Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-10-15

| WALTER n. PATTERSON.
parental school," something hither-
to unheard of to the public in Wash
ington. will be asked for by Walter B.
Patterson. supervising principal Of the
| fourth division Of the public schools and
also in charge of the ungraded and atyp-
ical schools. 1t is the nearest thing to a
reform school ever dared in q public
school system, but has features entirely
different from the recognized popular
idea of reform school. 1t will be in
| tended to reform on the big brother
plan rather than by any other plan. and
if the scheme becomes operative 1t may
be run the year round.
| The parental school will be thoroughly
explained in a report which Mr.. Patter-
son is making up for Mr.. Davidson. If
the superintendent Of schools approves
it is probable the request for its estab-
lishment will go to the Commissioners.
THE parental SCHOOL, said Mr.. Pat
terson in explanation of mis- idea. will
| be place where we can take boys that
| simply cannot get along In the regular
schools They will stay there all the time,
day and night. 1t is not to be a prison.
1t is a place where bad boy, an UNI
fortunate boy. or boy who does not
have a chance to see things in the right
way can be taken. He will stay there at
| night and Saturdays and Sundays.
Sometimes Among Bad influence.
Every now and then We run across a
bad case in a boy who has to go to one
of our unsraded schools because he SIM
ply cannot get along with his teacher. At
the ungraded school he learns the lesson
they teach there. He learns that, after
all. there is some good in going to school.
He begins to get a little ambition. and
then Saturday and Sunday he stays home
with an influence which is so bad 1t
| knocks down all the school has built up
| in five days.
There are a lot of boys who would
grow up decent, useful citizens if they
only had chance like that. Get man
at the head of such a school who would
throw himself into the life of these boys
and you would see the worst boys in the
public school system simply striving their
best to get up to his level and to please
him.
There is a school of that sort in Balti-
more. and 1t is working wonders. We
have accomplished fine things in the
atypical and ungraded schools, but this
parental school is needed. believe
The atypical and ungraded schools Of
| which Mr.. Patterson speaks have reached
their stride for the first half of the school
year and are beginning to fill up with pu-
pills. These are odd little schools tucked
here and there throughout the big school
system. and take care of pupils who can
not be taught in the regular schools
Sometimes a child does not learn fast
enough to keep up with other children.
In the days of Charles Dickens, when
Smike and DOtheboys Hall were the rule
these children had poor time of life.
However, with the Introduction of atypical
schools. the children who are not exactly
| like others. subnormal or abnormal, have
places provided especially for them. They
| learn to learn. They learn to control
their fingers so that If their brains are not
active their hands will be. and in that
way they absorb a manual training which
| vastly more beneficial to them than
trying to learn the regular things in the
| regular schools
Example of One Boy.
There was a boy last year whose par
ents said he never would learn. They
| sent him to a school where it was found
he was fifth or sixth grade boy In a
class of babies of the first grade caliber.
Out he was taken and placed in an
atypical school. The teacher there did
not try to teach him to read. She taught
| aim to be interested In school, and had
his in ecstacies over a chair Gaming job.
| He got to be an expert chair Gamer, and
went into the basket weaving with such
| avidity that he can make waste baskets
now which any millionaire would be
| proud to own.
Thus by graded process Of stimulating
the boys interest his teacher woke him
| up. He Is still in one OF these schools,
/ but he is going to be a useful citizen,
| from all accounts.
| Backward children are backward for
many and many reason. To hear psy-
| chologfst recite the retardtng influences
| would make the nervous layman shudder
| There are so many reasons why the
| atypical children are not learning rapidly
| that each single child gets almost indi.
/ al
suffer from malnutritiOn. They do not
get the right things to eat That doesn't
mean they eat too much chocolate cake
and fudge sundae. Malnutrition never
strikes In where there are any such
| luxuries. In the ungraded schools, which
institutions are what brutal public
might call "semi-incorribigle" schools. II
| Is marvellous to see the change In the
| boys who have been called bad. after a
week Of feeding.
| Few people know II. but in these un-
graded schools the hot lunch is part
Of the course. They're not half 50 trouble
| some when they are well fed. And by
chance II any parent takes exception to
that lunch. the boys teacher would soon
to pauperize the child by feeding him
free" It is merely part Of the new.
painstaking careful, expensive process
Of giving every one far chance in the
schools There was no alternative at one
| time, except the alternative Of dropping
| out OF school altogether. Now the child
| who cannot keep up In one class Is
given special teacher. and yet many q
parent Is insulted at the thought.
Teachers Learn New Things.
An Idea OF what these teachers will do
for their pupils is illustrated in the fact
that many Of them. perhaps all Of them,
learned to be master carpenters at night,
so they could teach their boys to be use
full In that line. They are trained young
/ women. each one OF whom has the char.
acteristic patient face Of q person who
can plant slow growing seed and wait
for ages to watch 1t grow the least little
mite.
Each one of them seeks to rule her
school by her individuality. In some of