Vigo County Historical Society

Historical Treasure Article

Historic Treasure of the Week - October 5, 1986
By Susan J. Dehler
Vigo County Historical Society

Competency tests, 1880s
To instruct, teacher had to prove knowledge

The issue of periodic re-examinations for public school teachers is now one of hot debate among educators. But such concern for quality instruction and setting educational standards certainly is not new. Well more than 100 years ago, when teachers' licenses were first established in Indiana, re-examination in all subject areas was an integral part of teacher requirements.

In 1850, a new constitution required the legislature to revise the educational system for the state. Former teacher and superintendent William H. Wiley recalls in his 1924 history of Terre Haute public schools: "Out of this came the law of the County Examiner, who, with questions under seal from the State Board of Education, must examine for a fee of 50 cents all applicants for schools within his county and license them for six, 12, 18 or 24 months, according to correctness of answers shown."

Early licenses were written testimonies signed by the county examiner and "certified" teachers in the subject areas of orthography, reading, writing, geography, English grammar and arithmetic. In theory, these standards were instituted to assure quality instruction in the common schools. In practice, however, they fell short of the ideal.

Some county examiners were known to renew licenses "without the formality of second tests." Some teachers could receive certificates of exemption if their examination scores were high enough and if they would teach continuously in one county. Teachers who graduated from the professional schools were, in a sense, beyond reproach.

The selection process and teacher appointments often were questioned by the community. Superintendents and examiners were accused of favoring teachers with the same religious views or political affiliations. As a result of these many problems, examination and licensing procedures were continuously re-evaluated and changed throughout the latter part of the 19th century.

The teacher's license on display in the Victorian schoolroom in the Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley was granted to Grace Lee on April 26, 1903. "Miss" Lee taught the early primary grades at both Davis Park and Montrose public schools.

Curriculum requirements were standardized throughout the school system. Her course of instruction for the first graders probably included: "the alphabet and primary sounds, counting to 100 with objects and without them, names of the grand divisions of the body and the five senses, light gymnastics and singing at regular intervals."

By this time, licenses were printed certificates granted by the office of county superintendent for the State of Indiana. "Miss" Lee would have been tested in the basic subjects which now included U.S. history, music and physiology and scientific temperance. Also, the license stated that she presented "satisfactory evidence of good moral character."

It is evident that the qualities and qualifications of teachers went beyond scholastic achievement. As Wiley attests: a teacher must possess an "alertness in guarding the health and morals of the school . . . in a large degree magnetism . . . which binds, or holds, her pupils to her as an ideal of life."

The Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley, 1411 S. Sixth St., is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday through Friday.