The Elk Mountain pilot., 1914-03-26
How Home Study
Wrecks Chiidren's
Minds

ing children study after school hours
should be stopped. The reform
las been put into eject in Chicago
under the direction of the noted
woman Superintendent 70 Education
Mrs. Ella Flagg Young.
Those who advocate this change
argue that efficient teachers should
he able to educate children during
school hours. To make them work
at the end OF the day, when they
need either Sleep or q little recrea-
ton preliminary to sleep, is cruel
and must do injury to their minds
AID bodies. Many doctors have
explained the injury. done to child
rem by study after school. The
comments given here are a notable
expressions of The medical view OF
this matter.
mo more study after school
hours is the news from Chicago,
and it is happy beginning of a
happy New Year" says American
Medicine. IF this is to be the re-
suit of placing woman in charge
Of that city's education, why in the
name Of common sense do we not
I.,., ,,,,,,, a., e,,>nr;ptop Jnnt
everywhere? At the same time, we
must confess that the worst Offend
crs in ovcrtaxing little tots with
home work are the women teach
ers in the lower grades. We have
been calling attention SO often and
so long to the harm done by home
work that we were beginging to des-
pair Of reforming the -pedagogs.
Now that the breezy West has again
taken the lead OF the effete East, it
is time TO refer to the subject again,
injanother effort To end the really
frightfu! system in vogue.
Toward the end Of 4 day the
normal child is in condition of
physiological exhaustion. If we
could examine its brain cells mic
roxcopically we would find them go
changed as to be unable to take up
strains. 1t is a well known fac,
that in snch condition any effort
to learn is either impossible or ac-
complished ut an undue expense OF
energy, resulting in pathological cx
haustion which sleep does not re-
lieve. The child becomes neuras-
thcntic in time, unless it neglects
its work and is called Il bad scholar.
The early evening is story.time
for the very reason that children
are then so tired that restful posi-
ton and a fairy tale are about as
near to heavenly bliss as any one
will ever reach in this world. How
unspeakably cruel and unwomanly
to deprive t!:e tots OF this neces
sary pleasure! If more teachers
were mothers they would not be
so ignorant of the needs of thcse
mere babies. 1t can also be stated
as an axiom that the immature
brain cannot be trained or stuffed
more than three or four hours n
day. Mrs. Young, of Chicago, who
is instituting the new system, says
that when a pupil leaves school
for the day his work will be COM
pleted, just as when q man leaves
his shop or his Office his work is
done
"She deserves a niche in the
Temple of Fame. She will save the
health of millions of little ones now
ground down to the verge OF exhaus-
ton or below it. May heaven bless
her, and may we soon see the day
when children never carry home
school books. After twelve or thir-
teen years of age the matter Is dif-
ferent, and in high school home
work is essential. Ii our school
boards will not reform, we can easily
elect new ones with more sense.
7 Moreover, teachers must realize that
4 ii is proof Of incompetence to frlt-
ter away the school hours and then
oxpcct the parents to do the teach