Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-09-06

The teacher had done more than seemed
possible. But the father was indignant
and blamed u.s. Why? Because he was
moving heaven and earth to make a
professional man out of a working man.
Why again? Because he thought the
boys life would be easier. There IS
nothing wrong in that thought. The
mistake came in working 1t out in terms
of the lads education. Making him try
>to be what he could never be was push
ing him into life of misery. Far bet
ter TO train him to be efficient within
his own field There is no unhappiness
as bitter as that which falls upon a
man who is a misf1t and failure in his
chosen field.
Skilled as BOokbinder.
This lad whose father so longed to
help him was fine bookbinder. Once
in the bindery he became another per-
son. His hands lowered over the leath-
er with a tenderness, a skill, a devo-
ton that was beautiful to see and the
work he turned out was JOY to behold.
Somewhere along that road his happi-
ness waited. His fortune lay in his
own hands.
will be made too easy for children, and
SOAAiS PSOHAS AAoNN CAPACooO0 OAAAV bAAOuoAAO
recently. Wren was life easy? School
is life. Children do not fear hard
problems that come in their own field;
they dread only what they cannot do.
those things that lie outside their own
field. The minister trembles at the
thought of tire burst water main and
the plumber shakes In his boots at the
thought of making a public speech.
Which one is to be examined and
thrown out? And that is an exact Illus
tration. That is what we mean by
modern school. 1t offers place to
every child from the infant class
through the specialized high schools to
functioned education. Everybody has
his own place and 1t becomes an honor
able place when 1t is acceptably filled.
Set examinations will not help us
much here. What is needed Is vision
understanding and devotion to the
cause of education. qualities always
found within the teaching group.
We need fluid course/of study. a
fluid school system, an organization
strong enough to maintain orderly
growth and loose enough to allow for
the vagaries Of growing children. The
only examinations We need are those
conducted within the schools. The
standard of achievement should be the
highest attainable by the individual
child. He is measured against himself.
He tries to better his own best. The
important question to ask him is, What
can you do beSt?" TIE only command,
do it."
All education Goes not lie within the
course of study. All educated people do
not hold sheepskins. but all educated
people know one field of life thoroughly
and can live happily within it, Until
the schools can help every child to find
his field they do less than their simple
duty
Not Taking an Interest.
Il notice that the boy in the second
seat in the third row is not following
this lesson" said visiting supervisor to
city school teacher
mo. He is on a special program. He
is reading about soils. He seems unable
| to take the usual course and we are
concentrating on his strongest interest
in the hope of BUILDING it up to where
1t will carry him on"
The supervisor was troubled. The
course Of study was set. The teacher
and the children ought to follow it.
who had to set it aside. He shook his
head and nibbled his pen doubtfully.
Then he sighed. We'll. If don't know
anything about 1t. I don't know any,
thing about it," and he went on his
wav.
Isn't that too bad? The school dis
covered a child who could not take
the usual courses and modified the
program to suit his needs and develop
him as thoroughly as possible along the
line of his gifts. But this was wrong
because the law said one thing and the
school was doing the other. The super
visor was too intelligent to object, but
he could not say, well done"
Yet Thoreau was a priceless soul. And
John Burroughs deserved we'll Of his
countrymen. Valuable men and women
have left the schools without their di-
plomaS or degrees because they could
not or would not-due to their stronger
bents-take the course as it was set
Lesser souls who followed easily the
scroll OF learning have scorned these
others because they never took their
degrees"
An educational system to function in
the lives of all the children and youth
of the land must make provision for all
the differences as well as all the SINH
larities of its children. Already this idea
has taken hold and as time goes on it
Will become the accepted way. No child
will be driven from school and branded
as failure because he cannot pass an
examination in the things he has for
gotten and pushed aside, or which, per-
haps, he has never been able to master.
Every child will find a welcome and
place readr for him. Instead of a num-
Der Of up.>er schools all alike we shall
have nntnber of schools all different.
Sees New Era Coming.
The children of the country will
come to their own when the school is
set to the life of the community and all
pride of knowledge. all thought of DOM
nance, has vanished. The child will
indicate the way and the school will
maintain him in his sapling growth I'M
til it becomes a seasoned, sturdy power
This is not impossible, not as much of
dream as you may imagine. We have
schools like this in New York, in every
large city in the country. and more are
coming as fast as the community will
accept them. The sooner the better
Every day we dwell under the old idea
Of the rigid school, the set curriculum,
the dominant examination. we are
cheating the children and betraying our
trust
Copyright, 1917