The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1909-04-09

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help the teachers and help the COM
munity to see and to do.
For reasons already mentioned,
agriculture, domestic art, and manual
training have not become generally
established as recognized parts OF
public school work Special schools
| of agriculture, home economics, and
manual training, are now existing
in university, college, and high school
organization, have, within their re-
spective fields, done good work.
Well equipped departments In one or
more Of these arts are in successful
operation in some high schools, some
grade schools, and in some private
schools. But such schools are too
| few, too little known, and too dis
tant from the people whom they
should serve. To reach more than a
very small percentage Of our young
people we must in a measure bring
these schools into the home II we
would reach the great mass OF the
/ people. WI II VI. 4 3ss B
Any new agency for doing good
must show its power for good before
| it will ebe accepted and supported by
the public. II we wait for Congress,
/ for state legislatures and for boards
of education to- make appropriations
and provide the means for doing this
work There is greatest need for 1t to
be done) this generation shall pass
|away without seeing much accom-
plished. In this democratic country
of ours, before legislative bodies take
action and before boards of education
establish changes in courses of study
and equipment for carrying out such
courses, there must come a desire
from the homes of the people for
action.
Let us first enter the home. We
must bring these industrial schools
into the home if we would reach the
people and through them establish
public measures. Our young people
are the entering wedge to the home.
When we cannot lead the father and
mother we can sometimes lead the
child, who in turn leads the father
and mother. Measures which lead
the boy and girl to a keener interest
in the home, to better appreciation
of home life, and to the cultivation OF
a greater degree of individual eff
cheney as factor in the home and in
the community life-these are edu-
cative in the highest sense and repre-
sent necessary part in the proper
development of the civic, moral, and
industrial life of the nation.
The boy who carefully cultivates
and studies the growth of a patch OF
corn, sugar beets, potatoes, wheat or
other plant will gain a new interest
and a better appreciation OF the
value of careful thought applied in
the study of seed selection, soil fer
tility, and the intelligent culture OF
plants. Further, he will become in
terested in the best methods OF mar
keting, and of the use of these
plants as food for man and animal.
This will direct him to study. to dis
cussion, and to investigation, leading
to knowledge of systematic feeding
and caring for live stock, to a study
of animal adaptation and needs, and
to a careful consideration of the fl
nancial and social problems involved.
This is education.
The girl who learns by actual ex-
perience to successfully cultivate one
flower, one vegetable; who learns to
bake loaf of bread, to prepare an
edible dish for the table, to can jar
Of fruit, to make an apron for the use
Of herself or member of the family,
to neatly darn or patch a garment
If she seeks to know and to perform
these simple yet important duties the
best way, combining with her work
careful thought and in
.elligent study-is being educated.
The homes of which such boys and
girls are members and the commune
lies IN which such homes are located
will soon demand for all of the young
people that kind of training which
has been shown by actual demonstra-
ion to be truly educative.
The problem stated is this: With
)ut funds, equipment, or sufficient
state or community interest, what
method of procedure will bring about
he necessarily interest in these lines
If industrial education and what ac-
JUL Will lOdu W llCdouic WHICh Will
provide the necessary funds and equip
nent for giving this work its proper
place in the public schools?
The introduction to this paper is
The Introduction includes
most of what have to say.
The Bancroft Plan.-The Bancroft
chool is an eight-grade ward school
# Lincoln, Nebraska. Courses in
ooking and in manual training have
een maintained for. the past four
ears in some of the ward schools OF
lincoln. In schools where such
curses were established efficient
eachers and proper equipment have
cen provided for doing the work in a
most satisfactory manner AS the
unds and inclinations of the board OF ]
ducation have permitted, these
curses were extended to different |
yard schools. The Bancroft high j
chool is so situated and equipped
nth building facilities that the day
eemed far distant when cooking and s
lanual training departments could
e added. The school grounds were (
DO limited in extent to permit school ,
Miss q. Ruth Pyrtle, prin- {
Ipal of the school, had faith In the {
irtue of training in domestic art, ,
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