The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-04-02
Miss Mallonee Objects
to Frills in Primary
Grades.
HOLDS HER OWN
WHILE ON STAND
Lone Witness at Investigation
Points Out Some Changes
Which She Regards as Benc-
tieial-No Friction Shown
at Second Public
Session.

! Urging Hchcduie OF education In
I inc primary grades. which VIII form a
/ tirm Foundation for after life. with the
omission OF all decorations or non
essentials. Miss Elva ]. aiulIonee. Of
| 2ioi Grove Avenue. Il ,cschci I'm tho
! second year primary grades at Jehar-
/ son Public School. Nineteenth and Mar.
/ shall streets. occupied thu witness
! etand before the Special Committee on
1 Investigation OF Shc Public Schools
( for more than two hours Yesterday ar
/ tcrnoon. holding her own with woudar.
J iui clearn:ss during q cross-examiua-
ton both hy Assistant City Attorney
Anderson and by Superintendent OF
Schools j. a. c. Chandler. Miss NAL
! lonee was ono of the organizers of Tho
! Elementary Teachers Association. and
| IS Chairman OF the committee to nrc.
| sent the views OF that body on IN.
methods OF conducting the schools 10
| the special committee. The meeting
| was marked by an entire absence OF TN.
| friction which was noticea BILE at ths
| iirst session, nor was there any mn.
due attempt 10 confuse the witness
| who gave her views in clear and con.
nect.d manner.
Presents Written Statement
= written report from Miss Malone
to the department outlining her views
on changes in the course form I'd the
basis OF tho examination. she stated
that she had been a teucheg FOR six
years. that her criticisms were her own.
! and not official, though approved By
many primary teachers. and applied
only 10 the second year If a. grade.
she explained that the FIRST four Years
of school lifc made up the primary
department., tho next three making
thu grammar grades: those seven years
preparatory to the high school being
grouped Is the elementary grades, ana
the white teachers Of those grades are
members OF ths recently formed as
CESSATION which successfully fought
through the Council the contest FOR
saiary ircreese securing for them
selves all that was allotted 70, in
crcasinG the pay OF teachers through
out the entire school system this year.
Makes Pupils Disguised.
In her written statement Miss Nal
Ioncc held that the curriculum In her
grade was too heavy. and tended 10
make tic pupil disgust ID with school
opportunity, that too much time wa
spent In noncssentials, wasting time
and energy. Less than 10 per cent. OF
the pupils entering the primary grades
ever reach the high school. and she
held that the frills had best be omit
ted and all efforts concentrated on tn
main points OF education, which would
1T the pupils 10 make their Way in AZ
ter life. She called attention to the
frequent complaint oil business III IN
tina public school boys cannot write.
spell or figure accurately, and asserted
that the course tended 10 give a sInat-
ter!ns of many subjects with thorough
ness in mona; that from IS TO % per
cent. ct the time was spent IN nones-
sentials; that the spelling course was
too difficult. being made up OF words
not commonly used, and that the arIth-
metic and language classes ware d.
vided into groups. so that the teacher
could give but one-haif or one third
OF the time allotted TO each group.
In answer 10 Colonel Anderson she
! stated that the arithmetic was too
advanced and too discoursivc. holding
that primary children shouId be
multiply, and such matters as frac-
lions and decimals be left to the
| grammar grades. where with
/ thorough grounding. there might he
more thoroughly taught.
Would Cut Ont Nonessentials.
Asked to outline what she meant
by nonessentlala, Miss Mallonee
specified manual trainins, drawing.
physical culture and music, as thing
| that child would not need in the
| business world. Colonel Anderson
stated that the State code required
! the teaching of drawing. so that that
subject might be eliminated from the
! inquiry. In answer to questions. Miss
! Mallonee said that in her grade, forty
minutes A week was given TO draw
ing; forty minutes week to manual
| training ten minutes day or fifty
minutes a week. to physical culture;
and seventytivc minutes a week to
music. Eliminated drawing, w.,ich
seems to be required by statute. this
! gives 65 minutes Week, or thirty
| three minutes per day. devoted to
what Miss Mallonee described as the
| "nonesscntials studies The children
! in her grade, she stated. avcra & ed
/ eight years old, and were not capable
| OF painting flowers, birds aud similar
subjects required in the drawing
| course
Present Daily Schedule.
Answering further questions Miss
Mallonee said that the present pre-
scrlbed schedule in her grade gave
one hour and five minutes daily to
: reading, forty-fvc minutes daily 10
arithmetic, thirtyhvo minutes daily
10 history, nature study or geography,
/ alternating: and fifteen minutes a day
to spelling
Penmanship. she asserted, was
! supervised. but once a week for
twenty minutes. but the children
| write daily from copy. but without
supervision or special instruction.
Thirty-1ve minutes each day Is
given to sentence writing, which was
calculated to teach spelling and
writing, but the witness thought this
practice should DO omitted. as the
| teacher has no time to correct the
papers, and class work would be more
effective. Under the group system
she stated she could give tho groun