Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-11-06

be honestly answered if we are to in
sist upon good methods In placng-ou
work.
'The test suggested by=the word 'edu
| cation which is the last of which W,
shall have time to speak. demands {
much fuller treatment than can be gfver
| at this time Some of the items to bt
| considered would be the following:
1.-The age and experience of the teaer
er in whose school room the foster chilt
| is to be placed.
1.-THE number of scholars and the mum
| Der Of grades taught in a single room
1.-The influence of backward and feeble
minded pupils in an ungraded scnool.
"The material equipment of schools.
1.-THE position and condition of out
| buildings.
| '"rhe actual results Of mixing coun-
try children and city children in the
| same school ROOM
'"rhe school barge.
"The unsupervised children who eat
| their lunches at the noon hour in thu
| school room.
| protection and lack of il on the broad
| highway
Medical examination of pupils.
"Co-operation between teachers and
| foster parents.
1.-The atmosphere of the home inciud-
| ing reading matter and inspiration to-
ward better educational ideals,
Following the address of Or. knight.
Rev. Mr.. Plant introduced Rev. Hen
~ Blanchard, d. D., of Portland,
chairman OF the Maine Child Labor
committee who introduced Hon. Pay
son Smith, State superintendent of
schools, who spoke as follows;
State Superintendent Smith.
In discussing the tcpic Child Labor
and Industrial Education" State
Superintendent Payson Smith spoke in
part as follows:
1T is not enough that we should
take merely negative stand i'll the
matter of child labor. Only "A part of
the social obligation has been per-
formed when children are excluded
from mills, factories and other forms
of gainful oeeupa ion. We heed to
understand that child labor in the
modern sense is the result of changed
social and industrial conditions and is
not due to any Fundamental change
in the attitude of employers or par
ents. Before we had the factory sys-
TEN our population was scattered and
the Industries We're home occupations.
The young people, as well as their
parents, assisted in the conduct of
these industries and they did so not
ItaIN h n-fa1 tn a
in most cases probably with positive
benefit. The apprentice system, while
it had its defects, no doubt resulted
more often than otherwise in a genu
inely personal relationship between
the parties to the contract.
Parents then rs now were accus-
toned to receive the benefit Of the
labor of older children. At the pres
ent time for example no one would
argue that the farm boy is a loser by
a judiciously arranged participation in
the activities of the farm.
Boys and girls in the teens so far
from being denied absolutely all OPP
portunity to work should, have for
their best development some chance
for employment. The State now says.
anu ilSIbis, liiee tItt A-t1tohA - ot'ti
provides no proper place for the en-
ployment of boys and girls and for
bids absolutely such employment. The
question, however. cannot .be left here.
| The State must. now ask what is be-
| ing done for the proper employment of
these children and what provision is
being made for their right education.
1t seems to have been established be-
yend any reasonable doubt both in the
experience of men as well as in the
theory of education that atchild's edu-
cation must not be concerned solely
with intellectual exercises No sue
cessful scheme of education has ever
been of that exclusive kind. Twenty
five or thirty years ago the boekish
curriculum of the school was well
supplemented with those activities of
the home which have now been trans
ferred to the factory.
An analysis of the educational stu
alton in a number of our manufactur-
ing centers would at the present time
show that many children thirteen,
fourteen and fifteen years of age live
in homes where there is no opportun-
ity for useful occupation, are excluded
from industries and are given little or
no opportunity in their schools to pur-
sue courses of the so-called practical
kind. | have no defense to offer for
the employment OF children in mills
and factories. Society has taken the
correct attitude in adopting the legis-
lation Of recent years. 1t would be n
serious and far reaching mistake,
however, to rest at this point and not
to provide proper facilities for the
education of these boys and girls in
the practical arts
Neither are our schools doing
enough in this direction when they
provide for two or three hours a week
in manual training to all boys Of
thirteen, fourteen and fifteen years of
age. Nor will manual training that
has solely a cultural aim be suf-
ficient. These boys have some nat
ural rights in the matter of their edu-
cation. These rights We're formerly
provided by the natural social or
ganization. and later they were less
u