Hopkinsville Kentuckian., 1910-02-19
First Introduction of This
System Of Training
Here.
POPULAR INNOVATION.
First Had It's Origin in
Chicago in Year of
1888.

Manual training work has just
been introduced in the primary de-
partment Of Bethel Female College.
We believe that this is the first time
that this innovation in school cuH
ricula has appeared in this county.
Manual, or hand work, first ap
peared in technical colleges in this
country about thirty five years ago,
where it was used to give to pros.
peetive engineers a practical knowl.
edge of shop and factory methods.
In 1883 one of the social clubs in
Chicago organized and built the
Chicago Manual Training School
where elementary work in several of
the wood and metal trades was
taught to boys from fourteen to
twenty years Of age, 10 connection
with good thorough work in several
of the usual high school academic
courses.
About one. third of the school day
was spent in the shops and drawing
rooms, and two thirds in recitation
rooms. The fame of this school
spread over the whole country and
Its graduates were soon in great de-
mand as teachers of manual work in
manual training adjuncts to already
existing high schools and in new
manual high schools which came
rapidly into existence. One of these
young men went TO the famous
Louisville Manual Training High
School ia '93 and he is still there.
While the manual idea was thus
working from the technical schot ]
downwards into the high school,
another upward movement was be-
gun from the other end of the
educational line. Primary teachers
began to introduce advanced kinder
garten hand work into their depart
ments. A whole system of hand
work in wood and wire was invented
in Swe ZEN called "sloyd." High
school wood work was forced down
into the seventh and eighth grades;
domestic science departments includ-
ing sewing, housekeeping, cooking,
millinery work, and all the various
forms of elementary art work ar
peared in high schools for girls. For
a time there was no uniformity in
the work of various schools and no
correlation of hand work with
academic work was attempted
Gradually however, the great Nor
NAL Schools and Teachers Colleges
helped to bring de6niteness into
hand work by sending out teachers
trained along certain lines of work
for the various grades. Foremost
among these schools was the Teach
ers College of Columbia University,
N. Y. The practical school of this
college is the famous Hor
ace Mann school. This primary
school has for many years been used
as laboratory in which have been
worked out the problems of the
modern education Of children Here
was developed the manual training
system which is now being used in
primary and secondary (high)
schools throughout the United
States. This system has no hard
and fast lines, but on the contrary
is sufficiently flexible to permit its
adoption by the small private school
or the large city school.
This work was first attempted in |
primary school work in Kentucky |
at the University School of Louis
vile under the direction of Mr.. H.
G. Brownell, now president of
Bethel Female College. The primary |
department of that school grew
from twelve to sixty in two years
and much of this increase was
traceable directly to the manual
work. It was soon discovered that
dull pupils developed an industry
and earnestness in connection with