INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION.

Auckland Star, Volume XL, Issue 160, 7 July 1909, Page 3

INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION.

A ; DUTY DEVOLVING"ON" THE HIGH ,'-■' f "'SCHOOLS. i ABIE -PAPER .BY-AN AMEBIGAN ! PfiOiFBSSOR. • - -> One of the test two or three papers read before the general sessions of the Department of Superintendence of- the National Educational Association; at the meeting in Chicago in February, was given by Eugene Davenport, dean, of the Illinois College of Agriculture, Urbfcna, HI., on the.subject ."Industrial Education a Phase of the , Problem of Universal, Education." ■; As a thinker of •broad and practical scope, and as a student of the educational problems of to-day, Mr: Davenport deserves to : rank with-the world's leaders.

After reviewing at considerable length the- history of the development of national education, and the growth of the demand that our schools should- be brought into harmony with the industrial, and* commercial conditions of the times, Mr. Davenport went on to say:— "If present tendencies cm go on unhampered, it will not he long until every community can have Its high school, which will reflect with a fair: degree, of accuracy its major industries, and do it, top, in the light of the world's knowledge and of the world's ideals. Such schools will turn out men and "women ready to do the world's, work and to think, the world's thoughts as well as to dream the world's,dreams and share in its ambitions. If we comibine our energes we can; have such schools in America, wherein every young man and every young woman can secure an education that is at once both I useful and cultural, and that, too, within driving distance of the father's door. If we unite -our educational energies we can do this, but we cannot do it In separate schools. We can combine the vocational and the rion-vocational in our high schools if we will, and each be the .better for the other. On the contrary if the arts and crafts and industries' art taught in separate schools, the following results are inevitable: 1. There will be as : many different schools and as many different forma of education as there are different forms of industry, with little of mutual sympathy and nothing of community of purpose. 2. The vocational future of the indivi-' dual will be decided, not by intelligent choice, but by the accident of proximity to one of these schools, or the exigency of earning power. 3.' If industrial education is given only in industrial schools, then the high schools will lose for ever their hold upon the masses, for 90 percent of the people are industrial and always will be.- This will reduce the high schools to the teaching of girls and the work of preparing for college, and they will lose for ever the influence upon American life which they might exert by moulding the ideals of the masses as they instruct them in

their industries. ■ 4. The separate industrial schools will always be inferior to what the high' gchool might be, for, being established to serve special ends, they will naturally attain those ends by the most direct means possible; indeed, they must be almost, exclusively technical, or. else resort to an amount of duplication and expense that would hardly be tolerated by-their patrons. ■ • ■- 5. The products of these schools would be successful from. the..narrowest business standpoint; but unsuccessful from*, larger point of view; they would' be trained rather than educated.

6. Such echooU would force boys to choose their calling, or, have it chosen for-them, at a very early-- age, and without much opportunity for intelligent choice. Once chosen, however, the decision would be final. The results, however, would, highly satisfy -business demands, which are ever ready to sacrifice the man to his efficiency.

7. If members of the several vocations are to be educated separately, the education will not only foe hopelessly narrow and needlessly expensive, but, what is even worse, our people will be educated, in groups separately, without knowledge of or sympathy with each other, producing a stratification of our people that is. not only detrimental to society, but dangerous, if not fatal, to democratic institutions.

So, all things considered, I most earnestly advocate the taking over of our industrial education in all its forms into the existing system of secondary schools, seeing to it that one-fourth the time of every pupil is devoted to something vocational, something industrial, if you please, and no industry is too common to use for this purpose. It is the common things of life that are "fundamental and.'it is through them €nat we teach life itself.

It is not necessary to bring all occupations and industries into our schools; some are not well adapted to our academic conditions, but it is necessary: that we bring in a goodly variety of what may be called the major activities, industrial and non-industrial, is order that life' shall be taught in a variety of its forms and-{hat the boy shall have a reasonable chance for choice. Trade schools, would you have them? By all means, but I would have: them as a part of the secondary school system. Agricultural schools? Yes, but as departments of the high school. Cooking schools? Yes, and more: I would have schools of household affairs, but I would have them as Integral parts of the high school. Schools of steno-. graphy and typewriting? Yes, but I would not disconnect them from the high school any ' more than I. would cut off from womankind flic girl who needs perhaps for a time, perhaps always, to earn her own money. In brief, there is no class of occupation that 13 followed by large masses of people that I would not bring into, the high schools and teach as fully as circumstances would permit, and I would compel every student to devote riot less than one-fourth and not more than onehalf of his time to~ these occupational lines.

Thinking men now know that, education, culture or no culture,' whatever the grade of civilisation we may evolve, tion or no education, culture or no culture, whatever the grade of civilisation we may. evolve, certain fundamental industries must still go on. Moreover, they- know that if these fundamental industries" are- to be well conducted and our natural re-i sources developed, then these activities mu3t be in the hands of capable men; yes, of educated men, for industry, like every .other activity of man, is capable of development I>t means of ordinaryknowledge and trained minds. ■ They, know, too, these thinking people, that | men of capacity cannot be found to develop these fundamentals except' they may also themselves v partake 'off the blessings of life and the- full, fruits■ ot our civilisation. They, know .thai' the of hewere of wood and the "drawers 'of water, an euch—■condemned to "a life of drudgery—«re over on this earth

wherever, civilisation, exists, and that education, like, religion, must somewhat 'Vapidly''readjust itself tornew.conditions and .prepare to help $Ke' common. average man to lead a life that is both useful to. i the community., and" a satisfaction t* himself. The aristrpcracy of education, like the aristocracy of; religion, whereby a few were saved at'the expense of the - many, is . over, and- education, like ■ religion, must ' help the common man.. to ; meet and solve the common issues of life? better than they iave "ever been met and solved before-^—hence industrial, educa-i tion; hence vocationaL: hence universal. education. ■-;. ; ......1 ■■.■'.. I'\ ..The colleges : learned long ago.that to. meet modern needs .they must afford' every man two educations; one intensely, technical to meet his business needs and; make him .an. efficient;member of society,; but which would; tend to narrow him as a" man j the other non ; vocational, which has no* money-making-power; but whose effect is to liberalise and broaden the. men by attracting his interests and widening his knowledge outside the field wherein he gains his livelihood. !

'Now the high schools must learn the-same-lesson, arid/the sooner they do : so the better for all interests. Therefore," these high schools that are introducing the industrial are developing in', the right lines. The high .schools are not perpara-' tory schools-for college. They are preeminently the schools -Tfherein.the peopleare fitted for. life.;; Where .one. man is edueated'-in college, twenty .will get alj. .their -preparation, in; ''high .schools._• ..The high school, therefore, is the place where-' in the boy ehall find himself, to the end. that if he goes to college. he_. will, haye upon matriculation, exceedingly. ..clear ideas about what;.he intends -to ,dp,.and. if he does not he can go out from the; high school at once and take some useful part in the world's work. The large number of high, school men, even graduates, who have no plans and, more than all, no fitness nor preparation for any sort of useful activity, a pathetic and a dan.gerous fact —pathetic, because so much good material has been wasted, dangerous because the high'"schools must either change their ideals and introduce the industrial freely, or the industrial masses will find other schools of their own that •will meet their needs as they have been levels,, but as, they have not' yet""been met in secondary grades where-the masses'go: ''-- : .- Now- the colleges have learned that it is not necessary* to. absorb all the time of the Btudent in: order to ttirn out an efficient man vocationally; Much less is it necessary in secondary schools. ? - •'■

■' Ohe'-f ourth. of fctie "time" of the boy or girl could be devoted "to vocational work in class-jooni orf laboratory' throughout the., course. .-This would! turn. - out every boy with some in some branch of the world's work,- and do away with that large p.nd growing number pi young high school graduates jwho are fitted for nothing, and are good .for nothing in particular. It would!; attract the attention' of the boy to self-supporting activity before he loses his natural ambition by too much schooling with'rid;, initiative.''■-'■lf would turn out girls jwdth some training in household Affairs, andfthose who de-. eired* it- itf such- occupations as women follow for self support: • It would vastly uplift most occupations,,and.all of the more ordinary industries-by.bringing into itheir.ptactjlce -the-benefit' of trained .minds and methods. itfcan.do all this, and still leave three-fourths ofr.the "time "for tHe acquisition; of ythpse non-vocational..lines of knowleSge* which all men and. women need, T>ecause they are human'beings getting feSdy: to live in a most interesting world. "In" this way;" we should'iave""a single system! of education "under a single management, but giving to all young men and wbniea'really , ( .t ! one that is vocational, netting them to be self

supporting and useful, the other nonvocational and looking to their own development. Expensive? .No more so than to have',it in. separate? schools; surely, it will be'dpne somehow,' and the only questionAnpw iis;; : will; the high schools v real}y rise to their opportunity and secure through." themselves" a: real system of * universal education, or. ate. they to lose their and we have in the end not a leal but only a ; imitation of a system of universal education?" ! :. . ■ "V