the two sys tems. director, and a healthy rivalry sprang up between the societies. Value of the Monitorial System in England. The Differences in plans of the two organizations were similar, but differed somewhat in details. Both used monitors and taught writing by means of a desk covered with sand, but the system of Lancaster was animated by broader motives and had many more devices for teaching. It also instituted company organization, drill, and precision, and developed a system of badges, offices, rewards, and punishments. Monitorial instruction, however, was not Both were un- original with either Lancaster or Bell. It had long been used by the Hindus and others, although the work of the two societies brought it into prominence. It over original cal. and mechani- emphasized repetition and recitation mechanics, and consisted of a formal drill rather than a method of instruction. stitute for na tion. Yet the monitorial schools were productive of some Afforded sub- achievements. Most of them afforded a fair education in tional educa- the elementary school subjects and added some industrial and vocational training. They also did much to awaken the conscience of the English nation to the need of general education for the poor. The British and Foreign and the National Societies afforded a substitute, though a poor one, for national education in the days before England was willing to pay for general education, and they became the avenues through which such appropriations as the government did make were distributed. In 1833 the grant of £20,000, constituting the first government aid to elementary education, was equally divided between the two societies (see p. 388), and this method of administration was continued as the annual grant was gradually increased, until the system of public education was established. Likewise, in 1839, £10,000 for normal instruction was voted to the societies, and was used by the British and Foreign for its Borough Road Train- Training colleges. ing College, and by the National for St. Mark's Training College. These were followed by several other training institutions, established by each society through government aid. In 1870, when the 'board,' or public elementary, schools were at length founded, the schools of the British and Foreign Society, with their nonsec- Foreign tarian instruction, fused naturally with them; but the schools abinstitutions of the National Society, though transferred National a systo school boards in a few cases, have generally come to selves. constitute by themselves a national system on a voluntary basis. Results of the Monitorial System in the United States. In the United States the monitorial system was introduced into New York City in 1806. The 'Society for the Establishment of a Free School,' after investigating the best methods in other cities and countries, decided to try the system of Lancaster (see p. 260). The method was likewise introduced into the charity schools of Philadelphia (see p. 261). The monitorial system then spread rapidly through New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and other States. It is almost impossible to trace the exact extent of this organization in the United States, but before long it seems to have affected nearly all cities of any size as far south as Augusta (Georgia), and west as far as Cincinnati. There are still traces of its influence throughout this region,-in Hartford, New Haven, Albany, Washington, and Baltimore, as well as in the places already mentioned (Figs. 27, 28, British and sorbed, but tem by them Adoption by other cities. Introduced into high schools and academies. Increased school facilities and 29). In 1818 Lancaster himself was invited to America, and assisted in the monitorial schools of New York, Brooklyn, and Philadelphia. A dozen years later the system began to be introduced generally into the high schools and academies. Through the efforts of Dr. John Griscom, who had been greatly pleased with the monitorial high school of Dr. Pillans in Edinburgh, a similar institution was established in New York City in 1825, and the plan was soon adopted by a number of high schools in New York and neighboring states. Likewise, the state systems of academies in Maryland and in Indiana, which became high schools after the Civil War, were organized on this basis. For two decades the monitorial remained the prevailing method in secondary education. Training schools for teachers on the Lancasterian basis also became common. This In fact, the monitorial system was destined to perform a great service for American education. At the time of its introduction, public and free schools were generally lacking, outside of New England, and the facilities that existed were meager and available during but a small portion of the year. In all parts of the country illiteracy was almost universal among children of the poor. want of school opportunities was rendered more serious by the rapid growth of American cities. 'Free school societies,' like that in New York City, formed to relieve the situation, came to regard the system of Lancaster, because of its comparative inexpensiveness, as a godsend for their purpose. And when the people generally awoke to the crying need of public education, legislators also found monitorial schools the cheapest way out of the difficulty, and the provision made for these schools |