Page View
Rappel, Joseph J. / A centennial history of the Manitowoc County school districts and its public school system, 1848-1948
([1948])
Certification of teachers, pp. 8-9
PDF (943.8 KB)
Page 8
CERTIFICATION OF TEACHERS Pioneer teachers during the territorial days were hired as teachers if they could read, write, and cipher. Among the early settlers there were usually a few persons who were considered "well educated." Such persons were usually chosen to conduct the district school or they might even set up a private school of their own. No quali- fication standards were required. After the office of town superintendent was created in 1848, that official was given the power to examine and license teachers. There was no uniform examination and few town superintendents were qualified to conduct ext- aminations. Judge Jerome Ledvina, who wrote an interesting history of the Quarry school in 1907, states that the first teacher was licensed in this manner: "She was given a Bible and told to read a verse. If she read this satisfactorily, she passed in reading. Then she was told to write the verse to qitalify for the teaching of writing. Of course, they always passed in writing! She was then given a column of figures to add. If she did this correctly she passed in arithmetic, and she was then qualified to teach school!" In 1852, the state for the first time, prescribed the form of certificate to he issued each candidate who was found qualified to teach. The form was as follows: "I do hereby certify that I have examined --------------------------- and do believe that he or she is qualified in regard to moral character, learn,' ing and ability to teach a common school in this town for one year from date hereof. Given under my hand this ------------ day of ------------- A.D. ,8_.. S ig n e d . . .. . . . . . . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Town Supt. of Schools for town of------------------ The law creating the office of county superintendent of schools also provided, for the first time, general control over examinations for teachers' certificates by naming the subjects in which the applicants were to be examined for the different grades of teaching certificates to be issued by the county superintendent. An act of the legis- lature annulled all teaching certificates granted by town superintendents. The teach- ing certificates authorized under the county superintendent's act were of three grades, and were to be issued only if the applicant had "good moral character, learning, and ability to teach." The third grade certificate required "passing grades" in orthoepy, orthography, reading, penmanship, intellectual and written arithmetic, grammar, and geography. For a second grade certificate the subjects of physiology, physical geog- raphy, elementary algebra, U. S. history, and theory and art of teaching were also re- quired. For'a first grade certificate all of the above subjects plus algebra, geometry, and philosophy had to be passed. Just what a "passing" mark for teachers in 1877 was is indicated by examining a third grade certificate issued by Supt. W. A. Walker to P. H. Lynch and reproduced in full here: 1(i I '_ aMAN IT0W0C COUNTYIDD (.6K~* Y~ ~. ,r., r 4i ~~it/ i~t~ 1k ~ A4, ýa ? ea qnt1 c( A1. ýft7 .114 tAfl, #101W 4etIti,, *(: /,,,aa Vl / 7~*X-, .e4~5 a
Images cannot be copied or reproduced without the written permission of the Manitowoc Public Library. For information on re-use, see http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/Copyright