Newark post., 1912-08-14
EDUCATIONAL DISCUSSION
MIR. wAsHBURN REPLIES TO MRS. DAWSON

from perfect. not In education in
stitutions, or from classical stud
les, but from years as street car
conductor. when | was obliged to
know things accurately and form
ulate my thought and speech
quickly; from years in shoe fac
tory where | learned the meaning
of cooperation and democracy.
My ability to write so that | pro-
duce editorials which are accept
ed, | gained largely from instruc-
tions received from that forcible
and not over complimentary per-
son known in newspaper offices as
the managing editor. From the
time when | left the common
school where | had gained instruc-
ton in reading, writing, simple
arithmetic. geography and that
carefully edited half-truth known
as American history. until | was
twenty Years old. | learned more
from outside reading Of my own
selection. from shopmates. per-
sonal friends. shop discipline.
street car work. temporary EN-
ployments in various cities and a
real touch with very real world.
than | did from my years in high
school and in higher institutions.
This need not have been true had
the educational courses included
the things every boy and young
man ought to know from school
studies and from the work includ-
ed III school courses.
Mrs. Dawson says: "The edu-
Gators, the clergy or any one class
do not dictate or authoritative
~ determine what the people
shall have as to education. Bar
ring the more or less uneven in
t1uence of the politicians. the peo-
pie have gotten in every age what
they have demanded. - She over
looks the fact that there is a wide
difference between what the pso-
pie would like to have and that
which they demand. A hopeless
ness, born of disappointments. is
on all peoples and they have many
wishes they do not make effective
by determined action. They leave
the boards OF education to 'au-
thorltatiyely determine what we
shall have The courses are. in
fact. SO determined. If the board
IN Delaware decided tomorrow to
drop the history Of Rome from the
high school courses that study
would be dropped. and that would
probably end the matter. Mrs.
Dawson may see an illustration of
authoritative determination i'm
iron Hill Cecil county has for
many years had common school
system, and it has been conducted
In way to make it one of the
poorest systems OF popular educa-
tion north of Baltimore. There
are no compulsory attendance
laws. the school managers are Sc
lected by politicians and those Sc
lected choose subordinate officials.
There is a general lack Of effici-
ency and large proportion of the
country children are out of school
so much they cannot possibly re
cclve any education worthy the
name. Yet there is no way short
of d political revolution by which
this condition can be remedied
The Republicans have not thought
it best to even declare for that
Tirst essential of good schools. com
pulsory attendance. The Demo-
Gratis do not favor it; no other
party has any power. There is ne
way by which the people can
share in the work of making the
schools OF Cecil county better
schools. Yet Mrs. Dawson desires
better schools; she is as competent
TO share the work Of directing
school activities as any person il
the county. yet she and other com
petent persons. and the mass OF
the people. have nothing whatever
to do with the actual work of Sc
lectlng the courses of study. OF
with school work. No one wh(
has met the people Of Cecil. in
telllgent, progressive and loving
education as the great majority ot
parents do, can doubt that the,
want better schols than they ar,
getting. In Mrs. Dawson Is owl
\ county the best material for schoo
management is neglected, th'
boards authoritatively deter
mine and there seems no way tt
do anything about it as long a
/ the mill owners and other larg,
employers prefer Ignorance fo1