Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1922-01-02
New Bedford Blames
Foreign Influx for
Its High IlliteracY

New Bedford Mass. Dec. 31-F'ed-
eral census figures shows that this
city's percentage of III of iiliteracy
among persons 10 years of age and
over is the highest of any city of 1OO.-
! 600 population in the country, but
! the state Supervisor of Americaniza-
| ton is authority for the statement
| that no city in Massachusetts is do
( ing so much for the nation through
the education of the population from
other lands. The illiteracy percent
age for the state as a whole is only
| AZ and the city long since accepted
| the situation as challenge to eff
! fort.
| For thirty years and more immi-
grafton population has been rolling
into New Bedford in a degree I'M
paralleled in almost any part of the
| country Virtually half the. present
| populationeWas born in foreign lands
with more than half that part of the
/ population having its origin in non
English speaking countries.
New Bedford has from a day ante
dating compulsory evening school
schools: but did not make persuasive
effort to draw in the adult popula-
ton until the World War aroused the
nation to the need of assimilation of
the foreign-born. The initial move
ment for reaching the problem of
adult illiteracy was made by the Y
NJ. c. A. industrial department which
organized early in the war many
! study classes within industrial plants.
| Then the state provided for coopera-
| ton with local communities and the
city was one of the first to accept
| the conditions of providing a super
visor of Americanization through ele-
mentary study classes in English for
adults and to strengthen it's evening
schools by making a particular ap-
peal for citizenship through classes
for preparation for naturalization.
At the very beginning of the war the
school department employed a field
agent to work up this department,
through addresses in the foreign
speaking clubs and in other ways, SO
that a good start had already been
made before the states action.
Other agencies of influence have been
at work also. The state maintains
here branch of the state division of
immigration and Americanization,
and it has been active in putting;
new corners into the evening schools
and the English study classes within
the industries.
For the children who came from
foreign lands the Evening Standard
medal for proficiency in English was
accepted by the municipality in 1917
and is annually awarded to children
of non, English speaking parentage.
This medal was presented 20 the 1921
winners at the Pilgrim Tercentenary
last summer by President Harding.
There are in the day schools special
classes in every district to teach
them English and bring them up to
grade. OF these 500 are now enrolled.
Evening schools have an attendance .
of a thousand youth. while in Eng
lish and naturalization evening class
es there are nearly a thousand adult
students. In more than a score of
industrial plants and in more than a
dozen clubs, churches and other
places about 100 adult classes meet
two or three times week. in the
noon hour or after work, to wipe out
the charge of illiteracy against the
approximately 1900 men and women
enrolled.