through high school than when they are drawn away by these same normal schools a year or two earlier. We should limit the work of each institution, fix a proper entrance standard, make the high school come up to its conditions, and when the pupils thus bring the proper acquirements, confine the normal to its proper business of teaching them how to impart knowledge. At the very least, State aid should be withheld until the pupil has reached a minimum qualification for entrance on a professional course. Without such provision, the pupils will be drained away from the high schools more and earlier. I agree with the previous speaker on the importance of English studies; but if we were to insist on what any of us would call a good knowledge of these subjects, there would be fewer graduates from high schools and fewer pupils entering the normals. I think it is true that the average student will be better prepared for the world by taking the course, or the major part of it, in even a middling high school, than (without this) to be drilled up to the very highest point of perfection in the rudiments of education; and I am not sure he would not make a better teacher. However that may be, there can be no doubt that the State should not pay two classes of institutions for doing the same kind of work, and that students should not be required to put double time upon the same work.

Supt. Hotchkiss: The fault may be in myself, but I cannot see any relation between high and normal schools. Their purpose is different, and the only connection is that normal graduates come to teach some of our schools, and a few of our graduates go to them, as they do to other professional schools-all alike branches, as it were, of a great university. If the conditions were such that only college or high school graduates could be employed, we might find it necessary to establish definite relations; but as it stands, even a college graduate, if he go to a normal school, must take the course in common branches for instruction in teaching. This whole discussion might better have been deferred until we had heard the paper on "The Place of the High School," where it more properly belongs.

Supt. Cyrus Boger, Lebanon: It seems the system of education in Pennsylvania is still in a chaotic state. We are told by the gentleman that the high school course is x, and some of us are equally convinced

that the "professional" course of the normal school may properly be called y; and with these two unknown quantities, and no data sufficient to work them out, we have trouble in adjusting relations. The normal school is not yet in its true position. Until it gets there no definite relation is possible and the present parallel work will go on. Meanwhile the high school can and does lead up to the college, while the normal school cannot very well do so, and in fact does not. The normal school is doing some of the work belonging to x-a good deal of it sometimes-and pretending it is y. [Laughter.] The true position and province of the normal school is not settled. I agree with the Normal Principal that the public school system should be a connected chain; it is so, up to the high school. The question is, What next? Can it be the normal school?-a technical professional education? The question answers itself. What then but the college? This leaves to the normal school its legitimate sphere of pedagogics-and it only remains to see that the high schools below do their work properly, and send up graduates properly prepared for the technical course. repeatedly thrust at us (and with some truth, doubtless) that our high school graduates who go up to normal schools are not thoroughly prepared, and the normal's work on the common branches is better. Why? Because one province of the high school is to prepare for college -and in what are our pupils examined for entrance there? Not English, or bookkeeping, or history, but Latin and Greek, and geometry and algebra-and if these are satisfactory, the colleges will admit a boy who cannot spell. It is not surprising that the common branches receive less than their full share of attention.

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Supt. Buehrle: This is partly a question of terms. There was a controversy whether Luther attended a high school, since it was called hoheschule, or a university. In Massachusetts the early law required every town of a certain population to maintain a grammar school" that should prepare pupils for the University -that would be far above the high school as we have it to-day. Just so the term "free school" leads to confusion when the reader does not know the historical sense of the term. What is a high school? Our State Superintendent is now collecting information which will tell us what we have; and when we know

BEST RESULTS FROM TEACHERS' MONTHLY

GRADE MEETINGS.

Supt. S. H. DEAN (Mount Carmel): We have a small town, and what helps us may not suit other places, but this is what we aim to do in our grade meetings -First, to build up the young teachers, to give the beginners the benefit of others' experience; that result we get. Then we try to strengthen weak teachers, those who have not had the opportunities of doing or observing advanced work in particular lines; we get that also. Sometimes we use the grade meeting to check those teachers who think they know more than anybody else, trying to make them see themselves through other folks' spectacles; we get that done sometimes. We use them also to enthuse certain teachers who seem to be working only for the salary, and often they learn to sympathize with others, and evince a different spirit. We compare notes and exchange what we think are good points; one is more successful on one line, another on another, and by bringing their work before all together, we become stronger all along the line. Thus we have had a teacher who was particularly successful in language and object lessons present that work to the grade meeting, and most of those present were helped. So in arithmetic, we had a class of pupils brought in, and methods demonstrated by actual teaching. Occasionally a grade meeting is held in some teacher's room, the work of the day being left on the blackboard, or a class of pupils detained and given a lesson in our presence. All these plans have done us good which is perceptible in after work. The grade meeting may be used to wear off the corners of those who have too many; a teacher who at first knows more than anybody you ever saw, after a few experiences under fire of questions knows much less, to their advantage and ours. We think a well conducted grade meeting helps to create a better atmosphere, so to speak. Besides, the Superintendent has here an opportunity to deal impersonally 'but systematically with difficulties he has noted in the different rooms. With our shifting mining population, it is necessary to keep each grade a unit, and these meetings help us to keep in touch; this is one of the most important results. We hold meetings once in two weeks until Christmas--now once a month, alternating with the teachers'

monthly meeting. Work is assigned from time to time--sometimes a book to be read, though we think our educational work is too much tinged with book often, and we try to get the best results of our own thinking, by having papers prepared and discussing them. Perhaps the most benefit is derived by the one who prepares the paper. Where we see a weakness, we have that teacher appointed to look up that particular point: try that, and you will be surprised at the improvement -sometimes it works quite a revolution in the work of the reader and of others.

Supt. W. W. Rupert (Pottstown): We hold monthly meetings. Last year, finding our work somewhat weak in geography, reading, literature, because pupils and teachers had too little knowledge of the facts of nature, we started some work on that line, the teachers took it up and carried it forward, and it has done us good. We began by having the attention of the children called to the common birds and flowers; many knew none of them, few more than two or three. So with the stars-few knew even the most striking constellations, many not even the north star. It is not so now. Teachers and pupils have done observation work that is both interesting and profitable. When we had made a start, blanks were prepared to record the results of flower study, and the necessity of description sharpened the observation to a surprising degree. So we asked the teachers to note the moon's path, comparing month after month, questioning the pupils whether it rises at the same point; the sun's path, summer and winter; the rising and setting of the stars-you will find even some teachers are not sure whether stars rise and set at all; to ask whether any have seen an eclipse of the moon in day time, and so on. If you will start such work, it will go on, and wisely directed will help on many lines, and will certainly wake up the sleepy ones. We also derived benefit from an exercise on expression in reading

a five-minute essay, announced two or three weeks in advance, brought out a lively discussion. This year we continue the preparing of papers, and compare the plants as we find them with those of last year. I may say that with one exception all our teachers did this work well, and I have a few papers here, if any one wishes to examine them, from children in their fourth school year. This year we are doing some work in American literature.

By the way, any of you who take this up will find there is some confusion as to who are American writers in many teachers' minds. We had an exercise on our historians, then on Bryant, next on Hawthorne. We have grade meetings too, but as there are but 35 schools, much of the work proper to them can be done by frequent visitation. Sometimes we have methods illustrated by bringing a class before the teachers. We hold our meetings in the evening, from 7 to 9 o'clock, but never on Saturday-I believe in giving teachers a clear day of rest.

Supt. D. A. Harman (Hazleton): These meetings (we call them our city institute) are my greatest help. All the distinctively progressive work we have done, has had its inception there. We have met twice a month for twelve years; now on alternate Saturday mornings from 9 to 12. In the early days we felt that the line of work most needed was that bearing directly upon the theory and practice of teaching. We had some psychology, and methods illustrated with classes of children. In those early years we were in session all day Saturday-9 to 12, and 2 to 4; there were 22 days in the school month, and the directors paid for the time; since the law was changed we have the forenoon session only. Later we introduced music, drawing, number work, penmanship, and had everything thoroughly understood in the institute before new plans were tried in the schools. We give special attention to helping new teachers. We read books on professional methods-this year we have Baldwin's Psychology applied to Pedagogy. We find the institute to be an uplifting power, giving teachers a higher conception of their work. The frequency of meeting has not resulted in indifference: every meeting gives teachers better ideals, models, or methods of government; we realize more and more that we are dealing with human souls, and go back better fitted for the work. I set up a high ideal for the institute, as I expect the teachers to do for the school. The literary side, already brought out by the previous speakers, is also delightful and profitable; we do not neglect it; but I hold it secondary to the inspiring of teachers with faith, love, enthusiasm in their work.

Supt. Addison Jones (West Chester): This discussion has been profitable to me; some of what is described we have been

doing-some is new. Our grade meetings are held at irregular times; the small number of schools enables us to do more in visitation. In our meetings we hold up work that is well done for imitation, rather than directly correct errors. Our meetings cover two hours, 9:30 to 11:30; we have one major subject, and a variety of minor topics. We make the work as practical as possible. Finding that our pupils did not do well on arithmetic problems outside of those given in the book, we looked that up, compared notes, and soon got better work. In grammar we agreed to throw out the technical work, except in the two grades immediately below the high school; we find we have better results from daily exercises in composition. We found that our pupils did not spell as well as they should-they learn best in different ways, some by sight, some by repeating to themselves-we are looking into that, and improvement is being made; we do not expect to make all good spellers, but the average is better. One of the minor topics that is growing to a major is "child study "-trying to find out not only what the child knows, but how his mind works. A few months of such study decreases the trouble with stubborn and sullen pupils. We could not well do without our monthly or grade meetings, though our small number brings teacher and superintendent together by frequent visitation.

Supt. L. E. McGinnes (Steelton): I think prominence should be given to the professional element in these meetings. Many teachers seem to think if they once read a single book on psychology, no more should be expected. We looked about for a thin book for our use, and have been working at Macgregor's "Principles of Education." We meet every two weeks during the year. The last six weeks we have given some time to the "products of education;" the next six we take up "taste in education." We are thinking, investigating. Four or five leading questions are proposed for each meeting, to indicate lines of thought. Every alternate Monday evening we have a public meeting of our literary institute; before the anniversaries of our living writers we have written to them, and several have answered with their own hand. This plan has been operated for ten years. We have a good public school library, open to the town, where you can find all the works of leading authors. All