Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1919-07-25
Juan J. Clancy Contributes Strong
Article on Public School Problem

cate themselves from these conditions
and leave soothing behind them while
they sow hatred through hateful"
"reminiscences Of the deplorable eXpe-
rience which was theirs Such acts no
less than others have contributed
much toward the racial prejudice that
exists today | know this is a strong
indictment, but facts with which we
must ever deal verifies it.
Normal Institutes.
The normal institutes have contrib
uted little or nothing toward the eff
fective, scientific teaching of our Span
ish alumni. They are generally con-
Quoted by instructors who have not
the Spanish American interest at
heart, are not conversant with their
special demands or. else they doggedly
follow out the prescribed curriculum
that contains hardly a passing hint Of
this important phase of teaching here
in New Mexico.
When New Mexico gets more con-
sCientious type of teachers for this
particular class of pupils, methods of
teaching English and of Americaniz-
ing our native sons Gf you please will
amply take care Of themselves. The
best that has ever been done for the
Spanish American has been done by
the teacher and not the method or
even the textbook
A word about the textbook The
textbooks now forced upon the Span
ish-AmeriCan have no reference to his
peculiar requirements. They were Sc
lected absolutely from the standpoint
OF the AnglO-American pupil. The
Spanish-American is made to fit into
that mold in willy nilly hit or miss
fashion. 1t were better if no textbooks
were used at all If half a dozen con-
versational current topics, of pracu-
cal nature, say, crops. cooking, SAM
tation, Ford ears, stock raising and
the practical government CpatriotismD
We're substituted for the silly ''see my
cat" and fairy tales, and marigold
and daisy stuff ad nauseum with
which our spanish texts teen,
the Spanish would be
the winner by such simple change of
the course.
Merely Hcartbrcaker.
His 'rithmetic lesson is merely a
head-brcaker. He is up against the
language difficulty that stands before
him like Roman wall and in cropping
after mathematical processes he is be-
wildered and lost in a vain attempt to
interpret the problem. TWO and two
are four in Spanish, English or Chi
nese. Give Spanish American the
cultural or disciplinarian value of a
given subject that is purely for that
purpose through the medium of
the known as a vehicle to the
unknown and something tangible
will have been accomplished.
History as taught to the Spanish
American is of little or no value, as inn
portant as that subject is to any other.
Why? Because the textbook in poinI
of pedagogical arrangement bears no
relation to the Spanish American s
reading capacity. 1t merely resolves
itself into another (and utterly unset
entific One)-lesSon in mere word
mumbling without regard to the gra-
datlon OF language as is the case with
the ordinary. pedagogically arranged,
progressive reader. Disiniterest in the
subject for the subjects sake is inva-
riaby the result, Is it any wonder
that in sixty-odd years the Spanish
American has made such poor show
ing educationally?
Give New MeXico's native sons love-
inspired teachers and nationally APP
propriate textbooks and the "al-
tlon VIII have Changed( our Spanish
ton will have changed, our Spanish
young Citizenry in English-speaking
and English-thinking Americans.
AS already said, the writer has no
brief for those who differ from him.
lie thinks Governor Larrazolo, Mr..
Fitzgerald and MIR. Linquista just as
honest as he is.
He has no charts or books to peddle,
nor in contemplation. He has no po-
liucal irons, or other irons in the fire.
He has as little faith in the ephemeral
plaudits of the crowd as he has fear
OF the condemner and he has tasted
both cups.
Like the league of nations,
H. TT (and | want that word put in
Ford size captions) I say, / might ac-
{ cept Linquista's method, but, with
, some reservations.
take pleasure in signing the only
name l own or ever expect to own,
JUANfJ j. CLANCY,
Fort sumner High School.
Franco is making extensive use of
pOrta BILE Dpwer plaptc M IN IN horse