New-York tribune., 1911-11-19
BEGIN VOCATIONAL WEEK.
BROOKLYN Teachers Aid Students
by Lecture Courses.

ticaI way whereby he may earn nVeh-
| hood
| Under these circumstances the obvious
purpose Of the school would seem 10 Oe
! tho consistent training of the pupil toWad
Definite end or his intelligent prepara
! ton for any higher education which might
/ no necessary or beneficial 10 him In his
! chosen profession Failing in this the
public school falls far short of it's aim
! the elevation of tho child through educa-
tion - better citizenship and the individual
! improvement which reacts upon society as
a whole.
These premises admitted. the need Of
some kind OF vocational guidance becomes
pat.rt. vet no provision for anything oi
this sort is made in the school system.
vocational bureau has been proposed but
as vet the Board Of Estimate has made no
! appropriation for its maintenance.
In the mean time "a few Of the high school
teachers. impressed by the urgency OF this
need. and in an cndeavor 10 check the
/ Iamcntablc waste OF time and energy which
| vouug graduates so often suffer through
misdroctcd effort, arc aiding their boys
and girls by holding monthly or iortnightly
conferences when the young pcopl" can
! learn something Of the practical side Of
| the professions from men and women who
| have attained prominence in their rfspec-
| tive fields.
| Professor Eli ". Weaver. named by the
| city superintendent as head Of the proposed
vocational bureau and chairman Of the
students aid committee Of the High School
Teachers Association Of New York, origi-
mated this work at the Boys High School
| several years ago.
Ills varied experiences have made him an
authority on the subject Therefore, his
views are significant.
They are best expressed in his own
words in an interview with him.
However well equipped may be the
barks in which the youthful sailors launch
out on the troublesome seas OF commercial
and Industrial life he said the chances
are against them unless they are well pro-
vded with sailing orders.
Since society must in some way or other
care for the dsheartened. the broken
spirited and the ruined, it might be well for
society to provide the sailing orders
II is a vital question which confronts the
high school graduate at an age when, un-
less one be 50 preternaturally endowed,
) sound judgment or even common sense,
more generally than not is an unknown
quality. and at a time when an error may
result in a permanent drawback.
The courage of ignorance-n the ways
of the world-he may have. and this often
carries him through the troubled waters
where the less stalwart youth founders
and perhaps goes down.
At any rate, many OF the panSs and dis
| M
mary losses, might be spared him through
a little practical advice from an expert
enced person. Apart from the parents, the
teacher is likely TO have the most intimate
knowledge of a child's capabilities and
qualifications, so advice from that source
may be considered reliable.
The movement in Erasmus Hall started
last year when Miss Kate h. Turner. the
assistant principal, stroye TO bring to the
attention OF her girls other professions
open 70 educated women than that OF
teaching. 1t IS not an exaggerated esti-
mate TO say that one-half OF the girls
leaying high school prepare 10 become
teachers because they know Of nothing
else considered equally advantageous, and
so take the course of least resistance and
enter the training school for teachers. in
stead of one, say, for nurses or kinder
gartners
This fall the boys felt that they We're not
being fairly treated, so Professor Earle be-
friended them aad has the promise Of sew
eral men distinguished in the various pro-
fessions TO speak
Unlike Miss Turner, who sought TO open
up new fields of endeavor, Mr.. Earle is TO
have his talks along the lines most likely
10 be taken by the greatest number OF
boys. The need of the boy and girl in
this work is not identical; the girl should
be shown her chances for success I'm new
fields, the older ones being hopeessly
overcrowded. while the boy. provided he
be adapted for it, may work his way to
the top in any Of the wide range of oc-
cupations SO Mr.. Earle follows out the
principle of the greatest good to the
greatest number
At the November conference last week
Herbert +. Gunnson. brother of DR..
Walter b. Gunnison principal Of Erasmus
Hall. initiated the boys into some OF the
mysteries Of journalism.
The next speaker will be Dr. Donald
Ford. of the Presbyterian Hospital in Man
haitian and graduate OF the school. who
will tell the boys what they may expect in
medicine.
The following month Warren l. Lee,
highly thought OF in Republican circles of
the borough. will give them some idea OF
their prospects in law.
Other subjects on which Mr. Earle plans
to have talks are engineering, scientific
agriculture and forestry and real estate
The first speaker for the gihs was Miss
Kate c. Simmons. who explained to a
group of girls with a gift for art their
chances and opportunities as art teachers
From DR.. Mary c. Crawford, who created
such stir while an inferno at the VIII
iamsburg Hospital by doing ambulance
duty, the girls are soon to hear first hand
some Of the trials of the woman in medi-
cine.
Others who have signincd their willing
ness to address the girls are Miss Bertha
Rombaugh, a successful lawyer. with her
own Offices in Manhattan; Miss Fay Kel-
log, who has attained such prominence as
an architect and Miss Margaret NJ. Sim
mons, who will speak on kindergarte euing.
More extensive than anything Yet at
tempted At Erasmus Hall is the work
being done by Professor Weaver in the
Boys High School While there the stu
dents are only aided in the selection OF a
profession, Professor Weaver actually pro-
cures employment for them. lie also pro-
rides work for boys during tho SUMNER
vacation.
Professor Weaver decries the clamor for
trade schools and thinks the need for them
in New York is overestimated. owing to
the high cost Of living in New York the