The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1916-05-18
SAYS ATTORNEY UNIFORMED
superintendent of Schools in Open Let
ter Declares That Kenosha Schools
Do Build Character and That Teach
ing Morals Is Big Feature.

Mrs. Mary D. Bradford, superinten-
dent Of the public schools, in vigorous
open letter, pours hot shot into Dis
trict Attorney A. L. Drury for his cri-
ticism of the public schools in a re-
cent address before the Kenosha Bar
association. In her defense of the
schools and the teaching of morality
in them she goes into details. Her
letter is as follows:
Early Monday evening, before |
had found time to read the Evening
News, several of the public school
teachers told me Of an editorial to be
found in the Monday paper, which
they said did the public schools great
Injustice. | have read the article and
agree with the teachers. Some state
ments found therein, seem to call
for a reply.
In the editorial mentioned, the dis
trict attorney is quoted as saying:
Z AS far as the public schools are con-
cerned, no systematic instruction is
given in right and wrong, the mass of
our youths is suffering from moral
atrophy.' Their moral faculties are
undeveloped and our system of in
struction assumes that moral. conduct
will take care of itself if only com
mon branches are taught.
The editor commenting upon this
statement, says: We wonder if all
that is implied in the statement made
by the district attorney is true?'
With grateful acknowledgement to
the editor for giving the public
schools the benefit of the doubt, / will
reply to the questions.
The first statement is not true.
There is systematic moral instruction
in the public schools of Kenosha. Had
the district attorney taken the trouble
to examine the course of study, or to
inquire what our modern schools are
doing, or to have visited the schools
to find out, he would not have made
such mis-statement. This is not the
first time that the public schools of
today have been attacked for defects
which exist only in the memory of a
former time, the school of somebody's
boyhood or girlhood.
We call the part of the course Of
study in question, Citizenship See
pages % to 100 Course of Study of
Public Schools of City of Kenosha. ,
The writer preferred this word to either
Morals or Ethics 1t includes both.
This course was shaped according to
the belief that effective civic instruc
ton must be founded upon sound
general instruction in the art of con-
duct and the value of character, that
the formation of personal good char
acter is the condition precedent Of
good citizenship.
Therefore, in the primary grades the
lessons take up the common virtues,
such as helpfulness, generosity, graft
tude, usefulness, courtesy, kindness,
truthfulness, honesty, etc, and through
stories, poems, discussion and illustra-
tion impress the lessons. When pupils
reach the fourth grade the course
takes on an additional phase which
may be called civics It begins with
local government, and observable To-
cal civic movements.
This work has been going on for
several years, and I believe the effect
will be felt in the future of Kenosha,. ,
of which the district attorney speaks.
/ Besides this systematic instruction
there is the incidental teaching of
morals through history, biography, lit
erature nature study, and any other
means or opportunity that the day S
program may afford. This is true of
the high school as of the elementary
grades.
The second charge that the teachers
make the teaching of the common
branches the end, is also not true. The
teachers all along the line from the
kindergarten through the high school,
realize that the branches Of study are
only means to an end, the great end
being the development of habits of
thinking which viii conduce to the
happy, useful and efficient life.
The editor says, 'The man who makes
some serious study of the work of the
courts of Kenosha, comes quick to
know that the real base of the evils in
Kenosha lies in the lack of moral
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