Evening star., 1928-05-27
Continued from First Page.)

| bring home to the people that 1t was
in danger of becoming merely slogan
and nothing more. Before that it had
| generally been taken for granted that
under the American flag were the best
and most schools in the world, that
! every child was coming to manhood or
womanhood with at least a common
school education, and that the only
| iliterates were persons but q genera
ton out of slavery or recent immi-
| grants.
The facts hurt. Over 80 per cent
| of the adult population Of the United
! States couldn't read or write Earnest
efforts to remedy such a situation gave
| the greatest initial impetus to the adult
! education movement. The condition
! by no means was confined to any single
state or section Everywhere in the
rural areas where the population was
sparse and school houses far apar.
there was discomforting percentage Of
adult illteracy This was exceptionally
noticeable in the southern Appalack-
| ians. There we're whole counties where
the white population was more than
| so per cent illiterate.
Working Over Primers.
But today In those same mountains
school boys and school girls in their
early seventies are working earnestly
| over primers and copybooks. They are
learning their letters at the end of life
| instead of at the beginning. The most
notable experiment Of this sort in the
| United States. according to DR.. l.. r.
| Alderman specialist in adult education
! of the Bureau of Education, Is in Bull
! coinbe County, North Carolina. where
! In SIX years more than 4,000 white
| adults have been taught to read and
write their names. County and town
officials. merchants and ministers arc
| among the pupils. Dr. Alderman on a
| recent visit to one Of these hill school
houses sat in the next seat to a worn-
/ an II who has Just learned to write.
| Previously he says, they had looked
upon the learning of the alphabet and
| the reading Of the printed page as
! possible only under dispensation OF
| God. Their feeling was that knowledge
was not for them; that they had been
passed by when God gave forth tie
| gifts to men: to some ability to read,
| 10 others, to speak with tongues, and
| to others the gift of healing" But
| once they had been interested they
| learned, to their own amaZement that
i II was not so difficult after all to
master the mysterious magic OF letters.
| The most hopeful development Of all Is
| that they are sending their children
| to school, having recovered altogether
| from the neutrality-suspicious. COM
plex which had led many Of them to
| look upon literacy as something ei-
Terminate and hateful.
Have Desire TO Learn.
Such conditions as Or. Alderman
| found In Buncon1be County can con-
| tinue only another generation at the
most. The people have been infected
with the desire for learning and WILL
| incness to pay for It, Ways and means
are secondary. They are sure to be
| found everywhere. The colored illi'-
crate is disappearing in the present
| generation. The doors OF the United
| states have been closed to the illiterate
| Immigrant and those already in the
country are concentrated In population
centers where 1t Is easy TO reach them
| with Americanization schools.
But If men and women Of 10 can
be taught TO read and write, why STOP
| there?
There has been an almost complete
revelation of the American school sys-
| TEN, from top TO bottom. The Nation
| has had a phenomenal growth. both IL
population and industry. Educatoh,
| ike many other factors In the national
Nfe has suffered from haste 1t has
been essentially vocational--that Is, 4
| means Of earning living. II has been
valued In terms of money. This has
been the case regardless Of the nature
| Of the study pursued. Boys and gIrIs
who studied Greek drama In college
| did so because they expected to earn
| their livings teaching Greek. Cultural
| subjects were considered essentially
| from a non-cttural viewpoint. Inc
! student went through the schools unth
| he had acquired the amount OF KNOW
| edge Of this. that or the other thinz
which were necessary for the kind OF
work he intended to follow. Then NJ
| quit and his education stopped
| Now IL is one thing to create by edu-
cation out OF raw material a orlcK-
layer or surgeon. and II IS qnite an
other thing TO continue the edueatior
| of this bricklayer or this surgeon along
| lines which will make life more nvanle
| for him but win not necessarily add
| 10 his income. The American brick
| layer or carpenter who spent his eve
ntngs with Shakespeare or Chaucer has
| been a rarity--rather more so than the
! British or German bricklayer. the
| American surgeon who painted pic
| lures as a sideline also has been rare
For Continuous Schooling.
But right here is where the move
ment in adult education promises q
| bear its greatest fruit. II Is this field
which has aroused the greatest interest
OF the Carnegie Corporation and vari-
GUS other organizations The aim is
| 10 continue education beyond the pub
| lie school, beyond the college and be-
yond the university-to make SCHOOLING
continuous process OF mental growth
ending only with the death Of the In
/ dividual. Here lies the promise OF ths
| new renaissance OF learning 1t in
| wolves coordination OF the schools. coll
| leges, museums and public libraries
| It's eventual object is To educate every
body, regardless OF vocation or position
In life. The movement proceeds on tho
theory that the uncducated miss much
Of the real zest Of living The man or
woman incapable Of enjoying art or
music above the scale Of dance hall
! jingles. or the poetry of Robert Brown
| Ing or tho philosophy OF BergSon Il
going through life deprived OF the
| really great things life has TO offer
| Why should they be confined to a
relatively small body OF professional
men and women who have had the ad-
vantage Of college courgesp
Two Notable Experiments,
Two OF the most notable experiments
| in this field are being conducted nj
| Buffalo and Cleveland which are build
Ing up model cultural organizations in
| tended 10 reach all classes of people,
!
| cepting starvation without surrender
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