Spelling, Grammar, Geography, Arithmetic, etc. Proper method of conducting Recitations. Best method of teaching Object-Lessons. How to interest and advance dull pupils. What is desirable in a text-book?

CONDITION OF EDUCATION IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK.-The Annual Report of the Standing Committee on the Condition of Education, to the New York Teachers' Association, is so interesting a document, we are pained to mutilate it by the scissors, but we have only space for the following:

In the social and political world, the facts and experiences of the past year so fraught with coming destinies, have not yet crystallized. They are only the fragments out of which the future shall read our history-whilst of that future itself no one is wise enough to forecast the horoscope. Amid our national disasters, whilst the preservation of our Government on the one hand and its destruction on the other have been ruling purposes, whilst capitalists more than ever before have been engrossed in watching every ebb and flow of the mighty tide of events on which their fortunes were embarked, it were not strange if public education and public morals suffered temporary neglect. Yet New York, true to her early policy which gave tone and vigor to her institutions, and upon the basis of universal culture, has erected a mighty State; true to her antecedents; true to the interest of her children-themselves the best defense of the wise policy of our fathers, who provided so generously for their training-exhibits for the past year a record to which we may refer with pride, and one for which posterity will not cease to give thanks. With a quarter million of men in the field, and tens of millions of money poured into the national treasury, we have yet done more for public education than in any former year.

It seems to be not only a deep and settled conviction among our people, that the intellectual and moral culture of our youth are the only hope for the perpetuity of a free commonwealth; but with that thrift and practical wisdom by which our citizens are characterized, we have not forgotten that when the principles of a free government are on trial before the world, and brought to the stern arbitrament of the sword in the field, the antagonism of the bitter and relentless foes of human freedom at home and abroad, and that severer test of virtue and patriotism, the sacrifice of all things, if need be, for principle, more than ever we need to strengthen the foundations on which our boasted fabric rests, and, in those who shall come after us, educate a race who shall be wiser than their fathers have been. For we know full well, that when victory has perched upon our banner, in the close of this bloody strife, it will need all the wisdom of the coming men and women of this land to meet the mighty issues that shall follow fast and follow faster upon the return of peace. We are yet a new nation, and a giant in our youth; and wise heads, and strong, pure hearts must redeem us from the blandishments and corruption of social and political agencies, that seem, more than the invasion of any armed foe, to threaten our life.

We know too, that, in the mighty future, more than upon our armies in the field, more than upon the prowess of our military chieftains, our place among the nations depends upon the intelligence and virtue of our sons and daughters, and upon the loyalty to noble principles, and the sagacity in achieving noble ends of those other leaders, who in the humble school-house by the way side, are to develop the budding energies of our youth, and implant in their young hearts the first principles of reverence and love to God and justice to men, of universal freedom under the sanction and protection of a stable government founded upon just and equal laws.

As evidence of our growth and progress, your committee refer with peculiar satisfaction to statistics of the schools for the year closing with September 30th, 1862, as embodied in the report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. We present a few items.

The amount paid for teachers' wages is $2,780,371 05, against $2,655,441 70 the pre

vious year, being an increase of more than $100,000, whilst the total amount expended for common schools is nearly $4,000,000 ($3,955,664 33). Since 1857, the increase of attendance is more than 50,000, and during the last year nearly 20,000, and the greatest average of increase, is found under the greatest number of months attendance.

State Certificates.-In Illinois, California, and other States, provisions have been made by law for the issue of State Certificates to experienced teachers. In the former of these States the candidate is submitted to a searching examination by the State Board of Examiners, and is required, in addition, to produce unquestionable evidence of moral character and of signal success in teaching. It has been and still is the practice of the Department of Public Instruction in this State to grant State Certificates on the recommendation of the School Commissioners. It is easy to see, and the facts justify the assumption, that too frequently the certificate is only complimentary, whilst it is to be feared that many of the Commissioners have as yet imperfect notions of the grade of attainment and professional skill, which ought to characterize the recipient, and which, if it were insisted on, would make the State Certificate the representative of true professional nobility.

Teaching a Profession.-California has taken the initiative in organizing a society of professional teachers; and from the interest manifested in the State Institutes and Conventions, there is little doubt that ere long the school interests of the State will be in the hands of a learned and competent body, whose intelligence and experience will fit them to build up the profession and place it in the front rank of the learned professions of the age. The influences of such a body in molding the school policy of the State cannot be too highly estimated.

Free Schools.-The establishment of free schools, so often discussed and twice affirmed at the ballot-box (but which failed through agencies not necessary here to recall), has been agitated year by year, in the State and local associations and by Legislatures, and is still as full of interest as ever. The advancing sentiment among our people is realizing practically, in many localities, privileges denied to the State at large. The amount annually appropriated by the State for the support of common schools, including the common school fund and the free school fund, is upwards of one million three hundred thousand dollars. This allows the trustees of many districts in the spirit of a niggardly policy, by employing cheap, and we may add generally inefficient teachers, to keep the schools open for the six months required by law, without any tax upon the district. And the attendance upon such schools does not justify the assumption that the bounty of the State is either duly appreciated or properly improved. An increase in the State apportionment as such would not remedy the evil; for no distribution could be made that in such case would be equitable. Your committee are of the opinion that some measures should if possible, be devised, whereby the districts, in order to participate in the public funds, should themselves raise a sum of money that would insure a higher order of qualifications in the teachers and more liberal salaries. The school law should, at least, be so amended that any school district may at a regular, or a special meeting called for that purpose, vote a tax for teachers' wages, without changing its present style of organization. This privilege being accorded, it is probable that the creation of a public sentiment that shall, in time, secure schools free to all the children in the State, may be safely left to a natural and gradual growth, among the people.

OUR LANGUAGE.-The Dublin University Magazine says: Dictionary English is something very different not only from common colloquial English, but even from that of ordinary written composition. Instead of about 40,000 words, there is probably no single author in the language from whose works, however voluminous, so many as 10,000 words could be collected. Of the 40,000 words there are certainly many more than one-half that are only employed, if

they are ever employed at all, on the rarest occasions. We should any of us be surprised to find, if we counted them, with how small a number of words we manage to express all that we have to say either with our lips or even with the pen. Our common literary English probably hardly extends to 10,000 words, our common spoken English hardly to 5,000.

PENNSYLVANIA.-The State Teachers' Association met at Reading, Aug. 4. The proceedings, as contained in the Pennsylvania School Journal, indicate that there is a good deal of life among the teachers of that sound old State. Among the speakers we notice the name of Major General Sigel, whose speech was so good we can hardly resist the temptation to copy it in full. The following was among the resolutions passed:

Resolved, That the Pennsylvania State Teachers' Association takes this occasion to reiterate its unhesitating and whole hearted loyalty to the Union; and that it recognizes as the first duty of the citizen, a firm and unwavering support of the Government in its efforts to suppress the existing rebellion.

PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF SAN FRANCISCO-REPORT ON PRIMARY EXAMINATION.— The semi-annual examination of the primary schools has just been completed. Prof. Swezey and Mr. B. Marks accepted an invitation to aid in the examination. The subjoined report, addressed to the Board of Education, we have taken the liberty to publish, as we know that its publication will be acceptable to the teachers of the fifth and sixth grades whose classes were examined by the Professor:

HON. BOARD OF EDUCATION:

Gentlemen:-The undersigned, in addition to his detailed report of examinations heretofore submitted, begs leave to make the following general remarks:

Condition of Class Rooms.-As a general thing the rooms were pleasant and comfortably arranged. In some instances teachers have evidently taken great care to have their working place attractive. In these rooms the examiner was sure to find more heart-work than where the walls were bare of ornaments and there were no flowers. Teachers. In most cases the teachers were apparently glad to see the examiner enter. Conscious of effort upon their own part to do their whole duty, they rightly regarded the visit, though official, as friendly, and welcomed it accordingly. In a few rooms an undue degree of solicitude as to the result was apparent, though more experienced teachers took the whole calmly and as a matter of course. The examiner was again and again impressed with the conviction that our teachers are working very hard in their daily duties. There is a somewhat care worn expression very common upon these faces in the school room: a few notable exceptions were very pleasant to seewhere ladies make it a religious principle to be "jolly "-which principle gave light better than sunshine to all the pupils under their charge.

Calisthenics.—The last remark leads naturally to a notice of the improvements in the conduct of schools by the introduction of gymnastics. If teachers can bring their pupils up to this physical work, the influence will be not only powerful in securing order and health among the children, but in driving away the care-look from themselves. The gymnastic exercises in the Union Street School are worthy of being rivaled by every class in the city.

Studies. The graded system is working well. As a rule the least success seems to have been attained in spelling, to which branch the Board should call special attention. The Speller should be thoroughly mastered. It is intrinsically dry work, but there are so many ways of varying the exercise that there is little excuse for deficiency in results.

Even if nothing were gained in the 5th and 6th grades but the power to spell and read well, the position of affairs in the grammar grades would be changed materially for the better, since these two branches, with the elementary ideas of numbers, give all the foundation required for future building. That spelling can be made nearly perfect even in large classes has been sufficiently demonstrated by the success of a few teachers in this examination: that it is not nearly perfect has also been clearly shown by the results in other classes. If this matter is not attended to, the grammar grades will have too much primary work to do for their full efficiency. Geography seems to be well taught generally, and the ideas of pupils are made clear by references to local geography. Few cities have the facilities for actual illustration of many definitions afforded here; and it is a pleasure to bear witness that teachers, as a rule, are not resting content with the mere memorizing of words herein.

Oral Lessons.-In nearly every school the undersigned has asked the teacher's opinion as to the effect produced upon the ordinary book-work of the class by the time taken from that for object lessons. The replies have been varied: two or three have thought the progress in books was less; others have seen no material difference; while the majority think the progress is quite as great under the new, if not greater than under the old system. The methods of object teaching are by no means uniform-nor should they be. It is here the individuality of the teacher is to produce its mark. In several places the examiner was greatly pleased by the extraordinary success of the teacher; and in almost all he has found a measure of interest in the work highly satisfactory. Inexperience in this method of teaching will soon be remedied by time; and the success now attained as a whole is full of promise for the future. There may, however, be as much deadness in the knowledge obtained by pupils herein as by the rote-study of books. In natural history the spelling and ready pronunciation of a terribly long word is not proof positive that "the knowledge which is most worth" has been secured. So in "forms," instances were seen where the pupil might as well have repeated a Greek sentence as the words that were repeated.

Promotions. It is only necessary to remark herein that it is of importance to pupil, teacher, and system that promotions be made according to the preparation secured. In most of the classes for which this report is made, the arrangement seems to have been wisely completed. In one or two cases the title would have been better honored by increasing the number of units expressed thereby. The undersigned is thoroughly convinced that nothing is permanently gained in any school, either for pupil or parent, by hasty promotions.

Upon the whole, this examination, which has been as thorough as seemed to the undersigned desirable, has confirmed his opinion that the Public Schools of San Francisco are judiciously taught; that the teachers as a class are interested in their work, and are up to the improvements of the times in educational processes; and that the Board of Education and the people have good cause for the pride with which they point to the Public Schools of our city.

SAN FRANCISCo, Nov. 17, 1863.

SAMUEL I. C. SWEZEY.

ATTENDANCE OF THE SEXES IN OUR SCHOOLS. From a very able and extended Report to the New York Teachers' Association, from the Committee on the Inequality of Attendance of the Sexes in our Schools, we extract the following truthful remarks:

The conclusions arrived at by your committee, from all the facts and data within reach, may be summed up as follows:

1st. That nineteen-twentieths, at least, of all the students in our professional schools and colleges are males.

2d. That in our incorporated academies and boarding schools, exclusive of Union schools and public free academies, there is no great excess either way in regard to sex.

3d. That in the higher grades of scholars in our Union Schools and Free Academies in villages and cities, the female attendance is from one-third to two-fifths in excess of the male.

4th. That in our common schools throughout the United States, there is an excess of male over female pupils of about 200,000.

5th. That on the whole, masculine education is in advance of feminine, and that if either require greater facilities, the extra effort would be due to the latter, in the way of opening the door wider to them for collegiate and professional education. It ill becomes a man, who, in the academy with his sister, found his mental energies fully taxed to keep even pace with her, to say, after passing through the college and the professional school, while she, in the meantime, has been turned back to the cares and duties of domestic life, that God gave him capacities of greater mental calibre than hers. The range of female employment is limited, at the widest, and not over intellectual at that: and, as a necessary consequence, over-crowds their sphere of activity and depresses the compensation. A higher intellectual development, and more liberal opportunities for employment, would enable them the more easily to gain an honorable support when death or misfortune removes the prop on which they have been accustomed to lean. Woman would be correspondingly elevated, vice diminished, and ill-assorted marriages less frequent. A beautiful, but ignorant and vain woman, is a fit subject for the acts of the designing villain; but the intellectual, well educated woman, beautiful or plain, is a tower of strength against the assaults of the vicious and depraved; and no one but an auxiliary of the arch fiend himself, would lend a hand, intentionally, to bring her into reproach and unmerited contempt. Strong minded women, in the rightful acceptation of that term, are a terror to meek minded men; and your committee have yet to learn of a solitary instance, where elevated female intellect has dishonored God, or prejudiced the temporal or eternal interests of our common humanity!

All of which is respectfully submitted,

EDWARD WEBSTER,
S. B. WOOLWORTH,
E. D. WELLER, dissenting.

THE AMERICAN Institute of InstRUCTION.-The Thirty-fourth Anniversary of this oldest and best educational organization in the United States was celebrated on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of the last week of August, in Concord, N. H. A session of three days has been held annually, generally in some one of the New England States, by the Institute, from 1830 down to the present time. A volume of proceedings and lectures has been printed annually also. These volumes are now out of print many of them, and it has long been a very difficult thing to obtain a full set, especially of the old series. The new series is issued by Ticknor & Fields, who will reprint the whole series shall the demand for Teachers' and School libraries seem to warrant it. It is undoubtedly the best educational series for popular use extant.

Prof. Bailey, of Yale College, lectured on " Reading and Spelling," advocating more attention to those branches. Prof. Sanborn, of Dartmouth College, "pitched into" Object Teaching, characterizing it as "absurd." This is natural enough in a "College Professor," who never taught a class of primary children in his life; dealing with Freshmen, who know everything, and with Seniors, who know more than that. Of course, all the graduates come out "sharp." Stick to Latin and Greek, Mr. Professor, and let the schoolmarms attend to the little ones. J. M. Gregory, Sup't of Schools, Michigan, delivered a lecture on "Systems of Education." Dr. Barnard, of Hartford, Conn., offered resolutions