Daily Kennebec journal., 1908-10-29

ions assuring Il suitable training, anu ,
especially along industrial lines. for
the children, who are forbidden to
work
1--WE still have faith in education,
but we are rapidly coming to realize
that the type of education which seem
ed to meet the needs of our fathers
and grahdfathers does not entirely
meet the needs of the present day. The
home no longer provides the training
in industry which it formerly did, and
the school must undertake this task.
Compulsory attendance upon schools
Of the right kind for sufficient time
is likely to provide the most satisfac-
tory solution to the evil of child Ia
bOI.''
Hon. Scott Wilson of Portland was
the next speaker introduced. Mr..
Wilson is the chairman of the Maine
State Child Labor committee ar
paper on THE Child and the State"
vas practical and interesting.
The last speaker of the morning was
Hon. Payson Smith Of Auburn, State
superintendent of schools. His sub
ject was, AN Education That Will
cIlu W L6SSeH DcpeHucliSy
Crime" He said in part:
Address Of Hon. Payson Smith.
"An Education That Will Tend to
Lessen Dependency and Crime was
the subject of an address by Hon. Pay
son Smith, State superintendent of
schools Mr.. Smith said:
1t is most encouraging to note that
prevent and treatment of social disease
is assuming the same important plane
that it has taken in treatment of bodily
ills The corrective measures that have
been given so large Importance in deal
ing with dependency and crime are be-
ing subordinated to the more hopeful
measures that treat of their causes.
Those who seek to create better social
conditions by formatory rather than
by reformatory methods have not been
slow to see the possibilities of our sys
tenn of public education. Concrete evil
dence of this recognition is to be found
in the laws enacted in the several
states to secure temperance instruction
and 10 promote other specific reforms
by giving timely instruction to the
young While these specific measures
are not always carried wisely into ef-
feet and do not always produce ex-
lctly the results anticipated, they in
1icate a tendency on the part of the
public to expect Of he schools more
| han a perfectory drill upon facts and
igures. They reveal the expectation Of
he people that the function of the
school shall widen until it shall deal
With the actual conditions of life, not
| ,onfining itself to intellectual effort
alone and not restricting itself to any
purpose short of the complete and full
| development of the individual to meet
| I'll the exigencies of life. Regarding
| such d view of the purpose of the
| schools there can be little difference of
opinion. 1t may be possible, however.
| % make mistakes in the manner of
applying the principle. MY own crit
| icism of much Of the instruction given
| is that it has been too negative in
character
"In training the child to right liv-
| ing as we'll as to right thinking, in
struction should be positive and con-
structive in nature rather than mega
tive or corrective. The character and
| process of reformation may require cor
rective measures but whether that be
| character and formation calls for quite
| L different short of treatment. The
| 'oung therefore need not so much to be
| told what they must do as they need
be taught what they are to do and
low the deed is to be accomplished.
| The whole import of our newer educa-
| fional theory, l take it. means that life
is constructive and progressive and
| that each individual carries the means
! and powers with which his life is to be
| built. Therefore the educational pro-
| ,ess that will succeed best must be the
| me that is constructive and does it's
| work through positive and affirmative
I 'lethods. From this you will readily see
| hat my contribution to the discussion
! ,f the hour can not be expected to deal
| With any special evil to be overcome
" any particular reform to be accom-
plished; it must have to do with the
reans to be employed in the upbuild-
ing and right forming educational pro-
ess. With this introduction | want to
| present as my first proposition that an
| educational system that is to prevent
dependency and crime must concern it
self not chiefly with the mass but with
| he individual. The mass may be edu-
| ,ated through the individual but the
| Individual car never be reached
through the mass. For convenience in
giving instruction. for presenting nat
ural competitive conditions and for
/ economy on administration we may
/ group children into classes or grades
but we are greatly mistaken if we be-
| lieve VIC can educate them in the per-
/ sonal sense in that way.
EVERY child presents it's own educa-
| tfonal problem and it is certain to be
unlike that of any other child. This
problem involves many things, heredi-
cry environment. natural talents and
acquired characteristics. the verying
conditions of home life and training,
indeed it involves so much that to at
'empt an enumeration would mean the
,aming of all the events and expert
ences that go into the making of hu-
man life. To formulate general prin-
ciples Of instruction is the function of
tine educational psychologist. to ar
range courses of study is the business
of the school executive and adminis-
traitor. but through these alone educa-