SUPERVISOR'S REPORT.

SELECTMEN OF HOPE:

Gentlemen,-Agreeably to the provisions of law, the following report on the Schools of Hope, Maine, for the current year, is respectfully submitted.

Your obedient servant, D. H. MANSFIELD,

Supervisor of Schools.

Hope, February 28, 1885.

TEACHERS.

In district number one, there were three terms of school, all taught by Miss Alice Mills of Hope. She brought to her work excellent natural abilities, scholarship, and the discipline of experience. Her services have proved valuable to the school.

Possessing the confidence of her pupils, she was able to govern them with but little effort. The parents of the pupils in that district do not take sufficient interest in the work of the school.
This is shown by the fact that during the entire year but one citizen has visited the school to ascertain for himself whether or not the school was in successful operation.

In district number two there were three terms of school, each taught by a different teacher. Spring term taught by Nora Fisk of Hope. This was her first attempt at teaching, and as a natural consequence she was somewhat embarrassed during my visits, and I could not form a decided opinion of her abilities, but I believe she conscientiously tried to make the school a success. Fall term taught by Miss Annie Fish of Hope. As this teacher did not deem the statute law of sufficient importance as to require her compliance therewith, no record of that term appears in this report.

Winter term, taught by Will Hewett of Hope. At my first visit I was favorably impressed with bis ability as a teacher, the order being good and the exercises well conducted. The order was not so good at the second call, but on the whole it was a successful term of school, and Mr. Hewett will become a first-class teacher.

The agent in district number three employed Miss Annie M.
Payson, of Hope, and she taught the school for the entire year.
In this school the attendance of pupils was small and the interest taken by them apparently less, the teacher answering as well as asking the questions. A term at some training school would greatly enhance the value of her services as a teacher.

District number four. Here we see what an agent can do who is awake to the needs of a school. Miss Dora Stone of North Haven, a Normal graduate, taught the spring and fall terms of school, giving universal satisfaction. Miss Stone is a teacher who thoroughly understands the science of teaching,.
and is an earnest and enthusiastic instructor. A pupil under her teaching for a term of six weeks will acquire more practical knowledge than in a term of ten weeks under the average teacher.

The winter term was taught by Miss Winnifred Thorndike of Rockport, a teacher of excellent reputation. While not equal to her predecessor, she is a thorough teacher and gave satisfaction.

The residents of district number four may well congratulate themselves on the quality of their schools the past year.

In district number five, Miss Nell M. Thorndike of Rockport, taught the spring term. Miss Thorndike is a very strict disciplinarian, and good order was maintained throughout the school.

Grace Mixer of Sears Mont taught the fall term.
While the order was not as good as at the last term, the pupils improved their time diligently.

Mark E. Rowell of South Thomaston, who, proving to be a failure as a teacher, left at the end of five weeks and two days, began the winter term. The interest of the scholars declined until, during the last two days none were in attendance. The agent then engaged W. Farnsworth of Camden, to finish the term. Which he did in short order, sending home all of his scholars but one on the fifth day, for a trivial reason, being himself dismissed the sixth day. "Vinci, qui se Vinci."

District number six was the only one in town to have but two terms of school. Arethusa Gurney of Appleton taught the spring term. She possessed the affection of her scholars and they made improvement, but would have made more had she been less easy in her mode of government.

Wm. Hull of Damariscotta taught the winter term, and gave perfect satisfaction. He maintained good order and required the scholars to learn the lesson assigned without "fear or favor.." This is the hardest school in town to make successful, and the teacher may well be pleased with his success.

District number seven had three terms of school, and three teachers. The spring term was taught by Martha Crabtree of Hope, and was not a success, owing partially to the fact that the teacher and scholars were former schoolmates, and consequently she failed to maintain the order necessary for a successful term of school. In some other school she would undoubtedly have met with a different result.

Fall term taught by Nell M. Thorndike of Rockport. Her mode of discipline was so strict in comparison with the former teacher, that she failed to possess the confidence of her pupils, and the result was that the success of the term was indifferent. This teacher's government had a salutary effect upon the scholars for the future.

Winter term taught by the experienced teacher, Fred O.
Bartlett of Hope. Owing to the fact that Mr. Bartlett was drawn as a juror at the S. J. Court near the middle of the term, there was a. vacation of three weeks, which served somewhat to relax the interest of the scholars, but other than that, the school was a success and the teacher gave satisfaction.

One great evil of the present system of common schools, is the frequent change of teachers. The second term of a fit teacher is worth at least a third more to the school than was the first term. The" getting the hang of the school-house" and of the school is more necessary to profitable service than is generally supposed, and an agent who allows a good teacher to go forth from a school, unless unavoidable, and engages another in his or her place, even though the latter be as good a teacher, is not fit for his position.

Some of the agents have not taken the interest in their schools which a good agent should take, and the consequence has been that in some of our schools we have had teachers who were lifeless drones-indeed, Rip Van Winkle, in his world renowned sleep of years, exhibited nearly as much life as some of them. Districts should exercise great care in the choice of agents, should choose a man because he will have a good teacher, and not because-as is often the case-a friend or relative wants to "board the school marm," or some one wants his" best girl" to have the school.

Another evil which we see in nearly every school is the self classification of the scholars, and really, if the Supervisor or the teacher should undertake to say how scholars should be classified the parents would rise in open rebellion, and so we often see a child struggling along in the Fifth or Sixth Reader who would learn very much faster if put into the Third or Fourth Reader. Most children are forced along, more especially in reading than in other branches, faster than is for their benefit.

SUMMARY.
Every agent in town but one has failed to comply with the school law, and I earnestly request the incoming agents to give my successor written notice of the beginning and close of each term of school. Also I would call the attention of the residents of districts numbers four, six and seven, to the need of repairs on their several school-houses.

On the subject of school-books I recommend that some different method be taken, as under the present mode the purchase of books is inconvenient to a large proportion of our inhabitants.