The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-07-07
National Educational AssOcia.
ti0n Gets Down to Business.
Meetings in Eight Departments
on TOday's Programme.
THE NATIONAL COUNCIL
Hears Papers Read and Then
Discusses Them.
Superintendent Peairs, of Has.
kell, Talks ON Citizenship.

| Boston, July THE programme of the
National Educational association today.
provided for meetings in eight depart
ments besides a general session to be
held in the evening
The departments holding sessions to-
day were the national council, elemen-
tary education. higher education, nor
mai, manual training, business educa-
| tion, child study and Indian education.
The national council discussed Re
ligious Education" with Geo A Coe.
professor of philosophy, Northwestern
university, speaking on Contributions
| of Modern Education to Religion" He
said in part:
THE demand for improvement in re-
ligious education apparently assumes
that the educational principles employed
in the secular schools are capable of
promoting religious nurtures also. This
assumption should not be accepted
without scrutiny. Religious education
should be religious in point of process as
well as of purpose. But modern educa-
| tion, though it originated within relig-
ion, has built up a set of at least ap-
parently Independent principles. Edu-
cational theory rests chiefly upon two
ideas, the natural development of the
child and his social destination. The
| first determines the nature of the edu-
cational process; the second describes
the END OF the material. The idea OF
child-development expands the princi-
pies of apperception, free self-expres-
| sion, concreteness and symmetry. The
idea of the child's social destination
| makes the work and end of education
predominately ethical. Analysis of these
| principles will show that they are in
herently adopted to the work of relig
| ious education. First, modern education
agrees with religion in recognizing the
inner life as the essential life of man.
Only that which we assimilate enlargeS
life. Second. education and religion
agree in cOnceiving life broadly-life is
right feeling and right willing as well as,
right thinking. Third, they agree in
demanding that the inner life come to
outward expression The maxim of the
teacher, No impression without express
Sion, has its counterpart in the idea of
good works as the expression and evil
dence of faith. Fourth. the educational
principle that the concrete should pre-
cede the abstract, the realty, the SYM
Dol, is in harmony with the religious
idea of incarnation. or the revelation
of the invisible God in visible person.
able things. but not for their own sake;
rather because seeing and handling are
means to the growth of personality.
| Fifth, both educatiOnand religion aim
freedom, yet employ authority. The par
adoX is solved through the insight that
authority in both spheres, expresses the
needs of our deeper self We become
free only through obedience. Sixth, mod
ern education is working with religion
for the adjustment of the individual to
society.
Thus the modern educational move
ment as 4 whole has been working out
certain pedagogical aspects of Christian
belief. 1t follows that the entire body
of the educational principle is adapted
to the specific work of religious train
ling. The contribution of modern educa-
ton to religion is form and method;
which church and home must be relied
upon to fill with the complete Chris
tian content"
Rev Edward Pace of the Catholic un-
versity, Washington. D. c., spoke on
THE influence of religious education on
the motives of conduct" and Commits
sioner of Educa ton w. L. Harris of
Washington, D. c., on THE separation
of the church from the school, support
ed by public taxes
At the session of the elementary de-
partment the time was devoted to pa
pers mainly on technical subjects. with
discussions of each. In the department
of higher education the topic was The
length of the Baccalaureate Course and
the Preparation for the Professional
Schools
Among those who presented papers
were President Nicholas Murray But
dent VIM. r. Harper of Chicago uni
versity.
President Butler said in part:
I'm my judgment most participants
in the discussion now going on through
out the land as to the length of the bac-
lcalaureate course and the preparation
for the professional schools, err in sup
posing that the two questions are neces-
sariIv reducab Bile to one and also in tax
ling hold of that one by the wrong end
The nature. content and proper length
of the baccalaureate course are mat
ters quite independent Of the proper
standards of professional educatlon,ahd
are entitled to consideration on their
own merits.
s.,The place of the baccalaurate course
and its standard viii never be estab-
Ilished on sound principles until the
question of its length is made subor-
dinate to those relating to its content
and its purpose. Moreover, 1t is quite
unreasonable to assume that the bac-
caIaureate course should be of one ana
the same length for everybody
ss,The baccalaureate of college course
of study of the liberal arts and sciences
should be preserved at all hazards as an
essential part of our educational or
ioanization 1t is distinctly American
and a very powerful factor in the up
building of the nations culture and
idealism 1t should be treated as
thing of value in and for itself, and
not merely as an incident to graduate
lstlIdy or to professional schools.
4 .eThere should be a college course two
years in length. carefully constructed
as a thing of itself and not merely the
first part of three years or a TOUR
years course. which will enable intend
ing professional students to spend this
time as advantageously as possible in
purely liberal studies The University
colleges can establish such a course
readily enough; the Independent coll
lleges will have to establish such
course or see their influence and pres
i tige steadily decline. To try to meet
the new situation by simply re-produc-