The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1914-11-13
SCHOOL BOOKS
GIVEN SCORING
BY A CRITIC
KohaIa Correspondent Finds
Fault With Golden Trea-
sure Reader


sue contains communication from a
correspondent discussing the shortage
Of school text books in the store and
eriticising some Of the books in use.
The Golden Treasure Reader in parti.
cular comes in for a scoring. Follow
ing is the communication:
In several Of our Island papers
there are complaints about the shortage
of school text books in the bookstores
which have been supplied by the Amer
lean Book Company Cor rather, not
snpplied).
lit is about time that those who are
interested in education should be get,
ting together TO devise some way, even
five have to print them here, in which
we may have school readers suited 20
the reading Of children in Hawaii
should Picture Home Life
'tThe readers should picture the home
life Of the Islands, its Industrial life,
etc. There should be poems about our
scenery; nature-stndy lessons about
taro, sugar and other Island products,
with simple Bible stories.
The Golden Treasure Reader Is all
right for the mainland How intelli-
gently can our children read about the
woodpecker, buckwheat, Jack Frost, y
etcf they may take in these references
mechanically, after laborious explana-
tion, because they are a part Of the
lesson, but month hence there is a
blank look on their faces when these
foreign subjects come up, because they
have not really understood, having no
criteria by which to form conceptions
Of such things.
a. How much better TO have reading
lessons about the mongoose, istead Of
the squirrel Instead of the maple
leaves, show them the breadfruit
leaves and fruit In pace Of fairy
tales, give them lessons on such great
men and women as Lincoln, Wilson,
Queen Victoria, Queen Liliuokalani,
etc. M
Practical Spelling
q For spelling, instead Of words die
tated from the Champion Speller, many
OF which they will never have occasion
TO use in correspondence here, why not
dictate words that will occur in their
everyday usel How many people can
spell correctly our own Hawaiian
geographical namesi The spelling les
lon would better include the unfamiliar
words Of the geography lesson for the
day. II the geography lesson is on the
physical features of South America,
teach the children to spell South Amer
lean names Teach them, also, to spell
arithmetieal terms; 'divisor, subtra-
bend, numerator, etc.; not committee,
inspector, neutrality, graduated
tThe children have been ordered to
buy SO many different books that some
Of them could not learn the names of
the books they have bought Just be-
cause they were compelled TO change so
often. ak'asl
Too Many Text Books
"Then, there are too many text.
books. A geography, arithmetic, pen
manship, physiology, with notebooks, a
pen, pencil, compass and ruler are all
that child needs. Think of the dis
tahces that some Of these children have
TO walk TO school, with lunch bag and
a bundle Of books that become a burden
for these small childrenl Count up the
rainy days, mud!
'Teach children the arithmetic that
will be of use to them in their every
day lives, after they leave public
school, and not the things that will
1T them for college-square root, the
metric system. What they need is
simple examples in the four operations,
with bills, percentage cash accounts
forms Of receipts and practical things
1T is not many nor new books that
are going to improve our schools, but
the spirit of practical utility in teach.
ing; adaptableness to the conditions
under which these school children will
have 10 live after they leave school. Z"
Appended to the communication is a
criticism by the editor of the Midget
in which II is urged that the present
text books used impose too heavy a
hardship upon the parents who now
find il difficult TO provide even the
meager necessities for their children
+. The facts in the ease are that the board
Of education recently, adopted new
course Of study, eliminating many
books, and cutting down the number
Of many that are being used. The
result is that an estimated saving of
ten Thousand dollars per year has been
affected for the parents Of the children
attending the public schools of Ha-
wall. -.
Agrees with Criticism " .>
81 agree with the criticism of the
Golden Treasure Reader, said Super
intendent Kinney yesterday, "but il is
di1icult matter 10 make a sweeping
change in the books used in the schools.
The Baldwin reader, which was in use
in our schools until several years ago,
IN my opinion is much better suited to
our schools than the present reader.
1.-The delay in the delivery of books
is an incident we could not foresee. In
the course Of study adopted recently
everything possible was done to inn