fraternity today than how to deal justly and successfully with boys at this time of
life. This is the age when they drop out of school" in far too large numbers, and
he thinks that the small percentage of male graduates from our high schools is
due to "the inability of the average grammar grade or high-school teacher to deal
rightly with boys in this critical period of their school life." Most teachers "know
all their bad points, but fail to discover their good ones." The fine disciplinarian,
the mechanical movement of whose school is so admirable and who does not
realize the new need of liberty or how loose-jointed, mentally and physically, all
are at this age, should be supplanted by one who can look into the heart and by a
glance make the boy feel that he or she is his friend. "The weakest work in our
schools is the handling of boys entering the adolescent period of life, and there is
no greater blessing that can come to a boy at this age, when he does not
understand himself, than a good strong teacher that understands him, has faith in
him, and will day by day lead him till he can walk alone."
Small[5] found the teacher a focus of imitation whence many influences, both
physical and mental, irradiated to the pupils. Every accent, gesture, automatism,
like and dislike is caught consciously and unconsciously. Every intellectual
interest in the teacher permeates the class—liars, if trusted, became honest; those
treated as ladies and gentlemen act so; those told by favorite teachers of the good
things they are capable of feel a strong impulsion to do them; some older
children are almost transformed by being made companions to teachers, by
having their good traits recognized, and by frank apologies by the teacher when
in error.
An interesting and unsuspected illustration of the growth of independence with
adolescence was found in 2,411 papers from the second to eighth grades on the
characteristics of the best teacher as seen by children.[6] In the second and third
grades, all, and in the fourth, ninety-five per cent specified help in studies. This
falls off rapidly in the sixth, seventh, and eighth grades to thirty-nine per cent,
while at the same time the quality of patience in the upper grades rises from a
mention by two to twenty-two per cent.
Sanford Bell[7] collated the answers of 543 males and 488 females as to who of
all their past teachers did them most good, and wherein; whom they loved and
disliked most, and why. His most striking result is presented in which shows that
fourteen in girls and sixteen in boys is the age in which most good was felt to
have been done, and that curves culminating at twelve for both sexes but not
falling rapidly until fifteen or sixteen represent the period when the strongest and