Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-02-23
Various Views as to Its Merits and
Defects.
PARENfSAND TEACHERSoN The ISSUES
Are the Advanced Principles of
Teaching PrematureIy Applied?
HEALTH AND EDUCATION

| To the Editor of The Evening Star:
| 1 as a parent depiore the contest now
| going on in regard to our schools. Back
| of the objections lies the animus of the
| outs. Some of them seem to be old
| Hans who told his son to take a bag of
corn to the mill. When the boy started
| Hans said: Have you stone in the other
| end?" The boy said No, fader, I divide
| the corn" Hans said: Put in the stone,
| Do you think you know more than your
| father and grandfather
There are doubtless defects in our school
| system, If there were not the millennium
| would be with us. These can be corrected
without sowing discord and INSTRUMENTATION
! in the ranks Let US have fairness and
| justice. Our schools now rank high, and
| in the various competitions our High
| School graduates get the honors. Our
teachers are efficient and worthy Don't
make poor man hustle to give his
| child a chance above the RS. The well-to-
| do pay the taxes; let them contribute some
| of their good things to help the poor mans
child to get rid Of the hoe in this age
| of hustle, nerve and education. NJ.
| To the Editor of The Evening Star:
| Although Commissioner Ross has de-
| clared that the school trustees are respon-
| District, yet the impression will be gen.
| orally maintained that Superintendent
| Powell is it's inspiration As far l
| have been able to discern after some
| what close observation of about ten years
| Superintendent Powell's purpose is to train
| the hand, eye and brain He would make
| children reasoning instead of memorizing
| animals. He would make them observing
| instead of thoughtless. he would make them
| def instead of bungling.
| The beauty and disturbances of such
| system are self-evident. How much better
| to make our children reasoning little phil
| osophers than to let them go on in their
| old way. learning rules of spelling and
| grammar. How much better to show
| child how words built UP from roots
! and stems and let him learn in that way
| how to spell them than to force him to
| memorize long and untintelligible words.
There were countless arguments in favor
| of the new system, and it is no wonder
that many writers on education favored
| them. Superintendent Powell will find
| many parents who approve his purpose and
| indorse his system
Yet there is widespread discomfort at the
| sent to the High Schools who cannot spell
correctly, who cannot write their own Ian
! guage dramatically and who have the
| vaguest ideas to the location of cities.
| These are not merely the stupid or back
| ward pupils, but those who pass their ex-
| aminations and receive good marks. So
| much time has been given to the study of
| the geologic formation of the Potomac
| valley that pupils cannot name the Prest-
| dents of the United States: the great names
| of American history are little more than
| names to them; they have studied all about
| civil government, but they do not know
| how their own government was formed.
| They have had a smatterng of many
things; they have studied faithfully many
| hours: they learned their lessons day by
! day. But a confused tumble of half-forgot-
| ten facts and theories is all that remains of
| their years of study. This is not an exag
| geration. 1t is merely paraphrase of
| what an eighth-grade teacher said to my
| wife last summer.
The defect in the system lies in its appli-
| cation. What should be applied to the High
| Schools is put to work in the sixth or sew
| enth grades. What would be fitting for
| those grades is also applied prematurely.
| An idea, excellent in itself, is misplaced.
| 1t is a good thing to learn how words are
built built, up from roots: 1t does increase our
| analyZe them. But child cannot be made
| phlologist and in the attempt will be-
| come merely confused and suffering par
| rot. Children are denounced as backward
| merely because they are given tasks beyond
| their comprehension. And those children
| who crimson with shame at the thought of
| being more stupid than their associates will
| toll night after night, hour after hour.
| when they should be in bed resting their
minds with recreation ceres l know of one
| dinner table is cleared the school books are
| brought out and until bedtime lessons are
pored over. One night in the week per-
| haps can be given to improving the mind,
| every other night is the treadmill; no time
for music, for literature for other means
| of mental cultu. =. The demands of the
! system insatiate
The reason that much time is taken to
| learn the lessons is not that the lessons are
too long, but that the studies are not suited
| to the age of the pupil Once in while a
precocious child will be found who thrives
| on the system, but the exception is not a
signboard pointing to success. Because
| High School studies cannot be given with
profit to sixth grade pupils is no argument
| against those studies in the High Schools.
Mr.. Powell,s ideas are excellent when prop
| erly applied, but when prematurely put into
| practice are worse than useless. S,
| To the Editor of The Evening Star:
1t is an easy matter to tear down and
pull to pieces to lay blame upon this one
| and that, but to right the wrongs is not so
| easy. Too much freedom has been allowed
| to those in charge of school affairs. Thew
| no doubt, are doing what to them seems for
| the general good, but they are overlooking
| the school system with ideas and theories
| and they are forgetting that our children
| are not machines on which all sorts of ex-
periments may be tried. Too much is I'M
dertaken in our lower grades, at least.
While not advocating the good old ways of
bygone days as superior to methods now in
use. yet, think, there should be more oral
reading in the second and third grades
Especially in the fourth grade pupils are
expected to read f1uently and intelligently
such statements as these:
There are several settlements in the
United States which are not sufficiently de-
veioped to warrant their being admitted to
the Union. Each of these settlements has
a representative in the national Congress
to see that it's rights are not infringed
upon"
A child of nine years had this kind of
reading to regale her mother each morning
while having her hair combed. preparatory
for school.
Spelling and writing. of course, are es-
sentials closely connected with the reading
and combinations of numbers following.
These studies being the foundation stones
ought to have most of the time devoted to
school work. No doubt the methods pur-
sued these days are much more interesting
than formerly, but there is danger that |
methods are made more prominent than re-
suits. Home work, sewing, dressmaking,
cooking and manual training should be
elective on the part of parents for their |
children. Most parents have work at home |
for their children, and it is not easy to find |
time for 1t when school work is on hand |
The five hours devoted to school work at |
the school building is enough for children |
under fourteen at least. /
ONE FOR REFORM.
To the Editor of The Evening Star: |
In the hearing before the public school |
committee. as reported by The Star, Gen. |