A survey of the educational system of the Philippine islands by the Board of educational survey, created under acts 3162 and 3196 of the Philippine Legislature.

306 EDUCATIONAL SURVEY OF THE PHILIPPINES

down instructions, they only illustrate a point that has been commented
upon before. Too much direction from supervisors breeds dependence
upon detailed instructions among subordinates. It may be immediately
more effective for an able superintendent to control and direct supervisors very closely. In the long run, this procedure is ineffective, for
supervisors come to limit their activity to the letter of their instructions.
In the use of even essentially admirable supervisory devices there is
need of careful safeguarding. Form 178 is such a device. In some
instances the preparation of this form for filing has been observed to
assume undue importance. Because it has been placed in their hands
supervisors have assumed that it must be used on all occasions. They
seem to suspect that their ability is to be judged from the extent of the
criticisms noted in the form. The supervisor may easily spend so much
of his time while in a school in writing in this form, that he has less time
than he might otherwise have for personal, helpful conferences with
teachers. If Form 178 is looked upon as no more than a new sort of
report, it is a hindrance, not a help to real supervision. If supervisors
are using it in this way, superintendents should correct the wrong impression, and either confine its use to the function which it can helpfully
perform, or work for its discontinuance.
The difficulties and defects noted are unquestionably already perfectly well known to the administrative and supervisory staff. All
save the one in regard to English and the misuse of Form 178 are
mentioned repeatedly in the answers to a questionnaire presented to
thirty division supervisors at their meeting in Baguio in April, 1924.
Proposals are already under consideration looking toward lightening
the office work required of supervisors or of giving them clerical help
and toward the reduction of the number of schools for which a supervisor shall be responsible. The supervision of schools in the centers of
population would presumably be entrusted to the principals of central
schools. Division superintendents are constantly stimulating supervisors to do more field work and giving helpful suggestions as to how
that work may be carried on; they are constantly insisting that more
emphasis shall be placed on helpful and less on the inspectorial aspect
of supervision.
In view of this awareness on the part of the organization of the
problems involved in supervision, the Survey Commission feels that in
this field the greatest forward step will result from giving the training
to teachers as outlined in another section. The burden of supervision
will be lightened and the work made more effective as the teaching
staff changes from the almost wholly untrained personnel that it now
is, to a trained and competent group able to carry on independently
and able to profit by constructive help.