Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-05-17
DEMOCRACY IN
SCHOOLS TOPIC
OF ~" LECTURE
DR.. Charles H. Judd Of Chi
cago Addresses High
School Meeting.

was the address given by DR.. Chas.
II. Judd, director Of the school of
education Of the University of Chi
cago. who spoke before the Seven
teenth Annual High School Confer
enc at the University Of North Da-
kota last vening. DR.. Judd spoke on
the subjects: THE Things That Make
Our Public Schools Democratic"
DR.. Judd spoke in part as follows:
II six or seven years ago any one
had asked us what we meant by a
democratic school system we would
have replied that my school system
would meet the requirement.. But
that isn't so. Today we are .arrayedi
system older than ours, more thor
ough, and a country in which there
is much less il%ltteracy than in ours.
But the school system in Germany
doesn't max. for democracy.
Can we tell what is the difference
between our type of organization and
that Of Germany? We can find h
answer by going pack a few centuries
The first educational systems were
Of the aristocracy.
such a system? Because. it is Acontrol-
led by an aristocracy that doesn't
want the common people to be too
much enlightened. "
The old system Of Europe was
first used in our schools in the United
States. But before long something
happened. Eight families with their
families and one pastor moved west
ward to what is now New Haven.
They built a church which was USE
for a house Of worship on Sunday n
for a school the rest Of the week. 1t
was impossible for a community like
this to have the dual school system,
and the frontier necessities decided
for all time the problem of the Amer
lean school. system. We have lived
much on the frontier yer since n
have had s. little aristocracy to both
er us that we have never needed the
dual school system. Hence education
was passed around and every one got
some of it -,
A the communities grew and with
them the schools, there came the
need for something beyond the dis
trict school, and the academy was
established to which all were eligible.
England learned democracy from
US. She began with the dual system
Of schools and has it today.
Perfection of system in school or
g%anization doesn't necessarily make
for democracy. We made our mis-
ia kes. and the worst one was in Dor
Germany. Our eight-year system is
borrowed from Germany. At Ia years
Of age the German boy is confirmed
and has no further need for school,
according to the German idea. Hence
when We have. commencement exer-
cises' at the completion OF the eighth
grade we are having a stale imitation
! oP a Na~pnop o4v - -, o$;1vH p. Wa have
no ~ for making this eight year
division, which ends the education OF
go many Of our children. When. we
make this eight year system we make
our common schools rudimentary and
v%ernacular. At home. in Germany
they used this. eight year system TO
suppress the people: We try to use
it for a different purpose.
lin 1890 there were in our Sec
ondary schools 100000 students.
Since that time the number has in
creased $50 per cent. We are going
to have some task in bridging the
break. between the common. school
and the high school. In h Seventh
and Eighth grades the pupils are
Sixth grade our boys and girls are
ready for. the high school. The first
year of high school will have to be
changed to meet the eed of the
student. We have too long mad it
necessary for. u students to enter
the larger field of education through
the narrow gate of algebra. We have
taught algebra atrociously and then
blamed the children for falling in it.
when talking Ito a teacher in
Germany in 1919 l vas speaking of
our secondary schools, end said that
We had at t. at time 1,300,O0 stu
aents in our secondary schools. He
replied: Such a number, of pupils in
our secondary schools would consti-
tute a menace to the government
And 1t would. But We have no such
desire to eliminate. We are educating
our people TO enjoy democracy. not
for slaughter.
I'VE have the only educational sys-
item in the world that admits Of a sci
ence Of education
W have never realized the value
of IL schools TO the democracy. but
Germany has always recognized its
value n has used it for building
up it's military system. We have now
come to a place where we must de-
fine what our aims are. we must
know where democracy Is leading us
and where we are leading democracy.
Only that type of school leads to de-
n,ocracy which IL clearly defined in
its purposes and will carry us not ia
an education. hut to an education for
a democracy
Tell. Germans Not.
To Look For Victory