The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-10-07
One Sixth of
England's School
Children Incapable
Of An Education
(By Associated Press.)

!. London, Oct. THE surprising
revelation that at least one sixth O
England's six million school children
are $50 physically or mentally defec
tive or diseased as to be incapable o.
deriving reasonable benefit from the
Education which the State provides
is made in report just issued by the
chief medical officer of the Board OF
Education.
The report has aroused great in.
terest and has come as shock to the
public generally. The Manchester
Guardian says that the report
Should awaken fears as to the ma
TONS future as sharply as would
news of disastrous defeat of our
arms" 1t makes the point that the
Ewaste referred to is preventable and
that while it is being lessened by
better housing, better labor condi-
tions and purer and cheaper food, to-
gether with ampler medical facilities
and sounder ideas in education and
hygiene, that "the nation moves with
incredible slowness."
Sir George Newman, the chief
medical officer, at the conclusion of
his report, indicates that complete
scheme is now practically ready that
will enable the State to take entire
charge of the child, mentally, physi-
cally and morally, with a view pre-
venting in future repetition of re-
ports as disappointing as that just
issued. The Transformation is to be
accomplished through the aid of sew
eral agencies. The local education
authorities, through their school
medical service have established a
system of remedy and amelioration.
Education committees, doctors,
nurses and thousands of voluntary
workers compose a cooperative sys-
tenn designed to save the child. The
system is to extend from schools for
mothers to the home and from well
fare centers to Juvenile employment.
In his report Sir George Newman
says:
Eight years work has brought to
light large mass of physical defect
and disease, varied in charcter nd
widespread, most of it preventible. In
regard to the data thus provided, we
can form two general conclusions.
First, not less than a quarter of
million children are seriously Grip
pied, invaded, or disabled; not less
than million school children are so
or mentally defective or
as to be unable to derive |
reasonable benefit from the education |
which the State provides. If this
figure be considered merely from a
financial point of view and quite
apart from the disease, suffering and
premature death entailed, it will be
seen that the State is not getting
adequate returns, on physical t
grounds alone, for substantial part I
Of its expenditure on elementary
y
Consideration of the situation
seems to indicate that the physical
welfare, and in part the education.
If the child of school age is depend
INT upon anti-school conditions; and
dependent also upon post-school con-
litions. In other words if we are
determined to rear healthy and
iirile race of high capacity, we must,
rom physical standpoint, begin
earlier and continue later than the Z
hitherto accepted period of educa-
ion What is needed, indeed, is an
Elective supervision and a sound and K
PRACTICAL training of the body from S
he end of infancy to adolescence. 1t L
$ said sometimes that in the interest 4
# economy that the State cannot af Ip
ord to neglect complete scheme" b