Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1921-10-18
VOCATIONAL GUIDANCE
By Fl. Addington Bruce

| A ANSWERING query as to what Is meant
| ~ by vocational guidance in school work
and hcw it should be carried on I can
| hardly do better than summarize an authors
| tative statement of aims and procedure re-
| Gently issued by the National Vocational
| Guidance Association.
The essential object OF vocational guild
ance, to put it very briefly, is to help boys
and girls find occupations suited to their
natural aptitudes. Instead Of being allowed
| to drift from school into whatever employ
ment they can obtain, they would be aided by
vocational guidance to make wise occupa-
| tion choice.
To this end it is necessary for teachers as
we'll as parents to study the traits of individ-
ual children and their predominant interests
and trends. AS facilitating this the National
Vocational Guidance Association makes these
| specific recommendations:
| Courses Of study should be established in
all institutions of learning Of sue charac-
ter as tremendously to combine the cultural
and practical studies.
The home and school programs should
! include combination of play, hardwork, CO.
| operative activity, and academic work, the
whole being varied enough to represent life'~
demands.
The miscellaneous working activities Of
| children before and after the school day, on
| Saturdays, and in vacations should be studied
and supervised. These activities should be
| made to aid the child in understanding his
environment anu is discovering MS VOCdC1OnaI
aptitudes and interests.
For all children, before the schooI-leaving
age there should be provided a wide variety
of "try-out' experiences in academic work,
| simple work with tools and machines, gar
dening, elementary commercial work, and CO.
operative pupil activities.
All forms of part-time education-such as
the continuation school, trade extension, and
trade preparatory courses-shOuld\ be pro-
vided in order that school and work may be
h,S1Y rIa% So%~ oIo kTo-A
| may be more careful supervision of the child
| in employment
| Teachers should be given time to study oc-
cupatfonal needs and opportunities. Or, bet
| ter, investigators should be specially appoint
| ed for that purpose and should formulate
the information they obtain for use by teach
ers, parents and the pupils themselves.
These Observation-Disclosures counsel
lors-should interview individual pupils at
regular intervals, particularly at such times
as one year before leaving school, change of
course or change of school, and the time of
leaving school, And they should have con-
ferences with parents in order to obtain more
intimate data regarding the child's environ
ment. behavior, and chief interests
Such opportunity for counsel should be d
regular responsibility of the school and
should be open to persons of all ages. Spe-
cial attention should be paid to adults whose
guidance has been neglected and who appre-
ciate that they. are vocationally misplaced or
otherwise handicapped.
In not few cities this program is al
ready being carried out to varying extent.
Obviously it increases appreciably the edu-
cational task, and increases also the cost of
popular education.
?. But Just as obviously it's effect in the long
run will be to augment individual and COM
munity prosperity. Vocational guidance is no
mere "frill' in school work, as some Gem to
regard it. 1t is most practical innovation,
designed to meet a long-standing need.
Copyright, 1921, by the Associated Newspapers)