Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1902-04-24
sehooIinq Is Not Education.

In my opInion-for which opinion I do
not claim perfection. by very great deal.
but I have the steadfast opinion that
every boy and girl should have plain
common school education. The state does
that and more. too. where they viii ac-
cept Il. and certainly every child should
accept Il. but that Is not all that is es-
sential in procuring an education
There are many men who have been
students. well schooled IN books. yet are
sometimes are not respectable people In
a community. And I am going to say
also that I have known a great many
people who were useful. valuable and
most respectable who had little or no
schooling at all. But they were educated
IN other and honorable ways, neverthe-
less.
As a rule. our teachers in schools are
only expected 70 know what the text
books teach and sometimes the text
books are put up mainly TO sell. as we
understand.
An education means preparation for
usefulness in life, whether IL Is learned
from textbooks OF IN other ways.
I listened TO an address made by State
School Commissioner Glenn during the
past winter. in which he gave his ex-
tperience with lost boy" Perhaps 9TH
ers OF our readers have heard him on the
same subject. He interviewed a small
criminal VINO was oelnE ConNGgcu 10 q
chafnEang somewhere and found he had
received only the rudiments OF an Eng
fish education; thereupon he urged the
necessity for doubling the present school
appropriation as a remedy for saving
lost boys, because schooling would be
efHcacious IN recovering lost boys
yield TO no person In my admiration
for educated persons who are well vers-
ed IN textbooks, honorable and sterling
as 10 Character. but have lived long
enough to know that all the criminals do
not come from the ignorant or ihterate
classes. and there IS much valuable edu-
cation which IS not derived from text
books The Importance OF manual train
Ing Is beginning TO be appreciated Brain
work and hand work united make the
most available education. Unless the in
formation derived from textbooks can
be applied 20 useful purposes IL Is sim
ply decorative art rather than profitable
edu-zti0n- A carpenter who IS prod
Gent IN mathematics has an advantage
that an uneducated carpenter may well
envy him. but there are successful car
penters who have learned TO build. TO
plan. to erect. who have this education
only IN the head. put there by experience
and constant practics. without the aid
OF books OF school teachers.
II would be the height OF folly TO say
that one knew all about the carpenter
business because he learned mathematics
from TEXTBOOKS. and the other knew
nothing because his figuring and measure
ments we're acquired By exercise and
habit and not from textbooks. School
ing is. therefore, not education
IN regard to the lost boys. I think
moral education must enanate from TIE
home. not from the general use OF text
books
There was something radically wro1g
with the morals Of the lost boy the COM
missioner was so interested in. and the
rudiments OF an English education had
sfraply nothing to do with making him
better or worse. because his education I'm
honesty and decency had been entirely
overlooked