Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1912-02-22
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Industrial Education
in Rural Schools.
BY George F. Howard, Mime
sofa Agricultural College.

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The rural schools are the most i'm
portant in the state. Probably 80 pc,
cent OF the men who will take the fore
most places in business and profes.
sional life in the next generation are
today receiving their elementary edu.
cation In the rural schools of this coun.
try; hence the problem of making
these schools the best possible fol-
these men of tomorrow becomes the
greatest and nearest at hand today.
The educational world is coming to
believe in the value of Industrial train.
Ing and education. First, because rs
per cent of the boys and girls in the
United States are to- go out and earn
their living with their hands, and we
are learning that the earlier we begin
to train the hands the more dextrous
they become. Secondly, we are find
ing that industrial work does not him
der the work in books, but rather
AASApo ~ " AA0hS a CAd4I VI d WdSOu
box, an apron or loaf of bread,
causes keener mental activity than
to learn a history lesson; and teach
ers are finding that pupils come back
to their books with better results be-
cause of having done some industrial
work. Because of these results rs per
cent Of our high and graded schools
are now Offering courses in manual
training, home economics or agricul-
ture, and the remaining schools will
add these courses just as rapidly as
competent instructors can be secured.
But what for the boys and girls in
the rural schools? Can they have
none of this training of the hand, none
of the work that connects the school
with the life of the home, the farm,
or the life which they are soon to try
as men and women? Surely these
boys and girls are worth as much to
the world as their city cousins, and
they are as well entitled to some of
this industrial training as the city
trained boys and girls.
What can be done? Consolidate the
small, one-room country school into
larger schools, where the Industrial
work can be taught" you say. Yes,
but that will be years hence. What of
those in school today? All that is
lacking is belief that something
could and should be done. Parents,
teachers and school boards need only
to realize the value of this work and
determine that some of it shall be
done, and the rest is easy. What is
needed is not 50 much scientific Or
technical instruction as lines of work
that will interest the boy. One writer
says Education in any line is to get
the boy where he wants more" and
this can be done in country school
as we'll as in the best graded school
in the land. It all depends on the
teacher.
An industrial club can be organized
In every country school. Have a little
formality about it, electing presi-
dent and secretary and carrying out
all business matters in good parlia-
mentary form. Club meetings should
be held on Friday afternoon after re-
cess. The girls can sew or study bak-
Ing; the boys can study corn or grains,
or they can have q manual training
bench and do some of that work. At
one meeting all can unite in giving a
corn show, to which every boy and
girl shall bring in six ears of corn. Sc
lected from what is raised on the farm
Pupils should Judge the samples and
decide who has the best. Finally, the
ohicers or some good farmer should
pass final Judgment for the benefit of
all. At another meeting potato ex-
hibition could be given; in like man.
ner at another meeting a cake exhibi-
ton; at least twice each year public
exhibition of work done, consisting of
sewing, baking, corn, potatoes or the
products of manual training should be
given. An admission fee of 10 cents
could be charged, the money to be
paid out for premiums; and the house
Will be packed to the doors with in
terested parents.
In the fall, just before the county
fair or industrial exhibition which may
be held in the county, the district
should hold school fair in the school
house, the pupils to bring the exhibits
they are planning to take to the coun-
ty fair, and display them in the school
house. Let the day be made holiday
for the whole district, and let every
body come and spend the day visiting
and inspecting the exhibits. The ladies
may serve lunch at noon. The next
day the entire exhibition may be taken
to the county fair.
There are so many ways in which
work can be done in rural schools,
that will connect the school with life
in the home or on the farm, that not
to do any of it is to unnecessarily
dwarf the opportunities of our chill
dren; and to maintain that it cannot
be done successfully is to confess in
competency or imbecility. It is being