THE OS WE GO STATE NORMAL SCHOOL. 69 



the standpoint of the adult ; the new, that of the child. From the 

 former, the whole mass of heterogeneous facts composing the 

 knowledge to be acquired is viewed as having been classified, 

 labeled, and stored in books. From this conception, what method 

 of acquiring knowledge can be more direct than the memorizing 

 of books ? By a cheerful optimism this system crams the child 

 with words, and trusts that somehow he will grasp the ideas for 

 himself and will have his powers cultivated in the process. In 

 exceptional cases these objects are accomplished ; but the average 

 child is left in a condition of permanent mental dyspepsia and 

 torpor. The new education conceives the child as looking forward 

 into the phenomena of Nature and life, curious and eager to know 

 realities first, then to express his knowledge, and delighted with 

 the exercise of his powers. To bring the child into contact with 

 facts, to guide him in classifying and labeling these facts for him- 

 self, becomes the teacher's first and chief duty, in obedience to the 

 sound principle that development of powers is gained by their ex- 

 ercise only. From this point of view education is conceived of as 

 a natural process extending from the cradle to the grave, with 

 Nature as the chief teacher, and the mother as the first assistant, 

 whose work is carried on by the schools and the experiences of 

 life. In this natural process of education, ideas come before ex- 

 pressions, whether the idea be the child's first conception of color 

 and form or the profoundest abstraction of a philosopher ; and its 

 principles are therefore applicable to education in all grades 

 from the kindergarten to the university.* 



As to the correctness of this conception of education and the 

 general means of realizing it, there is substantial unanimity among 

 school men ; but, as to details of courses of study and methods of 

 presenting subjects, diversity of opinion necessarily exists. Here, 

 as in other fields, practice lags far behind theory. To the Oswe- 

 go school belongs the honor of having developed in great detail 

 courses of study and methods of teaching that have received the 

 indorsement of educational reformers and of teachers in hundreds 

 of schoolrooms as being capable of realizing in large measure the 

 true educational ideal. Here also were devised simple and effi- 

 cient means for giving teachers the training required for the new 

 kind of work. To all who know how broad and how difficult to 

 bridge is the chasm between educational theory and practice, these 

 achievements will seem of no small importance. In this con- 

 nection, Prof. Hermann Kriisi, for twenty-five years the teacher 

 of the history and philosophy of education, geometry, French, 

 and German ; Miss Matilda S. Cooper, for the same period teacher 



* For an interesting application, see Sheldon's General History, and Sheldon-Barnes's 

 United States History, by Oswego graduates. 



