The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1919-02-13
SOME COMMON SENSE
TALK ABOUT SCHOOLS


the following endorsement from the
Tampa Times. There is hardly a word
in the Times article but what the
Star has printed at one time Or an
other in the. last three years. The
Times says:
We publish in another column an
article from the Ocala Star regarding
the work done in our schools which
is worthy the most careful consider
alton. The philosopher of the Star
touches the whole crux of the stu
alton when he says our schools do not
fit the pupils for the actual business
of Iife AS we view the situation that
| Is, or should be, the main business of
the schools Herbert Spencer first
enunciated this principle. half cen
fury ago In his great work on edu-
cation in which he contended that the
main business of every human being
was the getting of living, and that
the work of the schools should he es-
pecially devoted to that end. Inas-
much as knowledge of Greek and
Latin did not contribute materially to
that end in the great majority of
cases, he argued that those studies
should not be given place to the ex-
clusion of other and more practical
work. His theories created great up
roar at the time. for those studies
were invested with all the dignity and
reverence of age and long usage, and
no person was supposed to be proper
| ly educated, until he could read Latin
and Greek. But the practical men
won out and the colleges eventually
gave more attention to engineering
and the sciences. and made the dead
languages elective instead of requir-
ed studies. So far as the colleges go
then they are aiming to meet the pop
ular demand for more practical work,
especially such of them as are de-
pendent upon public patronage for
their support.
But how about the high schools, the
peoples colleges, supposed to be the
browning sheaf of our educational
system. Upon them we lavish large
proportion of the money raised by
taxation of the people for educational
purposes. Their curricula embraces
many of the subjects that properly be-
Hong to the colleges. In fact they are
loaded down with all the latest edu-
cational fads and isms for which we
must have expensive teachers and APP
Iparatus, and all to give the immature
pupils a mere smattering of many
subjects which viii not be of the
| slightest use to them IN after life.
| Why spend even few of the precious
weeks of schooling, In teaching list
/ less pupil the rudiments of psycholo-
gy, or instilling. into a city boy, who
has no idea of farming, the elements
of agriculture These and similar SUBJ
jects cannot be taught thoroughly or
Icomprehensively in the limited time
that can be devoted to them in a high
school course They do not belong
there anyway. but are college sub
| pills with better developed minds. The
high schools have become top-heavy
/ with these expensive fads, which are
i well enough in themselves and very
/ properly part of q finished educa-
ton, but have no place in school for
the common people. who pay the taxes
Icheerfully in the belief that the edu-
cation their children will get in school
viii fit them for greater success in
/ life.
4 What proportion of the scholars
. who enter the schools of Hillsborough
county ever graduate from the high
school? We venture to say, not more
than one in 10.
What proportion of the expense of
maintaining the schools of the coun-
try goes to the support of the high
schools? These are fair questions and
the tax payers are entitled to the
knowledge.
\ DO not infer that we would abolish
the high schools. By no means. All
that we would do would be to elm
mate the fads chat have crept in and
bring the schools nearer to the needs
! of the people. We would not have it
necessary to give a graduate of the
high school supplementary educa-
ton" to enable him to figure up a
grocery bill. nor young lady steno-
i grapher criticised on her spelling and
grammar.
| The great majority of the pupils in
4 our public schools go no further than
i the grammar school When they leave
its portals for the last time. their
! schooling is finished We would have
them thoroughly grounded in all the
rudiments of an education when they
leave, and fitted, so far as limited
education can do it, for the actual
work of life. For those who are for
tunate enough to be able TO go thru
the high school we would have ample
provision made, but always with a
view to the probabilities. We would
not have the pupils mystified and con-
i fused by multitude of studies which
they could not hope to master thor
oughly, and which properly belong in
another and more advanced institu-
ton.
| So ex-Tax Collector Rast of Duval
Il L