Evening star., 1925-10-18
TO FIGHT LLITERACY
BY FREDERIC ]. HASKIN.

A campaign against illiteraCy in
the United States is about TO be
waged under the direction OF the
Bureau of Education The ast census
Of the United States showed that this
country ranks tenth in illiteracy.
which seems appalling in a nation
which Is considered by its citizens as
| leader in the progress cf the world
The aim of those Interested in this
campaign Is to reduce the amount of
illtterscY before the next census Is
! taken. in 1890.
l.. X. Alderman, prominent edu-
Gator of Portland. Greg. has been
| appointed az specialist in adult edu-
cation in the bureau. MIR. Alderma n
has had a great deal of experience
along this line. Furthermore, his in.
terest in adult education amounts
almost to a hobby. AS he puts 1t.
1T is wonderful TO get paid for doing
something you like"
Mr.. Alderman has beeu county
school superintendent, a university
professor in the department of educa-
ton. State superintendent for the
State of Oregon and city superin-
tendent of the city Of Portland Greg.
During the World War he went to
France and worked with the Army
Education Corps. Afterward he in.
Navy which now reaches $4,000 men.
staff of the New York public schools.
Adults Need Special System.
Although Mr.. Alderman has had
much experience in general educa.
tional work, he has always been par.
| ticularly interested in adult education.
He has watched and studies tho vari-
| Gus methods applied to teaching
adults. From this study he has come
TO the conclusion that adults require
an entirely different system of teach.
ing.
One of the outstanding differences
between teaching child and an adult
Is that repetition must be avoided in
the case of the latter A child's edu-
| cation may be planned with view
to the fact that he has no background
of experiences. Everything is now to
him. The same thing may be told
him over and over and he does not
mind. With an adult 1t is different,
however. lie has thousands of ex.
periences which have given him a
practical knowledge. even though he
may be termed an illiterate He is
bored with reiteration, and likewise
does not as rule take kindly to
lecture courses.
Illiterate But Not STUPID.
| Mr.. Alderman stresses the fact that
| because man is ilIiterate does not
necessarily mean that he is stupid
AS an instance he tells the story of
the janitor Of a public school in a
large Eastern city. This man was an
excellent janftor and performed his
| duties in an entirely satisfactory man
l,~ 4
| nor write. Finally the powers.t that be
/ decreed that 1t was out of keeping to
| have as janitor Of a public school an
illiterate, whereupon he was dismissed.
Later this erstwhile janitor rose to
a position OF prominence and wealth in
,, the business world. He had become a
| successful contractor. One day, while
| in bank putting through a loan. an
acqua aintan upon noticing him nal Ike
his mark instead of signing his name
| exclaimed. Gracious, do you mean
that you cannot write your own
name?" Upon receiving an affirmative
answer he continued, Just think where
you might have been IL you could read
and write!' To which the contractor
replied somewhat grimly, Yes.
know where I'd have been-janitor OF
a school,"
The foregoing story, however, Is not
meant as warning against learning
to read and write. 1t is simply told to
show that many so-called illiterates
have native ability which, il directed
| in the right way, may take them far
| Lessons Of Experience.
|, When teaching an adult Mr.. Alder
man believes that considera tion should
be given to what the pupil has learned
by actual experience. For instance
some golf instructors giving lessons
to one who perhaps has played golf a
| little will take no note of that fact
| They begin their instruction on the
basis that the pupil has never played
golf and knows absolutely nothing
! about it. They tell him SO much al