Durant weekly news. (Durant, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 190?-1944, 1914-07-31

at the colleges, practical short course
in agriculture and home management
specially adapted to their districts
These courses which will contain fif
teen to twenty lectures and will con
sumo five or more weeks, can be ar
ranged to suit the spare time and
convenience of each group of people.
The courses to be offered at first
are poultry raising, fruit growing. soil
cheese manufacturing. dairying. but
ter making, and farm bookkeeping:
and for the women especially are
courses in the preparation and cook
ing and the use of vegetables and ce-
real foods.
The department will supply lecture
and lantern slides covering these sub
jects and the States which have con
sented to cooperate with the plan
will lend to each group laboratory
and cooking apparatus valued at $500
and a reference library.
The textbooks and lectures will be-
so complete that each group can safe
ly appoint one of its members as a,
study leader to direct the work of
the course.
When a group decides to take up
the work. the State which cooperatesl
sends an agent with the Departments
representative to organize the class
and assist the leader whom they elect
in laying out the work and showing
him the best methods Of procedure,
The classes are commonly held from
/ 500 to 1900 in the morning and
from 100 to 400 in the afternoon,
two or three days each week. The
sessions are not held every day sol
that the members will have time to
attend to their farm duties in be-
tween the sessions, as well as before
and after the instruction period. The
classes meet commonly at the most
convenient farmhouse. During the
morning hours, textbooks work Isl
done. In the afternoon laboratory
work is conducted, and the wmen
who have elected to take advantage
of the domestic science course have
practical lessons in cooking.
AS soon as a class is organized the
state organizer withdraws to start a
class in some other district. The
work is thereafter left in charge Of
the leader. who receives the assist
ance by mail from the college or de-
partment in carrying on the work.
AS there is no regularly paid in
structor. classes can be carried on ALL
over the State as rapidly as the col
lege organizer can visit the groups,
and as quickly as the laboratory sets
can be supplied by the colleges. The
local leader will preside during the
reading of the lectures and the refer
ence, for which full texts and lantern
slides are supplied by the Depart
ment. He will also be responsible
for the laboratory equipment Eevry
one who completes the course will
receive certificate from the State
College.
| OF all of the States have yet agreed
TO cooperate in this plan. Last win
ter experiments along these lines
were successfully carried out In Penn
sylvania. and this has stimulated an
interest in the method in other state
In one of tn pennsylvania classes
more men applied than could be ac-
commodated and all of the twenty
men and fifteen women who began
the course completed It. Pennsyl
vania is now arranging for more OF
these classes while Massachusetts,
Michigan, Vermont and Florida ex-
pect TO take IN the work Other
states such as Maine, New York. New
Jersey. and Delaware have signified a
Willingness 70 cooperate.
Ordinarily colleges in the state
usually apply to the Department seek
ing its cooperation. when sufficien
interest has been shown in the plar
in several counties or communities
where ten or more people have
sought the instruction. For financial
reasons certain colleges are not Sc
able to engage in the work as az
others.
The advantage claimed for the new
home course with local leaders and
Laboratory equipment over the ordin
ary correspondence course is thai
only small per cent of those whc
take the individual correspondent,
course will finish it.
Studying in group with laborate
ry work and a leader seem to stimu
: late the interest and adds to the so
cial features which lead the member,
of the group to follow the work con
scientiously and complete it.
Experiments with free correspond
ence courses show that while many II
dividuals gain advantage from them
many others, because the material il
furnished free. do not feel the same
obligation to complete them as the.
z do when they pay a substantial sun
of money for the instruction.
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