Norwich bulletin., 1915-05-01

make his acres yield better and larger crops.
 Practical instruction.
 If there Is to be any practical value In the teaching of agriculture 1t must come from imparting practical working knowledge of the art Of agri- culture along with the science.
 We cannot escape the duties thus thrust upon us and we must accom- modate our teaching to the changed conditions. So far, as has been said, we have done this by increasing the without cutting out what used to be the requirements of the school course.
 Along the line of school work be- yond the grammar grades great changes have taken place In recent years. The high schools have been sidering the fact that high school teachers are seldom trained and have as guides for their work the remem- brance of methods in use during their own school days, alone. Commercial training Is becoming more and more a feature of our modern high school and less attention is given to distinct training for college entrance.
 And now we return to the problem which more directly affects the ma jority of this audience. the relation of the public schools of lower grade than the high school to the life of our times. We are clinging to ideas of education which were reflections of the times when they were adopted, but times have changed and our schools do not at all adequately rep resent the ideas of the present time.
 High School Admission.
 MT. Clough proposed the following scheme, which should be sufficient for admission to high schools as it is req sonable for the grades to accomplish;
 First-The ability to write a good letter and to write accurately such business forms as are necessary for all of us to know, and this includes the ordinary business letter.
 Second-An ability to perform the metic, with whole numbers, fractions and decimals. and to state and solve problems such as are likely to be met with in ordinary life. This includes knowledge of percentage and denom- mate numbers.
 Third-A knowledge of our history which shall make pupils fairly intel ligent critics of events which occur from day to day and are chronicled in the papers.
 Fourth-A knowledge of our meth ods of government, national. state and  ligent voters.
 Fifth-An ability to write a clear and distinct hand
 Sixth-An ability to speak with clearness on subject known to the speaker.
 Seventh-An ability to fix places and products read about in their rela ton to the maps.
 Eighth-A knowledge of the simple and valuable facts of hygiene which will lead to correct living. Ninth-Some appreciation of what Is worth while in pictures music and literature. This is for the leisure part of life and for pleasure.
 Tenth-An appreciation of the diff ference between right and wrong ac- tion. This is the crowning accom- plishment of school as of every well rounded and worthy life.
 In his closing words, MT Clough said: T do not underestimate the high calling we profess, nor do I fear lest we will not measure up to the need which is laid upon us. The crown is at the top and to reach it we must struggle and win, to the top. Let us subject our work to the acid test of usefulness at each step and we shall not work in vain."
 Charles F. Towne.
 The last speaker was. Charles F. Towne, assistant superintendent of schools, Providence, R. I. He spoke very interestingly on Social Coopera- | tion in Education. MT. Towne said that in the social life there is a group of forces that are regulated as the material forces and which can be con- trolled. Our problem is not only to | give instruction to the child, but we are also expected to make of them strong men and women from the moral | standpoint, that they may not be only useful citizens. but good citizens as | well. We have learned much about l cooperation. We know that group of people is able to accomplish much more than individuals working alone. Thus there comes to all of us an ap- preciation of cooperation.
 One of the first of our duties is to | instruct the community. The school l is not a thing by itself; you as rep resentatives of schools are a part of the community. The point is, you must become vital part of the coni- munity. You must gain the coopera- tion of all those with whom you work. The time has come where we are | to recognize a new definition of edu- cation. Education may be defined as | every purposeful human influence brought to bear on the younger ele- ment.
 Home, Church and School. | The educational forces which exist l III every are SOHQSWndL varied. We have of course the three recognized forces, the home, church and school. Outside of these three forces we have group of unorganized 1 forces which fill the time of the child between times. Under the head of organized forces we may place the playground, industry, clubs, associa- | tions and amusements. All of these I have their good points, but they also
 have their evil influences. These evil influences cannot be fought single handed. They are problems for the
 community and for the teachers and parents as well as all interested in the welfare of the child. These evil in | fiuences result in lower ideals. | The best place for moral instruction is, so far as the school is concerned, at the point when cases of discipline arise. The home often seems to be losing it's grip but the school seems to be progressing. The school, then
 is the ideal of our democracy. It rec