New Britain herald., 1923-05-02
SAYS PLATOON PLAN
WILL CUT EXPENSES
Supt. Holmes Quotes U. S. Au'
thOrlty In Favor OIL System

~ recent meeting Of the schao
survey committee appointed by Mayer
A. II, paaRsssa, Marcus White, pFin
einal of the state Normal school ca
planned TO the committee in detail the
workings OF the platOG system, nov
being used hy the New Britain
schools. Mr., White was Of the apin-
Ion that the platoon system was a
modern and efficient method and that
II was a coming thing In improved
school systems,
He also expressed himself in the
belief that an schools should have
hudit0riums and was very careful In
avoiding anY statement whereby he
might give the impression that audi
forums should he smaller than those
now In nse In the local schools,
The platoon system and the audi
forum question are explained in a
statement issued by Stanley H.,
Holmes, superintendent Of schools. to-
day. Mr.. Holmes statement implies
that with the growth Of modern edu-
eational methods, auditoriums and
system similar "a the platoon system
are necessities and will become uni
versai. His statement follows;
THE present hoN-iiko type OF
school building with teacher for
each room and desk for each pupil
had Its origin in Boston In lsfS, AT
that time the course OF study was
limited to the tool subjects OF reading
writing. arithmetic. spelling and gram
q.
next A yonrs the content subjects
were added-llterature geography.
history. eiyics, nature study. physio-
logy and hygiene. Then about 1890
the expressional subjects began crowd
Ing In one by one-music. art dramat-
ice, physical education and games,
manual arts and household arts.
''These expressional subjects were
brought into the curriculum for three |
reasons First of these was the trans 1
formation In child life brought about /
by the industrial revolution. The in |
vention of the steam engine made |
factories possible and factories took |
many kinds OF work out Of the homes
and herded people together in cities.
Children lost the discipline imposed
by work and the education to be ac-
quired by first hand contact with
things The second reason was the
tenet of modern psychology that there
be no adequate impression unless pro-
vision Is made to accompany 1t with
expression. The third reason was the
necessity of teaching children to ap-
preciate music and art so that the
greater leisure time now available
might be helpful rather than harmful.
The addition of the expressional
subjects made necessary the addition
Of certain special rooms such as audi
forums. gymnasiums, manual train
Ing shops and cooking Laboratories.
AS these special facilities were added
and used more and more, the regular
classrooms were used correspondence
less and less. AS result large part
of the modern school building was
Idle for considerable part OF the
time. With desk in a classroom for I
each child, that desk would be unused |
whenever the child was engaged in &
any part of the special rooms /
This created certain problems both ,
financial and educational FOR which 7
he platoon school offers the only ]
solution thus far proposed /
This new type OF school orga MIA l
ion solves these school problems so I
veil and has had such remarkable r
development in recent years that it {
merits special consideration. This [
ype of organization is variousy des- 4
grated as the platoon school, the r
school, the alternate
chool. and the duplicate school Fifty
titles now have such schools in opera G
ion. It's advantages are so great and \
is disa dvantages so few that it seems n
destined to become the universal form s
4 elementary school organization in r
tiles. i
What the Platoon Plan Is y
I'm the report OF the U. S. commits a
ioner of education for 1920 this plan v
s described as follows: According to t
his plan of organization the grades "
4 school are divided longitudnally il
nto two parts each having the same 2