Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1922-12-13
HERALD MAIL BAG
MAKE CONDITIONS RIGHT

ill., uoLn- ana city, 1eelS. thai
manual training is largely a waste Of
taken in regard to domestic science.
The plain truth Of the case Is that
there Is in many instances too much
cause for complaint. The complaint
comes largely, however, from the rur-
al Consolidated and from the smaller
town schools. Here especially, boys
and girls do. not get clear ideas on
the subjects they study and supposed
~ master, as f1rst-year requirements,
by actually doing the work in the
shop and over the range. They are
at sea when trying to apply the rudi-
ments Of the crafts studied. Fur
thermore, they lack nterest;-or even
have aversion for the work. This is
not a,n'dark picture; it is not over
drawn: ~
The poor showing, however, is by
no means to be laid at the feet Of the
student or ascribed to the texts used,
or to shop instruction, anu poor re-
suits. though unsatisfactory, are no
proof that the teaching of vocational
subjects is a failure, or in other words
t~hatsthese are misplaced courses.
unsatisfactory results in the hand
icrafts departments Of the grade Of
schools above indicated are due to
various causes, among them are, false
IDEAS touching the purpose OF voca-
tional teaching; too loose require
ments in shop work and in shop dis
ctpline; not enough guidance by the
~teachers;S the students undertaking
too much work. thus scrimping the
time that should be devoted. to the
use OF tools and utensils which fore
stalls interest and finally spells fail
ure; teachers lacking the necessary
experience and lack Of time to plan
and direct. .-.e.
In vocational subjects in any school
the standard Of work should Il as
high as in regular school branches.
1t must be exacting. If this is made
q necessary condition for "credits'
those who would be led to take up
manual training subjects with only an
enforced interest, namely, easy cred
its, will not enroll because there is
nothing easy about the courses. If
such a standard Is demanded those
who are truly interested will derive
a real benefit.
Let us rest assured that to the de-
gree that We place q true value upon
1.-THE use Of time and upon the use of
tools and utensils, keep the number
OF school subjects studied within due
limits, give the experienced teachers
q fair chance to do good work, stop
trining, and get beyond the make-be-
heve stage, namely. cas- credits and
play time rather than work time in
the shop and kitchen, there will be no
complaint about the non-utility of
manual training or about cooking and
sewing. This will hold whether the
student enrolled merely for credits
rudiments Of the trade.
In vocational training there is Of
course, danger Of the work being
taken up too early In the course.
Right here is one great cause OF poor
results and Of just criticism: Natur-
ally enough the public, when it sees a
fault does not d~ifferentiate. but pro-
nounces q general verdict Of failure:
As to h above evil THEOLOGY who
does not have the mental grasp to
make things requiring stronger and
more mature constructive powers
than the making OF broom holders,
and b girl who ID allowed, or en-
couraSed perhaps, to Specialize In
preparing dainty dishes, or who Is
not able TO comprehend more than
how to make fudge had: better. be
Vocational training room is not the
place for them. The fact 10, we NAV
well defer special training until the
learner has reached aismore mature
stage. The tendency seems to have
been Of late to make specialists Of
boys and girls yet in their teens,
which y one explanation Of our ma.
ssSoai' ss.,n IL tho th9roushne.s q
Manuai training Is here to stay,
Though Il has been costly invest.
Efnent IN many instances. The pubic
has right TO criticize and to demand
better results. To this end It must Sc
placed onMa more solid foundation.