Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-11-30
YEARS RESULT OF
VOCATION CLASSES
L. S. carris, in Comprehensive
Report, Shows Value of In
dustriaI Training.
STATE PAID HALF THE
EXPENSE OF $40, 900
Assistant Commissioner of Ed
ucation Says We Need More
Skilled Instructors.
Special to the Evening Star.

Special TO the Evening Star
TRENTON, Nov. 30.-The sum of
so4ooOO was spent during the school
year OF 19l3-l914 to provide vocational
ana manual training for 250,000 chel-
dren IN New Jersey, according to the
annual report of Assistant Commits
sloner Of Education Lewis S. Carris,
submitted today to DR.. Calvin N.
kendall, State Commissioner of Edu-
cation. Mr.. Carris has charge of the
industrial education, including agri-
culture. His report is q very COM
prehensive one and shows that in adj
dition to the number of children who
benefited from the $685. 900 there were
a number of adults who profited from
the vocational night school training.
Of the total sum expended for this
phase of New Jerseys educational
system $50, 600 was appropriated by
the State to aid vocational schools,
$4,000 for manual training and the
other S270,000 was contributed by the
school districts that benefited by the
States aid, it being necessary for each
district in order to receive this aid
for either vocational or manual train
ing to provide a sum equal to that
asked from the State. The amounts
given by the State have ranged from
$3.50 for small districts to $1,000 for the
larger ones.
Assistant Commissioner Carris's re-
port is up the two State aid funds,
the vocational and the manual train
ing, and tells of the accomplishments
of the first year of actual operation
of the vocational schools established
under the operation of the law of
1913. Mr.. Carris points out that the
Inauguration of the vocational school
idea has met with marked success
IN the counties of Atlantic and Mid
dleseX. He calls attention to the
Smith Hughes bill, pending in Con-
gress, which provides Federal aid for
vocational schools, and urges that
New jerseys vocational school law
be so amended as to permit this
State sharing in the national govern
ment's aid under this bill when it be-
comes law. The report shows that
six ciies of the State, through their
schools and departments, established
or conformed to the vocational train
= ing law during the year.
Thirty more school districts were
added to the number having manual
training, making a total of 1923. The
assistant commissioner recites sew
eral instances of manual training
work outside of the regular instruc-
ton and in the nature of expert
ments which he commends. His re-
port says that New Jersey has a
problem before her in the prepara-
lion of more teachers in industrial
and vocational education. Statistics
in the report show that during the
year woodwork was the most popu-
Tar form of manual training engaged
in by the boys, with mechanical
drawing second. There were 1925
youths who studied the former and
1929 the latter. With the girls, sew
ing took first rank, "A 1893 engaging in
this work, and 1856 practiced the
culinary art. 1t is interesting to note
that COS boys are listed as having
taken sewing instruction and a
dozen more took cooking. Girls to
the number of $50 took up printing.
There are no boys reported as having
studied millinery.
= The cities in which the vocational
training began to operate under the
State law during the year, accord
ing to the report submitted today,
are Atlantic City, Bayonne, Passaic,
Paterson, Newark and Jersey City
The statistics show that 524 boys and
144 girls attended all-day schools or
departments; 2,213 men attended eve
ming vocational classes; 1,164 women
attended evening classes in house,
hold arts, and 1913 women attended
evening classes in trades, making a
by the State-aided vocational schools
last year. This Mr.. Carris con-
siders an indication that there is a
great demand for this kind of train
ing.
Want Experienced Instructors.
Experience in teachers is what is
desired in this work, the assistant
commissioner says. 1.-THE depart
ment wishes to emphasize the de-
STABILITY of employing, wherever pos
sible, teachers who have had practi-
Acal experience. 1t is generally pos
sible to find women employed as
dressmakers and seamstresses during
the day who are competent and will
ing to teach their trade in evening
classes of household arts. Experience
in running q lunch room, tea room,
catering, or actual and continued ex-
perience in cooking under home con-
ditions for a large family, are most
desirable as a part of the experience
of a teacher of household arts cook
ing" says the report.
Mr.. Carris commends the Trenton
School of Industrial Arts, Newark
Technical School and Hoboken In
dustrial School, organized under the
special industrial school laws, which,
although some of their classes cam
not be legally classed as vocational
are uclplIlE To solve 6le pTODlenl Oh
providing a vocational education to
large number of young people,
$50 far as I can learn says Mr..
sCarris, speaking of the county voca-
tional school plan. this is the first
experiment of the kind in the field
Of vocational education The his
tory of the establishment of the two
vocational school board, those in
Atlantic and Liddlesex counties. is
recited in the report. Atlantic coun-
tvs board has recommended the rails
ing of $4,000 by taxation for voca-
tional education in that county, and
like amount is to be asked from
the State, giving the board the sum
of $4,000 with which to begin work.
An suspicious program has been out
lined and a director and four young
men trained in agricultural pursuits
have been named to assist him. One
OF the features of the program
mapped out in Atlantic is the estab-