The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1919-10-20
Extension School System to
Re Worked Out This
Year.
PRlf LELAND IN CHARGE
Work Will be Taken Up
Here Later in School
Year.

MoRGANTowN, W. y~g Oct. 49,
RE larger cities of West Virginia
Rhete there is considerable popu-
alton employed in industrial occupa-
ions, are now face to face with the
.reat problem of educating the boys
ma girls who are employed in these
industries. In order to help solve this
problem, the State University is send
l1g Prof. B. T. Leland into number
81 cities to conduct classes that will
help improve the situation. His plans
for the first half of the year call for
classes Id Wheeling, Parkersburg,
Charleston and Huntington, with the
probability Of the last half OF the year
being devoted to similar classes In
FaiTnont, Grafton, Clarksburg, Blue
lield and Morgantown.
n recent visit to Fairmont Prof.
Leland talked the matter over with To-
cai school men, taking up the ques-
on OF Industrial education here in the
following manner: Manufacturers,
business men, organized labor, and
education are recognizing that if the
cities OF West Virginia are to progress
along Industrial lines. 1t is necessary
mat highly skilled workers be deVel-
5ped from the thousands OF our youth
Who have entered upon some form oil
trade OF industrial work.
The Field Of Vocational Education.
eThe wealth OF a state or city de.
bends upon two things-the material
fesources and the intelligence with
which they are used. II by any means
one could destroy one.half OF the prop
srty Of the city OF Fairmont at one
stroke, one would by that means de-
stroy a proportionate amount of
wealth. Looking at it from another
standpoint, IL one could at one stroke
tut down the educational level Of the
sity Of Fairmont to that of an eighth
srade graduate, one would immeasur-
Ably decrease wealth. Complicated
machines would stop running, manu-
.acturing establishments would go on:
ol business, building will stop. By the
sane i5lsen, if one could raise the edu-
taaonai eYeI to higher Plane the
Wealth would beS greatly increased,
General ConeeptloF of Vocational Edu-
cation.
whenever industrial education is
mentioned today, nine men out of ten,
10Th school men and business men,
link OF the skilled trades the tradi-
ional trades, if may call them SO;
Id carpenter, the plumber, the print
sr, the machinist, the patternmaker
10, Nine men out of ten when in
itlstrial education is mentioned al
Ways think OF preparing some one to
inter these trades. Strange as it may
seei6, the big job and the difficult job
n Industrial education, is not to pre-
base workers in, special schools 10 en-
Ter the skilled trades, but to do some
hing for workers already employed II
semi skilled or almost unskilled
trade. In other words the neglected
tfeid IN education is not so much the
soy or girl who expects to enter in
austfy, as II is the boy or girl who has
tlfeady entered upon employment.
I'VE have tried many ways to keel
the boy and girl in school. We havt
ried compulsory education laws W.
aYe tried three different kinds o.
schools: special technical high schools
fsde schools, and special courses II
hith schools. All of these are in sue
cessful operation now, but in spite o.
them, many boys and girls are no
reached.
The Neglected Field In Industrial
Education.
The neglected field in industrial
sdica ton today Is the mass Of boys ant
rifis at work. How shall they b.
ehedl A law which merely say
hak 1 boy must attend school up Il
he age OF sixteen does not fit the case
unless the school is ready to give thu
boy something fitted to his needs, an,