The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1906-04-07
EDUCATIONAL ADVANCE.
The Three "R's- Sixty Years Ago and
To Day.

A recent discovery made in Spring.
field, Mass, discredits the pessimistic
theories of many persons who have
risen up to declaim against the "fads
and fancies" of the enriched" courses
of study pursued in the public schools
of to day, and have cried for a return
of the days when children with states
and copybooks laboriously toiled over
the fundamentals" alone. Until this
discovery it has not been possible to
make an accurate comparison of the
results attained half century ago
with those of to day, either to prove
or disprove the assertion that the for
mer days were better than the latter.
The find is credited to DR.. Thomas M.
Ballet, who, while superintendent of
schools in Springfield. discovered i'll
the archives a volume of examination
papers in arithmetic and spelling
written by eight-tive pupils in the
Springfield High School in 1876 With
the papers were the original questions
The principal of one of the elementary
schools of that city decided to give
them to the children in the ninth
year of his school. There We're 245 of
these children. who were all Younger
and in school for a less number of
hours than the pupils who took the
examination i'm 1916. The average
percentage secured by the eighty-five
in arithmetic was 2946 and in spell
ing 40.06. The percentages in the case
of the 245 children of the ninth year
were 65.5 and 51.2 respectively.
Afterward the questions were given
to ninety-four pupils-fiifty-four girls
and forty boys-in the eighth year of
Public School No. IS, at Evergreen
avenue and Ralph street, Brooklyn,
of which Frederick S. Mills Is prin-
cipal.
The arithmetic problems were an ex-
ample in addition, another in multi
plication, third in measures, four in
fractions involving division, multi
cation and subtraction and eighth ex-
ample In interest. The average per-
centage secured by the New-England
high school pupils of sixty years ago
in this subject was, as indicated, only
29.46, while the average for the nimble
witted Brooklyn children was 1927.
The SB half of the class averaged VA
per cent. Less than fifty of the New
Englanders did the first example while
92.55 per cent of the children of the
City of Churches were able to add the
combination of integers, decimals and
vulgar fractions correctly. The Sc
cond example, the one in multiplied
ton, was solvable by only 5S.Ss per
cent of the youths of 1916, while 3d.
81 per cent of the children of 1905
were able to tell the product of TO-
0OS multiplied by 5000. Only 1924 per
cent of the girls who wore pantalets
were able to determine "the simple
interest of $1,000 for - years, II
months, 80 days" while 6S.51 per cent
of their younger sisters of threescore
years later were able to show what
they would receive when they married
at the age of twenty-six if they had
such a sum at interest. The average
percentage received by the girls of
1S46 in arithmetic was 10, while the
girls OF 1905 secured an average of
1859.
In spelling there was the same mark
ed contrast. Only 17.464 per cent of
the scholars of the Massachusetts High
School received 70 per cent or over,
while 1910 per cent of the Brooklyn
pupils were above the 70 per cent
mark. While none of the Brooklyn
children missed every word, 2.35 per
cent of the Springfield students did,
and 1865 per cent missed every word
but one. OF the twenty words in the
list. 27.05 per cent of the latter miss
ed seventeen or more words, and only
] .0S per cent of the former descended
to that level In other words, more
than a quarter of the spoilers of the
era of the spelling bee failed in
seventeen or more of the twenty words
given out. while more than a third
of the children of to day spelled four
teen or more of the list.
NOrthwestern-JOhn ID. Rockefeller.
John D. Rockefeller is said to be the
richest man In the world and yet with
all his wealth he is not to be envied
by any sensible person. In all this
world there are probably few persons
who are more unhappy than this
broken down old man. who is practi-
cally living in a state of siege at his
palatial home at Lakewood. N. j., de-
prived of the companionship of any
save few members of his own family
and hired servants who are paid to
minister to his wants and doubtless
have little real sympathy for him.
Haunted by day and night with fears
of kidnapping; assassination or the in
vasion of the dreaded process server,
- to- ySv1<v