The Detroit times., 1915-03-15
Flabby Education.

AIt OuI OOhttt oteN'.eo ~ ~--s
spoon feeders II modern educa
ton lacking In vision ana psrsoec
tive. These questions are beinl
asked by two kinds Of persons
the men trained In the old schoo
and the college presidents. And IN
answering them the college presi
dents assume the defensive. This
is the only country In the worlt
where a college education Is consid
cred handicap In business" saiC
President Lowell. Of Harvard. re
Gently. II Is TO be wondered whos'
fault this is. Perhaps IL is because
our idea OF a college has undergone
some change. The tendency In re
cent years has been to look upor
life as n job and college as prepare
ton for a Job. what happens q
the man when his days work Ia ovei
is secondary consideration. Bn'
in former years Il was the primar,
consideration.
A writer In the Unpopular Review
laments this radical tendency In nj
article entitled The Passing OF th'
Educated Man" He sees n genera
ton whose nner qualities have beer
sacrificed TO the exigencies OF ar
age. OF commercialism. They arc
specialists---keen. hard working. On
thusiastic men. They direct larg,
enterprises with courage and fore
sight. They make money and spene
Il. But the test comes when theI
seek amusement and recreation
When they hear a famous singer Of
see celebrated dancer they anus,
themselves by calculating the per
formers gross yearly income based
on the weekly salary. They arr
spoken OF as tired business men. and
since they pay the bill. IL Is the
business OF artists TO give then
what they AJAX for.
II Is contended that In yielding 70
the vocational spirit OF modern edu
cation the college has weakened
both itself and vocational education
Both are necessary. but they are
different. 10Th have a function. but
II II not the same. The college
should attempt 10 train mind by
teaching Il TO extract a full measure
OF intellectual pleasure from life;
while the vocational school should
be kept to it's avowed purpose oi
training minds by teaching them Il
make a living. In attempting To &C
complish both the system has be
come fabby. The colleges have
asked the students what is good FOL
them, and they have given II tc
them. n tho young man would IA
ther white stick than study
Greek. he II put to whiting n stick
and when he has learned. not neces
sarily how to white II. but how .,
should be whitfield. he receives the
degree bachelor OF stick whittlins
and II pronounced an educated man
The colleges have made a poor
case for themselves. however. by
lowering their entrance requirements
TO meet the army OF young men sent
to them annually from vocational
schools. II Is maintained, In the I'm
popular Review article. that no col
lege is big enough to refuse stu
dents In great numbers. but that this
II merely an admission Of weakness
In the colleges. The need seems 70
he for parallel systems clearly de
fined. And the initiative rests large
ly with the colleges. They are be
ing pressed from below by the ex
tension OF school courses. and from
above by the professional schools
seeking TO reduce the average age
OF the members OF their enterins
classes. II Is believed by many
however. that the present dilemma
Is the result OF a natural transition
and that In time the colleges vii
realize their perils 80 wildly that
their traditional ideals will reasseri
themselves In new era OF educa
tional classification.