Charles Baker (instructor)
Encyclopedia
Charles Baker was an English instructor of the deaf notable for writing some of the earliest school text books suited to deaf children.
, and was born 31 July 1803. While a youth he was for a short time an assistant at the Deaf and Dumb Institution at Edgbaston
, near Birmingham. He then tried other employment, but his services were again sought by the committee of the institution, when in a difficulty on the failure of their Swiss-born master to control the pupils. Charles Baker had never contemplated teaching as a profession, but without much thought for the future he entered upon his work. He at once obtained the affections of the children, and, to their delight, he remained at the institution. Three years afterwards he was invited to aid in the establishment at Doncaster
of a Deaf and Dumb Institution for the county of York. The plan had originated with the Rev. William Fenton, in company with whom he visited all the large towns of the county, and obtained such support as justified the carrying out of the scheme.
The deficiency of class-books was an evil which Baker soon found to be pressing. Although the deaf and dumb had been gathered together in various institutions for forty years, no attempt had been made to provide such a course as they required. This want he set himself to supply. He wrote the Circle of Knowledge in its various gradations, consecutive lessons, picture lessons, teachers' lessons, the Book of the Bible in its several gradations, and many other works which had special relation to the teaching of the deaf and dumb. The Circle of Knowledge obtained great popularity. It was used in the education of the royal children, and of the grandchildren of Louis-Philippe. It was largely used throughout the British Empire and in Russia
, and the first gradation has been translated into Chinese, and is used in the schools of China
and Japan
. Many years ago the publisher reported that 400,000 copies had been sold. Baker also wrote for the Penny Cyclopædia various topographical articles, and those on the Instruction of the Blind, Dactylology, Deaf and Dumb, George Dalgamo, and the Abbé Sicard. He contributed to the Journal of Education, to the Polytechnic Journal, and the publications of the Central Society of Education, and translated Ammann's
Dissertation on Speech (1873).
He was an active worker in connection with the local institutions of Doncaster, and was a member of the committee for the establishment of a public free library for the town. He was held in high regard by teachers of the deaf and dumb in England and in America, and in June 1870 the Columbian Institution of the Deaf and Dumb conferred on him the degree of doctor of philosophy, an honour which he appreciated, but he never assumed the title. He died at Doncaster 27 May 1874, and his old pupils erected a mural tablet to his memory in the institution where he had laboured so long.
Biography
Baker was the second son of Thomas Baker, of BirminghamBirmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, and was born 31 July 1803. While a youth he was for a short time an assistant at the Deaf and Dumb Institution at Edgbaston
Edgbaston
Edgbaston is an area in the city of Birmingham in England. It is also a formal district, managed by its own district committee. The constituency includes the smaller Edgbaston ward and the wards of Bartley Green, Harborne and Quinton....
, near Birmingham. He then tried other employment, but his services were again sought by the committee of the institution, when in a difficulty on the failure of their Swiss-born master to control the pupils. Charles Baker had never contemplated teaching as a profession, but without much thought for the future he entered upon his work. He at once obtained the affections of the children, and, to their delight, he remained at the institution. Three years afterwards he was invited to aid in the establishment at Doncaster
Doncaster
Doncaster is a town in South Yorkshire, England, and the principal settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster. The town is about from Sheffield and is popularly referred to as "Donny"...
of a Deaf and Dumb Institution for the county of York. The plan had originated with the Rev. William Fenton, in company with whom he visited all the large towns of the county, and obtained such support as justified the carrying out of the scheme.
The deficiency of class-books was an evil which Baker soon found to be pressing. Although the deaf and dumb had been gathered together in various institutions for forty years, no attempt had been made to provide such a course as they required. This want he set himself to supply. He wrote the Circle of Knowledge in its various gradations, consecutive lessons, picture lessons, teachers' lessons, the Book of the Bible in its several gradations, and many other works which had special relation to the teaching of the deaf and dumb. The Circle of Knowledge obtained great popularity. It was used in the education of the royal children, and of the grandchildren of Louis-Philippe. It was largely used throughout the British Empire and in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, and the first gradation has been translated into Chinese, and is used in the schools of China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Many years ago the publisher reported that 400,000 copies had been sold. Baker also wrote for the Penny Cyclopædia various topographical articles, and those on the Instruction of the Blind, Dactylology, Deaf and Dumb, George Dalgamo, and the Abbé Sicard. He contributed to the Journal of Education, to the Polytechnic Journal, and the publications of the Central Society of Education, and translated Ammann's
Johann Konrad Ammann
Johann Konrad Amman was a Swiss physician and instructor of non-verbal deaf persons.He is often confounded with Johann Conrad Amman, born 1724 and died 1811 in Schaffhausen....
Dissertation on Speech (1873).
He was an active worker in connection with the local institutions of Doncaster, and was a member of the committee for the establishment of a public free library for the town. He was held in high regard by teachers of the deaf and dumb in England and in America, and in June 1870 the Columbian Institution of the Deaf and Dumb conferred on him the degree of doctor of philosophy, an honour which he appreciated, but he never assumed the title. He died at Doncaster 27 May 1874, and his old pupils erected a mural tablet to his memory in the institution where he had laboured so long.