The Alaska citizen., 1916-01-17
MISF!T WORK IN
 THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS

above title. va, read at the meeting of the Woman's Civic club of Fair banks held in the district oour, room. last Friday evening by Miss Margaret Carpenter. one Of the spe- cial teachers employed at the Fair D. lk1 -eHc during the last session, particularly fer the work outlined in this parnr
 The public school has been called tae latgratory Of democracy. and the pupils the raw material The problem before us IS how to utilize all this material to the best advan. tase. that there may bo no vast" and that each child may leave school well equipped for the part he or she k to play in life. When this prob lem is correctly solved there will bo no misfits; but since the mel. leniun has not yet arrived the first thing to consider k
 The Causes that Produce These
 MSttS.
 The chld's physical condition plays larga part in determnina his rank in school. If lie has poor eyesight. or oefective hearing or subject to repeated colds iH rat head naturally, he works at great disadvantage He is not able 10 hold his own and day by day drops farther behind. He may work as hard as the others, yet can not keep up. He grows bewildered and grad ualiy becomes discouraged.
 remember such a case in Cali fcrnia school i boy in the frs. grade was very slow in his work, Tut h. was cheerful and tried harG. CT each day. but to little purpose Finally his teacher talked the mat ter over with the superintendent. Af ter a few simple tests they decided that the child needed t3 see an oe9 list He was taken to one and 1t was found that he had never seen anything clearly. No on" was so surprised as the youngster himself when he got his glasses and found everything distinct and cIearcut. H. had supposed that all children saw as dimly as lie did In a short time he had left the foot of the Glass and was pushing toward the head
 in, school, where some physical defect makes a child one of the poorest in his classes. Sometimes these de fleets can be overcome. When they can not sucE children become per. manent mistits under our present system of education.
 Home influences have much to do with a child's progress in school The home should be back Of the school in every case. The parents should mako it their duty 10 know what the child is expected to do iu his grade. If a mother does net know what grade her child is in, and there are such homes even in Fairbanks, We need not be surprised 10 find that child in the miSfit CloSs. There are things in regard to a child which only the mother knows, and If these are talked over with the teacher when necessary it makes for better understanding between pupil and teacher.
 The relation between the home and the teacher should be one of mutual respect When this is the case, at no time will either criticise the other before the child, but any difference that may arise will be settled directly between parent and teacher. When I first started to school, like all small youngsters, l went home with a great tale of what the teacher did whenever l got into trouble. My mother lis sympathy, but her only comment to me would be, And what did you do that Miss Crum had to treat you so?"
 soon learred that I need not eX- pect any sympathy in my school trCu bles at home. If my mother had reason to believe that had been badly treated she never allowed me 10 know it. l remember once Of worrying over my work and not teing able to get the standing 1 thought l should have. va get ting over an attack of fever and was not physically strong. My mother went quietly to the teacher and they talked things over. After that I found the work easier, and gradually my standing came up to what I wanted it to be, but il was not until I was teacher myself that I knew of that conference in my behalf.
 Home criticism of the school kills all the child's pride in his work. The school does not amount to much, so why should he try to make good marks or lead his class? This is his line of reasoning and I am afraid it would be ours in his place.
 The home should see that the child is kept in fine physical and mental trim for his work by having