Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1934-08-24
Country Suffers From an
Intellectual Depression

To the Editor Of The Star:
My interest in education has led
me to search after true education
rather than after academic platitudes.
have found that an individual who
graduated from the public school Is
not usually fitted to assume the grave
responsibilities of citizenship. And in
my opinion the devastating economic
crisis from which the country IS now
suffering is due to inadequate train
ing received by the average citizen
when he attended public school.
correction of this evil is necessary if
our Nation is to continue along demo-
cratic lines. For as l see the problem
it is not an economic depression that
| is strangling us in the true sense of
the word, it is rather an intellectual
depression. AS result of the in
sufficiency of our public school system
the majority of the people are not
adequately equipped with the scientific
knowledge Of social and economic
problems that are confronting us, to
deal with these matters effectually.
If a democratic society of equal
opportunity is to hold its place against
oOIllC 1Ol VI CldSoo IL ID
necessary that the people composing
that society know how to deal with
their own problems as group-it is
necessary for the preservation of de-
mocracy, and perhaps mankind, that
the people work out cooperative rep
resentative scheme to deal with the
ever-increasing social and economic
problems. The platitudes of jefferson
and the other illustrious dead we're
all right for their own day-and to-
day, sentimentally - but demagogic
political appeals to sentiment are not
the power that makes the wheels of
agriculture and industry pour milk
and honey into the hungry mouths of
ten million unemployed and as many
more underpaid American citizens.
That power is in the hands of the
average man, but without the proper
education he does not know how to
make use of it.
The great Importance Of education
in the modern world is Self-evident,
and the need is greater today than
1t was a few years ago, historically
speaking. Education is not important
to the individual for the reason that
it increases his earning power, it is
important to the individual only be-
cause it is important to the well-being
of the state. This is the theory on
which the democratic state bases its
support of public education. Educa-
ton is the meanS-and the only
means-of saving the world from a
confusion such as has had no parallel
in the history of mankind
Because public education is failing
to serve its primary purpose, those of
us who recognize this failure should
not be too harsh with the teachers.
1t is not the teachers fault. This
responsibility rests with the politicians,
who are, sadly. too often themselves
inadequately educated to accept the
responsibility which the headship of
our public school system entails.
This inadequacy is apparent when
we observe that the two courses of
study most necessary. If representa-
tive government is not to succumb to
some form of dictatorship, are missing
from the program of instruction of
the high schools of most of the States.
These two courses are political
science and economics. The first of
these courses has to do with the
political functions of the citizen and
his relation to the Government; the
second. with the economic organiza-
ton of the body polite and its rela-
ton to the State. The two courses of
study combined would give to the
future citizen the equilibrium required
in a progressive, democratic COM
munity: % a consciousness of his
power and individual Importance
within the State, and CD a better
understanding of the necessity of
certain amount of interdependence of
the economic and political organiza-
tons of the State. The Government
Of the United States would be insured
more stable operation If the courses
of instruction of the public schools
were expanded to include these sub
jeSts. Unless they are so expanded
most anything might happen.
RAYMOND EDENS.