_RYERSON AND GRAMMAR SCHOOLS._
As already shown in the chapters on the early history of schools in
Upper Canada, Grammar Schools were provided for before any provision was
made for Common Schools. In fact the chief nominal purpose of the large
grant of public land in 1799 was to endow Grammar Schools, and in 1807
schools were opened in each of the eight Districts into which Upper
Canada was then divided. These schools were supposed to be classical
schools, fashioned upon the model of the great English Public Schools.
As a matter of fact they had no uniform standard of equipment, staff,
course of study or graduation. A few schools, such as Cornwall,
Kingston, York, and Niagara, were famous and turned out many able men.
Some of the schools received pupils who could not read, and were in no
sense secondary schools. As the population increased, new schools were
opened. Although originally intended to be free schools, they all
charged fees. The public grant, which was paid direct to the principal,
was one hundred pounds for each school. As the population increased, new
schools were opened, and by 1844, when Ryerson became Superintendent of
Education, twenty-five Grammar Schools and Academies were in operation.
These schools were managed by trustees appointed by the Crown, but were
under no proper Government control. They were never really inspected.
Each school was a law unto itself. All were supposed to teach Latin and
Greek, but in many of them there was not a single pupil studying either
of these languages. They were handicapped in many ways. For years there
were no good elementary schools from which they could draw pupils with a
foundation for a secondary education. During the same long period there
were in Upper Canada no colleges to which graduates of Grammar Schools
might go for professional training. This gave these schools a wide scope
and great opportunities, but few seized the opportunities. The poverty
of the people and the natural apathy of many in regard to education also
prevented the development of good schools.
Good schools are possible only with good teachers, and good teachers in
Upper Canada were not easily secured. The professions of law and
medicine then, as now, were much more attractive than teaching for men
of ability and education. Mercantile life also offered great
opportunities. The result was that the Grammar Schools were often in
charge of incompetent teachers.
Ryerson's commission gave him no control over Grammar Schools. But his
first Report in 1846 recommended a graded, unified system of schools
from the Common School to the University. He also pointed out that these
Grammar Schools which were intended for a special work were teaching
everything taught in a Common School. In his Report for 1849 he
recommended a commission of inquiry into the state of Grammar Schools
and showed that the whole thirty or forty schools had matriculated only
eight students into the University during that year. He suggested a
fixed course of studies, a minimum qualification for entrance, and
Government inspection. "Surely," he says, "it never could have been
intended that the Grammar Schools should occupy the same ground as
Common Schools, should compete with them, thus lowering the character
and efficiency of both.... I am far from intimating an opinion that
there are no efficient Grammar Schools in the Province, even under the
present system or rather absence of all system. There are several
instances in which separate apartments for different classes of pupils
are provided and assistance employed to teach the English branches, but
such examples are rather exceptions to the general rule than the rule
itself. The general rule is whether there be an assistant or not to
admit pupils of both sexes and all ages and attainments for A B C and
upwards into schools which ought to occupy a position distinct from and
superior to that of the Common Schools. Equally far be it from me to
intimate that there is any deficiency of qualifications on the part of
masters of Grammar Schools. But I doubt not that they will be the first
to feel how much the efficiency and pleasures of their duties will be
advanced by the introduction of a proper and uniform system as they will
be the first to confess, '_non omnia possumus omnes_.'"[102]
[102] See extract from Report of 1849, published in D.H.E., Vol. VIII.,
p. 291.
After the Common Schools had been brought under the rule of law it was
inevitable that the Grammar Schools should be reorganized. In 1850,
Francis Hincks introduced a Grammar School Bill prepared by Doctor
Ryerson. This Bill aimed at bringing the schools under popular control
and administering them on lines similar to those governing Common
Schools. Trustees were to be appointed by County Councils; Trustee
Boards were to have power to levy rates for buildings, equipment and
apparatus; the Legislative grant was to be distributed to the several
Districts on the basis of population, but only when local contributions
made up a sum equal to the grant exclusive of pupils' fees; the
programme of studies was to be broad enough to prepare for
matriculation; the Council of Public Instruction was to fix Grammar
School programmes, prescribe texts and appoint inspectors. A
meteorological station was to be established in connection with one
Grammar School in each District. This Bill was withdrawn, but a similar
one[103] became law on January 1st, 1854. The new Act, as amended in
1855, also provided for uniting Grammar Schools with Common Schools and
provided that a Grammar School master, unless a university graduate,
must secure a certificate from a Board of Examiners appointed by the
Council of Public Instruction. This Act also authorized an annual
appropriation of L1,000 to establish a Model Grammar School in
connection with the Normal School, authorized the Council of Public
Instruction to appoint Grammar School inspectors, and made up a liberal
grant to secure libraries and apparatus. After this legislation, the
Council of Public Instruction drew up regulations governing the
curriculum of Grammar Schools and took steps to bring about the use of
uniform texts. From the first there were two courses of study, a general
English course and a classical course leading to matriculation. The head
master of each Grammar School was required to conduct an examination of
candidates for admission, the requirements being intelligible reading
from any common reading book, spelling, writing, elementary arithmetic,
and the elements of English grammar, with definitions of geography.
[103] This Act did not give trustees power to levy assessments, but they
might ask municipal councils to do so. The distribution of the
Legislative grant did not, as in the Bill of 1850, depend upon the
raising of any fixed amount by the local Board.
In the autumn of 1855, the Grammar Schools were inspected, those in the
east by Thomas Jaffray Robertson and those in the west by William
Ormiston. Their reports show that many of these schools were indifferent
and a few hopeless. Perhaps half of them were doing fairly well. The
attendance averaged about thirty, of whom nearly one-half were studying
Latin. Half of the schools admitted female pupils. The highest salary
paid a head master was $1,200, while the average for head masters was
$700. Few of the schools had two masters. Half the total number of head
masters were graduates of British or Canadian universities. In some
cases the teachers were paid a fixed salary, and in some cases they got
the Government grant and the school fees. These fees averaged about
three dollars per quarter. In a few cases the head master had a dwelling
in connection with the school.
The inspectors criticised the buildings, equipment and grounds severely,
as the following extracts will show:--
"Of the Grammar School houses seventeen were originally built for
school purposes and several of them, which were spacious and
substantial buildings, may be classed as good; ten were somewhat
inferior; and one, a very old wooden building, could scarcely be
considered habitable. Nine schools were carried on in premises
rented for the purpose and were in most instances totally unfit. In
many cases the grounds attached to the schoolhouses were partially
or entirely unfenced, and the sheds or outhouses were in a shameful
state of neglect. Even in the neatest premises I saw no attempt at
ornament; not a tree, shrub or flower to awaken or cultivate a taste
so simple and natural in itself and so easily gratified as it could
be in rural districts.... Very many of these houses are inferior to
the Common Schools. In most cases the premises present a dull,
unthrifty and unattractive appearance, destitute alike of ornament
and convenience, without fence, shed, well, tree, shrub or flower,
while within an entire lack of maps, charts and apparatus is with
too few exceptions the general rule."[104]
[104] See copy of Report in D. H. E., Vol. XII., p. 81.
Two years later the same inspectors made another general report on
Grammar Schools. They found some improvements but many weak schools
doing the most elementary Common School work. They deprecated the
practice, then becoming somewhat common, of establishing new Grammar
Schools in small villages.
It is abundantly clear from Ryerson's Reports, 1856-58, that he was
dissatisfied with the progress being made in Grammar Schools and eager
to attempt their improvement by means of further legislation. The most
serious problem was that of providing an adequate and certain financial
support for these schools. The schools were managed by trustee boards
appointed by County Councils, but were attended largely by pupils of
towns and cities. The people using them and contributing largely to
their support were not given the power to manage them.
Ryerson was also very doubtful about the result of the experiment
authorized in 1854, of uniting Common and Grammar Schools. The union
gave trustee boards increased freedom of management, but in many cases
the union school became, for all practical purposes, a common school,
having, perhaps, three or four senior pupils studying Latin and Greek.
Such schools brought all Grammar Schools into contempt.
The report of the Grammar School inspector on the schools of Eastern
Ontario, for 1860, shows that things were far from satisfactory:
"With the exception of two or three really good schools our Grammar
Schools in the extreme East are in a very low state. Some of them I
can only designate as infant schools. Nor do I see anything from the
localities in which they are placed or the present state of the
Grammar School law which gives me any hope of amelioration.
Advancing civilization and the material growth of the country in
time may act upon them, but immediate remedies and those of a
stringent nature are imperatively needed.... The want of a class of
specially trained Grammar School masters who have taken this as a
permanent profession for life is a great drawback to the efficiency
of our schools. The supposed inferior social status of the Grammar
School master and the larger rewards held out for superior mental
activity in the other professions turn aside most of those who are
most eminently qualified for the scholastic office. Of the
twenty-two schools mentioned in my report six were in the hands of
persons who avowedly were making teaching the stepping-stone to the
attainment of other professions, as law, medicine, or the church.
Several were evidently conducted by persons who had taken to
teaching after having failed in other walks of life. Comparatively
few were held by those who were fitted for their office by previous
training, or were devoting themselves entirely to their work as the
main business of their lives."[105]
[105] See D. H. E., Vol. XVI., pp. 148, 149.
There seems also to have been a disposition to unduly multiply Grammar
Schools because they were supported so largely by the Legislative grant.
The Rev. Dr. Paxton Young, Inspector of Grammar Schools, in his report
for 1864, says: "The too free and inconsiderate exercise by County
Councils of the large power thus entrusted to them has led to a heedless
and most unfortunate multiplication of the Grammar Schools, and the evil
instead of showing any symptoms of abatement appears to be growing worse
from year to year. In 1858 the number of the schools was seventy-five;
in 1860 it was eighty-eight; in 1863 it had risen to ninety-five; and
the number of recognized schools is now as high as one hundred and
eight. Not a few of the schools thus hastily established are Grammar
Schools in name rather than in reality, the work done in them being
almost altogether Common School work, which, as a rule, would be much
better performed in a well-appointed Common School. I believe that
County Councils are often led to establish Grammar Schools in localities
where they are not needed under the idea that if the schools should be
productive of no good at any rate they can do no harm. There could not
be a greater mistake. Men ought to be wise enough by this time to
understand that all public institutions, especially if forming parts of
a great plan, must, where unnecessary, be positively bad. Needless and
contemptible Grammar Schools are a blot upon the whole school system,
the sight of which is fitted to shake the confidence of the country in
the administrative wisdom or firmness of those to whom the direction of
educational matters is committed. When it is considered that the
apportionment from the Grammar School fund to a particular county is
divided according to certain fixed principles between the different
schools in that county, it will be seen that the disposition manifested
by some councils to secure the largest number of schools for their
county, is practically a disposition to secure quantity for quality, for
as the number of schools is augmented the salaries of the masters are
diminished, the tendency of which is, of course, to throw the schools
into the hands of a lower grade of teachers.... About three out of every
five Grammar Schools in Upper Canada have Common Schools united with
them, and, in not a few instances, where unions have not yet been
formed, I found a strong disposition existing to enter into such an
arrangement. I made it my business to inquire particularly into the
benefits supposed to result from the union of the Common with the
Grammar Schools. The chief advantage was in almost every case admitted
to be a pecuniary one. By the existing law Grammar School trustees have
of themselves no power to raise money for Grammar School purposes, but
in case of the Common and Grammar Schools becoming united the joint
boards may levy money for the support of the united schools. This being
so, it is easy to comprehend how strongly the trustees of a Grammar
School who feel their hands tied up from doing anything to put the
school in an efficient state may be tempted to make with the Common
School Board a league which will give them a voice in the important
matter of taxation.... But of nothing am I more convinced than that as a
rule such a union is undesirable. In a large number of instances it
throws upon the Grammar School master the necessity of receiving into
his room, and personally instructing, Common School pupils, as well as
those whom it is his more particular duty to attend to. A consequence of
this is that he cannot afford the Grammar School pupils the time that is
necessary for drilling them in the subjects that they are
studying."[106]
[106] See copy of Report in D. H. E., Vol. XVIII., pp. 199-205.
* * * * *
But Doctor Young saw much promise in the schools, as the following from
the same Report will show: "Leaving out of view schools of this sort, I
do not hesitate to say that the Grammar Schools of Upper Canada are, as
a class, not only in the promise of what they may become, but in what
they actually are at the present moment, an honour to the country. We
must not look for too much. It would be preposterous to expect at this
early period in the history of our Province, that its Grammar Schools
generally should be able to bear comparison with the better classical
and mathematical schools of Great Britain and Ireland. To this Canada
does not pretend, but she has begun well, and appears to be steadily, if
not rapidly, progressing."
In June, 1865, Ryerson went to Quebec to press upon the Government the
necessity of a new Grammar School bill. As the Confederation scheme was
approaching maturity he found the Government unwilling to embark upon
any legislation that might prevent an early prorogation. Mr. John A.
Macdonald suggested that the difficulty might be met by a regulation
issued under the authority of the Council of Public Instruction. This
was accordingly done, and the Council immediately framed regulations as
follows: First, the Legislative grant was to be apportioned on the basis
of the attendance of those learning Greek and Latin, as certified by the
Grammar School Inspector. Second, no school was to receive any portion
of the Legislative grant unless suitable accommodations were provided,
and unless there were an average of at least ten pupils learning Latin
and Greek, nor were any pupils to be admitted or continued in a Grammar
School unless they were learning Latin and Greek.
This absurd regulation never went into effect, as the Legislature passed
a Grammar School Bill in the latter part of 1865. The new Bill made each
city a county for Grammar School purposes; it allowed County Councils to
appoint half the Grammar School trustees, the other half being appointed
by the village or town council where the school was situated. This
latter provision was planned to give increased local control and thus
create a stronger interest in the management of the schools. The
distinction which had so long existed between senior and junior county
Grammar Schools[107] was abolished and the Legislative grant was
apportioned solely on the basis of attendance, but no school was to
share the grant unless there was raised from local sources, exclusive of
pupils' fees, a sum equal to half the grant. It was made more difficult
to establish new schools. Only graduates of universities in British
dominions were to be eligible for head masters' positions. On the
suggestion of the Hon. William Macdougall, a clause was inserted
providing for a grant of fifty dollars a year to those Grammar Schools
giving a course of elementary military instruction.
[107] This senior Grammar School, being the one first established in
each county, had drawn a larger Legislative grant than the others.
The Report of Rev. Geo. Paxton Young on the Grammar Schools in 1865 is
of great interest, read in the light of nearly half a century's progress
in the higher education of women. I shall quote his exact words:
"I have frequently been asked whether I considered it desirable that
girls should study Latin in the Grammar Schools. It is, in my
opinion, most undesirable; and I am at a loss to comprehend how any
intelligent person acquainted with the state of things in our
Grammar Schools can come to a different conclusion.... Since I
became Inspector, I have not met with half a dozen girls in the
Grammar Schools of Canada by whom the study of Latin has been
pursued far enough for the taste to be in the least degree
influenced by what has been read. Aesthetically, the benefits of
Grammar Schools to girls are _nil_.... It may perhaps be said that
although they have for the most part made but little progress in
Latin up to the present time, a fair proportion of them may be
expected to pursue the study to a point where its advantages can be
reaped. I do not believe that three out of a hundred will. As a
class, they have dipped the soles of their feet in the water, with
no intention or likelihood of wading deeper into it. They are not
studying Latin with any definite object. They have taken it up under
pressure at the solicitation of the teachers or trustees to enable
the schools to maintain the requisite average attendance of ten
classical pupils or to increase that part of the income of the
schools which is derived from public sources. In a short time they
will leave school to enter on the practical work of life without
having either desired or obtained more than the merest smattering of
Latin, and their places will be taken by another band of girls who
will go through the same routine. It may perhaps be urged that these
remarks are as applicable to as large a number of the Grammar School
boys as they are to the girls. I admit that they are; and I draw the
conclusion that such boys, equally with the girls in the Grammar
Schools, are wasting their time in keeping up the appearance of
learning Latin. It would be unspeakably better to commit them to
first-class Common School teachers, under whose guidance they might
have their reflective and aesthetic faculties cultivated through the
study of English and of those branches which are associated with
English in good Common Schools. This would, of course, diminish the
number of the Grammar Schools in the Province; but it might not be a
very grievous calamity, especially if it led to the establishment
of first-class Common Schools in localities where inferior teachers
are now employed."[108]
[108] See copy of Report in D. H. E., Vol. XIX., pp. 96, 97.
It was a part of a Grammar School inspector's duty to examine the pupils
who had been admitted by the Grammar School masters and reject any who
were too immature or were insufficiently prepared. Dr. Young complains
strongly in his Report of 1865 of the poor teaching of English grammar.
In some cases he had to reject more than half those admitted. He found
pupils wholly unable to parse such easy sentences as: "The mother loved
her daughter dearly," "John ran to school very quickly," "She knew her
lesson remarkably well."
It is doubtful whether the Grammar School Bill of 1865 made any real
improvement in the schools. Without denying that some of them were doing
a good work, and that as a force in the national life they were
fostering some love for higher education, it is safe to assert that they
were not very closely related to the real needs of the people. Their aim
was narrow. Their very name shows this. There was a crying need in the
country for schools that would give an advanced English and scientific
education with classic and modern languages to those who wished to
pursue university studies. But the most of the Grammar Schools aimed
only at a study of Latin and Greek, and indeed the Grammar School
legislation and the regulations of the Council of Public Instruction had
made a certain number of Latin pupils one of the conditions upon which a
Grammar School might receive a public grant.
The Act of 1865 soon showed some disastrous tendencies. It did not check
the desire to form unions between Grammar Schools and Common Schools, as
such unions made it easier to levy a rate in support of the union
schools, and thus comply with the conditions upon which Grammar Schools
received grants. The clause in the new Act making average attendance the
basis of attendance, together with a regulation of the Council of Public
Instruction which counted only Latin pupils in making the grant, led the
head masters of union schools to draft every available pupil into the
Grammar School departments[109] and put them all, boys and girls, into
Latin. Often they were not prepared for such work and got no real
benefit from it. They wasted their time and lost the benefits of a sound
English education which a good Common School would have given them.
Hundreds of boys and girls who had no foundation for a classical
education, and who had no prospect of ever advancing far enough to
receive any solid knowledge of Latin, were making a pretence of studying
it in order that the school might draw a Government grant. Ignorant
parents raised no objections, thinking perhaps that Latin possessed some
charm which would be an "open sesame" for the future advancement of the
boys and girls.
[109] It should be remembered that while a Public School pupil drew less
than one dollar per year Legislative grant, the moment this pupil was
enrolled in a Grammar School he drew from $20 to $35 yearly. In 1872,
the average Legislative grant to a Public School pupil was 40 cents, and
to a Grammar School pupil $20. See D. H. E., Vol. XXIV., p. 302.
Dr. Ryerson was not the man to diagnose the case. But the hour brought
forth the man, and that man was George Paxton Young, one of the
Inspectors of Grammar Schools. In two very able Reports[110] presented
in 1867 and 1868, he sets forth clearly and convincingly the defects of
the system then in operation and suggests the direction that reforms
should take to make the Grammar Schools serve a useful purpose. He
wished to see their character wholly changed. He did not undervalue
classics, but he believed that a smattering of classics was of no
benefit, and that it caused a waste of time that might be given to
subjects of real value. He wished to see High Schools that would give an
advanced English training, together with natural science, mathematics,
and history. He did not believe in forcing all to study Latin, nor did
he believe in apportioning grants to High Schools on the basis of the
number of pupils studying Latin. He wished to see better Common Schools
and objected to the plan of union which robbed the Common School of its
older pupils and degraded its function. Speaking of this, he says: "The
number of union schools is increasing and is likely to increase. In many
of the schools of this class all the Common School pupils, boys and
girls alike, who have obtained a smattering of English grammar are
systematically drafted into the Grammar School. The consequence is that
in localities where such a system is followed there is no mere Common
School education (observe I say mere Common School education) given to
any pupils, boys or girls, which is not of the most elementary
description; and not only have the Grammar Schools thus become to a
great extent girls' schools as well as boys' schools, but--what is
especially noteworthy--the girls admitted to these schools are in a
majority of instances put into Latin as a matter of course; in other
words, the study of Latin is made practically a condition of their
admission into the Grammar School. Will any man say that this state of
things is satisfactory, a state of things in which the Common Schools
are degraded by being suspended from the exercise of all their higher
functions? Unless I misunderstand the object of the Common School law,
the Common Schools are designed to furnish a good English and general
education to those desiring it. But how can this end be accomplished
where the Common Schools are subject to arrangements under which the
highest stage of advancement ever reached by the pupils is to be able to
parse an easy English sentence? ... Children under thirteen years of age
who do not mean to take a classical course of study have no educational
wants which the Common Schools, properly conducted, are not fitted to
supply. For children of thirteen and upwards who have already obtained
such an education as may be got in good Common Schools, it would, I
think, be well to establish English High Schools--a designation which I
borrow from the United States although, unfortunately, I have only a
very vague idea of what the High Schools in the United States are."
[110] See copy of Report in D. H. E., Vol. XX., pp. 98-128.
Dr. Young strongly urged a more rigid inspection of Grammar Schools and
the apportioning of the Legislative grant upon the basis of Inspectors'
reports. As so many girls had been drafted into Grammar Schools and put
in grammar classes apparently to increase the school grant, it was
proposed during 1868 to allow only fifty per cent. of girls' attendance
to count in apportioning the grant and even to make no allowance
whatever for attendance of female pupils in future years. This opened up
the whole question of co-education of the sexes in Grammar Schools and
caused lively debates in the Legislature and in Teachers' Institutes.
The general opinion seemed to prevail that girls should have equal
rights with boys but that the law should be so amended as to remove all
pressure upon girls to study Latin.
After one or two abortive attempts, a Bill reorganizing Grammar Schools
was passed in 1871. This Bill abolished the term "Grammar School," and
substituted that of "High School." Adequate provision was to be made in
each High School for an advanced English education, including natural
sciences and commercial subjects. The study of Latin, Greek and modern
languages was to be at the option of the pupils' parents or guardians.
Provision was made for a superior class of High School, to be known as
Collegiate Institutes. These schools were required to have at least four
masters and an average of not less than sixty boys studying Latin or
Greek, and were to receive a special grant of $750 a year. County
Councils were empowered to form High School districts and provision was
made by which the High School Board could levy an assessment upon the
district. High School vacations were extended from July 1st to August
15th. A very important feature of the new Bill was the provision for the
admission of pupils. The county, city or town Inspector of Schools, the
Chairman of the High School Board and the head master of the High School
were constituted a Board with power to conduct a written examination and
admit pupils according to regulations prescribed by the Council of
Public Instruction.
At first the local examining Board set the entrance papers, but this
plan was soon superseded by one requiring uniform papers set by the High
School Inspectors. This aroused a storm of opposition, and the
resolution of the Council of Public Instruction requiring uniform papers
was set aside by an Order-in-Council. But the plan of uniform papers was
so sensible, and so much chaos resulted from the other plan, that by
1874 the Government authorized a uniform entrance examination which shut
out immature pupils and those insufficiently prepared. It raised the
status of High Schools, enabling them to begin advanced work, and
indirectly increased the efficiency of the Public Schools by fixing a
standard of attainment. The Legislature also made further provision for
High Schools by appropriating an additional $20,000 a year, exclusive of
the grants to be given to Collegiate Institutes.
The Act of 1871 provided for a minimum Legislative grant[111] for each
High School, and made the maximum grant depend upon average attendance.
The Rev. George Paxton Young had, in his last Report as Grammar School
Inspector, strongly recommended the adoption in a modified form of the
English system of payment by results. He wished to see the High Schools
graded by the Inspectors according to their general efficiency and the
grant based upon this grading. In 1872 the High School Inspectors,
Messrs. McKenzie and McLellan, urged the adoption of a similar plan and
showed how it would serve as a stimulus to better work in all the
schools. They also pointed out how such a plan would encourage Boards to
employ good teachers, since they would have a pecuniary interest in
keeping up a good school.
[111] The minimum grant per school was $400. The High Schools of the
Province had, in 1872, from Legislative grant and County Councils,
$105,000. This was more than $1,000 per school and about $30 per pupil.
Many of the High Schools charged no fees.
The Act of 1871 gave the Council of Public Instruction a large measure
of control over textbooks to be used in High Schools. The Council issued
lists of those authorized, and this did much to bring about uniformity
in courses of study. Previous to 1871, many High Schools had only one
teacher, but the new legislation required at least two for High Schools
and four for Collegiate Institutes. To secure this required much
firmness on the part of Dr. Ryerson. Even two teachers were wholly
unable to do efficient work in large High Schools, and there was no easy
way to force School Boards to employ more. The Superintendent had
steadily to oppose a tendency to form weak High Schools, and in some
cases Grammar Schools which had been able to exist in a sickly state
under the old law were wholly unable to meet the requirements of the Act
of 1871, which threw some of the burden of support upon the local
municipality.
The Inspectors' Reports for 1874 emphasize the need of additional
teachers, the poor quality of work done in English literature, and the
necessity of increased provision for natural science. Referring to the
latter, the Inspectors' joint Report speaks as follows: "In regard to
the direct utility of the knowledge imparted, the physical sciences are
equalled by few subjects of study. We regret to report that the teaching
of science is not making progress in the schools. For this there are
many reasons, of which perhaps the most important are the lack of
apparatus and the impracticable character of the prescribed programme of
studies. All places might advantageously follow the example of Whitby
and fit up a science room, that is, a room to be devoted to the teaching
of science and furnished with the necessary appliances and apparatus. It
cannot too often be inculcated that there can be no effective teaching
of chemistry without experiments. Effective teaching implies first of
all a qualified teacher, and few of our masters consider themselves well
qualified to teach any of the physical sciences. Yet the number of
masters qualified to teach in this Department is increasing every year
and it is much to be regretted that where the master is qualified he is
often compelled, if he wishes to teach chemistry, to provide the
apparatus at his own expense. The public indifference to the claims of
physical science is greater than the indifference of the masters.
Besides, three-fourths of High School Boards either are so poor, or
believe themselves to be so poor, that they will grumble if asked to
spend $10.00 annually for chemical purposes."[112]
[112] See copy of Report in D. H. E., Vol. XXV., pp. 244-245.
Progress on the whole was rapid. Several weak schools were closed,[113]
but they were schools which should never have been opened. Fees were
either abolished or lowered.[114] The standard for pupils' admission was
gradually raised and the old "Grammar Schools" were truly doing the work
for which they were established in 1807.
[113] About fifteen in all.
[114] Out of 106 schools in operation in 1875, no less than 81 were
absolutely free. Fees in the others varied from 75 cents to $6.00 per
quarter, the average being $2.70.
Much was yet to be desired in the qualifications of High School masters.
In 1874, one hundred out of one hundred and six head masters were
university graduates, but forty-five assistants held only Second Class
Normal School Certificates, or County Certificates, and twenty-three
schools had to employ teachers for a whole or a part of the year without
any legal qualifications. The average salary of head masters was
$930.00, of male assistants $664.00, and of female assistants $416.00.
The following extract from the Inspector's Report is interesting in the
light of what has since been accomplished: "In the absence of any
special training college or chair of pedagogy in the University, we
would suggest that as so many men are pursuing a collegiate course, with
a view to becoming High School masters, it would be well for the
Government to establish a lectureship in Education. It would not, we
think, be difficult if proper encouragement were given to secure the
services of several experienced and skilled educationists, one of whom
might deliver a short course of lectures on the above subjects during
each college session."
Perhaps no part of our school system has developed more since Ryerson
retired in 1876 than our High Schools. But this development has been
almost wholly a natural growth. True, there has been much legislation
and many changes in departmental regulations, but nothing of a
revolutionary character. The opening of the doors of the universities to
women and their increased employment as teachers has led to their being
placed on an absolute equality with men in the High Schools and in all
graduating examinations. The number of schools has almost doubled and
the teaching of every department has been improved; incompetent teachers
have given place to those having high academic and professional
training; natural science has been greatly strengthened and the teaching
of languages much improved; good laboratories have been built; spacious
buildings with fine grounds have become the rule; the number of students
preparing for university matriculation has multiplied many times; the
average salaries of teachers have more than doubled, and finally the
High Schools are so adapting themselves to the social needs of the
people that they are becoming as much the schools of the people as are
the Public Schools.