The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-02-12
PUBLIC SCHOOLS AS
 EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES
Schools Blamed For Individual Faults Of PupsFnding the Proper Job For Each Boy-Value Of
 Vocation Adviser
ents Aid Committee High School A.socaon
By ELI w. WEAVER

Here Is a man who conducts a foreign agency business. He hires bright Amer ican boys to begin at small pay with eX- cellent prospects for advancement" These boys work hard during long hours
 and have few chances to become ac-
 quainted with the world outside of that
 office. When they discover that their
 much-advertised chances for advance
 ment are purely imaginary they have lost their hopefulness and their faith in the fairness of men.
 Another large corporation has at the
 head of its employment department a gentleman who has devised carefully graded system of promotions and ad- vancements, aims to keep his employees satisfied and strives to make them more valuable to the corporation and to them selves. This firm is anxious to get our good boys. Our committee has arrange ments for placing boys with many large employers and can save them from malS- l ing the costly mistake of taking work with irresponsible firms.
 The success of a typewriting machine | is due to the fact that the selling agents of the manufacturers have carefully stud jed the public requirements and shown a disposition to meet changing needs. By a careful study of the demands of the mar
 ket school authorities can meet the re-
 
 maximum amount of time for acquiring culture. That this is proper field of en- | deavor for school authorities to under | take has been recognized in Boston, | where the school board pays the salary | of one official in the vocation bureau, I who gives his entire time to training vo- l cation counsellors for the large public school. The London county council has
 recommended that in every borough of the l lrifx tnf hn for of ahnr l employers and residents who shall study condition and try to place children leav- l ing school. These associations are now 1 being formed.
 The work has been performed ir
 New York for several years by teachers iwho gave their time and labor volun- tarily and supplied the funds to sup port the work of the Students Aid com mittee. The committee sends to em- l ployers only boys whom 1t can recom- mend for faithfulness and efficiency ir school work and for suitability to the kind of employment concerned.
 A young fellow gets a vacation iol 1 with steamship company to whom he | goes with an excellent school record I He works at desk as a clerk at $S per week. A neighbours boy hears oi his success and applies at the same place. He is assigned to work as 6 | messenger at $5 per week. At the enc | of the first week he complained to tht manager who promised him a raise | if he could secure a recommendation from the school stating that he couli I be depended upon to do a certain kint of work. The school management can not recommend him and he goes bacl and works all summer for .$5 per weel | while his fellow, of whom 1t could b, | said that The will do well whatever l he undertakes' gets sS. The boy learn l ed a lesson that summer which en hances the prestige of the school in tn, eyes of all the pupils attending whil' at the same time employers are learn ing that some of the so-called fault of the school system are but the fail ings of individual boys.
 Our committee places during yea nearly 1000 boys of Mh om very few ar
 misfits. Some times we find work fo Fpupils who would otherwise have t l leave school in the offices and fac
 tories of the fathers of other boys fl the same school by mere request iron the platform when the school Is as
 sembled. The value of the work be comes more and more apparent. Voca tional guidance supplies one missing link in our educational and sicia chain,