The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-03-23

mehameha read the following paper
at the last meeting of the Ministerial
Union:
The children of our Territory are tn,
most valuable of our undevelopeC
resources. And their development
particularly of those who are poor
uncared for.-the neglected-is mos
| important. The effort to diffuse popu-
lar educational opportunity is con-
stantly growing, and at the same time
| greater care is being given to adapt
| education to the need. Suitable
| schools for instruction in agriculture,
| trade, household arts, music, the fine
arts. civic training, etc, are constant
| ly being demanded and the demand is
| gradually being met in many COM
| nunities. Improved elementary train
| ing, and also opportunities for the
| mature to gain instruction along any
desired line, is also demanded. Better
civic and moral training is also i'm
perative. The aim of every school and
! of the state is to develop the best
in every boy and girl. And the
boys and girls of yesterday the men
and women of today, are making de-
| mands for themselves which should be
lines. Accomplishment lags. But the
promise is good for agitation is
arousing the public conscience
EQUAL SERVICE FOR EACH CHILD
Equal educational opportunity does
not fill our requirement. 1t is true
that we give every boy and girl in
our High School an equal opportunity
to study Greek. This is an opportun-
1ty of great value to a few but of no
value to most. What is needed more
is equal service to each child By this
| mean such service as will best meet
the reasonable needs of each child.
To teach Greek at public cost and to
neglect TO give manual training and
domestic science is not equal educa-
lion. To give a boy Greek or Trlgo-
nometry and fail to teach him how to
drive a nail or hold a hoe is not equal
educational service. To teach a girl
a modern language and fail to give
her an opportunity for training in
domestic arts as not equal service. The
Greek, Trigonometry and modern
language ought not to be eliminated,
but the manual training. agriculture
and domestic science should be added.
We need a readjusting of school cur
rfcula. We need a comprehensive
scheme of public education to meet all
the reasonable requirements of daily
life. Our public schools are doing an
inestimable good to the community,
but more can be attempted and ac-
complished. Public education is a
vast enterprise and should aim to
bring out the best in every young
man and woman and SO give an
adaptive and reasona BILE service to all,
the ablest, the backward, and the
deficient.
IMPORTANCE OF ELEMENTARY
EDUCATION.
The great body of pupils go no
further than the grammar school. How
important it is, then, that elementary
education should be emphasized AMI
made as rich and productive as pos
sible. The time of the pupils should
be carefully planned ana every III
centive offered, and every subject pre-
scented in the most attractive way.
The grammar and the more elementary
schools can not speak for themselves
the way, the high schools, colleges and
can. We need not give
less attention to the higher. but far ,
more 10 the elementary education.
The world is just beginning TO real
ize the great Importance of the kim
dergarten Time was when it was
generally advocated that anyone coulu
teach children. And, indeed, this be-
lief is far from being obsolete today. |
So, too, many thought that anyone
would do to teach the child races
those races in the infancy in their de-
Most OF US today claim !
teonly teachers of the broadcast Gull |
ture should be engaged. Daily PROB
lens arise in connection With our ma !
tive schools which are very difficult /
to solve and the very best minds are
needed to help in the solution.
Hawaii has it's distinct education I
problem 1t differs in the ditrerent -
lands. 1t differs in the various local I
ties in the same island. A system |
Of schools modelled on the New En-
gland plan can not be expected to |
succeed. Minds, quick TO aoapu tnenI-
selves to changed conditions, are in
valuable to give the training required !
% meet local conditions. In a city !
ike Lynn, where the great majority
If the young will take up different
branches of shoe manufacturing, a
raining entirely different is needed
han for boys in Hawaii, none of whom
will ever take up this work. Educa-
ion to meet local needs is the study
# cur education.
And because SO few of our pupils
an get a higher education, greater
stress should be placed on nose stuC-
es or activities that will fit our boys
md girls to take the most intelligent
Jew of the life most of tfsem must
i've.
MOST CHILDREN MUST WORK.
The majority of all the races of man
lind must work with their hands to
arm their daily bread. For the edu-
alton of this great majority, the
ruest is that which helps to dignity
ne common things of life, to do with
the work that comes to
ach to do Special care in all educa-