New-York tribune., 1908-03-18
RAPS EDUCATION BOARD
Fe.r Members KnosC What's DO
ing" in Schools, Says Burlin CHAM

There are At most three people on the New
York Board Of Education who know what is going
m in the New York pubic schools, said Charles
c Birmingham. ex-PTesdent Of the board IN a
talk before the York section Of the Council of
Jewish Women at its meeting at the West End
Synagogue Yesterday afternoon Mr.. Burlinghams
tonic was The Physical Welfare of Children but
his speech was mostly - parentheses and the
-,are-7rheses hit nearly everything in the school
system or allied it. from The policy to the par
ents
The -ublic is no wiser than the board Mr..
FsJrlincham said, The ignorance Of New Workers
r. regard 10 the public schools. the schools many
Of them were brought UP in. is truly remarkable
You'll hear men who ought 10 know asking II
the Bible is read in the schools. and things like
that Perhaps that ignorance on the part of the
public and the board is responsible for the fact
thai the public school curriculum has had rela-
-ion 10 real life. We've educated children to be
clerks and bookkeepers- At commemorative
seen il often-some third rate lawyer or doctor
would be sitting on the platform, and would make
6 s-secb hars,se he had been graduated from that
school and rheu-psrhaps the principal didn't say
Il 70 the children exactly, but II was Implied;
Nov children. learn your figures nicely and mas
ter ot,r narrow little curriculum. and you may get
- he 6 great man ike the gentleman who has just
addressed you
T,,o -,t,-sf,a1 welfare Of the children was new
question Mr birmingham said. "a shamefully new
question he added with emphasis. We are be-
---sve Il
Feg-,, earlier did little in that direction when
IS On The board. I know. The most noticeable
ming that has been done for the childrens health
e ~ formation Of the Public Schools Athletic
Tess75e but that has done more for the extraor-
5tnary child-en-those who can do stunts 1t has
-7o- done so much the ordinary children
More school nurses are what is needed most
N- birmingham said, and what the committee on
-he physical welfare Of school children IS work
ine for.
81 don't care anything about the doctors he
said rather have a good nurse than a doctor
any 5ay- but there should be more nurses There
ought 70 be 8 nurse permanently attached 10 every
school 10 follow up the cases OF sickness, see that
defects are treated. 20 TO the homes Of the chill
d-en Now its only postcard TO the parents
Do you know that Of 10000 public school chill
Gren examined during the end Of last year and the
rrst Of this. 6s 25 per cent had something the mat
Ter with them2 Rather serious situation
We want department Of hygiene in the Board
a. Education. Another Shing: we want the Board
of Health and the Board OF Education 10 stop
ssuabbLng about what is the province Of the one
and what is the province OF the other. The plain
public should take and knock their heads together
aa5 tell then 10 stop squabbling and go 10 WORK
The Board Of EdGcation is a hard body TO move,
NJ birmingham admitted. 'It's too large for one
thing is ridiculousIy large. Forty-six MEMBERS
sn6 sitting il committee whether this teacher
gsau be excused or that one reinstated. why,
those sre matters for the principals 10 decide;
The function Of the board IS TO determine what
policy CT the Schools slaAI De anu sHiaAA
hoard could co this better than large one
There Is q bill before the Legislature now 70
reduce the board 20 fifteen members I'd have
& nine. myself
T7er Mr.. Birmingham administered few wtlacks
= F2ofe-- Hunter Mrs Tower and the others
who have been talking about hungry school
c-l 5-eu. Hunter didn't know what he was talk
ing about when he said there were 7ooo hungry
sctoo. Children ne observed But this ques-
ticr q feeding children free is going TO be real
Question AEtat0rs viii take il up. the press VIII
take il up. and unless the parents can be COM
PEELED to do the5r duty by their children 1t Is
going 10 be dangerous question There are
7entr Of parents who would be glad 10 land their
children On the schools And there seems 10 De
notion that everything should be free IN the
public schools
devoted 10 rHe interests Of the blind Eben T.
N5rf--d superlutendeH- q the Brooklyn INDUS
ira Home for che Blind. spoke on What Can
We Do for The Adult Blind?' There were several
songs hv Norris =. Sl!pstein. a blind barytone, ,
urc Louis I Furr1an. blind pianist, played
several numbers that much enjoyed, in spite
q the fact that the piano was. as Miss Sadie
ar7e-l-au president CT the section, remarked, "a
religious piano religioEsIy out Of tune"