The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1904-09-16
IN GERMAN. SCHOOLS
INSTRUCTION HAS
A PROMINENT PLACE.
THE BASIS OF EDUCATION
Was So Considered by the Founders
of the Empires School System,
Says Prof. Patten of North
western University.

BerliE.-The founders of the present
plan of school training for the German
youth proceeded upon the conviction
that deinite religious character lies ut
the basis of all true education and citi-
zenship. Therefore in all the schools
the first study one meets on the sched-
ule is Religion" This is given for two
hours week during the entire school
course, except perhaps in Bremen and
Hamburg, where it is omitted during the
last two years. The child goes to school
at six years of age. He is required by
law to attend the common school studies
until he is IA. He may go further, in the
higher schools, until he is Is. At the lat
ter age he is supposed to have completed
his education for business life, but is
just ready to enter upon his professional
preparation in the university. During
the years of his school life he has thus
become familiarized with the Scrip
lures and has been instructed in the
things Christian ought to know
have been investigating this in
struction of religion" in the. Prussian
schools, studying the plan and the
method of instruction, in several of the
most famous of the Prussian schools.
No stranger is allowed to 90 to school
as a casual visitor. He would be turned
back by the vigilant porter" who care
fully guards the school from all intru-
sion of unauthorized visitors. One must
obtain special permission from the min
lister of public instruction, which has to
be secured through the American am
bassador Having secured such per-
mission, l selected the Friederiche Will
helm gymnasium and it's preparatory
school, together with the Kaiser Will
helm real gymnasium, as desirable The
director of the school received me
cordially, introduced me to the teachers,
gave me the schedule of the school work
and invited me to select the classes
which l desired to inspect. Thus I was
present from day to day listening to
the Rotations, observing the method
and noting the material gone over
At six years of age, for the first half
year, the little tot is set to learn three
of Scripture. These he is to know thor
oughly. They are gone over again and
again. The second half year this ma
terial is doubled. The third half year
further memory material is given. and
in addition the Decalogue is learned.
Thus onward step by step the child is led
into a knowledge of the history of the
Old Testament characters patriarchs,
kings, poets, prophets, the New Tesla
meDt writings, with the life and teach
ings of Christ, the Acts, the Epistles, ETC.
The German youth is also instructed in
the principles of church history and in
the church creeSs. Here comes now an
interesting question: Since these chill
dren must come from homes of various
religious beliefs, how is trouble in this
direction avoided? Everybody is sup
posed to be Evangelical (that is Lu-
theran), Catholic or Jewish. The dis
senter, as such, has no standing. The
vast majority of the population in Prus-
sia is Evangelical. All the teachers be-
long to the faith and the plan of religious
instructions assumes this as the prevail
trg faith. But in order to satisfy Catho-
lies and Jews, wherever there are in any
school large numbers of such, the Cath
olic priest or the Jewish rabbi comes in
twice a week and instructs his respective
flock. In some parts of the empire
where Catholics predominant the Cath
olicinstruction and Catholic teachers are
found in separate schools. Yet it can
= 49,. o.. ..,.-.s = -. x