Part 1 (1/2)
On the Firing Line in Education
by Adonira up this little voluned primarily for publication
Each of the others had a definite personal audience inprepared Still, nearly all have later found their way into print, and some have been reprinted in other periodicals and quoted quite extensively in still others Many letters of appreciation, too, froers who have chanced to read this address or that, have coether with expressions of appreciation upon delivery and with definite suggestions from many for publication, have finally led the writer to feel that possibly their gathering together ht be worth while But in fairness to himself, as well as to others, also in the interests of accuracy, he is pro upon the hazardous undertaking of offering ”cold ry Not words of praise alone, no matter hoarm, would justify such a decision, for one can never take such expressions at quite their face value--'tis so easy to make pleasant reed all the time--upon the writer to decide the case on thewith present-day educational probleiven at different tiht of connection, they all do bear upon one great matter of universal interest--that of education The title, ”On the Firing Line in Education,” belongs specifically to but the first of the topics discust Still, it is appropriate to the entire group since the various matters handled are fundamental and the positions taken considerably in advance of coeneral direction indicated--'twill not be long now before theline will be still further advanced
I have a very definite conviction that, at any financial cost, we should provide thru the school for the physical as well as for the psychical and the moral development of the child This is not to take the place of the home--merely to supplement the work of the majority of homes Only thus can we adequately educate all I believe, too, that in any scientific view of the educational process the sense organs are parae their care and training
That the positions taken in the various addresses upon these and otherthe last two years when the demands of war have faced us This is made clear in the Introduction that follows
I aations to the various periodicals in which these studies have appeared for perain in this forer, the publisher, in allowingfrom the usual over-conservative practise of publishers Is not this, too, one of the firing-line activities?
A J LADD
Grand Forks, North Dakota, March, 1919
INTRODUCTION
HAVE THE SCHOOLS BEEN DISCREDITED BY THE REVELATIONS OF THE WAR?
_Fro that I was about to publish a book on education in which the Great War, now happily closed, was not taken as the point of departure, a friend said toundue risks just now in putting out a book on education that isn't based upon a program of reconstruction? Haven't all our so-called educational principles been dis-credited? Shall you get any readers if you do not admit educational failure thus far, and proceed to discuss a change of front, made imperative by recent revelations?” And the editor of a well known educational journal, in asking s, ”I should be glad to have an article upon some phase of reconstruction after the war, educational, social, philosophical, as you reat battlefield of the future, and if the educational forces do not redeereater laughing stock than we have ever been before”
To both of these stateht usupon education; to be sure, it has revealed shortcos, limitations, and weaknesses But it see along right lines Our fundamental educational principles have not been dis-credited There is no far-reaching educational failure to ad from which the educational forces of the country have to redeeentleet panicky! Soht? Certainly But in the analysis, later to be made, let us see if, for the most part, they do not but demonstrate the soundness of our educational principles and the far-sightedness of our educational leaders together with the short-sightedness of the present critics, in that had suggested recommendations been followed these weaknesses would not have existed Let us give here but one illustration, and that briefly We all admit that the medical examinations for the war found too many physical defects, and too many men thereby incapacitated for efficient military service But would not the results have been very different if, during the last generation, the suggestions and strong recommendations of educators relative to physical education in our schools been acted upon by the public? Ah! The fault was not with educational principles; they were sound The educational forces of the country kneas needed, but a parsient leadershi+p We could say, all along the line, ”I told you so,” if we felt so inclined Instead of being the ”laughing stock” we could--if the h upon the other fellow The purpose of our schools has never been to produce soldiers at the drop of the hat, and so they have never been blighted by(May it never come!) Their task has been to produce men and women of character and purpose and ideals-- called for by an eency And nobly have they succeeded, as evidenced by the successful prosecution of the war
In view of all that the United States has done to assist in bringing the war to its successful close, froe camps, the operation of the railroads, conservation of food and fuel, to the knitting of a pair of socks and the sale of a thrift stamp, what shall be said of the success or failure of our schools? Every antic work, from President Wilson down to the colored bootblack who saved his nickels to buy a staar, has been a product of the schools Thru the instruction, the discipline, and the training given in those schools, they becaency and do the things needed And they did
No college or university or professional school ever taught Mr Wilson how to be President of the United States during these troublous days; nor Mr McAdoo how toall about war; nor any local worker how to lead the Red Cross work, any ht the boys ent into the trenches how to use the gas o without food; how to shoulder ar the line did help to give them ideals, did train them in team-play; did instil into them the principles of democracy and the love of country, so that when the need came they arose as one raphy, and grammar; of chemistry, physics, and medicine; of Latin, Greek, and history has, in each case, made its contribution to the preparation of hoers, and statesmen--has helped to uidance of our educational leaders, following principles that they had workt out, the schools of the country werefaithfully the work at hand day by day We had never thought of war as a possibility for us, and of course preparation for it had not been ree, a part of the work of the schools But ith all its horrors, was finally forced upon us and we needed statesuide and direct, they were at hand in the graduates of our colleges and universities--broadly trained aining quickly, the specific forned And e needed soldiers they were at hand in the person of our boys of the schools, both coh, from every nook and corner of the land--boys and men who merely needed direction and leadershi+p, capable of at once falling into line and quickly taking on the professional phase of their training Could we have asked our schools to doirls, the men and the women, on the farm, in the store, in the hoes, have responded ”Here am I Shohat you want me to do, and I will do it even unto death” It was done, and they did it The schools had nobly demonstrated their efficiency
To be sure, all this was not done withoutmistakes Not all the products of all the schools were able to rise to the occasion and to be depended upon in our hour of need When the great national search-light was trained upon the product of the schools, seeking leaders of infinite variety and number, and likewise hosts of followers to do definite and difficult things, many deficient ones were discovered--some deficient inin physical staht here is to be seen the only serious failure of our schools Not every boy, not every girl, had been made as efficient as could have been desired But, happily, in our great nuh were found to do even the stupendous work at hand, and to do it well In spite of moral lapses, not a few, in spite of instances of mental incompetence, far too e--in spite of all this, I say, the United States surprised the world with the quickness hich we pulled ourselves together, and with the marvelous efficiency hich we mobilized all our resources Many losses of course there were--losses of men, losses of days, losses of dollars But when all is said and done, the losses were slight when compared with the accomplishments Credit to who an to criticise the schools They should have been trade schools, or industrial schools or military schools--any kind of schools that they were not And how clearly it was being demonstrated, ere told, that the ti, art and literature, algebra and geometry, history and Latin, had all been wasted! How much better it would have been if, instead of these ”frills,” the children had been given ”practical subjects”! (Practical Save the o off on a by-path and discuss the topic, ”What is Practical?”) Thus the criticis--of the laymen ent off at half-cock
And this criticisthened and extended and , when the fine results of the Plattsburgh experiment were revealed, in which, thru the processes of intensive training, men were quickly whipt into shape for new, and difficult, and responsible undertakings And the equally good results that cae boys by a siht, into capable arnally had the schools failed!
And these long years spent in school and college, ”dawdling over the frills,” had been to no effect, whereas ”a feeeks under _intelligent_ educational direction accomplishes marvels”
And the same has further illustration Ministers of the Gospel selected for chaplains, physicians and surgeons chosen for ineers for various foriven this short period of intensive training and, to their credit and ours be it said, all responded quickly But the conclusion drawn by the unthinking has been, all along the line, that the later efficiency of these ratitude of the world was due to this short period of intensive training, ”under h to know just as needed and just how to go about to secure it”--rown stale over a long atteness and the nothingness of infinity” (as one ht summarize a rather common criticism), rather than to the former years of patient toil, and discipline, and accomplishment which had really laid the foundation so well that all were able thus to respond The coe, and the professional school was dis-credited, one and all, in favor of a short-cut e,”--a short-cut method that could result only in disaster if applied without the appropriate preparation
How long it does take people to realize that real education is a slow process! that it takes years and years and years of varied experiences for the processes of assie of stable character!
And the Governton just a little noithout serious danger of being sent to jail), eneralthe war, it did not entrust its educational war program into the hands of the National Bureau of Education It did have the War Departe their respective phases of war activities Why was not the Department of Education called on to direct the educational work? Had it been, the S
A T C fiasco, as well as some other blunders, would doubtless have been avoided But the thought (or was it the lack of thought?)profession would know better how to get educational results than any one froenerally discernible in the election of boards of education in towns and cities thruout the country--any one is satisfactory save those who know definitely what should be going on inside of the school house
Perhaps all this was to be expected I rather think so But I confess to surprise when I find such criticis echoed from within--from men who should know better, as, for exa of this article The explanation, I suppose, is that, tis Perhaps they were suffering from a mild form of brain-storm, and have te
Let us analyze the situation and see if we can discover just what the war did reveal as to the short-cos of our educational system Let us then try to locate the responsibility
One of the s thus revealed is a high percentage of illiteracy--nearly eight per cent, I understand, the country over The seriousness of such a situation can scarcely be overestimated It was serious in time of war--the inability of a soldier to read orders, or to folloritten directions, or to make written reports, especially when one takes into consideration the myriad forms of war service just recently used, would limit his possibilities of service and cripple himself and all his companions But illiteracy is even more serious in times of peace, for then such individuals are not ient officers and thus prevented fronorant actions