The Pioche record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1908-1925, 1914-04-18
Governor Oddie Sees Bright Future for State

to be doing good work. l may say
/ that the state board of education and
| the entire department of education
are heartily in favor of extending the
system of county normal schools In
order that our state may encourage
larger numbers of our own boys and
girls to enter the profession OF teacn-
/ ing. Why not have more Nevada teach
ers who are trained for the work?
The highest educational authorities
| in our country today not only admit
the need of industrial and vocational
education in our public schools, and in
the high schools especially, but they
strongly advocate it. Doctor Pritch-
Ell of the Carnegie foundation ably
ably voices this sentiment in connec-
ton with high school education in the
following statement: The high
school should in real sense reflect
the major industries of the commu-
nifty which supports it, AS the local
educational institution, the high school
should reveal to boys and girls thu
higher possibilities of more efficient
service along the lines in which their
own community is industrially organ
lied"
The department of education in this
state for four years or more now has
steadily pursued policy of placing in
the schools of Nevada practical rev.
lures of work that will put them in
touch with the industrial, commercial
and agricultural needs and progress of
the times. To this end the writer has
uniformly advocated in all his address
es before schools, school boards and
teachers, and through the columns of
the Nevada School Journal, the intro
duction of manual training and domes-
tic science in all the town schools,
and first-class commercial and agn-
cultural courses in the high schools,
in addition to manual,anG domestic
arts. The elementary course on
study enjoins upon all teachers the
duty of co-ordinating school work as
far as possible with work and indus
try of the community in which a given
school is located
The last Legislature passed a law,
favored by the department of educa-
ton, authorizing the state board of
education to make these subjects re-
quired features of the pubic scnool
courses of study; and this law spec
tally provides that business forms
and elementary bookkeeping or some
features of industrial work" shall be
taught in the seventh and eighth
grades. In the five District Teacher,
Institutes held in our state in the las
three months, the matter or eIemeh
tary bookkeeping for these grades
was taken up and thoroughly dis
cussed by competent men and women
with view to getting our teachers
prepared to take up this interesting
and instructive work in September
1914. To this advantage some elm
ination of unimportant matter in
arithmetic, history and geograph,
will doubtless be made by the state
board of education in planning fol
the new work. as a readjustment 0
the course of study will be necessary
1t may be interesting to your read
ers to learn that prior to September
1910, not high school or elementary
school in Nevada had regular work
in and equipment for a commercial,
course, manual training course, q
domestic science course or a course
in agriculture. Between that date and
September l, 1913. Reno, Elko, Gold
field, Wells, Inlay, Tonopah and Yer
ington had introduced one or more oil
these practical phases of school work
Since September 1, 1913, the list oil
progressive schools has been largely
increased: Las Vegas has started
full commercial work in the high
school,; Panaca, Dayton, Lovelock
Fallon and Yerington high school:
have introduced full commercial
courses. In the latter school, the com
mercial work has superseded thu
work in agriculture carried on there
last year. In the Carson city schools
manual training and domestic scienc,
have been started in the grades, ant
a full commercial course is in prog
ress in the high school, Tonopah ha,
put in full courses in manual train
ing and domestic science.
Fifty or more of the rural school,
have taken up some form of industrial
art this year, thus largely increasing
the interest of the pupils and the eff
ficiency of their work.