Evening star., 1933-08-27
Il High Sch00/ Plan t%s Chilli
Haze You Definite Plan for Your Child High SCHOOL, He Needs One Aoda Tragic
Waste Of Time Trying Find His 0wn Nay Through the May Modern Edua
Read This Teachers analysis Problem and His Plans Soluu

II
to undertake any additional work Of ad-
vising and guiding.
In the parents, however, there is an
enormous, untapped reservoir Of inter.
ested energy that could be used to inn
prove the situation while we await the
millennium. Parents could provide the
badly needed advice and guidance, If
they understood what is lacking. When
they went to school all boys and girls
went through standard course and on
to business or college. But things are
different now. Within month four
pairs Of parents-college graduates all,
and friends of mine-have come to con-
suit me about their children,s education.
Their complete ignorance Of conditions
In modern secondary schools would have
seemed amusing If it had not held such
tragic possibilities Most parents don't
even ask questions.
FATHERS and mothers Of today remem-
Der the old pIan the standard course
for all, which prepared the child, in
theory at least, for Giving" or for en-
trance to college. For the very highly
selected group that went to high school
in the nineteenth century, that plan
worked well enough. Most Of those who
started high school could do the work,
but If a pupil could not master his
studies he just dropped out-and that
did not matter much, it was no disgrace
to him, it had just been a mistake to
start. Now, however, that nearly all
children between IL and 18 are in high
school and must stay there till gradu-
alton or birthday brings release TO
them, some astonishing complications
can-and do-arise. Thus the need for
careful parental planning has become
serious.
The teaching of DR.. Dewey and his
fellows to the effect that mo two chill
dren are exactly alike" and that every
child must find an education that he IS
capable of acquiring" has further COM
plicated the problem for the children,
the parents and the schools. In an
earnest effort to meet the situation, to
provide an education through IL years
for all children of all tastes, back
grounds, intellectual endowments, ca
pacities and ambitions, the schools are
now Offering great variety of courses,
many combinations Of which lead to
graduation. This is all very well in prin-
cip2e. Varied curricula and wide choice
in graduation requirements are great
improvements over the standard Eng
lish, Latin, mathematics and history" Of
50 years ago; but the change has terribly
complicated existence for the poor high
school freshman who must make an in
telligent selection from this mass of
wealth; he needs good advice-and we
do moi. often give it.
The students work for the first high
school year is commonly standardized;
English, algebra, general science and
civics would be typical program of pre-
pared subjects. But at some time during
that year each child must make plan,
q program, for the next three years that
win lead to graduation and to prepara-
tion for a vocation or for college. In
the big city schools this is done in the
"oEacial class; a teacher and 80 to so
freshmen attack the problem. All the
information they need is available In
the school handbook; but for the first
time in their lives those youngsters, Is
to u years old, are faced by the neces-
Aty for making serious decisions-and
they do not know how. No school child,
left to himself, will make q plan for
more than year or half year ahead.
These plans are roughly eo-ordinated