STELLE SCHOOL PREPARES FOR RAPID GROWTH As the growth of The Stelle Group accelerates, the Stelle School must meet the needs of increasing numbers of students while continuing the quality of the education. The basic methods of instruction were tested and proved during the four-year period the school was based in Chicago. Now that the school is at Stelle, it is clear that the most important task for the school board is to accommodate rapid growth while retaining and improving the quality of instruction developed in Chicago. The key to success will hem preparing new teachers. To maintain Stelle’s standards requires both a teacher and one student teacher for every 15 children. This teacher-training system places an added responsibility on the Stelle teacher who must be sensitive to the work of the student teacher as well as the work of the students. Obtaining an optimum school environment in which children learn to be self‑directed, decision-making persons requires more from the teacher than academics and methods. It also depends on the personal attitudes of the teachers since they set the tone which pervades the school. Because students are more susceptible to adult attitudes than to lesson material, the Stelle teacher must project attitudes which pass on the philosophy of the Brotherhoods to the children. It is the responsibility of the Stelle teacher to demonstrate optimum attitudes to the student teacher, and it is the responsibility of the student teacher to assimilate optimum attitudes. Adult attitudes in the home and in school and in the whole community are absorbed by children consciously and unconsciously; so the importance of example cannot be over-emphasized. The “three R‘s do not in themselves convey civilization and the art of living. A balanced education comes from both information and the examples of persons who have leaned the skills of applying information. Each new teacher brings various attitudes to the Stelle school which may be at cross purposes with the educational needs of the students. Every person has his unique responses toward work, play, sex roles, speech, dress, race, health and social status. A teacher’s attitude on these matters will tell the students far more than the lesson materials. An example of a subtle effect would be in the common statement of teachers across the nation: “You must have a sweater on when you go outside, or you will catch cold.” Though this seems to be a harmless thing to say, it actually programs the child’s brain to suffer the symptoms of a cold if he goes outside without a sweater, hat, scarf or what have you. What causes human beings to experience the common cold isn’t really understood, and many children spend a lot of time outdoors without extra clothing yet remain healthy. The notion of inevitable sickness is not accepted in Stelle, and attitudes expressing such notions must be purged. It is only through classroom experience that a student teacher can become a qualified Stelle teacher. A Stelle teacher is a person who loves children, wants to teach and is willing to devote 60 or more hours a week to being involved in his students’ growth, including additional work after regular school hours. The Stelle teacher will have incorporated the Virtues of Precision and Efficiency into his life style, for he cannot pass such qualities on to students unless they are part of his own character. A well-rounded academic background is more important than many courses in methodology, but familiarity with various methods of education helps a teacher become sensitive to prospective problem areas. It is not mandatory that a teacher have a college degree; however, those selected by the school board who have not completed their education will most likely be older persons who have learned the useful lessons of life experience. Regardless of a teacher’s experience or age, every prospective instructor will undergo Stelle classroom training. To provide such training is expensive. It will always be expensive to properly educate the future generations, and that is as it should be. A high percentage of the budget of The Stelle Group will be allotted for education. At this time, while Stelle experiences growing pains, tuition paid by parents of the students does not cover much of the cost. To continue quality education in the Stelle School, it must receive support from persons who do not have children in the school and who are not even directly participating in Stelle but can see the value of a superior quality education in building a great civilization. There is a brochure describing the Stelle School and its goals. Any reader of Stelle Letter may write for one of these free brochures. Stelle School is financed primarily by pledges of support from persons outside of Stelle who use this means of aiding the plan of the Brotherhoods. ∆
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