The Cordele dispatch. (Cordele, Ga.) 19??-1971, 1917-01-21
DOMESTIC SCIENCE IN THE
SCHOOL.


SCHOOL.
Should people be taught Domestic
Science? If so, how and where?"
Consider this question very careful
ly, for it has been discussed in almost
all the schools in the United States.
Most people think that this should be
taught at home by the mother. In
reality there are four ways in which
to learn domestic science: at home
from mother" at school from teach
err" at college from professor" and
by divine inspiration.
In entering this phase Of the dis
cussion OF practical education we be-
lieve that domestic science should be
put in the high school course. The sys-
tenn in which mother" teaches daugh-
. ter still survives in every part Of the
country and in all classes of society,
but it is no longer in good working
order. Some time this is because
mother is not good teacher some
times because she neither knows the
modern way, nor has she pedagogical
ability to teach what she does know
The average mother knows little il
anything in regard to food principles
and their value. If the meals of our
mothers and grandmothers have been
balanced in the years past, ii is be
cause mothers were guided by that
divine inspiration" as ito the dictetic
needs of their families. One familiar
with the scientific principles under
living news, knows when and why a
meal is composed of the foods that
are conducive to the best development
of the body.
Then, too, the greater number OF
girls that leave high school, never go
to college; not more than one-third OF
them go. So we can see that if they
were to deepnd upon college for ac'
curing their knowledge of domestic
science they would never get it.
Now the Divine Inspiration topic
next attracts our attention. That is,
that just by being women will cause
them to know anyway.
q don't believe that there is any
way TO learn to keep house except
by just doing the work. Everybody
is so different they have got to learn
it their own way" said an inyestiga-
tor of science of housekeeping. She
then excused herself enough TO teie-
phone the plumber because her kitch'
en- sink was stopped up with grease,
and she had never learned of the eff
feet of boiling water and I've on a
grease-stopped pipe.
In the domestic science department
of the schools, the girls are not only
taught how to cook, but they are
taught how to economic as well. For
it is not a part of the work to know
how to buy so as to get full value for
a cent. In some schools the training
has taught the girls how to select
a house suitable to the needs of
something of interior decoration and
furnishing They are taught public, as
we'll as domestic sanitation. The scope
of knowledge to be gained in this line
Of training is great. very great. In
the home time cannot be spared by
the mother to give her girls the prop
er training. The few that go to col.
lege usually take a course that, az
they think, will be more cultural and
refining; so the high school must be
the place for this work.
The real work of the school is to
teach this science and show how its
application to household interest will
give certainty for guess work, and
the power to initiate where before ev-
erything was by recipe or hard and
fast rules.
We have in our school only the
sewing department. We are acquiring
great knowledge in this line. but we
desire something more; we want the
rest of the domestic science course
in our school We want room, 9
teacher, and the equipment. JUS give
us these and we viii be satisfied and
we will show you what kind of home
makers our school will turn out.
JAMIE MATHEWS.