Instructors and their qualifications.-Instruction and supervision are by far the most vital factors in the efficiency of teacher-training departments in high schools. But study of Tables 4 and 5 reveals a wide divergence of standards among the various States on even these important matters. Special instructors are now required for this work either by law or regulation of the State department of education in all the 23 States except 4-Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, and North Dakota. These special teachers give full time to the department in 14 States out of the 23, but they assume a variety of additional obligations in the other 9. The most common standard for employment as training-department teachers, as shown by the table, is normal-school graduation plus one year of further study in a college of education, and at least four or five years of teaching experience. Several States surpass this standard, while several others fail to approximate it. Eleven require a bachelor's degree, with some special preparation in education. Only 10 States mention rural-school experience as a specific requirement, and of these only 2, Minnesota and North Carolina, demand as much as two years. Among the other essentials named are good personality, which is required by 6 States, good health, required by 4, and professional spirit and leadership, required by 7 States. Rural interest, though always desirable, is specifically required by only 3 StatesIowa, Minnesota, and Ohio. TABLE 4.-INSTRUCTORS, AND THEIR QUALIFICATIONS, IN THE TEACHER-TRAINING DEPARTMENTS OF HIGH SCHOOLS, 1923-24 Requirements not definitely stipulated, but each candidate is specially indorsed by the State commissioner of education and good standards are maintained. 9851°-24-3 TABLE 4.-INSTRUCTORS, AND THEIR QUALIFICATIONS, IN THE TEACHER-TRAINING DEPARTMENTS OF HIGH SCHOOLS, JALIK 1923-24-Continued Supervision.-In most States, 21 out of the 23, authority for the supervision of training departments is divided between the State and some local agent. (See Table 5). In Ohio, New York, Tennessee, Montana, and Florida this chief local authority is the county or district superintendent. In Michigan, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Wyoming it is the city superintendent of schools. Sometimes, as in Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, and Missouri, it is both, with special authority vested in the city superintendent. Occasionally the high-school principal has some direction over the department, as in Wisconsin, West Virginia, and Oregon. Missouri, however, has recently adopted the unique plan of having all high-school training departments supervised by rural specialists in the State teachers colleges; and in at least two instances, Vermont and North Carolina, the State reserves full control of the entire system in both its administrative and supervisory aspects. In the matter of State supervision, only eight States employ a special normal-training supervisor or director for the guidance of these classes. Of these special supervisors or inspectors, only five, those in Minnesota, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, and Iowa, give full time to this task. It is noteworthy, also, that only one of these agents (that of West Virginia) is known officially as a "supervisor"; all the others bear the title of "inspector" or "director." |