South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1916-02-04
MODERN SCHOOL
SYSTEM FAULTY
Needs Cha2ging Says Dr.. F.
6. BOnSer of CoIum-
bia University.


ct actually am sorry for the many
pupils in our schools who are being
forced to take work for which they
have no liking and which means
nothing 10 them in terms Of the
work that they are to follow after
leaving school"
In those words DR.. +. G.. BOnser,
speaking before the first gathering
OF the Conference Of Vocational
Guidance Thursday night. summed
up his opinion as to the efficacy OF
the present system OF public and
private school training. DR.. BOnser,
who is the associated professor Of
Industrial education in the Teachers
college, Columbia university. spoke
on The school Curriculum as a
Means of Revealing Individual Diff
ferences Basic to Vocational Guild
ance."
As an instance Of TO what pupils
in the schools are made TO submit,
he cited the case of a boy whose
parents came to him for advice be-
cause the boy was backward in his
school work. This boy, ne said. was
q normal lad who was having every
opportunity in high-class private
school and yet he was being made
&c take, during his second year.
Latin. German. French, algebra and
English 81 need not dwell on
this" said the speaker. nor say
what my advice TO the parents was.
for here was an average boy and IL
was not a penal institution which he
was attending"
Attendance Is Large.
The first meeting of the confer
ence was held in the public speak
ing room of the high school. There
was an attendance Of rs. which, in
the opinion Of Prof. r. J. Leonard
Of Indiana university. was unusually
large for the first meeting. Prof.
Leonard called attention TO the fact
that this was the first educational
conference held under the auspices
of the university at any other place
than Bloomington. The future OF
the move Of carrying the work to
various parts of the state, he said,
depended on the support given to
this initial conference.
The meeting was presided over by
Supt j. A. Wiggers Of Elkhart. In
addition to the address given by DR..
BOnser there was an address by DR..
Helen T. WoOlley, director of the
Cincinnati Bureau of Vocational
Guidance. Miss Woolley spoke on
Experimental Psychology as an Aid
in Vocational Guidance" explaining
with the aid of charts, what had
been accomplished in Cincinnati
through the work of tho vocational
bureau in the solution of the prob
lens of the issuance Of working per-
mits and in guiding boys and girls
to proper vocations.
Although the work in Cincinnati
has been under way only five years,
il was the opinion of Miss Woolley
that In this time the work had DEM
onstrated that experimental tests
we're valuable in bringing about de-
sired changes in school work. The
charts which she showed gave in
graphic form the result of two years
experiments made with the view Of
discovering the native endowment OF
several hundred pupils leaving
school at the age of IA for industrial
life and an equal number OF pupils
Of the same age remaining in
school. These tests had to do with
physical measurements. strength.
speed. accuracy and various phases
of mental ability and they indicated
ability in nearly every instance
favorable 10 the pupils remaining in
school.
Standards Needed
Miss WoOlley explained that this
work would have TO be carried out
with pupils ranging in age from IA
to is years, rather than merely with
those IA and Is years old. before
authoritative data could be secured.
In a general way her conclusion as
TO the experiments was that the
schools faced a grave problem in
caring for a large percent of pupils
just out Of the eighth grade. who
apparently were untitled. either in
native endowment or by acquisition,
TO attend 10 other than the most
ordinary Of factory work Her idea
was that with the completing OF
tests. such as she had explained,
there would be established stand
ards by which it might be possible
10 more intelligently plan for the
life work OF the most backward
pupils.
In explaining his ideas as 70 how
the school curriculum might be
changed in order 10 be an aid in
vocational guidance, Or. Bonser
pointed out that by vocational guild
anCe he did not mean gstling the
pupil job. which work should be
left 10 the employment agency. but
rather teaching the pupil in terms
of the work TO be followed after