Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1912-03-06
MODERN LANGUAGES IN OUR
PUBLIC SCHOOLS
BY Prof. J. N. Lenker, d. d.
LATEST ABOUT SCANDINAVIAN
IN MINNEAPOLIS HIGH
SCHOOLS.

OO11OOAC. ....t +.
South high school: fall term, 1910,
Morse had 80 pupils; Swedish %.
Spring term, 1911, Morse So, Swed-
ish Is. Fall term, 1911, Morse 81;
Swedish 40. Spring term, 1912, Morse
81; Swedish 80 pupils. East high
school: Fall term, 1910, Morse class
IS; Fall, 1911, new class of -;
Swedish, fall term, 1910, a class Of
%; fall term, 1911, a new class Of
%. Spring, 1912, new class of
%. About 40 per cent of the pupils
in this school are Scandinavian. To-
tai here at present taking Norwegian
16 and Swedish 81. C ntral high
school organized class Of Is in
Swedish the first year and a second
class was organized later. The
spring term Of 1912 witnessed the
first Norwegian class organized in
the Central high school with % pu-
pills, ten Of whom are Americans, and
the first class in Scandinavian Or
ganized in the North high school with
Is Swedish pupils, one Of whom is a
postgraduate Of the school, who
takes only Swedish. Scandinavian is
now taught in four Of the fiv' high
schools Of the city. Nine Norweg-
ian pupils in the West high school
hope to see Morse introduced there
next September. In all there are II
Scandinavian classes, in the Mime
apolis high schools with 900 pupils.
This is good beginning within less
than two years. The work is we'll
established and teachers are able and
faithful in their pioneer efforts,
which also are pioneer efforts of the
school board. The work is new to
both teachers and school authorities
and yet the outlook is inspiring.
SMALL COST OF TEACHING MOD
ERN LANGUAGES IN ELE-
MENTARY SCHOOLS.
We little appreciate the small ex-
pense Of carrying a class in modern
language in graded or country
school. It is easily calculated. Fol
>xamp]e, grade city teacher re-
'ceives $500 a year for eight long and
short periods a dav, which means
500 expense to maintain a class say
| OF E5 in ScQn6iro I,ior
whole school year, or $500 a pupil an.
nually If the average salary Of 8
country district school teacher is $500
year for ten periods day, class say
Of 20 for the whole school year would
cost the district only $50, or $500 a pu-
pill annually. This is not asking much
from each school district With the
help the pupil receives from his Ger.
man or Scandinavian home and settle.
ment, the results Of teaching German
or Scandinavian in the country schools
are great and introduce a nobler spirit
in the schools and materially help the
children to respect both teachers and
parents. thus improving the discipline
| OF the home and the school. The re-
suits of teaching the language of the
| settlement in the district school are
| so healthy and far-reaching that NO
school can afford to neglect it. If we
want the best results from our schools
we should better teach English, the Ian
guage OF the nation, and not ignore OF
neglect the language of the homes of
the settlement.
FEW PERSONAL TESTIMONIES
FROM CITY EDUCATORS.
| Not only has Danish-Norwegian been
recently introduced into two high schools
of Chicago and Swedish into two, but
another advance step in modern langu-
age work was taken at late meeting
of the Chicago Board of Education by
electing special supervisor Of German
for the city schools. The honor Of be-
Ing the first to fill this new Office fell
to Mr.. Martin Schmidhofer, Tribune
Building, Chicago. No modern language
can make great progress in city schools
without a director or supervisor.
wise move, good testimony.
Mr.. E. o. Holland, Supt of Public
! Schools in Louisville, KY, writes: 1--WE
are establishing in this city depart
mental schools including the seventh
and eighth grades and in these schools
we offer Latin and German to the pu-
| pills who are able to carry additional
work. Those who do best in these Ian
guages receive some credit when they
enter the high school. Our last yearly
report does not discuss this question at
all and therefore, give you these facts
directly"
1t is easy for German and Scandin-
avian children to carry their mother
tongue In school as additional work and
receive credit for. it, to balance the bet