The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1919-05-29

the span of educational history is sc
great that we have mostly imaginary
fact upon which to base our suppose.
tions. The first clearly historical rec
ord we have is the Biblical reference
to the lesson Eve gave Adam on the
question of diet. the time she led him
astray in the matter of apples.
| There is ample reason to know that
I early education was of the strictly vo-
| cational type, in which the father
taught the sons and the mother taught
| the daughters. Doubtless, away back
| in the Stone Age before history began,
| Old John Stoneaxe would take young
John by the hand and they would
sneak out of their cave at early dawn
| to hunt the seventy-foot long tailed
dinosaur or the wild-eyed ichythosaur-
us, and young John would learn his
trade by precept and example COM
| bined. And in the meantime Old Mary
Stoneaxe with young Mary, would
creep out from their corner of the
cave and busy themselves rubbing
sticks together to kindle fire to cook
the ichythyosaurus calf, or laboriously
labor at tanning hide in prepare
ton for new spring clothes, which ac-
cording to prevailing styles of the sea-
son might consist of new shoestrings,
or new ear ornaments.
And for countless generations, edu-
cation meant nothing more than this
strictly vocational training by parent
| to child.
But as time progressed, there came
about various forms Of division OF IA
bor,-the more venturesome took their
followed logs and finally went far
from land with their crude boats; and
traders learned to 60 with them; till
ers of the soil; soldiers to guard the
treasure of the village, - these all
came into being. But educationally
the most interesting development was
that which may have brought into be-
ing the medicine men or early relig-
ious men. Mankind was learning to
| worship and to honor and to fear the
innumerable forms of power every
! where manifest-the wind, the sun,
the tide, the food, sickness, death.
And the rites and ceremonies with
which to propitiate and worship be-
came so complex that there was need
for men who could devote their full
time to these activities. And it may
be that their search for the mystic
! numbers, their study Of stars, their
knowledge of natures manifestation
of power. and their creation of SYM
bols to record their complex rites and
ceremonies-it may be that thus came
into being such ''studies" as arithme-
tic, astronomy, science and reading.
Whether such surmisal be correct or
! not, certain it is that from its earliest
days education and religion have been
closely connected.
And thus we note the second step in
educational development-firs the vo-
cational characteristic, and second the
correlation between education and re-
ligion.
| And as tim went by, there came
upon the historic scene Egypt, Persia,
| Greece and Rome, and our modern ma
lions. And their prime contribution
| to education was the development of
the conception of education as an ele-
ment Of culture, something for the
wealthy and aristocratic class having
its largest value in the fact that like
| jewels and ornaments it set them off
apart from the common people.
But it is our own America that we
have come to realize more than in any
other country a decidedly enlarged
view Of education, for we maintain
that education is an inherent right Of
every child of America, and have ad-
| vanced further in giving our future
citizens this right than has any other
land
As good Americans we admit the
superiority OF our own public schools,
l quote from a fellow Rotarian:
an no department of human en-
deavor has there been such wonderful
al, Thie -a
apparent that it needs no proof. A
child today Of fourteen can read.
write, cipher, spell far better than
his forebears could at the same age.
The personality and equipment Of the
teacher, the ideals and standards Of
the school. and the means and methods
employed in their accomplishment are
far beyond anything dreamed of a
generation ago.
| The American public school educa-
ton has justified itself in all political,
commercial and industrial pursuits. It
alembic of the world war and has not
been found wanting.
Our great free public school system
| is our chief American institution. It
| is not only our chief defense, btu our
cheap defense. 1t is our nations Life
insurance. It is the bulwark Of our
democracy against freedom. If harm
ever comes to our great free public
school system, then Americas glory
! will be in the past"
| And yet our schools have attained
their high achievements against two
serious handicaps.
| The first handicap is found in the
very origin Of our public schools. We
do not have . long line Of descent.
Our school system, such rs it is sys-
tematized, is Of recent origin In the
discussion of the Articles Of Confed-
! GRAFTON. you will find no comment on