The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-06-27
Writing in School,

4 writer in the July Forum" dis
cusses the question Of writing as taught
and practiced in school, ard hints that
possibly the amount of it required out
side the regular writing exercise is re-
sponsibIe for some spinal and ocular
diseases which are 10 be found among
school children. He also comments on
the fact that frcm one-haIf to one-ffth
Of the time spent by the child in school
IS usually occupied with written work.
To the thoughtful observer this gives
a clue TO two or three undesirable traits
noted in the schoolckildren Of today.
One IS careless1ess in writing The
German schoolrastar who comes to this
country is Mortified at the nIegible and
careless penmanship of children and
adults. The educated German writes a
hand like copper-pIate- The educated
Americans writing IS apt to look more
like hens tracks in the mud
II should be remembered that to do a
thing carefully and well for enc hour IS
more improving than to 90 It careIessIy
for six hours. In the one case the hand,
eye, and brain are taught to work cor
rectly: in the other they all three get
into bad habits: and habits of inaccu-
racy in spelling. grammar. penmanship.
OF composition are desperately hard 70
set rid Of. II is unreasonable to require
the child 70 be absolutely accurate
when writing is as yet an unfamiliar
art 10 him, and he is compelled to wrlue
in hurry and TO attend to the CORE =
ness Of his information as well az 81
The sensible teacher viii overlook in
accuracies in these minor matters rath-
er than deficiency in knowledge Of the
subject or clearness of thought; but the
fact is that children ought not to be re-
CURED 10 write papers II a hurry until
their pepmanship is practically beyond
decentralization. They should learn TO
write rapidly ard clearly from dicta-
ton before they do much writing Of ex-
animation papers.
Another fault which may possibly be
the result of the same system is lack OF
clearness and accuracy in speech.
When writing is substituted for recitirG
the child loses a kind of training which
Is a valuable part of education. There
are many people who can think quickly.
accurately. and sensTbly, but cannot
easily express their thoughts. This is
often noticeable II those who are called
"self-made nlen'-men who have got
ten much Of their education by solitary
reading, and have not been accustomed
to express their thoughts because they
have not been associated with people
who were interested in anything intel
lectuaL School training should remove
this defect-fOr II is a defect-tEough,
Of course. ii is better TO have ideas and
not be able 10 talk than 10 talk without
any ideas. The child who is taught to
express himself clearly in recitation,
who IS not allowed To use the words OF
the book, like a parrot, who, in trans
Iatins from Latin. is not permitted 10
use a word derived from the one which
he translates if another can be found,
who is trained 10 think as he speaks,
and command his self-possession in the
presence of an audience. has received
an education which VIII be valuable to
him almost anywhere The man who is
a thinker and cannot talk is Ike a fun
jug with the cork driven in hard the
one who is fluent, but has no ideas, is
like an empty jug without any cork al
all The former Is intrinsically the
more valuable article, but unless the
cork can be extracted the value OF the
two is about the same in an emergency. /