the application of any board of directors, which certificate shall entitle the holder thereof to teach the subject therein named in any school of the district under the control of the board of directors, until revoked for cause: Provided, That the county superintendent, before issuing the same, shall receive satisfactory evidence of the applicant's fitness to teach the subject named in the certificate".29 This law was a most unfortunate one and tended to perpetuate favoritism and inefficiency in teaching many subjects for the next quarter of a century.

5. Recodification of School Laws in 1909

No certification legislation of any importance was enacted for more than a decade following important enactments of 1897. In 1909 a recodification of the school laws was effected and many new statutes were enacted. Even at the present time, nearly a quarter of a century later, the main structure of Washington school law dates back to 1909. In a large part of the laws even the original language persists. Types of certificates issued. The legislature of 1909 enacted statutes providing for a very complete, elaborate, and complicated system of certificates. Most of the details will be omitted here and only the outline given.

1. Common-school certificates and diplomas.

(a) Third-grade certificates.

(b) Second-grade certificates.

(c) First-grade primary certificates.

(d) First-grade certificates.

(e) Professional certificates.

(f) Permanent certificates (including (c), (d), (e), and life certificates).

2. City certificates.

(a) City high-school certificates.

(b) City grammar-school certificates.

(c) City primary certificates.

3. Certificates and diplomas of higher institutions of learning.

(a) Normal schools.

(b) State college.

(c) University of Washington.

4. Temporary certificates.

5. Special certificates.

Tabular summary of 1909 certification regulations.-A summarized exhibit of the certification regulations enacted in 1909 is given in table 52.

"Laws of Washington 1897, CXVIII, p. 413.

TABLE 52.-Plan of certification of teachers, 19091 "Recodification of School Laws" (ch. 97, Laws 1909)

Report of Superintendent of Public Instruction, 1922, p. 248.

Applicant for permanent certificate must be holder of a first-grade certificate. a first-grade primary, or a professional, or a renewal of any of them, in full force and effect.

State board of education provided for the first time that the minimum credit to be used at any examination other than the one at which such credit is secured shall be 90 percent. (Dec. 29, 1909.)

Revision affecting university and State college graduates.-The legislature of 1909 theoretically further corrected the unfortunate policy of permitting all university and State college graduates to be certificated for teaching without requiring professional training. Twelve semester-hours of credit in the department of education were required for the normal and life diplomas.

In 1909 the board of regents of the university was

empowered, upon recommendation of the faculty, to grant normal diplomas which shall entitle the holder to teach in any public school in the State for a period of five years; and to grant university life diplomas to candidates who shall give satisfactory evidence of having taught successfully for twenty-four months: Provided, That all candidates for the normal diploma and life diploma shall have satisfactorily completed not less than twelve semester hours in the department of education.30

An identical law was enacted at the same session with reference to the State college at Pullman.31

This statute enacted in 1909 has remained unchanged in the law until the present time, 1934. The weakness in the law is that while only those who had completed 12 semester-hours in the department of education were awarded normal or life diplomas there was no law requiring them to earn these credentials in order to be licensed to teach. Under regulations of the State board of education it was possible for any graduate of the university or State college to secure a certificate by passing an examination in school law and the State Manual. The examinations were so easy that anybody could pass them after a few hours of cramming.

The statute under which this blanket power was given to certificate all college graduates is reproduced below. The State board was vested with authority to

approve courses for the State normal schools, for the department of education of the University of Washington, and the State College of Washington, and for all normal training departments of higher institutions within the State of Washington, and for all normal training departments of higher institutions within the State of Washington which may be accredited and whose graduates may become entitled to receive teachers' life diplomas or professional certificates ***. To investigate the character of the work required to be performed as a condition of entrance to and graduation from normal schools, colleges, universities, and other institutions of higher education and to prepare an accredited list of those higher institutions of learning of this and other States whose graduates may be awarded teachers' certificates by the superin tendent of public instruction without examination except upon the State Manual of Washington: Provided, That the entrance and graduation requirements of all colleges and universities whose diplomas are accredited must be equal to those of

30 Laws of Washington, 1909, ch. 97, sec. 5, p. 240.

1 Ibid. sec. 19, p. 250.

the University of Washington; and the requirements for normal schools shall be equal to the advanced course of the State normal schools of this State.32

Graduates from other colleges.-Graduates from other accredited colleges, and that meant almost any college of any description, either from within or without the State were accorded the same privileges. Thus grew up an exceedingly low standard of teacher preparation. City certification.-Unfortunately the city certification of teachers was emphasized in the legislation of 1909. In cities employing 100 or more teachers city boards of examiners, consisting of the city superintendent and two others having practical experience as teachers, were empowered to certificate for primary work, grammar-school work, or high-school work.

Special certificates. City superintendents were authorized to grant special certificates to teach "special or departmental subjects, such as music, foreign language, drawing, penmanship, kindergarten, manual training, domestic science, physical culture, etc.; and such other subjects as are calculated to discover applicant's fitness to teach in public schools." 33

County superintendents were likewise empowered to grant special certificates in the same list of subjects. In each case these special certificates were valid in the city or county where granted so long as the holder taught in that jurisdiction.

It can readily be understood that these laws were so elastic as to throw open the doors to any subject in the curriculum. That happened and no end of abuses was the result.

6. Certification Legislation of 1915

Remedial legislation.-The certification legislation of 1915 occupied very little space on the statute books. However, in its far-reaching effects no other single act of legislation has done so much to require high-school teachers to secure professional training. Courses had been provided before but students had not taken advantage of them in large numbers because they could be certificated just as readily without them. The force of tradition, and often the advice of academic faculty members served to keep the number of education students very low.

In the legislative session of 1915 the senior author of this history wrote and secured the insertion of the following clause:

Provided, That graduates of accredited colleges and universities must present evi dence that they have completed satisfactorily twelve semester hours in professional

Ibid. sec. 5. p. 236.

Laws of Washington, 1909, ch. 97, sec. 6, p. 344.

study in an accredited institution or else pass examination in such professional subjects as the State board of education may direct.34

Through his opportunity to cooperate with the State board of educa tion for 13 years following 1915 in making examination questions and grading the answers, advising regarding accredited lists, etc., many of the undesirable tendencies were checked.

7. Certification Legislation Following the Commission of Educational Survey, 1917

Common-school certificates.-The legislation of 1917 followed very closely the recommendations of "the commission of educational sur vey" in the certification of teachers as well as in most other matters relating to education. In several respects distinctly advanced legislation was enacted. Several inconsistencies, however, were included in the new legislation and some inconsistencies with old laws were not ironed out. Each of these phases will be considered.

An advanced step was taken in requiring that no one should be eligi ble after September 1, 1918, to the examinations for even the lowest grade of common-school certificate who had not completed the work of a 4-year high school or its equivalent. Third-grade certificates were eliminated. For the second-grade certificates, as a prerequisite to the examination, there were required "nine weeks of professional training in an accredited institution of higher learning in which elementary teachers are trained." This certificate was valid in the elementary schools for 2 years and renewable twice by attendance of 9 weeks in an accredited institution of higher learning in which elementary teachers were trained.

As a prerequisite to the examination for the first grade elementary certificate "at least one year of professional training in an accredited institution of higher learning" was specified. This certificate was valid for 5 years in the elementary schools and renewable for 5 years by attendance of 18 weeks at an accredited institution of higher learning in which elementary teachers were trained.

Candidates for life certificates by examination were required to pass in all the subjects required for first-grade certificates (see table) and also in algebra, plane geometry, biology, geology, English literature, physics, psychology, composition, and general history. Forty-five months of experience, 27 in the State, were a prerequisite. All were required to give evidence of having completed 12 semester hours of professional study in an accredited institution of higher learning or

Laws of Washington, 1915, sec. I, p. 481.