St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1911-01-11
PRESS COMMENT.
CoInnon-Sense Education.

COInmon-Sense Education.
Robert Luce, who is one of the
leading republicans in MaEsachus-
etts, and who has succeeded in graft
ing upon the laws of that state
some features of such Importance
that he is fairly entitled to rank
as a statesman, has propounded to
the teachers in the schools the
question why it is not possible to
teach the rudimentary elements of
citizenship therein. From what
this question, it is evident that the
course of education in that direc-
ton includes, in his mind, the study
of socio-economic problems which
very few, If any, ordinary school
teachers would be competent to
direct. In fact, such problems pre-
sent SO many difficulties to, and
cause such wide differences be-
tween, mature and well developed
minds that it would be almost i'm
possible for the young persons en-
tering the pedagogic profession to
qualify for the intelligent handling
of them, and it would be a task of
almost appalling character to make
the average child comprehend
them.
But, without discussing this as
pect of the matter further, it would
be well to consider what is the mis-
sion of the public school. In the
etymology of the word, education,
may be found the answer to this
question. The mission of the pub
lie school is to draw OUT the in
telligence of the child, to quicken
it in both its apprehensive and its
comprehensive character, and to
lead it along the paths of know
ledge with just that degree of ac-
CELEBRATED movement that may be
justified by what might be termed
normal expansion. 1t is an old
saying that you can't put an old
head on young shoulders, and it
may be added that the experiment
is not a wise one. Nevertheless
there long has been overmuch of
such experimentation in connection
the fads of our modern educators
do not appear to have made the
school of today an Improvement
over the little red school house"
of the past, where the principal
aim was to make the pupil we'll
grounded in '3the three RS On
the contrary, just to mention sin
gle elementary study if the aver
age graduate of the old red school
house were pitted against the aver
age graduate of the modern gram
spelling bee,'' the chances are that
the former would s'spell down. the
latter, and it would not be surpris-
ing if the victory were won with
ease.
Comon-sense education is the
thing for which the public school
should stand. Thoroughness
rather than diversity, should be it's
aim. There are studies, SO few of
them that it is possible for the
child of average intelligence to
broad foundation for the advanced
studies afforded by high school,
college and the experiences of ma
ture life. With a thorough
knowledge of grammar, ability to
read and spell, adeptness to apply
the rules of arithmetic, and COM
mand of 1egib1e style of penman-
ship, the graduate from the public
school is equipped with founda-
ton upon which may be erected
any superstructure of general or
afforded by schools of higher grade
or by the great school of life it
self. This is not to say that the
curriculum of the common school
should be limited to the scope here
indicated; but these are the pri-
mary things, and primarily the
most important. Whatever is ad-
ded should be added discriminat-
ingly. The tendency to make the
public school system complicated
has gone to extremes. The neces-
sity for simplifying it has become
apparent to many people. The de-
termination of the value of our
public schools rests, not upon the
number of things studied, but upon
the actual amount of knowledge
gained.-[ Rutland Herald.