New-York tribune., 1897-11-04
ENGLISH N COLLEGE, AND SCHOOL.

The Harvard College authorities nave pup
lishcd and distributed the fourth report or the
committee appointed to consider the question
of college English" This document, as we'll
as the three that preceded It, Is based upon Il
careful and Thoughtful study of the actual con-
ditions that are found to prevail in Harvard
College: the chief basis for the present report
is series OF papers prepared by students Ill
the various English courses of the college.
They were requested to write description or
their English training in the preparatory
schools. and to point out what In the light or
their subsequent experience, seemed to them
10 have been good and what defective. Ont or
1651 students In these courses. LILO wrote rs
desired; n number sufficient to enable very
accurate estimate of prevailing conditions TO
he made Extracts from 15S OF the papers
are given in an appendix: all have been dcpos-
tied In the college library annexed to the
report ms material for exact comparison IN
future studies Of the same topic.
Nothing more decisive and illuminating on
this muchdscusscd subject has ever been nc.
complshcd and the committee and the 1lar
ward College authorities deserve the thanks OF
everybody who has at heart what Is getting
To be recognized as n more and more ncceS
sary part OF the equipment of educated men
and womcn-thc power Of clear and correct and
elegant expression In their native tongue The
fact that, with the rar"st exceptions, freshmen
entering college are utterly incompetent TO write
English nucntly md accurately IS everywhere
n source OF complaint. As II result, valuable
time is consumed in tho college course In pro-
vidlng elementary instruction and practice that
should have been provided by the preparatory
schools II docs not appear that the present
state OF affairs Is worse than any that has
previously existed: the trouble Is that the in
crcaSln demands of the colleges have not been
met hy the schools In respect of English COM
position. rs they have in respect OF other
branches With the vast Increase OF the num-
bcrs In college classes since 1870 oral class
room methods have largely been superseded
by others requiring written work; without the
power ~ writing readily. and even lcgibly, the
student was not equipped for his task. The
schools IN the mean time had made no CORE
spending change IN their system. They went
on In the traditional oral method. Composition
writing ~ stated intervals was not sufficient
to give thc boy familiarity or cnsc with his
mother tongue The practical result was that
the schools ceased 10 prepare for college in this
particular
II Is purely lack Of practice, lack OF familiar
ity with the actual processes OF writing. that
makes tho entering college boy so incompetent
and helpless in IN. presence OF pen. Ink and
paper The remedy is, therefore. simple: Give
more practice I'm the requisite amount To meet
the objection that the preparatory schools are
already hard pressed 10 reach the high stand
ards for admission 10 college. the Harvard com
mittec has n simple proposition: Make writing
English not only an objective study by itself,
but a necessary incident In the instruction In all
the other branches OF school work; that Is.
make frequent nltcrna,ons of written work with
oral rcclta,ions. II Is a simple proposition and
mn extremely helpful one. the details Of which
can be worked out To fit each differing case:
but in ono form or another there is an abso-
lutte necessity for It's adoption In the schools
1t Is To be hoped that these most useful re-
ports Of this Harvard committee may lead the
way 10 an important and far-reaching change
In secondary school methods 1t IL not an casy
thing TO bring about; the college can raise It's
requirements in other branches and can com
pei Increased work 10 meet them: but II can
not directly enforce n change Of method such
The schoOlmasters must be convinced of the
necessity Of II, and so sane and discerning n
discussion ms this, we can only believe Is one
Of the surcst methods Of convincing them.