The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1913-02-25
CURRENT TOPICS
BY Margaret CharleswOrth of the
Honesdale High School.


In this progressive age every one
is clamoring for practical education.
Everything must be reduced to a
scientific basis. No longer are the
classical studies the popular curri-
culum for students in our high
schools and colleges. In the Eng
lish course there has always been a
trend toward the practical side as
we'll as the cultural. To merely
study the English classics, as "a
means of culture and refinement is
not what this progressive age is call
ing for. We must have more prac-
tical work also. And in answer to
this call, we, the students of the
Honesdale High school, have taken
up the study of current events in two
of the leading magazines of the day.
When this study of Current Topics
first originated, it was carried on in
a crude way. The English teacher
reviewed one of the leading New
York newspapers and each day as
signed a topic which she considered
of most Importance, to one of the
students, who after reading all he
could find concerning it, would re-
view the topic the next morning be-
fore the high school. This plan, it
seems, however, was not very sue
cessful, as many of the students
were timid when speaking before an
assembly, and as result did not
discuss the topic in a way, beneficial
to their fellow students, and as only
a few did the reading, the benefit
derived was limited to a small num-
Der. Consequently the instructor
30 Il, Of i'm
portance looked up and discussed by
various pupils, in the different Eng
lish classes, one day of the week, in
place of speaking before the entire
school. This plan was continued for
some time, then the subject dropped
into the back ground, more or less
until about four years ago, when a
subscription was made for the out
look" each English student, being
taxed two cents to defray the ex-
pense. Mo record was kept of the
topics read and occasional questions
in the monthly tests was the only
manner of examining the students.
This plan did not prove feasible
either, as some of the pupils did not
read the assigned topics. Things
continued thus for year, when the
subject was revived in a vigorous
manner.
The first step in this renaissance
was subscription to two of the
leading current event magazines of
the day, namely, the Outlook"
formerly subscribed for and the
Review of Reviews" Later this
subscription list was enlarged to
three copies of the "Outlook" in or
der to supply enough magazines for
the convenience of the pupils. At
the beginning of the year each
member of the several classes in
English is solicited for the paltry
sum of five cents in order to pay for
the magazines. This does away with
all added expense to the school
board, and the students do not miss
the nickle which they would prob
ably spend for something far less
beneficial.
After the instructor has carefully
examined the magazines and has
marked with a blue pencil the top
les to be read she places them on
the reaching tables at either side of
the large assembly hall. AS the
"Outlook" is a weekly publication
and the "Review of Reviews" a
monthly magazine there are of
course more of the former than of
the latter to be read. On the whole
we have an average of twenty-five
topics in school month. Each pu-
pill is required to peruse each article
carefully, taking notes as he reads.
Each student has what is known as
a current topic note book and in that
book he writes a synopsis with the
aid of his notes of every topic read.
For the very long articles an outline
is permissible, but this must be
logical and contain all the main
facts of the subject discussed. At
the end of each month these note
books are handed in to the teacher
of English, who credits each pupil
according to the merit of his book.
In addition to this, once a month