The Richmond climax. (Richmond, Ky.) 1897-1914, 1911-10-04
Our Rural Schools.


State Supervisor of Rural Schools re-
ports to Superintendent John holland:
Schools are organized and maintained
that the children may be educated
Spencer defines education as ''prepara-
ton" for complete living; Dewey says
education ''is'' life Whether we accept
one or the other or both of these defini-
tons, we may ask oul selves how do our
rural schools prepare for real life and
how far do they represent life. Again,
we may ask what is the real purpose Of
education. Is it the full and harmonious
development of the individual as some
tell us Is it culture! Is it discipline?
Is it utilityg Perhaps there is truth in
each of these ideals but where does
Society come in 1t seems to me that
every one OF these definitions and ideals
are individualistic. The emphasis is
upon the individual rather than upon
society. But the individual must live
his life in society; he must find himself
in and adjust himself TO society. Sup
pose that we fully and tremendously
develop all the powers of the individual"
round him out TO a large circle, how viii
he fit himself in a triangular niche in
society To be concrete, suppose we
educate a boy in latin and history,
science and mathematics. round him
out, develop an ambition for great things.
and when he leaves high school he finds
no place open to him except common
and heavy physical labor, what viii hap
pen.
have made the foregoing remarks TO
prepare for the declaration that social
efficiency should be an end in education.
While educating the individual let US
not forget that he must make living.
Therefore in planning the course OF
study for a school, some thought should
be taken of what the children are going
to do in the world. The school should
reflect the life of the community.
But some one viii say that you cannot
know what a child will do in the world.
This is true of one child but it is not
true of community. Statistics show
that ninety per cent. of the boys of
community viii follow the industries OF
the community. Shall we, then, ignore
the preparation of the ninety per cent.
for the life we know they will live be-
cause Of the unknown ten per cent?
This brings us to the question What
is an efficient school Is it not a school
that prepares a child to live completely
somewhere, in some certain kind of COM
munity? Is it possible for a school to
prepare a child to live anywhere, every
where Can Madison County school
prepare child to live in France or in
the mining regions of Pennsylvania
On the contrary, should not the rural
schools of this county prepare the chill
dren of the country to live completely,
TO get the most out of life in the coun-
try Moreover, since the country peo-
pie are almost exclusively engaged in
agriculculture, ought not the schools
prepare the children to live completely
the life of Blue Grass agriculturalistZ
If this preparation for life as Madison
County farmer prepares the children to
learn to live in other places and under
other conditions, we'll and good but no
country school can or should prepare for
a cosmopolitan life.
To be specific, an efficient school
should teach the children to read, to
write, to spell, to calculate concerning
the actual life of the people. This is
first and most important Education, |
like charity, should begin at home. Not |
QUlA SUOulu LLt SClOOl ltdCl lllt Cllll-
dren all the traditional subjects in close |
contact with life, but it should train the
children in the major activities of the /
community. This means manual train
inc, agriculture, domestic science, etc.
In short, the efficient school should
teach the child what he needs to know,
and which the out-of school environment
can not or viii not teach him.
As Supervisor of Rural Schools, with
your permission, | have tried to impress
these ideas upon your teachers. Fur
Their. have tried to make plain to them
the now recognized fact that no school,
that only tries to teach the traditional
course in the dead, memOrizing way,
can lay any claim to efficiency. They
have been weighed in the balance of
public opinion and found wanting. This
IS proven by the lack of interest in the
schools and in the unSpeakable school
houses everywhere in the state.
During the past week and in pre-
7ious week, / visited many of your
schools and was greatly pleased with
much | found in them. ! shall speak +
.hree schools only, but desire to state
distinctly that the fact that I mention
)nly three schools must not be construed
Is a criticism of other schools. Nor
must the fact that | mention different
Kings in the three schools be understood
o mean that they do not exist in the
other schools. l cannot describe all the /
schools visited, nor all the good things /
IN any school.
MISS NOLAND'S SCHOOL-SPEED-
WELL.
ENVIRONMENT - When this teacher |
ook charge of this school the environ Z
nent was unattractive. Now il is home 7
ike and a thing of beauty. The yard is
enced, large, we'll grassed and clean.
Jpon it there is a croquet ground and
ennis court. A hammock swings be-
ween trees and beds Of beautiful flowers o
re Ia front of the house. Within the d
ouse everything is clean and in order. a
Iood pictures are on the walls, the stove y
nicely polished and a wash basin and q
lean towels are IN the rear Of the room. p
he windows are covered with nice cur HI
Inns. made and Numbered by the girls. al
he singing was pleasing. the order ex-
sllent. and the children happy and in al
rested. Such an environment is highly oil
lucative, and the success in this school b,
owes that a teacher can create an en- st
ronment. co
CLASS WoRK-The third gradewas re bi
ting lesson in a supplementary read pl
Robinson Crus0es and the work in da
aiding was good.
II There are four bors in