W^ILLIAM TYRRELL & CO. 1902 ,.\MILTON PUBLIC LIBRARY ^MH «'""'TOiy PUBLIC LIBRARY PREFACE. n HE Ontario System of Common Schools has been well 1 established in the Province, and while these schools have been accepted by many as complete, popular opinion is not by any means altogether in their favor. Dissatisfaction with the common schools is, however, more apparent in cities and towns than in rural districts. The practical re- sults of the present common school education will no doubt in a few years make it more necessary to remodel the system to make it more flexible and better adapted to the varying needs of the community. The proposal for the affiliation of Voluntar- Schools with the Public School system has this end in view, and when it is better understood it will be seen that some such scheme can be adapted to meet many of the difficulties existing in our present educational system. The accompanying article, which appeared in the Janu- ary number of the Canadian Magazine, written by Professor Qoldwin Smith, will be of interest to all concerned with our system of public .schools. I beg to acknowledge the kindness of Professor Goldwin Smith, and also of thA editor of the Canadian Magazine in consenting to have this article pub- lished in pamphlet .orm. LAWRENCE BALDWIN. TOKONTO, March, 1902. MfMi The Public School Question IN addressing the school teachers the other day at the Normal .School, Toronto, I disclosed what I fear would oe generally regarded as the scandalous fact fhat I was not a thorough-going believer in the sys'em ol State Schools. I had once an opportunity of hearing this great subject specially well discussed. The British Parliament having afier some tentative efforts through the agency of the Privy Council, decided to take up in earnest the whole question of national education, a Commission was in 18,08 appointed to investigate the subject and to prepare a scheme for the con- sideratio, f Parliament. )f that Commission I was a member, .,„g appointed, I believe, specially to deal with the charitable ibundations, the report on which was oon- signed to my hands. The Chairman was the Duke of New- castle, whose name the Commission commonly bears The other Commissioners were men who represented sections of opinion. A question caanot be debated better than by such a conclave having a practical object of great importance in view, and unrestrained by the presence of reporters The resull in my mind wn, a leaning in favour of the parental and Voluntary again., the State system. That view was embodied in a paper which was signed by one member of the Commissloi; besides myself, and now slumbers among the archives of t!: , Home Office. Being outvoted, we waived our dissent and concurred with our co'.er.gues in carrying on the investigation and submitting recommendations to PnrllHment. BelnR the Junior member of the Commliwlon mid the only one froo from onRroHiiIng HVociitlonH cUewhe-e, I (lid much of tho geiieiiil work and b«i..imo pretty well posted in details. Tho Impression which I then formed in favor of the Voluntary system I have nlways retained, though the Stale system was so completely pstnblished that I saw no use In saying anything about It or in declining to act under It when called upon. In this spirit I accepted tho honor tendered me by the Public .School Teachers of this Province of represent- ing them in the Council of Instruction. The Touncii was abruptly dissolved by tho Ontario Government in conse- quence of a collision between it and the Chief .Superintendent arising out of an appointment made by the Council to the headship of a Normal School. Tho incident was one which seemed to throw a sidelight on the liabilities of the State system in Its connection with party government, as does that chronic dispute about the school books from which the Voluntary system would be free. Natural right and duty may on occasion be superseded by State necessity, as in time of public exigency or peril. But they must always be the general basis of institutions, and always demand recognition. It is apparently the natural duty of every man to educate as well as to feed and clothe the children that he brings into the world; nor has he any natural right to cast this duty on his neighbor or on the community at large. It is not in accordance with natural justice that the man who has prudently deferred marriage tii; he was able to support a family should pay for the im- prudence of the man who has brought into the world a family which he is unable to support. On the other hand, the parent has a natural right to say In whose hands he will place the education of his child. The Catholics, being a large and united vote, assert that right against the general principle of the State •system. The State has no natural right to take away the child from the parent or those to whom the parent chooses to entrust it. Nor, if the parent is willing to do his own duty, has the State any natural right to tax hira for the Immimlty of other.. The State tiinnot i^snonably nay thnt thoso upon whom It him imiiferrb,. polltkitl power nrc ini beclles in the mutter of cdm iillon niiU liiconipotent to perforu, their iiiitiirai duty or exercise tlieir nttluriil riRlit In roupcct to tlie education of tlieir children. Mm, must ho availinK themselves of our I'ubHu Schools who have nutlicient mean* of providing their chllurcn with education. Can It be said that there Is any rl^ht in these • ises to cast the |«irent'8 duty upon (he tax-payer V All this, I am nfiiild, will sound like rank heresy to the theorists who hold that the rights and duties of the indi- vidual and the family ought to bo surrendered to tlie iStaie. Natural riRht, ho .er, whether of the individual or of tho family, must sometimes give way to public exigency. In this case tho public exigency, »o far as the State is con- cerned, is the danger of an ignorant electorate. Robert Lowe rather bitterly said, "We must teach our masters to read and write." Tho fact that f , exigency has been created by tlie rivalry of political -ties which has abol- ished ail qualifications for the franchise and puts the ballot Into every hand, instead of lotting industry and frugality stretch out tb»ir hands for ii, docs not make the p- ,11 any less. On the other hand, the security for tho voter' .'telli- gence which tho State requires might be obtained, hout taking away education from the parent, by certified inspec- tion or an educational test. Nor does it seem that tho community is in any way bound, or that any public interest would lead it, to go to the expense of imparting any more than a strictly necessary education. To excite and gratify the pupil's ambition of rising above the station in which he happens to have been born, may be a good thing in itself; it certainly is when the person to be so raised is well selected and helped either by private munificence or by State en- dowments specially devoted to that object. One who assisted in the foundation of Cornell 'niver.sity may fairly say that he has not personally failed to take part in the opening of that door. The State may also properly endow special institutions for instruction in technical science, scientiflo agriculture, or other studies wiiicii are profitable to the community at large. But the community at large has no interest in the indiscriminate fostering of ambition. On the contrary, an extensive displacement of industry may be economically injurious to the commonwealth. Nor is hap- piness more than contentment certain to be the fruit of such a policy. As was said in tho address to which I have referred, we cannot all actually climb over each other's heads, though restless desire may be kindled in all. To the exercise of educational charity, of course, there are no limits. Nor may charity be better exercised than in encouraging education and in enabling real ability to attain the station in which it en be most useful to the commonwealth. A State system of education can hardly fail to je some- what Procrustean. Its spirit was depicted" by the French Minister of Education who boasted that when he rang a bell the same lesson commenced in every school in France. The Voluntary system, on the other hand, if it can be made suc- cessful, is flexible, and adapts itself to local, social and industrial circumstance. It has also in ' the motive power of emulation, which, in all things, is a stimulus of improvement. Under the Voluntary system teaching is a profession which the teach3r enters expecting to live by it, as he knows that his special gifts and exertions will, in this as in other professions, fetch their proper price. Under the otate system teaching is hardly a profession, so far as many of the male teachers are concerned. The man is never sure of earning his fair market value. It is inferred from facts before the Department of Education that the average con- tinuance of a male teacher in the service is between seven and eight years. Other estimates have been still lower. At the same time a large increase of salaries is hardly possible. The expense already is startling, and has alarmed the Toronto City Council. It may soon seriously interfere with the ability of the city government to provide for its direct and proper objects, such as the police, the thorough- fares, the health and the buildings of the city. The consequence of this is that education is falling more and more into the hands of women, who will accept smaller salaries, but are not well qualified to form the character of boys after a certain age. The consequence of this, again, is probably seen in the manners of the boys, of which complaints are heard, and perhaps in a certain lack of some special points of the mr''? character. The devotion even of the young women to the calling, unless they renounce marriage, must generally be short. Mr. Rice, who has given us the results of an inspection of schools in a number of cities of the United States, reports inequalities almost as great as any which would be likely to be found under the Voluntary system. Some schools are very good. Others are much the reverse. A compliment is incidentally paid to Toronto. But the parent has no choice ; he must send his child to the school of his district whether it be good or bad. Under the Voluntary system his choice would be free and would act as a stimulus to the teachers. A serious feature of Mr. Rice's description is indifference of parents, who regard their duty to the child, including the formation of character, as made over to the State. They will sometimes not even take the pains to inquire into the sanitary condition of the school house. We see that instead of supporting the teacher, as they would if he or she were chosen by them, they are inclined to take the part of the child against him, thus impairing the discipline of the school. Any attractiveness which the common school may have as a social bond among the parents must be impaired where such indifference exists. The union of the sexes beyond a very early age is a feature of our Public School system which some high authorities view with mistrust. In the United States the Public School system serves the very special function of assimilating the alien elements introduced by an immen.su immigration. In the country the Public School system seems to work better than it does in the city ; the whole community using the school, which is thus really common ; taking an interest in it ; having a voice in the selection of a teacher, and keep- ing the financial management under control. This an- proaches the old Scotch or New England model. In the city the opposite of this is the case. ' The schools are hardly common, the Voluntary school being frequently preferred by those who can afford it. Nobody has a voice in the choice of the teacher of his district. The citizens ;,9nerally take no active interest in the schools. You risk the usual evils of the system of political election applied to what ought to be a matter of administration. A place on the Board of Trustees is sought apparently, in many cases ess from special interest or aptitude than as the first step in the ladder of municipal ambition. Little seems to be gener- ally known about the candidates. Nor is much interest generally shown in the elections; though as all the ballot papers are marked by the voter at the same time, voters generally mark their papers for School Trustees as well as for Mayor and Aldermen. The elections are hardly noticed by the press. The arbitrary power of taxation without regard to the general state of the city affairs and finances vested m the Toronto School Board, is defended on the ground of the confidence shown in the appointments by the number of votes cast. The argument might be more con- elusive If the election of school trustees was held by itself The existing system, as I have already said, is so thor- oughly established that any attempt to raise the general question would be futile. At the same time there is a grow- ing feeling, which, if it is founded on natural reason and justice, ought not entirely to be refused recognition The practical object of this paper is to introduce the memoran- dum hereto appended on Voluntary Public Schools by Mr Lawrence Baldwin, who has been carrying on in his school on Avenue Road with apparent success an experiment in the Voluntary direction. His system comprehends open selec- tion of teachers, remuneration in proportion to ability active participation of parents. At the same time Mr. Baldwin asserts that it meets the legitimate requirements of the State, and that therefore tliere is no reason why it should be denied recognition in the shape of public inspection. MKMOBANDUM re VOLUNTARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. The aim of this movement is, shortly, as follows :— 1. To encourage parents to take n personal interest in bvMlr^'? "' """' °™" '^hildrenrand enable them by contnbutmg a voluntary fee to supplement tZ amount expended through the Public ScbTol Scarf o that they may obtain a more liberal education. The elementary education covered by the Public School curnculum can thus be supplemented by a grounding in classics, by adding drawing, music, commerdaj, re, gfous or other special instruction desired by parents tbeplmXTT 'f'^''^" «l>o have qualified under the Public School system and have also ability to impart such special instruction as is above enumerated, to do so and earn some recompense therefore as supplemental to he ^\"'' '° p""^!" '^y "<""•» "« ^-''''^d fo impart rg the ordinary Public School instruction. ^ . ?■ .T° economize in the number of Public School buildings. It can reasonably be expected that parente Z!rif^™"R themselves according to their common desire for religious instruction, for instance, and in c"ies nearly all places of worship have attached to them ~ Tf ;.''''"^'' ?'^^^ "" ■»"'''= ^^oU^ble for th" purpose, but these school-houses are now used only on f,rh k'^'m "^ "^"^'"^ "P """""gh "=e week.. Ten of such buildings accommodating one hundred pupils each and representing a total of one thousand, would mean a saving to the Public School Board of about «50 0M In the capital expenditure, based on what has betn done n the Public Schools in Toronto. It will be seen that no public money is used in the erection of the buildings in which, for instance religious instruction may be imparted in which the pub ic is^ no interested, and the desire for religious or other spec"a instruction might induce parents or others to estabHsh hese schools and provide suitable buildings Any gram from the Public School funds would be made only on account of the educational work done on Public Schoo" lines The fact that such schools would be required to School Text Books, and submit to inspection would be PuTlSrl "' ""'''''"'' "' "'^ ^^'"'- -^-^ "f 'h« A^;!L^ OM The experiment made with the A-venue Road Volun- tary Public School began in January, 1900, with twelve pupils. We have now an attendance of over thirty and from an educational standpoint I think I may say that the experiment has proved of value. Our chief difficulty has been in regard to the building, as it was erected in the first instance without any regard to its use as a day school. ' The school is managed by a Board of three trustees elected by the parents, and an annual meeting is held in January, when the report of the year's work is pre- sented. In the election of trustees each parent is allowed a vote for each child of his in attendance *§ir 'i^iiLTON PUBLIC LIBRARY ■ ■ -W-Wi^.-Ts-'^aS-Xi^v" fia^l. J