Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-03-12
Educational
Surveys.

the government in the
Educational field of educational sur
veys. This activity has
0uAseyS. been given it's present
important place in the work of the
of the Interior only recently. and al
ready upward of a dozen states. cities
and counties have utilized the services
of this government agency in investi-
cations of their educational work and
needs. ea.r'
In the past the bureau has performed
for education in the United States in
valuable service as an expert statistical
agency and as a clearing house for edu-
cational ideas and ideas in general. as
well as source of inspiration for the
adoption Of better methods. III the
survey work, however, it is playing
more nearly the part of the expert ply
stefan who is called in to give the pa
tient thoroughgoing examination. to
diagnose his ailments, if any are dis
covered, and to prescribe the course
that should be followed to attain health
and efficiency.
Nine of the surveys have been under
taken during the past year. and three
of these have been completed. one or
the most important was survey OF the
higher educational institutions OF the
state of Iowa. made by a survey COM
mission selected by the United States
commissioner of education. and con-
sistisg of two officers of the bureau
and seven other members. similar
survey of the higher institutions a VI
North Dakota is now in progress.
Three officers of the bureau. including
the commissioner himself. are at work
on survey of educational institutions
in the state of Washington. Dr. s. r.
Capen, specialist in higher education
for the bureau, has completed an IN
diyiduaI survey of the University OF
Oregon at the request OF the autnorities
of the state. Wyoming, about to leg
the aid of the federal government in
eyaluating educational conditions as
they are. preliminary to the new iegis-
latiop. and commission appointed D!
the bureau is now working IN co-opera-
ton with the state authorities.
Many other states have sought m
vestigations made by the bureau, but
because the limit of the WORK thas
can be performed by the present stan
has been reached it is impossible TO
fulfill the requests. even though the
states in most instances are more tnan
willing to pay the expenses OF the sur
vey. Not only states. but cities ana
counties are seeking surveys: the
CITY of San Francisco recently invited
the bureau of education to survey us
educational system. and survey COM
mission. composed partly of govern
ment officials and we'll known school
men outside the bureau. has been at
work for several weeks. In Nassau
county N. Y. the bureau is co-operat-
ing with state and local agencies in
a survey of the rural and village
schools
These surveys. made by the United
States government officials. are part of
the immense survey movement that has
been going on in the United States for
the past five years. Strangely enough,
the bureau of education started the
movement in this country by survey
OF the schools of Baltimore in 1911, but
in the years Immediately following it
was not active in the new field and the
movement was carried on by other
agencies. About 100 surveys have been
made, most of them by private agencies.
such as the Carnegie Foundation,
the General Education Board and the
Russell Sage Foundation. or by depart
ments Of education in colleges and uni
versities. There has been a constant
demand, however. that the bureau Of
education of the federal government
should undertake educational survey
! work. on the ground that 1t is the
agency best equipped to make inn
partial investigation of state and local
conditions. o..