DEPARTMENT OF SUPERINTENDENCE MILWAUKEE MEETING, 1905 SECRETARY'S MINUTES FIRST DAY MORNING SESSION.-MILWAUKEE, WIS., TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1905 The department met in the Davidson Theater, and was called to order at 9:30 A. M. by Edwin G. Cooley, superintendent of schools, Chicago, Ill., president of the department. A chorus of five hundred boys from the city's public schools gave to the assembled superintendents the first installment of welcome in song. The welcome was continued by William George Bruce, editor of the American School Board Journal, and Carroll G. Pearse, superintendent of the city schools, representing respectively the civic and the educational interests of the city of Milwaukee. A response on behalf of the department was made by President Edwin G. Cooley. The topic, "Educational Features of the Universal Exposition at St. Louis," was discussed in papers as follows: 1. "From the View-Point of the Chief of the Department of Education": Howard J. Rogers, first assistant commissioner of education, Albany, N. Y. 2. "From the View-Point of the Chairman of Group 1 and Department Juries on Education and Member of the Superior Jury of Awards": Eliphalet Oram Lyte, principal of the First Pennsylvania State Normal School, Millersville, Pa. 3. "From the View-Point of a Member of the Jury of Awards, Group 1, Elementary Education": Ben Blewett, assistant superintendent of instruction, public schools, St. Louis, Mo. The president announced a complimentary banquet to be tendered Wednesday evening to Dr. W. T. Harris, United States Commissioner of Education, at the Plankinton House. A pleasant incident occurred at the beginning of the morning session, when a large picture of Dr. Harris was brought upon the stage and greeted with a round of applause. On motion, the department adjourned until 2 o'clock P. M. AFTERNOON SESSION.-TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28 The afternoon session opened at 2:30 P. M., President Cooley in the chair, with music by the Glee Club of the Milwaukee State Normal School. Three papers were given on "Means of Increasing the Efficiency of Our Public-School Work." The first speaker was John W. Carr, superintendent of schools, Anderson, Ind. He took the place on the program allotted to Albert G. Lane, of Chicago, who was absent on account of illness. The second paper was given by Superintendent Carroll G. Pearse, of Milwaukee. The third paper on the topic was by William I. Crane, superintendent of schools, Marshalltown, Ia. The general discussion which followed was participated in by J. F. Keating, superintendent of schools, Pueblo, Colo.; Gustavus R. Glenn, president of North Georgia Agri 5 cultural and Mechanical College, Dahlonega, Ga.; F. Louis Soldan, superintendent of public instruction, St. Louis, Mo.; W. O. Thompson, president of Ohio State University, Columbus, O.; Elmer A. Lyman, professor of mathematics, State Normal College, Ypsilanti, Mich.; George H. Martin, secretary of Massachusetts Board of Education, West Lynn, Mass.; A. S. Downing, third assistant commissioner of education, Albany, N. Y.; Charles F. Carroll, superintendent of schools, Rochester, N. Y.; and George J. Miller, principal of Woodward Avenue High School, Kalamazoo, Mich. The discussion was summed up in the following resolution, introduced by John W. Carr, superintendent of schools, Anderson, Ind.: Resolved, That the paramount educational question of the hour is the employment and retention of sufficient numbers of well-qualified teachers to fill all of our public schools; and that this department pledges itself to use its best endeavors to secure sufficient compensation to enable teachers to prepare themselves properly for their work, and to justify them in remaining permanently in the profession of teaching: The president announced the following committees: EVENING SESSION.-TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28 The evening session was called to order at 8:15 P. M. by President Cooley. The exercises were introduced by music by the Treble Clef Chorus of the Milwaukee Public Schools. Then followed an address on "Some of the Conditions which Cause Variation of the Rate of School Expenditure in Different Localities," by Dr. W. T. Harris, United States Commissioner of Education, Washington, D. C. Music by the Glee Club of Milwaukee-Downer College. An address on "The Group Morality of Children" was delivered by George E. Vincent, professor of sociology, University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill. On motion, the meeting was declared adjourned to 9:30 A. M. Wednesday, March 1. SECOND DAY MORNING SESSION.-WEDNESDAY, MARCH I The department convened at 9:30 A. M., with President Edwin G. Cooley in the chair. Music for the opening of the program was furnished by the Mandolin and Glee Club of Marquette College. N. C. Dougherty, superintendent of schools, Peoria, Ill., referred to the serious illness of two highly esteemed members of the Association, President Harper, of Chicago, and Bishop Spalding, of Peoria, and offered the following resolution, which was unanimously adopted: Resolved, That we, the members of this department, extend to President William R. Harper and Bishop John Lancaster Spalding, by a telegram, expression of our sympathy in their affliction, and of our sincere hope that each may soon be able to continue his good work. "Charter Provisions as Related to the Organization of School Systems" was discussed by 1. William H. Maxwell, superintendent of schools for the city of New York, and President of the National Educational Association. 2. F. Louis Soldan, superintendent of instruction, public schools, St. Louis, Mo. 3. Hon. Edward C. Eliot, former president of the Board of Education, St. Louis, Mo. The following telegrams were sent in accordance with the instructions of the depart ment: President William R. Harper, University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill.: The heartfelt sympathy of the Department of Superintendence is extended to you, and the confident hope is expressed that you will fully recover your health, and with renewed vigor and energy continue the great work of service to your fellow-men to which you have devoted your life. EVANGELINE E. WHITNEY, Secretary. Rt. Rev. John Lancaster Spalding, Bishop of Peoria, Peoria, Ill.: E. G. COOLEY, President. The Department of Superintendence of the National Educational Association recognizes the great service you have rendered to the teachers and children of the public schools of the country, and of all schools, and sends loving greetings and heartfelt sympathy to you in your affliction. The department expresses the sincere hope that you may soon be able to continue your great life work. EVANGELINE E. WHITNEY, Secretary. BUSINESS SESSION E. G. COOLEY, President. The business session of the department was called to order by the president at the close of the morning session. A report of the Committee on Simplified Spelling was presented by the chairman, Superintendent W. H. Elson, of Grand Rapids, Mich. REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON SIMPLIFICATION OF SPELLING To the Department of Superintendence of the National Educational Association: GENTLEMEN: Your committee appointed last year to present to the Board of Directors of the Nationa Educational Association, and to ask their acquiescence in, your resolutions petitioning them to appoint a committee of prominent and scholarly men to head and direct the movement toward simplifying our spelling, and to put in its hands for this purpose a fund not to exceed $2,000 a year for five years, on condition that an equal fund be given to the committee from outside sources, begs leave to report that, in accordance with the spirit of your instruction, steps were at once taken to ascertain the attitude, as far as practicable, of every active member of the National Educational Association on the points involved, in order that the directors and members of the Council might be duly informed as to the desire of all who were directly concerned in the proposed action. We are gratified to be able to report that the votes footed up 1,545 approving the proposed action, and only 171 opposing. A limited edition of the lists for and against, arranged alphabetically by states, was printed and distributed to the directors and members of the Council. It is an interesting document. The remainder of the edition is here for distribution to those who desire to examine these lists. At the St. Louis meeting of the Board of Directors your resolutions were duly submitted, together with two alternative outline plans for the business organization of the proposed commission. According to the usage of the Association, the resolutions and plans were received and referred for advice to the Council Committee on Investigations and Appropriations. This committee gave your representatives a patient hearing and carefully considered the whole subject, finally deciding to ask the advice of a committee of experts as to what course they had better recommend in the matter. They designated as this committee Superintendent W. H. Maxwell, President of the National Educational Association, chairman ex officio, H. H. Seerley, president of the Iowa State Normal School; C. M. Jordan, superintendent of schools, Minneapolis; George Hempl, professor of philology, University of Michigan; and Calvin Thomas, professor of the Germanic languages, Columbia University. This committee is asked to report to the president of the Council by June, 1, 1905. We are all awaiting with interest the action of this committee. The time seems ripe for a discreet, systematic, quiet, and thorogoing effort, on a business basis, to disseminate accurate knowledge in regard to English spelling and to promote its simplification. This effort must be more or less of an experiment, of course; but the more we study the problem, the more fully are we satisfied that the general business plan outlined in the petition of this department and indorsed with surprising unanimity by our active members, and by sixteen or more large state and section associations of teachers, is one that is practicable and which should be put into operation without needless delay. A motion to accept the report of the committee was unanimously carried. W. H. ELSON: I think it must be evident to this body that there is much remaining for this committee to do, and that it is advisable that this committee or a similar one be appointed for another year. I wish, therefore, to suggest that the present committee be continued, excepting myself—since I have become a member of the Board of Directors of the Association. I would recommend that Herbert M. Slauson, superintendent of schools, Ann Arbor, Mich., take my place as a member of this committee, and that E. B. Cox, of Xenia, O., be appointed chairman. It was moved, seconded, and unanimously voted that the Committee on Simplified Spelling be continued for one year, with the provision that E. B. Cox act as chairman and Herbert M. Slauson be added to the committee to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of W. H. Elson, of Grand Rapids, Mich. E. O. Vaile, chairman of the Committee of Conference on a Universal System of Key Notation, on behalf of the conference committee composed of members of the American Philological Association, the Modern Language Association, and the Department of Superintendence of the National Educational Association, reported that the joint committee met at Boston at the time of the National Educational Association meeting in July, 1903, and appointed a subcommittee to take the work in hand. This subcommittee consists of Professor Calvin Thomas, Columbia University; Professor George Hempl, Michigan University; Professor C. P. G. Scott, Yonkers, N. Y.; Professor O. F. Emerson, Western Reserve University, and E. O. Vaile. The most of the labor has been performed by Professor Thomas and Professor Hempl. The manner in which they have accomplished their work proves their eminent fitness for it, and it is confidently hoped that the members of the Department of Superintendence will give the report careful study, and take it up for discussion and adoption at their next meeting, thus joining in the movement to establish a rational and scientific substitute for our present cumbersome and complicated system of diacritics. The complete alphabet, as recommended by the committee, provides a separate letter for each of our forty-two distinct vocal sounds, adopting as its basis the vowel signs recommended in 1877 by the committee of the Philological Association headed by Professor Whitney and Professor March. The present report merely adds enough new signs to provide single characters for the consonants and diagraphs, the step which Professor Whitney avowedly left to be taken in the future. The report of the committee is now submitted for discussion and amendment. All suggestions should be sent to Professor Thomas, the chairman, and will be carefully weighed before the report comes up for approval and adoption at the next meeting of each of the bodies represented in the joint committee. Two hundred printed copies of the report will be distributed to the members present. Others can be obtained by writing to Professor Calvin Thomas, Columbia University, New York city. By request, the report of the Committee on Resolutions was deferred until a subsequent meeting. The Committee on Nominations recommended that the following be elected officers of the department for the ensuing year: For President J. W. Carr, superintendent of schools, Anderson, Ind. For First Vice-President-J. H. Phillips, superintendent of schools, Birmingham, Ala. For Second Vice-President-Ida C. Bender, supervisor of primary grades, Buffalo, N. Y. For Secretary-Ella C. Sullivan, district superintendent of schools, Chicago, Ill. The nominees were elected by a unanimous vote of the department. The selection of a place of meeting was declared the next in order of business. Louisville, Ky., Niagara Falls, N. Y., Washington, D. C., and Hot Springs, Ark., were each in turn proposed. Superintendent E. H. Mark and Principal Reuben P. Halleck, of Louisville, Ky., |