TEACHING- AS IT AFFECTS THE INTELLECTUAL LIFE.

New Zealand Illustrated Magazine, Volume VII, Issue 1, 1 October 1902, Page 57

TEACHING- AS IT AFFECTS THE INTELLECTUAL LIFE.

Teaching has generally been considered one of the most natural and suitable callings for the studious and clever, who are under the necessity of working for their livelihood. This has been specially the case with girls, since nearly all the other intellectual professions have been closed to them. In Scotland the great ambition of a father in humble circumstances was to see the cleverest of his sons become a minister ; but failing this, the next best thing was for him to be a dominie. The church is still closed to women, except in America, and there many difficulties to overcome before girls can become doctors or lawyers. Teaching is comparatively easy. The training is not expensive, and

the candidate is partially self-sup-porting during his or her apprenticeship. Thus, if a girl does well at school, and seems fond of study, the first thing that occurs to her pareats is to let her become a teacher. Since she is fond of learning, what more natural than that she should enter a calling for which considerable acquirements are essential, and turn her learning to advantage ? A woman once a teacher, usually has to remain a teacher, though she may find her work irksome, and the life to which it confines her narrow and uncongenial. Is there much justification for the common' idea that a clever girl will

do well as a teacher and find her studious instincts satisfied in it ? It is obvious, of course, that a girl who is very slow at learning and detests books cannot successfully go through the course of study nejded for even the lowest certificate. But noting more than ordinary abilities and fair perserverance are required to pass the examinations successfully, and these qualities, combined with those specially demanded for teaching and controlling the young, will secure success.

For High School mistresses, indeed, more talent and further acquirements are demanded. But even here it is probable that original talent, or strong intellectual inclinations, will be a hindrance as much as an advantage. The best teacher will be one whose highest aim and satisfaction it is to be a successful teacher ; and whose life, apart from teaching, is pleasantly filled by the ordinary social duties and enjoyments of life. The woman who takes up teaching thinking that its duties will leave her free to live an intellectual life is likely to be sadly disappointed. The duties are far more engrossing and taxing than the uninitiated suppose. " Five

hours a day for five days in the week/ is the formula ; and an utterly misleading one. Then the work is taxing, wearing to brain and nerve. Eight or ten hours of light mechanical employment would leave the worker more capable of study or intellectual enjoyment. A shoemaker stands a better chance of becoming an original thinker, or of producing good literary work, than a teacher. Then there is a belittling effect in constantly talking

down to the level of children's understandings, perhaps in the veryrelation of mistress to children. Finer minds may overcome this belittling influence, but it . is there. Then there are often harassing differences with committees and interfering parents. These drawbacks apply to all schools. To these are added, for a country teacher, total want of mental companionship and sympathy, deprivation of many intellect ual interests, and often no home comforts. And country appointments are more numerous and easier to get than town ones. A teacher wi.Jl not be popular unless she mixes with the society of the place. It is evident that an unintellectual person will often find this much easier than an intellectual one.

Much more might be said on the intellectual drawbacks of a teacher's life ; but we will conclude adding that it might plausibly be urged that a teacher gains by not being, in native ability, too widely separated from her scholars.