BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME FROM THE « SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND THE GIFT OF Henrg W, Sage 1891 lf..S,.l).i.i,.L / • , S.i^Jo/o.^.. Cornell University Library LA222 .B87 olin 3 1924 032 694 295 Cornell University Library The original of tliis book is in tlie Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924032694295 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL THE MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK BOSTON • CHICAGO ATLANTA • SAN FRANCISCO MACMILLAN & CO., Limited LONDON ■ BOMBAY ■ CALCUTTA MELBOURNE THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. TORONTO THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL BY JOHN FRANKLIN BROWN, Ph.D. FORMERLY PROFESSOR IN EDUCATION AND INSPECTOR OF HIGH SCHOOLS FOR THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 1909 , H, AU right! reurvtd Cop'Jright, igog. By the MACMILLAN COMPANY. Set up and electrotyped. Published May, 1909. Reprinted October, igog. J. S. Cushlng Co. —Berwick & Smith Co. Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. PREFACE The problems of the American high school are specific. They differ much from those of the elementary school below and those of the college, university, or technical school above. The experience of the last half century has revealed them; it has also developed a considerable body of knowledge concerning them, which every high- school teacher should possess before entering upon his work. This knowledge will not solve all his individual problems, but it should at least make him aware of their existence and suggest the solution which he must himself work out. This volume is an attempt to present such information about the high school. It is not an exhaustive treatment of the subject, but merely an introduction to it. Unfor- ttinately we still continue the general practice of sending into the high schools from the colleges and universities young men and women whose best preparation for their work consists in academic scholarship ranging from poor to excellent, and an enthusiastic desire to teach the sub- jects in which they have become most interested during the college course. In the great majority of cases these young people have not received an hour's instruction re- VI PREFACE garding the special character, requirements, and limita- tions of the field of labor into which they are going. The fact that so many of them have succeeded as well as they have is a tribute to youthful enthusiasm and adaptability. But the day is approaching when no one will be permitted to enter the ranks of the high-school teacher without at least a minimum acquaintance with the field. If this book helps to hasten that day and serves to make clear to prospective and actual teachers who read it the prob- lems of secondary education, and at the same time to inspire them with more intelligent ideals of service, the purpose of the author will have been attained. While the facts and principles presented apply to high schools generally, the circumstances and needs of the smaller schools have been kept particularly in mind. In proportion to the degree in which the teaching in these schools is improved, the instruction of all high-school pupils will be improved; first, because a considerable majority of all the high-school pupils in the coimtry is found in schools of this class; and second, because suc- cessful teachers in them are rapidly promoted to the larger schools. Consideration of the private secondary school has been omitted, not because it is regarded as unimportant or be- cause its problems are entirely different from those of the public high school, but because the latter affords a defi- nite and sufi&ciently large field for discussion; and as a PREFACE Vll matter of fact, the great majority of secondary-school pupils of the United States is found in the public school. The author is under obligations to school officials of several states for their courtesy in naming typical schools of high grade; to the superintendents and principals of these schools for furnishing information concerning their work; to many friends who have rendered valuable assist- ance in various ways; and especially to Dr. JuHus Sachs, Professor of Secondary Education in Teachers College, Columbia University, for his helpful criticism of the work in manuscript. New York, April, 1909. CONTENTS CHAPTER I PAGE Historical i 1. The Latin grammar school 2 2. The academy 14 3. The high school ,. .24 CHAPTER n TufE Function of the High School 1. Relation to the elernentary school 2. Relation to the higher institutions 3. Relation to the pupil 4. Relation to the State 39 39 54 71 78 CHAPTER in The Programme of Studies 90 1. Educational aims 91 2. Educational values 96 3. Subjects in the programme 103 4. Time and order of subjects 117 5. Constants 121 6. Electives 123 7. Suggested programmes of study .... 125 CHAPTER IV Organization and Management 143 1. Relation of the high school to the grades . . -143 2. Programme of studies 146 3. Daily programme of study and recitations . . -157 jx CONTENTS 4- Division of subjects among teachers . i6i 5- Location of authority 163 6. Text-books 16, 7- Pupils' advisers 167 8. Supervision of teaching 167 9- Typical small high schools .... 169 10. The large high school 170 11. Standards of the North Central Association of Col leges and Secondary Schools 172 CHAPTER V Material Equipment 177 1. Buildings and grounds 177 2. Laboratories 181 3. Library 184 4. Decorations 188 5. Museum 188 6. Gymnasium 189 CHAPTER VI The Teacher 193 1 . Academic scholarship 193 2. Professional training 197 3. Personality 207 4. Experience 215 5. Sex 218 CHAPTER VII The Principal 224 1. Qualifications 224 2. Relation to the governing board .... 227 3. Relation to the superintendent 228 4. Relation to teachers 229 J. Relation to pupils .^ 234 6. Relation to parents 237 7. Relation to the community at large .... 239 CONTENTS XI CHAPTER VIII FACE The Pupil 243 1. Characteristic traits 344 2. Consequent needs 259 CHAPTER IX The Class Exercise 269 1. The problem of the class exercise .... 269 2. Method 277 CHAPTER X Government 285 1. Nature and needs of the pupil 285 2. Necessities of the school as a social organization . 293 3. Requirements of the social ideal .... 295 4. Methods of government 297 CHAPTER XI Social Life 303 1. Social needs of the pupil 303 2. Social necessities of the school as an organization . 307 3. Educational value of social life in the high school . 311 4. Organized social activities in the school . . -317 5. Direction and control of social life .... 337 CHAPTER XII The High School and the Community .... 342 1 . Adaptation of the high school to the community . 342 2. Cost of the high school to the community . . 348 3. Benefits of the high school to the community . . 349 4. Obligations of the community to the high school . 352 CHAPTER XIII Present Problems and Future Development . . 362 1. Function 363 2. Reorganization of curriculum 366 Xll CONTENTS 3. Vocational training 4. Manual training 5. Physical education 6. Moral education 7. Social education 8. The small high school 9. Questions involving sex 10. Elimination of pupils 11. Finance . 12. Teachers . yAGE 369 374 375 376 380 38 f 385 389 392 394 APPENDICES A. Report of Cleveland committee on six-year high-school course 409 B. Programmes of studies given in the Report of the Com- mittee of Ten 414 C. Programmes of studies of representative high schools in different States 416 D. Programme of studies of a Prussian Realgymnasium . 437 E. Statistical rei^orts from typical small high schools . . 438 Index 457 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL CHAPTER I Historical The American colonists inherited from their English ancestors a purpose and a plan to provide such prepara- tory training for their talented sons as would enable them to pursue a college course successfully and later to assume honorable positions in Church and State; but it was left to the American people of the nineteenth century to devise and develop a system of free education that should give equal opportunity to all regardless of sex, social position, or future purpose in life. Beginning with the Latin grammar school founded at Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1635, the course of development of American secondary education has been through the academy to the free public high school. The third century since the founding of Plymouth Colony has seen the general disappearance of the grammar school and the academy, and at the same time a phenomenal development of the public high school. A sharp delimitation of the periods of these three classes of schools cannot be made, but it may be said in general that the grammar school flourished from early colonial times 2 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL till the Revolution; the academy from the Revolution til the Civil War; and the high school from that date till the present time. THE LATIN GRAMMAR SCHOOL English Influence. — Notwithstanding the fact that the departure of the Pilgrim Fathers from England was a protest against certain things English, the roots of Ameri- can civilization strike deep into British soil. It was im- possible for even dissenters to throw ofiE the customs of centuries. "In the American colonies," says Commis- sioner Elmer Ellsworth Brown, "and later in the yoimg American states, so long as their literature, science, and art continued to be dependent on that of Europe, two opposing influences may be clearly seen, shaping tl ^ higher life of the people. The first is the spirit of protest against European institutions, which many of the colonists brought with them from their old home; the second is the ever present instinct of imitation. The protest was as much a mark of provinciality as was the imitation. Real American institutions might be expected to develop with the development of real American nationality. In the beginning there could be only such institutions as might arise under the mingled influence of a desire to be like the mother country and a desire to be different." ' No- 1 Brown, E. E., " The Making of our Middle Schools," p. 6. For the material contained in this chapter the author is under special HISTORICAL 3 where else is this fact more clearly evident than in the colonial plans for preparatory and college education. The Latin grammar school of the colonies was a copy of the Latin grammar school of old England. The Grammar School of England grew with the Renais- sance and Magna Charta. It represented classical thought and Christian culture grafted on English character. It followed the acknowledged leadership of Oxford and Cambridge. The Revival of Learning had brought to the universities the inspiration of the humanities as revealed in classical literature and in the Scriptures. The wealth of the world's wisdom was to be found in the Hebrew, Greek, and Latin languages. It was but natural that these languages and the thought contained in them should constitute the main part of the university curriculum. It was equally natural that the preparatory schools should direct their efforts mainly to the mastery of the elements of these same tongues. St. Paul's School, London, may be taken as typical of the Latin grammar schools of England. It was founded about 15 lo by John Colet, Dean of St. Paul's. Buildings for school and masters were erected in the church yard of the cathedral, and a liberal endowment was given from the private fortune of the founder. The administration of the obligations to the writings of Dr. Elmer Ellsworth Brown, Commissioner of Education for the United States, whose scholarly work has made him the recognized authority on the history of American secondary education. 4 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL trust was given into the hands of the Company of Mercers, the City of London guild to which Colet's father belonged. The purpose of the school is stated in the beginning of the statutes as follows: "John Colet, the son of Henry Colet, Dean of Paul's, desiring nothing more than educa- tion and bringing up of children in good manners and literature, in the year of our Lord one thousand five hun- dred and twelve, builded a school in the east end of Paul's Church for 153 to be taught free in the same." Among the conditions of entrance is found the following: "If your child can write Latin and English sufficiently so that he be able to read and write his own lessons, then he shall be admitted into the school as a scholar." '■ The curricu- lum and the broad spirit of the school are indicated in the following extract from Colet's instructions: — "what shall be taught "As towchyng in this scole what shalbe taught of the Maisters and lemyd of the seders it passith my wit to devyse and determyn in particular but in general! to speke and sum what to saye my mynde, I wolde they were taught all way in good litterature both laten and greke, and goode auctors suych as haue the veray Romayne eliquence joyned withe wisdome specially Cristyn auctours that wrote theyre wysdome with clene and chast laten other in verse or in prose, for my entent is by thys scole specially to incresse knowlege and worshipping of god and oure lorde Crist Jesu and good Cristen lyff and maners in the Children And for that entent I will the Chyldren > Lupton, J. H., "Life of Dean Colet," Appendix B. HISTORICAL 5 lerne ffirst aboue all the Cathechyzon in Englysh and after the accidence that I made or sum other yf eny be better to the pur- pose to induce chyldren more spedely to laten spech And thanne Institutum Christiani homines which that lernyd Erasmus made at my request and the boke called Copia of the same Erasmus And thenne other auctours Christian as lactancius prudentius and proba and sedulius and Juuencus and Baptista Mantuanus and suche other as shalbe tought convenyent and moste to purpose vnto the true laten spech all barbary all corrupcion all laten adulterate which ignorant blynde folis brought into this worlde and with the same hath distayned and poysenyd the olde laten spech and the varay Romayne tong which in the tyme of Tully and Salust and Virgill and Terence was vsid, whiche also seint Jerome and seint ambrose and seint Austin and many hooly doctors lernyd in theyr tymes. I say that fEylth)messe and all such abusyon which the later blynde worlde brought in which more ratheyr may be callid blotterature thenne litterature I vtterly abbanysh and Exclude oute of this scole and charge the Maisters that they teche all way that is the best and instruct the chyldren in greke and Redyng laten in Redyng vnto them suych auctours that hathe with wisdome joyned the pure chaste eloquence." ' The Characteristic Features of the Latin Grammar School in England may be stated as follows: i. It was dominated by the spirit and ideals, of the universities, and it was essentially a university preparatory school although attended by some students who did not purpose going to the university. 2. Its curriculum was principally made up of the classical languages, especially Latin, although » Ibid. THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL in the lower classes considerable time was necessarily spent upon reading, writing, and arithmetic. 3. It was influenced in large part by the Church and churchmen who laid great stress upon the importance of moral and religious education and the necessity of training men properly to carry on the work of the Church. 4. It was patronized by the middle and higher classes, but was not regarded as a school for the people at large. It has been estimated that in the middle of the seventeenth centiuy there were three hundred grammar schools in England, one for each eighty-three hundred of population. 5. It was free so far as its endowment and support would make possible, but in many, perhaps in most, cases fees were required. 6. It was supported and directed by some in- dividual, by a guild, or by the Church, not by the State. The "East Indy School." — It was natural that the early colonial grammar schools should be similar to those of England, for many of the colonists had been trained in the English schools and imiversities. The first attempt to foimd a grammar school is interesting both on accoimt of its tragic failure and on account of the clearly evident theory which it indicated concerning the relation of the school to the college. Before 1621, plans were drawn in the Virginia colony for the establishment of a college. First, however, there must be a school which should pre- pare pupils for the college. The college remained a mere plan, but vigorous efforts were made to establish the HISTORICAL 7 school. Funds were collected for its endowment, and a thousand acres of land were set apart for its use. It was named the "East Indy School." "It was thought fit that this, as a collegiate or free school, should have de- pendence upon the college in Virginia which should be made capable to receive scholars from the school into such scholarships and fellowships of said college shall be endowed withal for the advancement of scholars as they arise by degrees and deserts in learning." ' But before the school could be actually established, the Indian mas- sacre of 1622 occurred, and the effort was perforce aban- doned. The Boston Latin School was established in 1635. The citizens, in town meeting assembled, voted "that our brother, Philemon Pormont shall be intreated to become school master for the teaching and nurturing of children with us." ^ Beyond the fact of its establishment, the earliest history of this school is obscure, but in 1642 a "general meeting of the richer inhabitants" was called at which subscriptions were taken " towards the maintenance of a free school master for the youth with us." Public maintenance was soon provided, and the school has had a prosperous existence to the present day. In the cata- logue of the " Public Latin School in Boston" for 1907, we find the following rules : — ' Neill, E. D., "History of the Virginia Company of London," p. 255. ' Second Report of Boston Record Commissioners, p. 5. 8 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL "The course of study for the Latin schools shall be for six years. " Candidates for admission to the Latin schools must present a written statement from their parents or guardians of their intention to give such candidates a collegiate education. "Pupils under the age of eleven years shall not be admitted without special permission of the superintendent. " Graduates of the Boston elementary schools who have been granted diplomas, and pupils of such schools who have been promoted to the seventh or a higher grade, and who present to the principal evidence of satisfactory scholarship, may be admitted to the Latin schools without examination, and may be placed in such classes as their qualifications may determine." Other New England Towns soon followed the example of Boston, among them Charlestown and Ipswich in 1636, Salem in 1637, Dorchester and Newburg in 1639, and Roxbury in 1645. Within sixteen years after the founding of the Plymouth Colony, grammar schools had been vol- untarily established in seven different towns. The Massachusetts Law. — In 1647 t^^ Massachusetts Bay Colony passed the famous law requiring the establish- ment of an elementary school in every town containing fifty families and a grammar school in every town contain- ing one hundred families. The law reads as follows: — " It being one cheife piect of y' ould deluder, Satan, to keep men from the knowledge of y° Scriptures, as in form' times by keeping y™ in an unknowne tongue, so in these latt' times by pswading from y° use of tongues, y* so at least y" true sence & meaning of y" originall might be clouded by false glosses HISTORICAL 9 of saint seeming deceivers, y* learning may not be buried in y' grave of o' fath" in y' church & comonwealth, the Lord assisting o' endeavo's, — " It is therefore ord'ed, y* ev'y towneship in this iurisdic- tion, aft' y® Lord hath increased y™ to y" number of 50 house- hold", shall then forthw"* appoint one ■w*''in their towne to teach all such children as shall resort to him to write and reade, whose wages shall be paid eith' by y" parents or mast" of such children, or by y* inhabitants in gena'U, by way of supply, as y" maior pt of those y' ord' y" pruden- tials of y* towne shall appoint ; pvided, those y' send their children be not oppressed by paying much more y° they can have y" taught for in oth' townes; & it is furth'' ordered, y* where any towne shall increase to y" numb' of 100 families or househoW, they shall set up a graEaer schoole, y' m' thereof being able to instruct youth so farr as they may be fited for y" university, pvided, y if any towne neglect y" pformance hereof above one yeare, y' every such towne shall pay S £ to •f next schole till they shall pforme this order." ' The Massachusetts law was transferred to New Hamp- shire when it was set off from the parent colony, and it was practically copied by Connecticut. The Rules Governing the New Haven Grammar School are very suggestive, as that school may be taken as typical of the work and spirit of the earlier schools of this class. "Orders of ye Committee of trustees for the Grammar Schoole at New Haven to be observed & attended in ye said Schoole, made, agreed upon & published in ye sd Schoole in ye yeare 1684." ' Records of Massachusetts, Vol. II, p. 203. lO THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL "ist. The Erection of ye sd Schoole being principally for ye Institucion of hopefull youth in ye Latin tongue, & other learned Languages soe far as to prepare such youths for ye CoUedge and publique service of ye Country in Church, & Common- wealth. The Chiefe work of ye Schoole-Mr. is to Instruct all such youth as are or may be by theire parents or Frinds sent, or Committed unto him to yt end with all diligence faithfullness and Constancy out of any of ye townes of this County of New haven upon his sallary accompt only, othenvise Gratis. And if any Boyes are sent to ye Mr. of ye said Schoole from any other part of ye Colony, or Country, Each such boy or youth to pay ten shUhngs to ye Mastr at or upon his entrance into ye said Schoole. "2. That noe Boyes be admitted into ye sd Schoole for ye learning of English Books, but such as have ben before taught to spell ye letters well & begin to Read, thereby to perfect theire right Spelling, & Reading, or to leame to write, & Cy- pher for numeracion, & addicion, & noe further, & 3rt all others either too young & not instructed in letters & spelling, & all Girles be excluded as Improper & inconsistent with such a Grammar Schoole as ye law injoines, & is ye Designe of this Settlemt, And yt noe Boyes be admitted from other townes for ye learning of English, without liberty & specially licence from ye Comitte. "3. That the Master & Schollars duly attend the Schoole Houres viz. from 6 in ye morning to 1 1 oClock in ye forenoone, And from i a Clock in the af ternoone to 5 a Clock in the af ter- noone in Summer & 4 in Winter. "4. That the Mr. shall make a list or Catalogue of his Schollars names And appoint a Monitor in his turne fore one week or longer tyme as the Mr shall se Cause, who shall every HISTORICAL II morning & noone at least once a day at ye set tyme Call over ye names of ye Schollars and note down the late Commers, or Absent. And in fit season Call such to an accompt That the faulty, & truants may be Corrected or reproved, as their fault shall desearve. "5. That the Schollars being called together the Mr shall every morning begin his work with a short Prayer for a blessing on his labours & theire Learning. "6. That prayer being ended the Master shall Assigne to every of his Schollars theire places of Sitting according to theire degrees of learning. And that (having theire Parts, or Lessons appointed them) they Keepe theire Seates, & stir not out of Doras, with [out] Leave of the Master, And not above two at one tyme, & soe successively: unless in Cases of necessity. "7. That ye Schollars behave themselves at all tymes, espe- cially in Schoole tyme with due Reverence to theire Master, & with Sobriety & quietnes among themselvs, without fight- ing. Quarreling or calling one anothr' or any others, bad names, or useing bad words in Cursing, takeing the name of God in vaine, or other prophane, obscene, or Corrupt speeches which if any doe. That ye Mr Forthwith give them due Correcion. And if any prove incorrigible in such bad manners & wicked Corrupting language & speeches, notwithstanding formr warnings, admonishions & Correction that such be expelled ye Schoole as pernicious & daungerous examples to ye Rest. "8. That if any of ye Schoole Boyes be observed to play, sleep, or behave themselves rudely, or irreverently, or be any way disorderly att meeting on ye Saboath Dayes or any other tymes of ye Publiqe worships of God That upon informacion or Complaint thereof to ye due Conviccion of the offender or offenders, The Master shall give them the Correccion to ye 12 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL degree of ye Offence. And yt all Correccions be wth Modera- cion. "9. That noe Lattine Boyes be allowed upon any pretence (sickness, and disability excepted) to withdraw, or absent themselvs from the Schoole, without liberty graunted by the Master, and yt noe such liberty be granted but upon ticket from ye Parents or frends, & on grounds sufficient as in Cases extraordinary or of absolute necessity. " 10. That all the Lattin SchoUars, & all other of ye Boyes of Competent age and Capacity give the Mr an accompt of one passage or sentence at least of ye sermons the foregoing Saboth on ye 2d day morning. And that from i to 3 in ye aftemoone of every last day of ye week be Improved by ye Mr in Cate- chizing of his SchoUars yt are Capeable." ' Grammar Schools not Popular. — The grammar schools, however, were never popular with the people at large, and the law requiring that they be established and sup- ported in towns having one hundred families was vigor- ously opposed by a considerable minority. In some cases the town officials quietly paid the fine for non-compliance with the law. In others they sought to escape it by re- porting that they could find no teacher. In one case they employed a teacher for ;^30 a year to serve until the law should be repealed. The people who wished their sons to go to college supported the grammar school. Those who could not patronize the college were usually unable to see the practical benefit of pursuing a course of study the main part of which consisted of Greek and Latin. ' American Journal of Education, Vol. IV, p. 710. HISTORICAL 13 The Curriculum deserves a word of special considera- tion. Inasmuch as these schools were primarily college preparatory schools, it would naturally be determined by college entrance requirements. For Harvard these were stated as follows: "When any scholar is able to under- stand Tully, or such like classical Latin author extempore, and make and speak true Latin in verse and prose, suo ut aiunt marie; and decline perfectly the paradigms of nouns and verbs in the Greek tongue; let him then and not before be capable of admission into the college." * The requirements of the grammar school connected with William and Mary College are stated as follows : — "Let the Latin and Greek Tongues be well taught. We assign Four Years to the Latin, and Two to the Greek. As for Rudiments and Grammars, and Classick Authors of each Tongue, let them teach the same Books, which by Law or Custom are used in the Schools of England. Nevertheless, we allow the Schoolmaster the liberty, if he has any observations on the Latin or Greek Grammars, or any of the Authors that are taught in his School, that with the Approbation of the Presi- dent, he may dictate them to the Scholars. Let the Master take special Care, that if the Author is never so well approved on other Accounts, he teach no such Part of him to his Scholars as insinuates any Thing against Religion or good Morals. And because nothing contributes so much to the Learning of Lan- guages, as dayly Dialogues, and familiar Speaking together, in the Language they are learning; let the Master therefore take Care that out of the Colloquies of Corderius and Erasmus, ' "New England First Fruits," in Old South Leaflets, No. 51, p. 2. 14 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL and Others, who have employed their Labours this Way, the Scholars may learn aptly to express their Meaning to each other." 1 The Religious and Moral Purpose of these schools was emphasized quite as much as the intellectual. In the selection of teachers, as much attention was given to their piety and morality as to their scholarship. In most cases the ministers of the community were largely influential in determining their choice. The Main Characteristics of the Grammar Schools may be stated as follows: i. They were established by the towns under coloniallaw. 2. Theoretically they were free, though fees of some sort were usually paid, except in the case of the poorest pupils. 3. They were dominated by the spirit of the colleges rather than by the desires and needs of the people at large. 4. The curriculum was made up for the most part of Latin and Greek. 5. Since they were established to prepare young men for service in the Church and Commonwealth, especially the former, the religious spirit in them was very strong. 6. Most of their pupils expected to go to college, but some did not. 7. They were small schools, usually taught by one or two teachers. THE ACADEMIES Academies in England. — The academy like the Latin grammar school has an English ancestry. The English ' Quoted by E. E. Brown, in "The Making of our Middle Schools," p. 130. HISTOKICAL 15 academy was a product of religious nonconformity. It seems probable that the first school of this kind was established in 1665, at the village of Rathmill, by one Richard Frankland, who had previously been called by Cromwell to direct a college established by him with funds taken from the episcopal see of Durham. The college disappeared at the Restoration, and its principal estab- lished a private school which became the ancestor of a long line of academies in both England and America. The Act of Uniformity of 1662 drove nearly two thousand English clergymen from their churches. At the same time nonconformists were denied admission to the public schools and the universities. Many of the clergymen had been educated at Oxford and Cambridge, and they loved learning as well as religion. The banishment of the non- conformists from the universities provided these clergymen with a new occupation, that of teaching. They knew that their form of religious faith could not be maintained with- out the support of educated men. Following somewhat the ideals set forth by Milton in his "Tractate upon Educa- tion" and by Defoe in his "Essay upon Projects," these deposed clergymen set about the secret establishment of schools in which the children of nonconformists could be educated. The Act of Uniformity and the Five-mile Act made: progress extremely difficult, but these earnest men persisted imtil conditions were made easier under the Toleration Act of 1689. There were some thirty of these 1 6 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL academies in England before the American Revolution. Judged by the character, attainments, and testimony of their students, many of them were excellent schools. The names of students include those of a Lord Chancellor of Ireland; Nicholas Sanderson, the blind mathema^cs pro- fessor at Cambridge; an Earl of Oxford; Viscotmt Bol- ingbroke; Samuel Wesley; Isaac Watts; John Hughes; Joseph Butler, later Bishop of Durham and author of the "Analogy"; and Thomas Seeker, later Archbishop of Can- terbury . These academies were frequently boarding schools somewhat similar to the present public schools of England. The Curriculum in the Academies would naturally con- tain those subjects which were regarded as necessary for the ministry and the development of the religious life in general. Latin, Greek, Hebrew, and the Scriptures had a large place, as in the grammar schools, but the curriculum was extended beyond these to include the elements of the subjects taught in the universities, — logic, philosophy, ethics, rhetoric, and theology; and later considerable at- tention was given to the scientific and political theories which had been developing under the benevolent influence of John Locke and Sir Isaac Newton. There was notice- able a distinct tendency to study those subjects which had a closer relation to the practical duties of life than had Latin and Greek. Since the academy was a finishmg school, it was not so largely dommated by the influence of the university as was the grammar school. In general. HISTORICAL 17 it may be said that the English academy represented a spirit of dissent, both reUgious and academic. The Earliest American Academy was the one established at Philadelphia in 1751, which afterwards developed into the University of Pennsylvania. Some years earlier Ben- jamin Franklin had presented a plan for the establish- ment of such a school, but the time was hardly ripe. He continued to be the leader of the movement, however, and his influence on the school as actually established was considerable, though he was compelled to yield certain points that were very dear to him. After consultation with some of his friends, he issued and distributed widely his "Proposals relating to the Education of Youth in Pennsylvania." The general plan met with favor. Subscriptions amount- ing to ;^8oo a year for five years were received. Then the city government gave ;£200, with the promise of £100 annually for five years. The subscribers chose a board of twenty-four trustees, and the school was organized as The Public Academy in the City of Philadelphia. The school was popular and grew rapidly. In his " Proposals" Franklin wrote: — "As to their studies, it would be well if they could be taught everything that is useful, and everything that is ornamental. But art is long and their time is short. It is therefore proposed, that they learn those things that are likely to be most useful and most ornamental; regard being had to the several pro- 1 8 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL fessions for which they are intended. All interested for divin- ity, should be taught the Latin and Greek; for physic, the Latin, Greek, and French ; for law, the Latin and French; merchants, the French, German, and Spanish; and, though all should not be compelled to learn Latin, Greek, or the modem foreign languages, yet none that have an ardent desire to learn them should be refused; their English, arithmetic, and other studies absolutely necessary, being at the same time not neglected." '■ This academy was originally organized in three schools: the Latin school, the English school, and the mathematical school, with a master over each. Later a philosophy school was added. The Latin and the philosophy schools were then called the college, while the name of academy was confined to the English and mathematical schools. The growth of the other schools at the expense of the English school was very displeasing to Franklin. Purpose. — The educational purposes of the~~ founders are well set forth in the petition which they presented to the city fathers when they asked aid from the city; and these purposes are suggestive of the educational spirit of the time: — "i. That the Youth of Pensilvania may have an oppor- tunity of receiving a good Education at home, and be under no necessity of going abroad for it; Whereby not only consider- able Expense may be saved to the Country, but a stricter Eye may be had over their morals by their Friends and Relations. "2. That a number of our Natives will be hereby qualified ' Sparks, " Works of Franklin," Vol. I, pp. 572, 574. HISTORICAL 19 to bear Magistracies, and execute other public ofl&ces of Trust, with Reputation to themselves & Country; There being at present great Want of Persons so qualified in the several Counties of this Province. And this is the more necessary now to be provided for by the English here, as vast Numbers of Foreigners are yearly imported among us, totally ignorant of our Laws, Customs and Language. "3. That a number of the poorer Sort will be hereby quali- fied to act as Schoolmasters in the Country, to teach Children Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, and the Grammar of their Mother Tongue, and being of good morals and known charac- ter, may be recommended from the Academy to Country Schools for that purpose; The Country suffering at present very much for want of good Schoolmasters, and obliged fre- quently to employ in their Schools, vicious imported Servants, or concealed Papists, who by their bad Examples and Instruc- tions often deprave the Morals or corrupt the Principles of the Children under their Care. "4. It is thought that a good Academy erected in Phila- delphia, a healthy place where Provisions are plenty, situated in the Center of the Colonies, may draw a number of students from the neighboring Provinces, who must spend Considerable Sums yearly among us, in Payment for their Lodging, Diet, Apparel, &c., which will be an Advantage to our Traders, Artisans, and Owners of Houses and Lands. . . ." * Curriculum. — Of the academies generally, it may be said that their curriculums at first showed much less de- pendence upon the colleges than had prevailed among the ' Montgomery, T. H., "History of the University of Pennsylvania," p. 502. 20 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL grammar schools, and much greater regard for the interests of the people at large. Sooner or later the classical col- lege preparatory course appeared in nearly all the acade- mies, but it was simply one course among two or more others, and it did not entirely control the spirit of the school as it had done in the grammar schools. As the colleges began to give preparatory credit for subjects other than the classics, even this course was modified. The academy thus became a fitting school, but its domi- - nating spirit was that of a finishuig school, with almost equal emphasis upon the ideas of general culture and of practical preparation for life. The English and the mathematical curriculums foimd place beside the classical, and commercial subjects were given considerable promi- nence. The grammar school and the college had paved the way to the two learned professions of the time, the law and the ministry, and in so far they had come to be looked upon as professional schools which did not supply the means of liberal culture. It was the purpose of the academies both to present a larger range of subjects which should give a broader culture and to teach subjects of more direct use in social, industrial, and business life. The Religious Spirit of the academy was in most cases very strong, but it was more liberal than that which had prevailed during colonial times. Men and women had learned to work together for the moral and intellectual improvement of society, with less emphasis upon the HISTORICAL 21 niceties of theological differences. Most of the academies were nonsectarian, but some were established and domi- nated by a single religious denomination. The Control of the academies was usually vested in a self-perpetuating board of trustees. In practically every case these schools were established by philanthropic effort, individual or collective. Not infrequently some financial assistance was rendered by city or state, as in the case of the Philadelphia Academy, but control re- mained with the private corporation. Individual con- tributions for their support were a necessity, and they were sometimes liberally endowed, as in the case of Phillips Exeter and Phillips Andover. However, the funds received in these ways were not sufficient to support them without considerable tuition fees. They had no organic connection with any other school, except in the fact that their Latin course prepared for college. Indeed, they were regarded as rivals of both the grammar school and the college. So far as the curriculum was concerned, the latter were the schools of a class; the academy belonged to the people. However, the private control and espe- cially the tuition fees required made the academies some- what exclusive also, as is clearly indicated in their later development. Academies Popular. — The academies struck a popular chord. They appealed to the wants and needs of the people. One course prepared for college, the others for i2 TH£ AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL the broader practical needs of life. They were attended by a more mature class of young people, both male and female, than were found in the grammar schools. With laws requiring the establishment and support of grammar schools at public expense, many people were yet willing to pay the cost necessary to maintain the academy. In not a few cases the free grammar schools were reorganized into academies, or the academy was taken over by the city or town and supported by taxation. Throughout the Eastern and Middle States may be found many "Free Academies," e.g. the Elmira (N.Y.) Free Academy. They became a powerful and beneficent influence in the educa- tion of teachers for the elementary schools, especially in the country and smaller towns, and so were the predeces- sors of the normal schools. They helped to educate the people to the idea of a practical secondary education for all classes. They led the way in providing secondary education for girls, — a movement which culminated in the establishment of women's colleges and the opening of men's colleges for the higher general and professional education of women. It seems likely also that they had a broadening and liberalizing influence upon college en- trance requirements. In 1830 there were some five hun- dred academies scattered throughout the country, by far the greater number being in the New England States, New York, and Pennsylvania. Academies became Fitting Schools. — An interesting HISTORICAL 23 point in the evolution of the academy is found in the fact that in the latter half of the nineteenth century, during the period, of most rapid development of the high schools, most of the academies that did not merge into the free public high schools, became distinguished as fitting schools for Eastern imiversities; for example, the Phillips acade- mies at Andover and Exeter. The Particular Characteristics of the American acade- mies maybe stated as follows: i. They represented a pro- test against the narrow classical training afforded by the grammar schools. 2. They sought to give a substan- tial secondary education to young people regardless of whether they wished to go to college or not. 3. Their early development was almost entirely independent of the college, but they soon came to provide a college prepara- tory course. 4. They were organized and managed by private effort and supported, for the most part, by private funds, — subscriptions, endowments, and tuition fees. 5. They were broadly religious in spirit without being denoininational. 6. In most cases they admitted girls as well as boys. 7. They trained teachers for the ele- mentary schools. 8. They influenced the entrance re- quirements of the colleges. 9. They were animated by a broader, freer, more truly American spirit than the gram- mar schools, a spirit more in accord with the developing characteristic American democracy. 10. The fact that they were managed by private effort and that they were 24 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL not free prevented any organic connection with the public elementary schools and rendered them somewhat exclusive. THE HIGH SCHOOL The First High School in the United States was founded at Boston in 1821. Not till 1818 had the city extended its public school system to iuclude the elementary schools as well as the grammar schools. Only three years' time was necessary to convince the people of Boston of the value of a free non-classical school enabling the youth of the city who did not want to take a college course to continue their education without the cost attached to attendance upon an academy. The school was estab- lished tinder the name of the "English Classical School." In 1824 the name appears as the " English High School." The report of the school committee presents the existing situation clearly. "Though the present system of public education, and the munificence with which it is supported, are highly beneficial and honorable to the Town; yet in the opinion of the Committee, it is susceptible of a greater degree of perfection and useful- ness, without materially augmenting the weight of the public burdens. Till recently, our system occupied a middle station: it neither commenced with the rudiments of Education, nor extended to the higher branches of knowledge. This S3^tem was supported by the Town at a very great expense, and to be admitted to its advantages, certain preUminary qualifica- tion§ were required at individual cost, which h^ve the effect of HISTORICAL 25 excluding many children of the poor and unfortunate classes of the community from the benefits of a public education. The Town saw and felt this inconsistency in the plan, and have removed the defect by providing Schools in which the children of the poor can be fitted for admission into the pubUc semi- naries. " The present system, in the ojjinion of the Committee, re- quires still farther amendment. The studies that are pursued at the English grammar schools are merely elementary, and more time than is necessary is devoted to their acquisition. A scholar is admitted at seven, and is dismissed at fourteen years of age; thus, seven years are expended in the acquisition of a degree of knowledge, which with ordinary diligence and a common capacity, may be easily and perfectly acquired in five. If then, a boy remain the usual term, a large portion of the time will have been idly or uselessly expended, as he may have learned all that he may have been taught long before its ex- piration. This loss of time occurs at that interesting and criti- cal period of life, when the habits and inclinations are forming by which the future character will be fixed and determined. This evil, therefore, should be removed, by enlarging the present system, not merely that the time now lost may be saved, but that those early habits of industry and application may be acquired, which are so essential in leading to a future life of virtue and usefulness. "Nor are these the only existing evils. The mode of educa- tion now adopted, and the branches of knowledge that are taught at our English grammar schools, are not suflSciently extensive nor otherwise calculated to bring the powers of the mind into operation nor to qualify a youth to fill usefully and respectably many of those stations, both public and private, 26 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL in which he may be placed. A parent who wishes to give a child an education that shall fit him for active life, and shall serve as a foundation for eminence in his profession whether Mercantile or Mechanical, is under the necessity of giving him a different education from any which our public schools can now furnish. Hence, many children are separated from their parents and sent to private academies in this vicinity, to acquire that instruction which cannot be obtained at the public semi- naries. Thus, many parents, who contribute largely to the support of these institutions, are subjected to heavy expense for the same object, in other towns. "The Committee, for these and many other weighty con- siderations that might be offered, and in order to render the present system of public education more nearly perfect, are of the opinion that an additional School is required. They therefore, recommend the founding of a seminary which shall be called the English Classical School, and submit the follow- ing as a general outline of a plan for its organization and of the course of studies to be pursued.- "ist. That the term of time for pursuing the course of studies proposed, be three years. "2ndly. That the School be divided into three classes, and one year be assigned to the studies of each class. "3rdly. That the age of admission be not less than twelve years. "4thly. That the School be for Boys exclusively. "Sthly. That candidates for admission be proposed on a given day annually; but scholars with suitable qualifications may be admitted at any intermediate time to an advanced standing. "6thly. That candidates for admission shall be subject to a HISTORICAL 27 Strict examination, in such manner as the School Committee may direct, to ascertain their qualifications according to these rules. "ythly. That it be required of every candidate, to qualify him for admission, that he be well acquainted with reading, writing, English grammar in all its branches, and arithmetic as far as simple proportion. "Sthly. That it be required of the Masters and Ushers, as a necessary qualification, that they shall have been regularly educated at some University. " The Studies of the First Class to be as follows : Composition. Reading from the most ap- proved authors. Exercises in Criticism; com- prising critical analyses of the language, grammar, and style of the best English authors, their errors & beauties. Declamation. Geography. Arithmetic continued. " The Studies of the Second Class •continued Composition. Reading. Exercises in Criticism. Declamation. Algebra. Ancient and Modern History and Chronology. Logic. Geometry. Plane Trigonometry; and its application to mensuration of Heights and Distances. Navigation. Surveying. Mensuration of Superficies and Solids. Forensic Discussions. 28 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL " The Studies oj the Third, Class Composition; Natural Philosophy, including Exercises in Criticism; Astronomy. Declamation; Moral and Political Philos- Mathematics ; con- ophy Logic; tinued History; particularly that of the United States. New York High Schools. — In 1825 a High School for Boys was opened in New York City, and the next year a similar school for girls; but these schools suspended opera- tions in 1831. The first report of the boys' school contains the following: — "It should never be forgotten, that the grand object of this institution is to prepare the boys for such advancement, and such pursuits in life, as they are destined to after leaving it. All who enter the school do not intend to remain for the same period of time — and many who leave it expect to enter imme- diately upon the active business of life. It is very plain that these circumstances must require corresponding classifications of scholars and of studies. "Some pursuits are nevertheless common to all. All the scholars in this department attend to SpelUng, Writing, Arith- metic, Geography, Elocution, Composition, Drawing, Philoso- phy, Natural History, and Bookkeeping. Philosophy and Nat- ural History are taught chiefly by lectures and by questions; ' Quoted by E. E. Brown, in "The Making of our Middle Schools," pp. 298-301. HISTORICAL 29 and these branches, together with Elocution and Composition, are severally attended to one day in every week." ' The Dominating Influence at first seems to have been a desire on the part of the people to give their children in- creased educational advantages different from those avail- able elsewhere. The grammar schools did not satisfy because they looked to the college, and the course of study was not practical enough. The academy would not do, because it was controlled by a close corporation, and it was expensive. To meet the growing spirit of American freedom and democracy, there was needed an educational institution of a different type, one that should be free and xmder public control like the grammar school, and that should offer a practical, cultural course of study like the academy. There was a demand for education more than the elementary schools provided, different in kind from that found in the grammar schools, and furnished at public expense. The free public high school met this demand and it grew, slowly at first, but with startling rapidity after its usefulness was tested and recognized. Order of Development. — In our educational system the colleges and elementary schools developed before the high schools. The colleges extended downwards into the Latin grammar schools, as preparatory schools. The elementary schools extended upwards into the academies and later into the high schools as means for the extension ' First Annual Report of the High-school Society, p. 6. 30 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL of a general, practical education. But neither the gram- mar school, the academy, nor the high school was at its origin regarded as the connecting link between the ele- mentary schools and the colleges. That relation was an after-thought which the State University of Michigan did much to make effective. It is clear now, that, in the nature of things, the free public high school was the only one of these three institutions which could survive and perform this function. It alone could serve the whole people, alike the rich and the poor, equally well those who desired to prepare for college and those who did not. The Relation of the High School to the elementary school was, of course, clear from the beginning. Its rela- tion to the college was gradually defined as school and college drew closer together. This drawing together was accomplished through two changes, one in the curriculum of the school, the other in the entrance requirements of the college. The Change in the School Curricultun resulted from the influence of the colleges upon the schools and the growth of the idea that, as the institution of the whole people, the high school should prepare for college as well as for life. The presence in the schools of teachers who were college trained would naturally tend to rouse ambitions for a college education. The colleges, believing as they did that the best college preparatory training was also the HISTORICAL 31 best training for life, early came to look upon the high schools as primarily college preparatory schools, and they used all their powerful influence to develop the college preparatory course, at the expense, if necessary, of every- thing else. This M^as particularly true of the older, more conservative colleges; it was much less true of the state miiversities. For many years this question of the work of the high school was a bone of contention between high- school and college men, the latter insisting, the former resisting. The matter is not yet entirely settled either in theory or in practice. The Change in Entrance Requirements of the colleges came as a result of new ideas concerning educational values and of a recognition of the fact that the high school, as part of a complete system of education, has a function of its own to fulfill regardless of its relation to the college. The state universities led in this movement, followed more or less tardily by the colleges of classical rank. A com- parison of college, entrance requirements of fifty years ago with those of the present indicates that, whether for good or ill, the high school has influenced the college al- most as much as the college has influenced the high school. Perhaps it would be better to say that both have changed as a result of changing conceptions concerning their fimction in society, their mutual relations, and the educa- tional value of different subjects of study. This is less true in the East than in other parts of the country. 32 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL The High School a Product of Many Influences. — It will thus be seen that the modem high school is a product of many influences. First of all in importance is the fact that it is an institution of the people at large. It lies close to their social and intellectual life; it is controlled by them and is dependent upon them for support. Its original aim of serving only those who did not want to go to col- lege was too narrow to be maintained. The logic of the situation was too strong to be resisted. In a country where all are "born free and equal" there must be equality of opportvmity. How could this equality be better secured than by making the free school of the people the stepping- stone to the college as well as to the duties of practical life? It was not long before the high schools introduced into their programmes a college preparatory coiurse besides the courses affording a more general and practical train- ing. With the development of the state universities of the Middle West there came the recognition of the fact that the elementary schools, the high schools, and the uni- versities are parts of one system, that the people would create "a great educational ladder with one end in the gutter and the other in the university," as Huxley says. The state imiversities led the way in recognizing the fact that the high schools exist on their own account for the service of the people in their own particular sphere and not merely as college preparatory schools. University entrance requirements were made more liberal until now, HISTORICAL 33 instead of the former doctrine that what is good prepara- tion for college is good preparation for life, we hear that what is good preparation for life is also good preparation for college. By a process of evolution the high school has taken over the functions originally performed by both grammar school and academy, that is, its courses are so organized as to prepare either for college or for life. The Legal Question. — There came a time when the legal constitutional right of a community to tax the people for the support of high schools was questioned. In 1872 in the suit brought by Charles E. Stuart et al. vs. School District No. i of the village of Kalamazoo, Michigan, in which the complainants sought to restrain the collection of taxes voted for the support of the high school and the payment of the salary of a school superintendent, the supreme court made the following famous decision: " Neither in our state policy, in our constitution, or in our laws, do we find the primary-school districts restricted in the branches of knowledge which their officers may cause to be taught, or the grade of instruction that may be given, if their voters consent in regular form to bear the expense and raise the taxes for the purpose." * This decision has formed a precedent for the use of judges in other states where the question has been raised. The Growth of High Schools since i860 has been phe- nomenal. At that time, it has been estimated by former • 30 Michigan, 69. 34 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL United States Commissioner Harris, there were about forty high schools in the coimtry. There was doubtless a con- siderably larger number that laid claim to the name. In 1870 there were 160 schools; in 1880, 800; in 1890, 2526; in 1900, 6005; in 1905, 7576. The growth of pub- lic and private secondary schools from 1890 is indicated by the table on opposite page. Summary. — From this hasty historical review it will be seen that secondary education in the United States has shown three distinct phases: that of the Latin gram- mar school, a public institution, whose function, broadly speaking, was to prepare boys for college; that of the academy, a private institution, whose function was, pri- marily, to afford boys and girls who did not want to go to college a training conducive to general culture and prac- tical efficiency; and that of the high school, a public in-* stitution, whose function, as originally conceived, was strikingly similar to that of the academy. Considera- tion of its function in American society of the present day will occupy our attention in the next chapter. REFERENCES The following abbreviations are used : Acad. (Academy) ; Ed. (Education); Ed. Rev. (Educational Review) ; Ped. Sent. (Pedagogical Seminary) ; Proc. N.E.A. (Proceedings of the National Educational Association) ; Rep. Com. Ed. (Report of the Commissioner of Education for the United States). HISTORICAL 35 1 •^so looo 0\\o t^vo lo inoo w h o in On t^ h On O 0\ O^ w ^ ^vO CNVD TfiOONO H O ^0\ 00 On« rr)ON"^H OOO O O OnCOO M On-^H o. On O VO t^OO ir^t^^O O Onio^ OnnO -^00 0\0 ^lOOvOOO t-t lOOO r«^ M- lo ON fOCO W ^ w cococorfTfTj-vim lONO vo vo vo t^ t^oo oo On M r^ O On H CI (^00 00 On fOOO i^NO H H W lO -"^ N 00 ^rtCO OnWOO lOH 0\« H rofO cotnNO COMVO -^fOW H -(^-loroir^ro rO^O I>> NO '^^ !>■ O N -^NO r^OO O H N POND 00 O H 1 00 V) m roNO 01 ONm« coo t^OvO fOOoO lOOO 00 On -^ OnOO O O IDOO m n On CO nO fO H Tf li-) l:^ ONOO O W CO Tf On (N h -stOO « lO Ci Tt ^ Tf ^J- lOO r^ t^ r- t^ r^OO 00 00 00 On On O CO H o o^miot^Tj-coiooo f^H o r>.t^r>-ioO coo roi>.'^'^iOCO(N cOOvW On-^O O iOH On Tj- t^ rovo fO\0 NO WOO J^NNOQO "^W t^H ■^CO CTCOOONO l>.lOfOOCO ■<*'H POI>.H t^ aNONOOwwooooMOooooooN 1 Onh coOnOnOnW T|-t^O t^V) PONO NO O t^NO O poOnOnO iniot^iOH H r^o "^no looo lo « « O w O lOt^iOfO-^H t^ONTi- U-IOO t^ On t^NO t^ r^OO 0000 OnOnOvO OnOnOnOnOn onoo H 1 WTfQlONONOGO t^OO « lO O NO r>- On -^ PO H lo t>.00 00 O O ONiot^ONrOONO « iN fO VO t^iOiOONH H M ONON Onoo 00 NO no no id -^ WJHHWMWCIOHHHHHHHMHM o 2 1 (TSNO \0 ro^ONCOcOOt^H O w cooO .vO « 00 r^NO o oo looo o -^r^H "^ iTi o\ tr^ r^ ci XT) « « « « (N coro'«*-"^^ioioiotnvONO r*t^ i < ThH O « Q OnHOOWOOIOOnO h ■^■^ H « lo H H H t^oo ONr^rot>.'-'-00 O H W tI-nO 00 O « HMHHHHHWMWWWMrOCO NO H l/^OO ^ M -^ OnIO lO lOOO .rOWNO wl>.0 M OnO h onO coir^rpO is ^1 O H w ro rt- ionO r^oo On O w ej rp ^ tpNO tr- ONONO^ONONONO^ONONONO O O O O O O OOOOCOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OnOnOnO^OnOnOnOn iiVVViiiitiiiiiiii On O w CT ro 'rf tONO t^oO On O H w rO Tj- too 00 OnOnOnOnOnOnOnOnOnOnO O O O O O O OOOOOOOOCOOOOOOOOOOOOO OnOnOnOnOnOnON HHHH^j^MMHHHMMWMHHHH 36 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Boone, R. G. Education in the United States. Appleton, 1889. Brown, E. E. History of secondary education in the United States. Sch. Rev. 5 : 84, 139, 193, 269; 6 : 225, 357, 527; 7 : 36, 103, 286; 8 : 485, 540; 9 : 34, 446, 498. The Making of our Middle Schools. Longmans, 1903. Monograph on Secondary Education in Butler's Educa- tion in the United States. J. B. Lyon Co., Albany, 1900. —I — Secondary education. Rep. Com. Ed. 1903, i : 553. Dexter, E. G. History of Education in the United States. Macmillan, 1904. Elliott, E. C. Genesis of American secondary schools in their relation to the hfe of the people. Fourth Year- book of the National Society for the Scientific Study of Education, Part I. Hale, E. E. The Boston Latin School. Ed. 23 : 607. Harris, W. T. The growth of public high schools in the United States, as affecting the attendance of colleges. Proc. N.E.A. 1901 : 174. HuLiNG, R. G. The American high school. Ed. Rev. 2 : 40, 123. Martin, G. H. The Evolution of the Massachusetts Public School System. Appleton, 1894. Meriwether, C. Our Colonial Curriculum, 1607-1776. Capital Pub. Co., Washington, 1907. Seaver, E. P. Development of the high school. Ed. Rev. 14 : 302. Small, W. H. The New England grammar school, 1635-1700 and 1700-1800. Sch. Rev. 10 : 513, 14 : 42. The academy — incorporated and endowed. Barnard's Am. Jour. Ed., 30 : 760. The academy of the olden time and the high school. Ed. Rev. IS :4Si. The Boston Latin School. Ed. i : 499. Contributions to American Educational History. Mono- graphs published by the U. S. Bureau of Ed. HIStORICAL 37 Earliest form of public schools in New England. Barnard's Am. Jour. Ed. 27 : 59. Early New England — schools and teachers. Barnard's Am. Jour. Ed. 30 : 737. Early school movements in Virginia. Barnard's Am. Jour. Ed. 27 : 33- Franklin's idea of an academy. Acad. 2 : 457. The old village academy. Atlantic, 73 : 853. The references of this book are not exhaustive, but they represent some of the best and most easily accessible material on the topics discussed. For other books and articles the fol- lowing bibliographies may be consulted: — Brown, E. E. The Making of our Middle Schools, Bibliog- raphy, pp. 481-518. Longmans, 1903. DuTTON, S. T. and Snedden, D. S. Administration of Public Education in the United States. Macmillan, 1908. Ref- erences following each chapter. Locke, G. H. Bibliography of secondary education. Sch. Rev. 1903. LucKEY, G. W. A. Professional Training of Secondary Teach- ers, BibKography, pp. 265-391. Teachers College, 1903. MoNSOE, W. S. Bibliography of Education. Appleton, 1897. Wyer, J. I. and Lord, I. E. Annual current bibliography of education, in Ed. Rev. for April of each year beginning with 1900. Wyer, J. L and Phelps, M. L. Bibliography of Education for 1907. U. S. Bureau of Ed., Bulletin, 1908: No. 3. Whole No. 386. Library Bulletin No. 2 of Columbia University. Books on Education in the Libraries of Columbia University. Co- lumbia University, 1901. Pages 124-135 on secondary education. Psychological Review Index; a bibliography of the literature of psychology and cognate subjects. New York, 1894-. Index to Education. Boston. Index to Educational Review. New Yo];k, 38 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Index to School Review. Chicago. Index to Proceedings of the National Educational Association. Index to the Reports of the United States Commissioner of Education. List of Publications of the United States Bureau of Education, 1867-1907. Bulletin, 1908 : No. 2. Whole No. 385. CHAPTER II The Function of the High School The function of the high school may be considered in its relation to the elementary schools, to higher institutions of learning, — colleges, universities, ^d technical schools, — to the pupil, and to the State and society. The high school is part of a system of public education, consequently it should stand in organic relation to the other parts of that system both below and above; it serves an age of youthful unrest, and it should minister wisely to the peculiar needs of that age; it is supported by society and the State, hence it should serve their interests. RELATION TO THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS Historical Resume. — No attempt appears to have been made to effect a close articulation between the elementary schools and the Latin grammar schools. The former scarcely looked beyond themselves. The latter looked forward to the college. The academy and the elementary schools had this much in common, that thfey both looked not to a higher school, but to the preparation of their pupils for the duties of practical life. But the fact that the elementary schools were generally supported by public 39 40 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL taxation while the academies were private institutions sup- ported by endowments and fees, prevented unity of man- agement and concerted action. In a general way it was possible for pupils of the elementary schools to pass to either the grammar school or the academy, but there was no organic relation between them. The relation between the high school and the elementary schools has always been close. The latter were established to serve the in- terests of the people at large in their relations to the State and the Church, and in that capacity they became very popular. Indeed, it was owing to their popularity that the school committee of Boston felt called upon to estab- lish the English Classical School, the first free public high school in the country. The people appreciated the free elementary schools so highly that they were glad to tax themselves to support a higher school which should con- tinue training not for college but for life. The high school, historically considered, is simply a continuation of the elementary schools. The Latin grammar school was generally free, but it passed away because it made poor connection with the elementary schools, and because its programme of studies appealed only to those of the people who saw in it a means to enter college doors. The academy appealed to the people as far as its ideals and its programme of studies were concerned, but it declined because it was not free find made no organic connection with the elementary THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 4I schools. The high school grew because it was free, it was organically a continuation of the elementary schools, its programme of studies appealed to the practical views of the common people, and, more recently, because it leads directly to the doors of the college. The Relation of the High School to the Elementary Schools as they exist to-day is suggested by this historical resume. Both are the children of the people at large, and not of any particular class. The function of the elementary school is to teach all the children of the nation the elements of morality, good health, and good citizenship, and to give them a mastery of the tools of intelligence and culture, with such elementary information concerning nature and mankind as may be taught during eight or nine years of child life. It is the function of the high school to con- tinue that work with such change of means, subject- matter, and methods as the changing needs and abilities of adolescence require. So close is their functional rela-^ tion that it were well to have no gap between them of which the pupil may become more or less painfully conscious. Function of the Elementary School. — Considering more in detail the general statements of the preceding paragraph it may be said that, besides the moral and social purposes which characterize all schools, the func- tion of the elementary schools is to give the pupil command of the tools of education. These are reading, writing. 42 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL arithmetic, and the ability to use the mother tongue effectively in writing and speaking. With these arts at his command the child has the key to all learning. They are usually acquired during the first five or six years of school life. If the pupil has been well taught, he has also acquired incidentally a considerable number of facts valuable for purposes of culture and information. To these may be added the experience gained apart from particular connection with school life. But during these years the school must never forget that its main purpose is to give the child efficient command of the means which he will use in all his future educational attainments, as well as in the performance of the duties of daily life. In the second period of the elementary schools, the period usually called that of the grammar school as dis- tinguished from that of the primary school, the emphasis is shifted from the mastery of the means of knowledge as a purpose to the mastery of knowledge itself. Inciden- tally, practice in the use of the elements acquired in the primary grades is continued, and this phase of the sub- ject must receive considerable attention, but it is no longer the main purpose. Geography, literatiu-e, physi- ology, grammar, history, advanced arithmetic, and civics are taught not so much because they are the means of acquiring additional information, however valuable they may be for that purpose, as because the knowledge gained in the study of these subjects has in itself practical and THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 43 cultural value for the pupil. "Snow-Bound" is not stud- ied (at least it should not be) as an exercise in reading, writing, and spelling, but because it presents certain social, moral, and aesthetic ideals, and certain facts which are considered of practical and cultural value in life. A knowledge of percentage is helpful in business. A knowledge of physiological facts is useful in caring for one's health. Geographical information aids in com- mercial enterprises. And so with the other subjects regularly taught in the seventh and eighth grades. They are information and culture studies, with the emphasis now on one phase and now on the other. Criticism of Existing Course of Study. — There are many profound students of education who think that the elementary school is the least efficient part of our public- school system, and that its course of study should be largely reorganized. In fact, it is generally conceded that there is great need of enrichment of the elementary school course and of a closer connection between it and the high school. Some .of the criticisms urged against the present conditions are as follows: i. The difference between the function of the primary school and the grammar school, considered from the psychological view point, is not properly recognized, and subject- matter and methods are not changed as they should be. 2. In general, too much time is required to accomplish the results actually obtained. Either less time should 44 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL be given to the work or more should be accomplished, or both. 3. The course is planned with reference to the needs of those who expect to continue their education in the high school, and perhaps in the college, also, rather than with regard to the needs of that great majority of pupils who never enter the high school. Let there be, as Professor Hanus suggests, certain profitable forms of technical training in the seventh and eighth grades. 4. The break between the grammar school and the high school is too abrupt, and it comes at an unfortunate age. 5. Too much time is spent upon particular subjects, es- pecially arithmetic and grammar. It is urged that if the study of arithmetic were taken up seriously at the age of nine years and pursued for three years, better results would be obtained than are now secured from six years' study, and the time usually given to arithmetic during the first three years of the child's school life, would be saved for language work, nature study, and history stories. Certain antiquated topics of the traditional arithmetic which are not used in practical life and which are of doubtful disciplinary value should be omitted entirely. Technical grammar should not be taught before the seventh grade, and the most difficult parts should be omitted until the pupil reaches the high school. Indeed, it is claimed by some that no technical grammar should be taught in the grades, literature and composition being more profitable for the grammar-school pupil. 6. In THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 45 place of the intricacies of arithmetic let there be some work in elementary algebra and constructive geometry. It is easier and more profitable. Instead of technical grammar let the pupil have the opportunity of beginning a foreign language in the seventh or eighth grade. It is better suited to his ability, and will save time later in the high-school course. Advantages of Six-year Plan. — The advantages of such reorganization of the elementary-school course would be to provide subjects of study more suited to the ability and interests of the pupils; to give those who go no further than the grammar school a more practical education than is secured under the present plan; to give pupils the advantage of association with more and better teachers, departmental teaching for the seventh and eighth grades being assumed; to make the transition to the high school less abrupt; to cause this transition to come at an age more favorable to the continuance of the pupil in school; and to afford prospective high-school pupils an opportimity to begin their work in mathematics and foreign language earlier than now. There is a wide- spread conviction that the high-school courses of study as now organized include too much work to be satisfac- torily accomplished in four years; but that the work required in the six years beginning with the seventh and ending with the twelfth, could be readily done if it were reorganized along the lines indicated. 46 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL The execution of the plan suggested in these construc- tive criticisms would involve considerable reorganization of both the elementary and the high-school courses of study. The work of the seventh and eighth years would be most affected, the work below those years remaining much as it now is. The first six years might then be called the period of elementary education, the second six years that of secondary education.' That there is a growing tendency toward the reorgani- zation of the work of the elementary and high schools along the lines suggested above, there can be no doubt. Superintendent J. M. Greenwood reports the existence in Kansas City of a seven-year course in the elementary schools and a four-year course in the high school. In the light of thirty-three years' experience he contends that this is sufficient time for the average pupil beginning school at the age of six, to complete the work required to enter college, and he believes the year saved not only gives the student an advantage at the end of his educa- tional career, but it has a great influence in keeping boys in school for the entire eleven years' course. Closer Connection. — If the six-year plan, or any other similar plan of reorganization, is ever generally adopted, doubtless it will effect a closer connection between the elementary schools and the high school than has yet been ' See Appendix A and the Report of the Committee of Ten for a more detailed plan of reorganization. THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 47 attained. The elementary schools are not merely pre- paratory schools for the high school any more than the latter is merely a preparatory school for the college. Pupils are likely to drop out at any time, in fact only a small per cent of those enrolled in the elementary schools ever reach the high school. The ideal to be sought is such an arrangement of the work that no matter at what grade the pupil leaves school, he will have received the best possible training for him up to that time, due regard being always shown for individual differences and re- quirements. It seems that the desired enrichment of the elementary- school course and the estabUshment of a closer connection between it and the high school can best be attained by some such reorganization of the course of study as has been indicated. However, this is not the only way it can be accomplished. Much can be done without changing the present eight-year elementary-school and four-year high-school plan of organization. As Professor Brum- baugh has so well pointed out * the work of the grammar schools can be enriched as much through the improve- ment of the teachers and the teaching process as through additions to the course of study, or the reorganization of it. The presence in the eighth grade of teachers whose academic, professional, and personal qualifications would fit them for successful work in the high school, and who ' Proc. N. E. A., 1906, pp. 108-112. 48 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL understand the peculiar needs of the first year's work in the high school, would introduce something of the high-school spirit and would do much to bridge the gap which now too often yawns between the method and spirit of the eighth and the ninth grades. If to this precaution another could be added and the first- year high-school pupils were always placed tmder the instruction of experienced teachers who understand the spirit and method of the upper grammar grades, as well as the pupils, the painful process of adjustment to new conditions on the part of the pupil would be much simplified. Causes of Gap. — The chasm which is now felt to exist between the eighth grade and the high school is caused by the following changes: i. In most cases, change from one building to another. 2.. Change in studies. 3. Change in methods of study. 4. Change in methods of recitation. 5. Change in methods and spirit of discipline. 6. Change in the pupil. It is one of the problems of school organi- zation and management to remove or bridge this chasm so far as it tends to prevent the pupil from continuing his course of study. Change of Buildings is pleasant rather than otherwise, implying, as it does, a distinct advance in attainments. In some cases the increased expense required for payment of carfare and the purchase of necessary books and cloth- ing may prevent the pupil from going on. If it is neces- THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 49 sary, the city can well afiford to pay the cost of carfare and books. Change of Studies should attract rather than repel. The increased difficulty of the new subjects should be more than offset by their increased attractiveness because of the new fields of thought which they open. This is especially true if the new studies are wisely chosen to fit the needs of the adolescent mind and the individual pupil. Change in Methods of Study presents a greater difficulty. In the grammar school the pupil is generally accustomed to study all, or nearly all, his lessons under the personal direction of a teacher from whom he can readily procure assistance when needed. As a natural inheritance from preceding years, his mastery of the lesson is more a matter of memory than of imderstanding, unless he is so fortu- nate as to have a teacher who wisely stimulates both, with ever increasing emphasis upon the understanding. In most cases he studies, behaves, and recites imder the direction of the same teacher. Even in those compara- tively few instances in which departmental teaching is carried on in the grammar school, he is usually respon- sible to some one teacher so far as conduct and study are concerned. When he enters the high school, he- finds things very different. There he meets many, or at least several, teachers, all of whom look after him in a general way, but none so carefully as formerly. He may even manage to escape the close attention of all for a time. 50 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL When he is studying Latin and finds a difficulty, the Latin teacher may not be available for assistance, so he passes it over, and, with characteristic youthful unconcern, soon forgets all about it. He is expected to study at home as well as at school, — at home where conditions may be altogether unfavorable for study. He may even be turned loose at one o'clock in the afternoon with no super- vision or assistance by teacher or parent until school opens next morning. The question of discipline is not neces- sarily involved. The pupil may be honest, earnest, and ambitious, and yet make a partial failure in his work simply because he does not know how to study alone and independently. He may learn how through his own flounderings, but this ought not to be required of. him. It is as much the duty of the high school to teach these first-year pupils how to study successfully as it is to hear them recite the lesson learned. A clear conception of the need of the problem, on the part of the teachers, is half the battle, but it is not all of it. Part of every recitation period should be spent in helping the pupil to help him- self, in showing him the important points and how they are to be mastered. Every recitation period should be in itself an illustration of the attention and concentration of effort which should characterize the successful study period. Much will be gained also if at least part of the lessons are prepared in the schoolroom under the direction of a teacher who is free to help at the time of need. THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 51 Change in Methods of the Recitation occasions almost as much trouble as change in methods and conditions of study. In the grammar school the recitation periods are seldom more than thurty minutes long. Through years of association in other grades the pupil is usually well acquainted with everybody in the room, and he is free from embarrassment. The same spirit of dependence that characterizes the study period manifests itself in the recitation also. The intellectual tone of the school is that of the lower grades rather than that of the eighth. There are no higher grades immediately at hand to serve as example and stimulus. By virtue of both tradition and the immaturity of the pupil's mind, the recitation mu^ almost perforce be upon a relatively low plane of intellectual vigor and independence. In the well-regu- lated high school, on the other hand, the recitation periods are forty or forty-five minutes in length. The first-year class is often composed of members coming from differ- ent grade schools; and new faces as well as a new teacher, new surroundings and new subjects, tend to cause a feel- ing of strangeness and embarrassment. The teacher assumes independent and thorough preparation on the part of each pupil. There is the pull of upper classes in determining the intellectual tone of class work. The teacher's idea is to develop accuracy and independence of thought and expression. Not infrequently she expects too much, and she builds a sandy foundation which 52 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL crumbles 'at the first test, to the grief of both herself and her pupil. The better expression, greater independence, and stronger mental grasp which it is entirely reasonable to expect in the work of high-school pupils cannot be imposed from without. It must be developed from within, and that, too, on the foundation laid in the pupil's pre- vious work. Between that foimdation and the super- structure there must be no chinks. It must be built up solid, and in the recitation the wise teacher will pay as much attention to the foimdation which has been laid as to the superstructure which is yet to be erected. With a definite and worthy ideal of what the recitation should be, the teacher should always begin on a plane commen- surate with the pupil's ability and previous training. Change in Discipline. — In the methods and spirit of its discipline the high school is very dififerent from the gram- mar grades. In the latter the pupil is under the direction and eye of his teacher practically all the time. If he does not obey, punishment follows speedily. There is daily dependence upon the teacher in matters of conduct as there is in matters of study and recitation. In the high school there is the beginning at least of a recognized inde- pendence. The high-school pupil can and should control himself in great degree, and this ideal of self-control accord- ing to reason and good judgment is constantly set before him both in words and in opportunity. Of course he does not attain it at once, in fact, he never attains it completely THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 53 during his high-school days, but he moves toward it, and tha^t is itself a worthy ideal and a commendable attain- ment. The first-year pupil is likely to be most sorely tried at the bar of industry, especially if he is permitted to leave the schoolroom when he is not due in recitation. It is always easy to procrastinate. It is hard to work when there is no immediate pressure, and harder still when there is an exciting counter-attraction. A reason- able daily programme of study made out with the assist- ance of the principal, or some teacher acting in the capac- ity of adviser, will be found a great help at this point. For a time at least care should be exercised that the pro- gramme is followed as well as made out. Such a pro- gramme, along with ordinary care in matters of discipline, is probably the best means of bridging the gap between grammar school and high school as far as conduct is concerned. Change in Pupil. — The great changes that are going on in the physical and mental life of the pupil may account for much of the dissatisfaction which - he feels with his high-school work. It is a time of unrest, and the Wan- derlust may seize him. On the other hand the changes we have mentioned may appeal to his desire for change, and prove a means of stimulus and satisfaction to him. Change there must be, both in the course of study and in the management of the pupil. Nothing demands this more than his own nature. But care must be taken that 54 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL these changes shall not be so abrupt as to do violence to his power of readjustment to new conditions. Mutual Obligations. — It is the function of the grammar school not only to do its work thoroughly and completely, but to anticipate the needs of the pupils who will enter the high school, and, by cultivating a spirit of independent thought and rational self-control, to prepare them for the freer, more independent life of that school. And in this mutual relationship it is the function of the high school to accept the pupil from the grammar school with a con- siderate, sympathetic consciousness of his needs and limitations, and to see to it that his initiation into the new life is not fraught with imdue difficulties. A good start is half the battle. It is the first year that coimts, and in that year the first month is by all odds the most important. RELATION TO HIGHER INSTITUTIONS Historical Resume. — In the beginning the high school had no relation to the college or university, unless it were one of rivalry. Boston had its Latin grammar school whose special function was to prepare boys for college. There was no demand for a similar school for girls, for no one then thought of higher education for them. The English Classical School was established to meet another need, that of affording education beyond the elementary schools for boys who did not want to go to college. Thenceforth it was possible to choose between the grammar THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL ' 55 school, which prepared for college, and the high school, which prepared for life. The grammar school and the college formed one continuous branch of development, as did also the elementary schools and the high school; but these branches were entirely separate. So at least in Boston at the time of the founding of the first high school. Elsewhere, however, people seem to have thought more clearly. In 1798 Connecticut had passed a law enabling any school district by a two-thirds vote to estab- lish a higher school that seemed to combine the charac- teristics of a Latin grammar school and an English gram- mar school. In the Indiana constitution adopted in 1816 we find the provision that, "It shall be the duty of the general assembly, as soon as circumstances will permit, to provide by law for a general system of education, ascending in regular gradation from township schools to a state vmiversity wherein tuition shall be gratis and equally open to all." ' A law of the Tennessee legislature of 1817 says: "Institutions of learning, both academies and colleges, shall ever be under the fostering care of this legislature, and in their connection with each other form a complete system of education." In the same year an act was passed by the Michigan legislature creating a state imiversity whose president and professors were empowered "to establish colleges, academies, schools, libraries, museums, athenaeums, botanical gardens, labora- ' Constitution, Act IX, Sec. 2. 56 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL tories and other useful literary and scientific institutions, . . . throughout the various counties, cities, towns, town- ships, and other geographical divisions of Michigan." * These acts indicate the drift of thought towards the forma- tion of a complete state system of schools in which the secondary school should also be a middle school and should prepare for college as well as for practical life. Class Schools Undemocratic. — The growing spirit of democracy forbade the maintenance of two kinds of sec- ondary schools one of which, as the school of the pro- fessional classes, should prepare for college, and the other of which, as the school of the masses, should not make such preparation. When the policy of a state system of schools began to prevail, the place of the high school in the system became entirely clear. At least it was clear that one of its purposes was to prepare its pupils to enter the state university. For a time there was danger lest its original purpose should be lost sight of, and its work should be ruled by the ideals and demands of the univer- sity to the neglect of the interests of those who could not, or would not, go beyond the high school. But a new conception of educational values and a recognition on the part of the state universities that the high schools have a service to perform for those who do not go to college as well as for those who do go, led to a wiser adjustment of their relationship. ' Public Instruction and School Law, Michigan, 1852, p. 4. THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 57 High School should prepare for College. — It has been generally conceded for at least a quarter of a century that the high schools of the country should afford their pupils an opportunity to prepare for the state university in states where there is such an institution, and for the colleges gener- ally. But the basis of such preparation has not been so well agreed upon by representatives of the secondary schools, on the one hand, and of the colleges, on the other. The latter have urged that the high schools should provide at least one course of study which should meet the fixed, arbitrary entrance requirements of the university, while the former have insisted that whatever is good preparation for life is good enough preparation for college, and that the colleges should admit to their classes graduates from any good four-year high-school course. In considering the work of the high school the college men have empha- sized those things that would constitute the best prepara- tion for doing the college work most efficiently, while the secondary-school men, recognizing the fact that a major- ity of their pupils never enter college, have sought to serve the interests of both majority and minority. Report of the Committee of Ten. — It was the conscious- ness that the function of the high school in its relation to the college constituted a distinct and imsolved problem that led to various conferences and attempts on the part of representatives of the secondary schools and the col- leges, to formulate a plan of procedure that should serve 58 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL their mutual interests and those of the people at large. The first of these attempts resulted in the epoch-making Report of the Committee of Ten made in 1893, in which we find the following words : — "There is a general principle concerning the relation of the secondary schools to colleges which the Committee of Ten, inspired and guided by the Conferences, find it their duty to set forth with all possible distinctness. "The secondary schools of the United States, taken as a whole, do not exist for the purpose of preparing boys and girls for colleges. Only an insignificant percentage of the graduates of these schools go to colleges or scientific schools. Their main function is to prepare for the duties of life that small proportion of all the children of the country — a proportion small in numbers, but ve.ry important to the welfare of the nation — who show themselves able to profit by an education prolonged to the eighteenth year, and whose parents are able to support them while they remain so long at school. ... A secondary-school programme intended for national use must therefore be made for those children whose education is not to be pursued beyond the high school. The preparation of a few pupils for college or scientific school should in the ordinary secondary school be the incidental, and not the principal, object. At the same time it is obviously desirable that the colleges and scientific schools should be accessible to all boys and girls who have completed creditably the secondary-school course. ... In order that any successful graduate of a good secondary school should be free to present himself at the gates of the college or scientific school of his choice, it is necessary that the colleges and scientific schools of the country should THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 59 accept for admission to appropriate courses of their instructioa the attainments of any youth who has passed creditably through a good secondary-school course. No matter to what group of subjects he may have mainly devoted himself in the secondary school. As secondary-school courses are now too often ar- ranged, this is not a reasonable request to prefer to the col- leges and scientific schools; because the pupil may now go through a secondary-school course of a very feeble and scrappy nature — studying a little of many subjects and not much of any one, getting, perhaps, a little information in a variety of fields, but nothing which can be called a thorough training." * Concessions Necessary. — In this extract is found a very clear recognition of the principle that the high school exists for the training of the great number of those who do not go to higher institutions rather than for the com- paratively small number who do go. But the courses of study which are suggested — which will be considered in the following chapter — are prepared from the view point of the higher institution, and all of them are supposed to admit to some advanced course. There is in the report not only the explicit criticism of certain existing high- school programmes of study, — a criticism certainly jus- tified in many cases, — but there seems to be a tacit underlying assumption that the courses proposed which constitute the best preparation for some college or scientific- school course, constitute also the best preparation for the duties of practical life, and that in them should be found ' Report of the Committee of Ten, p. 51. 6o THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL sufficient variety to satisfy the varying needs and aspira- tions of all high-school pupils. Most of the report is occupied with an effort to harmonize the claims of the various college departments, so far as required prepara- tory work is concerned. The conference made it clearly evident that not everything that had found place in the programme of studies could be taught at the time, and to the extent desired by its advocates. If such a course were attempted, the four years' high-school curriculum would stretch out to indefinite length. There must either be considerable decrease in the amount of time given to each subject, or the pupil must be allowed to elect the subjects to which he will give the most time. This im- plied a clear recognition of the principle of election also, but the election was to be within the limits prescribed in the four alternative curriculums. Naturally enough the report was dominated by the spirit of the higher institu- tions of learning, but it clarified the problem and indicated marked progress toward its solution. Report of the Committee on College Entrance Require- ments. — The report of this committee was followed in 1899 by the report of another appointed by the National Educational Association, the Committee on College En- trance Requirements. The appointment of the latter committee came as the result of discussion of a paper presented at the 1895 meeting of the Association, entitled, "What Action ought to be taken by the Universities THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 6 1 and Secondary Schools to promote the Introduction of the Programmes recommended by the Committee of Ten?" In the Report of the Committee on College Entrance Requirements (sometimes called the Committee of Thir- teen) an attempt is made to do three things : to indicate what subjects may rightly be regarded as constituting satisfactory preparatory work for entrance to college; to indicate what subjects and how much of each should be required of all candidates for admission to college, by all colleges, leaving a certain number of electives from which the complete requirements should be made up; and to indicate in terms of so-called "units" what part, and how much, of each accepted subject might be regarded as constituting a first, second, third, and fourth year's work. There was no attempt to prescribe fully either the high- school programme of studies, or the entrance requirements of the college, but simply to indicate pretty definitely the kind and amount of work which might reasonably be required in any subject in a given time, together with the amoimt of credit that would be accorded by any college accepting that particular subject as part of its entrance requirements; and to indicate, further, those subjects and the amount of each which might be regarded by colleges and secondary schools alike, as constants in the course of study. The committee also resolved formally "that the principle of election be recognized in secondary 62 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL schools" but not "unlimited election." It "especially emphasizes the importance of a certain number of con- stants in all secondary schools and in all requirements for admission to college." The report marks another long step toward the determination of the relation between the high school and the college. Commission of the Worth Central Association. — The work of defining units in the course of study was continued by the North Central Association of Colleges and Second- ary Schools, an organization formed in 1892 "for the pur- pose of establishing closer relations between the colleges and secondary schools of the North Central States. " Early in its history it appointed a commission so constituted that the number of members should remain equally divided be- tween the secondary schools and the colleges, thus insur- ing a fair and unprejudiced consideration of all questions that should come before it. In the report of the com- mittee which recommended the appointment of the com- mission, its purpose is indicated as follows : — "That it be made the duty of this Commission to define and describe unit courses of study in the various subjects of the high-school programme, taking for the point of departure the recommendations of the National Committee of Thirteen; to serve as a standing committee on uniformity of admission requirements for the colleges and universities of this Association ; to take steps to secure uniformity in the standards and methods, and economy of labor and expense, in the work of high-school inspection; to prepare a list of high schools within the territory THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 63 of this Association which are entitled to the accredited rela- tionship; and to formulate and report methods and standards for the assignment of college credit for good high-school work done in advance of the college entrance requirements." ' The reports of this commission from year to year have done much to define the relations and to promote good feeling between the colleges and secondary schools con- cerned. Other associations in different parts of the coimtry are doing similar service. Twofold Fimction. —The outcome of all the discussion concerning the function of the high school so far as. its relation to the college is concerned, seems to be an un- qualified admission by all parties concerned that the high school is the school of the people at large, and that it must serve the interests of the majority who do not go to col- lege as well as the interests of the minority who do go. The greater numbers of those who go no further certainly require that their interests shall be guarded. On the other hand, the greater influence in society and the state of those who go on makes it imperative that every oppor- tunity and every stimulus should be given them to reach their highest possible attainments. In most cases there is no necessity that the interests of either class should be neglected, although it may be necessary at times to use • Report of the Proceedings of the Seventh Annual Meeting of the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, 1902, Appendix, p. S- 64 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL good judgment in striking a balance between them. The large schools can provide ample opportunities for all. Only in the smaller schools is there difiSculty. The Main Question of Debate at the present time is whether the colleges ought not to admit all students who are graduates of any four-year course in any accredited high school regardless of whether the subjects they have studied are the traditional preparatory subjects or not; in other words, whether the colleges ought not to make their entrance requirements not less in amount but more elastic than they now are. A case in point would be: Mr. H., a bright, worthy young man, has finished with credit a four years' course in a good high school. At the beginning of his course, influenced by his financial con- dition and by the advice of friends, he chose the commercial course, which contains no foreign language. His financial condition is now better than it was four years ago, and he would like to take a college course. But college doors swing open only to those who have studied foreign lan- guages. He can enter only with "conditions." Unwisely, no doubt, but yet firmly, he regards this as humiliating, and rather than endure it he gives up his new ambition. Would it not be good policy for the college to provide one or more courses to which such students could be ad- mitted without "conditions"? In an address at Williams College Commencement in 1893, President Harry Pratt Judson said: "Every course of study in every secondary THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 65 school shall always lead directly to some course of study in some college." ' The Argtiment. — On this point there seems yet to be a wide difference of opinion. The boy's teachers in the secondary school have faith in him, and believe that he ought not to be deprived of a college career because the work he has done does not fit the " entrance requirements." The authorities of the more conservative college, on the other hand, believe that such a student is wholly unpre- pared to do successful college work, and they bewail the fact that other institutions, usually the state universities, have been willing to make considerable concessions in this direction and do, in some cases, admit such students to certain courses without conditions. Ultimately, the question seems to be whether training in any particular subjects can rightfully be said to have a monopoly upon individual culture and social efl&ciency. If it can be shown that no such monopoly exists, it is difficult to see why such a student should not be admitted to some course in college for which his previous work has been satis- factory preparation. There may be abundant reason why any particular college should not provide such a course or admit such a student, but that is far from say- ing that no college or university should do so. The question seems likely to find its solution in the fact that many institutions of undoubted rank have seen fit to pro- ' Williams College Centennial Anniversary, p. 137. 66 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL vide courses to which such students may be admitted without conditions. It remains to be seen whether in the struggle for existence such institutions and such courses survive. The question will never be finally settled imtil we have more accurate knowledge concerning educational values than we have at present. The discussion of this point may be closed with the following query. Granting, for the sake of argument, that the preparatory and college courses under consideration are inferior in culture ele- ments to those of the orthodox type, is it not better for the individual and for society that such students should increase their social efficiency by fom^ years' additional training in practical and commercial subjects, than that they should live their lives on the lower plane of efficiency made possible by secondary education alone? The Relation of the High School to the Technical School has never been a serious question in this country. Many of the latter require for admission training at least equiva- lent to that required for graduation from a good four-year high school. The law schools are inclined to emphasize the importance of work in English, history, and Latin; the medical schools, English, Latin, and science; the engineering schools, English, German, French, and mathe- matics. All ask for a good command of the mother tongue, the power to think clearly, and the habit of thorough work. Thousands of young men and a considerable num- ber of young women who are unable to take a college THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 67 course, pass directly from the high schools to the technical schools. In the larger high schools, special arrangements are made for those who expect to go to some particular technical school, to prepare themselves specifically for the work required in that school. Methods of Admission to College. — The best method of admitting high-school graduates into the college or uni- versity is an important point in their mutual relations, and it remains an open question, with the balance of cus- tom and opinion favoring the certificate or accrediting system. In the years when there was no organic con- nection between the colleges and the secondary schools, it was natural that candidates should be admitted on passing an examination satisfactory to the college. In cases where the college maintained its own preparatory school, completion of the required preparatory course was deemed satisfactory without the addition of a formal en- trance examination. With the development of the state school systems and the recognition of the fact that the high school and the state university are integral parts of this system, it was seen that the step from the lower to the higher should be made as easy and natural as pos- sible. The University of Michigan was the first to see that the one thing necessary to make the state system complete was a mutual recognition on the part of the university and the high school of an accepted standard of work considered as to quan|;ity, quality, and kind. 6^ THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL To this end a committee of university professors was sent to inspect the work of high schools throughout the state. In case the work of any particular school was found to meet the university entrance requirements satisfactorily, the certified graduates of that school were received into the university without examination. The system implied the examination of the school instead of the individual, and it has come to be known as the "accrediting system" or the "certificate system." The plan worked well. With absolutely no authority to change local conditions, the inspectors found themselves in a position to influence those conditions greatly, to improve them when they were unsatisfactory, and to assist their development where they were satisfactory. The high-school authorities and the people of the community generally were pleased to be noticed by the university, and they were glad to have or to make their high schools of such character that graduates could enter the university without examination. The system spread, and, in slightly different forms, it is now in general use throughout the states that support a state university. The New England College Entrance-Certificate Board. — In New England there is a College Entrance-Certificate Board which prepares a list of accredited secondary schools from which graduates are received by certain colleges. These schools are chosen not on the recom- mendation of a visiting inspector, as in the Central and THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 69 Western States, but upon the ability of their graduates to pass college entrance examinations or the ability of gradu- ates already in college to carry their work satisfactorily. Under this plan the schools miss the advice, inspiration, and unifying influence of the visiting inspectors. The College Entrance Examination Board. — In the New England and Middle States the examination system still generally prevails, but it is no longer an afifair of the individual college. The cooperative spirit of the age has asserted itself, and there is now an Entrance Examination Board composed of representatives of both colleges and secondary schools. This Board, through its officers, makes out all questi,ons and grades all answers. The examinations are held in different parts of the country at convenient stated times, and the candidate for admission to Cornell, for example, may take his examination at any one of nearly two hundred places. If he is successful in his examination, he is admitted to Cornell or to any other college for which examination in those particular subjects is adequate. The candidate may choose the subjects in which he is to be examined, and the choice will naturally be made on the basis of the entrance requirements of the particular college which he desires to enter. This plan is a great improvement over the former method which required each institution to conduct its own examinations. Preference for Certificate Plan. — Many of the Eastern colleges use both plans of admission, although a few ad- 70 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL mit only upon examination. Letters received from au- thorities of the colleges using both plans indicate a grow- ing sentiment in favor of the certificate plan, but the opinion is not unanimous. The accrediting system is much more acceptable and satisfactory where it is based upon the work of an official inspector than where it is based upon reports of colleges concerning the work of students alone. In the East the facilities for such inspec- tion are not as good as in the West, and this fact may have something to do with the difference of opinion and custom prevailing in the different sections. Obligations Mutual. — There are strong mutual obliga- tions existing between the high school and the college. A great majority of all who enter college have their pre- paratory training in the public high school. For selfish reasons, therefore, even if there were no others more generous, the college can afford to do everything within its power to strengthen the work of the high school, be- cause in so doing it is but laying a foimdation upon which it may later build the superstructure. On the other hand, the high school owes to the college a debt of gratitude which it can repay only by doing its work with the great- est possible efficiency, thereby inspiring the maximum number of its pupils to continue their preparation for the work of life within college walls. Educational progress is from above downward. The college is the parent of the secondary school. Although organically separate THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 7 1 from it, the first high school acknowledged its debt to the college in the eighth provision concerning its manage- ment, viz. "That it be required of the masters and ushers, as a necessary quahfication, that they shall have been regularly educated at some university." From that day to the present the college has been, through its ideals and teaching graduates, the inspiration of the high school. RELATION TO THE PUPIL Culture. — Having mastered the use of the tools of education in the elementary schools, the pupil is ready to be introduced to that part of the world's knowledge which is peculiarly cultural in its character, the part that gives him an idea of the real dignity of humanity somewhat distinct, it may be, from the material necessities of life. Whatever else the youth may be or become, he should first of all be a man, a worthy representative of the race and its higher ideals. To this end he should become acquainted especially with literature, art, history, and science. It may be maintained, however, that even the most practical information studies contain something of cultural value when they are well taught. In no case should either the course of study or the spirit of the work in the high school be such as to subordinate the culture ideal to any other. That this ideal is practically recognized is indicated by the fact that even in the industrial and 72 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL commercial cumculums of the high schools, at least half the work required is distinctly cultural in its character. Useful Information and Skill. — The pupil should have an opportunity, however, to get more than mere culture from the high school. For a majority of its members, it provides the last formal education they ever get. From it they go direct to the labor of life, — the trades, busi- ness, and the home. In their four years of high-school training they should have an opportunity to gain infor- mation and skill which will help them to live well the common life while they are enjoying and working out the, less materialistic ideals of humanity. They must live the animal, material life first. Only when the lower necessities are satisfied can they catch the more inspiring vision of higher human ideals. The high school owes to those pupils whose circumstances require them during these years to emphasize preparation for the practical side of life's affairs, an opportunity to acquire skill and infor- mation that will be of real service to them in the battle for bread. Physical Welfare. — Aside from the culture, information, and skill that the high school should give the pupil, there are certain specific things more or less apart from scholar- ship that it should do for him. First of all, it should not only conserve, but it should develop his physical powers. The high-school period is a critical time in the physical life of pupils. Extraordinary growth and development THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 73 make unusual demands upon the vital processes of the body. Nutrition, sleep, rest, and exercise become matters of more fundamental importance than mere intellectual development, for without the former, the efificiency of the whole body is likely to be decreased. The cbrrect, regu- lar, vigorous, and habitual functioning of the body in its life processes should be consciously sought, and, as far as possible, obtained. Every pupil should be examined by a competent physician, and, if it is necessary, he should be given corrective gymnastic treatment for natural or acquired defects. The general requirements of the school should be such that they will not do violence to the physical nature of the pupil. Special attention should be given to the exercise of boys, while the girls will require par- ticular care as regards both exercise and rest. The de- velopment and maintenance of the highest practicable degree of physical health and vigor on the part of the pupils should be not merely an incidental but a defi- nitely conscious purpose of the school, and proper pro- vision should be made for realizing it. Self-control. — The school should exercise over the pupil firm but reasonable control, looking always toward a rational self-control. The high-school pupil is between childhood and manhood. The dependence of earlier years is rapidly developing into the impulsive independence of youth. He likes to do as he pleases, but he likes almost as well to be governed and directed, provided it be by a 74 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL strong hand tempered with justice and mercy. In his management there is no place for weakness but great place for sympathetic, merciful justice. He should be taught at once the majesty of the law and the mutual obligations which life in society entails upon each of its members. Inspiration. — The high school should be for the pupil a source of inspiration. In the four years' course it is impossible for him to gain all the knowledge or skill that he will need in the battle of life, however practical his course of study may be. Nor should this be the most valuable result of his efforts. Far more important is it that he shall catch an inspiration to work out the vision which should come to him at some time within these four years. The vision and the impulse are both essential. Youth has no fear to attempt the difficult, even the im- possible. It is the miracle of faith that under such cir- cumstances the impossible becomes the real. These are the golden years of inspiration, and the high school has largely failed in its mission if it has not brought to its pupils some vision of truth or beauty or nobility of char- acter, some worthy attainment which it becomes his am- bition to realize by his own persistent efforts. Self -discovery. — Another fimction of the high school in its relation to the pupil is to help him to find himself and his work. The facilities for doing this have been vastly increased through the extension of the progi-amme THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 75 of studies in recent years. The abilities and dispositions of young people are so different that to attempt to force them all through the same course of training, or even to urge upon them the attainment of the same ideal, is a manifest wrong. The greatest happiness of the indi- vidual and the greatest good of society will be at once secured by helping each pupil to find the niche for which he is by nature fitted and in which he can do the best work. Every teacher should be alert to the possibilities opening before his pupils as determined by their inclina- tions and ability, and, in many cases, the drift of their future lives should be wisely determined before they leave the high school. Respect for Labor. — Another important attainment of the high-school pupil is an appreciation of the dignity of labor. More clearly than is possible in the elementary school, he should be led to see that every capable man who does not serve society at least to the extent of earning his own living becomes thereby a parasite and loses his right to the title of man among men. If fortune has made it unnecessary for him actually to earn his own living, there rests upon him still the equal obligation and the greater opportimity to serve society at large with hand or brain in some worthy way. Nor does it so much matter what the field or form of efifort is. Service is divine. All worthy work well done is honorable. He who digs Greek roots and he who blows the forge, both members of the 76 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL same school, may well learn to respect each the other's labor, if only it be the best possible. This lesson thor- oughly learned will contribute greatly to his own happi- ness and efficiency throughout life. Habit of Industry. — The high-school pupil should not only acquire a wholesome respect for honest labor of whatever kind, but he should himself acquire the habit of earnest, effective work in the mastery of his studies. In college halls and in the hard battle of practical life that habit will be worth more to him than any amoimt of mere brilliancy without it. The habit of hard work may not exactly be genius, but it is the best possible substitute. In the vast i^iajority of cases it is the sine qua non of suc- cessful attainment. No matter whether the pupil be child of day laborer or of millionaire, he should make this habit part of his life's equipment. The college bewails its too frequent lack among college students. The business man condemns the public schools because they do not more generally instill this habit of eflfective industry. Psy- chologically considered, the adolescent years are the time to acquire it. At this time particularly there is no place for what Professor James has so well denominated "soft pedagogics." The youth is not afraid of severe effort provided it appeals to his interest and rouses his en- thusiasm. This appeal to interest and enthusiasm should never be neglected, but it must be supplemented by an appeal to the will. The pupil must be drilled to drill THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 77 himself to the "habitual mastery of daUy difficulties. Self- direction must follow hard after self-control. "A man is little more than the sum total of the nerve reactions made habitual in his youth." ' Conscience. — The moral sense of the high-school pupil should be stimulated, guided, and developed. He is just coming into his inheritance as a truly moral being. Ado- lescent ethical notions are likely to be somewhat distorted and extreme, and under the influence of impulse and the pressure of social sanctions, they may easily become per- verted; but under favorable conditions, during this period the moral sense naturally becomes more rational, intense, and fixed. It often serves as the basis of lofty ideals and gives a distinctive attitude to life. The first important end is to keep the conscience tender and sensitive to the claims of the moral ideal in general; the second, to train the Judgment in the discrimination of concrete duty; the third, to induce the pupil to follow its lead. Religious Aspiration. — The enforced absence of sys- tematic religious teaching from the public schools makes it impracticable to recognize formally the great religious needs of the adolescent age; but the truly religious teacher will nevertheless find many opportunities to encourage and train the sanely religious impulses of his pupils. In so doing he will perform a great service both to the indi- vidual and to society. ' Home, "Philosophy of Education," p. 38. 78 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL RELATION TO THE STATE AND SOCIETY Non-State Educational Agencies. — In di£Eerent forms, education was carried on by individuals, associations, and religious societies long before it was undertaken by the State. Luther was one of the first to maintain that, for the benefit of both Church and State, universal education should be provided at public expense. But for more than two centuries after his death the education of Eiurope was in the hands of the Jesuits and other less influential religious organizations. It is an interesting fact that, in so highly enlightened a coimtry as England, no governmental ap- propriations for the support of education were made until 1833, and not till 1870 did England have anything that could fairly be called free public schools. The world ov/es much to individuals and especially to the Chiirch for their efforts to educate the people at a time when the State had not yet become conscious of its duty. The Motive that inspired the educational efforts of the Church was mainly a religious one. Souls were to be saved from the wrath to come. The cultivation of mtel- ligence, and training in the doctrines of religion and morality were regarded as means to this end. More em- phasis was usually placed upon the religious training than upon the cultivation of an independent intelligence. There was generally a strong rehgious motive behind the efforts of individual founders of schools also. In most THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 79 cases it seems fair to say that all these efforts were prompted by a sincere desire to serve humanity in this life and to prepare for the life to come. In some instances, however, it seems that one very influential motive was the training of men whose influence would serve to perpetuate and in- crease the power of the order. It is probably fair to say that in most cases both motives were in evidence. In support of these efforts much money and service were expended. Results Unsatisfactory. — Nevertheless, for two main reasons, such means of education could never be entirely satisfactory. It was likely to be dominated and restrained to some extent by the peculiar religious ideals of the Church or society under whose direction it was maintained, thus preventing free rational development; and it could not command the money necessary to carry it on. The Jesuits were banished from France because their influence was thought to be prejudicial to the interests of the State, and more recently the schools of the Teaching Congrega- tions have been brought under public supervision for similar reasons. In England during the last decade the English Church has lost much of its educational influence because it could not secure the money necessary to keep its schools up to the standard required by governmental authority. Education by the State. — With the development of the idea that the strength and perpetuity of the State depends 8o THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL on the intelligence, morality, and social efficiency of its individual members, Luther's doctrine took root, and edu- cation became an affair of the State. It was imdertaken not for the sake of saving its subjects in the life to come, as had often been the case with the religious organiza- tions, but for the sake of the State and society in this present time. In his " Lectures to the German People " Fichte aroused Germany to the necessity of educating her people so that they might retrieve the fortunes of Jena and Auerstadt. How effectually he did his work is shown by the outcome of the Franco-Prussian War and by the fact that Germany's present industrial supremacy over the nations of the earth is due to the efBciency of her public schools. Education and National Ideals. — Education is both cause and effect. It is doubtless equally true that present educational ideals are the result of past social and political ideals, and that they will profoundly modify the social and political ideals of the future. Germany educates her youth not as men who are free and equal, but as future citizens who by virtue of their social position and indi- vidual ability have certain more or less specific duties toward the State. The upper classes are educated to rule the nation politically, socially, morally, commercially, and industrially. Just as much pains is taken to educate the lower classes so that they may serve the nation in the same spheres. There is no thought of social equality, but THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 8 1 the ideal of the highest social service in the sphere in which one is bom dominates all else. So also in England, except that there the educational facilities for the lower classes are not so well developed as in Germany. Socially and politically Germany and England have the classes and the masses, and their educational systems are planned ac- cordingly. In a republic like the United States even greater neces- sity exists for educating all its citizens than in an aristo- cratic state. As in aristocratic states, industrial and com- mercial efhciency must be secured and maintained through the proper education of the industrial and commercial classes; but in addition to this more or less technical education, every man must be trained to exercise wisely the prerogatives of an American citizen, a ruler in the State. Added to this is the idea of the essential equality of all men and the inherent right of each to rise as high in the service of the State and society as his ability and attainments will permit. So taught our fathers in the Declaration of Independence ; so we teach in the public schools to-day; and so, we hope, those who come after us will teach and live. The High School and the State. — With this general conception of the relation of education to the State and society before us, we may approach the more specific question of the function of the high school with regard to this relationship. The high school, like all the parts of 82 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL the public-school system, is maintained not for religious or philanthropic purposes but from motives that are more or less selfish ; namely, the preservation, perpetuation, and enlargement of the State or nation. Within reasonable cost, whatever leads to the attainment of these ends is worth while. Civic Spirit. — From the standpoint of the State the fundamental function of the high school is to promote the spirit of good citizenship among its pupils, — an interest in the affairs of the nation, and a conscious desire and purpose on the part of the individual to do well his part. True enough, other things are needed besides the will to do well, but without this all else is vain, if not abso- lutely harmful. To cultivate intelligence without loyalty is to breed traitors. At no other time during the school period is this spirit of good citizenship so easily developed as during the high-school age. The intelligence is suf- ficiently mature to grasp the significance of the State and good citizenship, and the emotional nature is ripe for the stimulation of lofty ideals and high resolves. Literature, civics, geography, political economy, and history, in the hands of a good teacher, contribute to the attainment of the desired end. The high school is the child of the State, and it owes to its parent the spirit of filial devotion. Intelligence. — To the conscious will to do well must be added intelligence to choose wisely. Such intelligence in- cludes both material and spiritual elements, a conscious- THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 83 aess of physical necessities and how to deal with them, md of the more characteristically human facts of life. When one realizes that in the United States there are aearly a million young people spending part, or all, of Eour years of the most impressionable period of their lives in the systematic study of the vast accumulated store jf facts concerning humanity and nature, he gets some [aint notion of the tremendous increment of intelligence nrhich is thereby added to the State. It is the legitimate function of the high school to augment thus largely the intelligence of the nation. Social Efficiency. — Intelligence and devotion should lead to actual social efficiency. It is not enough for the :itizen to know, he must become efficient through his own dynamic power. This efficiency may take either of two Forms which may be characterized as ideal and practical. The ideally efficient man — philosopher, poet, artist, statesman, seer — contributes ideas and ideals which serve to guide and inspire a rising race. The practically efficient man — day laborer, artisan, tradesman, inventor, professional leader — contributes to the material welfare di his fellow-men, often releasuig nervous energy for use n some other sphere. It is vain to speculate upon which 5 higher and more honorable. Both are necessary, and from the standpoint of political and social advancement, ;he measure of efficiency is also the measure of honor due ;he worker. Consequently, it is well that in the high 84 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL schools both cultural and practical subjects should be taught; and they should be taught not in separate schools but together, in order that the idealist may at least gain a wholesome respect for the practical, and the practical mind may catch something of the idealism of its neighbor. A Field of Service and Respect for Labor. — Two other points discussed under the subject of the function of the high school in its relation to the pupU are of equal im- portance to the State and society. The first is the dis- covery of the pupil to himself and his guidance into the right field of social service. The other is the cultivation of a sane, healthy regard for honest labor whether of brain or hand. Their importance is evident without fiui:her argument, and it is only necessary to mention them here. Social Progress through Intelligence. — Education is no longer an unconscious process, as in the days of primitive man. Humanity has become self-conscious and keenly conscious of education as a deliberate, purposeful effort on the part of society to raise itself to a higher plane. Lester F. Ward says : * " For applied sociology as here conceived, there is really only one live problem, that of the maximum equalization of intelligence. This at least is the only practical problem. For the practical is some- thing that can be done. Society can solve this problem. I know of no other problem of applied sociology that society can solve until this one is solved. Most of the ' "Applied Sociology," Chapter XIII, p. 314. THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 85 others would solve themselves long before this one re- ceived its complete solution. An approximate solution of the primary question would naturally and automatically put the great majority of all other social problems in the way of at least ultimate solution." If this be true, the American high school as a free institution open to all must be regarded as a no inconsiderable factor in the solution of the fundamental social problem. Among the many factors to be considered in working out the purpose of the high school may be mentioned the programme of studies, the school organization, material equipment, the teacher, the pupil, social and athletic activities of pupils, methods of instruction, and the gen- eral influences of the community. In the next chapter we proceed to the consideration of the first of these factors. REFERENCES Baker, J. H. The high school as a finishing school. Proc. N.E.A. 1890 :633. Balliet, T. M. The saving of time in elementary and second- ary schools. Proc. N.E.A. 1906 : 317. Bishop, J. R. The high school as a training place for citizen- ship. Proc. N.E.A. 1897:696. Brooks, S. D. The work of a high-school visitor. Sch. Rev. 9 : 26. Brown, E. E. The Making of Our Middle Schools. Long- mans, 1903. Brumbaugh, M. G. Means of improving the efficiency of the grammar school. Proc. N.E.A. 1906 : 108. §6 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL BucHNER, E. F. The relation of the high school to the college, Ed. 26 : 571. Burgess, I. B. The cultural motive in the school. Ed. 28 : 574. Butler, N. The aim in the high school — the development of the many-sided interest, or special preparation for Life ? Sch. Rev. 14 : 135. Butler, N. M. The function of the secondary school. Acad. S : 131- The Meaning of Education. Macmillan, 1905. Religious instruction and its relation to education. Ed. Rev. 18 : 425. The scope and function of secondary education. Ed. Rev. 16 : 15. Butler, W. R. Preparatory and non-preparatory pupils in high school, should they receive identical treatment? Ed. Rev. 12 : 473. Carlton, F. T. The function of the school in the training of apprentices. Sch. Rev. 12 : 631. Coe, G. a. The religious spirit in the secondary school. Sch. Rev. 13 : 581. Coy, E. W. What is a secondary school? Proc. N.E.A. 1896 : 613. Dewey, J. The Educational Situation. University of Chicago Press, 1902. The School and Society. University of Chicago Press, 1899. Donahue, J. L. The gap between the secondary and the ele- mentary school. Sch. Rev. 10 : 701. DuTTON, S. T. Place and function of high school. Ed. 18 : 587- Eaton, J. Connection of high schools with state universities. Barnard's Am. Jour. Ed. 25 : cxi. Eliot, C. W. Educational reform. Century, 1905. What has been gained in uniformity of college admission requirements in the past twenty years? Sch. Rev. 12 : 7S7- THE FUNCTION OP THE HIGH SCHOOL 87 Fakrand, W. The existing relations between school and col- lege. Ed. Rev. 25 : 182. Gilbert, C. B. Relation of the high school to the elementary school and to the college. Sch. Rev. 9 : 167. The various educational demands upon the high school. Ed. Rev. 23 : 136. Greenwood, J. M. A seven-year course for elementary schools and a five-year course for high schools. Ed. 27 : 550- Hadley, a. T. Meaning and purpose of secondary education. Sch. Rev. 10 : 729. Hall, G. S. The high school as the people's college vs. the fitting school. Ped. Sem. 9 : 63. Also in Proc. N.E.A. 1902 : 260. BLanus, p. H. Educational Aims and Educational Values. Macmillan, 1905. Inspection of secondary schools and the Schools Exami- nation Board of Harvard. Sch. Rev. 2 : 257. A Modern School. Macmillan, 1905. Preparation for college and preparation for life. Ed. Rev. 21 : 140. What should the modern secondary school aim to accom- plish? Sch. Rev. 5 : 387, 433. Harris, W. T. Colleges should lower their standards of ad- mission. Ed. 17 : 579. Hollister, H. a. Some results from accrediting of high schools by state universities. Ed. 29 : 133. Ruling, R. G. High school and preparation for business. Ed. 6 : 547. What high schools can do to aid grammar schools in securing better work. Ed. 14 : 385. Jenks, J. W. Citizenship and the Schools. Holt, 1906. Lawton, C. E. Relations between grammar and high school as to courses of study and methods of teaching. Ed. 26 : 103. Leonard, H. C. What the high schools should do to fit stu- dents for college. Ed. 27 : 281. 88 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Low, S. The place of the high school in an ideal scheme of public education. Sch. Rev. 2 : 379. McMuRRY, F. M. The relation between elementary and high schools. Ed. 26 : 253. What omissions are advisable in the present course of study? Proc. N.E.A. 1904 : 194. Morrison, G. B. Do our high schools prepare for college and for life? Proc. N.E.A. 1899 : 603. Report of the committee on equal division of the twelve years in the public schools between the district and high schools. Proc. N.E.A. 1907 : 705. Morse, E. L. G. From grammar to high school. Sch. Rev. 10 : 620. MowRY, W. A. The relation of the high school to business life : vidth the true course of studies. Ed. 3 : 166. Nightingale, A. F. The place of the high school in our system of education. Sch. Rev. 14 : 142. O'Shea, M. V. Education as Adjustment. Longmans, 1906. Payne, W. H. The functions of the high school. Acad. 2 : 398- Russell, J. E. The educational value of examinations for admission to college. Sch. Rev. 11 : 42. Sadler, M. E. Some points of /contrast in the educational system in England and America. Ed. Rev. 24 : 217. Salmon, L. M. Different methods of admission to college. EJi. Rev. 6 : 223. Smith, F. W. Secondary education in the last twenty-five years. Ed. 26 : i. SoLDAN, F. L. The work of the high school. Ed. Rev. 11 : 335- Stuart, G. A. The relations between high schools and ele- mentary schools. Ed. Rev. 22 : 405. Stuart, G. The raison d'etre of the public high school. Ed. 8 : 283. Taussig, F. W. Secondary training as regards citizenship. Ed. Rev. 17 :43i. THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 89 Thomas, I. The New England Entrance-Certificate Board from the standpoint of the high school. Sch. Rev. 12 : 696. rHOMPSON, W. O. The economic relations of education. Proc. N.E.A. 1907 :87. rniTRBER, C. H. The high school as a democratic institution. Proc. N.E.A. 1897 : 694. Thwing, C. F. The obligations and limitations of the high school. Sch. Rev. 9 : 333. Tucker, W. J. Relation of the high school to higher education. Ed. 18 : 579. Vhitney, a. S. Methods in use in accrediting schools. Sch. Rev. II : 138. VooDWAED, C. M. The opportunity and function of the secondary school. Proc. N.E.A. 1903 : 60. rouNG, E. F. The saving of time in elementary and secondary education. Proc. N.E.A. 1903 1322. fouNG, W. H. The high schools of New England as judged by the standard of the college certificate board. Sch. Rev. IS : 134. The standardization of New England high schools. Sch. Rev. 15 : 275. CHAPTER III The Programme of Studies ' Of the manifold means used in the work of school education, the studies pursued are by far the most im- portant. Place, playgrounds, games, buildings, apparatus, the general organization of the school, all have their in- fluence, but more influential than all others are the sub- jects of study to the mastery of which the pupil directs his attention. The teacher is omitted as being an agent rather than a means. The studies give information, ex- ercise observation, judgment, and reason, train the hand, present ideals of life and character, stimulate the emo- tional nature, and, by rousing an interest in things, thoughts, and actions to which the individual is adapted by nature, they tend to give permanent direction to the volitional hfe. The Influence of Tradition. — The past holds us in an iron grasp. Only by strenuous effort can we break away ' An attempt has been made to use the terminology adopted by the Committee on College Entrance Requirements as indicated in the fol- lowing statement: "Three distinct terms seem to be needed: (i) pro- gramme of studies, which includes all of the studies offered in a given school ; (2) curriculum, which means the group of studies schematically arranged for any pupil or set of pupils ; (3) course of study, which means' the quantity, quality, and method of the work in any given subject of in- struction." — Report, p. 42. 90 THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 9 1 from it. It is easy to do what our immediate forbears have done, to see the value of their efforts. It requires original effort and initiative to blaze a new path or even to query seriously whether there may be a better way. The influence of the past upon the high-school programme of studies has been great. As seen in the preceding chapters, the inheritance has been chiefly Greek, Latin, and mathematics. They found place because they had long been there quite as much as because of their edu- cational value demonstrated imder critical examination. Only within the last two decades has there developed a definite purpose to test scientifically the educational value of different subjects of study and to be governed by the results. It is a difficult problem, one not to be hastily solved, but it should be attempted. There is no more important question before the world of scientific educators to-day than the determination of educational values, not only with reference to the studies pursued, but also with regard to the times and methods of pursuing them. THE AIM OF EDUCATION The value of any means cannot be determined without a knowledge of the end to which it is a means. The edu- cational value of any subject of study cannot be deter- mined or even intelligently considered unless we have a reasonably clear idea of the end of education, of the result 92 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL we are striving to attain. Hence the necessity of a brief consideration of this question. Plato conceives the end of philosophy, which is for him education in its highest form, to be the production of the "just man " whom he describes as follows : " The just man does not permit the several elements within him to meddle with one another, or any of them to do the work of others, but he sets in order his own inner life, and is his own master, and at peace with himself." ' Aristotle defines the summum honum, which is for him the highest end of education, as "an energy of the soul according to virtue," — contemplative or intellectual energy he means; but, as man is a "political animal," he must exercise his energy as becomes a member of society.^ Epicurus and the hedonists generally say that the end of life is happiness, and the ends of education would logically be the preparation of the individual to live and enjoy the life of greatest happiness. Spencer says: "How to live? — that is the essential question for us. Not how to live in the mere material sense only, but in the widest sense. The general problem which comprehends every special problem is the right ruling of conduct in all directions under all circumstances. In what way to treat the body; in what way to treat the "•Republic," Bk. IV, 443. ' "NichomachEean Ethics," Bk. I, Ch. VII, 12. THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 93 mind; in what way to manage our affairs; in what way to bring up a family ; in what way to behave as a citizen ; in what way to utilize all those sources of happiness which nature supplies — how to use all our faculties to the greatest advantage of ourselves and others — how to live completely. _And this being the great thing needful for us to learn, is, by consequence, the great thing which education has to teach. To prepare us for complete living is the function which education has to discharge; and the only rational mode of judging of any educational course is to judge in what degree it discharges such function." ^ Professor James says: "In our foregoing talk we were led to frame a very simple conception of what an educa- tion means. In the last analysis it consists in the organiz- ing of resources in the human being, of powers of conduct which shall fit him to his social and physical world. An 'uneducated' person is one who is nonplused by all but the most habitual situations. On the contrary, one who is educated is able practically to extricate himself, by means of the examples with which his memory is stored, and of the abstract conceptions which he has acquired, from circumstances in which he never was placed before. Education, in short, cannot be better described than by calling it the organization of acquired habits of conduct and tendencies to behavior."' Professor Dewey says : "I believe, finally, that education ' "Treatise on Education," p. 11. '"Talks to Teachers," p. 29. 94 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL must be conceived as a continuing reconstruction of ex- perience; that the process and the goal of education are one and the same thing. " I believe that to set up any end outside of education, as furnishing its goal and standard, is to deprive the educa- tional process of much of its meaning, and tends to make us rely upon false and external stimuli in dealing with the child." » President Butler says: "These five characteristics, then, I offer as evidences of an education — correctness and precision in the use of the mother tongue; refined and gentle manners, which are the expression of fixed habits of thought and action; the power and habit of reflection; the power of growth ; and efficiency, or the power to do." ' Professor Hanus says: "The aim of education is to pre- pare for complete living. To live completely means to be as useful as possible and to be happy. By usefulness is meant service, i.e. any activity which promotes the ma- terial or the spiritual interests of mankind, one or both. To be happy one must enjoy both his work and his leisure." ' It appears from the preceding declarations that the end of education is complex rather than simple. Any state- ment of it in a single phrase is likely to be too general and abstract to be of much worth as a test of educational - ' "My Pedagogic Creed," p. 13. ' Educational Review, Vol. 22: p. 334. '."Educational Aims and Educational Values," p. 5. THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 95 ralues. The various ends stated above lend them- selves to indefinite subdivision when used as a standard of measurement. The Aim Stated. — The aim of education is the har- monious development of the human powers for a life of service in the State and society, with due regard for the peculiar needs, inclinations, and abilities of the individual so far as his own happiness and his social efficiency are concerned. When the individual possesses both higher and lower powers equally capable of development, appeal should always be made to the higher. The end of educa- tion is not to make all men alike according to some pre- conceived ideal of the perfect man, but, on the basis of his inherited powers, to raise each person to his highest efficiency both as an individual and as a member of society. In more definite and concrete terms, this end may be said to include physical health and efficiency, manual skill, a large amount of information concerning man and nature, trained intellectual powers, an appreciation of the true, the good, and the beautiful, and an attitude of personal devotion to them, broad sympathies, and a desire and pur- pose to live the fullest possible human life both as an individual and as a member of society. In proportion to the degree in which a study contributes to these ends it may be said to have educational value. 96 THK AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL EDUCATIONAL VALUES Value considered from Different Points of View. — Keeping in mind the ends of education as previously stated, we may consider the educational value of differ- ent subjects from several points of view; for example, the practical value of the information acquired, the in- tellectual power given, the character it cultivates, the value to society of the training of the individual in the subject, the value of the subject for any particular indi- vidual, and the value of any particular subject at any particular age. It will be readily seen that these differ- ent view points are not all mutually exclusive, but there is enough difference between them to warrant separate con- sideration. Practical Information. — From the view point of prac- tical information the difference in the value of the various subjects is evidently great. Judged upon this basis alone, for the mythical average person, neither Greek nor Latin has much educational value; for the important infor- mation contained originally in those languages is now much more easily available in modern tongues, and no valuable additions to knowledge are being made in those languages. Chinese, Choctaw, Arabic, Sanskrit, cannot stand this test; and the same is true, to greater or less degree, of many other subjects. On the other hand, the mother tongue, writing, elementary arithmetic, geog- THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 97 raphy, — political, commercial, and physical, — physi- ology, physics, civics, hold a high place. It does not fol- low, however, that when judged from all points of view, the studies of the first group have little or no educational value, and those of the second group have high value. It is conceivable that the study of Greek and Latin may cul- tivate great intellectual power which may be turned to account elsewhere, even though the practical value of the information gained may be small or attained at too great cost of effort. Or, it may be a powerful influence in the cultivation of a desirable kind of character. Or, for some particular individual, it may be of the greatest value from every point of view. It is conceivable also that the second group may, on the whole, have less value than they appear to have when judged from the view point of practical information alone. Power. — The question of educational values judged from the standpoint of the mental power the study of a subject may give, is one of the most important now claim- ing the attention of educational theorists. When the study of the Greek and Latin languages was attacked on the ground that the information contained in them was not worth the effort required to master them, their sup- porters vigorously urged that while this information might be acquired more easily in other ways, the "mental discipline" gained in the study of these languages is so great that they are really the most valuable subjects in 98 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL the school curriculum. The power of perception, judg- ment, reasoning, and memory acquired in studying them could be applied, it was urged, in the performance of any other kind of mental labor. Underlying this argument is the tacit psychological assumption that mental power of any kind acquired in doing anything, may be applied with little or no loss to the doing of any other thing. This doctrine, known as the theory of "formal discipline," has been the support of Latin and Greek, and some other subjects for many generations of educators. But within the last two decades, the critical psychologist has raised the question whether this apparently plausible theory actually accords with the facts of mental life; he has attempted to test the question according to the method of psychological experimenta- tion, and has foimd facts which seem to indicate that the theory must be accepted with some reservations at least. Motor tests show that skill acquired in the doing of any particular thing is no help in doing something else which requires the use of a different set of muscles. Skill in the sorting of a mixed mass of cards in any particular order proves not only no help, but an actual hindrance in ar- ranging them in some other way. The habit of neatness insisted upon and acquired in the writing of arithmetic papers by children in the intermediate grades, is not carried over into the arrangement of work on language papers by the same pupils. Skill acquired in the discrimi- THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 99 nation of short lines is not carried over to any appreciable extent in the judgment of long lines. Skill in the judg- ment of lengths is not accompanied by corresponding skill in the judgment of weights. Skill in the discrimination of different shades of one color seems to help in the dis- crimination of different shades of some other color; but it has little or no influence on the discrimination of either weights or measures. Training in memorizing poetry has little influence upon the power to remember dates or statistics. The general conclusion from these various investiga- tions seems to be that the mind consists not of one gerjeral power to be trained by any sort of activity, but of many powers which can be improved only by exercise appro- priate to each of them. There is no such thing as general training in the sense in which that expression is ordina- rily used, but only special training. There is not even a single memory, but there are memories which can be economically trained only by exercises adapted to each. Training in any particular kind of physical or mental activity means increased power to do that particular thing or some other thing in which the exercise of closely allied powers is required. It does not mean corresponding increased general power or the ability to do everything else with proportionately increased facility. The result may even be a decrease in the power to do other things. Concerning the doctrine of formal discipline, there is as lOO THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL yet no well-formulated body of teaching upon which mod- ern educational psychologists are well agreed; but the following conclusions, reached by various writers on the subject, are of considerable educational significance: — 1. The hiind must be regarded as an aggregate of spe- cific powers or capacities rather than as a general fac- ulty, and each power can be effectively developed only by exercise appropriate for it. 2. All powers of the mind are interdependent, and the training of one influences the others in greater or less degree. This influence is often very small, and it may be either helpful or injurious. 3. The extent to which the exercise of one power in- fluences another depends upon identity or similarity of subject-matter or of mental processes or both. A small unit of knowledge or a simple mental habit may be in- corporated into a larger unit of knowledge or a complex habit. 4. Certain emotional, volitional, or intellectual attitudes of mind may be carried over from one form of mental activity to another; for example, the pleasure of con- quest, the determination to master everything that is attempted, or a scientific method of procedure. 5. Ideals of work may be transferred from one form of activity to another, and may be cultivated in any of them. The whole question of the disciplinary value of studies is complicated by the presence of two incalculable factors ; 'THig PROGRAMME OF STUDIES lOi namely, the native ability of the student and the stimulat- ing power of the teacher. Character. — The springs of character are the feelings, the emotions. There is no more important result in the work of education than the stimulation of strong, healthy feelings and a permanent interest that will carry the youth on to the attainment of distant but worthy ideals. What- ever contributes to this end has educational value. The temperament of the individual enters so largely into this question that it is difficult to make any very definite state- ment concerning the value of different subjects from this point of view. It may be said in a general way, however, that history and literature contain more of inspiration than other subjects, inasmuch as they have to do espe- cially with the ambitions, the attainments, and the ideals of mankind. However, some spirits find their inspiration in the laws of natural science, others in the abstractions of mathematics, and still others in the allurements of indus- trial or commercial life. Whatever else a subject may or may not yield, its value must be deemed considerable if it serves as an incentive to worthy action; while if it does not do this, it lacks one of the main elements which constitute educational value. Social ■ Value. — The State has as its purpose in the maintenance of educational institutions the making of worthy citizens and members of society. Consequently from the point of view of the State, the educational value of I02 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL any subject is deternuned by its power to develop in the youth the virtues of good citizenship. The qualities constituting good citizenship are so various that many subjects are concerned in producing them, but history, civics, and literature must rank first because of the promi- nence which they give to patriotic ideals and attainments. The Pupil's Reaction. — The educational value of a sub- ject depends not so much upon its content as upon the reaction which the study of it causes in the life of the student; hence it is extremely important to consider the question from the standpoint of the individual. The infinite variety of human personalities makes possible an indefinite number of answers concerning the value of any particular subject. That which, in the case of one, be- comes useful information or skill, develops power, and creates a permanent interest which leads to individual and social efl&ciency, has upon another an entirely dif- ferent effect. The predominance of motor impulses in the life of one exalts the educational value of manual training. The presence of the scientific instinct in another causes the natural sciences to appear of imusual impor- tance. A third may find in both of these only dull drudg- ery, and yet be lifted to the seventh heaven by the dry abstractions of mathematics or the literary niceties of foreign language. The same subject has very different educational values when judged from the view point of different pupils. THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES I03 Time. — This is also true with regard to the time when it is studied. The mathematics which palls one year may be clear as a bell with a year of age added. The literature which is a mere blur at one time may be start- lingly significant a little later. The educational value of a subject varies with the years of the pupil, and to give it to him at that time in his development when its value is greatest, is one problem in educational administration. With these rather general statements concerning edu- cational values in mind, we proceed to a brief discussion of the individual subjects which are accorded a place in the high-school programme of studies. SUBJECTS IN THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES Not all of the following subjects will be found in any one school unless it be very large and therefore able to provide instruction in all the subjects as cheaply as in a smaller number. But, since many of these are found in all high schools, and all are found in some schools, it seems well to consider them as fully as our purpose will permit. English, the mother tongue, is, from every point of view, the most important subject in the high-school pro- gramme. It yields abundant and valuable information, develops power through the various ways in which it appeals to the mental faculties, stimulates the emotional nature by means of the worthy ideals of life which it pre- I04 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL sents, arouses patriotism and devotion to duty, and, in some form, it appeals to the needs of every individual at all times. It merits the place of honor given it by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, and many of the best schools give it even higher rank by requiring four years of work in English instead of three. All the best schools require three years as a minimum, and all offer the fourth year whether it is required or not. English appeals to the, student from the side of literature, language, science, logic, history, and expression. Work in all these different phases may well be carried on at the same time, with the emphasis now upon one phase, now upon another. Both literature and individual words are living things, expressive of the life of the race, and that life should never be lost sight of. Literatiure makes the first, deepest, and most lasting ap- peal, but it should be supplemented by a brief treatment of the scientific and historical sides. Expression should be prominent throughout. In English, as in most other high-school subjects, it is the general view that should be presented first because it is that view which appeals to the intelligence and stirs the enthusiasm of the adolescent mind. The critical attitude should be gradually developed, but it is of secondary importance. The first two years of the course in English should be spent upon literature and composition primarily, with continuous incidental (not accidental) attention to gram- THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES I05 mar, word study, and rhetoric. The literature should be that which appeals strongly to the intelligence, feelings, and impulses of youth. It should represent life rather than critical thought. The composition should not be the forced, artificial work of one who has to say something, but the natural product of one who has something to say. The experiences of common life should form the subject basis for most of the composition work, but the characters and events described in the literature read, and topics drawn from other subjects of his study, may occasionally be used. Narration and description will naturally re- ceive the greatest attention during these two years. It is reasonable to expect that the elements, not the intricacies, of grammar should be so well learned before the pupil enters the high school that he will readily imderstand ordinary grammatical constructions, and consequently have little difficulty with the work in literature and com- position. Word study should grow out of a consideration of the history of a word or of its exact fitness in a particu- lar connection, and it may be introduced at any time. The text on rhetoric may well be used as a book of refer- ence to furnish explanation of forms found in literature or suggestion of forms to be used in composition. Its content should be first vitalized, then mastered. Through the third and fourth years, composition work should be continued at least one period per week, the emphasis being placed upon exposition and argumentation. At Io6 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL least one half year should be given in either the third or the fourth year to the study of English grammar. The student is now mature enough to understand the subject. It is lighted by two or three years' study of foreign lan- guage and the mother tongue, and, in turn, it sheds light upon them as well as upon the language studies which he is yet to pursue. The logic of language appeals to him. In the fourth year of the course a brief outline of the his- tory of the English language and literature may well be introduced. It should not be too detailed or technical, and no more should be given than can be vitalized by the knowledge of representative pieces of literature. Mathematics. — The educational value of high-school mathematics is much more limited in its scope than is that of English. The value of the information contained in algebra and geometry is not great for the average student, although it is, of course, considerable. It makes small appeal to the emotions and the character, except as it illustrates the accuracy and immutabiUty of truth. It has no general social value. Its greatest worth Ues in its tendency to cultivate in all its followers a certain kind of accurate judgment and logical reasoning more or less general and abstract in their character. For this pur- pose it is unequaled by any other subject. The diffi- culty of mastering it makes it a good field for the culti- vation of accuracy, persistence, and thoroughness. It shares with other subjects the attribute of having rare THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES I07 value for the exceptional youth who finds in it his inspi- ration and himself. There is a growing tendency among teachers of mathe- matics to believe that the subjects of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and trigonometry should be presented in much closer correlation than is now usually shown. In Ger- many and England the custom of so doing is already fairly established, and it now has strong support in the United States. There is little doubt that this plan will ultimately prevail, but some time will elapse before it becomes common in this country. Text-books must first be written and teachers trained to the new point of view. In the meantime there remains the problem of arranging the old high-school course in mathematics to the best possible advantage. As with grammar, so also with arith- metic, the elements should be so thoroughly learned before the pupil enters the high school that he will be ready to begin at once with algebra, if, indeed, he has not ahready learned the elements of that subject along with his arith- metic. He should master the fundamentals of algebra to quadratics in the first year. Instead of completing the subject the second year, as is often done, with some arguments in favor of the plan, it is well to devote the second year to plane geometry, leaving algebra from quad- ratics on, to the first half of the third year, and solid geometry, if it is taken, for the second half. This plan, while separating the parts of both algebra and geometry. Io8 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL serves to establish a closer relation between them, and to keep both in mind more nearly throughout the course. One semester devoted to higher arithmetic or, better still, to a revievif of algebra and the general principles of arithmetic is of great value. It serves to emphasize and clarify general mathematical conceptions, to show the relation between different phases of the subject, and to prepare the pupil for further studies in college or tech- nical school. Trigonometry may be taken in the last year by the few who want it, but it should not be required of all. Indeed, the consensus of opinion seems to be to regard solid geometry as an elective also. It is probable that the required work in mathematics should not include more than a year and a half of algebra, one year of plane geometry, and a half year devoted to the review of arith- metic and algebra. In many schools only one year of algebra and one year of plane geometry are required. The Classical Languages — Greek and Latin — have little value on the informational side, except in special studies, inasmuch as the information which they contain can be acquired much more easily and thoroughly through trans- lations. Their mastery requires many diSerent forms of mental activity — accurate perception, tenacious mem- ory, careful discrimination, good judgment, and sound reasoning. When really appreciated, they appeal to the aesthetic and moral nature. Their social value is small, except as they serve to broaden one's sympathies by THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES IO9 uniting the ancient and the modern world. They make strong appeal to many minds. As school studies, their greatest educational value is foimd in the years of early youth. Two foreign languages should not be commenced the same year, as there is an imavoidable tendency to confuse them before? the fundamentals of either have been estab- lished. Of these two, Latin is usually commenced first, since there is more similarity between it and English than between Greek and English. The first year is one of ceaseless drill. It may be varied by stories, conversa- tions, reproductions, and what not, but the drill must remain through it all if the work is to serve as a good foimdation for that which is to follow. Vocabulary, declensions, conjugations, rules, idiomatic expressions, must be both understood and thoroughly memorized. The burden upon the memory is tremendous, but there is no escape. The pupil must have these things at his tongue's end as a basis for further progress. If choice must be made between them, accuracy with deliberation is worth more than speed without accuracy, but the really successful language student must be both accurate and speedy. There should be not only translation but com- position to illustrate and fix every principle. The read- ing material may consist of prepared exercises, fables, or classical Latin, but in any case it must be made to illus- trate the fundamentals. The second year is usually de- ifO THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL voted, for the most part, to the reading of "Caesar's Commentaries," with coinposition work based upon the reading one day in the week or required in smaller amount every day. The consensus of opinion among Latin teachers at the present time is that Cassar is rather too difficult for the beginning work of the second year, and better results are obtained by devoting a short time to the reading of Nepos or some other easier Latin. From four to six books of the "Commentaries," or their equivalent, are required as good measure for the second year's work. In the third year from four to six orations of Cicero are read, with composition work similar to that required in reading Csesar. The fourth year is devoted to the reading of five to seven books of Virgil's "^Eneid," with careful study of the grammar. Considerable collateral reading in English is required throughout the second, third, and fourth years. The Modern Languages — German, French, and Spanish — differ from the ancient languages in some important particulars. The information they contain is of immense practical value, and in some cases it can be obtauied only through a reading knowledge of those languages. Since they are not as complex as Greek and Latin, it is easier to master them, and there is less strenuous exercise of various mental powers. Like the ancient languages, they contain much of aesthetic and inspirational value. Their social worth is considerable, since knowledge of them binds THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES III modern peoples together. Because of their greater prac- tical value, they attract the interest of more students than do Latin and Greek. The best time to master them is in childhood or early youth. The course in these languages includes the absolute mastery of the elements just as in the case of the ancient languages, and similar methods may be used. There should be added, however, the practical mastery by ear and tongue as well as by sight. The reading material used and the course as a whole extending through two or more years are not as well fixed as in the case of the ancient languages. History, including civics, gives information which is necessary to understand literature and modem events; hence, its informational value is great. It trains the memory, the imagination, and judgment concerning a certain class of facts, and it gives largeness of view. It rouses the emotions, appeals powerfully to, human ambi- tions and ideals, and so becomes a force in the formation of character. It shows the significance of citizenship and the State, and thus tends to develop an intelligent patriotism and, ultimately, an appreciation of the common brotherhood of mankind. It appeals to many minds. In some one of its various forms it is well received by many . ages. The time for the presentation of its more serious forms must be wisely chosen. The fundamental facts of United States history should 112 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOt be acquired in the grades. If a three-year high-school course in history is decided upon, the first year's work may well be devoted to ancient history with the emphasis upon Greece and Rome, the second year to mediaeval and modern history with the emphasis upon England, and the third year to the history and civil government of the United States in combination. If a two-year course in history is decided upon, the first year may be given to general history and the second to the history and govern- ment of the United States. There are serious objections to this plan, but on the whole it seems the best, in case the history course is limited to two years. Where it is prac- ticable to do so, there is strong argument for placing civics in the first or second year of the course, in the fact that every high-school pupil should have this subject, and many do not remain to finish the course. The Natural Sciences — physical geography, biology, botany, zoology, physiology, physics, chemistry, geology, and astronomy — furnish a vast amount of useful informa- tion. They are especially valuable in training the powers of observation, judgment, and inductive reasoning. They influence character by emphasizing the hard, unchangeable facts of nature rather than by any form of human idealism. They affect society indirectly rather than directly, since they make a man a better citizen by making him more intelligent and better able to use the material world. There are few individuals who are not at some time fas- THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES II3 cinated by the revelations of science, and many find in it their great awakening. In some form it appeals to all ages. In physical geography the significant physiographic facts should constitute the main part of the requirement. They give a larger view of the earth and of causes and effects in it than the pupil has before had. In physiol- ogy, biology, botany, and zoology, the eye of the pupil, wisely directed to general structure, use, habits, and laws of development, will yield more valuable information and culture than the microscope. Here again it is the large, significant view that counts, because it appeals to the interest and enthusiasm of the adolescent mind. In physics the qualitative is more important than the quan- titative, the constructive experiment than any mere theory. In chemistry the process and habit of careful, accurate observation and inductive reasoning should be developed while a considerable number of valuable facts is being mastered. Astronomy and geology are not often found in the high-school course, not because they are not valuable as secondary-school studies, but rather because the sciences previously named seem, on the whole, better adapted to the secondary school. Their greatest value lies in the emphasis which they place upon the immensity and duration of the earth and the universe. These con- ceptions are a healthy antidote to the swelling self-impor- tance of the adolescent. 114 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL The Commercial Subjects — commercial arithmetic, bookkeeping, commercial geography, commercial law, industrial history, stenography and typewriting — have slowly but surely forced their way into the high-school course because of the great practical value of the informa- tion and skill which they yield. The amoimt of intel- lectual power which the study of them gives is in dispute, but it is probably true of most of them that, if they were taught as well and studied as thoroughly as other sub- jects, the resulting power in the two cases would not be far different in amount, although it might be very differ- ent in kind. Their appeal to character lies mainly in the emphasis which they place upon the necessities of practical life. It is important that men and women should be prepared to earn an honest hving and to carry on the work of the business and vocational world, hence their importance from the standpoint of society. They appeal to many whom the less practical subjects of the curricu- lum could not hold. And their appeal is strongest just when the restlessness of adolescence would drive the youth into the whirlpool of real life. Without attempting to make any definite statement as to the content of these studies it may be said that the practical skill and knowledge which they embody should be so thoroughly taught that they are immediately avail- able for daily use. At the same time they should be made to minister consciously to the larger life of the THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES Ilg individual and society. Thoroughly taught, in an at- mosphere of broad sympathies and large outlook, they give culture as well as business ability. Manual Training, including drawing and domestic art, aiJords much practical information and skill. It trains the powers of observation, judgment, appreciation, initia- tive, and self-expression by means of tools. It trains character by affording an opportunity for pleasant industry and by showing immediate tangible results of work well or poorly done. It has exceptional social value, since it gives at once respect for labor and the laborer, and the power to do manual work successfully. It appeals strongly to many youths who find little interest in the more purely intellectual studies and frequently by saving such pupils to the life of the school for several years, serves as a means of extending their general education. It rouses interest throughout the years of adolescence. The course of study in manual training for the high school is not well enough fixed to be stated with any con- siderable degree of definiteness, but whatever the work given, it will be valuable in proportion to the degree in which it combines an understanding of general principles with skill, individual initiative, and the habit of doing work so accurately that the product of the effort has some practical value. Pedagogical Subjects — educational psychology, peda- gogy, methods, and school management — have con- Il6 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL siderable practical value for all who do good work in them, but mainly for those who expect to teach. They train the powers of observation in a special field, of judg- ment and of skill in meeting a practical situation. They train character by calling attention to the nature of the human being and to the need of development along the lines which that nature prompts. The pupil is led to be critical of himself. They possess large social value, since they train for the home as well as for the school. In general they appeal to only a limited number of high- school pupils, and they can be profitably pursued only during the last two years of the course. The content of these courses should be such as to give the pupil a grasp upon the simplest and most important psychological facts, with their educational significance; an appreciation of the child, the subjects of study, the teacher, the school, and the community as factors in the educational process ; and an introduction to methods and devices in the recitation, and to the management of the school as a whole. Music. — The practical and cultural value of vocal music is evident from the fact that it is a means at once of refining personal pleasure and of social service. It appeals largely though not universally to yoxmg people. The content of the course cannot be definitely stated, but the end should be the attainment of the ability to join easily and acceptably in singing in the social circle, the THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES II7 public entertainment, or the religious service. It may well find place throughout the course. Physical Education is essentially practical in its nature, but it may also be rich in cultural and inspirational effect. It appeals strongly to adolescents. The content of the course should be varied, but its purpose should alvi^ays be the development of habits and ideals of sound physical health and normal strength rather than the production of unusual athletic powers. It should extend throughout the course. TIME AND ORDER OF SUBJECTS It seems worth while to make a few rather arbitrary remarks concerning the time and order of subjects given in the programme of studies. The reasons for the state- ments will, in most cases, be apparent without argument. English. — Whether English is required throughout the course or for only three years, it should have full time during the first two years. If only three years' work is required, it may well have one semester in the third and one in the fourth year. Foreign Languages. — Latin should be commenced in the first year, even if it is not continued throughout the course. Pupils can do Latin as well in the first year as later. Some other subjects need the added maturity of the third or fourth year. Two foreign languages should not be commenced the same year, as students are sure to Il8 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL confuse the fundamentals before they are well fixed in memory. Latin may well come first, followed the next year by Greek or German, and the third year by the third language. Mathematics. — Algebra should be commenced the first year, followed the next year by plane geometry and the third year by algebra, beginning with quadratics, and by solid geometry. Trigonometry and the review of algebra and arithmetic may come in the fourth year. The Sciences. — Physical geography, botany, zoology, or biology may come in the first year. If given at all, physical geography should precede the others since it is more general in character and appeals to the large view which the adolescent mind is prone to take. If both physics and chemistry are given, the former should pre- cede. If only one is given, physics is to be preferred, and it may well come in the fourth year. If four years' work in science is offered, a good order is: first year, physical geography; second, botany, zoology, or biology; third, physics; fourth, chemistry. It is held by many that chemistry should precede physics. It is well to have some science in the first year even if only two years' work in science is offered. The reason is that it is likely to appeal to the adolescent's love of ob- jectivity. The other subjects for the first year are pretty sure to be "book subjects," for example, English, Latin, algebra, civics, or a commercial subject. A science brings THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES II9 the pupil into touch with things, — a most desirable end, considering the needs of the age. History. — General history or ancient history may well be commenced in the second year. It is a difficult sub- ject and needs the maturity of that age to secure the best results. A stronger reason for placing it in the second year lies in the fact that if it is given a place in the iirst year it is almost sure to displace the science, — an un- fortunate result. The arrangement suggested is not en- tirely satisfactory, but on the whole it seems the best pos- sible. If a three-year course in history is offered, the order may well be: second year, ancient history; third, modem history, with the emphasis on the history of Eng- land; fourth, history of the United States. The last named should be studied after the intelligence and sympa- thies have been broadened by a glimpse at the history of other nations. Civics has strong claims on each of two places in the programme. Since so many pupils leave the high school early in the course, and all should know something of this subject so important for good citizenship, it may well have a place in the first year. If physical geography occupies only one semester, the other may with profit be given to civics. On the other hand, more satisfactory work can be done in civics in the fourth year, and it can easily and profitably be combined with the history of the United States during that year. 120 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Economics should come in the fourth year or at least not earlier than the third year. Commercial Subjects. — The order of the distinctively commercial subjects is not fully determined on peda- gogical grounds. Stenography and typewriting may be taken at any time after the pupil has learned well the mechanical elements of composition. A satisfactory order ' for the other subjects may be: commercial arithmetic, bookkeeping, commercial geography, commercial law, industrial history. Pedagogical Subjects should not come earlier than the third year, and the fourth year is a better time. Ele- mentary psychology should be the basis of all such work whether it is given in a distinct course or in connection with the more directly practical work of pedagogy and methods. Reviews. — The careful study of English grammar. United States history, and advanced arithmetic in the later years of the course and following the study of litera- ture and foreign language, the history of other nations, and more advanced mathematics, is of special value in that it gives the pupil a broader and deeper view of sub- jects which have been more or less familiar to him from childhood. In no case should these subjects be placed in the first years of the high-school course with the idea that they are easier than the other subjects and that as much benefit will be derived from studying them then as THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 121 later. Such a theory (unfortunately often a practice, also) is a delusion. Manual Training may well find a place in any year of the programme. Compromise Necessary. — The advocates of every sub- ject desire some time in the last years of the course for their favorites, because the greater maturity of the pupils enables them to do more and better work then than in the earlier years. But, however desirable this end may appear, the multiplicity of subjects and the limitations in the power of the pupil make its attainment practically impossible. This fact was one of the most important dis- coveries made by the Committee of Ten. Especially is this true in the smaller schools where not more than one option in the programme of studies can be ofifered. The best practicable solution of this vexed question lies in carefully weighing all the factors in the case, psychological, social, and individual, and then making a decision which will usually be found to be a compromise. At no other point in educational legislation is there greater need of the v/ise, judicial attitude of the educational statesman. CONSTANTS In all the discussions concerning the programme of studies in the secondary school, one theoretically desir- able end has been pretty constantly kept in mind ; namely, determination of the subjects which college and secondary 122 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL school men should agree upon as of such general impor- tance that they should be required of all graduates of all four-year high-school courses, regardless of whether these graduates expect to continue their education in a higher institution of learning or not. The number of such sub- jects has gradually decreased with the growth of serious thought concerning educational values. At the present time the only constants agreed upon by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools — whose judgment may be taken as typical — are English, three years, and mathematics, two years. However, leaving out of consideration the exceptional case, which must always be treated on its own merits, there is very general agreement among both school and college men that the secondary-school programme of studies should include as constants some work in the mother tongue, mathe- matics, history, and natural science ; and most persons would add one or more foreign languages. As to what special subjects should be selected within these broad fields there will doubtless be differences of opinion. In the smaller high schools where, on account of limited re- sources, only one option is possible, it is customary to require three subjects in each year of all pupils. For the fourth subject it is common to allow an option between a foreign language and some other subject, — commercial, scientific, or historical. THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 1 23 ELECTIVES The Principle of Election in the secondary-school course has been generally accepted since the Committee of Ten made its report, and its practice has passed the experi- mental stage. To do all the work now given in a large high school would require not four years but many. The practical impossibility, as well as the undesirability of doing it, has served to establish the elective principle; but "unlimited election," to use the phrase of the Com- mittee of Ten, is not encouraged or permitted. Certain general principles should guide the choice, whether the election is made by parent or teacher for the pupil, or by the pupil for himself. Each of the four great fields, of lan- guage, mathematics, history, and science should be fairly represented. The taste and ability of the pupil should be considered, preference being generally given to subjects in which he shows the greatest interest and ability. His purpose after leaving the secondary school, which will usually be largely determined by his interests and ability, should be a factor. In case the pupil expects to enter a certain higher educational institution, he may be per- mitted to elect those subjects which best prepare him for entrance. In such cases it is often permissible to let him emphasize required subjects to the neglect of others, because when he reaches the college the previously neg- lected subjects will receive their due share of attention. 124 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Since the educational value of most subjects is cumula- tive, he should be required to continue one or two subjects as far as possible throughout the course. The educa- tional value of the old classical course lay largely in the fact that a few subjects were pursued thoroughly and continuously throughout the course. In no case should the pupil be permitted to elect his subjects without plan or system. Two Forms of Election. — The principle of election works itself out in two forms. In some schools there are dififerent curriculums (usually called courses of study) mapped out and named by the school authorities in antici- pation of the various needs of different pupils. In large schools one may find ten to twenty such curriculums. They are made out on the basis of the principles stated in the previous paragraph. They are usually more or less symmetrical in character and look toward some definite end. The pupil is required to choose his curriculum and then to stick to it, with no change either of the curriculum or of subjects in it without permission of his instructors, which is granted only for what appears to be good reason. This is called the "group system" in the arrangement of curriculums. In other schools there are certain clearly defined constants which are required of all pupils, but outside of these the pupil may, with the counsel and per- mission of his instructor, usually the high-school principal, elect whatever subjects he may like. The success of this THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 1 25 plan evidently depends largely upon the efficiency of the adviser. Each method has its advantages, — the former, in that the curriculums may be quietly worked out on sound general principles without prejudice from the in- dividual case, and the pupil's curriculum is determined throughout from the beginning; the latter, in that, in the hands of a wise administrator, it permits more free adaptation to the peculiar needs of the individual. SUGGESTED PROGRAMMES OF STUDIES Grade Work. — When we come to the task of actually making out the high-school programme of studies, there is one fundamental assumption which it is well to empha- size. It is that the work below the high school, whatever it may be, has been so thoroughly and completely done that the pupil is really prepared to undertake high-school work. In too many instances this is not the case, and, as a consequence, either some time must be given in the first year of the high-school course to the completion of work which should have been completed the previous year, or the pupil enters upon his high-school work poorly pre- pared. Neither should be necessary. In the hands of a good administrator a stiff course in the first year of the high school serves as an excellent tonic in its effect upon the lower grades. In the following suggested programmes, provision is made for but one curriculum in any school. The school 126 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL authorities choose one from the optional subjects. This subject and the constants form the curriculum for all pupils. Unless a school has facilities sufficient to provide a four-year programme, it is rarely wise to offer optional subjects, and many schools that can provide one four- year course have not facilities for offering options. All subjects have five recitations per week. One-yeas Programme first semester second semester English English Algebra Algebra (to quadratics) Physical Geography Civics Latin or Latin or Commercial Arithmetic Bookkeeping If there is a strong college sentiment in the community, and a desire to prepare for college as far as possible, Latin should be chosen. On the other hand, if "practical" views prevail, it is natural to choose arithmetic and bookkeeping. Two-year Programme FIRST SEMESTER SECOND SEMESTER First Year English English Algebra Algebra Physical Geography Civics Latin or Latin or Commercial Arithmetic Bookkeeping THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 127 Second Year English Plane Geometry General History Latin or Biological Science English Plane Geometry General History Latin or Biological Science Biological science may be either botany or zoology, or the two combined. The colleges prefer either botany or zoology alone. Some of them will not give credit for the combined course. Three-year Programme FIRST SEMESTER SECOND SEMESTER First Year English English Algebra Algebra Physical Geography Civics Latin or Latin or Commercial Arithmetic Bookkeeping Second Year English English Plane Geometry Plane Geometry General History General History Latin or Latin or Biological Science Biological Science 128 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Third Year English Algebra (from quadratics) English History Latin or Reviews (of common branches) Reviews Four-year Programme first semester second semester English Solid Geometry or Advanced Arithmetic American History Latin or First Year English English Algebra Algebra Physical Geography Civics Latin or Latin or Commercial Arithmetic Bookkeeping Second Year English English Plane Geometry Plane Geometry Greek History "Roman History Latin or Latin or Biological Science Biological Science Third Year English English Algebra Solid Geometry Mediaeval History Modem History Latin or Latin or German German THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 1 29 Fourth Year English English Physics Physics United States History — Economics Latin or Latin or German or German or Reviews Reviews Pupils who are preparing for a college that includes both Latin and German in its entrance requirements may substitute German for history in the third year, and for English in the fourth year. In such cases it may be desirable to omit the economics and take the second semester's work in English. Underlying Principles. — It is not claimed that the programmes named above are the best that can be ar- ranged, but only that they are good ones, and that they are framed on sound principles. They contain a fair amount of the mother tongue, foreign language, mathematics, natural science, and history, and the subjects are well arranged pedagogically. They fit for college as nearly as circumstances will permit; they give a good training for the practical duties of life; and they afford an excellent high-school preparation for the work of teaching. These statements are especially true in the case of the four-year course, in which one option is permitted. Optional Curriculums. — In schools in which the teach- ing facilities make it possible to offer two curriculimis, 130 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL the first three subjects named in the preceding four-year programme may be taken by all pupils, and a choice may be allowed between the optional subjects. The first four subjects may then be said to constitute the Latin or college preparatory curriculum; the first three and the fifth or sixth, the scientific or general curriculum. As schools increase in size and facilities, the number of curricxilums or of optional subjects can be indefinitely increased. Appendix C contains programmes offered in a few of the large high schools of the country. Variations from the, proposed programmes can easily be made. The subjects upon which there is general agree- ment are: English and algebra in the first year; English, plane geometry, and either general or ancient history in the second year; English at least one semester, and algebra one semester in the third year. If preparation for college is a prominent purpose of the school, Latin will be given throughout the course. If preparation for college is not emphasized, there may be less or no foreign language. In addition to the subjects named in the preceding paragraph, subjects suitable for the first year, each with its own peculiar advantages and disadvantages, are phys- ical geography, commercial geography, civics, commer- cial arithmetic, ancient history, botany, zoology, biology, drawing, manual training, bookkeeping, stenography and typewriting, German, and French. For the second year, the same subjects. "the programme of studies 131 For the third year, Greek, German, French, Spanish, solid geometry, advanced arithmetic. United States history, physics, botany, zoology, biology, astronomy, geology, com- mercial law, bookkeeping, stenography, typewriting, eco- nomics, reviews of the common branches, educational psy- chology, pedagogy, methods, manual training, and civics. For the fourth year, the same as for the third, with trigonometry added. Still other subjects may be included, but the ones named have gained recognition through general use. Of course, the kind of work done in any subject will be determined in part by the year for which it is scheduled in the course. Four Subjects. — The programmes of studies thus far suggested in this chapter are based upon the principle that in the high school the pupil should study four and only four subjects at one time, and recitations in each should be held every day. This principle has been gen- erally accepted in both theory and practice throughout the schools of the United States, although occasional ex- ceptions may be found in all parts of the country. The arguments in favor of this plan are that the pupil cannot do more than twenty hours of work per week ; that better results are obtained by concentrating the attention upon any one subject in daily work throughout one year than can be secured by requiring a smaller number of recita- tions per week through two years; that an unvarying daily programme is conducive to regularity and effective- 132 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL ness of effort; and that the administration of such a pro- gramme of studies is much easier than the administration of a programme in which some subjects have a smaller number of recitations per week, but extend through two or more years. More than Four Subjects. — Reference to the pro- grammes of studies recommended by the Committee of Ten (see Appendix B) and to those found in a German Realgymnasium (see Appendix D) shows a very different arrangement, and, in the case of the foreign school, a greater number of recitation periods per week. The argu- ments urged in favor of this plan are that the pupil can carry more than twenty periods per week, provided no prepared work is assigned for part of them; that, owing to the steadily increasing ability of pupils from year to year, far better results are obtained by giving the same amount of time to a subject through two years than by crowding it all into one year; that variation in the daily programme tends to enliven the interest of the pupil rather than to produce confusion in his mind; that better correlation of work is obtained, since there is at once the opportunity and the necessity of emphasizing the relations existing between different subjects; that better habits of attention and study are formed, because the pupil is ex- pected to accomplish more xmder the immediate direction of the teacher, and he studies less at home; and that better teaching is required and secured. THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 1 33 In an unpublished lecture, Dr. Julius Sachs, Professor of Secondary Education in Teachers College, Columbia Uni- versity, has suggested the following prograname of studies as one founded on better pedagogical principles than are the programmes usually prevailing in the United States. It is understood that for at least five of the twenty-five weekly class-exercise periods no home work would be assigned, the class hour being profitably spent with the teacher in sight reading, drill, direct instruction, prepara- tion for new work, or in some other way which the live teacher can easily devise. Dr. Sachs freely concedes the evident fact that the administration of such a programme is a much more difficult matter than the administration of the ordinary four-subject programme, and that better teaching is absolutely necessary to insure its success. Classical Course First Year Second Year Latin 5 Latin 4 History (Ancient) ... 4 History (Mediaeval) . . 3 Algebra 4 Algebra 2 English and Composition . 4 English and Composition 4 German 4 German 3 Biology 4 French 4 25 Geometry 3 Physical Geography and Commercial Geography 2 25 134 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Third Year Fourth Year Latin 4 Latin 4 History (Modern) ... 2 History (U.S.) and Civics 3 Algebra 2 Physics 4 English and Composition . 4 English and Composition 4 German 3 German 2 French 3 French 3 Geometry 3 Greek 5 Greek 4 25 2? LATIN-SCIENTiriC COURSE First year : same as classical. Second year : same as classical. Third year ."21 periods same as classical; substitute for Greek 4, chemistry 4. Fourth year : 21 periods same as classical ; substitute for Greek 4, trigonometry and soKd geometry 3, and drawing 2. Modern and Commercial Course First year : same as classical. Second year : 21 periods same as classical ; substitute for Latin 4, drawing 2, and manual training 2. Third year : 17 periods same as classical; substitute for Latin 4, drawing 2, and manual training 2, or business practice 4 ; substitute for Greek 4, chemistry 4 ; or 21 periods same as Latin-scientific ; substitute for Latin 4, business practice 4, or manual training 2, and drawing 2. THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 135 Fourth year : 16 periods same as classical ; substitute for Latin 4, and Greek 5, manual training or design 3, prin- ciples of commerce, or trigonometry 3, and business practice 3. This general plan undoubtedly possesses some ad- vantages, and the possibility of adapting it for use in American schools may well receive the careful consid- eration of thoughtful educators; but it should never be adopted without a clear appreciation of the pedagogical necessities and the administrative difficulties which it involves. The choice of the programme of studies for any par- ticular school will naturally be influenced somewhat by other considerations than the educational value of differ- ent subjects. These considerations will be more fully discussed in the next chapter. REFERENCES Angell, J. R. Doctrine of formal discipline in the light of the principles of general psychology. Ed. Rev. 36 : i. Bacon, G. A. Classics and Secondary Schools. Acad. 1:179. Bagley, W. C. The Educative Process. Macmillan, 1908. Elective studies in the high-school curriculum. Sch. ■ Rev. 16 : 580. Baker, J. H. The culture element and economy of time in education. Ed. Rev. 27 : 494. Educational values. Ed. Rev. 10 : 209. 136 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Bain, A. Education as a Science. Appleton, 1896. Bishop, J. R. A shifting of ideals respecting the eflSciency of formal culture studies for all pupils. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 584. Bolton, F. E. Facts and fictions concerning educational values. Sch. Rev. 12 : 170. Boone, R. G. 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Commercial Education. Macmillan, 1904. The educational value of commercial courses in high schools. Sch. Rev. 14 : 123. Hill, F. A. Educational value of mathematics. Ed. Rev. 9 : 349- Hinsdale, B. A. Formal discipline. Ed. Rev. 8 : 128. HoLLiSTER, H. A. The program of studies for high schools. Sch. Rev. 16 : 252. Irish, C. W. The place of commercial studies in the high school. Sch. Rev. 10 : 550. James, E. J. The commercial high school as a part of second- ary education. Sch. Rev. 2 : 577. Jenks, J. W. A critique of educational values. Ed. Rev. 3 : i. Also in Citizenship and the Schools. Jordan, D. S. The high-school course. Pop. Sci. Mo. 73 : 28. JuDD, C. H. The relation of special training to general in- telligence. Ed. Rev. 36 : 28. Lee, H. The high-school program of studies and the students' curriculum. Sch. Rev. 12 : 138, 197. THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES I39 Lewis, F. C. A study in formal discipline. Sch. Rev. 13 : 281. Lewis, F. W. English high-school course. Ed. 20 : 277. LiDDEKE, F. The extension of the high-school course. Sch. Rev. 12 : 635. Lyttle, E. W. Report of the committee on six-year course of study. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 1625. Magruder, W. T. The cosmopolitan high-school curriculums from the standpoint of colleges of engineering. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : S99. Mann, C. R. The meaning of the movement for the reform of science teaching. Ed. Rev. 34 : 13. Marsh, E. O., and Hathaway, F. R. Amount of work per week in high schools. Sch. Rev. 5 : 99. Miller, E. L. Literary study and character formation. Sch. Rev. 8 : 285. Morrison, G. B. Present status and future of manual training in the high school. National Society Year-book, IV, Part II, 18-38. MowRY, W. A. School curriculum and its relation to business life. Ed. 2 : 140. MuMFORD, A. D. The aim of the high-school course in compo- sition. Ed. 28 : 531. Payne, B. R. Is manual training as now taught educative? Sch. Rev. 14 : 375. Manual training : How may it be made educative ? Sch. Rev. 14 : 425. Phillips, J. B. Relation of the course of study to higher wages. Ed. 26 : 470. Pillsbury, W. B. The effects of training on menaory. Ed. Rev. 36 : 15. 140 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Richards, E. H. The present status and future development of domestic science courses in the high school. National Society Year-book, IV, Part II, 39-52. Robinson, E. V. History in its relation to the formation of character. Sch. Rev. 9 : 553. RouiLLiON, L. The economics of hand-work in elementary and secondary schools. Teachers College Record, Vol. 2, No. 5:1. Contains bibliography. Sachs, J. The Report of the Committee of Ten from the point of view of the college preparatory school. Ed. Rev. 8 : 75. Schilling, H. K. Educational value of modern languages. Ed. 9 : 385. ScHURMAN, J. G. The outlook for the curriculum. Sch. Rev. I : 67. Scott, F. N. A substitute for classics. Sch. Rev. 16 : 360. Sloane, W. M. The ethical value of history. Sch. Rev. 6 : 724. Smith, G. J. A high-school course in English literature and its correlations. Ed. Rev. 10 : 445. Smith, S. R. The cosmopolitan high-school curriculum. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 :6o6. Snedden, D. S. The six-year high-school course. Ed. Rev. 26 : 525. Storey, W. E. The unification of mathematics in the high- school curriculum. Sch. Rev. 11 : 832. Street, I. M. Order of EngUsh studies in secondary schools. Acad. 4 : 506. Sutton, W. S. The determining factors of the curriculum of the secondary school. Sch. Rev. 10 : 687. Tetlow, J. Election of studies in secondary schools — a negative view. Ed. 15 : 436. THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES 141 Tetlow, J. Electives in college admission requirements. Ed. Rev. II : 428. Thoendike, E. L. Educational Psychology. A. G. Seller, New York, 1906. The Principles of Teaching. A. G. Seller, New York, 1906. Thuebee, C. H. Commercial education in secondary schools. Sch. Rev. 8 : 193. Thuebee, S. Election of studies — Its relation to the com- munity. Ed. Rev. 15 : 424. English literature in the schools. Acad. 6 : 485. Aims and methods in modern language teaching. Acad. 2 : 385- The order and relation of studies in the high-school course. Acad. 2 : 241. Van Daell, A. N. The educational value of the study of French in high schools. Acad. 2 : 164. WiCKES, W. K. The worth of the English tongue. Acad. 3 : 85- Wilkinson, J. W. Problems in high-school curricula. Ed. 24 : 193. Wilson, H. B. The relation of the high-school course to the student's Ufe problems. Sch. Rev. 16 : 469. WooDHULL, J. F. Educational value of natural science. Ed. Rev. 9 : 368. Science for culture. Sch. Rev. 15 : 123. The course of study in English : The call for it, the character of it, and the construction of it. Report of the New Eng- land Association of Teachers. Sch. Rev. 15 : 559. Annual Reports of the Association of Colleges and Preparatory Schools of the Middle States and Maryland ; of the New 142 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL England Association of Colleges and Preparatory Schools ; of the North Central Association of Colleges and Prepara- tory Schools ; and of the Southern Association of Col- leges and Preparatory Schools. Report of the Committee on College Entrance Requirements. Report of the Committee of Ten on Secondary School Studies, CHAPTER IV Organization and Management The principal problems in the organization of all high schools are those concerning the relation of the high-school work to that of the grades, the programme of studies, the daily programme, the division of work among teachers, the location of authority, choice of text-books, pupils' ad- visers, and the supervision of high-school work. To these may be added questions of material equipment, discipline, social life, and athletics, — subjects which will be dis- cussed in separate chapters. The special form and the relative importance of these problems depend largely upon the size of the school ; but there are certain general prin- ciples underlying their solution in every case. THE RELATION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL TO THE GRADES Grade Work. — In the organization of the high school certain assumptions must be made concerning the kind, character, and amount of the work done in the grades below the high school. Certain phases of certain subjects are studied or omitted in the grades. The work outlined is done with a greater or less degree of thoroughness. It 143 144 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL may cover nine, eight, seven, or six years, according to the arrangement of the programme of studies as a whole. Any course in the grades makes necessary a corresponding arrangement of the work in the high school. As a matter of fact, the schools that have seven-, eight-, and nine-year courses below the high school usually accomplish about the same amount of work, the difference in the time taken being accounted for by the difference in the age of pupils when they enter and the difference in the efficiency of instruction. The question as to. the respective merits of the six- and the eight-year course has been discussed in the chapter on the function of the high school, and we need not consider it further here. Indeed, what that work may be is a matter of minor importance in the consideration of this question. The important point is that whatever the work scheduled for accomplishment in the grades, it should be done so thoroughly and completely that the pupil is really prepared to do the work of the first year of the high school before he is allowed to enter it. Premature Promotion. — If, as a matter of policy, weak and incapable pupils are occasionally passed from the grades into the high school in order that they may be kept longer in school and so by absorption rather than by effective effort add to the little learning and culture of which they are capable, it should always be with the dis- tinct understanding on the part of both parents and teach- ers, that such pupils are below normal, and that they are ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 1 45 not to delay the work which can be done by a reasonably capable pupil. If pupils are capable of doing the work of any grade, they should be required to do it before they are promoted. Not to require this is to do them a great un- kindness; for, in attempting the advanced work they are likely to become discouraged and fail, whereas if they had been required to do their work thoroughly before pro- motion, they would have passed on successfully. From the standpoint of the school such premature promotion makes necessary either a low grade of work in the high school; or the failure of a large number of pupils; or an opportunity to finish in the high school, work which should have been completed in the grades. These results are imdesirable, and, with proper organization and manage- ment of the schools as a whole, they are unnecessary. The complaint so often heard that pupils cannot finish the required work in the allotted time, frequently has its foundation not in the high school at all but in the ineffi- cient work of the grades. Consequently, the first pre- requisite for a good high school is good work below it. Conditions Required. — In order that this may be assured three things are necessary: first, competent grade teach- ers; second, a superintendent or principal who is compe- tent to supervise and unify the work of all the schools; third, time on the part of the superintendent to do this supervisory work. School boards sometimes require the superintendent or principal of the small school to spend 146 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOt all or nearly all his time in teaching. They fail to realize the importance of wise supervision. On the other hand, too many superintendents and principals in such schools are not competent to do supervisory work successfully. Whatever the difficulties, such work is imperative, and it must be taken into account in the organization of the school. THE PROGRAMME OF STUDIES The Selection of the Programme of Studies constitutes a legitimate and important part of the organization of the high school. To this fact the all too frequent changes in the programme under the direction of successive super- intendents bear witness at once ludicrous and pathetic. With such a large field of subjects from which to choose, as shown in the chapter on the programme of studies, with so great variety of preference on the part of teachers due to native tendency and training, with so few supervisors who are trained students of school problems, and with no central authority to indicate the proper programme, these frequent changes are perhaps inevitable; but they are confusing and sometimes disastrous, nevertheless. In the large school, where there are enough pupils and teachers to form many classes in many subjects, the problem is a comparatively simple one, for the large number of subjects can be taught as economically as a smaller number. In the smaller schools, where the addition of ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 1 47 a subject means that much addition to the ah-eady overcrowded schedule of the teacher for the sake of a very small number of pupils, the problem becomes a serious one. Factors in Selection. — Aside from educational value, which should, as far as possible, be the basis for the selection of subjects in the programme of studies, there may be other things deserving consideration. The material equipment of the school may be a factor. Language, his- tory, and mathematics can be taught with much less outlay of money for equipment than natural science; and if the facilities of the school preclude the possibility of providing room and apparatus for laboratory work, the natural science in the programme should either be reduced to a minimum or temporarily eliminated. As facilities for the laboratory work become available it is well to equip ade- quately for work in one science, omitting all others for a time if necessary. Another legitimate factor in the selec- tion of the programme of studies is the training and prefer- ence of the supervisor and teachers under whose direction it is selected. It is natural and often wise that they should choose the subjects which they can teach best; but such preference should always be subject to the more universal principles of educational value and the practical needs and possibilities of the particular school. A good pro- gramme once adopted should not be changed to suit mere personal preference. The spirit of the community and 148 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL the purpose of pupils after leaving the school may be in- fluential factors. In a community where most of the graduates desire to go to college, the college preparatory work will naturally be chosen. In a community in which "practical" ideas prevail different subjects might be selected. Of course in such a community there rests upon the school the responsibility of directing thought and effort to the field of higher education. One Teacher. — In the small schools the number of subjects to be selected depends primarily upon the ntun- ber of teachers. One strong teacher can do one year of high-school work in addition to some work in the grades. If he can devote all his time to the high-school teaching a maximum of two years' work may be attempted. This means for him eight recitations per day unless he com- bines certain classes by yearly alternation of subjects. But, as these classes are likely to be small, he may be able to hear them in less time than is required in a larger school, leaving a little time for the work of supervision of the other grades and individual work with pupils. It should be understood, however, that such work neces- sitates a strenuous life for him who does it well. The preparation of work in so many different subjects adds greatly to his burden. Two Teachers. — Two high-school teachers can do well and with comparative ease the work of a three-year pro- gramme. The principal will then have five recitations ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT I49 per day and the assistant seven. Or, the subjects can be equally divided between them, leaving the principal some time each day for supervision and the assistant some time for individual work with pupils. It would seem that there ought to be many schools of this class in which really good work is being done. Such schools can prepare their graduates to enter the last year of the four-year high schools, or to enter the preparatory department of some colleges. By means of good management and hard work two teachers can maintain a single four-year high-school course. If all the subjects are given each year, there must be eight recitations per day for each teacher. If these recitations are forty minutes long and the noon recess occupies one hour, there is left but forty minutes per day between nine in the morning and four in the afternoon for supervision and individual assistance. All preparation of lessons and examination of written work must be done outside of these strenuous school hours. It is hardly possible to do satisfactory work imder such circumstances. Escape from the difficulty may sometimes be foimd in shorter recitation periods, leaving more time during school hours for supervision, individual work, and the preparation of lessons. If the classes are small, such a pohcy may be the best solution of the problem, but it is always fraught with danger lest the recitation period lose its peculiar value. Another and probably wiser means of 150 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL escape may be found in the yearly alternation of part of the subjects in the programme. Yearly Alternation of Subjects. — This alternation may be accomplished as follows. There are certain subjects whose place in the course cannot wisely be changed be- cause of their inherent difficulty or their logical relations with preceding or following subjects. In the case of other subjects, position in the course is more or less a matter of arbitrary choice and it makes no great differ- ence whether they come this year or the next. The four- year programme of studies given on page 128 being used as a basis for illustration, it is evident that iirst-year Latin and second-year Latin could not be given in alter- nate years because the second is dependent upon the first. On the other hand, it is equally evident that commercial arithmetic and bookkeeping of the first year, and bio- logical science of the second year could be given in alter- nate years without doing great violence to the educational value of either. The same is true of the English of the third year and English of the fourth year; of Latin of the third year and Latin of the fourth year; of algebra and solid geometry of the third year and physics of the fourth year. If these alternations were made, first-year pupils of odd years, let us say, would take their work as it comes regularly in the course. But first-year pupils of even years would take biological science with second-year pupils, and the following year they would take commercial arith- ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 151 metic and bookkeeping with first-year pupils. Third- year pupils of odd years would take English regularly, but third-year pupils of even years would have fourth- year English with fourth-year pupils, and the following year they would have third-year English with third-year pupils. So also with third-year Latin and fourth-year Latin, and with third-year algebra and solid geometry and fourth-year physics. There are - serious disadvan- tages for all pupils in this plan, but they are counterbal- anced by the advantages gained in the decreased number of recitations required of teachers, and in the additional interest arising from the increased number of pupils in the combined classes. The plan has worked success- fully. Under such an arrangement the programme of studies would stand as follows : — FouE-YEAR Programme (with alternating subjects) FIRST SEMESTER SECOND SEMESTER First Year English ] English Algebra Algebra Physical Geog- Every year Civics raphy Latin or Commercial Arithmetic (odd years) Every year Latin or Bookkeeping (odd years) 152 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Second Year English Plane Geometry Greek History Latin or English Plane Geometry Roman History Latin or Every year Biological Science (even years) Biological Science (even years) Third Year English (odd years) Algebra (odd years) Mediaeval History (every year) Latin or (odd years) German (every year) English (odd years) Solid Geometry (odd years) Modern History (every year) Latin or (odd years) German (every year) Fourth Year English (even years) Physics (even years) U. S. History (every year) Latin or (even years) German (every year) English (even years) Physics (even years) Economics (every year) Latin or (even years) German (every year) By this alternation of subjects the number of recita- tions per day in the Latin curriculum may be reduced from sixteen to fourteen, and in the science curriculum from sixteen to thirteen. Similar alternations can be made if other subjects are chosen. The reduction in the number of daily recitations is a great aid in the admin- istration of a four-year course. If the number of pupils ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 153 in the school is so large as to make the combination of classes impracticable, the plan is not feasible. Three Teachers can carry the work of a single four- year high-school course very readily. The daily pro- gramme can then be arranged so that the principal will have four recitations and the assistants six each. This presupposes that the school is so small that no classes need be divided. Even if the first-year class is so large as to need division into two sections, the work can be carried by three teachers, since no teacher need have more than seven daily recitations and the principal five. How- ever, this is too heavy work on the teachers to permit the school to rank as first class. Three teachers can, by strenuous effort, carry the work of a four-year programme with one elective throughout, provided the classes are small enough not to need divi- sion. For this twenty daily recitations are required. They can be so divided that the principal will have six and the assistants seven each, but this again is too heavy work to enable the school to rank as first class. If the classes are so large as to require division, one or more additional teachers should be provided. Overloaded Programmes. — It will be seen from the foregoing discussion that the selection of the programme of studies is an important matter in the organization of the high school, and that in its selection practical as well as theoretical considerations must find place. Many 1 54 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL schools greatly impair their efficiency by attempting to do more than can be done well under existing conditions. A three-year course thoroughly completed is worth more to the individual and to the community than a four-year course poorly done. The blame for such overloaded programmes of studies may usually be fairly shared by the overambitious school board and the equally over- ambitious principal, — the former commendably desir- ous of having as good a school as anybody but ignorant of the conditions under which such school is possible, and the latter commendably desirous of raising the standard of work in the school (and incidentally of his salary as well) , but unfortunately too often unappreciative of the fact that quality is quite as important as quantity in estimating the value of a standard. Lack of knowledge and not lack of worthy motive is at fault in both cases. Rank of Very Small High Schools. — It should be plainly xmderstood at this point that none of the schools indicated can be ranked as first-class in both course of study and organization unless exception be made of the school in which three teachers do the work of a single four-year high-school course. All the others rank lower because they have not the full four-year course, or be- cause the conditions under which they are working are su:h that first-class results cannot be assured. On ac- count of their limited facilities, especially their lack of a sufficient number of teachers, it is impossible to organize ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 1 55 and administer them strictly according to the principles laid down by the best authorities for the management of the larger schools. The practical ideal is to make the best use of existing facilities, and this will usually be found in the nearest practicable approach to the condi- tions required in the standard schools. It should be understood also that while these schools cannot as a group be ranked as first-class, owing to their limited facilities, a few of them are nevertheless doing work as good as is done in any school. The efficiency of teachers, the small number and the earnest character of pupils, the lack of distractions, and superior management are sometimes sufficient to overcome all limitations and render the work done equal to the best. The average work done in these smaller schools is, however, such as to give them inferior rank. The validity of this position will become more evident as we proceed with the dis- cussion of the other factors concerned in the organiza- tion of the high school. Four Teachers. — The small high school that can em- ploy three teachers besides the superintendent is in posi- tion to take first rank and to do as good work as any school, provided other conditions are satisfactory. The super- intendent of such a system of schools is likely to be able to teach two or three classes per day in addition to the v/ork of supervision. If each teacher be allotted six classes, they can together carry twenty recitations per 156 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL day, the number required in a four-year course with one option throughout. Such an arrangement requires the maximum amount of work for each teacher but, as the classes in such schools are usually not large, it is a reason- able requirement. Should the work of supervision re- quire all the time of the superintendent, or should the classes be so large as to require division, a fourth teacher should be added. When they are properly organized and provided with good teachers and adequate equip- ment, there is no reason why schools of this size should not do work whose character and amount entitles them to recognition by the most exacting authorities. There ought to be a great many such schools. The programme of studies given in them cannot be as broad as that of- fered in the larger schools, but the work done should be quite as good. With proportionately as good equipment in teachers and material facilities, the work should be as satisfactory in the small school as in the large one. Programme Proportionate to Size and Equipment of School. — As the school increases in number of pupils and teachers and in means for the necessary material equipment, the number and extent of subjects in the programme of studies can be proportionately increased. When the needed material equipment has been provided, for example, in chemistry or manual training, it costs approximately as much to teach one subject as another. Consequently, when a sufficient number of pupils apply ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 1 57 for work in any suitable subject, there seems no adequate reason why it should not be given. This number may be placed at from, ten to twenty.^ Wherever facilities exist for maintaining such an extensive programme of studies, it seems very important that it should be done. In a large number of pupils there will necessarily be widely different individual needs and ambitions. These should be provided for as largely as possible, and the broad programme of studies with many chances for choice con- tributes much to the desired end. The varied programme in a large modern high school is a veritable mine of oppor- tunity for the young people of the community. (See pro- grammes of studies given in Appendix C.) DAILY PROGRAMME Its Significance. — In judging the organization of a high school, nothing else is more significant than the daily pro- gramme of recitations. It indicates at once the scope of the programme of studies, the length of recitation periods, the number of recitations per day for each teacher, the number of teachers, the subjects taught by each teacher, the number of pupils in each class, the year of the course for which each subject is scheduled, the relative position of recitation and study periods for the members of each class; and, as a sort of consequence of all these things, the total efficiency of the school on its organization side. 158 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Of course the final test of efficiency in any school lies in the quality of the teaching. Length of Recitation Periods. — The daily programme is an expression of the conditions under which the work of the school is being done, and in making it, certain prin- ciples should be observed. First, the recitation periods should be forty or forty-five minutes long. Experience shows that a shorter time is insufficient and a longer time unprofitable. The recitation is the occasion for the most thoroughgoing intellectual work of the day. It is not sufficient that the teacher should lecture and ask ques- tions and the pupil recite what he has learned, though these are important. It is the time when, above every- thing else, the pupil should be led to give close, continued attention to the subject in hand and to express in the best possible way what he has learned and thought. To do this requires time, whether the class be large or small. Every pupil must be tested as frequently as possible and given a chance to clarify and fix his thought by expressing it. Teacher and pupils must think together, consecutively, and aloud. Beyond a certain limit the process cannot be hurried. In fact, although there is abundant place for speed in the recitation, there is no place for hurry. Clear, quiet, energetic thought, and good expression require time and a serene atmosphere in which to grow. The Number of Recitations per Day for Each Teacher should not exceed six. Five is a better number. Experi- ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 1 59 ence indicates that a greater number tends to reduce the efficiency of the work. Because of the large amount of time required outside the class room in correcting papers and preparing work for the laboratory periods, teachers of English and of laboratory science should have the number of their recitations reduced to the minimum, to four per day, if possible. Teachers of these subjects may justly be given one recitation less per day than teachers of other subjects. To overtax any teacher is to 'decrease his power of effective work. It is not to be supposed for a moment that the time outside the four to six recitation periods will be spent by the teacher in work or play irrele- vant to the interests of the school. Any one who is worthy of his position will use that time in daily preparation for his own work, in extending his professional knowledge, in assisting individual pupils, in general culture, and in intellectual, social, and physical recreation so that, when he comes to the class room, he will be at his best phys- ically and spiritually. Such preparation on the part of the teacher tends to increase the value of the recitation period, a point at which our American schools can be greatly improved. The teacher who shows no disposition to use the time outside of recitation hours for professional improvement should be promoted soon to the sphere in which his aspirations lie. Study under Supervision. — The programme should be so arranged as to allow each pupil considerable time for l6o THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL study at the school under the direction of a teacher who is free to render him such assistance as he needs, especially in the way of helping him to learn how to study most effectively. The problem is not to help the pupil to get any particular lesson as easily as possible, but to help him to help himself; to assist him in the formation of habits of concentration, discrimination, and judgment in the accomplishment of every intellectual task. Experience shows the need and the value of work of this kind, and in the best schools more attention is now being given to it in the arrangement of the daily programme. The need is especially great in the case of first-year pupils. Even if they used their time faithfully outside of school hours, which, as every one knows, is not always the case, there would still be the advantage of working imder supervi- sion where wise assistance could be commanded at any time. To accomplish this end the teacher must be al- lowed some time daily free from recitations. For both pupil and teacher it will be spent very profitably. In addition to the direct assistance which the teacher can render in personal conference, there will be a distinct gain in a better mutual understanding. In this way the pupil realizes that the teacher is interested in him personally, and the latter may learn the peculiar disposition and mental ability of the former. To each the other becomes a more human individual. For these reasons the all-day session with all pupils in attendance is much better than ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT l6l the half-day session, provided there are suitable facilities for these periods of study under supervision. It is better to require more and better work at school and less at home. Alternation of Study and Recitation Periods. — As far as practicable, it is well to have alternation of study and recitation periods for each pupil. This is not always possible, but the need should be kept in mind in making the programme. Change in the kind of occupation is often as good as complete rest. The Number of Pupils in Each Class should in no case exceed thirty-five. Twenty-five, or even twenty, is a better number. It requires a great deal of nervous energy to conduct a really good recitation in a class of thirty pupils. At least a minimum of individual attention must be given to each one, and if the number exceeds thirty it is impos- sible to do this. It is also very difficult to hold the atten- tion and imited effort of a larger number. A class of twenty to thirty well-managed gives dignity and the stim- ulus of companionship and competition to the work. Classes in laboratory science should be smaller unless there is an assistant to help keep pupils profitably occupied. DIVISION OF SUBJECTS The Purpose. — The division of the subjects to be taught among the teachers is an important matter. The object 1 62 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL to be kept in view in making such division is the attain- ment of the greatest possible efficiency in the work of instruction, rather than the gratification of the special desires of any teacher. The two ends can usually be ac- complished together, if the teachers have been judiciously chosen. It is not enough to select a good teacher. Care should be taken to select a good teacher of the subjects to be taught. The writer has seen many teachers who were qualified to do good work in certain subjects, blimdering along in a vain attempt to teach other subjects for which they had no adequate preparation. Why call a tiimer to do a plumber's job ? The Teacher's Preparation. — In our attitude toward the division of subjects among teachers in the high school, we are just entering upon the last of three stages. In the first stage it was supposed that any teacher competent to teach in the high school at all was competent to teach any subject in the programme, and, if called upon, he usually attempted to do it. The result was superficial work in some, if not in all, subjects. The second stage was that in which the specialist was demanded by the school and he, in turn, declined to teach any subject ex- cept the one of his choice. The result was intensity, depth, a narrow view, and, too often, lack of a generous appreciation of the work of other departments; and this, too, at a time when the pupil's mind craves a broad outlook rather than deep insight. In the third ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 1 63 - stage we are coming to feel that instruction is better if it is given by a teacher whose scholarship is excellent in two or three different lines. His sympathies are broader, and he appreciates the value of other subjects than his own. He possesses greater power to correlate his work with that of other departments. Unfortunately, there are too few teachers who are prepared to measure up to this ideal; but the consciousness of the need will help to produce them. We shall learn the German plan of requiring preparation in a major and two minor sub- jects, in addition to the distinctly professional training. THE LOCATION OF AUTHORITY Board and Sujperintendent. — Location of authority in the management of the high school is an important matter. Of course the board of education, subject to the will of the people or the appointing power, is the ultimate source of authority, and its members cannot shirk the consequent responsibility; but considerations of policy require that much authority and consequent responsibility be dele- gated to the official head of the school system. Especially is this true in matters requiring professional judgment. On the distinctly educational side, the superintendent of schools should, with the full knowledge and consent of the board, be the professional adviser and guide. If he is not competent to serve as such a leader, he is unworthy 164 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL of his position. A policy once considered and adopted, he should then be given a free hand in its execution. Responsibility and authority should go hand in hand. Selection of Teachers. — This is particularly important at one point, namely, the selection of teachers. If the superintendent is to be held responsible for executing a certain policy, he should be given authority to choose his lieutenants. If he is competent, he is far better able to do it than the school board. In many cases certain technical and professional knowledge is required which members of the school board, no matter how well quali- fied they may be, cannot reasonably be supposed to pos- sess. It is no discredit to them that they do not possess it. It is not their business, it is the superintendent's. As regards the authority of the superintendent to select his own teachers, there is wide difference of custom. In far too many cases he has nothing whatever to do with it except to give a perfunctory assent to the manifest desires of the board. In some cases he is given full authority, and the board sanctions his choice. In other cases both board and superintendent are given power to nominate but not to elect over the veto of the other. If carried out in a spirit of fairness and cooperation, this is a safe rule to follow. Superintendent and Principal. — There remains, how- ever, the further question as to the location of authority in the school itself. In the small school it should rest with ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 165 the superintendent, and every teacher should respect it. On the other hand, the superintendent should render it worthy of respect. In the high school of middle size, that is, one employing seven to twenty teachers, there is great need of cordial cooperation between the superintend- ent and the high-school principal. In proportion as the latter is held responsible for the management and success of the high school, his wishes should be respected in the selection and supervision of teachers. In the large high school the principal should be the executive officer of the school with full authority to act in all administrative affairs as long as his attitude and policy do not contravene the accepted policy of the superintendent and board. In a city large enough to have such a school, the superin- tendent has enough work to do without directing in per- son the administration of the high school. TEXT-BOOKS Selection by Board. — In most schools the selection of the text-books is an important part of the work of the teaching staff. Unfortunately, the selection of these books is sometimes made by members of the school board on the basis of ignorant prejudice or personal advantage, the result of the agent's enthusiastic, persuasive efforts. If the superintendent and his corps of teachers are not more competent than the school board to select suitable text- l66 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL books, they are not competent to hold their positions. In a matter requiring technical and professional judgment, it is no reflection on the members of a school board to say that they are incompetent to serve. It ought to be self- evident. The competency of teachers may sometimes be wisely questioned, but there ought to be no hesitation in choosing between them and the board as the proper authority to select text-books. Selection by Teachers. — A superior teacher will do well with any text-book. An inferior teacher will have his efficiency appreciably increased by the use of a good book. The superintendent or principal ought to be very sure of his groimd if he chooses books contrary to the wishes of his teachers, or without their judgment when they are teachers of successful experience. The opinion of an inexperienced teacher is worth little or nothing. In some cases the supervising ofiBcer is totally incompetent to choose books because he knows little about the subject, and in such cases, especially, he will wisely leave the selec- tion to the judgment of the teachers of the subject or to other authorities who have a right to express an opinion. A change of books sometimes brings about new interest in the subject and is abundantly worth while. On the other hand, books ought not to be changed too often. It involves unnecessary expense, and it is likely to disturb the stability of the work in the subject concerned. It sometimes requires more than one year to test the value ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 167 of a book, and besides, the teacher may be responsible for its success or failure. pupils' ADVISEES It is extremely desirable that the work of each pupil should be personally supervised from the time he enters the high school imtil he leaves it. By this is meant some- thing more than the general supervision which seeks to keep him out of mischief and at work. There should be some one to look over the entire field of possibilities for him when he enters, to consider the wishes- of his parents, and to study his own ambitions, capabilities, and circum- stances, and to stand as a personal adviser and friend in all matters pertaining to the work of the school. It is no easy task to do this work well. It requires sympathy, tact, insight, good judgment, imselfish devotion, and attractive personality. In the small school it falls naturally to the superintendent or principal for the most part. In the large schools this is practically impossible, and if it is done at all, it must be by division of the pupils among the teachers. There is here a large field for fruitful effort which has not been well cultivated. SUPERVISION OF HIGH-SCHOOL TEACHING Ends Sought. — Many an inexperienced teacher meets with indifferent success or fails entirely in his first year's work when he might be saved to the ranks of really good 1 68 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL teachers by the wise assistance of a competent supervisor. The need of such supervision is imperative, regardless of the size of the school. In fact, since inexperienced teach- ers are more often found in small schools than in large ones, the need is, on this account, greater in the small schools. It is unfortunate alike for the school and for the teacher that he should not be successful up to the limit of his possibilities. The young teacher needs, and is entitled to, the supervisory assistance of his superior both in the class room and in general duties outside. Every superintendent or principal of a large high school should not only be competent to render such assistance, but he should regard it as an important and profitable part of his duties. In the organization of the school this work should be taken into account. Another end to be sought in such supervision is the imification and correlation of the work in different phases of the same subject and in different subjects. This is particularly important in large schools. Who shall Supervise ? — In small schools the super- vision will naturally be done by the superintendent of the entire system. In high schools having six to twenty teachers it will be done by the superintendent and high- school principal together. In schools having twenty to forty teachers, it will be done by the principal. In very large schools, it will be done by the principal with the fissistance of heads of departments. ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 169 TYPICAL SMALL HIGH SCHOOLS Prevailing Conditions. — The reports given in Appendix E indicate what is actually being done in some of the typical small high schools of various states. These schools were recommended by competent state authority as being among the best of their class in the state. It is a significant fact that no one was willing to recommend a one-year school, and few two-year schools were cited. la most cases reference to three-year schools was omitted also. Schools having less than a full four-year course evidently have too little stability to win general confidence. The reasons are evident. Many small four-year schools are subject to similar limitations. The Very Small High School presents a large and diffi- cult problem in secondary education. According to the report of the United States Commissioner of Education for 1904, 36.6 per cent of the high-school pupils enrolled in the country are found in schools having not more than three teachers.^ As truly here as in any other part of the educational world, the solution is to be found in the em- ployment of really competent teachers. Too often these schools are managed and taught by teachers of inferior ability or training or both, or by young, inexperienced men and women of good training who are simply serving ' Thorndike, E. L., "A Neglected Aspect of the American High School," Educational Review, March, 1907. Vol. 33, p. 245, lyo THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL an unwilling apprenticeship for promotion to a larger field. If these small schools had good material equipment, and were managed and taught by teachers as efficient as are found in the good larger schools, the results would be astonishingly satisfactory. The small high school offers exceptional opportunities for excellent educational work. The small number and the usually earnest, ambitious character of pupils and the absence of distracting influ- ences make the possibilities great. But it requires good scholarship, high character, and wise management to de- velop them; and these cannot be maintained without equal or perhaps greater remuneration than is paid teachers in larger schools. Until the financial problem involved is met, this large and fertile educational field will not be properly tilled. All honor to that relatively small number of able, devoted men and women who are now doing yeoman service in this rich but imdeveloped part of the educational heritage ! THE LARGE HIGH SCHOOL As compared with that of the small high school, the problem of organization and management in the large high school is somewhat more complex, and it requires vastly greater steady strength to maintain it at its best. The same end is to be sought, the same means used, the same exacting care given to every detail, the same judicious ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 171 attention given to the welfare of every individual pupil. How to do it most effectively and economically is the question. The particular problem is one of numbers. According to the principles already discussed, the pro- gramme of studies must be chosen to meet the needs of the commimity which the school serves; the daily pro- gramme must be so arranged as to enable both teachers and pupils to work with the greatest possible efficiency; the work of the different departments must be wisely divided among the teachers of the particular subjects; the authority of heads of departments, principal and superintendent, must be harmoniously maintained; text- books must be chosen; the work of every pupil must be carefully and sympathetically supervised, either by the principal or by some teacher to whom the task is specially assigned; the work of every teacher must be carefully supervised by the head of the department and the prin- cipal; — all these things must be done without noise or friction, and the esprit de corps of the school must be main- tained. For doing this work, larger equipment and more and better teachers, with a greater variety of training and talents, are necessary. The special problem is so to dis- pose of the available forces that every teacher and every pupil shall be working up to the safe limit of his ability. Classes must be large and competition strong. The pres- sure must necessarily be high, but it should be steady. In such a school the one all-important factor is the 172 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL principal, — strong, steady, stern, sympathetic, watchful, wise, efficient. Concerning him more will be said in another chapter. STANDARDS OF THE NORTH CENTRAL ASSOCIATION In connection with the subject of this chapter, the fol- lowing rules governing the admission of high schools to the accredited list of the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools are of particular interest. Since these standards are established by a commission so constituted as to contain an equal number of represent- atives from the colleges and the secondary schools, they a,re of special significance as indicating the trend of the most advanced practical thought concerning the essentials for maintaining a good high school. "i. No school shall be accredited which does not require fifteen units, as defined by the Association, for graduation. "2. The minimum scholastic attainments of aU high-school teachers shall be equivalent to graduation from a college be- longing to the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, including special training in the subjects they teach, although such requirements shall not be construed as retroactive. "3. The number of daily periods of class-room instruction given by any one teacher should not exceed five, each to extend over at least forty minutes in the clear. (While the Association advises five periods, the Board of Inspectors has rejected ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 1 73 absolutely all schools having more than six recitation periods per day per teacher.) "4. The laboratory and library facilities shall be adequate to the needs of instruction in the subjects taught, as outlined by the Association. "5. The efficiency of instruction, the acquired habits of thought and study, the general intellectual and moral tone of a school are paramount factors, and therefore only schools which rank well in these particulars, as evidenced by rigid, thorough- going, sympathetic inspection, shall be considered eligible for the list. "6. Wherever there is reasonable doubt concerning the efficiency of a school, the Association will accept that doubt as ground sufl6cient to justify rejection. "7. The Association has omitted for the present the con- sideration of all schools whose teaching force consists of fewer than five^ teachers, exclusive of the superintendent. "8. No school shall be considered unless the regular annual blank furnished for the purpose shall have been filled out and placed on file vsdth the inspector. All hearsay evidence, no matter from what source, is rejected. "9. All schools whose records show an abnormal number of pupUs per teacher, as based on average number belonging, even though they may technically meet all other requirements, are rejected. The Association recognizes thirty as a maximum. "10. The time for which schools are accredited shall be limited to one year, dating from the time of the adoption of the list by the Association. "11. The organ of communication between the accredited schools and the Secretary of the Commission for the purpose ' Later changed to four. 174 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL of distributing, collecting, and filing the annual reports of such schools and for such other purposes as the Association may direct, is as follows: (a) In states having such an official, the Inspector appointed by the State University, (b) In other states, the Inspector of Schools appointed by state authority, or, if there be no such official, such person or persons as the Secretary of the Commission may select." ' The organization and management of the school is largely influenced by its material equipment. To this subject the foUowring chapter is devoted. REFERENCES Block, L. J. Student advisers as an administrative device in high schools. Sch. Rev. li : 6. Bolton, F. E. Agricultural high schools. Sch. Rev. i6 : 56. Brooks, E. C. The rural public high school in the South. Sch. Rev. 12 : 148. Brooks, S. D. Scope and limitations of the small high school. Ed. Rev. 22 : 434. Brown, J. S. The school and college counselor. Ed. 28 : 23. Carman, G. N. The secondary school in the Middle West. Ed. Rev. 29 : 286. Chancellor, W. E. Our City Schools : Their Direction and Management. Heath, 1908. Our Schools : Their Administration and Supervision. Heath, 1904. Claxton, p. p. The rural high school. Southern Ed. Rev. 5 =77- ' Proceedings of the Eleventh Annual Meeting of the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, 1906, p. 124. ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT 1 75 Cotton, F. A. The township high school in Indiana. Sch. Rev. 12 : 267. Douglas, C. H. Status of the high school in New England. Ed. Rev. 5 : 27. Button, S. T., and Snedden, D. S. Administration of Public Education in the United States. Macmillan, 1908. Edmonds, F. S. The Central High School of Philadelphia. Sch. Rev. II : 211, 237. Felter, W. L. Management of large city high schools. Ed. Rev. 33 : 393. Goodwin, E. J. Characteristics of New York City high schools. Ed. Rev. 28 : 255. The New York system of secondary schools. Sch. Rev. 35 : 491- Hanus, p. H. a Modern School. Macmillan, 1904. HuLiNG, R. G. Failures in the first year of the high school. Ed. Rev. 20 : 463. Kratz, H. E. How shall we assist our pupils when and only when they need it? Proc. N.E.A. 1908, 591. Lowell, D. O. S. Some undepartmentalized experiences. Ed. 27 : 497. Perry, A. C. The Management of a City School, , Macmillan, 1908. Roote, C. B. The superintendent and the high school. Sch. Rev. 13 : 232. Rowe,,E. C. Development of the curriculum and the preserva- tion of the daily recitation. Sch. Rev. 13 : 411. Sachs, J. Departmental organization of secondary schools. Ed. 27 : 484. I Search, P. W. An Ideal School. Appleton, 1901. 176 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Showerman, G. Eastern education through western eyes. Ed. Rev. 30 : 474. Thorndike, E. L. a neglected aspect of American high schools. Ed. Rev. 33 : 245. Principles of Teaching. A. G. Sailer, New York, 1906. Whitney, M. A. Student advisers as an administrative device in high schools. Sch. Rev. 12 : 3. CHAPTER V Material Equipment Good material equipment for the high school adds to the ease, comfort, and pleasure with which both teachers and pupils do their work, and it increases greatly the tech- nical and general efi&ciency of the school. There is econ- omy in making generous provision on the material side in educational work, just as there is in any other busi- ness enterprise. Consideration of this subject will include buildings and grounds, laboratory equipment, the school library, museum, decorations, and gymnasium. BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS Only occasionally does a high-school teacher, or even the superintendent or principal, have anything to do with planning the material equipment of the school, so far as buildings and grounds are concerned; but these occa- sional opportunities are very important, for at such times he is working well or ill for future generations of teachers, pupils, and taxpayers. It is not possible to go into details in the discussion of this subject, but some of the most important points may be suggested. For N 177 lyS > THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL more extensive consideration of the questions involved, the reader is referred to treatises on school architecture. High-school Building. — As soon as the size of the high school warrants it, there should be a building separate from that of the grades. The ordinary good grade build- ing is not well adapted for high-school work. The disci- pline that is suitable for the grades is not the best for the high school. Promotion to another building often serves as an incentive to pupils. It is possible to develop a better esprit de corps in the high school if it is separate from the grades. When the school has reached the necessary size, it is no more expensive to house it in a separate building especially planned for the purpose than to keep it in a grade building. The Location of the high-school building, if in a town or city, is a matter of importance. If there is but one high school in the city, it should be placed at some central point easily accessible to the majority of pupils. Its loca- tion should never be determined by the desirabiUty of booming real estate in a certain district or by any other extraneous interest. It should not be located near the railroad or shops whose noise would be a constantly dis- turbing factor. Beauty of location is very desirable, and healthfulness essential. If it is possible to provide grounds for play and athletic sports, so much the better, but this is not so necessary in the case of the high school as in the case of grade buildings. High-school pupils MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 1)9 spend little or no time in outdoor play at recess periods, and for their athletics they can more easily go some dis- tance to the athletic field if it is necessary. Assembly Room. — Perhaps the most important single feature of the ordinary high-school building is an assembly room large enough to seat comfortably all the pupils in attendance. Such a room serves two useful purposes: it affords an opportunity for the school to assemble for morning exercises, public entertainments, and other spe- cial occasions; and it provides an easy and economical means of caring for pupils during study hours. Five hundred pupils may be seated satisfactorily in one room. Where the study hall is very large, seating one thousand or more, the problem of discipline in it may become a serious matter; but even in such cases it is cheaper and better to provide the necessary teachers to care for the room than to provide equally good opportunities for study in some other way. In cases where no general study hall is available, pupils must be distributed among the various class rooms for study as well as for recitations. Even where the pupils cannot be massed in one room for study purposes, it is very desirable to have an assembly room large enough to seat the entire school on special public occasions. Class Rooms should be large enough to seat not to ex- ceed forty-five pupils. This makes it possible to have in such a room all the time a class of thirty, and fifteen l8o THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL besides who are studying. Such rooms are found tolerable in cases where the general study hall is not used. There are some arguments in favor of the use of class rooms for both recitation and study purposes. The strain of discipline is less upon any particular teacher, but, on the other hand, it is absolutely necessary that every teacher should be compe- tent to discipline his own room. Such a room is never as good a place for study as a well-ordered study hall, since there must be recitations in progress all or nearly all the time; and a really live recitation in almost any subject is likely to prove so interesting as to distract the attention of those who are studying. The best plan, where there is no study hall, is to collect the pupils from rooms in which recitations are being held into rooms in which there are no recitations. This makes possible more effective work in both study and recitation. In large buildings special rooms for laboratory work, manual training, and library should be provided. Toilet rooms should be convenient and sanitary. Rest rooms for the teachers and the girl pupils are worth all they cost. Of course, suitable ofhces for the principal are a necessity. Wide, well-lighted halls and stairways and open cloak rooms are desirable. The ventilation and lighting of all rooms are matters of utmost importance. The Care of the Building deserves special mention. Chalk dust in the trays and on the blackboards, dust on the furniture, dirt in the comers and on the steps are in- MATERIAL EQUIPMENT l8l excusable. It is good economy, educationally speaking, to pay what is necessary to secure proper care of the school building. The material environment is a very important educational factor. More than that, the presence of an efficient, gentlemanly janitor is a power for good in the general order of the school. THE LABORATORY When suitable laboratory rooms have been provided, there yet remains the problem of equipping them with furniture and apparatus. Until a school is prepared to do this, it is better to leave part or all of the sciences out of the programme of studies. Physical Geography. — The equipment for the work in physical geography need not be expensive. Relief maps and globes are the principal items of expense. Valu- able maps and charts can be secured at little or no cost from the United States Bureau of Weather and the offices of the United States Geological Survey. The pupil's knowledge of the topography of the surrounding country should be largely drawn upon for purposes of illustration. Biology. — The essentials for botany and zoology are tables with hard wood, glass, or slate tops such as are not easily injured by water and reagents; simple dissecting instruments for each pupil; a good hand microscope for each pupil; enough compound microscopes to serve the class conveniently in observations in which the smaller l82 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL instruments are not satisfactory; simple reagents for preserving, coloring, and testing specimens; and proper receptacles for collecting and keeping specimens. Run- ning water in the laboratory is a great convenience, but not an absolute necessity. The biological laboratory should be a well-lighted room, preferably on the north side of the building. The Physics Laboratory should be well lighted, should contain substantial tables at which pupils can conduct their experiments, and should have an electric current, gas, and water, all easily accessible. It is impossible to give a specific list of apparatus, because that depends on the topics to be considered in the course, and upon this point there is, as yet, no full agreement among physics teachers themselves. The movement known as " the new movement among physics teachers " has done much to bring about greater uniformity of opinion and practice in this matter, and the printed reports on the subject are very suggestive.* It is sufficient to say that when the topics to be considered in the physics course have been selected, enough apparatus should be provided to illus- trate them thoroughly, whether considered qualitatively or quantitatively. It is not necessary to have enough ap- paratus to supply each member of the class for work on the same topic at the same time. In small schools, one ' Mann, C. R., "The Meaning of the New Movement for the Reform of Science Teaching," Ed. Rev., Vol. 34, pp. 13-25. MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 183 or two sets of similar apparatus may sufSce, different pupils being set to work upon different problems at the same time. Demonstration by the teacher is not suffi- cient. Every pupil should perform every experiment. The Chemical Laboratory may well be an upper room from which the fumes and smells can easily escape without being offensive to the occupants of other rooms. It should be provided with suitable work tables and shelves for reagents. Each pupil should have his own place for work, or two or more pupils may work at the same place at dif- ferent times. In any case he should have a drawer or compartment with lock and key, in which to keep his own personal assignment of property. There should be water, gas, and a sink for each work place. At least one hood for the escape of noxious gases is found in every well- planned laboratory. Common reagents will be systemat- ically supplied and arranged on shelves belonguig to each place. There should be a general storeroom and a dark room or closet in which to keep chemicals that would be injured by the light. Cleanliness and order are extremely important in any laboratory, but particularly in the chem- ical laboratory. Generally speaking, chemistry should not be introduced into the programme until a suitable room can be devoted entirely to the laboratory. Lecture Room. — In every well-ordered high school building of even moderate size there is found at least one special lecture room for use in connection with the bio- 1 84 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL logical, physical, and chemical laboratories. In many buildings there is such a room adjoining each laboratory. The lecture room should contain a demonstration desk with all accessories convenient; raised seats for pupils, so that they can easily observe the demonstration; and dark blinds so that the room can be easily and quickly darkened. The conveniences of such a room are limited only by the mechanical ingenuity of the architect or of the instructor in charge. Expense. — In the matter of laboratory equipment, the most common difHculty is to secure means for an adequate amount and variety of apparatus and conven- iences. Occasionally, however, this is not the case and there is actual extravagance in the equipment of labora- tories. The science work of the high school must neces- sarily be rather elementary in character, and it is a poor investment to provide apparatus and materials which can be used to advantage only in work of college grade. Even when the apparatus is useful, a simple, inexpensive piece will often serve the purpose as well as one that is more expensive. The show part of the equipment may well be omitted. THE LIBRARY The library equipment is equally important for the large school and the small; fortunately, it is equally available for each in greater or less degree. In the large building it MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 1 85 is desirable to have a room devoted entirely to the library, with a responsible librarian in charge. In the small school this is not necessary or perhaps desirable. The essentials are suitable books and such means for their care and distribution that they may be properly preserved and wisely used. They may be kept in cases or on open shelves in the assembly hall or the class room. The special ar- rangement should correspond to local needs. The Town or City Library, if there is one, should always be an important adjunct to the high school. The library authorities are usually glad to cooperate with the schools, both in teaching the use of card catalogues and books generally, in the selection and purchase of books, and in loans made to the school. It is often possible for a case of books to be loaned by the library for an indefinite period. In some towns no attempt is made to provide a high-school library, except of reference books, the city library being used to supply all others. Under good management this plan has the advantage of leading the pupils to become acquainted with the city library before they leave school. On the other hand, they probably use fewer books than they would if they were immediately available in the school building. Whether the books are kept in the school building or at the city Ubrary, pupils should be taught to use them and to care for them. The High-school Library should contain the following classes of books: i- Dictionaries, encyclopedias, atlases, 1 86 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL gazetteers, almanacs, and reference books in general, which should be easily accessible to all pupils at all times. The more easily accessible it is, the more often a book will be used. Mere accessibility, however, is not enough. Pupils should be systematically taught the use of reference books. The habit of using them intelligently is a valuable acquisi- tion. This part of the school library is indispensable, no matter how extensive and accessible the city library may be. 2. Books treating especially the different subjects fotmd in the curriculum; for example, botany, physics, or his- tory. The exceptionally bright boy and the boy who is particularly capable in some special subject must each receive care corresponding to his ability, else he will play or potter or produce a case of arrested development. The library affords the best possible means of dealing wisely with such cases. There is nearly always at least one pupil in a class who, if he is given the proper encourage- ment and direction, will do more than the class as a whole can do. Turn him loose to browse in the hbrary. His extra energy and ability will be profitably used. 3. Biographies. High-school pupils gather great in- spiration from reading the lives of men and women who have become famous. Nothing else interests them or moves them as does personality; they should be encour- aged to touch the lives of the world's heroes. 4. The world's best literature. This literature is called the best because it appeals most strongly to the best in MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 187 men. It will appeal to young people if they can be led to try it. The great masterpieces should be made as accessible and attractive to them as possible. 5. Books of story, adventure, travel, exploration, con- quest, which appeal particularly to the interests of the adolescent. Such books stir; the feelings, ambitions, and will of young people, and in so doing often move them more powerfully than any class-room subject. The study and use of this class of literature has not yet reached the place it well deserves in the training of high-school pupils. To this collection of books it is well to add a good newspaper and a few good magazines. These are often more attract- ive than books, and they serve to arouse a laudable interest in current affairs. 6. Professional books for teachers. The presence in the school library of such books is itself evidence that the man- agement believes in the professional training of teachers ; and in the hands of a wise administrator they are very helpful in securing professional study by teachers. The list should include works on educational psychology, sociology, the history, science, and philosophy of educa- tion, school systems (particularly secondary), school man- agement, and methods of teaching the different subjects. Educational magazines of the highest grade may well find place. Moreover, all should be used, not simply possessed. In Germany the teachers' library is placed in the teach- ers' common meeting room where it is easily accessible. 1 88 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL MUSEUM The high-school museum is not a necessity, and, as it now exists, it is more often a doubtful ornament than a utility. In the smaller schools especially, it is much better to spend time, energy, and money upon essentials than upon a museum. Where abundant means and space are available, however, it may be made of great value. It may include illustrative specimens in any field of effort, — scientific, industrial, or professional. DECORATIONS As a rule, the American* people are deficient in their appreciation of art. The excellent decoration of a school building here and there proves the exception to the rule. The artistic impulse should first manifest itself in the struc- ture of the building, but whether this be beautiful and appropriate or not, there is opportunity for interior deco- ration. Statuary and pictures form the staple means of adornment. An occasional painting finds place, but, for financial reasons, most of the pictures must be repro- ductions of the masterpieces. Great care and wholesome taste should be exercised in the selection of works of art for the school. An inappropriate subject or a good sub- ject so poorly executed as to be itself inartistic, is likely to produce an unfortunate effect. Under the refining influence of well-selected works of art, wall and niche and MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 189 corner may become sources of pleasure, inspiration, and culture lasting throughout life. Because of the elevating influence which they constantly exert, they constitute a source of expense as legitimate as library or laboratory. GYMNASIUM Unfortunately the gymnasium is not yet recognized as a part of the necessary equipment of every high-school build- ing. The importance of physical training as the conser- vator of physical, mental, and moral health is not yet fully realized by the tax-paying public or even by educators themselves. Those who look to the future will plan for a well-equipped gymnasium in connection with the public high school. The best modem buildings have generous space for this department. REFERENCES Arnold, E. H. Gymnasia. Proc. N.E.A. 1905 : 842. Bates, W. H. The library as an aid to school work. Sch. Rev. 7 : 179. Beede, F. H. The public high-school building at New Haven, Connecticut. Sch. Rev. 13 : 89. Bishop, W. W. Books for teachers in secondary schools. Ed. Rev. 19 : 175. Briggs, W. R. Modern American School Buildings. Wiley & Sons, New York. 1899. Brown, J. S. High-school building, Joliet, Illinois. Sch. Rev. 9 : 417. I go THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL BuRRAGE, S., and Bailey, H. T. School Sanitation and Deco- ration. Heath, 1899. Clay, F. Modern School Buildings. Scribner, 1903. Davis, S. Recent progress in school architecture. Proc. N.E.A. 1905 :836. FoRDYCE, E. J. Libraries and schools. Proc. N.E.A. 1902 : 805. Gaillard, E. W. The difficulty of a high-school library and a suggestion. Sch. Rev. 15 : 245. Greenwood, J. M. What the school may properly demand of the library. Proc. N.E.A. 1902 : 811. Hatch, W. E. A modern high-school building. Sch. Rev. 11 : 509- Kenyon, W. J. The interior decorations of schools. Sch. Rev. 14 : 625. Kotelmann, L. School Hygiene. Bardeen, 1899. Larkins, C. D. The manual training high school of Brooklyn. Sch. Rev. 13 : 741. MacDowell, L. I. A public-school library system. Ed. Rev. 34 : 374. Miller, E. L. Lunch room at the Englewood high school. Sch. Rev. 13 : 201. Morrison, G. B. School architecture and hygiene, in Butler's Education in the United States. J. B. Lyon Co., Albany, 1900. Ventilation and Warming of School Buildings. Appleton, 1887. Parlin, C. C. a successful high-school library. Sch. Rev. IS :2Si- Parsons, C. H. The relation of state legislation to modem school buildings. Proc. N.E.A. 1901 : 815. MATERIAL EQUIPMENT I9I Parsons, C. H. Schoolhouse architecture. Proc. N.E.A. 1900 : 610. Robinson, J. B. The school buildings of New York. Arch. Record, 7 : 359. RowE, S. H. The Lighting of School Rooms. Longmans, 1904. Sargent, W. The evolution of the little red schoolhouse. Sch. Rev. II : 435. Search, P. An Ideal School. Appleton, 1901. Snyder, C. B. J. Needed legislation in school architecture. Proc. N.E.A. 1905 : 843. Tdrnbull, G. B. High school, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Sch. Rev. I : 683. Wharton, G. W. High-school architecture in the city of New York. Sch. Rev. 11 : 456. Wheelright, E. M. School Architecture. Rogers and Manson, Boston, 1901. WiCKES, W. K. The new high-school building in Syracuse. Sch. Rev. II : 495. Woodward, C. M. A new era in the public schools of St. Louis. Sch. Rev. 11 : 486. Wright, R. H. How to make the library useful to high-school pupils. Proc. N.E.A. 1905:864. The high-school library problem. Sch. Rev. 14 : 762. The new English high school at Cambridge, Massachusetts. Acad. 7 : 99. For details concerning laboratory equipment see — Smith, A., and Hall, E. H. The Teaching of Physics and Chemistry. Longmans, 1902. Lloyd, F. E., and Bigelow, M. A. The Teaching of Biology. Longmans, 1904. 192 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL The Journal of Geography, Teachers College, New York. Monthly. Manual Training Magazine, Peoria, Illinois. Bi-monthly. School Science and Mathematics, Chicago. Monthly. Among the many dealers in laboratory supplies may be mentioned: Eimer and Amend, New York ; Richards & Co., New York ; Queen & Co., Philadelphia ; Henry Heil Chemi- cal Co., St. Louis ; Sargent & Co., Chicago ; L. B. Knott Apparatus Co., Boston ; Bausch and Lomb, Rochester ; Central School Supply Co., Chicago ; C. H. Stoelting Co., Chicago. CHAPTER VI The Teacher The teacher is, by all odds, the most influential factor in high-school education. Curriculum, organization, equipment, important as they are, count for little or noth- ing except as they are vitalized by the living personality of the teacher. Far better a poor equipment with a good teacher, than a good equipment with a poor teacher. President Garfield's famous picture of Mark Hopkins and the pupil on the log in the woods is scarcely overdrawn. "As the teacher, so the school," is a trite saying, but true as it is trite. It is better to sacrifice at any other point than to accept a mediocre or poor teacher. This is especially true during the high-school age, for the teacher has more personal influence upon his pupils during the adolescent years than at any earlier or later period. We may consider his qualifications under the head of general scholarship, professional training, personality, experience, and sex. ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIP College Training. — It is now universally conceded by those who have considered the question carefully, that the o 193 194 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL general academic scholarship of the high-school teacher ^should be at least equivalent to that required for gradua- tion from a four-year course of a standard college. The work of teachers occupying high-school positions with less thai} this amount of scholarship, usually falls short in some essential elements even in those cases where there is good native ability, fair professional training, and at- tractive personality. Lower scholarship in the teacher means a perceptibly lower intellectual tone in the school- room. If it comes to a choice between them, most super- intendents and high-school principals prefer the college education with no professional training to the academic and professional training of the ordmary normal school. The teacher trained in the normal school may make fewer mistakes and do better work than the other at first, but, in the long run, the college-trained teacher will prove superior. Institutions that maintain a good four-year course based upon four years of high-school work must be ranked as colleges whether they are called normal schools, normal colleges, or schools of education. The depth of scholarship and breadth of thought, sympathy, and culture to be gained in a four-year college course are none too great for the needs of the high-school teacher. One year of graduate work, with the emphasis on professional study, is most helpful. At no other age does the pupil detect sham and shallowness so quickly or respond so generously to the appeals of broad scholarship and widely sympa- THE TEACHER I95 thetic personality. There are, of course, many excellent teachers in the high school who are not college graduates, but they are persons who have won their spurs by private reading, study, and travel, rendering them the equal of the graduate in scholarship and culture; and the purpose that carries them on in the pursuit of knowledge and efficiency indicates strong character. Extensive and Intensive Scholarship. — This academic scholarship should be both extensive and intensive. It should include something from the fields of language, literature, history, art, mathematics, and the natural and social sciences; and it should be sufficiently intensive in two or three subjects to afford the teacher considerable reserve power in teaching them. Extensive scholarship gives the teacher breadth of view and sympathy with the work of other departments, and helps him the better to correlate his work with theirs. Intensive scholarship enables him to do thorough, accurate work in his own department, and to inspire his pupils with respect for his attainments and with love for their work. It is not im- portant or wise that the technical details of scholarship in any line should be introduced into the work of the high school, but it is exceedingly important that the teacher should himself possess a knowledge of those details as a source of reserve power and inspiration. In general, it may be said that in any subject which the teacher must teach in the high school, he should have had previously 196 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOt from two to four years of college work in advance of the high-school work. Advanced Scholarship as indicated, for example, by the degree of bachelor or master of arts or even of doctor of philosophy, is by no means a guarantee of success in high-school teaching, but it is a very great aid in all those instances where the teacher possesses the other requisite qualifications. However, interest in scholarship should never surpass interest in boys and girls. When this happens the person has lost one essential qualification of the teacher of youth, and should be promoted to the field of research. The work of the high-school teacher is not primarily to be a scholar or to teach subjects, but to train boys and girls. Major Subjects. — Wherever it is possible to do so, the prospective high-school teacher should choose early in his college life the subjects which he wishes to teach, and he should devote the greater part of his time to them throughout the course. In case the decision is not made till late in the course, the choice 'should usually include those subjects to which he has devoted most of his time. Guided by a thoughtful adviser and his own inclinations, the student should generally be able to select his subjects by the close of the second year. Mistakes in choice will sometimes be made. It occasionally happens, that a teacher finds, after a little experience, that his greatest interest and power as a teacher lie in an entirely different THE TEACHER I97 line from what he had thought. In such cases the new subject must be studied afresh and more thoroughly. There are certain groups of more or less closely allied sub- jects which the student can wisely choose according to his own inclinations and ability. For example, English, Latin, and Greek ; EngUsh, Latin, and German ; English, Latin, and history ; English, German, and history ; math- ematics, physics, and chemistry; mathematics, botany, and zoology ; biology, physics, and chemistry, are among the most desirable combinations. The beginning expe- rience of most teachers is in small schools, where they are required to teach more than one subject. In the larger schools the majority of teachers now have but one subject; but for reasons given in a preceding chapter, it seems that better results will be obtained in the end if more than one subject is assigned them. This policy presupposes thorough preparation in all the branches they teach. Thoroughness ia the Essential Elements of a subject is as important as extensive knowledge of it. This thorough- ness can be best attauied by a critical review of the ele- mentary phases of the subject late in the course. Such a study may well constitute part of the professional train- ing to be noticed later. PROFESSIONAL TRAINING General Psychology. — Aside from the general academic training and special study of chosen subjects, which must 198 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL be assumed as the sine qua non of the high-school teacher's preparation, there are certain subjects the study of which constitutes a more specific professional training. The first of these is psychology. The fundamental principles of general psychology should be thoroughly mastered, not only from the purely scientific, but also from the educa- tional point of view. The student teacher should have definite training in the application of psychological prin- ciples to specific problems in education. It is not suffi- cient that he know the principle, he must be taught to apply it, and he should be more interested in the application than in the principle regarded from the purely scientific point of view. If to this knowledge of general psychology can be added a study of some special problem worked out in the psychological laboratory, so much the better. Di- rect acquaintance with the scientific method of studying mental phenomena should serve to steady the practical studies which every successful teacher must make of indi- vidual cases, should help him to estimate correctly the value of new educational theories, and should put him in line for making contributions to the study of educational science. Genetic and Adolescent Psychology are particularly important. Genetic psychology is helpful because it shows how the individual came to be what he now is. It presents the picture of a changing, developing human being, and any specific stage of development is looked upon as equally necessary and transitory. From the ge- THE TEACHER I 99 netic view point it becomes a fascinating occupation to watch the individual grow and to assist betimes in direct- ing and stimulating his growth. Adolescent psychology, on the other hand, -presents the facts concerning the stage of individual growth and development with which the high-school teacher is most concerned. Pending further investigations and the final adjustment of theories con- cerning the adolescent age, it is certainly legitimate and wise to make practical use of that large volume of sig- nificant facts which seem to be well established. The physical and mental characteristics and needs of the age are on record, together with certain evident conclusions regarding the proper method of dealing with them. There always remains the extremely interesting, though often difficult, problem of properly diagnosing and treating the individual case. No young man or woman should pre- sume to enter the ranks of the high-school teacher without considerable knowledge of the psychology of adolescence, and that knowledge should be increased with every day's experience in the school. Other Subjects. — Such a study of psychology as has been indicated should yield adequate knowledge of the psychological principles underlying the science of educa- tion in general and adolescent education in particular. But other sciences must add their contribution also. Physiology should show the special dangers, limitations, and needs of the adolescent age on the physical side. 200 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Biology should tell the fascinating story of progress from the beginning of animal life to the present condition of man, dropping occasional hints, meanwhile, as to the direction of future development or degeneracy. Ethics should point the way from what man has been and is to what he ought to be. History should portray the at- tainments of individuals and nations. Sociology should set forth both the part that the individual has played in making society what it now is, and the part that society has played in raising the individual to his present status. Finally, the history of education should present the ideals, content, means, methods, and results of education as they have appeared in the more or less conscious efforts of nations and races to perpetuate and extend their civiliza- tion. All of these studies serve to clarify the problem of education, to give breadth of view, sanity of judgment, steadiness of purpose, and an abiding faith in conscious education as the best means of promoting the dignity and welfare of humanity. When the student has studied the principles of education as contained in the foregoing subjects and has formed a tentative idea of the youth to be educated, the nature of society, of which the pupil should become an efiScient member, and the theoretical end and aim of education ; he is prepared to take up the more directly practical side of the question as found in the school as an institution ; in the curriculum as the specific means of education; and THE TEACHER 20I in the problem of method, which seeks the best way of using available means for the accomplishment of the avowed purpose. The School as an Institution. — As indicated in the earlier chapters, the modern high school is an evolution, a product of many influences. As an institution it is more or less complex, complexity increasing with size. There are certain principles underlying its organization and certain facts to be observed in its management, with which every high-school teacher should be acquainted. These can be learned through experience, but they are then learned at the expense of the school. No one can blame a teacher for making mistakes in the organization and management of a school if he has not given the sub- ject careful study before entering upon his work. The mistake lies in a system that permits him to undertake that for which he has not made adequate preparation. He should be required to avail himself of the knowledge and experience of others who have spent years in the solution of the very problems which he is now facing for the first time. He should study the history, organization, and management of secondary schools in other countries. Curriculum. — The content of education as found in the curriculum may be studied from two radically different points of view. In the one case, the mind is absorbed in the mastery of the subject for the student's own pleasure and profit with no regard for the interest and welfare of 202 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL any one else ; in the other, it is occupied with two more or less distinct problems: first, the mastery of the subject for one's self, and second, the organization of the knowl- edge gained in the best way for presentation to another mind. This organization of the subject involves perfect mastery of fundamentals, arrangement of parts, selection of important particulars, manner of presenting individual points, and method of developing the subject as a whole. Such an organization of the subject can scarcely be made when the student goes over it for the first time. He is then too much occupied in finding his own way to give attention to the best way of teaching it to others. This professional mastery of the subject can best be attained by a thorough review of it with the mind intent upon the problems of organization and method for teaching pur- poses, rather than upon the mastery of the subject itself. The prospective high-school teacher should have such a course in every subject that he expects to teach, and it should be taken under an instructor who knows both theoretically and practically the problems of high-school teaching. Practice Teaching. — There remains the final test of the teacher's preparation for his work. No amount of aca- demic scholarship or professional training in theory alone can avail if he lacks the power to perform successfully the real act of teaching boys and girls. Theory must be vital- ized by the life blood of actual experience. In some cases THE TEACHER 203 the memory of a good high-school career as a pupil serves to keep the theoretical close to practical conditions ; but such experience, valuable as it is, is not sufficient. There should be added the opportunity to observe good high- school teaching under the direction of an instructor who is qualified to bear worthily the title, teacher bf teachers. Under such an instructor the prospective teacher will "see visions and dream dreams," — see visions of the real difficulties of the work, dream dreams of future success through patient, intelligent, enthusiastic effort. The ob- servation and practice school for the training of secondary- school teachers is a much-needed addition to the presait equipment for that work. Practice teaching in the grades will not suffice as training for the high school. Fortu- nately the schools of education! connected with our large universities are seeking to establish secondary training schools. In these schools candidates whose qualifications are such that they give no promise of success as high- school teachers, should be encouraged to enter some other field of effort. Literature for Adolescents. — There is one other attain- ment worthy of special mention as part of the necessary qualification of the high-school teacher ; namely, a knowl- edge of the literature that is particularly suited to the adolescent age. Boys and girls are often omnivorous readers, and the information and the ideals which they absorb are very influential in determining their future 204 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL lives. It is sometimes possible to modify their ideals and conduct through the reading of a book when it would be impossible to do it through instruction or advice given directly. Moreover, it is easy to direct the reading if one only knows the literature. The sense of helplessness which a teacher often feels in the management of a hard case may be greatly lessened if he knows the right book to which to direct the pupil's attention. Knowledge of this literature will also add much to his own perennial tinder- standing and appreciation of adolescent nature. RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE COMMITTEE OF SEVENTEEN The following are the "joint recommendations of the Committee of Seventeen on the professional preparation of high-school teachers. The Committee on the preparation of high-school teach- ers recommend : — I. That the academic preparation include the following elements : — A. A detailed and specialized study of the subjects to be taught. The programme of studies selected by each student should include work in subjects outside of those in which he is making special preparation, sufficient to give some insight into the different fields of knowledge and to avoid the dangers of over-specialization. THE TEACHER 205 B. One or more subjects from a group including Iiis- tory, economics, and sociology, which will give the teacher a proper outlook upon the social aspects of education. C. A course in general psychology and at least one from a group of subjects including history of philosophy, logic, and ethics, which will give the teacher a proper outlook upon education as the development of the individual. II. That definite study be given to each of the following subjects, either in separate courses or in such combinations as convenience or necessity de- mands : — A. History of education. 1. History of general education. 2. History of secondary education. B. Educational psychology with emphasis on ado- lescence. C. The principles of education, including the study of educational aims, values, and processes. Courses in general method are included imder this heading. D. Special methods in the secondary-school subjects that the students expect to teach. E. Organization and management of schools and school systems. F. School hygiene. 2o6 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL III. That opportunity for observation and practice teach- ing with secondary pupils be given. The committee recognizes the difficulties involved in this recommendation, but believes that they are not insurmountable. Each of the following plans has proved successful in some instances : — A. The maintenance of a school of secondary-school grade that may be used for observation and practice. B. Affiliation with public or private high schools so situated geographically that practice teaching can be done without interfering with other work of the college course. In addition to the above, the committee suggests that where competent critical supervision is pos- sible, cadet teaching, in schools more remotely situated, may be attempted. In such cases, a teacher's diploma might be granted after a year's successful work as a cadet teacher. IV. That the minimum requirement for a secondary- school teacher be graduation from a college maintaining a four-year course and requiring four years' high-school work for admission, or from an institution having equivalent require- ments for admission and giving equivdent academic scholarship. THE TEACHER 207 A year of graduate work divided between academic and professional subjects is desirable. Discus- sions of the relative value of college and normal schools for secondary-school teachers, are to be found in the references below.' V. That the study of subjects mentioned under II be distributed through the last two years of the college course. The proportional amount of time given to these sub- jects will vary with local conditions, but an irre- ducible minimum is one eighth of the college course. They should be preceded or accom- panied by the subjects mentioned in I, B, C. Recommendations as to the amount of time given to particular courses will be found in several of the accompanying papers." ' PERSONALITY It is not easy to define the term "personality," but it includes all those peculiar powers and characteristics that make up the individual and distinguish him from other individuals. Personality is a measure of the direct social efficiency of the individual. ' See references given on page 538 of Proc. N.E.A. ''See report in Proc. N.E.A., 1907, pp. 521-668. Also published separately. 2o8 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Health. — The first important element in the personality of the high-school teacher is physical health and strength. Adolescents are periodically below and above par physi- cally. In the former case they need, and they readily respond to, the stimulus given by association with an official superior whose physical powers challenge admira- tion. In the latter case the pupil's superfluous energy will find restraining influence in the felt vigor of his su- perior. In any case there is great need on the part of the teacher of abounding vitality. In dealing with adolescents it is a priceless possession. It is valuable in settling trouble and more valuable in preventing it. The physical strain incident to the control, direction, and stimulation of high- school boys and girls, both in the class room and outside of it, is enormous, and it is dangerous for any man or woman to undertake it who does not possess considerable vitality, no matter how well controlled may be his spirit. Physical health and the power to do the daily duties with- out undue depletion of strength are absolutely necessary. If to these can be added a beautiful face, a good figure, superior physical power, and athletic prowess, so much the better. Possessed in the right spirit, they are helpful and much to be desired, but they should be regarded as quali- fications extraordinary rather than essential. Many teachers fail to appreciate the importance of physical sufficiency as an element of success in secondary- school work. They are usually conscientious, and faith- THE TEACHER SOQ fully spend the evening hours in the examination of papers and the preparation of outside work. Occasionally they are giddy and spend time in social recreation which amounts to dissipation. Both the examination papers and the social recreation are important, but more impor- tant is it that every day's work shall be begun with mind and body fresh and vigorous; and if either the work or the play prevents, it is high time to call a halt. Sympathy. — Of the spiritual qualifications, the first that needs mention is sympathy, — not a sentimental, maudlin feeling, but a vigorous, healthy sentiment that enables the teacher to feel with, rather than for, the youth in all his doings; that enables him to understand the im- pulses of youth; and that leads the youth to understand that he understands. No matter if the teacher does not approve ; that is not really expected. He may even sharply chide. The consciousness on the part of the pupil that a teacher possesses such sympathy or understanding, is itself a powerful influence to deter him from wrong-doing and to enlist his active cooperation in profitable effort. Under such circumstances the pupil feels that he is likely to get a "square deal," because the teacher understands the situation from the pupil's standpoint as well as from his own. This sympathy on the part of the teacher is largely a native endowment, but it can be powerfully stimulated through a genuine love of youth, and it can be rendered much more intelligent through a careful study of 210 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL the psychology of the adolescent age. The man or woman who enjoyed the days of his teens is more likely to have it than he who grew prematurely old. To have had a happy, healthy youth is itself a good start for the high-school teacher. In some way that sympathy must be possessed by him who would succeed. It is the key that imlocks the door to youthful confidence, enthusiasm, restraint, and effort. Honesty. — The teacher should be honest ; not merely because faith in his honesty is necessary in order that he may control his pupils, but because it is important that he should, by his example, impress them with the manliness, the womanliness of honesty as a personal virtue. Young people can forgive a teacher's mistakes if they trust his honesty, but once let them be convinced that he is dis- honest and they inwardly scorn him even though they may follow his footsteps. Personal honesty is a crying need of social and industrial life, and society has a right to expect that it shall be taught in the schools by all avail- able means. Sense of Humor. — The teacher should possess the saving sense of humor. In the faithful pursuit of the high-school course, there is for the adolescent much crucifixion of both flesh and spirit. It must seem to him at times a long, hard, and perhaps unprofitable road. There are the dead level of monotonous routine in class-room work and the occa- sional strenuous hours of discipline. The teacher who THE TEACHER 211 can appreciate the humor of a mistranslation, of a ludicrous mistake, of a ready reply, of a disciplinary situation that is at once serious and comic, has a power that will destroy the bitterness of many a heartache and save the day in many a disciplinary crisis. If he is himself something of a humorist, so much the better. Poise. — The teacher should be steady, well poised, not posed. This characteristic is a matter of nerves, of nerve, of temperament, and of self-control. It is a quality that is highly appreciated by both pupils and superiors. Pupils may not see their own instability, but they recog- nize it quickly enough in teachers, and they soon learn to dislike it and to play upon it. The teacher whose attitude of body and mind shows poise and self-possession under all circumstances, and who is the same month after month and year after year, has one great element of power in controlling and inspiring young people. His steadiness serves as a healthful antidote to the fickleness of youth- From the supervisor's point of view this attribute means reliability. Such a teacher can be trusted not only to do the ordinary daily duties, but to meet the inevitable some- time emergency without "going to pieces." Firmness. — The teacher must be firm, — firm in exact- ing reasonable positive demands in the way of studious effort, and proper behavior, and firm in resisting the oc- casional certain demands of pupils for license in matters of conduct. The pressure which a group of high-school 212 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL boys can bring to bear upon a teacher for the attainment of their desires is tremendous. It is a case of "mass play," and yet the teacher must not yield. It may be well to avoid the issue, but once the battle is on, there is nothing to do but fight it out. To give a single inch often means defeat. Tact. — The companion virtue of firmness is tact. There is abundant opportunity for its exercise in dealing with individual pupils, with classes, with cliques, and with parents. It is often far easier to avoid a conflict than to win when it comes. Concessions can sometimes wisely be made before they are demanded, when it would be impracticable to grant them afterwards. Tact considers it worth while to think out and use the best and kindliest way of attaining the desired end. Personal Appearance. — It is trite, but imfortunately necessary, to mention habits of personal cleanliness and neatness as important qualifications of the teacher. It occasionally happens that one who is otherwise efficient subjects himself to just criticism, sometimes even to ridicule, by pupils, parents, and school officers because of untidy personal appearance. For such dereliction no defense can be offered. On the other hand, neatness and good taste, which is all the better for simplicity, tend to correct the characteristically extravagant tastes of boys and girls, and, through the imitative instinct, to stimulate them to correct personal habits in the matter of dress. THE TEACHER 213 Voice. — The teacher should use his voice well. It is worth the time, effort, and money required to learn how to do it. The voice is a measure of gentility and an edu- cative force of great value. The badly managed voice brings fatigue to the teacher and unrest, not to say distress, to the listener. The gentle, well-modulated voice is im- portant primarily because of the quiet self-control which it indicates ; but it is important also because of its com- forting influence in the ordinary routine of work, and its controlling power in time of storm and trouble. Enthusiasm. — The teacher should be capable of genuine, hearty, sustained enthusiasm. His pupils pos- sess this quality to a marked degree, and he should join them in it. What the adolescent does voluntarily, he does with his might. The enthusiastic teacher can lead him to use in work something of the same energy that he dis- plays in sport and social recreation. Healthy enthusiasm is a bond of union between teacher and pupil. Religion. — The teacher should be not only highly moral but genuinely religious. As President Schurman says, " Man is by nature a religious animal, and the man who is not religious is only half a man." The years of adolescence are the time when the religious instinct natu- rally awakens. It is good pedagogy to encourage its de- velopment in a sane and normal way. The American separation of Church and State makes it impossible to give formal religious instruction in the public schools, 214 THK AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL but that does not prevent the teaching of religion in its essence. Religion is a matter of heart and life rather than of form. Its natural, casual expression in the thought and conduct of superiors is the most powerful religious influence to which young people can be subjected. The irreligious teacher lacks the power to appeal to and stimulate one of the deepest impulses of humanity. Faith in Human Natiire. — The teacher should have a deep and abiding faith in human nature, in the individual youth, and in education as the best means of making him more efficient as an individual and as a member of society. The miracle of faith is that it enables its possessor to com- pass the ideal, and it inspires the personal object of that faith to rise above himself into the ideal of the one who has faith in him. Such faith gives dignity, steadiness, and power to a teacher's whole career because he believes that he is engaged in the greatest work which it is possible for man to do. Wliile others are doing the great deeds of the world, it is given to him to train those who in future years will do greater deeds. While others build their monu- ments in gross matter, he builds his in the human soul. Joined with love like that of Socrates for young men and that of Jesus for humanity, such faith is unconquerable. Personal Influence. — We have enumerated some special elements in the personality of the successful high-school teacher. It is a bald analysis and incomplete. The real teacher must possess these and many more, and they must THE TEACHER 215 be combined in that subtle, vital way which makes a manly man or a womanly woman. We have come to believe pro- foundly in the social inheritance, in the influence of the social environment. The blind primal instinct of imita- tion lays fast hold upon all that comes within its reach. Attitudes of mind and heart, no less than specific acts, are absorbed into the life. The awakened self-consciousness of youth makes personality the object of supreme interest and attention. Its influence is inevitable and tremendous. It does more than all else to give set to the affections and an attitude toward life; and these are more important than scholarship. The high-school teacher whose per- sonality is great and good may make scholars, he must make men ; and a man is more than a mere scholar. The problem of superior success in the teaching of youth is, more than all else, a problem of personality. EXPERIENCE The rule of many school boards to employ no teacher who has not had experience finds at least partial justifica- tion in the fact that the success of every teacher is more or less problematical until it has been demonstrated by actual teaching under normal conditions. Academic scholarship may be thorough and extensive, professional training, where it exists, may be good, personality may be attractive and promise success, and yet something may be lacking to 2l6 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL make the teacher's work successful. Success or failure will usually appear the first year, especially if his work is carefully supervised. Prospective teachers rarely realize the importance, for future success, of doing their first teaching in a good school, under the supervision of an efficient superintendent or principal. In the Grades. — There is some difference of opinion as to the kind of first experience that is most profitable for the prospective high-school teacher. It seems clear that experience in the primary grades is little help in the high school, since the spirit and methods of work are so dif- ferent. One or two years, however, can be profitably spent in the seventh or eighth grade preliminary to taking up high-school work. This experience gives the teacher a definite idea of the work done in the grades, and it enables him to understand better the needs of pupils when they enter the high school. Advanced grade work and high- school work would both be materially improved if the teachers in each place knew definitely the special problems and difficulties of the other. If teachers who are pre- pared to do high-school work could accept positions in the seventh or eighth grade, with the assurance that they would soon be promoted to the high school, the work in both places would be materially strengthened. In the Small High School. — Under existing conditions, however, it can hardly be expected that young men and women who are prepared to do high-school work shoiild THE TEACHER 217 serve an apprenticeship in the grades. They go directly into the high schools, usually the smaller ones, and secure promotion to the larger upon the merits of their work. In the first two years of work in the high school, the teacher learns his subjects better than he has ever known them before; he learns the important points, the hard places, a reasonable assignment for the day and for the semester or year; he learns the machinery of school management ; he learns the art of class management and instruction; he learns more than he has known before of the nature and needs of boys and girls; he learns where to expect difi&- culty and how to avoid it; he learns not only what the problems of the school are, but what is the direction of their solution; and, most important of all, he learns through observation, experience, and habit, what his own powers are and how to command them. He learns none of these things in their fullness, but he makes a begin- ning, and he is now ready to proceed to the attainment of that intuitive skill which enables him to diagnose and treat the individual case as if by instinct, and to assume larger responsibilities successfully. Of course this higher development comes only with effort. If he ceases to think, to study, and to strive toward higher ideals, progress stops and the retrograde movement soon begins. Assum- ing the possession of the necessary youthful spirit, the high-school teacher should grow constantly stronger through many years of experience. 2l8 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL SEX Reasons for Preponderance of Women. — Statistics show that a very large majority of the teachers in the high school are women. The cause is to be found in social and industrial conditions. Men are loath to enter upon a life work which promises insufficient financial returns to enable them to establish a home and rear a family in comfort and respectability. Many men, after entering suc- cessfully upon the work of teaching, leave it for financial reasons. Others deliberately use it as a stepping stone to something else. Still others soon become conscious of financial limitations, but they remain through force of habit. A few serve on through sheer love of the work. Most of the yoting men who now enter intelligently upon the work of teaching do so with the deliberate purpose of preparing themselves for positions of leadership in the profession, which pay a living wage, but yet far short of that received in other professions requiring the same de- gree of training and ability. Generally speaking, men cannot afford to accept subordinate positions in the high schools, hence their absence. On the other hand, the work of teaching naturally appeals to women, and they are preeminently successful in it. In these days of free- dom they are ambitious for positions of honor and profit. Social conditions and the law of supply and demand make it possible to secure women teachers of greater native THE TEACHER 2ig ability and better training for the same amount of money, than can be secured in the case of men. The statement so often made by school boards that they can get better women than men for the money is entirely true. The Educational Question Involved. — Nevertheless, the question is not educationally one of money merely, but of efficiency as well. No one denies that women excel men as teachers of little children. It is certainly wise to leave the field of primary education to the maternal in- stincts and intuitions of womanhood; but, for exactly similar reasons, boys and girls from twelve to eighteen should be taught by both men and women. It is purely a question of efficiency. The combined powers of man and woman are no more necessary for the procreation of the physical child than is their combined influence neces- sary for the proper training of boys and girls. Boys need virile qualities to imitate and manly strength as well as womanly grace to restrain them. Girls need womanly ideals set before them, but they also need the influence of the critical virility of the masculine mind and character. Boys and girls alike need the refining, restraining, stimu- lating influence of both men and women. In a more or less blind, instinctive sort of way they recognize the need. Boys are driven from the schools by the lack of strong men in them; they dislike the companionship of women alone. A manly man teacher stimulates all that is womanly in high-school girls. It is as reasonable to claim that the 220 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL home is complete, as far as the training of children is con- cerned, without the influence in it of a strong man, as to claim that the high school is complete without the presence in it of a fairly proportionate number of virile men teach- ers. Moreover, the principle holds true whether the school be coeducational or for a single sex. The presence of additional men teachers would tend toward the attain- ment of another very desirable end, that is, the establish- ment of greater permanence in the teaching body and the consequent beneficial influence of more mature men and women. In the nature of things the ranks of women teachers must be largely thinned through marriage, and, generally speaking, the better teachers they are, the more likely they are to leave the school for the home. The necessary effect of this exodus is to leave the schools in charge of immature women, and, again speaking gener- ally, of those who, for some reason, are not so attractive. The many notable exceptions to this condition serve to emphasize its general prevalence. If men could enter the teaching profession with confidence, they would remain throughout their working life, and the schools would be greatly strengthened thereby. If high educational ideals are to be maintained, the field of choice of a teacher for a certain position must often be limited necessarily to a single sex. This is, however, a matter which cannot be settled by superintendent or school board alone; it re- quires the financial cooperation of the tax-paying public. THE TEACHER 221 REFERENCES Bardeen, C. W. Why teaching repels men. E(i. iZew. 35 : 351. Bell, S. A study of the teacher's influence. Fed. Sem. 7 : 492- Bolton, F. E. The preparation of the high-school teacher ; what they do secure and what they should secure. Sch. Rev. 15 : 97. Book, W. F. The high-school teacher from the pupil's point of view. Fed. Sem. 12 : 239. Brown, E. E. Distinctive functions of university, college, and normal school in the preparation of teachers. Ed. 29 : i. Burgess, I. B. Specialization of the work of teachers in second- ary schools. Sch. Rev. 5:1. Canfield, J. H. Wanted — a teacher. Ed. Rev. 20 : 433. Cleveland, A. A. The predominance of female teachers. Fed. Sem. 12 : 289. Dawson, G. E. The professional training of teachers in college departments of education. Sch. Rev. 16 : 171. FiNDLAY, J. J. Professional training — the problem. Sch. Rev. I : 281. FiNDLAY, M. E. The training of teachers in the United States. Special Reports, 10:421. Greenwood, J. M. The professional culture of teachers after they have been regularly employed. Ed. 26 : 279. Hall, G. S. Certain degenerative tendencies among teachers. Hanus, p. H. Preparation of the high-school teacher of mathematics. Sch. Rev. 5 : 504. Also in Educational Aims and Educational Values. Hart, A. B. The teacher as a professional expert. Sch. Rev. I : 4. 2 22 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Hendy, F. J. R. The training of secondary teachers and educational ideals. Special Reports, 2 : 378. HmsDALE, B. A. The training of teachers in education in the United States. In Butler's Education in the United States, I : 359. Jacobs, W. B. Characteristics of an efficient secondary-school teacher. Sch. Rev. 12 : 706. The training of teachers for secondary schools. Ed. Rev. II : 245. Laurie, S. S. The Training of Teachers and Methods of Instruction. Cambridge University Press, 1902. Locke, G. H. Training of teachers in CaUfomia. Sch. Rev. 9 : 193- LowDEN, T. S. The teacher's health. Ed. 29 : 30, 76, 153. Maxwell, W. M. The personal power of the teacher in public- school work. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 116. MowRY, D. Why are there few men teachers ? Ed. Ren. 36 : 95- O'SheA, M. V. Concerning high-school teachers. Sch. Rev. 10 : 778. Palmer, G. H. and A. F. The Teacher. Houghton, Mifflin, 1908. Russell, J. E. The function of the university in the training of teachers. Teachers College Record, Vol. I, i : i. German Higher Schools. Longmans, 1899. Professional training of teachers for the higher schools of Germany. Ed. Rev. 14 : 17. The training of teachers for the secondary schools. Ed. Rev. 17 : 364. Salmon, L. M. Training teachers in France. Ed. Rev. 20: 383- THE TEACHER 223 Smith, G. The educational influence of Thomas Arnold of Rugby. Ed. Rev. 4 : 417. West, A. F. The personal touch in teaching. Proc. N.E.A. igo8 : 108. Are there too many women teachers ? Ed. Rev. 28 : 98. Education and training of high-school teachers. Fourth Year-book of the National Society for the Scientific Study of Education, Part I. Report of the Committee of Seventeen on the professional preparation of high-school Teachers. Proc. N.E.A. 1907: 523. Also bound separately. CHAPTER VII The Principal In every school where there are two or more teachers there is a principal teacher, usually called the "principal." The position is ancient and honorable. Since it is more independent of political changes and public clamor than is that of the superintendent, tenure of ofi&ce often extends over many years. Relatively speaking, the salary is fair. The duties increase in dignity and importance with the size of the school. The principal of a large high school occupies an exceedingly important place in the community, for his influence extends into many homes and into the lives of many boys and girls who in turn soon become influential men and women. Upon him depends largely the efficiency of the school. His qualifications and his relation to the school board, superintendent, teachers, pupils, parents, and the community at large will be considered. QUALIFICATIONS Leadership. — The principal should possess in large degree all the qualifications of the teacher, and, in addition thereto, the quality of leadership. He should be a good 224 THE PRINCIPAL 225 scholar both academically and professionally. In addi- tion to being an excellent teacher, he should possess a strong personality; but most of all he should be a good organizer and a good manager of people. His heaviest duties lie in the direction of organization and manage- ment. He is the general, the field marshal, whose duty it is to plan the campaign and to see that it is carried out. Though he may be more or less master of details, he must at least know enough about them to see when work is being well done. He is essentially a leader. Knowledge. — Among the qualities that contribute to the capacity for leadership is superior knowledge, not mainly academic, but professional and general. This comes largely through experience, of which he should have had much. He must know in considerable detail the work of the elementary schools, especially that of the last two years, in order that h§ may properly direct the work of pupils and supervise the work of teachers in dealing with first-year high-school pupils. In like manner, he should be intimately acquainted with the entrance require- ments and the work of colleges, normal schools, and technical schools that he may properly advise pupils con- cerning their studies and wisely counsel both pupils and parents concerning the choice of a higher institution. He should visit these higher institutions and establish personal relations with members of their faculties. He should mingle with college men at educational meetings Q 226 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL and keep himself well informed on all matters of mutual interest. He should be abreast of the times in his knowl- edge of the best in educational theory and practice, espe- cially in the field of secondary education. Self-confidence. — A second element of leadership is self-confidence — not self-conceit. There will be many times when the principal's ability to succeed will depend upon his confidence in that ability. This spirit is con- tagious. It inspires his followers with confidence and dampens the ardor of opponents; it renders him imper- vious to the adverse criticisms of others, and thus saves his nerves ; it gives him a repose of manner that tends to disarm suspicion and establish confidence; it enables him to keep his head and think clearly in time of stress; it tends to make him master of his powers at all times. Common Sense. — The principal should possess uncom- mon common sense, the ability to go at once to the heart of a question regardless of technicalities, and to set it forth so that others will see it in its true light. No amoimt of mere learning can develop this power, it must be native. It fits him to deal with situations not scheduled in the books, but met daily in the work of life, and it renders him master of affairs as well as of studies. Understanding of Htmian Nature. — The principal should be a master in the understanding of human nature. His success or failure will depend largely upon his power to judge the individual's motives correctly and to stimu- THE PRINCIPAL 227 late him to action in the right way. In his contact with pupils, teachers, and parents there is abundant need that he should not misunderstand or mistreat. He must pos- sess that instinctive sympathy which enables him to place himself at the view point of the other fellow. His work is that of management in the best sense of the word. Personality. — Finally, the principal should possess that indefinable quality of personality which enables him to command the confidence of those with whom he has deal- ings, the power that leads them to believe that his judg- ments are both honest and wise, and that they are ren- dered in the spirit of cordial human sympathy; that is to say, he must be honest, wise, and sympathetic. RELATION TO THE BOARD The principal has no dealings directly with the board; his business with that body is transacted through the su- perintendent. He may, however, be invited by them or by the superintendent to appear before them when ques- tions are under consideration with which he is more inti- mately acquainted than is the latter, or when there is need of conference concerning some important problem. The wise superintendent and board will give generous con- sideration to the suggestions of an efficient high-school principal, but he should appear only upon invitation. To do otherwise, is to invite the criticism that he does not 228 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL show proper respect to his .official superior. Even when consulted privately by individual board members, he should be cautious lest he appear to be party to a move- ment against the superintendent. The principal can afford to be modest in such matters, for his term of service is likely to outlast that of the superintendent, and if his cause is worthy, it will win sooner or later. Of course there come times when open opposition to the superin- tendent is the only honorable policy to pursue, but that means rebellion and a fight to the finish. RELATION TO THE SUPERINTENDENT Cooperation. — Between principal and superintendent there should be a spirit of frank, genuine cooperation. Distrust or treachery on the part of the former, or jealousy on the part of the latter, will sooner or later result in dis- aster. The principal should always regard the super- intendent as his official superior. The latter should be superior in fact as well as in position. It is a question, however, whether any higher grade of ability is demanded for the position of city superintendent than is required for the management of a large high school. It is enough to say that the gifts needed are different. If the principal aspires to the superintendent's position, he becomes dis- loyal. If the superintendent becomes jealous of the prin- cipal's popularity, he will be hyper-critical and may use THE PRINCIPAL 229 his authority unjustly. Mutual respect, confidence, and cooperation are essential to satisfactory results. The Actual Division of Duties will depend on the size of the school. Where fewer than six teachers are employed, the superintendent usually prefers to assume responsi- bility for the general management, supervision, and discipline of the high school as well as of the grades, con- sequently the duties of the principal are confined to teach- ing and the partial management of the school after it has been organized under the direction of the superintendent. He has little to do with the selection or supervision of teachers, and severe cases of discipline are referred to the superintendent. In such a school the principal is much more subordinate in fact than he is in a large city where the management and supervision of the high school is practically intrusted to him. Neither law nor custom provides specific rules for the division of authority between superintendent and principal; and it is only fair to each party, as well as to the general public, that in any par- ticular case the extent of the authority of each should be defined by agreement as definitely as possible. The prin- cipal should not be held responsible imless he has ade- quate authority. RELATION TO TEACHERS Officially Superior. — By virtue of his greater authority and responsibility the principal is, in a way, always the 230 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL superior of other teachers who work with him. The degree of difference between thena will depend upon the extent to which he is held responsible for the organization and management of the high school. In the small school the organization is effected under the direct supervision of the superintendent, and the official superiority of the principal is scarcely more than nominal. In the large school, where the principal organizes the school, selects the teachers, places them, and supervises their work, the relation is altogether different. In such cases the teacher stands in much closer relations to the principal than to the superintendent. The former is then the responsible head to whom allegiance is due. Under such circum- stances, if he is the real, as well as the official, superior of the teachers, they will often turn to him for assistance. Assistance. — A considerable part of the time and energy of the successful principal of the large school will be spent in rendering such assistance to his teachers. In an official but unofficious manner he should invite their confidence, and their questions in all difficulties. It is an important part of his business to help them to help themselves. When young or untried teachers begin service, he should watch them closely at first that the weak places, if there are any, may be discovered and strengthened before it is too late. The pupils lose no time in discovering them, why should the principal be less vigilant ? There are three important ways in which the principal THE PRINCIPAL 23 1 may be of assistance to a teacher. First, he may point out some personal habit or mannerism which is likely to interfere with success, — a loud voice in the class room, too much talking, too much reserve or too little dignity in association with pupils, carelessness in personal ap- pearance, or lack of promptness in the performance of duties. It requires tact to make these personal criticisms effective without giving offense. Second, he may help the teacher to do better teaching by quietly calling his attention to specific ways in which improvement is possible. Unless such suggestions are definite they are not worth much. They may refer to the assignment of the lesson, lesson plans, mode of ■ questioning, repetition of question or answer by the teacher, steady speed without haste in the class room, more thorough mastery or better organization of the subject-matter on the part of the teacher, thorough drill on fundamentals, especially at the beginning of a new subject, enthusiasm arising from real interest in sub- ject-matter and pupil. Third, he may help the teacher in matters of discipline and management by calling attention to what may reasonably be expected of a certain pupil in a given situation and by helping him to study impulses and motives, — his own as well as those of pupils. The art of wisely avoiding trouble is particularly important. The wise, observant principal will find many opportunities for rendering assistance along these lines and an equal number of opportunities for the exercise of kindly tact in giving aid. 232 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL He should use the same wisdom and tact in dealing with his teachers that he expects them to use in dealing with pupils. The Teachers' Meeting is the principal's opportimity for unifying the work of the school on the side of teaching and management. It should be made a time of instruc- tion and inspiration, rather than of monotonous routine. To this end it should begin and close promptly, and it should not be too long. Every minute of time should be used and when there is nothing more to do, it is time to adjourn whether the scheduled hour for adjournment has arrived or not. The principal should preside and direct the course of the proceedings, but he should not occupy all the time himself. If he has announcements or instruc- tions to give, let them be given clearly, concisely, and as quickly as possible. It is the hour for the development of individual teachers and the esprit de corps of the school. Matters of discipline or management should receive de- liberate but prompt consideration. The teacher to whom the principal place on the programme has been assigned should be given due time, and discussion should proceed until it is finished or until time for adjournment. Under no circumstances should the meeting be permitted to drag, and very rarely should it extend beyond the specified hour for adjournment. There are many professional topics that may profitably claim the time of a group of Mgh-school teachers, for example: — THE PKINCIPAL 233 The physical needs of adolescents. The social needs of adolescents. The bright pupil, how to give him enough to do. The dull pupil, how to help him most. The psychology of adolescence. The high-school programme of studies. Relation of the high school to the grades. Relation of the high school to college and imiversity. History of secondary education in the United States. Secondary education in England, France, and Germany. Vocation studies in secondary education. Whatever the subject chosen for consideration, the study of it should be systematic, and as thorough as circum- stances will permit. Dififerent methods of study may be used: for example, when the general subject has been selected, special topics may be assigned to different teach- ers for the preparation of papers to be read at appointed times; or, all the different phases of the subject may be studied by all teachers; or, a single book may be studied by all and discussed together imder the leadership of one appointed for the purpose. Every teacher should do some regular professional or general reading, and some of it can be profitably done by the group of high-school teachers together. This work can be so conducted that the best teachers may exert a stimulating influence upon their colleagues. In such work, as elsewhere, the princi- pal should be the leading, inspiring spirit. 234 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL RELATION TO PUPILS Personal Acquaintance. — Except in very large high schools the principal should be personally acquainted with every pupil; should know something of his home sur- roundings, his ambition and that of his parents for him, his disposition, and his success in the work of the school. This knowledge cannot be gained without effort, and when gained, it will avail but little imless it is used in a spirit of genuine devotion to the pupil's welfare. It is desirable that the principal should speak personally with each pupil on the opening day of school or earlier, and make at that time such mental and written notes as shall enable him to follow his subsequent career intelligently. It is not sufficient that he should give attention to the duU or troublesome pupils. The best and most ambitious are just as much entitled to his personal care, encouragement, and advice. By virtue of his position, it may be assumed that he is not only the principal teacher, but also a superior teacher, and a superior person as well. Pupils are en- titled to the influence of his personality and wisdom in individual matters as well as to the benefit of his counsel in the management of the school as a whole. The prin- cipal who does not find in this close personal relationship one of the greatest joys and privileges of his work, cer- tainly lacks one element of efficiency; and the school authorities who so load the principal with other duties THE PRINCIPAL 23S that time and strength are lacking for this most important work, are, to put it mildly, making a great mistake. In the very large schools this relationship cannot be main- tained, and the pupil must find his adviser in some teacher to whose care he has been assigned, as suggested in a former chapter. Teaching. — It is unfortunate that the clerical and ad- ministrative duties of the principal sometimes become so great that he has no time for teaching. The wisdom of such a policy is doubtful. If he is as good a teacher as he ought to be, pupils would find special profit in his instruc- tion. Of even greater importance is the reflex influence of this teaching upon the principal himself. Teaching gives him a definite intellectual interest along with his administrative duties; it affords an opportunity to exert a large influence upon his class and, through its members, upon the school as a whole; and it keeps him alive to the actual problems of the class room, thus enabling him the better to assist other teachers in the solution of their prob- lems. It seems quite worth while for him to retain one class daily even if doing so requires the employment of additional clerical and supervisory assistance. It should go without saying that if, in a large school, the principal teaches even one class, he must be relieved of some other duties. The "Hard Cases." — Because of his greater experi- ence, attainments, responsibility, and official position, it 236 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL is proper that the principal should always deal with the "hard cases" in discipline and management. These con- stitute the most disagreeable part of his work, and they make the greater demands upon his thought, tact, and nerve force. Nevertheless he cannot escape the duty. In the disposal of such cases he should demand from teachers^ and give to them cordial cooperation, but when the necessity of final decision falls upon him, he cannot honorably shift the burden. He must use strenuous means, if necessary, and take the consequences. At such times especially, he seems to earn his larger salary, yet it is for just such duties that he is given superior remuneration and higher official recognition. If he fails in the wise performance of these duties, he demonstrates his incapacity for the position. His success will be the greater, however, if he can so administer afifairs that the hard cases rarely appear. It is more honor to avoid extreme situations than to meet them successfully when they arise. Pupil vs. Teacher. — One of the most delicate and diffi- cult tasks falling to the lot of the principal is that of judging between teacher and pupil when the latter feels that the teacher has done him injustice and appeals to the principal for redress. In such a case the principal niay find it extremely difficult to decide the case on its merits, for if he fails to support the teacher, the latter's authority and consequent usefulness in the school are practically THE PRINCIPAL 237 at an end, and confidence in the authority of other teach- ers is disturbed. Unless the mistake is a flagrant one, the principal is almost compelled to support the teacher publicly, even though the circumstances require correc- tion or reproof for the teacher in private. In case of flagrant error or injustice on the part of the teacher, the principal may be justified in requiring him to bear his own burden and to adjust the difficulty either by making satisfactory amends to the pupil or by resigning. RELATION TO PARENTS Cooperation. — The principal is indirectly the employee and professional adviser of the parent regarding the edu- cational welfare of children committed to his care. At times he stands in loco parentis. It is his duty to do for the child the best that can be done; and, in the school, his authority, granted by the State, js superior even to that of the parent. The pupil may be withdrawn from the school, but, as long as he remains, he is subject to its rules as administered by the teachers and especially by the prin- cipal. Possible antagonism between the authority of the parent and that of the principal should never become more than a mere possibility. Their relation should be that of hearty, intelligent cooperation. As faithful par- ents it would be strange if the father and mother did not know some needs and characteristics of the child of which 238 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL the principal is, for a time at least, ignorant. As a pro- fessional educator it is natural that the principal should be able to judge more wisely than the parents regarding some educational policies. Each should be accessible to the other, and should have the benefit of the other's su- perior understanding of the child and his needs. Cooper- ation is here the key to success. Mediation. — In the not infrequent cases where this cooperation is unattainable, it becomes the duty of the principal to stand as mediator between the will of the parent and the welfare of the child. Such mediation may require either punishment or encouragement for the pupil. Whatever his welfare as a future citizen of the State demands, should be honestly given, for the prin- cipal is directly the servant of the State and only indirectly the employee of the parent. In the occasional conferences, sometimes "scenes," unfortunately, between parents and principal, there will be needed on the part of the latter an abundance of tact, patience, sympathy, and good judg- ment. Parents should be led to feel that he is an honest, safe, and interested adviser. On the other hand, the principal should never permit the consciousness of his ofi&cial authority or the mechanical routine of the school to blind him to the vital human interests of both pupil and parent. In case the principal knows that a parent has come in bad humor to make complaint on behalf of his child, it may be a wise policy to forestall the complaint by THE PRINCIPAL 239 asking the parent certain premeditated questions, the answers to which will serve to establish the general prin- ciple involved, thereby practically settling the case before it has been stated. The principal has a great opportunity and duty when, for any reason, the parent does not understand the nature and possibilities of his child. Only by the exercise of rare tact can unwise home treatment be corrected, although even that is sometimes possible ; but there are many cases in which the parent does not have a proper idea of the ability of his child and of the importance of giving him the best possible education. In such instances the proper encouragement is due the parent scarcely less than the child. Of course the principal cannot take upon himself the burden of the personal management and welfare of every individual pupil, yet if he is watchful and generous, he will often be able to render invaluable personal assist- ance to parent and pupil alike. RELATION TO THE COMMUNITY Public Confidence. — The high-school principal should be a man or woman of recognized standing in the com- munity. He should be personally acquainted with busi- ness and professional men, and command their confi- dence as a person of high character, practical ability, and good judgment. There will be many times when he will 240 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL need their cooperation in promoting the best interests of the school. In no other way can it be so surely and effi- ciently secured as through a well-established personal relationship. If he has the confidence of the people of the community, he will be better able to command the confidence and respect of pupils in school; he can do more in the way of assisting them to positions when they leave the high school; and, in the occasional instances of disciplinary trouble in the school, he will find favorable public sentiment a powerful ally. Many a man loses his position in time of trouble, not because he is not right, but because he has not made friends of the people when there was no trouble. In most cases the principal should be a man, a man among men, able, through their knowl- edge of him and confidence in him, to command for the high school and its interests the hearty, business-like co- operation of the prominent, influential people of the com- munity. Man or Woman ? — Generally speaking, men make bet- ter principals than women, especially in large schools. They are stronger physically; they possess more execu- tive ability; they are more likely to command the confi- dence of male citizens; they are more judicial in mind; they are more sure to seize upon the essential merits of a question; they are less likely to look at things from the personal point of view; they are likely to be better sup- ported by subordinates; and, simply because they are THE PRINCIPAL 24I men, they are more likely to command fully the respect and confidence of boys. The remarks made in the pre- vious chapter with regard to the sex of the teacher apply with special force here. There are, however, some women who make excellent high-school principals, especially in the smaller schools. They are usually willing to spend more time upon the details of school management, they often take more personal interest in pupils than men do, and some of them are just as good executives. Whether the principal be man or woman, if he would be entirely successful, he must be an active participant in the business and social affairs of the community. To hold aloof is to brand himself as unpractical or unsocial or above others. It is hard to live down such a reputa- tion, and it is impossible to do one's best as long as it prevails. Every year's residence in a community should give him additional power in his work. REFERENCES Allen, J. G. The supervisory work of principals. Sch. Rev. I : 291. Farrington, F. E. The equipment of the school principal. Ed. Rev. 35 : 41. Gilbert, C. B. The School and its Life. Silver, Burdett & Co., 1906. GumnsoN, W. B. Should the entire energy of the high-school principal be given to administration? Proc. N.E.A. 1905 : 452. R 242 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Hartwell, S. O. The equipment of the high -school principal. Sch. Rev. 9 : i6o. Perry, A. C. The Management of a City School. Macmillan, 1908. Tetlow, J. The high-school principal, his rights, duties, and opportunities. Ed. Rev. 17 : 227. Thurber, C. H. The new principal. Sch. Rev. 7 : 67. Waterhouse, a. H. Should the entire energy of the high- school principal be given to administration? Proc. N.E.A. 1905 :4S4. The legitimate duties of a principal. Acad. 2 : 225. CHAPTER VIII The High-school Puph, For the successfxil teacher in any school the pupil is the real, living, ever present problem. The details of subject-matter, methods of teaching, school administra- tion, class-room management, and educational theory may be so mastered that they come to him as second nature; but the individual pupil is a new problem to be studied and treated anew with every change of his rapidly developing individuality. This is particularly true of the high-school pupil, for at no other time in his life is change likely to be so great, so sudden, and so rapid. Failure to understand and to solve this problem means at best only partial, success in the work of teaching. The life of the school centers in the pupil. He is the raison d'etre of the entire educational system. He must be reckoned with at every step. To be able to understand and appre- ciate him is the most important part of the teacher's equipment. No amount of merely theoretical study will enable him to attain this qualification, for each indi- vidual pupil is a separate case. Nevertheless, there are certain general facts and principles concerning the ado- lescent age with which every teacher should be acquainted 243 244 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL before he attempts to teach in a high school. We may consider, therefore, the pupil's characteristic traits and some of his consequent needs. CHARACTERISTIC TRAITS Physical Traits. — Educational philosophy should never forget that a human being is first of all an animal, that he has a physical existence which is the foundation of his spiritual being, and that he possesses certain mental at- tributes of which the higher forms of brute life are also possessed. The youth becomes conscious of his physical powers and necessities, as well as of his spiritual life, to a degree not before experienced. Each presses upon him with an imperious demand for recognition. It depends upon his inheritance, his temperament, his training, his environment, and his own will power, which shall prevaO. Roughly speaking, the high-school period covers the years from fourteen to eighteen. A few pupils enter at twelve, and some others remain until they are twenty or even more. In any case the period is likely to include the years of most rapid growth, and greatest change phys- ically. From fourteen to sixteen boys show the greatest per cent of growth in both height and weight of any time in their lives except during the first two years of infancy. The same extraordinary development comes to girls about two years earlier. Girls have practically completed their THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 245 normal youthful growth at sixteen. Boys "continue to grow, but with constantly decreasing rapidity, to the age of eighteen. There may be some growth even up to the age of twenty-five, but it is not great during these later years. In many cases so rapid is the growth during the earlier years of the period that it results in growing pains, real physical pain caused by the stretching of muscles which have failed to keep pace with the bones to which they are attached. It is literally true that they are grow- ing so fast that it hurts. As an accompaniment and partial result of this rapid growth and maladjustment of bones and muscles, there is the well-known awkwardness of youth, and its consequent mental embarrassment. Hands and feet are too large and too many, there is no comfortable place for them. To use Kipling's happy phrase, the youth has not "found himself." When we turn from the growth of the body as a whole to the special development of its different parts, we find some interesting and suggestive facts. As has been indi- cated, the bones and muscles, especially those of the arms and legs, increase in length and size. The heart increases greatly in size and contractile power, the blood pressure is tremendously augmented, and the temperature of the body rises. Before this time the heart is small in com- parison with the arteries; henceforth the proportion is reversed. Lungs and chest have a large part in the extraordinary growth. The beard appears, and the voice 246 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL changes. It is highly probable that structural changes of moment occur in the brain. Most of all, there is the perfected development of those parts that mark sex dif- ferences, the organs that are concerned in the perpetua- tion of the species. This growth of the body and its parts is accompanied by a corresponding increase in its powers. With the in- crease in muscular power all over the body comes increased muscular efficiency in all sorts of manual effort. There is enlarged energy and impulse to activity in many direc- tions, often alternating with periods of depression, inac- tivity, and apparent laziness. In girls the periodic life develops and along with it the imperative necessity of regular functional habits and proper periods of rest and relaxation. In boys there is the power and the need of prolonged strenuous effort both to work off healthy super- fluous energy and to develop more of the same kind for future use. From fourteen to sixteen in boys and from twelve to fourteen in girls, the period of most rapid growth, there are fewer deaths, and there is greater vitality than at any other time of life, although just preceding and just following the advent ,of puberty, the body seems more subject to disease and less able to resist its attacks. The rate of mortality is then perceptibly higher than during the two or three years of greatest growth in which the characteristic sexual changes are taking place most rapidly. However, there is considerable temporary illness through- THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 247 out the period, due in great measure to the momentous changes going on within the body and the lack of adjust- ment of part to part. Among the common maladies may be mentioned nervousness, sleeplessness, indigestion, eye troubles, great depression with corresponding periods of exaltation, irregular heart action, accompanied in m^y cases by great uneasiness about it, hysteria, and more or less severe cases of insanity. It is a time when physical inheritance of whatever kind is likely to appear. An inherited tendency to disease often manifests itself either at puberty or just before. It is well to guard against such tendencies with great care when they are known to exist. It is a good omen that a victim of an unfortunate physical inheritance passes through this period in safety. On the other hand, children who have formerly been weak and unable to take a full part in the race of life, now gather renewed strength and vitality for future struggles. In all of this growth and change there is a general readjustment of part to part, and the body as a whole takes on the form, size, and functions of early maturity. The shape and the powers of the youth of eighteen are strikingly different from those of the lad of twelve, and this statement is even more evidently true of the girl. The boy has become a man, the girl a woman, each with capa- bilities infinitely beyond those of childhood. It is with this period of physical regeneration that the high school has to deal. 248 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Intellectual Traits. — Since consciousness at any mo- ment is largely dependent upon general and particular physical conditions, it is only natural to expect that such physical changes as have been enumerated, should be accompanied by corresponding changes in the entire mental life. There are new sensations, more prolonged attention, clearer perception, finer discrimination, saner judgment, and more logical reasoning. Growing intellectual activi- ties react upon an extending environment to produce a wider and more significant experience. Early in the high- school period the pupil is interested in things rather than in theories, though there is a growing interest in the latter. Memory is as strong as at any earlier period, but not quite so ready in taking up mere forms, as in language. Imagi- nation makes wonderful flights. The adolescent sees visions and dreams dreams. His intellectual life is broadened, and he becomes interested in many things, turning from one to another with astonishing rapidity. His persistence is not great, but it grows with each year, and before the close of adolescence he may have found his life's intellectual interest. He is also capable of in- creasingly prolonged and strenuous effort. He is no longer satisfied with mere facts; he wants to know the reason, the why and how of things. He has great confidence in his own judgment, often ignoring that of his elders. He has unbounded faith in reasoned truth, and the attain- ment of it becomes a passion with him. In the later THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 249 years religious and philosophical doubts sometimes over- whelm him and produce what is known as the " storm and stress period." As a rule, however, this does not come until after the high-school age is passed. The actual content of his intellectual life is likely to include much besides the subjects studied in school. His own physical comfort, sports, games, dress, ideals, and social relations occupy a large place. Prominent among the thoughts and feelings of youth are those pertaining to sex. There is every reason to believe that, owing to dif- ferences in temperament, environment, and training, these thoughts and feelings vary greatly with different individuals; but there is no room for doubt that they are present in some form, and that they constitute or modify a considerable part of conscious life during most of this period. ; Emotional Traits. — In the language of President Hall, adolescence is "the birth time of the feelings." On the sensational side there are feelings unknown before, due to the development of new physical functions. On the emotional side, there are both new emotions and greater intensity of those formerly experienced. The enormous increase in physical energy seems to find one outlet in intensified feeling. Ordinarily this feeling manifests it- self in loud demonstrations, but sometimes it is like a hidden fire burning unseen within. In any case the adolescent likes or dislikes this or that person or thing as 250 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL never before. He must do this or he just can't do that. He speaks in superlatives because he feels superlatively. Moderation is not now a virtue with him. Yet he does not always feel the same way. He is a creature of moods and impulses, on the house-top to-day, in the cellar to-morrow; or the period of elation may continue for several weeks, to be followed by a corresponding time of depression and inactivity. Among the objects of these feelings may be mentioned personal relationships, social doings, matters of con- science or religion, nature, sports, dress, fads, subjects of study, or any topic of temporary or permanent interest. He easily becomes enthusiastic over a small matter; for the time being it is all important. It is worth while to mention specially his susceptibility to religious impres- sions. Under the influence of normal religious teaching in home arid Church he feels his own shortcomings, his need of a worthy object of worship, as never before. It is preeminently the age of religious conviction and con- version to the religious life. More conversions take place during these years than at any other period. It is the conclusion of all who have investigated the subject that if a young man or woman passes the age of twenty with- out having taken religious vows, the chances are many to one that he will never do so. Volitional Traits. — Adolescent impulses are probably stronger than those of any earlier age, but judgment and THE HIGH-SCHdOL PUPIL 251 will are normally stronger also ; consequently the former may be held in check. If impulse leads one way and judgment another, it depends upon the will wllkt course the youth will take. If judgment and impulse agree, it is difficult to prevent action. Spurred on by impulse and the confirmation of his own judgment, in which he has sublime confidence, there is for him but one logical course to pursue. His action can then be prevented only by force or by leading him to see things in a new light, thereby modifying impulse or judgment, or both. The will may be pitiably weak, especially in cases of physical degeneracy, but normally it is so strong that to force an issue without first winning the judgment, is often to bring on a fight to the finish. The adolescent will is a factor to be reckoned with. Social Traits. — The normal adolescent cannot live unta himself; he is being bom, or has been born, into society. To the earlier tendency of boys and girls to belong to groups limited to their own sex, there is now added an interest in the other sex. This is the simple fundamental fact and upon it all correct social philosophy for the high school must be built. The "gang" or "bunch" or "set" ultimately widens to include all society, and the interest in the other sex leads to the social unit, the family. The high-school period is likely to begin before the sex interest is aroused, and it may also end without it, but the latter experiejice is probably rare. That is to say, in nearly 252 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL every case an evident sex interest will have developed in the high-school pupil in addition to the group interest which he has had since he was eight or ten years old. As a matter of fact, both interests merge into one as the group is enlarged to include both sexes. Group afiSnities are facts to be reckoned with in the high school as neces- sarily as algebraic theorems or Latin forms, and they are of far greater consequence to the pupil. The fuller con- sideration of this fact is reserved for a separate chapter. Moral Traits. — The moral qualities of the adolescent are very diverse in different individuals. On the one hand are those who laugh at moral ideals ; on the other, those who are painfully conscientious. Between these two relatively small classes lie the great majority of those who have strong feeling in matters of right and wrong, but who are easily influenced by companionship and example, and so are often led astray. In such cases there is a battle of impulses: the one to do the right as per- ceived, the other to sacrifice conscience for pleasure. His moral judgments are sometimes strongly influenced by personal feelings, and they are just as fallible as in other cases. In general, girls are more conscientious than boys, especially in small matters. The one thing that boys and girls alike demand in all relationships, particularly with their superiors, and which can almost be said to repre- sent their moral code, is "a square deal." Other failures may be forgotten or forgiven but this never, or at least THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 253 not for years. Their morality is intensely personal in its character and the stories of school escapades show a strik- ing loyalty to moral ideals when personal relationships are involved. The high-school pupil is essentially, though doubtless sometimes crudely, moral. Other Traits. — Aside from the psychological and physi- ological characteristics enumerated in the preceding para- graphs, there are certain other significant traits of the adolescent period which cannot be so clearly classified because they are combinations of two or more main ele- ments. There is, of course, no sharp line of demarkation between the periods of boyhood and youth. It is like the point "where the brook and river meet." Many of the traits of the earlier years are carried over into the later, while some peculiarly adolescent traits appear as early as the age of twelve. Chief among the former are the play instinct and the sporting impulse, — hunting, fish- ing, camping, and the like. Games become more strenu- ous as the years pass, and skill plays a greater part in them. Baseball, football, athletic sports, and even prize fighting appeal strongly to the boy, and to become a star in one of these fields is often the height of his ambition. Adventure, especially when it is spiced with a bit of danger, has for him, and for her also, the strongest fasci- nation. Boys often run away from home and go to sea, to the army, to unsettled communities, to foreign lands. They are capable of enduring great hardships and they 254 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL take pride in it. Many a youth finds the home surround- ings too tame for him and he beats his way on land or sea until the wild impulse is satisfied, when he returns home and becomes the embodiment of contented domes- ticity. Although his many enthusiasms should be not only harmless but helpful, they may be mixed with wild and irresponsible folly, resulting in mischievous pranks, hoodlumism, and vandalism. The impulse to disorderly activity is often tremendously strong. From twelve to twenty there is marked increase in crime, and most crimi- nal careers are begun in these years. The average age of offenders in the juvenile reformatories of the United States is between fourteen and fifteen years. Crimes against property are the most numerous. Lying and disobedience are very common. In strange contrast with this disorderly tendency is the fact that some adolescents feel criticism so keenly that reproof by parent or teacher sometimes leads to suicide. The impulses are so strong that unless the youth has acquired habits of thoughtful- ness and self-restraint, he is prone to indulge them to the full, sometimes sowing enough wild oats for an abundant harvest. On the other hand, he may make moderation and self-control the ideal virtues. Sometimes his visions and dreams refer to his own personal happiness; at other times, they are thoroughly unselfish and concern the welfare of relatives, friends, or THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 255 the world at large; but they are always distinctly per- sonal in their content. He often grows overwhelmingly altruistic and would freely devote his life to the ameliora- tion of the sufferings of the race and the correction of the wrongs of society. Such visions, which are perhaps a combined product of imagination, judgment, ambition, intensified feeling, and quickened moral and religious sense, have carried many a youth to the accomplishment of great things. Sometimes he soars too high and at last comes to earth with a thud. He may only dream, but he may both dream and do. In the former case he must be awakened ; in the latter, he grows to his full stature. Of boys especially, it may be said that the "gang" spirit of earlier years often persists far into this period and makes possible united action for good or ill. They are usually more awkward and bashful than girls, and in their attempts to conceal embarrassment, they are frequently rude and noisy. They often seize upon a very small thing to determine their judgment of a person or an act, a thing so small as to seem utterly insignificant to others. In the main, however, their judgment rings true. Sooner or later the youth is drawn to the opposite sex. He fre- quently falls in love with a woman much older than him- self, perhaps an attractive, sympathetic young teacher. Such a love is little short of pure adoration, and in many cases is most helpful. A boy's mental attitude toward the other sex may be of the basest or the purest sort accord- 256 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL ing to the ideal he has formed of a woman's character. Possibly nowhere else are first impressions more potent for good or ill. Girls precede boys in their development from one to two years. From fourteen to eighteen a girl is perceptibly more advanced than a boy at the same age. Girls are more susceptible to disease, both slight and serious; they are more disposed to serious mental perturbations. They are, on the whole, less awkward than boys. They crave candy, pickles, and other extreme articles of diet. They are sometimes careless of physical appearance and some- times particular to the extent of squeamishness re- garding the least soiling of body or clothing. Dress, especially finery, rises to sudden and surpassing impor- tance. In society, of which they are very fond, they fre- quently, when free from restraint, talk loudly, scream, giggle, and tell the veriest secrets to all their acquaint- ances. Timidity and boldness strive for the mastery. Not infrequently a girl has what she calls a "crush," the object of adoration being a teacher or another girl, usually a little older and stronger than the victim. In such a case she loses no opportunity to shower favors upon the object of her fascination. She willingly denies herself that she may secure appropriate tokens of her affection. Such attachments are not to be encouraged, though they rarely result in injury. A girl's first love affairs are usually like evanescent THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 257 dreams. They are too romantic to last. However com- monplace her admirer may be in reality, he is for her a gallant knight. Even before he has appeared to her in person, her imagination has pictured him as the knight- liest of men and altogether devoted to herself. Now that he has come, that same wonderful power enables her to overlook his shortcomings and to say with Miranda, — "I might call him A thing divine, for nothing natural I ever saw so noble." Girls are sometimes singularly indifferent to the other sex, but such cases are rare. Sometimes timidity or fear pre- vents them from responding to attentions offered, but usually the first indication of preference, imder proper conditions, wakens the new nature within them. With an ardor of which they are often unconscious, they con- stantly manage to attract the attention of their admirers. They learn the ways of artful love with astonishing rapid- ity. The most unexpected impulses sometimes appear and prevail; for instance, a bright girl, who through two years of high-school life, was apparently so bashful that she could scarcely treat a boy with ordinary courtesy, soon afterwards figured in an elopement. The early loves of adolescence are, for the most part, as fleeting as the many other interests characteristic of the age; but in some cases their intensity and the lack of proper restraint on the part of parents or guardians, and occa- 258 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL sionally the unwise opposition of those interested, lead to hasty and unhappy marriages. It is not always easy for parents or friends to know when to keep hands off. In most cases the early experiences are entirely harmless, if not actually helpful in the development of character and that knowledge of human nature which makes possible wise companionship and a safe choice later on. To a great extent, the adolescent is yet the creature of impulse unguided by mature forethought and judgment. His spirit chafes under restraint and the necessities of fortune. Patience and persistent effort are not now his characteristic virtues, but nature and society and his own better judgment are constantly putting him on trial to see how nearly he measures up to the standard of maturity. Toward the close of this period he is likely to give a good account of himself. In the annals of history and society the achievements of the later years of adolescence are by no means to be despised. At fifteen Edison aspired to read the Detroit Free Library entirely through, and he actually accomplished fifteen solid feet of books. The average age of one hundred actors at the time of their first great success was eighteen years. Scott wrote poetry at thirteen, Bryant wrote " Thanatopsis" at eighteen, and Pascal, treatises on advanced mathematics at sixteen. At the same age Wagner soared to "the highest peaks of orchestral achievement." The years of adolescence usu- ally give promise of future attainments, but there are THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 259 many notable exceptions. Sir Isaac Newton, Patrick Henry, Goldsmith, and Grant were poor students. Such are some of the main traits and characteristics of the high-school pupil. What suggestion have they for teachers and friends who are interested in helping young people to win their full inheritance of manhood and womanhood ? CONSEQUENT NEEDS Physical Nature. — In the first place, there should be frank recognition of the fact that there is a physical nature, which is the basis of all else of good or ill. The many changes that occur in the body are so great as to require special consideration lest wrong personal or func- tional habits be established. Plain, nutritious food, plenty of fresh air and exercise, an abundance of sleep, and regular habits are the main requirements for normal, healthy development. Girls, particularly, should be taught the double necessity of sufficient regular exercise and of periodic rest and relaxation. There is more danger that boys will exercise too little than too much, although caution is occasionally needed. Sharp, severe exercise, either in sport or labor, is a most excellent tonic, moral as well as physical. The Mental Changes are as great as the physical. A totally new function, the greatest of life, has come into being, and with it a new sphere of sensation and feeling. 26o THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Sense, imagination, reason, and especially the emotions, are quickened and enlarged. The calls of sense as well as of the spirit are louder than ever before. To which shall he yield, and when, and how far ? To put him in the way to answer these questions wisely for himself should be one of the main ends of his training at this time. Companionship of Men and Women. — Another great need of the adolescent is the companionship of strong men and noble women who understand him and sympa- thize with him. When a youth feels that an older person really understands him, — his impulses, his foibles, his ambitions, his better as well as his worse self, — the first link in the chain of confidence is forged. Such imder- standing comes only with a quick sympathy and a knowl- edge of the facts concerning adolescent nature. A youth cannot always be driven, but he can be led. The influ- ence of a noble companionship upon a boy or girl is beyond computation, and at this age both need all the steadying power available. They are like ships at sea without bal- last. The presence, or even the thought, of their ideal character often saves the day in the struggle of impulses. Men and women do not always appreciate their oppor- tunities in the matter of helping boys and girls away from their doubts and temptations into the larger life of a true manhood and womanhood. Social Enjoyment. — Still another need is the oppor- tunity for social enjoyment under proper conditions. The THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 261 love of it is as natural as breathing; not to satisfy it is to stunt future development by the neglect of a natural, healthy instinct. There is far greater danger for a youth in solitude than in companionship, provided it be of the right kind. Happy, hearty social comradeship imder proper conditions is a necessity. It satisfies a natural cravilig, it affords an opportunity for development of hearty enthusiasms, it helps to keep the mind off the physical development peculiar to the age, and it affords a means of culture as good as can be found in the social circle in which he moves. Objective Interests. — During these years the thoughts should be directed toward things outside the self. Ob- jective interests are most healthful, — games, sports, social enjoyments, work, and studies. Good books are a powerful ally. The novel of sensational adventure appeals strongly to boys just as the sentimental type does to girls, but there is hardly anything worse. Ideals of life are absorbed with great readiness during this plastic period and trashy reading tends to cultivate a false taste, to establish wrong ideals, to rouse untimely feelings, and to cause general dissatisfaction with actual conditions of life. Biography, history, nature study, science, classical literature, the story of heroic achievements, and certain classes of fiction, are of inestimable value in creating a healthy thought life and stimulating effort in the direction of worthy ideals. Many adolescents are omnivorous 262 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL readers. In general, it is a commendable trait, but oc- casionally one reads too much for physical health or good mental digestion. Adolescent interests are likely to be many and fleeting. It is well enough to encourage them and to let them have their day, for they mean just so much versatility of power and interest in later years. Ado- lescence is the golden age of many-sided aspiration and broad but not profound achievement. Responsibility. — The adolescent is prone to assert his independence. That independence should be recog- nized and encouraged as far as circumstances will permit; but along with it must go a sense of responsibiUty. He is beyond the power of forced control, even if that were desirable. Self-control on the basis of thoughtfulness and good judgment must be developed. The consequences of his conduct to himself and to society must be carefully considered; and, as far as is practicable, he should be led to decide for himself, before acting, whether he is willing to face these consequences. Even under the most favorable conditions, there will be many times when the firm decision and the wiser judgment of parent, guardian, or teacher will be needed. Personal Respect. — The adolescent should be treated by his superiors as a person, and as one who is entitled to a certain amount of consideration because of that per- sonality. Violation of his sense of personal dignity is for him a grievous ofifence and not easily forgotten. The THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 263 maintenance of distinctly personal relationships between pupils and teacher draws largely upon the resources of the latter, but it is an educational influence of surpassing value. Information. — There is one great need of this age which is all too seldom supplied to young people ; namely, frank ,and adequate information regarding their own physical nature and the character of the inheritance into which they are coming. The widespread lack of such instruction is a great misfortune. The absolutely natural and normal physical changes that occur at this time are enough to cause grave fears and great perturbation of spirit in a sensitive nature even though innocent and pure, unless there is proper information in regard to the nature and significance of those changes. When there is added to this natural disturbance of spirit the distress so often coming from reading in newspapers and magazines the advertisements of quacks whose business it is to prey upon those fears and extort from their thousands of vic- tims money for the quick and sure cure of what is painted as a terrible disease, but what is really only a normal condition of good health, it is no wonder that there is great mental anguish. Parents and guardians owe those com- mitted to their care such instruction as shall not only relieve them from unwarranted fears but help them to grow into strong and healthy manhood and womanhood, rejoicing In the unimpaired powers with which nature has 264 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL endowed them. The sexual errors of youth are largely due to ignorance. Boys and girls cannot possibly know of themselves the disastrous consequences of wrong habits, and the overwhelming importance, for their own future happiness, of habitual purity in thought, word, and deed. If it were possible for young people to grow to maturity without any knowledge of the subject, there might be a semblance of justification for withholding the information from them, though even in that case it would be very poor policy; but such a supposition is practically impos- sible of realization. In the complexity of our modem life the newspaper, the advertisement, the vulgar sketch, or the obscene word cannot always be prevented from com- ing to their notice. The only safe way is to forestall their effect by a plain statement of the important facts spoken in purity, love, and confidence. Indeed, such information as the child can comprehend should be given as soon as he asks for it, which may be years before adolescence. When so given, it falls into an inquiring mind undisturbed by passion. It takes its place naturally among other important facts and so forestalls incorrect or evil notions on the subject which might otherwise be gained elsewhere. True enough such information should be given by the parent rather than by the teacher. In the present state of public sentiment, the latter cannot do much openly, but he should at least be aware of the need and he may occasionally be able to lend a helping hand. THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 265 Individual Cases. — The characteristics of the adoles- cent period and of the high-school pupil indicated in this chapter do not apply to every case or at all times. Indeed, there is such great difference between the traits of the different years of the period and so great difference be- tween individuals, due to the development of individuaUty, that there is great need of wise discrimination in Judging any particular case. Although the high-school pupil undoubtedly is willful, impulsive, moody, and perverse, at times, his condition may be explained by the fact that he is the more or less passive creature of the regenerating forces at work within him. His physical life is full to overflowing. It is a pleasure just to live, and joy to live abundantly. His enjoyment in living should be encouraged by all practicable means. Other things equal, the better animal he is, the better man he will be. He should be taught to honor the body and its powers; they are the basis of all that he can hope to become. He may see that, if he wills to do so, he can live almost upon the animal plane; but the recog- nition of this fact need not lead him astray. Indeed, it will be more apt to effect a revulsion from a sensuous hfe; for, strong as are the solicitations of the animal nature, the call of the spiritual is likely to be even louder. He sees and feels that hfe is more than mere enjoyment. His emotions are no longer only egoistic but largely altruistic. He is a member of society in a larger sense than ever 266 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL before. His reveries and ambitions carry him above the physical and the material imtil he is brought back again by the stem necessities of the bodily life. Such is youth at its best. On the other hand, it may become degenerate with ideals selfish and sensuous, if not actually sensual. The Great Problem for the Educator is to harmonize the sensuous and the spiritual in the youth's ideals, giving to each its lawful place and helping him to the conscious- ness that he is no longer a child, nor the creature of fate, but the author of his own destiny. Nature thrusts upon him his physical inheritance, and society endows him with a social inheritance. He cannot escape them if he would; but the way in which they shall be used depends primarily upon hin^self . The best service that can be rendered him is to help him to help himself. The world is his for con- quest, but he must first command his own faculties. The powers and impulses within him may lead him down to defeat and degradation or on to victory. And he is re- sponsible. If ideals do not grip him now, he is doomed to live without them. If a divine discontent seizes him now, he becomes a man. He understands Mill's famous saying: " It is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied. Better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied. And if the fool or the pig is of a different opinion, it is because they only know their own side of the question. The other party to the comparison knows THE HIGH-SCHOOL PUPIL 267 both sides." He hears the words of David in Browning's "Saul," and they become his life's creed: — "Thou dost well in rejecting mere comforts that spring From the mere mortal life held in common by man and by brute; In our flesh grows the branch of this life, in our soul it bears fruit." REFERENCES Barnes, E. Books and pamphlets intended to give sex in- formation. Studies in Education, i : 301. Feelings and ideas of sex in children. Fed. Sent. 2 : 199. Brockman, F. S. a study of moral and religious life of 251 preparatory school students in the United States. Fed. Sem. 9 : 255. Burnham, W. H. The study of adolescence. Fed. Sem. i : 174. Suggestions from the psychology of adolescence. Sch. Rev. 5 : 652. CoE, G. A. The Spiritual Life. Eaton and Mains, New York. 1900. Dawson, G. E. Psychic rudiments and morality. Am. Jour. Psy. II : 181. Dewey, J. A. The American boy : impressions of an English- man. Sch. Rev. 15 : 197. FoRBUSH, W. B. The Boy Problem. Pilgrim Press, Boston, 1907. Hall, G. S. Adolescence. Appleton, 1904. Adolescence and high-school English, Latin, and algebra. Fed. Sem. 9 : 92. Youth, its Education, Regimen, and Hygiene. Apple- ton, 1906. ' 268 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Halleck, R. p. How far does the English high school fit the nature and needs of adolescents? Proc. N.E.A. 1902 •. 73°- What kind of education is best suited to boys ? Sck. Rev. 14 : 512. Heller, H. H. The social life of the adolescent. Ed. 25 : 579. Jenks, J. W. Life Questions of High-school Boys. New York Y.M.C.A. Press, 1908. Lancaster, E. G. The psychology and pedagogy of adoles- cence. Fed. Sem. 5 : 61. PcEFER, J. A. Boys' gangs. Ped. Sem. 12 : 175. ScuDDER, M. T. A study of high-school pupils. Sch. Ren. 7 : 197- Smith, T. L. T3rpes of adolescent affection. Ped. Sem. II : 178. Starbuck, E. D. The Psychology of Religion. Scribner, 1901. Swift, E. J. Some criminal tendencies of boyhood ; a study in adolescence. Ped. Sem. 8 : 65. Thurston, H. W. The social significance of the juvenile court. Sch. Rev. 14 : 415. Tyler, J. M. The boy and the girl in the high school. Ed. 26 : 462. The girl in the grammar grades. Ed. 26 : 404. Growth and Education. Houghton, 1907. How can we adapt our system of education to present needs? Sch. Rev. 10:742. Whitaker, N. C. The health of school girls. Sch. Rev. 16 : 391- Winger, O. Practical application of Aristotle's principle of catharsis. Ed. 28 : 401, CHAPTER IX The Class Exercise The class, which is the unit of the school system, had its origin in the necessity of having one teacher instruct as many pupils as possible. There are two phases of class- room management, the financial and the educational. Looked at from the financial side, the demand is for the instruction of the largest possible number of pupils by one teacher; regarded from the educational side, the de- mand is for the largest results educationally. Only the latter phase will be considered in this chapter. The class is the main point of contact between teacher and pupil; it is the organic part of the school for which all the other parts exist. Its work consumes the greatest energy of both teachers and pupils. It is the heart of school life and work, and success here is the best guar- antee of success in the school as a whole. Consideration of class management involves both the problem and the method of the class exercise. THE PROBLEM OF THE CLASS EXERCISE The Aim of the Class Exercise. — Any statement of the problem of the class exercise presupposes a definite idea 269 270 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL of the ends sought in that exercise. These ends may be briefly stated as follows: to give instruction and practice in the best way of studying the subject; to test the knowl- edge and thought power of pupils; to discover and correct mistaken notions; to impart information not found in the text-book ; to drill upon fundamentals ; to work out a unified view of the entire subject by occasional rapid reviews; to develop clearness of thought and power of expression by having the pupil express his thought in the presence of others; to exercise the power of continued attention; to rouse enthusiasm in the study of the subject; to develop and maintain a class spirit; and to give pupils the benefit of personal association with the teacher in the accomplishment of a serious task. The Problem Stated. — The problem of the class exer- cise, then, is that of keeping all pupils thinking vigorously upon the same subject at the same time, without doing violence to the mental processes of the less capable by requiring them to pass over parts not imderstood or mastered; and without dulling the powers of the more capable by permitting them either to go wool-gathering or to spend time in repeating, ad nauseam, that which is already perfectly familiar. Given a group of ten to forty boys and girls, the recitation period should be so used that the teacher will know the mental attitude of each pupil towards the subject of the day's lesson; and that, on the other hand, each pupil will not only learn the facts THE CLASS EXERCISE 271 involved, but will gain the greatest possible power and facility by thinking systematically and by expressing his thought. Each pupil must think for himself, but with the class; each must get the greatest possible assistance from the work of every other; and each must be given the larg- est possible opportunity to clarify and fix his thought by expressing it in words written or spoken. These pupils are of approximately the same age, and they come to the subject with approximately the same degree of formal preparation for the work, but actually they show great difference in their ability to do it. To keep the more capable ones profitably occupied, and at the same time not to overwork the slower ones, is no easy task; but the ability to do this is one element in ideal class-room work. Then there is the question of attention and good order, not always an easy one when the social impulse is ready to break out in ways that distract and disturb. The cor- rect solution of the problem of the class exercise must be based upon certain social, psychological, and logical con- siderations. Social Facts. — Since the class is itself a social group, there are certain social facts to be considered in the prac- tical work of the class room. Man is a social animal, therefore the social impulse may be expected to manifest itself on all suitable occasions. In youth this impulse is both strong and untrained. What more natural than that it shotild sometimes assert itself to the disturbance of some ■272 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL premeditated plan of action on the part of the teacher? The path of wisdom Ues, not in trying to crush it, but in definitely planning to use it for the promotion of the pxir- poses of the recitation. The fundamental form of the social impulse is the desire for companionship. The pupil would rather belong to a class than work alone; but he learns, long before he reaches the high school, that if he would have companions he must be agreeable to them. It is but a step, though often slowly taken, from the desire for the respect of others to self-respect, the latter being the feeling one has concerning what he must do as a member of an ideal society. While the social impulse leads to noise, inattention, mischief, and confusion, it also leads to ambition, pride, timidity, industry, good conduct, and respect for social position. These characteristics are all more or less developed at the high-school age. Why not frankly recognize the class as a social group constituted for a definite purpose and then proceed to use the social im- pulse and the laws of good society in such a way as to make the class room a pleasant and profitable place in which to work? Class Spirit. — Quite as important in the class as in the school as a whole is the development of that intangible something which may be characterized as class spirit. A class may be so loosely organized that there is no such spirit, or, though it exists, it may be of the wrong char- acter. Wherever it does exist, it has great influence in THE CLASS EXEECISE 273 determining the conduct and attitude of the class. If it is against the teacher or against good order and industry or both, successful work is impossible. On the other hand, if it is with the teacher and in favor of good order, industry, and successful achievement, it will be a powerful aid both in preventing and in repressing disorder and in- attention in the class room. That pupil is rebellious indeed who dares persistently to violate the spirit of the social circle of which he is a member. The proper class spirit serves as a great stimulus to the good and a check to the disturbing impulses. This spirit is not something that can be imposed upon the class from without; it must grow up from within. The teacher is simply a part, the leading part, of it. Psychological Facts. — Besides the social impulses, there are certain psychological traits more purely intel- lectual in character, which have special significance. In the first place, the pupil is not yet an independent worker. He does not know what to study or how to study or how well he must learn the assigned lesson in order to be suc- cessful in his later work. Since he does not know these things, it is part of the work of the class room to help him learn them. Always, and particularly in the begiiming of a new subject, the lesson should be so clearly assigned that he cannot reasonably plead ignorance of what was ex- pected of him. If certain parts are to be absolutely mastered, while for others a casual reading will suffice, 274 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL he should be so informed. To this definite assignment should be added, on occasion, specific instruction in the method of study. Such instruction will both save time and serve to establish proper methods of study for the future. When the assignment has been made and studied, great care should be taken at the beginning of any topic to inform him concerning the proper standard of thorough- ness required in the mastery of it. This is particularly true concerning memoriter work and the mastery of fimda- mental principles. For example, declensions and conju- gations must n(5t only be recited, but they must be recited quickly and without hesitation. The pupil cannot be relied upon to do these things for himself; he should be taught how, and then required to do them. Along with this dependence of the pupil may be seen a growing independence and thoughtfulness. The reason for things appeals to him as never before, and he is able to give more sustained attention to relations of cause and effect. He is disposed to dislike memory work. He wants to get away from the form of expression to the thought underneath. He even enjoys an argument, and is sometimes surprisingly alert to the discovery of facts that support his own position. He is growing constantly and rapidly more capable in the exercise of judgment and reason. The memory work, so necessary at all times and especially in the mastery of fundamentals, cannot be neg- lected, but it should be wisely supplemented by steady THE CLASS EXERCISE 275 appeal to the rational powers. He goes quickly, often too quickly, to conclusions; he must learn to wait until all the facts are in, and to be steady in judgment. This attempt at judgment and reasoning is the most promising sign of development, and it must be duly recognized and trained in the class room. Intimately connected with this disposition to look at things from the rational standpoint is the tendency to get a large and significant view of everything. He does not care for details; they are positively irksome to him, and he will not willingly master them unless their importance for the large view is evident. Herein are found two valu- able suggestions for the class room: first, the practical, human significance of the subject of study should be shown as early and as constantly as possible; and second, the bearing of the work which he regards as drudgery upon the mastery of the subject as a whole should be made clear. The emphasis may well be placed upon the large, significant view, not to the neglect but to the vitalizing of the details. For example, in language study, the sentence as a whole is more interesting than form work or structural niceties; in mathematics, the solution of the problem is more attractive than the mas- tery of the formulae; in natural science, qualitative ex- periments are more significant than quantitative; and in history, human impulses and attainments are more stimu- lating than the details of time and place. 276 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL As the result of successful work in the class room there will be developed an interest which not infrequently takes the form of a real intellectual enthusiasm, somewhat unsteady and ebullient at times, but nevertheless a most important factor in the maintenance of high grade work and a good class spirit. It is both result and cause. It results from careful work, and it stimulates continued action of the same kind. It is the natiural expression of the youth- ful temper exercised in a healthful and profitable direction. It is the spirit, in the making, of the scholar, of the inves- tigator. It is contagious, even though some pupils are apparently immune ; and it starts from the teacher. Time was when the logical method, the natural method of the mature mind, was the only one thought of in the presentation of any subject to any mind, no matter how immature it might be. To this fact the older text-books bear abundant witness. More recently the psychological method has largely taken its place. There are, however, certain logical considerations still to be regarded in suc- cessful class work. In fact, with the adolescent mind, the logical method and the psychological method are often identical. First, there are the fundamentals, the founda- tion stones, which must be firmly established before further good work can be successfully done, — forms in language; formulae in algebra, physics, and chemistry; important dates in history; ground principles or facts in all subjects. These must not only be learned, but reviewed again and THE CLASS EXERCISE 277 again until they become part of the pupil's intellectual stock in trade, instantly available on all occasions. It is the thorough mastery of these fundamentals and their signifi- cance that marks one difference between a great man and a mediocre. These fundamentals are important because of their bearing upon the whole subject, and this logical relationship should be particularly emphasized in some subjects; for example, geometry, physics, and language study. In dealing with such classes of facts, the order of presentation should itself be logical, and the logical re- lationship should be made clearly apparent to the mind of the pupil. Although no discussion of specific methods to be used in the teaching of individual subjects can be attempted here, certain principles of general method may be stated, that are applicable to the class room at all times. They ' The limitations of this work make it impossible to discuss the very important question of methods of teaching the different subjects found in the high-school curriculum. Adequate treatment of methods in rela- tion to any particular subject may well require a book by itself. Much valuable work of this kind has been already done. As especially worthy of notice, the reader is referred to articles in The School Review, The Edtfcational Review, Education, and School Science and Mathematics; to the publications of The Macmillan Company; and to the series of books on the teaching of various high-school subjects published by Longmans, Green & Company, under the editorial supervision of Dean James E. Russell, of Teachers College, Columbia University. 278 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL have their foundation in the social, psychological, and logical considerations already presented. Attention. — Since the attention of the individual is necessary in order that he may do successful mental work, and since the attention of the class as a whole is necessary in order that it may accomplish the end of the recitation, it follows that the fimdamental requirement in successful class management is the constant, imdivided attention of every member of the class to the work in hand. The more active the attention, the greater the attainments of the hour. It is not something to be arrogantly demanded by an outside authority; it is founded in psychological and social necessity which can be made evident to all concerned. Pupils should understand that each member of the class is imder recitation all the time. The teacher who begins work before he has the attention of the class or who tries to continue after attention is gone, is laying the foundation of greater inattention, of disorder, and of failure in intel- lectual accomplishment. It may appear imnecessary to state a fact so evident, but so many teachers, especially those who are inexperienced, disregard it and fail in con- sequence, that it seems worth while to emphasize it. Let the teacher tactfully win the attention of the class before work begins or tactfully wait for it until social courtesy requires it to be given. It ought not to be necessary im- periously to demand it. Nevertheless, it must be secured in some way and then maintained. When the attention THE CLASS EXERCISE 279 wanders, energy is dissipated and the work weakened. Quietly but certainly let it be called back. Proceeding without it is like pulling a load up hill with the brake on. Not alone for the sake of the recitation but for the sake, also, of example and of training in the art of successful study, should individual attention be required in the class room. In the main it should be directed to the particular point that is being considered by the entire class under the leadership of the teacher. It should always be so imless the pupil is already master of that point and so can more advantageously devote his effort to some other topic, or unless some other topic has been specifically assigned to him for consideration. It requires keen insight and fine tact on the part of the teacher to do justice to the intellec- tual vigor and integrity of his class in this matter of at- tention, for he necessarily often finds illustration and veri- fication of Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes's statement, " If you ever saw a crow with a kingbird after him, you will get an image of a dull speaker and a lively listener." Two Kinds of Knowledge. — In the mastery of practi- cally all subjects of study, there are two radically different kinds of knowledge required: first, certain forms, for- mulae, facts, or fundamental rules, all of which appeal largely to memory; second, principles, which demand discrimination, judgment, and reasoning. These two kinds of knowledge should be recognized by the teacher and should have radically different treatment in the class 28o THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL room. The former should first be understood and then absolutely mastered by sheer force of memory. Mastery comes only with drill, either self-imposed or required by the teacher. Thoroughness in the mastery of this kind of knowledge is simply a matter of repetition and conse- quent habit. It is never mastered until it becomes second nature, immediately available with no effort. Time to think is not necessary. The presentation of facts of this class requires its own method in the class room. First, their significance must be explained, then they must be mastered by sharp, speedy, merciless drill. Not thought but expression is the means of mastery. Every pupil should know that to ask time in reciting them is to run up the white flag of defeat. He should be taught not only to recite but to study such facts aloud, in order to avail himself of the combined assistance which sight, hearing, and vocal expression render to memory. Declensions, conjugations, idioms, formulas, fundamental principles, important dates, come under this rule. No fixed order of procedure should be followed in drill work, but rather should the ingenuity of the teacher serve to devise the greatest possible variety. Different combinations of ma- terial are often not only possible but valuable. The pupil should not be allowed to wander in attention because he knows what is coming next. In the hands of an expert teacher, the drill period may be used to bring interest, life, and enthusiasm into the work of the class. THE CLASS EXERCISE 281 The second form of knowledge requires a different method of treatment. Even the mature mind needs time in which to make careful Judgments and reach safe con- clusions. The facts must not only be perceived, but their relations must be studied. Although the greatest speed consistent with good work should be encouraged, there should never be a sense of hurry, for that brings confusion. Both teacher and pupil should feel that there is power in speed as well as in accuracy, but that there is no virtue in speed without accuracy. In case of questions involving this class of facts, especially if they are unexpected, a little time will be required for the pupil to collect his thoughts and formulate the answer. Here again there is abundant room for the teacher to show good judgment in deciding upon the amount of time that may be granted. Too much means waste of time for the class and an unhealthful spirit of lethargy ; too little means immature judgment or none at all, and a restless spirit of undue haste. "Nagging." — Deserving mention as something to be scrupulously avoided in the class room is the habit of so questioning and reproving pupils that they feel they are being " nagged." The essence of this unfortunate custom lies as much in the manner of the teacher as in the question or remark. It can be better felt than described. The preventive lies primarily in the spirit of fairness and gen- uine open-hearted sympathy on the part of the teacher, and in judicious care lest he talk too much or " pick on " 282 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL any pupil. An otherwise excellent teacher sometimes spoils his influence by persistent scolding, fault finding, or sarcasm. Violence should never be done to the personal dignity and self-respect of a pupil. To him such treatment seems an outrage, and in most cases it is. Neatness and Orderliness in the arrangement of written material are not only excellent habits in themselves, but they are conducive to clear thinking. The class exercise affords abundant opportunity for the development of these traits. The teacher should see to it that everything pre- sented to the class is arranged in an orderly maimer. He should also insist that all the written work of the pupil should be neat and orderly in appearance. Much atten- tion is usually given to this matter in the elementary schools; but in the high school it is all too often neglected, either because the teacher does not realize its importance or because he assumes that the pupil does not need assistance in the development of traits that are so eminently valuable. Many pupils, apparently by nature, are orderly in their work; many others must learn the lesson by carefully directed effort. If the teacher takes pains to indicate clearly what constitutes good form, and accepts in the class room no work that is not reasonably neat and well arranged, the desired habit may be formed with a minimum of effort. Atmosphere. — Every teacher should consciously (not too consciously) strive to develop in the class room that which, for want of a more definite term, may be called a THE CLASS EXERCISE 283 good atmosphere. In the physical atmosphere " we live and move and have our being." Under normal conditions we are unconscious of it. It may become impure, and even poisonous, without our being immediately aware of the fact. Soon, however, there arises the feeling that something is wrong. Search reveals insufficient ventila- tion, filth, poisonous gas, or some other source of cor- ruption. So it is with the atmosphere of the class room. When all goes well, there is only the general consciousness of well-being, physical, intellectual, emotional, moral, and social; but inattention, idleness, lack of interest, thoughtlessness, disorder, a feeling of repression on the part of the pupils, or a loud voice, nervousness, lethargy, indifference, scolding, lack of tact on the part of the teacher, destroys the equilibrium and renders the atmosphere of the room uncomfortable. The physical atmosphere does not more surely affect the physical condition of those who breathe it than does the spiritual atmosphere of the class room help or hinder those who live in it. REFERENCES Bagley, W. C. Class-room Management. Macmillan, 1907. De Gaemo, C. Principles of Secondary Education — Processes of Instruction. Macmillan, 1908. Scientific basis for high-school methods. Sch. Rev. 16 : 463- Dewey, J. The influence of the high school upon educational methods. Sch. Rev. 4:1. 284 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL FiNDLAY, J. J. Principles of Class Teaching. Macmillan, 1902. Hamilton, S. The Recitation. Lippincott, 1906. LiBBY, W. Forms of high-school recitation. Ed. 28 : 601. McMuRRY, C. A. and F. M. The Method of the Recitation. Macmillan, 1905. Snedden, D. S. The new basis of method. Ed. Rev. 35 : 227. Thorndike, E. L. Accuracy from the point of view of a psy- chologist. Ed. 27 : 458. Principles of Teaching. A. G. Seller, New York, 1906. TiLLEY, C. E. Accuracy in mathematics and science. Ed. 27 : 466. CHAPTER X Government The government of the high school should not be ar- bitrarily established and maintained by the governing power. It should rather be determined rationally on the basis of three classes of facts: i. The nature and needs of the pupil, — his impulses, motives, ambitions, and powers; 2. The necessities of the school as a social organization with a definite purpose to accomplish; 3. Our notion of the ideal character of the young man or woman considered as a finished product of the school and as a member of society by which the school is supported. A method of government that fails to consider these facts is sure to be irrational, and it is very likely to be inefficient. Discipline must be positive as well as negative in its character; that is, it must look to the cultivation of positive virtues quite as much as to the repression of wrong impulses. In fact, the emphasis should always be placed upon the former. THE NATURE AND NEEDS OF THE PUPIL Immaturity. — What are the significant facts regarding the nature and needs of the pupil as far as the government 285 286 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL of the school is concerned? The high-school pupil, es- pecially at the beginning of his course, is httle more than a child, and he possesses, and is sometimes possessed by, the thoughtless impulses of childhood. At fourteen, and sometimes at eighteen, instinct and the impulse of the moment have not been subordinated to judgment and reason and will. Except in the case of the few who are ultra-serious or prematurely old, the high-school pupil is not mature enough to direct his own course wisely. He may wish and try to do well, but without guidance he is likely to miss the things that are most worth while. To treat him as one capable of self-direction is to do violence to the immaturity of his nature; for even in those cases where judgment and reason tell him what is best, the wiU is often not strong enough to insure obedience. Since it is incumbent upon the high school to prevent the pupil, led by the thoughtless impulses of youth, from wasting his time and his energy, it should make the conditions sur- rounding him such that he will not be tempted beyond his power to resist. Growing Reasonableness. — While it is true that the high-school pupil is little more than a child, it is neverthe- less true that he is steadily becoming less a child and more a man. He is restraining the thoughtless impulses of childhood and is assuming the thoughtfulness of maturity. The process may be slow, but it is reasonably sure. So closely mingled are these two traits that it is often impos- GOVERNMENT 287 sible to tell which is dominant, but it is always safe to be on the watch for the spirit of sweet reasonableness, and always wise to cherish it when it comes. To do violence to it is either to check development and prolong the period of dependence or to rouse a stubborn antagonism in the growing mind. If brute control were the desired end, the less reason and independence the better; but since the ideal is development in and through intelligent self-control, the discipline of the high school should encourage thought- ful independence. ,The pupil can now be led to under- stand the necessity of rules of conduct and to appreciate their Justice to a degree that was not possible in the earlier years. Ignorance of how to Work. — The average high-school pupil does not at first know what to do or how to work well. He must be helped to help himself, and this lesson must be continued until it is well learned. To keep him wisely occupied at all times is to check the appearance of divert- ing impulses and to encourage the positive virtues of at- tention and industry. The discipline of the school should see to it that the pupil is not left without work to do and specific directions how to do it. Regular daily individual instruction in the art of study constitutes a strong positive disciplinary force. Moods. — The adolescent is subject to considerable va- riability in mood, due probably to fluctuations in energy of the rapidly changing physical organism. These moods 288 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL are such that at times he needs restraint, at other times stimulus and encouragement. The remedy should be promptly appUed when it is needed, otherwise exuberance of spirit is likely to cause disorder, while depression may result in discouragement and failure. Care should be taken to determine whether the discouragement comes as a mere mood or as a permanent condition, the result of physical or mental weakness. In either case, the tactful teacher will make proper allowance. The ideal form of discipline will recognize this variability of mood as a fact to be considered, and it will look towards rendering the punil more steady both for his own sake and for the sake oythe school. Y Self-assertion. — Different from the moodiness of youth, and yet somewhat similar to it, is the persistent, impetu- ous, stormy self-assertiveness of many individuals of high- school age. With increasing physical strength and vi- tality there come increased intellectual vigor and asser- tiveness of will. There may or may not be, in such cases, entire intellectual honesty, but in any case the will is sure to be strong to carry out the desires. The youth who possesses such a disposition — and all are prone to it in greater or less degree — must be reckoned with in matters of discipline. He is a born leader, and, as he goes, so go his followers. There are two methods of dealing with him. One is openly to crush his self-assertion whenever it mani- fests itself in opposition to the welfare of the school. The GOVERNMENT 289 other, and much the better way when it is practicable, is so to reason with him that he will see what his own good and that of the school require, and then to use his self- assertion in promoting the common weal. It is far wiser to direct energy than to repress it; but if it cannot be directed aright, it must be mercilessly subdued. The Habits which the pupil brings with him to the school should be considered. It matters not where these habits have been formed, whether in the elementary school, on the street, or in the home. The elementary school years are preeminently the habit-forming period. If the habits then formed are of the right kind, it only remains to build upon them as a foundation ; but if they are wrong, effort must be used and time allowed for the development of others. In subjecting an entire school, representing as it must so many different habits of thought, feeling, and conduct to a uniform code of discipline, there must be many adjustments, for which due allowance should be made by the teacher. It is not easy even at that age to throw off the old and put on the new. Environment. — Intimately connected with habit is en- vironment. As a democratic institution, the American high school is open to people from all walks in life. En- vironment influences habits, ideals, disposition, powers. One pupil comes from a home of wealth, pride, and selfish- ness, another from a home of unselfish culture; one from poverty and refinement, another from poverty and igno- 290 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL ranee. Besides the home environment, there is the influ- ence of outside associations and the atmosphere of the community at large. The environment becomes part of the nature of the pupil, and it must be known and con- sidered before individual discipline can be wisely ad- ministered. Ideals. — Youth is the time of ideals, and these ideals, whatever they may be, influence strongly the disposition and conduct of the individual. Selfishness, sensuality, pride, self-respect, ambition, self-sacrifice, are powerful motives. They may rule in turn or one may reign more or less permanently. To discover the ruling ideal is to ^secure the key to the control of the individ ual . To implant a noble ideal or to displace an unworthy by a worthy one, is the supreme act of discipline. There is elimination by substitution in conduct as truly as in algebra. Success- ful discipline must concern itself largely with ideals. An ideal is an ever present guide, and, like the demon of Socrates, it serves in the absence of parent, teacher, and friend. Personal Influence. — The most powerful influence in the life of a youth is an ideal of character embodied in a living personality. The man or woman whom he admires and trusts, he will follow to wrongdoing or to self-control. On the other hand, the person whom he dislikes and distrusts is powerless to stimulate him aright and he must govern, if he governs at all, by brute force or the weight of au- GOVERNMENT 29I thority. The adolescent is naturally a hero-worshiper; and while it is not well for the school to encourage the worship of living teachers, it is certainly wise to remem- ber that personality is the strongest agency in successful discipline. Enthusiasm. — In all dealings with youth, enthusiasm is a bankable asset. It is absolutely unfailing. It mani- fests itself most in social life and competitive efforts, athletic or intellectual. It must be reckoned with. The only question is how to use it. If it is not encouraged in helpful fields or in innocent activities, it will surely appear in less desirable forms. It should be made an ally, and not regarded as an enemy. Sociability is another bankable asset. It may take the form of the gang spirit most common in earlier boyhood, of class rivalry, of team work in competitive efforts, of attraction to the opposite sex, or of esprit de corps of the school or a still larger social group. A plan of discipline that fails to recognize it in all or any of these forms is at fault. Like other natural instincts and impulses, it should not be crushed but used. It is the basis of cooperation, an^d cooperation is the key to all successful social effort whether in the school, the State, or in society at large. Working Capacity. — The characteristics mentioned seem to call for some leniency on the part of the governing authorities, but the sterner side of discipline should not be neglected. In body, mind, and temper the adolescent is 292 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL coming to his own, and he is ordinarily capable of hard, systematic work and large self-control. These should be required to the limit of his ability. Only so can he attain the legitimate results of the high-school period. Youthful hours are precious; to waste them is to mortgage the future. Fundamental habits of thought, feeling, and au- tomatic reaction can be acquired better now than later. In both purpose and attainment many a youth is well started upon his life career before the age of eighteen. The occasional leniency necessary in the discipline of the high school should never be allowed to obscure the serious- ness of the work as a whole, or to lower the standard of scholarship or conduct. "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread." For a man, labor is the law of life and of social service, and adolescent years must not be per- mitted to pass without acquaintance with it. Industry, rational self-control, and hearty cooperation are hard lessons, but not too hard to be required in the discipline of the high school. The Special Case. — There remains to be mentioned the claim of the individual pupil for special consideration in the work of discipline. There are always those who, through inheritance or bad habits or unfortunate treatment or physical weakness or home environment or some other significant condition, are different from their fellows and require special consideration. It is not necessary that they should be treated more leniently than others, but GOVERNMENT 293 they must be approached differently. For such as these no rule can be laid down. The only rule applicable in such cases applies to the teacher and not to the pupil, — the rule that he should study them with a wise sympathy which may lead him aright in dealing with them. THE NECESSITIES OF THE SCHOOL AS A SOCIAL ORGANIZATION As a social organization the school must conserve the rights of all its members and maintain a discipline that shall enable it to accomplish the purpose for which it exists. That purpose is the education of its members. Industry. — Education requires industry. Neither the information nor the skill which the school seeks to impart can be attained without it. So large is the possible field of attainment for every one, and so great the value of these attainments, that the school is justified in expecting each pupil to use every reasonable effort to increase both his knowledge and his power. "The king's business requires haste." One fimdamental virtue of the school is industry. With it established, other virtues will follow, and incipient vices will remain undeveloped. Without it, there will be opportunity and encouragement for a horde of trouble- some impulses. Obedience. — A second fundamental virtue of the school is obedience. In all cooperative movements of consider- 294 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL able extent there must be some authority to establish and enforce the common policy, otherwise difference of opinion will lead to chaotic effort and confusion. Authority can- not be secured without obedience. Disobedience removes all support of the better impulses and turns the others loose to run riot in the school. A school without a well-estab- lished authority is like a ship at sea without a rudder: it is driven and tossed about by every wind that blows, sometimes in the right direction, oftener not, and there is little probability that it will ever reach the desired haven. Orderly Conduct. — The common interest of the school requires orderly conduct on the part of its members. Acts which have no disciplinary significance in themselves and which might be performed without criticism, if the pupil were in his own home, cannot be permitted in the school because of their interference with the rights of others. Talking disturbs some one else. Tardiness, irregularity of attendance, rudeness, thoughtlessness, disturb the school as a whole as well as individual members; consequently they must be regarded as vices. The welfare of the school as an institution requires the maintenance of a certain orderliness arising out of many minor virtues. Cooperation. — The success of the school requires the cooperation of its members. An important result of this cooperation is the esprit de corps by which the school is animated. This mass spirit is different from the mind of any individual member, although it is made up of the GOVERNMENT 295 spirits of all. It is a measure of the state of health of the institutional body and is worth the united effort of all members to maintain it at its best. Both in the restraint of undesirable characteristics, and in the development of desirable ones the school should require the cooperation of its members. Even considered apart from their efifect upon the indi- vidual and society at large, the foregoing principles must be observed by the school for its own sake as a social organization. It cannot prosper without them. They bring order out of what would otherwise be chaos. REQUIREMENTS OF THE SOCIAL IDEAL The school is supported by the State, not aS a philan- thropic institution, but as a means of self-defense and self- development; consequently the qualities which are im- portant for good citizenship should be sought in its gov- ernment. Good Character. — The supreme quality of good citizen- ship is good character, the disposition to follow the good in personal life and to follow the golden rule in dealing with others. Character is an attitude towards life, backed by attainments and habits. Unless this be of the right kind, the State has no assurance of good citizens nor society of worthy members. No amount of intelligence cultivated in the school will avail unless it is joined with 296 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL high character. The unprincipled intelligent man, be- cause of his intelligence, has so much greater power to do wrong. All those qualities that go to make up sound moral character — honesty, truthfulness, industry, purity, obedience, thoughtfulness, kindness — should be con- sidered in determining the government of the school. It fails in its fundamental purpose if it does not accomplish this end. Intelligence. — Society supports the school for the sake of the added intelligence which it is supposed to bring to the children who will soon be citizens. That increment of intelligence should be as large as possible, and the discipline of the school should look definitely to that end. Obedience to the laws of the State and the requirements of good society is essential to good citizenship. Lack of reverence for properly constituted authority disturbs society and endangers the State. The government of the school should always maintain such authority and incul- cate the habit of obedience to it as the duty of every man who desires the benefits of civilized society. It may even become necessary at times to shift the emphasis from the principle of obedience for the sake of the law to obedience for the sake of obedience. Respect for authority is fun- damental. Independence. — The State expects every citizen to be independent in thought, self-control, and support. He should learn to think for himself, freely according to GOVERNMENT 297 every one else the same privilege, and he should exercise a peaceable charity towards those who differ in opinion. He should be independent in conduct, self-governing. He should be efficient in social service, relying upon him- self for support. This spirit of self-dependence is im- portant enough to merit careful consideration in the work of school government. Cooperation. — Lastly, there is cooperation, which the State and society at large require. Civilization is made possible only by the willingness of its members both to forego certain personal privileges and to unite in measures for the common good. In the one case it is self-denial, in the other active effort, both for the welfare of the com- munity. In the government of the high school the neces- sity and the reasonableness of cooperation should be emphasized and every available means used to make it habitual. METHODS OF GOVERNMENT On the basis of the underlying principles set forth in the preceding paragraphs, three typical methods of govern- ment may be considered. In actual practice there are innumerable combinations of these. The Military Method. — The first to be noticed may be called the military method. It demands good deport- ment according to strict, specific rules, and enforces the demand by bodily punishment if necessary. There is no 298 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL appeal to reason, no consideration of the necessity of voluntary cooperation. On the one side stands bald au- thority; on the other, unquestioning obedience. You know the rules, obey them or take the consequences. The rules are many, and the consequences of disobedience are both sure and severe. This method, well carried out, secures order and deportment of a hi^h grade, but it emphasizes some virtues to the neglect of others equally important. Obedience, respect for authority, and the habit of doing the proper thing at the proper time are secured; but independent thoughtfulness, self-control, self -direction, and voluntary cooperation are undeveloped. The welfare of both the individual and society demands the latter as much as the former. It is far better to govern the school by means of the military method than not to govern it at all, but this method fails to develop some of the traits of character that are of great importance to the adolescent and society. It leads the pupil to think of law and order as being imposed by some external au- thority instead of having its foundation in his own nature and that of society. Pupil Self-govenmient. — Another method of discipline, representing the other extreme, is that known as the pupils' self-government system. In it the pupils organ- ize themselves into a form of government with legislative, executive, and judicial functions. They make, adjudicate, and enforce their own laws. They voluntarily adopt this GOVERNMENT 299 form of government, and bind themselves to abide by its actions. They elect their own officers. The teachers of the school may or may not hold important offices and exercise important functions in the administration of the government. In case they do, they are regarded simply as one in the community and not as an arbitrary govern- ing authority. In some cases there is a governing council of pupils which cooperates with the principal in the mak- ing and enforcement of rules. In other cases it assumes the form of the "city State" in which all the officers of the common city government are elected by the pupil electors. The advantages claimed for this form of government are: that jt develops a consciousness of membership in society-aiid-af-obliga.tioiiJ:o it ; that it is the most effective way of teaching practical civics; that it makes pupils more thoughtful and considerate of the rights of one another in their associations; that it develops a higher sense of honor among pupils; that it makes them more independent; and that it is easier than any other method of discipline. The objections urged are: that it is a complicated way of carrying out a principle which every pupil should be taught to acknowledge in its simplicity; that pupils object to holding office which requires them to report upon or punish their fellows; that, even when they are elected to office, they decline to perform its duties faithfully; that, when they are conscientious in their 300 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL efforts, they fail of success because they lack maturity of judgment; that the method actually fails to maintain itself in many cases; and that, even where it is success- fully carried out, it is harder for the principal and teachers than the direct method of discipline. Another Method. — • The third method, which seems to lie midway between the other two, is that in which there are few specific rules laid down and no machinery of gov- ernment outside of the teachers. It combines the ac- knowledged direct authority of the first method and the individual self-government of the second. The rule of the school is: "Be a gentleman, a lady; conduct yourself according to the requirements of good society, common courtesy, and the needs of the social organization of which you are now a part." These requirements are not stated in specific form. Knowledge of them is assimied until ignorance is demonstrated. When the rule is broken, instruction is given and perhaps punishment administered in such a way that the incident is not likely to be forgotten either by the offender or by his fellows. There is no neglect of discipline, but it is enforced in the simplest, pos- sible way. Authority is maintained, but the independence and self-respect of every pupil are acknowledged and stimulated. To maintain such a system of discipline suc- cessfully requires everlasting vigilance and no shirking on the part of both teachers and pupils. It is not an easy method, nor can it be used successfully except by those GOVERNMENT 30I who are good disciplinarians, but it is probably the best method as far as results are concerned. No method of government will work automatically. No group of high-school boys and girls will, if left to themselves, effect a discipline that will satisfactorily meet the requirements of the school and of good society. They would not be true to their undeveloped nature if they did. They need the assistance of mature personality, and that influence must be exerted no matter what the method. Pupil self-government of whatever form fails utterly except as it is inspired and supported by the forceful per- sonality of teachers. No teacher can escape the responsi- bility. Nor is the easiest method necessarily the one to be chosen. It is not a matter of ease for the teacher, but of effectiveness as far as pupil and society are concerned. The absolutely essential thing is that there shall be good discipline maintained in some way. Having come to an unequivocal conclusion on this point, there remain for each teacher two questions: first, in what ways can I secure good government ? second, which of these ways is based upon the best educational principles and brings the best results from an educational point of view? REFERENCES Beiggs, L. R. Routine and Ideals. Houghton, Mifflin Com- pany, 1904. Call, A. D. Government in school and college. Ed. 27 : 253, 341- 302 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Cronson, B. Pupil Self-government. Macmillan, 1907. Dentield, R. E. Discipline in the high school. Proc. N.E.A. 1892 : 341. Dewey, J. Teaching ethics in the high school. Ed. Rev. 6 :3i3- French, C. W. The school city. Sch. Rev. 13 : 33. School government. Sch. Rev. 6 : 35. 'School government — the problem. Sch. Rev. 8 : 201. HuLiNG, R. G. Discipline in the high school. Acad. 3 : loi. Mackenzie, J. C. Honor in student life. Sch. Rev. 7 : 69. Nason, a. H. Cony high-school assembly. Sch. Rev. 14 : 505. Phillips, W. L. Pupil cooperation in school government. Ed,. 22: 538. Pugsley, F. L. Control over school children by school au- thorities. Ed. 28 : 265. Smith, B. H. Self-government in public schools. Atlantic, 102 : 675. Stowe, L. B. School republics. Outlook, 90 : 939. Tucker, H. R. Government in the high school. Ed. 25 : i, 81, 152. Bibliography. Educational pathology or self-government in school. Rep. Com. Ed. 1902, I : 235. CHAPTER XI Social Life The social life of the high school, which is often looked upon as merely incidental, sometimes amusing, sometimes troublesome, is a matter of far too great importance to be passed lightly by. It presents more than one serious problem in educational theory and practice. In discuss- ing the question the topics considered • will be the social needs of the pupil, the social necessities of the school as an organization, the educational value of the social life possible in the high school, the principal forms in which the social activities of the school usually manifest them- selves, and the control of these activities. SOCIAL NEEDS OF THE PUPIL The nature of a substance determines what can be done with it. To disregard its characteristic qualities is mani- festly foolish. Iron is strong, steel hard, coal combustible. To ignore these attributes in dealing with iron, steel, and coal would be to lose their value. What is true of these inorganic substances is much more true of a complex, 303 304 THE AMERICAN H16H SCHOOt growing organism. The mere possession of a quality suggests its certain value at some time and its possible value at all times. When such an attribute is so striking that it is regarded as distinctively characteristic, it cer- tainly merits careful consideration. Sociability. — There is no trait or quality more char- acteristic of the age of adolescence, the high-school period, than sociability. Man is a social animal even in child- hood. The little child learns instinctively to play with parent, nurse, or comrade. From ten to fourteen, under normal conditions, he is likely to extend the circle of his associates to include the congenial group of boys or girls (not usually both) -who are at hand. Both boys and girls have "chums." Besides, the boys belong to the "gang" or "club," and the girls to the "set" or "clique." Al- though the purpose and rules of the group may be more or less definitely stated, they are unimportant. The real bond of union is not the accomplishment of some external end, but the satisfaction of the instinctive social impulse, the natural pleasure of being together and doing together. Boys and girls of this age are not likely to take much pleasure in real work, but even a task imposed is more happily accomplished under the stimulus of companion- ship. This native gregarious impulse is carried over, in even more intense form, to the period of adolescence. Timidity, bashfulness, or special circumstances may restrain the manifestation of it for a time, but sooner or SOCIAL LIFE 305 later it will appear. It may take any one of many forms, the circle in which it works may be large or small, its pur- pose may be well or ill defined; but in some form youth craves companionship. Interest in Opposite Sex. — To this more or less general desire for comradeship there is added during the adolescent years the interest which each sex begins to feel in the other. This feeling may be one of attraction or repulsion. In any case it is likely to be more or less imdefined in the youth's mind. A boy may cross the street to avoid meeting a girl, and the girl may deliberately fail to recognize a classmate of the other sex, neither being able to give a well-defined reason for his action; or each may find in the other's presence a new and peculiar pleas- ure, and consequently they seek every opportunity to be together. The interest may be individual or general, the interest of two particular people in each other, or a more general interest felt by each member of one sex in all members of the opposite sex. An actual analysis of these thoughts and feelings, if made in a scientific spirit and with real human sympathy, would reveal facts of great educational significance. Doubtless there would be found at times something of vulgarity and even of sensuality in both thought and feeling, but neither is necessary, and it seems more than probable that in the great majority of cases neither would be found. The human sex feeling in a pure-minded and sensitive youth is distinctively 306 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL delicate and spiritual, almost supersensuous; it is a very real and powerful feeling nevertheless, a feeling that must be counted as a considerable factor in his intellectual, emotional, and volitional life. It is a simple fact not to be wisely ignored. The Problem. — The school is thus brought face to face with the fact that in one or both of these forms the social impulse of high-school pupils is very strong and practically universal. How is it to be regarded from the view point of sound educational philosophy and practical adminis- tration? Shall it be looked upon as an evil, disturbing element to be restrained on every occasion and crushed out as far as possible ? Shall it be regarded as an instinct whose workings fall outside the limits of school interference and which can therefore be allowed to run its course with- out care on the part of the school? Or, shall it be con- sidered as a natural impulse peculiar to the adolescent age, a powerful factor for good or ill, and a means which the school can and should use in the promotion of an educational ideal alike conducive to the welfare of the individual and of the State? The plan suggested in the first alternative was followed in the old-fashioned schools, in which rigorous order and discipline were regarded as the main end of education. It does not find general or even considerable favor to-day. The plan suggested by the second alternative is followed in many modern schools, particularly those small enough to make the social impulse SOCIAt LIFE 307 an almost negligible factor in the discipline of the schools. Only when the manifestation of this impulse on the part of pupils interferes with the good order of the school does the latter take cognizance of it. It is not condemned by the school, but simply ignored as far as possible. No attempt is made to use it as a means for the promotion of efficient education. A very large number of high schools, probably a majority of them, have, consciously or imcon- sciously, adopted this plan. But there is another class of schools in which the plan suggested by the third alterna- tive has been adopted to greater or less extent. They have been driven to this position by psychological and social considerations, on the one hand, and by the practical neces- sities of the school, on the other. Let us consider the second point first. SOCIAL NECESSITIES OF THE SCHOOL AS AN ORGANIZATION The School a Social Unit. — As an organization whose purpose is the education of its members, the school is itself a social body, and it is preparing its pupils to take their place in a larger social body, the State and society. Within this body, the school, as well as outside of it, the social impulse manifests itself. The school is an artificial group, but, if it is successful in its mission, there soon grows up among its members a feeling of interest in it and loyalty to it. This is called "school spirit." Up to 3o8 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL a certain point this feeling is regarded as helpful, and is consequently encouraged by school authorities; but class spirit sometimes develops into class rivalry and then into class fights. Even here it is the same social spirit, become anti-social for the time only because one compact social unit has come into contact and conflict with another social unit equally compact and immovable. Smaller Social Units. — Besides these artificial groups, which have their foundation in the requirements of the school organization, there grow up other social groups of a more purely voluntary character, which have their basis in the natural likes, tastes, and abilities of their mem- bers. Societies, fraternities, sororities, clubs, and ath- letic organizations are social groups in which the domi- nating principle is the social instinct. The members are drawn together by this impulse, and then, as a social unit, they set themselves to the accomplishment of some more or less definite purpose. Mere individual effort toward this end would, in most cases, be intolerable if not actually absurd. The conscious, avowed purpose of all these organizations is the attainment of some specified end; the unconscious motive behind them all is the satisfaction of the social impulse. Then there are the imorganized groups of two, in which a boy and a girl become, for a time at least, particularly interested in each other. Such attacks vary greatly in severity and duration in different cases, but they are sure to make their appearance. SOCIAL LIFE 309 Control Needed. — The school, consequently, faces cer- tain social necessities. As a social unit its members must learn to live in harmony with the purpose for which it is maintained. Every pupil and every teacher must learn to cooperate with his fellows in the attainment of the common end. There must be developed in this more or less artificial organization the same spirit of volimtary cooperation among its members that belongs to the more natural and volimtary groups. Whatever interferes with this must be looked upon as an evil. And this is just where the trouble comes; for societies, fraternities, ath- letic teams, volimtary clubs of whatever sort, animated as they are by motives that appeal to the adolescent mind more powerfully than does the more serious motive of the school as a whole, are likely to develop within themselves the spirit of a smaller social unit, which is, unconsciously perhaps, antagonistic to the welfare of the school as a whole. Therefore it clearly becomes one problem of the school to direct, or at least to control, the spirit of these social units that have grown up within the bounds of its own life. Stem necessity demands it; not to do so is to pave the way for chaos and self-destruction. The Nature of this Control of the social spirit will naturally be determined in the first place by the practical needs of the school as an organization. There will be many forms of social activity that need no conscious direction. The sense of self-respect will ordinarily take 3IO THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL care of the daily interchange of social courtesies between teachers and pupils and among pupils themselves. Per- sonal self-respect stimulates young people to the ob- servance of such conduct as is regarded good form. The purely individual phase of social activities need not neces- sarily claim the attention of the school, although under proper conditions much individual help can be rendered. It is only when the group spirit manifests itself that the safety of the school demands attention to it. What the attitude of authority should then be depends, of course, upon the individual case. Other Factors. — There are, however, other factors besides discipline and good order in the school that should enter into the question of its social life. Is it not possible so to control and direct this great adolescent impulse that it shall become a valuable factor in the education of boys and girls, both from the view point of their own indi- vidual welfare and from that of social efficiency? The dominating influence of the impulse seems to challenge our ability to find a valuable use for it rather than to restrain it merely, and from the purely educational point of view this is much the larger part of the problem. What is the educational value of the social life that is possible in the high school ? SOCIAL LIFE 311 THE EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF SOCIAL LIFE IN THE HIGH SCHOOL Underlying Facts. — In the great majority of cases the American high school is coeducational. It contains boys and girls ranging in age from twelve to twenty, by far the greater number being between fourteen and eighteen. In theory it is the school of all the people. In the West and Middle West, theory and fact are in practical agreement; the children of the rich and of the poor, of the cultured and of the densely ignorant, mingle together on common ground. In the South and in the East, it often happens that the aristocracy of both wealth and culture send their children to private schools rather than to the public high school. For the great majority of those in attendance everywhere, the high school furnishes the last formal education they will ever get. Because the school is sup- ported by the State, every taxpayer is entitled to expect legitimate educational results, if not for himself and his family, then at least for society, of which he is a member. The State, too, rightfully expects results in the form of good citizenship, proportionate to the care given and money spent. These are some of the facts to be remem- bered in considering the educational value of the social life possible in the school. Happiness. — The first valuable result is that it satis- fies a natiiral desire, and thus contributes to the happiness 312 THK AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL of the individual. The youth who has no social life is usually unhappy, and is sometimes driven by his solitude to unfortunate habits of thought or conduct. In mature life one is glad to remember a happy youth as well as a happy childhood, and whatever contributes innocently to that end is commendable. A Safety Valve. — The social life of the high school affords an opportimity for the development and exercise of characteristic youthful enthusiasm and the expenditure of superfluous energy which, if restrained, would often assert themselves in ways less valuable for the individual and more disturbing to the school. In the efforts, for- merly so common among pupils, to outwit and play Jokes upon teachers, because they were disposed to frown upon the lighter social impulses of their wards, there was, doubt- less, some relaxation and mental training. Why may not even more desirable results be obtained through legitimate social activities in which both teachers and pupils share openly and voluntarily? Valuable Training. — The social activities of the high school naturally cluster aroimd some objective interest or end, athletic, artistic, intellectual, or purely social. Here, then, is the opportunity to secure valuable training through the judicious encouragement of these voluntary efforts. Athletic organizations furnish, when well man- aged, an invaluable training in the development of phys- ical power and manly qualities. Camera clubs introduce SOCIAL LIFE 313 young people to an art that will always be of interest and may be of particular value to them. Literary societies in their various forms often serve to vitalize the work of the class room and to give training in the appreciation and application of knowledge and power. In the old academy days many a student discovered himself and found the inspiration for his life work in the literary society. Are the conditions surrounding the modem high school so far different that the story cannot be repeated again and again? The purely social organizations are of more doubtful value, and they are usually harder to control, but there is a possible value in them that has not yet been realized. In schools where the pupil does thoroughly good work, his mental life is more filled with his school affairs than with anything else. In communities where the high school actually is the school of the people, all grades of society are represented. What more natural, under such circumstances, than that it should be, not only for the pupils but, to a considerable extent, for their parents also, the center of the social life? Even the secret, exclusively social organizations, although they con- tain much that is harmful, undoubtedly give to their members training in the arts and graces of social life. When this social life belongs to the school as a whole, the educational value of experience in more or less formal life is very great, especially for those young people whose social position would deprive them of it elsewhere. Prob- 314 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL ably it is of no less value to the children of the rich or cultured if they learn through it the lesson of true polite- ness and graclousness. Helpful Associations. — This social life affords an opportunity for a less formal association of pupils and teachers than can be found in the class room. This is conducive to a better mutual xmderstanding and often gives the teacher great power and influence over his pupils. In this matter we can learn something from the English Public Schools where the masters are closely associated with their pupils in their plays and games, as well as in the class room, and the educational influence of masters and pupils in a broadly social way is prized as highly as the studies. Conditions in the high school and in the English Public School are so different as to render close comparison impossible, but the fact remains that the per- sonal influence of the teacher is often more strongly felt in the general social life of the school than in the class room. Cooperation. — The social life presents a field for the development of a spirit of active, purposeful cooperation for the sake of the common good. The first and the final principle of social efficiency is the ability to work success- fully with and for others. In the social circle of whatever kind, common interests and common responsibilities go hand in hand, and the relationship is easily seen. What is true of the small circle, the society, the club, or the school, is true of the larger circle, the State and society SOCIAL LIFE 315 at large. In a democratic State this sense of individual responsibility and the willingness to cooperate in the attainment of the common good are fundamental elements of good citizenship. The social life of the entire school, and of the legitimate smaller groups within it, affords an excellent field for the development of these qualities. Diversion of Sex Interest. — The social life of the high school affords an opportunity for what some one has called the "long-circuiting" of the sex impulse. It might be better, as Dr. Hall and many others think, for boys and girls to be taught separately during the high- school period ; but as a matter of fact they are not, gen- erally speaking, so taught, and we must meet the problem as it is. The sex impulse is certain and strong, and it may lead early to its elemental purpose. It is better in human society to have it turned aside for a period of years into channels of individual development and social accomplishment. The tendency to "spoon" should find no ground for encouragement and no opportunity for realization in the social arrangements of the school. An official visitor of high schools has seen a group of boys and girls sitting on each other's laps in the schoolroom, at the noon recess, in the presence of the teacher and himself. There was no attempt at concealment and ap- parently no feeling of impropriety, though when the teacher noticed what was evidently a common occurrence, he appeared somewhat embarrassed. The case was 3l6 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL doubtless an extreme one, but it indicates possibilities in the wrong direction and the necessity of giving the social life of the school the consideration it deserves. It is futile to say that parents should teach their sons and daughters better manners. Of course they should, but not infrequently it is the function of the school to correct the errors of the home. In contrast with this unrestrained activity of the social impulse, the free association of the sexes, under proper conditions, may be made to serve as a sort of Aristotelian catharsis and so become a great aid in the accomplishment of the desired end. Democratic Spirit. — The social life of the high school is essentially democratic except as it is marred by the presence of exclusive organizations. Participation in this general life of the commimity not only gives excellent preparation to the individual for participation in the prac- tical affairs of a democratic society, but it insures for the State a perpetuation of that democratic spirit which forms the foundation of our government. The attitude of mind prevailing in the general social life of the school agrees with the spirit of our political institutions. Wealth and position do not count. The aim is to give every individual a fair and equal chance. The one with less ability has his place and opportunity, but leadership belongs to the powerful. The only aristocracy is one of personal power and accomplishment, an honor alike to the individual and to the society of which he is a member. SOCIAL LIFE 317 An Unsolved Problem. — The directions in which the educational value of the social life of the high school may be found have been briefly indicated. It is far from being realized under existing conditions; The seriousness of the problem has not yet taken hold upon the minds of teach- ers and school authorities. The social life of the school can never produce the desired results until it is directed and controlled by those in authority. The burden of such control, however, cannot be placed upon the shoulders of the already heavily loaded teacher until he is given time and opportunity for it ; and this will scarcely come about until there is a clearer view of the problem. With this clearer view must come also the close cooperation of the home. Perhaps more here than anywhere else home and school must join hands in the attainment of the desired end. FORMS OF SOCIAL ACTIVITY IN THE HIGH SCHOOL Outside Social Activities. — The social activities of most high-school pupils are not limited to the school. The home, the church, and other local social groups all have their influence. Over these activities, when they are imder the authority of parents or guardians, the school has no control and it may have little or no influence. Sometimes they are moderate in extent, elevating in char- acter, and very helpful to both individual and school. 3l8 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL At other times the reverse is true. Many pupils break down physically or lose interest in their school work, not because it is itself too hard, but because they are con- stitutionally unable to do that work and carry on the round of social dissipation which the home arranges or at least permits. In such cases the school is powerless to interfere, except in so far as it is able to stimulate a dominating interest in school work and to secure the intelligent cooperation of the home toward the attain- ment of the same purpose. The principal forms of organized activity in the high school are open societies, elective societies, secret societies, and athletic organizations. Open Societies have for their purpose training in some particular line of effort, usually literary in character. These societies are open either to all pupils in the school, or to all that have a certain rank in scholarship. It often happens that everybody in the school is a member, and membership is sometimes compulsory. In such cases the society takes on much the same spirit as the ordinary class-room work. Sometimes these societies are organ- ized to further an interest in some particular line of work, — for example, debating or music, — and they encourage all to join who manifest an interest in the subject. Such a society has the advantage of voluntary effort on the part of those most interested in the subject and incidentally they develop a considerable amoimt of social life. The SOCIAL LIFE 319 fact that they are open to all is a guarantee of their demo- cratic spirit. Elective Societies limit their membership to those elected by pupils already members. In all other par- ticulars they are practically the same as the open societies. They possess the disadvantage that comes from partial exclusiveness and the advantage that comes from being able to select members who will surely be interested in the attainment of the purpose for which the society is organ- ized. There is nothing essentially undemocratic in elec- tive societies provided an equal opportunity is given to all pupils to form them. Both open and elective societies may meet at the school or at the homes of members. Except when they are compulsory and are under the direction of teachers, they usually meet outside of school hours. Both are public in their proceedings and welcome teachers as members. Secret Societies, fraternities and sororities, whose pur- pose is usually purely social, choose their members by election and keep the doings of the society secret. Meet- ings are held outside of school hours, either in a room provided for the purpose at the school, or in the homes of members, or in the society house. Wealth, social posi- tion, athletic prowess, and general popularity figure largely in the selection of members. They are often very active in securing positions of public honor and trust in the school. Their scholarship is usually low and it de- 320 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL clines as interest in the society grows. They are often clannish in their associations and ignore the interests of those not members. Where many societies exist in one school, the rivalry between them is keen, but they com- monly unite in their opposition to those who are not mem- bers of any. Since the social life of these societies is secret, it is impossible to tell just what they do. It is doubtless true, however, that there is wide difference between them as regards the value of that life even for the members. In some cases it is evident that a delib- erate attempt is made to maintain worthy standards of conduct and scholarship; while in other cases dissipation, social presumption, and rebellion against authority are their striking characteristics. They possess the undoubted advantage for their members of an opportunity, not al- ways wisely used, to develop a happy, healthful social life among a select group of yoimg people, but they do it in total disregard of the social welfare of those who are not so fortunate as to be invited to membership. The attitude of high-school teachers toward these so- cieties is one of almost universal opposition. The few who support them do so on the ground that they satisfy the natural social instinct of the adolescent; that they are no more undemocratic than the social institutions which will be found later in mature society; that they do not always degrade either scholarship or character, but sometimes improve both; and that they can be made SOCIAL LIFE 321 helpful in the development of character, the encourage- ment of scholarship, and the maintenance of discipline. The general attitude of educators toward them is ex- pressed in a resolution forming part of the report of a committee appointed by the Secondary School Depart- ment of the National Educational Association to con- sider the subject of high-school fraternities. The reso- lution is as follows: — "Whereas, the sentiment of superintendents, principals, and teachers against secret fraternities is almost universal, and their testimony, as disclosed in the foregoing report, coin- cides with the observation and experience of the members of the committee individually, be it therefore Resolved, that we condemn these secret organizations, be- cause they are subversive of the principles of democracy which should prevail in the public schools ; because they are selfish, and tend to narrow the minds and sympathies of the pupils ; because they stir up strife and contention ; because they are snobbish ; because they dissipate energy and proper am- bition ; because they set wrong standards ; because rewards are not based on merit, but on fraternity vows ; because they inculcate a feehng of self-sufficiency among the members ; because secondary-school boys are too young for club life ; because they are expensive and foster habits of extravagance ; because they bring politics into the legitimate organizations of the school ; because they detract interest from study ; and because all legitimate elements for good — social, moral, and intellectual — which these societies claim to possess can be better supplied to the pupils thru the school at large in the form 322 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL of literary societies and clubs under the sanction and super- vision of the faculties of the schools."^ This attitude on the part of school authorities has been reached as the result of considerable bitter experience. When fraternities appeared in the high schools, the au- thorities were disposed to let them alone, believing that they would soon run their course and disappear. But they did not; on the contrary, they manifested remarkable vigor and longevity. The next step was trying to direct them and bring them into the service of the school; but in the great majority of cases this proved impossible, as the rule of secrecy prevented control on the part of teachers or even knowledge of what was being done in society meetings. In the relatively small number of instances in which members of the teaching corps were admitted to membership, better control was maintained, but even then they were a source of anxiety. The authorities finally felt themselves compelled to adopt the policy of extermination of the societies, or at least such limitation of privileges to their members that the societies would become unpopular and so gradually disappear. The attempts to prevent the formation of fraternities, and especially to banish those already formed, have met with the most determined opposition on the part of pupils, who have sometimes been assisted by their parents. As an illustration of this opposition and its outcome, the » Proc. N.E.A. 1905, p. 451. SOCIAL LIFE 323 notable case at Seattle, Washington, may be cited. In this case appeal was taken from the decision of the Su- perior Court to the Supreme Court. The appellant was a pupil of the high school, a member of a high-school fraternity, who, through his father, brought suit against the Board of Directors of District No. i, Seattle, because the school authorities had denied to members of secret societies certain privileges connected with the school, although participation in the regular class work had not been denied them. The following quotation from the decision of the Supreme Court indicates the question at issue and the attitude of the court in affirming the deci- sion of the lower court. "The appellant alleges that all members of said fraternity are of school age and entitled to all the privileges of said high school ; that they are unjustly prohibited from be- longing to debating clubs, athletic teams, school bands, glee clubs, orchestras, cadet corps, and other kindred organiza- tions of said school, and that, unless they withdraw from said fraternity, they will also be deprived of the customary honors attending graduation ; that they have no privileges except that of attending classes ; that said rules are in excess of lawful authority ; that there is nothing objectionable in said fraternity; that its meetings are held at the homes of members, with the consent of their parents, every two weeks, from 8 to 10 o'clock, P.M., and never during school hours ; that they are not under the jurisdiction of the school authorities, but under parental control ; that at said meetings improper conduct is prohibited, 324 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL and that a high-class literary programme is carried out. The answer pleaded an affirmative defense, substantially alleging the facts afterward found by the trial court. From a final judgment refusing injunctive relief, this appeal has been taken. "The trial court made findings of fact, from which it appears that at the time of the commencement of this action George Wayland was a student in the Seattle High School and also a member of a certain secret Greek-letter society, known as the 'Gamma Eta Kappa Fraternity' ; that the membership in said fraternity and in other similar high-school secret societies was confined particularly to high-school students ; that such societies were therefore usually known as high-school fraterni- ties ; that members other than such students were admitted as honorary members only ; that said Gamma Eta Kappa Fra- ternity was first organized in Seattle during the year 1900, at which time a request was made by it for the use of the name of said Seattle High School ; that before acting on said request the high-school authorities instituted a careful investigation to ascer- tain the probable effect of such societies on the school ; that, after such investigation and after receiving reports from many prominent educators, all of whom unqualifiedly condemned the influence of said societies as highly deleterious and injurious, the school board of said Seattle district, on May 7, 1901, passed a resolution whereby said request for the use of the name of the Seattle High School in connection with said fraternity was re- fused, and membership of students in any secret society con- nected with said school forbidden ; that at all times thereafter it was contrary to the rules and regulations of said high school for pupils to become members of said fraternities ; that after- ward said George Wayland, while a student in said school, became a member of said Gamma Eta Kappa Fraternity, as SOCIAL LIFE 325 did other students ; that it was also contrary to the said rules and regulations for students to become pledged to said secret societies ; that said rules and regulations were from time to time modified to meet emergencies in accordance with the activities of said societies in pledging or initiating members ; that on May 5, 1905, the school board, by final action, amended its former rules so as to provide that all students who were then members of any high-school secret society, or pledged to become such, who would promise that so long as they remained stu- dents of said high-school they would not become members of any other such secret society or give any promise or pledge to become such, or solicit any other student to give any promise or pledge to become a member of any high-school fraternity or secret society, and in good faith kept such promise — such students would be restored to the privileges of such school ; otherwise all students who thereafter should become members of, or in any way pledge or bind themselves to Join, any high- school fraternity or secret society, or should initiate or pledge any other students, or in any way encourage or foster the fra- ternity spirit in the high school, should be denied all the privi- leges of the high school except those of the class room ; that the influence of the said Gamma Eta Kappa Fraternity and similar secret societies, and the membership and pledging of students therein, permeating skid school, injuriously affected the good order and discipline thereof ; that in adopting the various rules and regulations aforesaid, and in denying certain privileges of said school to pupils who refused to comply therewith, the respondents at all times acted in good faith and in the exercise of an honest judgment ; that such action was at all times general in its application and at no time special, malicious, or arbi- trary ; and that all such rules and regulations, and particularly 326 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL those in force and effect at the time of the institution of this suit, were reasonable and necessary and were wholly within the powers of the respondents."' The difficulty of the secret society problem has been increased by the attitude of parents. Some have agreed with the school authorities and have taken a stand of unalterable opposition; others have supported them with equal frankness, as the Seattle case shows; while still others, perhaps the greater number, have been indifferent and have foimd it more agreeable to yield to the pleas and representations of their children than to maintain a position which a careful consideration of the subject would have led them to assume. However, the societies have fallen into such popular disfavor that the legislatures of several states have passed laws against them, denying to their members the privileges of the school. In the high school the case against secret societies in general seems to be entirely clear. They stand con- demned as being detrimental to the best interests of both members and non-members, and as weakening the effi- ciency of the school as a whole. They are especially harmful in small or moderate-sized high schools and in those in which there is a prevailing spirit of social equal- ity among pupils and patrons. In a very large school, in which there are necessarily distinct social groups, • School Review, 14 : 739. Reprinted from the Pacific Reporter, 86 : 642. SOCIAL LIFK 327 there is apparently something more to be said in their favor so far as their advantage to members is concerned. In such a school there is a leveling-down as well as a leveling-up process. Naturally the parents of the more cultured classes are averse to having their children com- pelled to associate indiscriminately with those of the lowest classes, and the fraternity, composed of a group of congenial spirits, affords one means of escape. In some cases such fraternities have been so organized and carried on, with the active cooperation of teachers, that they have offered special opportunities to their members; but the effect of such an organization, representing the least objectionable type, upon non-members and upon the school as a whole, is doubtless detrimental. Athletic Organizations. — The love of play, the spirit of competition, and the social instinct are combined in the athletic interest of the school, but the fundamental factor is the social impulse. Even the most athletically inclined individual would find little satisfaction in performing the various athletic feats if he had no associates in the effort or if there were no interested onlookers. Nothing should blind us to this fact. M8dified as it is by other interests, the athletic question is at its foundation a social and moral question. The boy or girl, like the little child, enjoys play even by himself. He enjoys it infinitely more when there is some one to play with him. Companionship brings compe- 328 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL tition in addition to increased interest and skill. At first the competition is between individuals; then the indi- vidual becomes lost in the team, a social unit. The team represents some larger social unit, as a class, a society, or the entire school, and it gathers into itself the spirit of this larger unit. It is at this point that the moral issue enters prominently. There is certainly no harm in play; it is a natural, healthy instinct. Nor is there any harm in companionship under proper conditions, for that, too, is a natural, healthy instinct. Nor yet is there harm in companionship in play. But the spirit in which^ team play is carried on is a matter of great moral import. It makes no difference what the physical advantages of ath- letics may be; if they cultivate wrong moral and social ideals and habits, they are radically wrong and not to be endured for a moment. " Keep thy heart with all diligence for out of it are the issues of life." The proverb can be forgotten or ignored only at the expense of that which is worth far more to American life than mere physical vigor, valuable as the latter is. This is the fundamental, unal- terable principle according to which all athletics should be judged and managed. That athletics can be made of great value in the school is clearly evident. In the first place, they afford oppor- tunity for needed physical exercise under conditions that render it most enjoyable and profitable. Nor is this benefit Umited entirely to those who participate in the SOCIAL LIFE 329 games. Sympathetic onlookers catch the spirit and some- thing of the exliilaration of the contest. Athletic efforts even more than literary and social efforts afford an oppor- tmiity for draining off, as it were, the superfluous energy of the school, which might otherwise be spent in ways harmful to both the individual and the school. Interest in the enjoyment of the game or in the outcome of a con- test keeps the mind so occupied as to prevent the entrance of something less profitable, albeit at times of something more profitable also. Athletics afford an opportunity for the development of a united school spirit, which can often be carried over from sports into the more serious work of the school. They afford an opportunity for the exercise and development of certain social and moral qualities of the highest order, — courage, hardihood, endurance, pres- ence of mind, cooperation, quickness in thought and action, skill, self-control, generosity, honesty, fairness, steadiness in defeat as well as in victory, and, in general, the qualities that mark a strong, honorable manhood. Unfortunately they can be, and often are so managed as to develop qualities quite the opposite of these. On the purely physical side there is something to be said both for and against athletics as they are carried on in high schools to-day. They engage the active interest of only a small minority of pupils, usually leaving out those who need physical exercise the most. Some of the games played are too dangerous, and often result in se- 330 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL rious injury, sometimes in death. Even in those cases in which there is no accident, the requirements of the game may be so severe as to overtax the powers of youth to so great an extent as to decrease their physical efficiency in later years, as well as to render them incapable of carry- ing their studies successfully at the present. On the other hand, they are of great benefit to many pupils who participate in them, both because they develop physical vitality, and because they tend to eliminate debilitating vices ; and this benefit is carried over vicariously, as it were, to many who do not actively participate in the sports. Accidents are most deplorable, particularly when they might have been prevented by the exercise of reason- able precautions. To those unfortunate persons whose loved ones have been killed or rendered helpless for life in school sports, the physical benefits of the many not in- jured must seem a poor offset; but, hard-hearted as it may appear, it is legitimate to ask whether society cannot better afford to lose the services of the few than to lose the benefits accruing to the many. However, the reten- tion or abolition of athletics as they are now conducted is not the only alternative. By judicious reformation the good results can be retained, and the evil ones largely eliminated. Unduly dangerous games should be ren- dered less dangerous, or they should be abandoned. No boy should be permitted to play without the written con- sent of parent or guardian and of a competent physician, SOCIAL LIFE 331 and no one should be permitted to play a strenuous part until he has had sufficient training and practice. The most careful attention to these matters would not elimi- nate all accidents, but it would reduce them to a minimum. Socially and morally there is even more to be gained or lost than physically. Most of the social and moral dan- gers of athletics do not appear in the home playing, but arise out of interscholastic contests and the insane desire to win at all hazards. The principal dangers to be avoided are the admission to the team of boys who are voluntarily deficient in scholarship or who are not eligible according to the rules; management and control without the assist- ance of teachers; vulgar or immoral conduct, either of pupils or outsiders, on the playground during practice; loose conduct permitted by members of the team or by their supporters when they are playing away from home; the presence in any official capacity, as that of manager or coach, of a teacher whose personal conduct and prin- ciples are not worthy of imitation; betting, drinking, late hoiurs, and association with "sports" outside the school; and, in general, the presence of any ideal or influence that does not accord with true sportsmanship and clean, honorable, manly conduct. The surest way of realizing the evil results of athletics is to turn the team loose to manage its own affairs without coimsel or control of teachers. By far the greatest safeguard against them is foimd in the presence, at all times, as manager or coach, 332 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL of a member of the teaching corps who possesses those altogether too rare qualities of body, mind, and heart that make him a worthy leader of boys. As an illustration of suitable rules for the management of interscholastic contests, the following is of interest: — Constitution of the Indiana High School Athletic Association. Revised Dec. 26, 1907. Superintendent J. T. Giles, Permanent Secretary, Marion, Indiana administration Sec. I. A Board of Control, composed of three members (principals, members of the faculty, or superintendents), shall be elected by the Association Dec. 29, 1903, as follows : one for one year, one for two years, and one for three years ; the chair- man each year to be the one whose term expires at the end of that year. Thereafter each member of the Board shall be elected for three years. This election is to take place at the annual meeting of the Indiana State Teachers' Association. In case of vacancy, the remaining members of the Board may appoint a person to fill the vacancy until the next annual meeting of the Association. Sec 2. The Board of Control shall have the following powers and duties : (a) it shall have general control over aU athletic contests between secondary schools in this Association ; (6) it shall have exclusive control of the annual Interscholastic Meet ; (c) it shall give interpretations of the rules of the Asso- ciation ; (d) it shall determine forfeitures under Sec. 11 ; (e) the Board of Control at the end of any athletic season may, at its discretion, issue a statement of its oflGicial opinion as to the relative standing of the teams. No school which has violated SOCIAL LIFE 333 the rules of the Association in regard to the qualifications of players shall be awarded special honors in that particular branch of athletics. Sec. 3. (a) When charges are made in writing by a member of the Association against another member for violation of the rules of the Association, the Board of Control, after giving due notice of place and time for the school so charged to be heard, shall consider such charges, and may suspend the offending school for a period of not exceeding one year. (6) The Board of Control shall decide on all protests brought before it with reference to qualifications of contestants in the Interscholastic Meet, (c) When any matter comes before the Board for de- cision which is of special interest to a school of which a member of the Board is a representative, the remaining members shall appoint another person to act in his place in that matter. Sec. 4. Membership in this Association shall be limited to public high schools of the State, and each school shall have one vote. The annual dues shall be $2, payable when the school becomes a member, and thereafter by December i of each year in advance. Sec. 5. The principal of the school, or high-school teachers authorized by him, shall be manager or managers of the teams representing the school. Sec. 6. No games shall be played without the sanction of the principal. Sec. 7. No game shall be played with public high schools of this State not belonging to this Association. Sec. 8. Non-playing student officials or assistants shall con- form to the same rules as the players. Sec. 9. The principal or his authorized representative shall accompany his team to all contests. 334 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Sec. 10. In football contests held under these rules, the length of each half shall be twenty-five minutes, unless changed by mutual consent. Sec. II. It is recommended that principals, in arranging for games, provide a forfeit of $io, to be exacted should there be a failure on the part of either party to carry out the arrange- ments made. Should such forfeiture be stipulated and not be paid during the same season, the Board of Control, after hearing both sides, shall have authority to expel the delinquent school from the Association. Notification of such expulsion shall be published in the papers, with the cause therefor. Sec. 12. No retiring member of the Board of Control, having served three years, shall be eligible for reelection for a period of one year after date of retirement. RULES Rule i. To represent a school in any interscholastic contest a person must be under twenty-one years of age ; must have entered some public high school within the first twenty school days of the term or semester in which the contest occurs, and must be an amateur as defined by the A.A.U. Eighth grade pupils are not eligible. Rule 2. Each contestant must have and be maintaining for the current term or semester a passing grade in each of three or more studies requiring a minimum of fifteen regular high-school recitations per week, exclusive of rhetoricals, physical culture, military drill, and deportment ; in his last preceding term or semester in school he must also have met the same requirements throughout the entire term. Pupils enrolled for the first time must comply with all the SOCIAL LIFE 335 requirements of the rules, the average standing required for the preceding term or semester being obtained from the records in the last secondary school attended. Back work may be made up, providing that it be done in accordance with the regular rules of the school and becomes a matter of final record before the opening of the next term or semester. RuxE 3. The eligibility of all the contestants shall be certi- fied to by the principal of the school in accordance with the rules hereby adopted. Such statements shall be presented in writing within ten days before any contest. In case of dis- putes the principal must furnish to the Board of Control the following data in regard to each contestant : the date of last enrollment ; the number of years he had been a member of a a secondary-school athletic team ; date and place of birth ; average mark in each study for the preceding term or semester ; average mark in each study from the beginning of the current term or semester. A school which does not furnish this data shall be denied championship honors, and may be excluded from the annual Interscholastic Meet. Rule 4. No person shall take part in athletic contests be- tween secondary schools for more than four years, and no post- graduate pupil shall take part in such contests. Persons graduating from regular three-year courses shall not be deemed post-graduates. Rule 5. No person shall enter a contest under an assumed name. Time spent in athletic sport by pupils while in grades below the high school shall not be counted as part of the four years. Rule 6. The principal shall have power and is advised to exclude any contestant who, because of bad habits or im- 336 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL proper conduct, would not represent his school in a becoming manner. Rule 7. Any member of a high-school athletic team, who participates in an athletic contest as a member of any other similar team the same season, shall be ineligible to compete under these rules for the remainder of that season. An exception is hereby made for basket ball and basket ball players in those towns and cities whose schools have no gym- nasium and whose students are forced by necessity to use a Y. M. C. A. or some other gymnasium for their practice and games. It is a well-known fact that the use of such gymnasiums by high-school students under such circumstances will Kkely require that such students play on the team or teams of the organizations maintaining such gymnasiums. No student, however, will be permitted to play on any other team than that representing the organization controlling the gymnasium, and no student wiU be allowed to play in the teams of the latter without the knowledge and consent of his principal. Rule 8. These rules may be amended by a majority vote of the members present at the annual meeting. There remains to be developed a better system of ath- letics for our American schools, which shall moderate the severity of the games played, emphasize the enjoyment of the sport rather than the mad delight of winning, stimu- late higher ideals of social morality, find satisfaction in friendly home competition rather than in fierce inter- scholastic rivalry, and secure the active cooperation of all pupils in the sports for which they are in body and tem- perament adapted. SOCIAL LIFE 337 THE DIRECTION AND CONTROL OF SOCIAL LIFE The Necessity. — Consideration of the foregoing facts should convince us that social hfe in the high school is a necessity, and that it contains within itself great possibili- ties when considered from the educational and broadly so- cial point of view. We could not do away with it if we would. Let us also agree that we would not do away with it if we could. The social impulse is a tremendous dynamic force, somewhat explosive at times, but capable, nevertheless, of being harnessed to drive the educational machinery of the school just as, at the hands of Watt and Stephenson, steam was harnessed to drive their engines. When there is a head of steam on, the engine must be con- trolled, otherwise there is wreck and ruin. There is needed the guiding hand of one who understands both the machinery and the force by which it is driven. Sim- ilar guidance is needed in the school. The power is in- evitably there. Machinery to use it must be invented and then controlled. Classes, clubs, teams, societies of all kinds, are part of this machinery. There is power in them all, and every part must be made to work in har- mony with every other part that the whole may accom- plish its purpose. How can it be done? That is the problem. The Method. — It is a problem for every teacher and every school every day. No detailed method of pro- 33^ THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL cedure can be laid down ; each situation must be diag- nosed and treated on its merits. There is a great diver- sity of conditions and much uncertainty as to methods, yet in the confusion a few facts stand out as guiding prin- ciples. The general social impulse and the narrower sex impulse of adolescent years must be guided in the school as well as outside of it. These impulses are often far more influential than the studies in determining character and conduct. While constituting an immense power for good or ill, they are imtrained, capricious, sometimes wild. They must be directed and controlled. The entire small school may well form the social unit. Even in the largest schools the whole must be the unit whose interests dominate. Smaller groups may be advantageously formed, but their activities must be properly limited, and they must not be left to run themselves without the interest or super- vision of teachers. In such cases there is sure to be trouble even where there is no evil intent. These groups may be organized with the best purposes, but the in- stances are extremely few in which they can run success- fully without the assistance of a wiser head. To this fact the history of high-school secret societies gives abimdant evidence. It may be added that the strong appeal which fraternities and sororities have made to the interest and devotion of pupils should suggest the value of the small group as the basis of the most effective social life, and the possible use of such groups under conditions that would SOCIAL LIFE 339 eliminate the harmful features of the secret society. Of course it is- possible, though it seems hardly probable, that it is just these harmful elements that make the strongest appeal to the adolescent mind. Finally, there is the fact of supreme importance that, whatever the organized means used for the development of the social life of the high school, the most vital factor is' the active, dominating, personal influence of noble men and women, REFERENCES Blacemas, F. W. Elements of Sociology. Macmillan, 1905. Dudley, W. L. Athletic control in school and college. Sch. Rev. II : 95. Ftndlay, J. J. The corporate life of the school. Sch. Rev. 15 : 744 and 16 : 601. French, C. W. The school city. Sch, Rev. 13 : 33. Gordon, M. K. School athletics ; what they are and what they should be. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 616. GuLicE, L. H. Team games and civic loyalty. Sch. Rev. 14 : 676. Halleck, R. p. The social side of high-school life. Proc. N.E.A. 1902 :4S9. Harris, E. L. Report of the committee on athletics adopted by the North Central Association of Colleges and Second- ary Schools, 1903. Sch. Rev. 11 : 348. Howerth, I. W. Education and the social ideal. Ed. Rev. 24 : 150. Keeler, H. The financial responsibility of high-school man- agers of athletics. Sch. Rev. 11 : 316. 34° THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Keller, P. G. W. Open school organizations. Sch. Rev. 13 : 10. KoHLSAAT, P. B. Secondary-school fraternities not a factor in determining scholarship. Sch. Rev. 13 : 272. Morrison, G. B. Report of committee on secret fraternities. Proc. N.E.A. 1905 :44s. Secret fraternities in the high school. Proc. N.E.A. 1904 : 484. Social ethics in high-school life. Sch. Rev. 13 : 361. Ors, W. The place of athletics in secondary schools. Am. Phys. Ed. Rev. 12 : 49. Owen, W. B. The problem of the high-school fraternity. Sch. Rev. 14 : 492. Social education through the school. Sch. Rev. 15 : 11. Parlin, C. C. An illustration of the management of athletics in the high school. Sch. Rev. 11 : 709. Peabody, E. School patriotism. Sch. Rev. 3 : 498. Ross, E. A. Social Control. Macmillan, igo8. Sarver, J. M. Interschool athletics. Ed. 22 : 420. Smith, S. R. Fraternities in secondary schools. Sch. Rev. 12 : 2. Report of the committee on the influence of fraternities in the high school. Sch. Rev. 13 : i. Tucker, W. J. How shall pupils be taught to estimate them- selves ? Sch. Rev. 13 : 597. Ward, A. H. The regulation of athletics. Ed. 28 : 300. Ward, L. F. Applied Sociology. Ginn, 1906. Wetzel, A. High-school student organizations. Sch. Rev. 13 : 429. Wilson, W. Spurious vs. real patriotism in education. Sch. Rev. 7 : S99. SOCIAL LIFE 341 Woodward, C. M. The new departure in athletic control. Sch. Rev. II : 321. Report of the athletic committee of the North Central Associa- tion of Colleges and Preparatory Schools. Sch. Rev. 13 : 510. CHAPTER XII The High School and the Community If, by process of abstraction, we think of the high school and the community as separate, it is clearly evi- dent that there are certain important mutual relationships existing between them. The school is both child and parent of the community, — child in that it is organized, maintained, and supported by direct or indirect authority of the community; parent, in that among its pupils are foimd those who will be largely influential in establishing the ideals and doing the work of the next generation of citizens. There are manifest benefits and consequent obligations on each side. These relationships may be considered under the head of the adaptation of the high school to the community, its cost, the return it makes, and the support due it from the commimity. THE ADAPTATION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL TO THE COMMUNITY Adaptation Desirable. — In the preceding chapters there have been stated some general principles which are valid in dealing with all high schools. Within the limits of 342 THE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY 343 these principles certain variations are possible by means of which each school can be better adapted to the needs of the community in which it is located. This adaptation is part of the local problem for the managers of any school. Because the school and the community are fundamentally part and parcel of each other, every efifort should be made to render their mutual relations pleasant and profitable. It is the business of the school to serve the community in the best possible way, all things considered, even by depart- ing somewhat from the generally accepted . principles of organization and management, if by such departure any particular community can receive better service. Within certain more or less definite limits it is tenable ground to maintain that it is better to extend the benefits of the high school to many young people than to uphold high stand- ards of academic scholarship and social custom if in- sistence upon these standards drives pupils from the school. We sometimes take pride in winnowing out as , many pupils as possible when it would be a more laudable \ ambition to keep the greatest possible number interested | in the work of the school, thereby extending the years of | their education and also their future usefulness in the' commimity. Curriculum. — In the chapter on the organization and management of the high school it was shown how the choice of subjects in the programme and the extent of the pro- gramme are dependent upon the interests of the commu- 344 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL nity and the support given the school. As there indicated, the work attempted should not be more in amount than the facilities of the school make it possible to do well. This is one phase of adaptation. Another is foimd in the choice of subjects that make up the programme of studies. For example, there are places where the ex- tended study of the ancient languages does not commend itself to the practical sense of either pupils or patrons. Rather than take those subjects, pupils will leave school5_^ iFtRfey could study German or science or commercial sub- jects, they would remain. In such cases it is better to dispense with the ancient languages entirely, if necessary, if by so doing three or four years of substantial school training can be added to the equipment for citizenship of a considerable number of young people. It may even be wise, at times, to accept a lower grade of work in all sub- jects ; for example, in a community in which the traditions of the ancestors furnish no basis for culture or refinement, but in which there is now a desire to give the children a better preparation for the battle of life than the parents have had. There are hundreds of such communities in the United States. This is hard doctrine for those whose training and experience have led them to prize college standards of scholarship above everything else, but it is justified by the primary purpose of the American high school. This does not mean a lowering of standards, in either kind or quality of work, where their maintenance is THE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY 34S consistent with the highest good of the community; but it does mean such an adaptation of the work of the school as shall render the greatest good to the greatest number. Social service is more important than college traditions. There are schools in which such a course should be fol- lowed, for a time at least, no matter what the colleges may think of the plan. Nevertheless, in so doing, it should never be forgotten that it is always part of the duty of the school to direct the attention and interest of both pupils and patrons to the higher ideals of scholarship and life that lie just beyond present attainments. In, such cases the school should lead the community; but if the leader keeps too far ahead, he will be unable to rally his forces and keep them together. Social and Moral Ideals. — Another form of adaptation lies in the sphere of social and moral ideals. In these matters there are wide differences of opinion and custom, not only in different parts of the country, but in different communities lying within a short radius.. In such cases the school must ally itself with the spirit of the community^ at least to the extent of establishing a bond of mutual appreciation. This does not mean that the school should always support the ideals of the community, regardless of what they are ; but rather that it should not openly an- tagonize them. Its clear duty may be ultimately to break them down and establish others in their place, but the elimination should be by the process of gradual substi- 346 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL tution. Without condemning existing ideals, let other and better ones be held up for imitation. The measure of success may be small, but it is the best that can be attained. Moral and social regeneration is usually a slow process, an evolution, not an upheaval. The Teacher. — The problem of adaptation to the com- munity often becomes a very personal matter with the teacher. The standards of a new location may seem to him unendurable because inconsistent with honorable professional standards or correct social and moral ideals. For example, parents and pupils unite in protest against the rule which requires all pupils to study some generally accepted, but to them impractical, subject, and rather than obey the rule the pupil leaves school. The respect shown by many Western boys and girls for a teacher is measured by the respect and liking that they have for him as a man. Position counts for naught. Reverence for authority as such is a negligible quantity. With the con- sent, or at least with the knowledge, of parents, pupils spend their evenings in dancing, card pla)ring, and other social recreations to the complete neglect of their studies. They even expect the teacher to join them in the sport. The latter may have been taught from his youth up that dancing, card playing, and unprofitable recreation gen- erally are Mephistophelian in their nature, and his moral sensibilities are shocked; or he may have been brought up to enjoy them hugely, and he suddenly finds himself in a THE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY 347 puritanical community in which all such things are ta- booed. To engage in them would be to incur at once the distrust, if not the open^ condemnation, of the commimity. Under such circumstances, the question of adaptation presses hard. One way out of the difficulty is to resign, frankly admitting that he cannot do the things that are expected. And it is better to resign than to fight a losing battle because of lack of power to appreciate another's point of view. Another, and in most cases a wiser, way is to recognize the fact that the school problem of this particular community must be worked out and its ideals changed on 'the basis of existing conditions. However far these ideals may fall short of the teacher's notion of what they should be, they must be the starting point. In following such a policy he is but applying to the commimity the same psychological principle of apperception that he applies daily to the individual pupil in both teaching and management. When it comes to a matter of conscience with the teacher, he alone can decide what it is best to do in any particular case, although even here there are cer- tain general principles which indicate the direction of decision. In the first place, the teacher should not, in his personal conduct, do violence to any reasonable moral feel- ing in the community. Nor should he, on the other hand, violate his own conscience simply for the sake of "stand- ing in" with the commmiity. The vital question for him is hot his own preference or conviction alone, but how he 348 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL can render the greatest service to the commtinity, and especially to the boys and girls who are temporarily com- mitted to his care. To lead young people to substitute the good for the bad, and the better and finally the best for the good, may require considerable adaptation on the part of the teacher, but it is a commendable attainment. THE COST TO THE COMMUNITY Accurate statistics concerning the relative aimual cost per pupil in the elementary school and in the high school are not available, but, speaking generally, . the latter is from one and one half to four times as great as the former. Whereas the annual cost per pupil in the elementary and high schools taken together ranges from $11.54 in the South Central States to $38.50 in the North Atlantic States, the average for the entire country being $25.40; the annual cost per pupil in the high school alone ranges roughly from $30 to $125. The factors that enter into this in- creased cost are the higher salaries paid to teachers, library and laboratory equipments, optional courses of study, and the fact that whereas in the elementary school each teacher is likely to serve a class of from twenty to forty- five pupils, in the high school, particularly in the small one, there are many classes with not to exceed ten pupils. The high-school building is also more expensive than one that would accommodate an equal number of elementary- THE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY 349 school pupils. The consequent total increased cost per pupil is entirely legitimate, since it arises out of the neces- sity of providing increasingly varied and complex facilities for the training of more mature and original types of mind. It is often a matter of importance that this fact should be made clear to the taxpayers of the community. BENEFITS TO THE COMMUNITY Safe Associations. — First, the high school affords a place where the susceptible, unsteady adolescent can spend his time without much danger of harm from evil associa- tions. Boys and girls of this age are often of little use in the home or in business, and it is frequently a problem for parents to know what to do with them so that their thoughts and conduct may be occupied with things that are not harmful even though they bring no particularly use- ful returns in any other way. This is a negative return, but it is a benefit nevertheless. The Advantages which Education Gives. — Second, the positive advantage that a man or woman with a high- school education has in the battle of life over one who does not have this training, is undoubtedly very great. This is shown by a recognition of the fact that his native ability is supplemented by four years of training iii the develop- ment of his higher powers ; by a consideration of the mere information which the studies bring him; by the ideals, 35° THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL inspiration, and ambition which boys and girls testify that they receive during these years ; by the life records of attainment of high-school graduates in comparison with the records of those who did not have a high-school edu- cation; by the willingness of different countries, notably Germany, to provide continuation schools for mature men and women who, for some reason, did not have the ad- vantage of a secondary-school education in their youth; and by the eager desire of these men and women to take advantage of the opportimities which they either neglected or did not have at the proper time. The public high school affords to many a family the opportunity of educating its children to a stage of individual and social efficiency that would otherwise be altogether beyond its reach. It is a helping hand which the state extends to all its citizens in order to secure for them a high grade of individual and social efficiency. It is a powerful " leveling up " influ- ence in the community. Preparation for College at Home. — The high school confers a peculiar benefit in the fact that it affords to those young people who wish to go to college an opportunity to prepare for that work at home. If they had to be sent away to a college preparatory school, the cost would be many times as great. The educational ideal of those states supporting a state university is that an education from the primary grades through the university shall be offered at public expense to every young man and woman who will tHE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY 351 take advantage of it. In communities in which this ideal is appreciated by many people, the high school, costly as it is, becomes a most economical institution. Besides the financial benefit, there is the advantage that comes from the possibility of keeping boys and girls under the parental roof during these years when they so much need the care and counsel of parents. The colleges and imiversities ap- preciate this fact, and, even in the cases in which a pre- paratory department is maintained, they prefer to have pu- pils receive their preparatory training at home. Of course some young people would be better off if they were sent away from home during these years, but such cases are the exception rather than the rule. Then, too, there are many instances in which boys and girls receive in the high school the impetus to go to college at their own expense, when they would not have been willing or able to work their way through a distant preparatory school. A Healthy Atmosphere. — A good high school brings to the community an ideal of worthy effort with adequate reward at the close. It creates an atmosphere of accom- plishment. Something is to be done, something hard, but it is worth doing. Such an ideal exercises a whole- some influence, not only upon the young people, but upon home and business as well. The interest taken by a com- munity in such a school is itself a leavening force, which tends to emphasize things most worth while. Nothing is more ennobling in its tendency than intelligent care for 352 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL the interests of the rising generation. It is like a look from the mountains at sunrise. Social and Intellectual Advantages. — In communities where the people and the teachers have learned how to make the best use of the school plant, the high school becomes not only the place for the formal education of the boys and girls, but also the intellectual and social center of the community. There seems to be no good reason why the use of the school building should be limited to eight hours a day, five days in the week, nine months in the year. On the other hand, it may with great profit be used at any time for the social and intellectual improvement of the entire commimity. Lectures, entertainments, and social gatherings for all may well be given in the high- school building under the cooperative leadership of teachers and citizens, thereby extending very materially the intel- lectual, social, and moral influence of the school. The people of communities in which this policy has been tested are very appreciative of the results. THE OBLIGATIONS OF THE COMMUNITY TO THE SCHOOL What are the obligations of the community to the high school in addition to financial support? Possibly none. It is conceivable that the community should say to the school authorities, — the school board and the teachers, — we have provided the money to pay the cost, it is your THE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY 353 business to provide the school without further assistance from us. No one, however, who has any idea of the com- plexity of the problem of education would think of taking such a position. Intelligent Support. — In the first place, the community owes to the high school, and to the elementary school as well, an intelligent interest in their management. They should be absolutely divorced from politics. The readiness with which the schools are sometimes turned over to the politicians to be used as a means of party control without regard to their real needs, is as surprising as it is distress- ing. To do it unwittingly is worthy of condemnation, for voters should know better; to do it consciously and with purpose is diabolical. He who does it thus is unworthy the honor of American citizenship. When the schools are in politics, they are sure to suffer. Not only should they be kept out of politics, but their management should be kept out of the hands of those incompetent, for any reason, to run them. It is the duty of the community to see that the best available men are placed upon the board of man- agers. The school is an expensive institution at the best, and, merely as a matter of business, it should be managed by those who are capable of doing it wisely. The surpass- ing importance of its work is an even greater reason why it should be in the hands of a competent board of managers. It is the business of the community to see that such a board is placed in control and then supported in its leadership. 2A 354 'J^'HE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Support of School Authority. — The communit}' should uphold the authority of the school as represented by the board and the teachers. In the high school there are likely to arise differences between teachers and pupils which are occasionally serious in their nature. A strike is threatened or actually occurs. At such times public sentiment can settle the matter for or against the author- ity of the school. In general, there is every reason why that authority should be supported. Not to do it is to encourage the spirit of lawlessness. Of coiurse, exception must be made of those cases in which the authority of the school is manifestly on the wrong side. But the chances are that it is right, and in American society there is far more danger from too great individual independence than from too great submission to authority. Moral Standards. — The people of the commimity owe to the school deliberate cooperation in the maintenance of a high standard of personal morality among the pupils. Many a youth is corrupted by the vulgarity or im- morality of the home or the street. Indecent stories or sly winks at improper conduct strike deep into the lives of youth, and the moral tone of the school cannot rise much higher than that of the community. The men of the community can give particularly valuable assistance in this direction. Practical Encouragement of Pupils. — In another way, too, they can render a much-needed service to the high THE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY 355 school; that is, in the personal encouragement of boys to continue their studies in the school and in assisting them to positions when they have finished the course. The temptation of a boy to leave .school and earn money is sometimes very great. It is made greater by the fact that in the school he frequently has only women as teachers. He wants to be with men and to do as they do. Were there more strong men teaching in the schools, the temptation to leave would not be so great. The earnest, practical advice of the men of the conamimity to finish his high-school course would save many a boy from a too great temptation. For many reasons, their hearty support of the high school is exceedingly desirable. The Home. — As part of the community the home stands in peculiarly close relations to the school and is under special obligations to it. While the pupil is under the authority of the school the teacher stands in loco parentis, hence there is every reason why the home and the school should work in harmony and close cooperation. There seems to be no adequate reason why the home should not assume an attitude of kindly, sympathetic criticism towards the school. That is its attitude towards the children in the home, and it can scarcely be expected that any influence so important as is the school should not be regarded in the same way. On the other hand, there is no reason why the managers of the school should not welcome such an attitude. When it is reasonable and 356 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL intelligent, it indicates an interest which can often be turned to good account. Criticism. — Under the free conditions existing in Amer- ican society it is to be expected that parents will sometimes bring sharp criticism upon the general management. The American people are accustomed to say what they think about governmental afifairs, and they have not yet outgrown the belief condemned by Plato in the "Republic," that any one is competent to speak with authority on edu- cation. In Germany it is not so; there the home bends to the requirements of the school without a word. But we are not yet willing to exchange American independence for German paternalism, consequently criticism may be expected. At times it is helpful, at other times harmful, according to the spirit in which it is given. In matters educational, at least as far as the management of a school system is concerned, most parents speak as laymen. Plans that may be excellent in the home might be disas- trous if applied to the school. Since the state assumes the cost and the responsibility of education, it must also assume the authority. When there is diflference of opinion, the authority of the school must prevail, otherwise there would be chaos. On this point there should be no doubt in the mind of either parent or teacher. Parent and Teacher. — Aside from the attitude of the parent towards thfe school as a whole, there is the further question of his attitude towards the teacher as an individual THE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY 3S7 and the instructor of his children. It is unfortunate, if true, but it is probably true, nevertheless, that the really intelligent, careful parent has some ground to doubt the ability of the average high-school teacher to deal wisely with children. Nor is such distrust either remarkable in itself or discreditable to the teacher concerned. When one considers the age, experience, scholarship, and pro- fessional training (it would often seem appropriate to use the contrary of these terms) of one third of the high-school teachers of the country, he is brought to face the fact that such teachers cannot reasonably be expected to be efficient in high degree. The really unfortunate and un- reasonable thing about the whole situation is the fact that young men and women are permitted by authority of the state to assume the responsible position of high- school teacher without better preparation than the mini- mum that is now required. Under the circumstances, there seems to be no reason why teacher and parent should assume an attitude of personal hostility towards each other. It is not a personal matter after all, but one which the state and society should remedy by requiring the teacher to be better prepared. If the parent is required to send his child to the public school, he has a right to expect the state to provide a teacher who will not compare unfavorably with the parent himself. Much ill feeling and friction would be avoided if parents and teachers would candidly and earnestly try to put themselves each at the other's 358 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL point of view. If you, a parent, were actually in the posi- tion of that teacher, with his antecedents and training, what would you be likely to do with this school and this pupil ? If you, a teacher, were actually in the place of that parent, with all his experience and responsibility, what would you be likely to think teachers ought to do with and for your child? It is well to remember that there are incompetent teachers just as there are incom- petent parents, and for much the same reasons. Nevertheless, while parents have some ground to doubt the ability of teachers to deal wisely with their children, they have no more groimd to doubt the earnest desire of teachers to do the best possible thing for their pupils than have teachers ground to doubt the desire of parents to serve their children in the same way. Teachers are usually honest and ambitious to do the best thing even when they fail. They are that much like parents; and in this attitude they have common ground upon which to discuss the faults and failings and needs of their common care. It is not reasonable to expect that parent and teacher will always agree as to the best method of dealing with a child, but they would more nearly approach this very desir- able end if they would discuss the question in a spirit of mutual confidence in their desire to do the best thing pos- sible, rather than with a feeling of hostility. Mutual ac- quaintance between parent and teacher, which each can do much to initiate and foster, helps greatly in the solution of mutual problems. THE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY 3S9 Positive Cooperation. — There are, however, certain forms of positive cooperation which properly belong to the home. The school as an educating institution stands for a few fundamental virtues, — industry, obedience, order, and the like. In the attainment of these virtues the home must join heartily and persistently with the school if both are to prosper. Successful work in the high school requires daily industry on the part of pupils not only at school but at home. If the home interferes with this industry or does not encourage it properly, the pupil, the school, and ultimately the home, suffer in consequence. Too much outside social life permitted by the home can easily spoil a school career, whereas the school often gets the blame of it. Obedience and order are absolutely necessary in the school. If they are not required in the home, then home and school are working at cross purposes. To expect the school to control the boy who has never been controlled at home would be ludicrous if it were not so often serious. The work of the high school is serious busi- ness, as serious for the pupil as are the daily duties of pro- fessional or business life for the parent. Neglect of duty even once is as likely to be followed by evil results in the one case as in the other. Such neglect is excusable only when the need is urgent. The home that does not recog- nize the seriousness of high-school work and make thp best practicable provision for its accomplishment is both failing to share the burden of responsibility with the sphool and 360 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL is fostering habits of neglect of duty which are likely to injure the future life of the pupil. The high school must not stand apart. Its purpose is to serve the interests of pupils, home, individual citizens, the Church, and the community at large. The efficiency of that service will be measured in great degree by the co- operation which it commands. REFERENCES Adams, E. C. The parent problem. Sch. Rev. 13 : 642. Book, W. F. Why pupils drop out of the high school. Fed. Sem. II : 204. Brooks, S. D. The extension of high-school influence. Ed. Rev. 29 : 431. Butler, N. M. Parents' associations. Sch. Rev. 16 : 78. Dewey, J. The school as social center. Proc. N.E.A. 1902 : 373- Gay, G. E. Why pupils leave the high school without graduat- ing. Ed. 22 : 300. Goodwin, E. J. The schools and the home. Sch. Rev. 16 : 320. Hall, G. S. The needs and methods of educating young people in the hygiene of sex. Fed. Sem. 15 : 82. Hill, F. A. Discussion by Balliet, T. M., Huling, R. G., and Rice, W. N. How far the public high school is a just charge upon the public treasury. Sch. Rev. 6 : 746. HoYT, D. W. Relation of the high school to the community. Ed. 6 : 429. Hyde, W. D. The social mission of the public school. Ed, Rev. 12 : 221. THE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE COMMUNITY 36 1 Morgan, H. H. The justification of the public high school. Rep. Com. Ed. 1900, i : 629. Morse, C. H. The practicability of the extension of high-school influence. Ed. Rev. 29 : 441. MowRY, D. The use of school buildings for other than school purposes. Ed. 29 : 92. Palmer, F. H. How the home may help the school. Ed. 21 ; 292. Parkinson, W. D. The school and the church. Sch. Rev. 13 : 661. Peabody, E. The training and responsibility of parents. Sch. Rev. 16 : 281. Rich, A. H. Parents' duties to teachers. Ed. 12 : 350. Sadler, M. E. The school in its relation to social organization and to national life. Ed. Rev. 28 : 361. Wells, D. C. The parent problem. Sch. Rev. 13 : 635. CHAPTER XIII Present Problems and Future Development In the preceding chapters an attempt has been made to state simply certain facts and principles which have been generally recognized by thoughtful educators in the high- school field, and which have been more or less perfectly worked out in the better high schools, both large and small. This material has been presented with the emphasis upon actual conditions rather than upon future development. In this chapter we shall try to indicate the most important present problems of the high school and the lines along which it seems that development is likely to take place. The American high school came into existence as the result of a more or less blind striving of the people towards a larger intelligence and a greater social ofi&ciency than was made possible through the elementary schools alone. It has grown to its present status under various influences that seem to represent more or less conflicting interests. Its adaptability to the spirit of American institutions has been recognized, in part at least, but there remain many unsolved problems. However, the high school as an institution has come to self-consciousness, as it were, and 363 PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 363 to an appreciation of the fact that it is destined to play ■ a constantly increasing part in the advancement of the intellectual, industrial, and social life of the American people. Its course of development is being watched and guided with an interest and intelligence never before known. FUNCTION The first point to be emphasized is the need of a clearer idea of the function of the high school as an American institution and a fuller realization of that idea in the edu- cational system. Without such an idea, systematic effort in the development of the school becomes impossible, and we shall continue to drift where wise guidance is needed. Purpose as an American Institution. — The facts pre- sented in previous chapters make it evident, without further argument, that, as an American institution, the public school in all its forms has for its purpose to increase the social efficiency of all future citizens who attend it. The elementary schools do not exist for the purpose of preparing for the high school the relatively few who reach it, but for the purpose of giving to all the best possible training for life in society that can be given during the elementary-school period. The high schools do not exist for the purpose of preparing for college the relatively few graduates who enter college halls, but for the purpose of giving to all who attend them the best possible preparation 364 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL for a happy and useful life in society and the state. No stage of American education exists primarily for the sake of the next higher stage, but for the sake of the work which it can do in its own sphere. True enough, it may serve as a step to the next stage, but to think of that as its main service is to put the emphasis in the wrong place. It is this misplaced emphasis that is responsible for much that we regret in American education. An actual, as well as a theoretical, application of this principle to all of our schools would do much to remove groimd for criticism and to promote progress. Influence of College Ideals. — Theoretically the purpose of the founders of the high school has prevailed, practically it has not. College ideals are still tremendously influential in determining its work and spirit. In most respects this influence has been helpful. The work of the high school has been greatly strengthened by the presence of college- trained men and women as teachers. By both pressure and inspiration the college has helped to raise the standard of work in the high school. But this has not been the only result. Even after it was admitted theoretically by the colleges that it is the function of the high school to prepare its pupils for life rather than for college, great pressure was brought to bear upon the schools to induce them to prepare for college as well as for life. The machinery of the educational organization made it possible for them to do this. College recognition on account of well-prepared PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 365 students is a more tangible, and perhaps a more influen- tial, honor for most high-school teachers than the con- sciousness of having extended the benefits of the school to the largest possible number of boys and girls that never enter college; and the stress of preparing for college has been so great that the high school has not been left sufl&- ciently free to work out its peculiar mission as the higher school for the masses. This is the severest criticism which it is possible to bring against the college in its relation to the high school. The Fundamental Problem. — What is the best form of education we can give to our boys and girls during the high-school period? This question should be answered on psychological, philosophical, and practical grounds without regard either to what is now being taught in the elementary schools or to what the colleges now require for entrance. If the elementary schools are not teaching what would serve as the best preparation for the proper work of the high-school period, the elementary course of study should be reorganized. If the college entrance require- ments do not harmonize with the training that is best suited to the high-school period, then those requirements shoiild be changed. This doctrine is not so radical as it may seem, nor does it sacrifice the interests of the elementary school and the college to those of the high school. For, if we are to have a complete and unified system of public education, founded 366 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL on sound psychological and social principles, it follows that the best possible course of study for the high school is that which can be built upon the best possible course of study for the elementary school; and the best possible course of study for the college is one that can be built upon the best possible course for the high school. There is the other alternative of having two or more parts to our educational system, one of which shall lead from the elementary school, through the secondary school, to the college; and the other from the elementary school, or possibly from the high school, to some form of technical training; but for reasons to be considered later, a unified system which contains within itself the opportunity for choice throughout the course, seems preferable. REORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM The Basis. — Historically the American schools have developed from above downward and from below upward, meeting in the middle. It is difficult to see how the evo- lution of American education could have been different from what it actually has been ; but the time has certainly come when we should begin at the bottom and rebuild our public educational system to the top. The guiding factors in this important work should be a sound psychology and a sound philosophy considered from both the individual and the social point of view. Philosophical and social PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 367 ideals will help us to define the aim of education; psy- chology will teach the steps by which that aim can best be attained; both will assist in determining the best educa- tional content, that is, the curriculum. The Plan. — Mere generalizing, however, will not suffice. How shall this reorganization be accomplished? First, on psychological grounds, a choice of subjects and meth- ods of teaching better suited to the interest and ability of pupils at the different stages of the course, should be made. Second, on sociological grounds, a choice of sub- jects better suited to the economic and social needs of pupils when they leave school should be made. It seems that a feasible plan for the attainment of both these ends may be foimd in the scheme for the reorganization of the entire course of study in the elementary schools and the high school, giving to each a period of six years. It may not be the only way in which this end can be accom- plished, but it appears to be the best way yet suggested. Confidence in this theory is strengthened by the fact that in Germany, the nation which is universally acknowledged to be the leader in the study of educational theory and practice, there is a growing opinion that their system should be so modified as to realize practically this ideal. Under the prevailing system the pupil must leave the Volkschule, corresponding to the American elementary school, at the age of nine years, if he would enter the nine- year Gymnasium course and ,go from there to the univer- 368 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL sity. If he continues in the Volkschule beyond the age of nine, his further educational career is practically limited to the Realschule or to trade schools of different forms. The critics of this system would have it so reorganized that, for the first six years, the Volkschule should be the school of all classes alike and entrance from it to the Gymnasium and Realgymnasium would be possible. If this position receives support in Germany, it seems well worth the careful consideration of Americans at a time when there is acknowledged need of the reorganization of our own system. The Difficulties. — -The actual realization of this plan is fraught with its own peculiar difficulties. It is not sufficient to divide the twelve-year school period into two periods of six years each, calling one that of the elementary school and the other that of the high school. The funda- mental principle underlying the whole plan is that the work throughout shall be so arranged and executed as to give to each pupil the best practicable preparation for life, — the best possible preparation for him considering his ability, his interests, his social and economic conditions, and his duties to the state. The multiplicity of interests involved will naturally require a great broadening of the curriculum, for the studies suitable for one person or group would be manifestly unsuited to another. To pro- vide such an opportunity for every public school is an enormous undertaking. In many cases it would prove PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 369 impossible, but the ideal could be approximated every- where. VOCATIONAL TRAINING The Educational Problem. — This line of thought leads to the question of vocational training, and also to that of college entrance requirements. Choice of the best work for any pupil at any time necessarily involves considera- tion of his future as well as his present needs. The pupil whom inclination or stern necessity drives out of the school to earn a living at the age of fourteen, not to speak of the multitude who go earlier, will be a happier person and a better citizen if, along with reading, writing, and arith- metic, he has learned something of the practical arts in- volved in decent living and also the elements of a voca- tion ; and since such a child usually comes from a home in which these arts are practiced on a low plane and voca- tional training is unknown, it is far more important that he should study them than that he should study algebra or a foreign language. On the other hand, the pupil who comes from the home in which the arts of good living are already well developed and who looks forward con- fidently to the high-school and college course, can better spend his time upon the study of algebra and the foreign language, for they will be more useful to him in his future career. If we are to regard the interests of all pupils, we must provide for both these classes ; and if we actually 37© THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL make better provision for one than for the other, it should be because, in a land where the majority rules, the greater numbers of one class make it manifestly unfair to neglect its interests for the sake of the welfare of the small minor- ity. In cases where circumstances make it impossible to care adequately for both classes, choice of the wise course to pursue may become a very serious problem; for, while it is true that the grossly ignorant and socially inefficient are the greatest menace to the welfare of the republic, it is also true that one highly educated man may be worth much more to the state than many who are not so well trained. Social welfare seems to suggest that we should at least give the capable, ambitious spirit the greatest possible encouragement. The Solution. — i. On purely pedagogical groimds American educators have for many years supported man- ual training in the public schools. On economic and sociological groimds they have more recently avowed their faith in the necessity of vocational training aJso. But there is yet considerable difference of opinion as to how and where this vocational training should be given. Two plans are suggested. On the one side, are those who emphasize the value of training to vocational efficiency above everything else, deeming of less importance the general training for good citizenship. They believe that the public school as it now exists is necessarily committed to the policy of general training, and that training for PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 37I vocational efficiency cannot be satisfactorily accomplished in it. Consequently they desire the establishment of public schools which shall be purely vocational in their character, in which the one purpose shall be to render the pupil industrially efficient in his chosen line of effort, whether it be commercial work, sewing, cooking, or practical mechanics. In such a school there is no train- ing that would enable the pupil to continue in the ordi- nary public-school course at a point in advance of that at which he left it. However elementary it may be, the vocational school is for him a technical school or, more properly, a trade school. It takes the place of the ap- prenticeship formerly so common in American industrial life. It becomes the school of a class both industrially and socially. 2. On the other hand, there are those who, recogniz- ing no less the necessity of vocational training, are much concerned to preserve the democracy of the American school and to guarantee to every pupil as long as possible the opportunity of turning from the shorter course upon which he has entered, to the longer course that will render him more efficient both individually and socially. They believe that the desired end can best be accomplished by introducing vocational training into the public school as it now exists, without creating a system of purely voca- tional schools which would eventually stand more or less apart from the general system. The advantages claimed 372 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL for this plan are: i. It would be less expensive, since it would permit the use of the existing school plant. 2. It would keep each pupil in close touch with the general culture course and enable him more easily to return to it if he found he had made a mistake in leaving it. 3. It would afford to all pupils an opportxmity to get a certain amount of industrial training, which would be valuable to them even if they continued in the longer general course. 4. It would aflford an opportxmity for those who were taking vocational work especially to get also a modicum of general culture work, which would render them better persons and better citizens. 5. Since brain work and hand work would be carried on together and with equal honor, it would render the public school a greater democratizing and uplifting influence than it has ever been or can be under existing conditions. Of these two views the second seems the more satis- factory, not only for the reasons given, but for others which may be adduced. Here again we get a hint from Germany where sepairate trade schools have long existed. Even there, where paternalism and imperialism prevail, and the welfare of the individual is freely sacrificed to that of the state, we find a strong plea for the establish- ment of the extended Volkschule, on the groimd that it would tend toward the cultivation of a greater social equality and democratic spirit. There is a manifest de- sire to mold all the schools into a single system such PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 373 that transition from one to another may be as easy as possible. A Caution. — In American educational thought this is the age of socialism as against individualism. It is doubt- less well that we have broken loose from the educational ideal of the individual with harmoniously developed powers, and have adopted the more concrete and practi- cal ideal of the individual who is, above ever3^hing else, socially efficient. In the new movement, however, there is the possibility of going too far. Education must be founded upon a correct philosophy of life considered indi- vidually as well as socially. In our attempts to render men socially efficient, their essential dignity as individual human beings should not be forgotten. The summum honum must always remain a distinctly personal matter. The development of vocational training in any degree or manner that would cause us to lose the man in the artisan would be distinctly un-American, and it would ultimately lower the standard of American manhood and citizenship. The problem of vocational training presses hard, and it should be solved as soon as possible, but it is only one among many problems and the immediate solution of this one would not cure all our social ills. It seems that the outward swing of the pendulum may now lead us to lay imdue emphasis upon this phase of our educational work just as in the past we have unduly emphasized the im- portance of preparation for entrance to college. 374 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL MANUAL TRAINING Closely allied to vocational training, but different from it, is manual training, which has been successfully intro- duced into many schools. Many educators who are un- willing to support distinctly vocational training in the pubhc schools are yet strong supporters of manual train- ing because it has great educational value and because it often serves to rouse the interest and intellectual activity of boys to whom the ordinary book subjects make little appeal. The need of manual training has greatly increased with the change in social, economic, and industrial con- ditions, especially in towns and cities. The training which most boys and girls received on the old-fashioned farm was more valuable than that which the modem school can give, but the great majority of high-school pupils come now from homes in which there is little or no manual labor for them to do. If they do not get it in the school, they never get it, and they go out into life with no appre- ciable training in manual dexterity. The value of manual training is so generally admitted that no plea for it is necessary; but it is worth while to point out that, on purely educational groimds, it should find a place in all high schools where money is available for carrying it on successfully. Satisfactory work can be accomplished in a modest way without great expense. It is least needed in schools where the pupils come largely from rural PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 375 homes of the better class, but even there it is worth all it costs. PHYSICAL EDUCATION Careful study of the relations existing between mind and body have served to emphasize the importance of physica^^cation, and has led to a demand that it should be 'given a place along with intellectual training. Many boys and girls, the latter especially, have gone out from the school with academic honors purchased at too great cost of physical vitality, and we have come to think that good health without book learning is worth more than invalidism with it. Yoimg people cannot be depended upon to take proper care of their bodies without direc- tion. The most ambitious are the ones who are Hkely to need regular exercise most. The athlete can usually be relied upon to get enough exercise, but he needs wise direction that he may get the right kind and get it imder proper conditions. From every point of view it is clearly evident that physical welfare is of such funda- mental importance as to deserve systematic consideration in the schools. Two facts have served to emphasize this need in the high school. The first is that boys and girls of high-school age stand in particular need of proper physical exercise, — enough, not too much, and of the right kind. It may be neglected earlier or later with less serious consequences. 376 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL The second is that, under modem conditions of life, pupik get little healthful exercise in labor at home. In many communities they have no manual work to do. We do not have the year or two of military service which makes over the young German for life, nor do we have that inborn love of leisurely sport which is characteristic of the Eng- lish. Our tendency to take no interest in physical educa- tion or else to go to extremes in athletics needs correction through systematic instruction and practice in physical training. To our athletics we must add gymnastics and the lighter sports as a part of school work that is as im- portant as any other. Many of the larger schools have already supplied the want, but most of the smaller ones have scarcely recognized that such a need exists. Ade- quate physical education should become universal m high schools of all kinds and sizes. MORAL EDUCATION There is a very general feeling among educators and sociologists that the high school is destined to have in the future a much larger moral and social influence than it now has. So closely connected is the morjil and social life of the school that it is only by a process of abstraction that they can be considered apart. The Fundamental Element in Morality, personal or social, is a recognition of a sense of duty. Until this PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 377 comes the individual is neither moral nor immoral, but only non-moral. It is not necessary to argue here as to the nature and origin of conscience, but only to assert that in normal minds it should appear during adolescent years or earlier. It is an extremely sensitive plant and should be tenderly cared for lest it be injured in the conflict of adolescent impulses. Conscience, the sense of duty, the "categorical imperative," often stands opposed to pleasure, the impulse of the moment. It is not always easy to follow its command, and such is the frailty of hu- man nature that young people cannot be expected always to do it; but to strive to do it is a worthy ideal and one that must be implanted in the minds of yoxmg and old if they are to express in their lives the essential dignity of man- hood. The great German philosopher, Kant, wrote : " Two things fill the mind with ever new and increasing admira- tion and awe, the oftener and the more steadily we reflect on them; the starry heavens above and the moral law within." Bishop Butler said of conscience: "Had it might, as it has right; had it power as it has manifest authority, it would absolutely govern the world." The adolescent does not like to be preached to, but he has great respect for the man or woman who tactfully leads him to under- stand that his own highest nature, not less than the needs of society, requires him to do his duty; and there is no higher personal or social service that the school can render. 378 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL The Second Great Element in Morality is the recogni- tion of the fact that the individual's conscious life is made up of what may be called a hierarchy of impulses, some higher, others lower, and that it is his prerogative as a free, moral agent to follow which of these impulses he may choose. Conscience, itself the highest of them all, pre- sents its case in the still, small voice, but it uses no might to enforce its claim. The power of choice is a personal privilege, and in the exercise of that choice, the person is primarily responsible to himself. Even when he chooses to follow the lead of the higher impulses, there remains a further question, that of deciding which is higher and which lower. This decision requires judgment as to the effect of some particular course of action. In this judg- ment lies the essence of morality on the intellectual side. As adolescent life leads the youth into a constantly widen- ing circle of experiences, he should be helped to see that there are in him possibilities of both good and ill, and that the outcome of his life as a human being and a member of society will depend upon the soundness of his judgment in deciding what is best, and the steadiness of his will in following it. This weighing of values should be no mere abstraction, but it should lead to the percep- tion and performance of positive, concrete duties and to the condemnation and avoidance of evil conduct. Clear thinking upon the issues involved is a powerful ally of personal morality. PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 379 "Our little lives are held in equipoise By opposite attractions and desires ; The struggle of the instinct that enjoys And of the higher instinct that aspires." The Third Intellectual Element in Morality is found in the consciousness that " no man liveth unto himself," but his life and welfare are inseparably bound up with those of the society of which he is a member. He is a free, moral being, but the moral law does not permit him to do as he pleases unless his conduct accords with the wel- fare of his neighbor, who is equally free. Although the web of human relationships is too intricate for him to unravel it all, in the social life of the school and the com- munity he can be led to see the interdependence of in- dividuals and the validity of certain forms of social morality. He not only may not directly violate the rights of others, but he is not permitted to do less than the best for him- self, because society in some form — the home, the school, the Church, the State — has given him the op- portunities which he enjoys, and is entitled to the largest return which it is possible for him to make. Moral Instruction i'*. Moral Training. — Moral instruc- tion, as indicated in the preceding paragraphs, is the least difficult part of moral training. The real task is met when we try to induce young people to follow the lead of conscience, good judgment, and social morality in their daily conduct, to the end that the moral life shall 380 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL become habitual before they leave the confines of the school for the fiercer struggles of society and citizenship. It is a better solution of this part of the problem that is being earnestly sought to-day. The main factors in its solution will be found in the personality of the teacher; in the proper presentation of the ethical significance of studies in the curriculum, especially literature, history, and civics ; and in a wise use of the opportunities afiforded by the social life of the school and the community for the exercise of the moral judgment and the practice of the moral habit. SOCLA.L EDUCATION The high school should largely increase its power as a socializing influence in the community. At the high- school age, the best way to train for social efficiency is to train in social efficiency. There are two main attain- ments which render an individual socially efficient: first, knowledge and skill, which enable him to support himself and to contribute something to the welfare of society; second, an attitude of mind that makes him an agreeable and helpful member of society. Social Efficiency. — Towards the attainment of the first end the introduction of the elective system and the wide differentiation in the programme of studies is con- tributing largely, and it will contribute more largely in PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 381 the future. From its regular courses the school will send forth young people who are prepared to become wage earners and home makers rather than superficially cultured young men and women who have no training for anything in particular; and with the extension of its opportunities through evening or continuation schools to men and women of more mature age, its influence as a socializing medium productive of practical efficiency will be greatly increased. Social Attitude. — The development of a correct social attitude is important alike for the school, itself a form of social organization, and for the larger society into which the pupil will soon go. The value of the social impulse as an educative factor, as a means of school government, and as a power in mature life, has been discussed in an earlier chapter, and it is mentioned here only for the purpose of emphasizing the necessity of giving it more attention than it has yet received in the school. Dewey's well-known statement that "education is not preparation for life, it is life," finds particular application in the social field. There is great need of a constructive treatment of this problem in every school. THE SMALL HIGH SCHOOL As previously stated, 36 per cent of the high-school pupils of the United States are found in schools hav- 382 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL ing from one to three teachers, and 58 per cent are found in schools having not more than six teachers; consequently the small high schools are an exceedingly important part of the high-school aggregate. They are so numerous that they constitute a distinct class and their needs a special problem. As a matter of educational strategy their efficiency should be increased. Schools of this class are growing rapidly in numbers, and they will continue to grow. To outline, and then to realize, a policy that will raise them to the greatest possible effi- ciency, will be to render large assistance to a majority of our high-school population. Methods of Improvement. — i. There are two ways of improving these schools, one by retrenchment,. the other by expansion. The first requires limitation of the amount and kind of work attempted to that which can be well done with the facilities available. The overambitious efforts of school board and teachers must be more wisely directed. A good two-year course, well carried out, affords a better education than a three- or four-year course conducted as it usually is in these schools. The work of these two years should be so well done that pupils who have completed it can enter the third year's work in any other school in which there is a four-year course. It is abimdantly worth while for educational administrators to cultivate a healthy regard for a thorough short course rather than for a longer one poorly done. Such short PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 383 courses should become more popular than they now are, and there should be many more of them. 2. The second way of improving these schools, that involving expansion, requires as its fundamental pre- requisite the expenditure of more money. Usually there is needed a larger material equipment, but the greatest need is that of more, and especially of better, teachers. It is absolutely impossible to render these schools effi- cient until the quality of the teachers in them is assured. In such a school more evidently than in a larger one, the teacher constitutes the moving power, and if that be deficient the work cannot prosper. A thoroughly com- petent teacher would not only do better teaching, but he would more wisely limit it when necessary. His judg- ment would be worth more in the educational counsels of the community, and his personal and professional in- fluence in the school would be much more valuable. However, such a teacher cannot be secured for the small school imless he be paid a considerably larger salary than he now receives. When circumstances require an ad- ditional teacher as well as a better one, the need of in- creased support is even more evident. Methods of Support. — i. There are two methods of securing this additional money : one by direct local taxa- tion, the other through state aid. Not infrequently the value of a good high school so appeals to the people of a community that they are willing to tax themselves to 384 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL the utmost to maintain it. Sometimes they will even tax themselves to the limit allowed by law, and then, by private individual contributions, will make up the sum needed to keep the school on the high plane which their ambition demands. It is scarcely surprising that from such communities have gone out so many men and women of superior attainments, an honor alike to themselves and to those who had faith in them. If the facts concerning the essentials of a good school were tactfully presented to the people, many more communities would adopt this liberal policy in the maintenance of a first-class small high school. They would rightly regard it as a good invest- ment for themselves, for their children, and for the state. 2. The second method of raising the additional money required for the proper maintenance of these schools involves state support. In a few states, notably Min- nesota and Wisconsin, the state guarantees a certain amount of money annually to each district that main- tains a high school of recognized standard. The pos- sibility of securing this outside assistance stimulates many communities to tax themselves heavily for the sup- port of such a school. This state assistance often makes it possible for the community to establish and support a small school as good in quality as can be found in the state, whereas without it the school would be of the lowest grade. Such a law is very popular in the states in which it has been given fair trial. Whatever the difiSculties PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 385 involved and the means used to overcome them, the stake is so great that it seems worth while to urge upon the attention of teachers and school administrators the ex- treme desirability of raising the efficiency of the small high school to the highest possible point. QUESTIONS INVOLVING SEX Teachers. — Several problems arise out of considerations of sex. It is of fundamental importance that there should be a more even distribution of men and women teachers in the high school. The leaders of American education have been urging this point for years, but during this time the percentage of male teachers has steadily de- creased. Members of the Mosely Education Commission and similar experts from Germany, although they found much to commend in our work and were particularly appreciative of the efficiency of our women teachers, indicated the great scarcity of men in the schools as one of the weakest points in the system. The question in- volved is not one of woman's rights or ability. Both of these may be recognized in extreme form without chang- ing the necessity of the situation. It may even be con- ceded in a general way, for the sake of argument, that women teachers are more competent than men teachers. The hypothetical fact that a particular mother, or mothers generally, are better parents than fathers generally. 386 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL does not lead to the conclusion that men are not needed in the establishment and maintenance of the home. Men are equally essential in home and school if satisfactory re- sults are to be obtained. Masculine and feminine powers are mutually supplementary and necessary. In the mind of the average person this question is likely to be con- fused with some other that is merely incidental to it; for example, equal rights, the efficiency of certain women teachers and the inefficiency of certain men teachers, the greater number of women available, or the financial side of the matter. When it is reduced to its lowest terms, it is seen to be a question of educational efficiency pure and -simple. Men may cost more than women, and however unjust it may seem, it may continue to be necessary, on account of financial considerations and the law of supply and demand, to pay a man 50 per cent more salary than is paid a woman for similar work; but if a sound educa- tional philosophy is to prevail, there must be a greater number of capable men teachers in our high schools. The Argument against Coeducation. — Coeducation is all but universal in the public high schools of the United States. In the report of the United States Commissioner of Education for 1906, only forty boys' schools and twenty- nine girls' schools are given out of a total of 8031 for the whole country. The exceptions are found mainly in the large cities like Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Chicago, where separate schools cost no more than PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 387 mixed schools, and where the promiscuous mingling of boys and girls in the school and on the streets seems to be fraught with difficulties peculiar to the conditions. Belief in the wisdom of coeducation is not so nearly universal as its prevalence. There are many prominent educators, among them President G. Stanley Hall, who believe that a sound educational philosophy requires the separation of the sexes during the high-school period, even if they attend the same schools before and after. They hold that the naturally strong sex impulse of this period is unduly stimulated by such close association with the opposite sex as attendance upon the same school requires, and that this excessive stimulation produces unfortunate results physically, morally, and socially; that the pursuance of the same courses of study by boys and girls, which is favored by coeducation, is not desirable; that girls in- evitably suffer in health because they are periodically unable to endure the strain which coeducation requires; that, while the girls suffer physically because they are driven too hard, the boys suffer intellectually and morally because they are not driven hard enough; that boys and girls naturally require different treatment during these years, girls needing special care and often restraint lest they overtax themselves physically or mentally, while boys need constant stimulation and thrive best under severe treat- ment ; and finally, that womanliness and manliness are best cultivated by a separation of the sexes during this period. 388 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL The Argument for Coeducation. — On the other hand, those who favor coeducation in the high school maintain that in most cases it is necessary for financial reasons, as it would be impracticable to provide separate schools; that the normal stimulation of the sex impulse under the natural social conditions prevailing in a well-managed coeducational high school, is fraught with more good than harm to both sexes; that the pursuance of the same courses of study by boys and girls is not necessarily undesirable, and in cases where it is so, different courses can be offered in a coeducational school as well as in a separate school ; that the problem of girls' health can be met through proper care on the part of parents and teachers ; that the mutual stimulus afforded by the presence of the other sex is helpful at every point ; and that a higher type of manhood and womanhood is cultivated through this mutual influence. The merits of the question cannot be discussed at length here. In general, the second position seems the more satisfactory; at all events coeducation is the fact with which we have to deal, no matter what our theory may be. It appears that the greatest objection to co- education lies in the claim that the girls suffer physically and the boys intellectually and morally in consequence of it. It is not clear just how these difficulties can be overcome, but the possibilities of the system have not been exhausted. More intelligent attention to these points PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 389 on the part of parents and teachers would doubtless result in considerable change for the better. More Information Needed. — Accepting coeducation as the fact with which we have to deal, the first step in the solution of questions in which the sex of pupils is con- cerned will be taken when teachers and parents are properly informed concerning sex , matters and are suffi- ciently alive to their importance. There is no place here for false sentiment or morbid curiosity. It is simply a question of physical and mental hygiene of so great importance that it cannot wisely be longer neglected. The mere understanding of the needs peculiar to sex will often enable the teacher to meet them without em- barrassment to the pupil, sometimes without rousing in the pupil's mind a clear consciousness of their nature. Under conditions prevailing in most schools, instruction of pupils in sex matters should not be expected of the teacher; but he should have such knowledge as will enable him to give needed information under proper circumstances, and as will afford him safe guidance in dealing with any par- ticular case. ELIMINATION OF PUPILS From an examination of statistics from twenty-three large American cities. Professor Thorndike has compiled the following table: '■ — ' Bulletin No. 4, 1907, Bureau of Education, "The Elimination of Pupils from School," p. 17. 39° THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Per Cent of those m a Given Grade not continuing to Next Grade In fourth grade not continuing to fifth . . . . lo per cent In fifth grade not continuing to sixth . . . . i6 per cent In sixth grade not continuing to seventh . . . 20.6 per cent In seventh grade not continuing to last grammar grade 26 percent In last grammar grade not continuing to high school 32.5 per cent Infirst high-school year not continuing to second 37 percent In second high -school year not continuing to third 29.4 per cent In third high-school year not continuing to fourth 33.3 per cent According to the report of the United States Commis- sioner of Education for 1906, of the 722,692 pupils in the public high schools of the country, approximately 43 per cent are in the first year, 26 per cent in the second year, 18 per cent in the third year, and 13 per cent in the fourth year. These figures indicate a tremendous loss in attend- ance, especially at the close of the first year. The state provides school facilities for all yoimg people of high- school age, and it is of great social importance that the largest possible number should be induced to attend throughout the course. The attainment of this end is an urgent necessity, and the question as to how it can best be secured constitutes a pressing problem. On this point Professor Thorndike says : * — 'Bulletin No. 4, 1907, Bureau of Education, "The Elimination of Pupils from School," p. 21. PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 39I "The third matter of importance is that the high school, which attracts so many, holds so few. Something in the mental or social and economic status of the pupil who enters the high school, or in the nature of the particular kinds of education given in the high schools is at fault. The fact that the elimination is so great in the first year of the high school gives evidence that a large share of the fault lies with the kind of education given in the high schools. One can hardly sup- pose that very many of the parents who send children to the high school, do so with no expectation of keeping them there over a year, or that a large number of the children who complete the elementary course and make a trial of the high school are so stupid or uninterested in being educated that they had better be got rid of in the first year." Causes and Remedies. — The causes that contribute to this elimination of pupils should be more carefully stud- ied than they have yet been. With our present informa- tion they seem to be mainly the economic necessity of going to work; the natural desire of the adolescent to engage in some independent activity ; ill health, especially on the part of girls ; the belief of parents and pupils that the full high-school course is of little or no economic value; lack of interest in the subjects required in the course; lack of ability to do the work; and dissatisfac- tion with teachers who do not imderstand them. The remedy will be found, in part at least, in keeping both parents and pupils informed concerning the work of the next year as well as of the current year, and concerning 392 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL the economic and social value of the course as a whole; in providing as great variety of subjects as possible so that the pupil may have an opportunity to choose those in which he is most interested, and to which he is best adapted ; in providing some courses that are of direct vocational value; in providing three, two, or even one, year courses for those whose economic condition prevents them from attending longer, but who would be glad to avail them- selves of the advantages offered in a short, practical course; in studying more carefully the peculiar needs of the adolescent; and in securing teachers who are both sympathetic companions and good instructors. The school cannot undertake to change the economic condi- tion of its pupils and there must continue to be a con- siderable number who, for financial or other reasons, will leave school before finishing the course; but a careful study of the problem in every commimity should mjike it possible to reduce very materially the present deplorable elimination of pupils. FINANCE The future development of the high school inevitably involves the financial question. The nation has recognized the necessity of education as a means of self-defense and future development; an ideal of universal education for American citizenship has been accepted; and for the PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 393 attainment of this ideal a great school plant has been pro- vided. The ideal and the effort are both most commend- able, but when we inquire carefully into the effectiveness with which they are being carried out, we find ourselves in the position of the man who has invested largely in some huge enterprise only to find, after a time, that the work which he has undertaken is vastly greater than he had thought, and that he must invest still more largely in order to make the business yield the best returns. The dividends on the educational investment of the American people are doubtless large enough to be considered profit- able, but the percentage of profit can be greatly increased if enough additional money can be put into the business. We are far too near the irreducible minimum which is absolutely necessary to carry on the business at all. The man who looks only at the gross amount spent may per- haps be excused for saying that we cannot afford to spend more; but he who looks also to the returns, both actual and possible, will surely say that, from the business point of view, we cannot afford not to spend vastly more. In some places better material equipment is needed, though it is easily possible to overemphasize the relative impor- tance of this factor ; but practically everywhere more and better qualified teachers will bring rich returns on their additional cost. As President Eliot says: — "School expenditure ought to be increased, even though the total expenditures of the community should not rise ; because 394 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL it yields a greater return than any other expenditure. It is, indeed, far the most profitable of all the forms of public ex- penditure ; and this is true whether one looks first to material prosperity, or to mental and moral well-being ; whether one regards chiefly average results, op the results obtained through highly gifted individuals." ' TEACHERS Popular Support of Schools. — The people of the United States are unequivocally committed to the policy of a com- plete system of schools extending from the kindergarten through the university. They have great faith in these schools and are proud of them. In the Fourth-of-JuIy oration, the public schools are freely lauded as the main bulwark of the nation's liberty. In their material equip- ment a vast amount of money has been spent, and the people are willing to spend yet more if they are convinced that it is needed and that it will be wisely used. With the almost universal development of the high school as the connecting link between the elementary schools and the college or university, the system is practically com- plete. Minor details are yet to be elaborated, but the main features of the system have been fixed. There are no iron-clad rules in its administration. Each community is left free to work out its own particular problem; and in the schools themselves there is abundant opportunity for ' "More Money for Our Public Schools," p. i68. PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 395 the exercise of that individual initiative on the part of the teacher for which Americans are famous the world over. Especially is this true in those states in which the cer- tificate system prevails and there are neither Regents' examinations nor college entrance examinations to dis- turb the even tenor of the daily work. Teachers Poorly Trained. — Only a small per cent of the high-school teachers of the country, however, have had the academic and professional training which every careful student pi the subject believes all should have before entering upon the duties of high-school teaching. Fortunately, there has been recently aroused a great interest in the matter of adequate preparation of these teachers, and many institutions are developing facilities for doing this very important work; but all the students who are making such preparation in these mstitutions could not supply the annual need of new teachers. Un- fortunately there does not yet exist among members of school boards and school administrators a due apprecia- tion of the necessity of this special training, and positions are given in great numbers to those whose equipment is inadequate to meet the needs of the work. If the stand- ard of equipment which was discussed in an earlier chapter, and which is accepted as a minimum by thought- ful students of the subject, were applied to all the teachers who began work in the high schools this year, it is safe to say that a very large majority of them could not meas- 396 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL ure up to its requirements. It is an unfortunate but undeniable fact that the high-school teachers of the country, taken as a class, are far below the standard of equipment that is recognized by their own leaders as nec- essary for successful work. Nor are the teachers them- selves particularly to blame. Merited criticism should fall not on them, but on the system which makes such a situation possible. When everything favorable has been said, the difference is very great between the productiveness of our high schools as they are and as they might be if the teachers were men and women who, to adequate training in the beginning, had added years of rich experience. Even under existing conditions our high schools are a source of great opportunity to individuals and of power to the nation. The teachers are capable, earnest, ambitious, and adaptable even if they are not well trained. Through years of experience, acquired in most cases at the expense of the school, many of them have become excellent teachers. But neither experience alone nor preparatory training alone will suffice. Each should supplement the other, and to them both should be added maturity, strong char- acter, and the teaching spirit. If in every school in the land but one third of the teachers were of this type, what a source of power the public schools would be ! The Strategic Point. — In all schools both large and small, and particularly in a system so loosely administered PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 397 as is that of the United States, the all-important factors are the individual teacher and the trained leader. With- out good teaching and wise leadership no system or equip- ment can be efficient ; it breaks down at the crucial point. With wise leadership and good teachers, deficiencies in equipment and system are less detrimental and they are more sure to be remedied. Whether for the maintenance of a standard already developed, or for the elevation of low standards, the efficient teacher is an absolute neces- sity. With millions of dollars at his command for the establishment of a great xmiversity. President Gilman chose to house the institution in buildings that were only remarkable for their unpretentiousness. He invested the bulk of his money in men, the most profound scholars and the best teachers to be found on two continents. The expert at the head placed an expert in every depart- ment. How wise his judgment, the career of Johns Hop- kins University, the mother of American universities, bears testimony. As a mere matter of strategy in the manage- ment of the educational forces of the United States the same policy should be followed in the development of the American high school. With wise leaders at the head and trained teachers in the ranks, not only will the work of every day be better done, but the solution of new prob- lems will proceed with constantly accelerated rapidity. The greatness of the need fully justifies the very unusual activity of universities, colleges, normal schools, and 398 , THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL schools of education of all kinds in the training of teach- ers for the high schools. On the whole the outlook is encouraging. There is no lack of interest in education among the American people. Strong men and noble women are available who are will- ing to train themselves thoroughly for the work and then give to it the best that their lives afford. They appreciate the high calling of the teacher because of the part that education plays in the development of the individual, in the welfare of society, and in the evolution of the human race; and to be a good teacher would satisfy their most exalted ambition. The one discouraging fact is that, for the opportunity of rendering such service, the price they must pay is comparative poverty. REFERENCES Abercrombie, D. W. The problem of secondary education as regards general culture. Ed. Rev. 17 : 417. Armstrong, J. E. Limited segregation. Sch. Rev. 14 : 726. Balliet, T. M. a few lessons to be learned from European schools. Fed. Sem. 8 : 59. Manual, trade, and technical education. Proc. N.E.A. 1903 : 65. The time limit of secondary education. Ed. Rev. 25 : 433. Balliot, E. p. The French educational system. Ed. 26 : 385. Beman, W. W. The French lycde. Acad. 6 : 138. Bennett, C. A. Current problems in secondary education from the standpoint of manual training. Sch. Rev. 10 : 40. PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 399 Blount, R. E. Pupils lost from the ninth grade. Ed. Bi- Mo. 2 : 366. Bolton, F. E. The Secondary School System of Germany. Appleton, 1900. Special State aid to high schools. Ed. Rev. 31 : 141. Book, W. F. Why pupils drop out of the high school. Fed. Sem. II : 204. Bkeeeton, C. S. H. Vocational education in London. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 58. Bkiggs, L. R. School, College, and Character. Houghton, 1902. Brown, E. E. Present problems in the theory of education. Ed. Rev. 29 : 38. Brown, J. S. In what respects should the high schools be modified to meet twentieth-century demands? Sch. Rev. 12 : 563. Butler, N. Current problems in secondary education from the standpoint of the college. Sch. Rev. 10 : 44. Butler, N. M. Education in the United States. J. B. Lyon Co., Albany, 1900. Scholarship and service. Ed. Rev. 24 : i. Training foir vocation and avocation. Ed. Rev. 36 : 471. Carlton, F. T. Education and Industrial Evolution. Mac- millan, 1908. The relation between industrial progress and recent edu- cational advance. Pop. Sci. Mo. 72 : 543. Carpenter, F. O. Industrial and commercial training in the public schools. Ed. 26 : 191. Chase, W. J. Current problems in secondary education from the standpoint of preparation for college. Sch. Rev. 10 : 28. 400 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL CoMPAYRE, J. The reform in secondary education in France. Ed. Rev. 25 : 130. CuBBERLY, E. P. School Funds and Their Apportionment. Teachers College, New York, 1905. Dewey, J. Are the schools doing what the people want them to do? Ed. Rev. 21 : 459. Problems in secondary education. Sch. Rev. 10 : 13. Draper, A. S. The adaptation of the schools to industry and efi&ciency. Proc. N.E.A. 1908:65. From manual training to technical and trades schools. Ed. Rev. 35 : 401. DuTTON, S. T. The relation of education to vocation. Ed. Rev. 12 : 335. Dye, C. Ethics in the high school. Sch. Rev. 10 : 270. Eddy, J. E. Physical betterment for our growing girls. Ed. Rev. 36 : 190. Eliot, C. W. The improvement of secondary education. Ed. Rev. 25 : 469. More Money for the Public Schools. Doubleday, Page & Co., 1903. Secondary school and college. Ed. Rev. 13 : 465. Tendencies of secondary education. Ed. Rev. 14 : 417. Elliott, E. C. Equality of opportunity for all : How secured ? Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 159. Some Fiscal Aspects of Public Education in American Cities. Teachers College, New York, 1905. Fox, G. L. A comparison between EngHsh and American secondary schools. Special Reports, 11 : 67. Friedel, V. H. Problems of secondary education in France. Sch. Rev. 15 : 169. Froula, V. K., Editor. Proceedings of National Conference on PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FtTTURE DEVELOPMENT 40I Secondary Education and Its Problems. Northwestern University, 1903. Garber, J. P. Coeducation. Ed. 23 : 235. Gay, G. E. Why pupils leave the high school without graduat- ing. Ed. 22 : 300. Goucher, J. F. Discussion by Palmer, A. F., Collar, W. C, Sedgwick, W. T., and Eliot, C. W. Advisable differences between the education of young women and that of young men. Sch. Rev. 7 : 577. Greenwood, J. M. Report on high-school statistics. Proc. N.E.A. 1900 : 340. High-school statistical information. Proc. N.E.A. 1901 : 490. GuLicK, L. H. The Efficient Life. Doubleday, Page & Co., 1907. How can the school contribute to physical development ? Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 195. and AvRES, L. P. Medical Inspection of Schools. New York Charities Publishing Committee, 1908. Hadley, a. T. Educational methods and principles of the nineteenth century. Ed. Rev. 28 : 325. The Education of the American Citizen. Scribner, 1901. Hall, G. S. The moral and religious training of children and adolescents. Ped. Sem. i : 196. The needs and methods of educating young people in the hygiene of sex. Ped. Sem. 15 : 82. Some social aspects of education. Ped. Sem. 9 : 81. Hallece, R. p. Tendencies as to the enlargement of the sec- ondary field. Sch. Rev. 12 : 162. Why do so many pupils leave the high school during the first year? Sch. Rev. 13 : 551- 402 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Hanus, p. H. Beginnings in Industrial Education, and Other Educational Discussions. Houghton, 1908. Secondary education in a democratic community. Special Reports, 11 : 23. Technical continuation schools of Munich. Sch. Rev. 13 : 678. Harper, W. R. The high school of the future. Sch. Rev. 1 1 : i . The Trend in Higher Education. University of Chicago Press, 1905. Harrington, T. F. Medical inspection in pubKc schools as contributing to health and ef&ciency. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 200. Harris, W. T. The growth of the public high-school system in the United States. Ed. Rev. 27 : 259. School statistics and morals. Sch. Rev. i : 218. Hays, W. H. Agriculture, industries, and home economics in our public schools. ' Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 176. Henrotin, E. M. Secondary education in Europe and the United States. Ed. Rev. 30 : 231. Hill, F. A. Discussion by Balliet, T. M., Huling, R. G., and Rice, W. N. How far the public high school is a just charge upon the pubUc treasury. Sch. Rev. 6 : 746. HiRSCH, E. The moral aspect of industrial education. Ed. Rev. 35 : 449- HowERTH, I. W. Social adjustment. Ed. 27 : 556. Hubbard, C. W. Industrial education. Sch. Rev. 15 :39i. Huling, R. G. Problems which confront the high school at the opening of the twentieth century. The problem of service. Ed. 21 : 129. Hyde, W. D. The organization of American education. Ed. Rev. 4 : 219. PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 403 Jamin, G. Life in a French lycde. Ed. Rev. 5 : 266. Jenks, J. W. The social basis of education. Ed. Rev. 30 : 442. Jordan, D. S. The high school of the twentieth century, Sch. Rev. 12 : 545. Laurie, S. S. Present educational problems. Ed. Rev. 2 : 514. Locke, G. H. A significant forward movement in secondary education in the South. Sch. Rev. 13 : 263. McAndrew, W. Industrial education from a public-school man's point of view. Ed. Rev. 35 : 109. M'Cldre, D. E. The education of country children for the farm. Ed. 26 : 65. McElroy, J. F. Urgency of provision for vocational needs of children. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : i6r. Mann, C. R. Industrial and technical training in the secondary schools and its bearing on college entrance requirements. Sch. Rev. 16 : 425. Manny, F. A. A German contribution to education for voca- tion and citizenship. Sch. Rev. 16 : 154. Mark, H. T. Moral education in American schools. Special Reports, 10 : 11. Martin, G. H. A technical high school. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 176. Marvin, A. German secondary education. Ed. 26 : 286. Maxwell, W. H. Present problems of the school. Ed. Rev. 28 : 378. Monroe, W. S. German and American schools. Sch. Rev. 14 :2i7. Morrison, G. B. The high-school situation. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 579. Morrison, H. C. Vocational training and industrial education, Ed. Rev. 36 : 242. 404 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Morse, C. H. The most urgent educational need of to-day is provision for industrial training In public schools. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 780. MowRY, D. The use of school buildings for other than school purposes. Ed. 29 : 92. Murray, M. W. The relation of manual training to industrial education. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 786. Nightingale, A. F. The ratio of men to women in the high schools of the United States. Sch. Rev. 4 : 86. Orr, W. Physical training in high schools. Ed. Rev. 32 : 42. Parsons, J. R. Jr. High-school attendance. Ed. Rev. 27 : 293- Paulsen, F. Old and new fashioned notions about education. Ed. Rev. 35 : 476. Peabody, E. Continuous moral influence of the school through college and through life. Sch. Rev. 7 : 620. Potter, H. C. Principles of Religious Education. Longmans, 1901. Rein, W. Tendencies in the educational systems of Germany. Special Reports, 3 : 438. Remsen, I. Some unsolved educational problems. Presi- dent's address. Proceedings of the Association of Colleges and Preparatory Schools of the Middle States and Mary- land, 1903. RocKwooD, G. H. Current problems in secondary education from the standpoint of administration. Sch. Rev. 10 : 32, 626. Rollins, F. Industrial education and culture. E^i. Rev. 34 : 494. RcGH, C. E., and others. Moral Training in the Public Schools. Ginn, 1907. PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 405 Russell, J. E. Democracy and education ; equal opportunity for all. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 155. German Higher Schools. Longmans, 1899. Sachs, J. Coeducation in the United States. Ed. Rev. 33 : 298. Intellectual reactions of coeducation. Ed. Rev. 35 : 466. Sadler, M. E. A contrast between German and American ideals in education. Special Reports, 11 : 433. Impressions of American education. Ed. Rev. 25 : 217. Moral Instruction and Training in Schools. Vols. I and II. Longmans, 1908. The unrest in secondary education in Germany and else- where. Special Reports, 9:1. Salmon, D. Impressions of American education. Ed. Rev. 18 : 437. Sargent, D. A. Compulsory physical training. Sch. Rev. 16 : 42. Saunders, P. H. The outlook of the public high school in the South. Sch. Rev. 11 : 73. ScHNEDER, D. B. German and English secondary schools compared. Ed. Rev. 35 : 455. ScoTT, C. A. Social Education. Ginn, 1908. Seaver, E. p. The public high school of the twentieth century. Ed. Rev. 19 : 153. Sharpless, I., Sachs, J., Wight, J. G., and Goodrich, A. L. Opinions as to the most important problems in preparatory and collegiate education. Sch. Rev. 6 : 145. Sheldon, W. D. The ethical function of the school. Ed. 25 : 321. Some practical suggestions toward a programme of ethical teaching in our schools. Ed. 27 : 193, 262, 353. Bib- liography. 406 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL Smiley, C. N. Salaries and efficiency. Sch. Rev. 15 : 655. Smith, A. T. Coeducation in the schools and colleges of the United States. Rep. Com. Ed. 1903, i : 1047. Snedden, D. S. Period at which secondary education should begin. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 752. and Allen, W. H. School Reports and School Efficiency. Macmillan, 1908. Snyder, E. R. Rural High Schools, Their Spread and Sup- port. Teachers College, New York, 1909. Strayer, G. D. City School Expenditures. Teachers Col- lege, New York, 1905. Street, J. R. A study in moral education. Fed. Sem. 5 : 5. Tetlow, J. School instruction in morals and manners. Acad. S : 293- Thurber, C. H. Industrial education. Sch. Rev. 15 : 375. Tyler, J. M. Adapting our system of education to present needs. Sch. Rev. 10 : 742. Ware, F. Educational Foundations of Trade and Industry. Appleton, 1901. Wood, T. D. The scope of school hygiene in modem education. Teachers College Record, Vol. 6, No. 2, p. i. Woods, A., Editor. Coeducation. A series of essays by vari- ous authors. Longmans, 1903. Woodward, C. M. Manual, industrial, and technical education in the United States. Rep. Com. Ed. 1903, i : 1019. Woolman, M. S. The Manhattan Trade School for Girls. Ed. Rev. 30 : 178. Young, E. F. The school and the practice of ethics. Proc. N.E.A. 1908 : 102. Young, W. H. Defects in our public school system. Ed. 26 : 526. PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT 407 The disappearance of boys from school. Ed. ii : 638. Coeducation and secular education in the United States. Ed. Rev. 36 : 295. High-school expenditures. Proc. N.E.A. 1905:21. Reports of the Mosely Educational Commission to the United States of America, October to December, 1903. Co- operative Printing Society, Limited, London, 1904. Salaries of principals of our high schools. Sch. Rev. 13 : 830. Salaries of teachers of our high schools. Sch. Rev. 13 : 265. APPENDICES A. Report of the Cleveland committee on the six-year high-school course as a part of the complete curriculum and with a trien- nium as the unit of distribution. B. Programmes of studies given in the Report of the Committee of Ten. C. Programmes of studies of representative high schools in different states. D. Programme of studies of a Prussian Realgymnasium. E. Reports from typical small high schools, showing daily pro- gramme, programme of studies, number of teachers, number of pupils, equipment, and, in general, the conditions under which these schools are working. 409 APPENDIX A A SIX-YEAR HIGH-SCHOOL COURSE Report of the committee on an extended High-school Curriculum, made at the Conference of Collegiate and Secondary Instructors, at Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, November 29, 1902. The investigations of the committee are condensed and exhibited in tabular form, as best expressing the professional judgment and the recommendation of nearly tviro hundred teachers, principals, and school superintendents, who have made detailed replies to the in- quiries of the committee. For the Committee, George D. Pettee, Chairman, Principal University School, Cleveland. 411 412 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL J o o X o X oi w a. 0. 13 00 fi Latin 5 or Modem Language s 5 19. Solid Geom- etry and Trigonom- etry 5 English Literature a History a Current Events x 5 Physics 5 or Cosmography and Applied Philosophy 3 1 'i CD Latin 5 or Modern Language 5 5 Algebra 4 Mechanical and Geometric Drawing i 5 English Literature a History a Economics x 5 6£" 2 Q CO Latin 5 or 18. Modern Language 5 5 Algebra a Demonstrative Geometry 3 S English Literature a History 2 Civil Gov't X "5 Zoology or Physiology 2 Wood and Metal Working 3 5 n s 5 a o o X u X o X oi u s 16. Latin 5 or French, German, or Spanish 5 S 17, Arithmetic 3 Geometry a 5 English Literature 2 History a Geography i 5 Botany or Physiology 2 Wood and Metal Working 2 Drawing i S tn 3 5 c English Grammar a French or German 3 or French, German, or Latin 5 5 Algebra a Geometry 2 Arithmetic z 5 English Literature a History 2 Geography i S Geology 2 Wood and Woodworking 2 Drawing i 5 in s c 'i eo X. English Grammar a 2. French or German 3 Periods per week 5 3. Algebra a 4. Geometry 2 5. Arithmetic x 5 6. English Literature 3 7. History 2 8. Geography i S 9, Physiography a 10. Clay and Wood 2 11. Drawing i 5 X3. Phys. Culture 2 13, Voice Culture i X4. Declamations and Essays 2 15. Instrumental music. c e LANGUAGE The vehicle of thought and expres- sion. MATHEMATICS The processes of thought and expres- sion. HISTORY The world : Its books, men, and in- stitutions. SCIENCE The world : Its form, substances, and uses. CULTURE Physical, rhetorical, musical, etc. •a .2 •z 1 APPENDIX A 413 NOTES No attempt is made in this report to give a prospectus adapted to a particular school, locality, or type of pupil. Radical changes within the several groups are wholly consistent with the proposed outline as a whole. Adaptations to the needs of girls' high schools may be made in several groups of studies. The condensation in the present primary and grammar grades is approved by many teachers who have considered the possibility and the need of this reduction. The various topics of Arithmetic which relate to technical business trans- actions or which are best studied after the elements of Algebra and Geometry are mastered, should be postponed to the proper grades of the high-school course. The following notes aim to give brief interpretation to the outline schedule : — 1. It is assumed that a twelve-year-old pupil has neglected the technical forms of English Grammar but has mastered a limited vocabulary of words in reading, writing, and spelling. His primary training should insure intelligent reading and an ability to write, in accurate English, simple stories or themes. 2. A fluency in simple conversation, reading, and writing and to be followed at about fourteen by a grammatical study of the modern language, or of Latin. 3. Such elementary processes in algebraic equations as simplify or replace arithmetic processes. 4. Concrete Geometry, constructive and mensurational, with little attention to formal logic or demonstration. The essential computa- tive and structural facts of Geometry (plane and solid) may be covered. 5. Mental Arithmetic and Reviews. 6. A carefully selected course, adapted to the several grades, and involving the writing and personal correcting of frequent themes. 7. Digests of books, by topics and character analyses, should be made, and the six-year course should cover a wide range of reading. Classical students should not neglect the study of English and American history nor fail to know, at least in substkntial outline, the 414 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL beginnings of the history of the world, and the essential fects of mediaeval and modern European history. Pupils not pursuing the study of Latin or Greek should in their own tongue make a critical study of Greek and Roman civilization. 8. Political, Historical, and Commercial Geography, as a comple- mentary study in the History course. 11. A course giving skill sufficient to illustrate the materials and processes used in the laboratory or at the bench. 12. Definite physical training supplementing the games, recess recreation, and athletic sports. 13. Singing and vocal calisthenics. 14. The refined forms of the art of expression. Practice in public speech and preparation of formal essays and debates. 15. If taught within the school programme, it may properly dis- place some other form of manual training. 16. In this or in the preceding year should begin the regular col- lege preparatory Latin. Students unlikely to enter college may profitably continue Latin through a year's translation of simple Latin prose. 17. Largely Commercial Arithmetic, meeting the business needs of boys who leave school at this age. 18. A student entering college or technical school without Latin should have practically a mastery of one modern language and at least a limited familiarity with a second. 19. Candidates for classical courses in college will need to substi- tute a modern language for this higher mathematics. In general, the course for the last two or three years will conform in some degree to the requirements of the college or technical school. So long as Greek, or an equivalent language study, is required for admission to particular colleges, high schools and academies will probably sacrifice some part of the History or Science groups, with so-called classical pupils. APPENDIX A 41: THE SIX-YEAR HIGH-SCHOOL COURSE As A Part of the Complete Curriculum and with a Triennium AS THE Unit of Distribution Educational Orders Schools Ages CHARACTERISTICS PRIMARY LOWER (Primary School) UPPER (Grammar School) 6 to 9 9 to 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 Reading, writing, spell- ing, arithmetic, draw- ing, music. The same, with language forms, geography, and elementary science. Object lessons with fa- miliar animals and plants, metals, coal, rain, snow, ice, brooks, etc. Making of collections. SECONDARY LOWER (High School or Academy) UPPER (High School or Academy) 12 to IS IS to iS 7 8 9 10 11 12 General studies, aiming at the true appreciation of nature, men, and books. Major half of curriculum devoted to facts rather than to forms. Similar studies, in more technical form. Pro- cesses more exhaustive. College preparatory courses. UNIVERSITY (Tertiary) COLLEGE OR TECHNICAL SCHOOL PROFESSIONAL OR GRADUATE SCHOOL i8 to 21 21 to 24 Greek begun only in col- lege and forming the basis of the classical col- legiate course. The col- lege and technical courses largely free from professional studies. The age of admission, for average , students, two years lower than at present. The work of the home and of the kindergarten may, be disregarded in de- termining the essentials of a school curriculum ; likewise the advanced courses, at home and abroad, elected by specialists. No attempt at the solution of col- lege problems is attempted. The schedule outline, which may precede or follow the extended high-school course, is here furnished, to illustrate the significance of the three-year period. 4i6 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL APPENDIX B COURSES OF STUDY AS GROUPED BY THE COMMITTEE OF TEN FIRST YEAR Classical Latin 5 English 4 Algebra 4 History 4 Physical Geography . . .3 Latin-Scientific Latin 5 English 4 Algebra 4 History 4 Physical Geography . . .3 SECOND YEAR Latin 5 English 2 German {or French) begun , , 4 Geometry 3 Physics ...... 3 History 3 Latin 5 English 2 German {or French) begtm . . 4 Geometry 3 Physics 3 Botany or Zoology .... 3 THIRD YEAR Latin 4 Greek 5 English 3 German {or French) . . .4 Mathematics (Algebra, 2 ; Geom- etry, 2) 4 Latin 4 English J 3 German {or French) . . .4 Mathematics (Algebra, 2 ; Geom- etry, 2) 4 Astronomy, i yr. and Meteorol- ogy. J yr. . . . .3 History 2 FOURTH YEAR Latin 4 Greek 5 English 2 German {or French) . . .3 Chemistry 3 Trigonometry and Higher Alge- bra {or History) . . .3 Latin 4 English (af in Classical, 2; ad- ditional, 2) . . , .4 German {or French) . . .3 Chemistry 3 Trigonometry and Higher Alge- bra {or History) . . .3 Geology or Physiography, 4 yr. I and Anatomy, Physiology, > 3 and Hygiene, i yr. . . J APPENDIX B 417 COURSES OF STUDY AS GROUPED BY THE COMMITTEE OF TEN FIRST YEAR Modern Languages French (or German) begun . . 5 English 4 Algebra 4 History 4 Physical Geography . . ,3 English Latin, or German, or French . . s English 4 Algebra 4 History 4 Physical Geography . . .3 SECOND YEAR French (or German] . . .4 English a German {or French) begun . . 5 Geometry 3 Physics 3 Botany or Zoology , . .3 20 Latin, or German, or French S or 4 English 3 or 4 Geometry 3 Physics 3 History 3 Botany or ZoSlogy . . . ,3 THIRD YEAR French (or German) . . .4 English 3 German (or French) . . .4 Mathematics (Algebra, 2 ; Geom- etry, 2) 4 Astronomy, k y. and Meteorol- ogy, i yr 3 History 2 Latin, or German, or French. . 4 English (as in others, 3; addi- tional, 2) 5 Mathematics (Algebra, 2 ; Geom- etry, 2) 4 Astronomy, J yr. and Meteorol- ogy, i yr 3 History (as in Latin-Scientific, 2 ; additional, 2) . . .4 20 FOURTH YEAR French (or German) . . .3 English (as in Classical, a; ad- ditional, 2) . . , .4 German (or French) . , .4 Chemistry 3 Trigonometry and Higher Alge- bra (or History) . . .3 Geology or Physiography, i 39". 1 and Anatomy, Physiology, > 3 and Hygiene, i yr. .J Latin, or German, or French . , 4 English (as in Classical, 2; ad- ditional, 2) . . . .4 Chemistry 3 Trigonometry and Higher Algebra 3 History 3 Geology or Physiography, J yr. ■) and Anatomy, Physiology, > 3 and Hygiene, J yr. . j " In the construction of the sample programmes the Committee adopted twenty as the maximum number of weekly periods, but with two qualifications, namely, that at least five of the twenty periods should be given to unprepared work, and that laboratory subjects should have double periods whenever that prolongation should be possible," Report, p. 48. 4i8 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL O CO o i 09 w o fn >-i u §3 o l-H w 8 o & H CO O CO p 8 : i3 _ tj -^ .^ -fi W ffi c5 fc. '5 1) 3 S 2 O u o 5» O ^ ft 2 ™ §■1 •5 •3 S" if to ^a 5 £ - J! 03 ^ •a§ § 3 •3.S s a B s s s * s s " S " p. ° o •g| s S « J c .-^ O b0 13 o ■- in sat S Q U APPENDIX C 419 S I M ^ S f-^ 8 SO > • ^ u oa w -a 4th ' - English I -American - Elucution -Optional - Optional - Music 1 1 1 1 1 1 00 & w CA ■£ Year III or Chemi History 3d glish ysics cient tiona ^0 r- Bj3 a a, 1 Weu% _l ■2 < .2 tf « UJ s •« z UJ a 2d glish Slogy tiona 1 c U c (-U hono 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 F*» ^O *^ a c " I 1st - English -Algebra - Physiol -Latin or 1 1 Ih^i 1 ^lOM 10 M 420 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL CO o o n w M I— I a ft t3 H CO o CO Pi p o CJ I c 1 GO o co" o I— I Cti h 0-? :§|.-§i n o £ « a 1 i I .J uCQ 5 M o o o gj3 h5 ■<« [:m i P ■a t? 2 « .a I iS o ■SIM'S 1 III ri 1 ric Langu t one) louble Langu tone) :ial Arithme Geography History, try. (Selec Geography ping I. (E 1 History, : try. (Selec K— « ^ u ? V :§ iJ g i .isl^li "^ilio iFs-sio WOP4« HPxn S w *!• « 2 ig and Pa ing (Tw History try «l«|" .i:^ w v_ ■«'s ° a Turn Ma ods) ageo; Geom h ■3 S'ojs Mecha Langu Plane Englis Wood tern Peri Langu Plane Knglis DC < Ul >■ •s •St- a z ill' o|il8 CO rman man ineG glish i|14 S&iS oiiS && I& 2s s| tss "3 « sar man neG glish sar disev me G glish 8&i^ SM& >. "e. = t& &2t s«s skI «i5i ^■aS Physical Roman Plane G English Physica] Mediaev Plane G English W JJ.S •0.°"€, C OJ3 ——^ WUd. •CSM :siss-s ucl bc'cfl'^ oX o os£h 2 C" P3 n ss ose-s O o o u oK APPENfilX C 42t Mg . u >tt)JDC « e " »r f-^ 1= S'S £"o ° a OJ3 ** « ** WOft, '^ o .•S &° o o 2 « J i-IChH 3 ^ « S o o V Bj3 E3 o o Kg UMPhH •SiSs S c.Fa S » I S . aOfo "EH _ p « S.e 5) ■S 2 "^ < O .0 •oh) «.a M>,3 ttii .is3 & •a o Eg 3 §•5 S ■ o s-x a S a c:s E C >•■* rt o o ** ■2 E !SH ■ia.ss'-iss-a PQ bu = ■2 B .. S-3 2 ° u. -^ O o g i^:g S.£ ^ = o^ CO MO g£ .S S3 o "O « o w'^F.9 S'S 6 3 "Hg'oiS' o a 2 iJ •- w O E- S- ,S,C G O yuwu 3«1 « o o .S 8" rt •- rS 'S. &- ^ c S 3 -- O Pt4 ^ 5 V u ^i ?.M « -s .■ (A £ £ V k aj u ^ 1 1 i I SI 3 « ® .2 iJ 2 3 E- B. 3 S K u •S .a 2 'o E 3 rt w • §.2 E S' S-S- o >, j= F ^1 S S .go 2 S TO g (5 «M " P O «" « •■■ « o -S - = ^S «*"C £■£ a a . ■" £ S w IS o§p| ■S'S 2 = ill! o a ^ " E > -2 a g -a a - -o ■< S rt tl *- ■s « s s .S 2 o, £• S'S s i n: m « .a 1 8 ^u ' a -S -a a 8 S I o w a ^ |l.s 3.a §■ s 5 i f I ST a .2 . 3 " » § •oU SO «> 2 >S a' 5 -o . ■ a o, «; ». BE* O -g -. n. |i £ i5 s # B*^ « V E1S - . G c S. « o -S g"! §■ §•2 g MS 2 "o .i: -r — a . o &.2 2 55 a " - S O ° *J ^ u is^ o 2 * « a-'S^ S -g -o 'w p< S n w w a ~ E a o ♦■ „ J b a ►J ^. F o . « a e So iz; ■£ . m u 422 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL POYNETTE, WISCONSIN — 1908 COURSE OF STUDY FIRST YEAR FIRST SEMESTER SECOND SEMESTER REQUIRED UNITS Physical Geography, f Botany, J Algebra Algebra Literary Readings, |, and Composition, |, throughout the year CHOOSE ONE UNIT Latin Latin Grammar Physiology SECOND YEAR ' REQUIRED UNITS Ancient History Ancient History Lit. Reading, | ; Composition, | Lit. Reading, f ; Composition, | Botany and Agriculture CHOOSE ONE UNIT CHOOSE TWO UNITS Bookkeeping Arithmetic Latin Latin Commercial Geography THIRD YEAR REQUIRED UNITS Geometry Geometry Mediaeval History American History CHOOSE TWO UNITS German German Latin Latin Economics English History Lit. Reading, | ; Composition, | Lit. Reading, f ; Composition, f FOURTH YEAR REQUIRED UNITS Physics Physics American History Civics CHOOSE TWO UNITS Latin Latin German German English Literature American Literature Advanced Algebra Theory and Art and Reviews A unit is a study with five recitations per week for one year. No less than two units of any foreign language will be accepted. Of those not taking at least four years of foreign language, two and one half units of History and three units of English required. Students in Latin may take Advanced Algebra in place of Mediaeval History of the third year. Unless a sufhcient number of pupils to form a class of fair size desire to take any given elective subject, it will not be offered. APPENDIX C 423 DOLLAR BAY, MICHIGAN, 1908 COURSE OF STUDY First Semester Latin Lessons Algebra English Composition History (Ancient) FIRST YEAR Second Semester Latin Lessons Algebra (to quadratics) English Composition History (Ancient) Caesar Geometry Comp. & Rhetoric History (Modern) SECOND YEAR Caesar Geometry Comp. & Rhetoric History (Modern) THIRD YEAR Cicero or Physical Geography German Physics Classics Cicero or Botany or Bookkeeping German Physics English Grammar FOURTH YEAR Virgil or U. S. History & Civics German English Literature Solid Geometry Virgil or U. S. History & Civics German English Literature Algebra — quadratics through logarithms 424 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL O o s CO o H K 00 i H m o CO 8 P4 >2 o fa 1 i Latin German Machine Fitting Mechanical Draw- ing CHEMISTRY Physiology f ^ 1 e Latin German Machine Fitting Mechanical Drain- ing CHEMISTRY g 1 il a: hi Latin German Foundry Work Mechanical Drawing Freehand Drawing J Stenography 1 Typewriting PHYSICS Bookkeeping Physiography is il 1 1 Latin German Foundry Work Mechanical Drawing Freehand Drawing 1 Stenography "( Typewriting PHYSICS Bookkeeping Physiography 1 1" 1 il Latin German Forging Mechanical Drawing Freehand Drawing J Stenography ( Typewriting Bookkeeping Botany ENGLISH Plane Geom- Civics Mediaval History Latin German Forging Mechanical Drawing Freehand Drawing Stenography Bookkeeping Hygiene Botany it w5 Roman His- tory Latin German Woodworking Freehand Drawing Cooking Sewing S2 Grecian His- tory Latin German Woodworking Freehand Drawing Cooking Sewing ■a ■ s- •g-s 2 |. £ S .S S C U ■a = ; B 5. 'Z. * CW 3 c3 = u s O S M >> 8 § g e " I ^ E •a -- to 3 I s TZ ? S 8 g §•* 2 2= = ? m to a < N o c •S .£ S ^ o c" -a •a g =3.2 a ■ £ S 2 ^ S^ ^ tn - S S "^ « ■« -= = !:>. " " J! # .C - ^ On X B >i .S B S dcrn Language or Eco- n(miics 3 Physics or Chemislry 4 American History and Civics t; D'Signing 1 Trigonometry or Advanced Algcliia 2 Physics or Chemislry 3 Social Science, Economics or Mechanical Drawing 4 American History and Civics 5 lixpression 1 English 2 Physics 3 American History and Civics 4 Economics or Mechanical Drawing f- 5 Debating 1 English 2 American History and Civics 3 Social Problems or Mod- ern Language t 4 Domestic Chemistry or Chemistry t 5 Music 1 English (An) or Foreign Language 2 American History and Civics 3 History of Art and Archi- tecture 4 Drawing (Mechanical) 5 Charcoal and Applied De- sign 6 Carving 1 English 2 American History and Civics 3 Social Problems 4 Physics or Chemislry 5 Debating and 1 English 2 Advanced Algebra 3 Chemistry 4 American History and Civics 5 Music or Expression 1 American History and C'ivics 2 Physics 3 English 4 Drawing 5 Architectural Draughting 1 ICnglish 2 Physics, Chemistry or Do- mestic Chemislry 3 American History am Civics 4 French, Gel man or Span- ish 5 Water Coloring, Drawing or Music 1 English 2 Modern Language or I'xo- nomics 3 Physics or Chemistry 4 American History and Civics 5 Designing 1 I'aiglish (A 11) 2 Physics or Chemislry 3 Modern Industry or Me- chanical Drawing 4 American History and Civics 5 Expression 1 l^nglish 2 Physics 3 American History anc Civics 4 Economies or Mechanica Drawing f 5 Debating 1 English 2 American History and Civics 3 Modern Industries or Mod- ern Language t 4 Domestic Chemistry or Chemistry t 5 Music 1 English or Foreign Lan- guage 2 American History and Civics 3 History of Art and Archi- tecture 4 Ch.ircoal and Illustrating 5 Carving 1 English 2 American History and Civics 3 Modern Industries 4 Physics or Chemistry 5 Debating ons : In Music, Freehand Drawing, English Composition and Expression, there are md many of the Eastern colleges. Pupils preparing to enter Eastern colleges or the Principal Spanish maybe substituted for Gern.an or 1-rench m Courses H and C ar.l graduation in Courses 1, J, I,. Any one ot these three istitute one unit towa subjects may be taken as an extra study in any course, and proportional credit toward graduation will be given ^'•"'"''""sixteen units of work are required for a diploma. One unit represents a year of work in a subject taken five limes a week 6 Pupils from other accredited secondary schools will be credited with all work completed. •. .• j .,„„„ 7 Physical Culture, two pcri > i i § B i Religion 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 19 German and History Stories . 4 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 28 Latin 8 8 7 5 5 4 4 4 4 49 French — — 5 4 4 4 41 :i :i 29 English — — — 3 3 3 18 History — — 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 '7 Geography 2 2 2 2 2 I — — — II Mathematics 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 42 Natural Sciences .... 2 2 2 2 2 4 5 5 s 29 Writing 2 2 — — — — — — — 4 Drawing — 2 2 2 :£ 2 2 2 2 16 Gymnastics 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 27 Singing 2 3° 2 3° 2 34 2 35 2 35 2 35 2 36 2 36 2 36 18 Required Periods .... 307 Optional : Linear Drawing . — — — — 2 2 2 2 2 — Note. — Pupils enter the lowest class of the Realgymnasium at the age of nine or ten and complete the course at eighteen or nineteen. The lowest class is marked VI, the highest, 01. 437 438 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL w o ■a g, a •c o X o\ H- ( P M Z s w s PL, PQ Oh M < H^ rt Q i2i o u o o •8 (0 s us o u -I d i u i a 00 OO U1 O S «J . . •* »* ^ •"*••"' w „.2.i5S'J-aB*SlS . . -5 . . .a . I-HHH •>!-" t-)l-l «^ (-1 >-* »-» rt •^ •8 s < o SI O ft ' S > K V) u^ O O O Ot Ot o o APPENDIX E 439 SB'S ^ o E * o s *a «- fe3 c S 4> a'O a-T. K 2I Egg^igg"" B S " S S 2 o S^'S, 2 = 2 S^^^-*s-* oSggSSSoj-^ ©.SPiS*© 3 3 3 n 5 5 DS >■ < ^;2 a ss-s-s-is M f w ■* ■^ m -^ < tt M COS w- h M VI in i ^ S ft m * * i^'^w . , 00 « ■^ « a a w n « " 3 UH t^ VI m M si W M <:p4 »< k >.>._, S « ^.g s u lit 1 M 4SJS d If] bO"" =32-a !i.S'u c »: d h h c >» ^0 >,>«>. M ft M i5 « »0 «» B< M s -i "^ » 1 1 1 fi R .a .2 g a i § •s t3>3 g gS 1 •^ 5 g^mJ h ? giS » w < °(lS H a« 1 p^ « t^i-i c/5 d >^ t^' .» .a J .a .a J ►^ SSSSSS 440 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL § a ■c CO 00 o o I n •3 w (o X .a %o ,"! H H O > 1— > B Si «> It!* ►J aw ■-> .so 9 h ft , .3 S SI'S St 8' m SjB JSS o P3 St I O m m lo *n m ■* o * 3 -" Si S g. a — a ^ o ^ N •; • ~S ? .*S .= e £ 4j >> 2 u 2 •s 2 E 3 .2 QJS « WinO< « n « *o APPENDIX E 441 ■S, .= I •g S. ■s 3 8. - -g » . 3 g.S, S 1^ « to o in « So s.~ s S-cR-go -oS.* .-2 ■■3.S " — S °!? t " .SJ2 M O ^ O U ^ w m^ s'owl't 2-° 6" %.i K^ ..•*■ O"- j'Sr mc o 0.0 c * u B-O &»t. "i •2 g u^^-s u STS- ■BS§B-ga6§2g» illlsiMrl-a ill-Si I ills i „ p 1 ^ II « M « tn m fi PI i^s » tu hi o« t^ « S S; M CI -4- -4- m Dp K ^"^a tn 1^ II en u5 in •^ « « >^!! •0 -o -g Cfe K «' . 00 g g § g| M " ja a .6? gj -s t ■S -a -S •§ ca .3 >i 2 2 2 2 3 tm t>o u u S si" .s .E .e .s i? ^ h *■ H ^•s >^ >. >. >» II ■g "rt •« "tS H *£" ■s-o i.k 22 = 2 a a a a s.S'-li.a li.^ii.i.i H M ^ H N >0 (7« H g 1 •3 •3 -s-a ^ < < I,-Il 5 n » m| C/3 a d = s 1 2-g-g ^ g 5 ^ •a j3 si 11"^ 1 •S -o •bs S u CO en > > >■ -a T3 .5: -d -a ■a -a •a 2 SS.tf 2 a D P uo u W CS h 2 "5 K <: H la^ H of i i^ ^" en ■<* p; ■«!" d &:" z 7 .s SI IS J i J .3 s s BS SSISS 442 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL g b 13 u •a < Q 01 +j la •n OT 00 o u nl Q 2 O o u OT . * -a « n ci e g o >>• .-2 •■•- «j3 •" o 10.5 *^rt "2..:s|..e^.&;8 5»w*'i. — — 3.5 5 ^ I ETi « « S ^"1 ■sasg-Saisg" i.l|s"s'o>c:s^2 a £ s « « « « Oj=.S P>-1.C nt C e ["r^bOUl APPENDIX E 443 M U S, S- SSS.vSigS'S' S^* « m ■<-♦ ^ m m ■*■•* £& » h l"l fir-' m lo vo 00 E & O m en * mm Bp « != W s b " . . . 00 II -Stn CO en m .« S . . . . q « ui * n ej, ej3 e a -.1 •".» '-o k. O mJ3 h O ,; >'S ^c ^ ^ «-n „.a H w H i 1 rural schools; ; 6 yr. as Supe rural school; , school; 3yr. igh school rural school; ; 2 yr. in high rades ural school rural school; graded school graded school .3 " ai T3— .a_"M»«K_- .S-S^ J-||.S-2-|.s.S.S-S-S-9 j,ag i^lt i,i.^i,i.i,^i>^ M M HMOOeiW WH h „ •g o o o o . ^ o u o o W j-a—tntntntn g g ^- 21 i-a-g, §1, M U ^ -3 ^||.Siii . § -o 'i -o| las 33 •< •2 .1 -Il itt it h O 3 "5 K s 5« 13 «■ . .w s • «■ h! W S! ►Am H «■ < ^ J 2 .2 2 .a .2 .2 .2 .3 444 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL X u s u u V X a O 00 o ON s O rt pa en "3 o J3 H S P4 O O Oi O o K o n u g •: •> S iPiP s < -i ^' i-j W -5 g ^ X > *« u: s --^ ^ ^ ^ H « C 'S Sj w o w w J .5 . . . . fe; 5 W W ^ «« .2 .o ,e _g S 3 j J 5 ^ hH 1-4 h-4 .3 M « m m' I 8 b e .3 1 I O I .i£ .2 "« « « ^eo — ^'» '•OJ: ^J2 n o " ^ t; D- >1 O J «■ r; „ - .s,s.a".sp&.sfg1S» "2 2 *^ i>&_ 8 S S-t^ = -^ 3-2 » ill's •B's'^;!^? i3.2fa o = 3 =TS u 5 APPENDIX E 445 s^- £ ^ I »0 V was o « J S So S = K H a n 3 Op tfi xn tn K Hi K ^ M V e u '>T3 a 3 .. s . ■a s ■i- •;=•■= ^■•s ~ ~ S.S ■a e •n •a So" S^i s< .c ~ >? «s tn.S "•3 •s "^ S En a " i5 tnn:'B "^ s •3 go s-J jits S-Si: us ' e u MX -irs v. e M td s M n M K ti « rt . o o R . E c/3 S ■ifo-if ** rt i»..S'S> *»-: I -I — ** 5^ - — ; ' as 3 8 ti O H H ^ W o s s s ^ s » n » »s »< M ►j n u S N a s s a K a a .2 iS ss S s S ss s s 446 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL •a g ■a •c u a. 3 W o u n Q o o ts z, H ■a «! in i^ O ■^ o -s 1 i K U a. o C. H. Carsoa Bookkeeping 3o Mr. B. I. Algebra is 11. Civics 2g I. Algebra 15 Conference III. Physics M III. Laboratory ao IV. Chemistry 8 Miss P. II. English 13 III. English 21 IV. English 22 I. English 27 Noon Recess II. English 18 Conference Assembly Stud^ Period Dismiss MissK. IV. Latin 14 I. Latin 15 II. Latin 12 III. Latin as IV. German 10 I. Latin 17 III. German 18 MissC. III. Geometry 20 IV. History is Assembly IV. Arithmetic 22 I. History 39 Assembly II. History 38 .8 .3- 8 .8 S- ff 8 ? S. 8 o\ o\ *w M H n ei M ■* APPENDIX E 447 M- •s. •S 5 4) * in o\ !3 2 e |.i s.*| .11" 1 la •••*-■ 0;5 j3 S B U i.sjslsglll-g, ^ c 2 2 o o 0—'*-.'*= C K « 5 " ** u ^jr-S '•5>- < a K ■< OH 8 a »o ■* *o m ■*■ VI W WW WWW ,00 ts, \0 V) -4- » >- s s a ■A J: ii *H ,u I- ^3 u >. >. >* t^ >> a z w 00 Oi CO Oi M 4S U B J! > C o a « w PQ tj w •= r^ ^ o -7: M E ' c V V Si O V u D ^ "m 3^3= O I a s a ^ ^ .a O P3 ' M «i< ^K ca° p^' n CO w 'I s s s 'I s ii I 13 S3 448 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL O a a :^, 'C CO 8> « ■< g n c« Q o IS u vt H m H li M •n ■«• J d a S " •0 1 cS J 1 M " 1-4 > l-l M* CO H to 2 c« 00 1 ^ lA .^ n' .« .a & ^ .S >» in g. 1 1 t £ n £ ,4 ,_; ,_; ^ > »-< M M fa .^ 2 g ,13 « (A 1 1 •■5, i B 1 M* hH d s H-. e H o 2 i S5 a M in s 5 ^1 c5 » S a ■a > « s 3 < 1 U OO ** . .a 2 s CO 2 .2 -g :§ 1 1 s 1 (S 1 a .1 ^• P-J >■ ^ M M (-( ^ •^ *^ rs M » S n . CfS s H i1 1 !!; J, hH PH 8 s S g ^ % 2 8 Ot o» o M H M n m * w P OS APPENDIX E 449 < K V3 H mminmmmo mO O O O OO en en en c/3 CO CO S Ul til »l4 K S M « m M « H MOO n n » A A V2 Ul m*e mcoVS ^ Is ■i ^ u < ■a 3 ca pa ='«.,,,■ <3 ■a TJ"? iSCO rt o .s .5 .c ■£ 13 J5 i5 J »:; S p 13 D SqiJiiiiOiJSS S a' to d I M (A in ; 6 <■ w OT fa «■ rt in S « OtOtOOHC4HH I o w u S S It 0: h ■a bQ 41 3 a » •c > a B APPENDIX E 451 I •5 £ o . ^ S n S » ■§■;: s §■§ s-s'^'s.s 3 B g P o O 0-5'-'= ggSSS u «0^-S i 5-S,1! S S E = SS K > •< 1 ss £" *i 5 as. 3>* t^ to lO mm ro * ■*■ < « w- ga§ a c 3 S "8. *s- I'^l « H H a in m m CO to . M BS <0 m ii K WW s w UH H u S H a h ij »! li.^ !; h* hi M >t »• »^ >« >t >. « « •♦ n ♦ CO m CO « « M M & 1" 51 1 i" 1 ^ « o S 1 "'^ B in M s N .(0 a s 3 S s H Hi a P3 tn r 5 '-''8 If O « OB ■: tSw s" II •5 -2 JJ h o CO »J H ss -^ u H , 1 ui pS*^' ^ Op; O- pa W ;5 U *■- s ^:- a 8 a s SS S ss ;s SS 452 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL o z o s > ^ « S in \h ^! S. £ s s d £ ■>!■ rt en ♦ m fo -^ te- M ot m H SO tn * m (o ■«■ to iSS '*■ « D 13 r3 "O < 5 K ■< *""-§§ OH m H H u K H »4 »■ ka U »« M K >» >» ^ >1 >. >» •" ^ " o & ^ a 1 -d s,@ g 3 S u M „ S o o m " « u> H^lz; y T ■• .» .« 4) ** E "S ■2 ti TJ'B-O" S ^ o wi o mo w " w 5 - .iz; .2; .2 .i: .a % y y 1-3 -3 S I 8 .s "5 S I 8 B "^ Ji ' rt > o ^ ►J " O S H S S J ^ «• -• "§ a c J. O ^ i^" H P4 f^ en ^ hH i-i s t ■8 K~ £-< i a §• in H 8 m O O y- m _■*■ o» o- 2 2 »0 Ml O I M lO ■<■ .£■« o u o >» rt a sS ■S|^2S = frS.J « B a- *3 is B « u 5 s S "■B-S 454 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL 1=1 i M J ^ 1 8,8,8, U, V, lO i ail §. «■ K (A S H \0 H (*, Co O '^^ s ~ H tn m « ■» m »o £ it ll "3.. "3 3 *l •o "^ "o o .- o •goS-S tn 03 CO Of CO " M •S"|Ss| •3 „ .gS „ 1 II .IS •< 4 •i n S 1 1 1 1 bfl 5 & & o w c rs o naS a £; "S < „ *5 « < S " wfH , g » u ? ►i >■ n fcWui z .<■ P H B a .3 .s .3 .2 M M U .a .a .!! .s .SJJ .S S S S s S SSS s sss s APPENDIX E 455 >■ it^ ^ ^ 8 a i 1, 1 B ri J Oi <• M »« S E? o vy M -f a s « 2^^ H If H U i! z V H >■ K .S s 3 •S S! 8 w w .2 §, i) .S ■S 'S ~ ^ c >; tj >» >. >, >. in « a « « 1 J II M g 1 I '.I •< u c i ill S ^5 •3 <1 U) rt Q 3 iJ^" f 1 "" 2 ^i" • 3 ..a < r 1 |si» So b. O 3 < „ H g z s « 'i O H — H s u s < oi ^' C tn S? K iS J J .2 § ii s s s V b g ■= s S E £ ° - s .S -a R d H J- a §■ S. = « r'i. S 1 •s .^. ■"■"0 e»— SaS. •5 « ** ^ go l|i ■a M c: IS oS EREATA AU page references in the index to Appendices A, B, and C, from pages 409 to 436, should be increased by two numbers. INDEX Academy, in England, 14; in Ame;'- ica, 1, 17-24, 29, 40; curriculum of, 16, 19 ; characteristics of, 23 ; Pliila- delphia, 17-19; Phillips Exeter and Andover, 21 ; as finishing school, 22, 39; as fittmg school, 22; Franklin and Philadelphia, 17 ; con- trol and support of, 21; popularity of, 21. Accrediting system , 67, 69. Acquaintance, of teachers with parents, 356 ; of principal with pupils, 234. Adaptation, of curriculum to com- munity, 343 ; of ideals to commu- nity, 345 ; of teacher to community, 346. Admission to college, methods of, 67- 70. Adolescence, characteristics of, 244- 259 ; needs of, 259-267. Advisers, pupils' 167. Aim of education, 91-95. Algebra, 107, 118. Alternation, of subjects, 150-153; of study and recitation periods, 161. Appendices, 408. Aristotle, 92. Arithmetic, and algebra, 107; com- mercial, 114; time, 120. Assembly room, 179, Assistance, by teachers, 47, 159; by principal or superintendent, 230. Astronomy, 113. Athletics, a form of social activity, 327 : value and dangers of, 312, 328- 332; Constitution of Indiana High School Athletic Association, 332; reforms needed, 336. Atmosphere, of school, 171, 173; of class room, 282; of community, 352-360. Attention in class, 278. Authority, location of, 163 ; board and superintendent, 163; principal and superintendent, 164, 229; principal and teachers, 229. Benefits of high school to commu- nity. 349- Biology, value of and course in, 112; time, 118; equipment, 181. Board, New England Entrance-Certifi- cate, 68 ; College Entrance Exami- nation, 69 ; and superintendent, 163 ; and text-books, 165 ; and principal, 227; Indiana Athletic Association, 332 ; and community, 353. Bookkeeping, value of, 114; time, 120. Boston Latin School, 7, 54. Botany, value of and course in, 112; time, 118 ; equipment, 181. Brown, E. E., n. Buffalo, Wyo., 444. Buildings and grounds, 177. Butler, Bishop, 377. Butler, N. M., 94. Care of building, 180. Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 429. Certificate, admission by, ^^ 69, Change, in curriculum, 30; in college entrance requirements, 31, 56 ff., 365; in methods of study, 49; in methods of recitation, 51 ; in meth- ods of discipline, 52 ; in pupil, 53, 243. Character, and citizenship, 81, 295; influence of studies on, loi ; influ- ence of teachers on, 193, 214; influence of ideals on, 290. Charlestown, M:)ss,, 8. Chemistry, value of and course in, 112; time, 118 ; equipment, 183. 4S7 438 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL o •a H-l •8 X! o^ KH »n Q M Z s W g (1h Hh M < 0^ rt Q o o u M O u >< O S o S V u o " i .2 § -I a IS I u ' a m .e j= S^.l ■S « K a s " g'l'^ HI'S i s4jl ..■?.. .s . ^Hl-H ^HH k^Nrt *<^ ttl £< >»-5 >■>■ S 8 •^ I * o o » > - ° . o# 3 .SJ5Sg'S8-S*i>ds B a » <• s s K °^-S 5 M.2f o 3 3 3^5 S S p S, SS-ff ff-S ff ►J'^ N '4- m '^ '« m ^ < K M m u w- h ias i| a^^¥ ^ S su . . eo \o ' (1 aa m m to -o t3 -o "o ii ffi ffi a « rt « S OH ri '^ **• t^ m m M i-^ Ifl IH -liPH M U >•>. . u -*1 — .--"^ i ll-a >< " S3 H M j3 a •sISc na'^*^ t^.S' S ».* S h h* ■; .2 ^^ >.>•►< M 2 H a C* « m 1 3 1 i imti i o < i mm 3 M . u u V !: ■^ 1 ill'lll h :3 « ifl .■? •^ 5 w s o u °H IS s« s p; n ■-:, iJ) ui d kA a fc." .2 .2 .2 .2 .2 .2 H^ ssssss 440 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL a d ■c oe o < Ki a M «J In Q o n S 8 J3 u .a ^0 J3 « e H wu > g >■ s B a: « i^^S ►J SI >-;"E so 1 ^0 h •o- « .*B <1 c* mil •Si f' C B && ' ° E id o ;« S v.t: u o u > s ■•gsi ss|2 •Uli I I II O > APPENDIX E 441 t2 >>o u •3.S "-si •S:2 s St p; 10 o I^lft 2^ i" M . "S 1" 3>' 1 1 ?l 3 5 »i < K «■ « s E2 r -J Ot b« « S £■ N S^ ■<■-«■ ft Dp K ^ w •• si OH CO m CO . 00 cl c« <« g^ M .. j3 .9 u'S .3 u •O "O tS -S >t S 2 2 2 8 in si Ui bs Eug bs .s -S .s .a t^ Ih' »J ta U >^^ >^ '-^ >. >» i S'3 S. 2 ■« •« "rt s w i a 3 M a n u n 2 g E 3 .3 .3 J .S i S.S i.i.i.i. W M 2 H « to Ot M g 9 < < CO 1 "" i u pj n m| w » > •2 2 -o -o d d c 2 S U 3 S s a S (A S ** u S g s| lioq g •S -o •BS S "S en M -< > > > TJ ■D il -o -o ■5 s 'a S a M a a & ■ p SO o« h 3 "S ^H K U K < tt) -'H (A H CO' X < hA ^ CO ■< p; ■J o o » u t K O M ->! a in H O d, (a 2 > *"• M rt a s "^ e E , H « S S '3 G o K cd u « n v R u hj a |5 »J o <; M (-H £ JL »-' IV. Civic II. Bota Supervisic Office 8.1 v> VI »o m M in (*i M 8 m 8 ¥S, 0» o» M M H a M « M {*» 'm .2 ■2 1 •S g. 1 6 o -^ pa a .s^s"! ii> -1 "v..J= |:ej>.&*8 u «*-• >..is — •" 3. 5 S h rt 5 H fa's o U 2js SB'S— ** ** "-.Q " 5? Ill's '3'S'olr^ SsSg£SS"3.S| APPENDIX E 443 tf II s, s- ssa^-gs'S' 3>' « m ■♦■<■ •* tfi m •* -* ,S« W- V3 H g 1 J ^ 2 r ►J 00 in to eo mm-* mm a t; " . . . . ■» 1". ". "!"!•§««,*« .E-i .S|, .S^ .S >-a *^e ^ *• II %i ^il ^i 11 u •^2 n I!:- |-i ^1 g ■3 >« "^JS '"'rt><£^-S -o-S ^ 2?. vi .-is-.isl g.a ** w t3— ■ j5 «bJOvi'"«__ .S-S .2-S i B .S-S = s -E-S -S -2 « - n j3 — . S — — . a »; ij M M MMCOCie* MM b S 1 , 1 8 g § § 2 « -s-g -g-s o X C/3 g -3^ l| 111 %i ■ g ^ ^ -Sj 133 33 < :3 « u^szzssz PE> o en a "S H « b H SB X w* s^s •2^ 1 M . .W < z s g SS Ss's ss 444 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL u u 8^ (9 i n o o ■8 in gas ■< 1! O S p^ u i-i > I-* » .S 3 .s ;S tt; i3 bo g U) bs e lu, w o w w J •£ O B > "■ > (—1 kH £ =8 N s 41 y •I *" * -2 •2 1 J S s 5 J !! !! > H d " « m fo S S~ s.^--° 3-= H BSSgS||Oj.^ Bawl E ssJIs APPENDIX E 445 3>< ^O ft Q ri 3 E »;o fed* z OH S K M .2-i! " . o J ■ - t-m 1 5"-- -I S 3 >n I 3 •• -H a e •n ^5^|S"_ So a « • - ••"2 •'JS •■■ ^ '-UK n 2-a 5.S So" cs u {4 A .a fis. SJcSl « £ «l •OH o< ^11 ft >.i t/5 tnp "is'' s » X St6 fig.. .CMS' S-Si: ■£^^ , i; n d tiE a . O O ' i Si O M » » en it "SO !B at ..z w gssso ■"ZSiJHJw O U I I ^' s » ca a nS ft H ►J MU S N a !!! .s S % a a S a SS S ■s IS ss S s 446 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL o o a ^ u n ■s •a V o. 3 cn 00 o a. < a <4 Q o o o •S 0* •o "^ o u Vi a 1 C. H. Carson Bookkeeping ao Mr. B. I. Algebra is II. Civics 29 I. Algebra 15 Conference III. Physics ao III. Laboratory ao IV. Chemistry 8 Miss P. II. English 13 III. English 21 IV. English aa I. English a7 Noon Recess II. English 18 Conference Assembly Study Period Dismiss MbsK. IV. Latin 14 1. Latin 15 II. Latin 12 III. Latin 25 IV. German 10 I. Latin 17 III. German 18 Miss C. III. Geometry 20 IV. History 15 Assembly IV. Arithmetic aa I. History 29 Assembly II. HistotyaS 8S-88S-K'8*?.8 o>oiOMMMnnm'* APPENDIX E 447 S § J S i2 a 3 b^o Is g §11 ilia § W1.SPS = = 3^ vs E". so S -3 t:3 dB"J pa W ft; n; fa -AW i^ * IS S, 7^ S S S .S .S is s s g;s ass eo « Pi n 2 IS to ■is I (A vt M w» "J' t& d fi N S" W y J 1 J I o J H t-I s > l-H '-' OO m o M M CO i ^ m' 1 •i >% 1 1 1 £ 1" n Ph J3 i-i ^ ,_; IH > M »-i 1— 1 •^ w •s « H 11 1 =3, 1 s B »-I t-J a a u •-> E H o g »■ 2 •s 00 H s 5 ii c > H 3 i i B N U CO H IS o o . -^ M « 00 H a w .a J :§ *€ •a -g "m ■3, H "bk S 1 M iS >s w ^ ^ >■ ,J ^ H4 NH I-* l-< t-l »» M » s n ,■ « i: H 1 ^ 1 M 1 s. > i^ ^ p< 8 s a 8 a ?■ a 8 Ot o» s M M H C( fl APPENDIX E 449 en a I I i/)inmmintoO mO to lotn^ovo *■*"«■* a o Q. Q. ft «■ 5§ oe5 en [A CA CO en en I S £ij iij tij Ul iij t^.'O fl wi-^-roww M >i 5 S £ S .: w i! .: MOO n n MAACOCn m :; S D p p 3 ■s ui j m" "3 "3 "S I u K < O U r S »■ fe d d <<■ «■ ui fe «■ < n . to « •a B CO n o a; ft) fti s o a) <^ O •* O J3 o en 14 s o § ij o o a o X o !3 ' 1 U .2 s Study Room I. Anc. Hist. 35 Library Indexing I, Physiol. 34 Study Room I. Com. Arith. 26 « 11 in .2 S III. Botany la III. Botany 12 IV. Sol. Geom. 10 II. Geometry 18 I. Algebra 28 *II &in. Geom. Study Room Study Room Pi' .2 s TV. English 18 Study Room Rest Period II. English 26 Study Room Noon Recess III. English 13 Study Room Rtst Period I. English 24 II. Am. Hist. 28 (0 I. Latin 24 IV. German 9 Study Room III. German 9 IV. Physics 17 IV. Physics 17 I. Man. Tr. 20 I. Man. Tr. 20 III. Civics 14 IV. Pedagogy 6 Supervision Supervision Supervision Supervision Supervision 8 a. lowinoogoo S w ei N n O^OnOOwwmm s o iS £ « o *• B • *- APPENDIX E 451 B 6 ■B, J wJ3 o V u ** *. — — _. a-- w il-Sl.S;.2|-,i B-o os^t^^-S "'•3 is-as'a'sljg's S5 mm w S A< O OH 8"" H 13 S-* MS » » s 11 «: 5 ci ° vC/3 a o i5 *M _ gg V U in en •g >.<« "1- cS » „-p; ? cj.- o' M'w in in in « m u 452 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL U Z O s >> ° o £ 2 lO lO S z in \S 00 oi (» o ij- m m •♦ n fo ^ w «■ ft. g„g i|s « O 0» lO M vO en ■<■ fo fo ■♦ fo i' w ss **■ M a a -o -o < P ■♦ tn M M H C K ^ M A OH m M H U z u ki »J >^ »J h M « >» P^ >»>.>» >* § M u ■•' 1 03 to m g, s a ts s 1 S. ^ 1 ^ "Is 3 § u m " " M "1 Z u i i|iiiiHi{i '"ocn'otnom"u5S „ .Z; .Z .a .i .2 g u < K W W K K e5 b. O 1 J3 p« ►25 g^ o « fc" ^_ d W % dj :^ -^ S' M H ^ J .2 .2 .2 .2 .2 S S S S S g APPENDIX E 453 > Q 4J CO ■a o ■a b u ■c 00 p. g >< ■«! pq u 3 o O " o •a u nl O O Qi fk ^i o o 5 a ■ " £■ S ■S I g if S ■8 8 •I '3 a S 3 If] III ,(5 (5 S HI M S E-^'*; .^ ill Had Sf > 8 ' a a s H u .2 .3 B C K >■* -I tf) o en % :§„; S< ® S S 3 > I H-i tn t-t E-.a 2 I- .-9 S in o Q o •n ^1 .3 2 11} P EH o s^ ■n'O I I S o 1 ^•B -t » 8 a « d -^ *-i "- To. « 3 O g o o 0^*2'*^ S w C O 1) 0^.A " M M M M 4S4 THE AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL M 1 ^ 1 sss 1 IS§. 8 «ft ■««8 H 2" £ ? ri H o w m t^ « VI O P| »o cn mm-* tn m ^ <^ »o Si: ii (Q en CO M to CO r« »N « m 1 ♦ m « » » K » * § ^ i 1 a (A ^ H B -•s »4 .s 1 s » H ^M ■S iJ >| s, •Ifl 8 Jo. o 1 ■-1 5-s ! =3 e'c g u: 0) •a 111! •2x a J Sll .s 2 .S .S 5 S.1 ^•2 s. ^}i u « » U w »« u " H VJ •* " » H tn m « •«■ m w a 1* Sri •3 1 . a Ijil 1 rf M n ''I •- 1 |5 >■<■ 1 S i o 1- i^-3 1 o > a "3 1" Jill o p P o » o « w 9 K OfJ O S ^ -H , is a u 3 1^ t4 >■ m pl:»»^ ;b <■ Q H 10 2 .S .3 1 s 3 s s .s S S S .S s S s s i sss s s is s s APPENDIX E 455 > £ ^ M i J, 1 isl 2 =^ -J o« H M to S £: o ^ Wl « ^ D » « z^^ H i£i [J gas " 8 S >. S a a "B u V X T M ! bo ^ §, 1 .S •S -2 -S Ci b e h »4* >> >» o >» ^ m « S ^o m X tJ »: '<^ in h if ^ si 8 " "i ^ 1 l« 1 1 ^i o ^ H a t slji'S Qe formal discipline. Poynette, Wis., 420, 438. Principal, qualifications of, 224; rela- tion to board, 227; to superintend- ent, 164, 228; to teachers, 229; to pupils, 234 ; to parents, 237 ; to com- munity, 239. Private schools, 35, 40. Problems, present, 362-398. Professional training, 197, 395. Programme of daily recitations, 136- 161 ; Appendix E. Programme of studies, 90-142; de- fined, 90; in Report of Committee of Ten, Appendix B ; one-year, 126 ; two-year, 126; three-year, 127; four- year, 128 ; underlying principles of, 129, 131-13S, 147; variations from, 130; selection of, 146; alternation of subjects in, 150-153 ; overloaded, 153 ; in large high schools, 156 and Appendix C ; in small high schools. Appendix C ; of six-year high school. Appendix A ; Indiana, 416 ; Elmira, N.Y., 417; Minneapolis, 418; Poynette, Wis., 420; Dollar Bay, Mich,, 421; Indianapolis, 422; Joliet, III., 424; Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 429; South Carolina, 432; Los Angeles, 435 ; Prussian Realgymna- sium, Appendix D. INDEX 461 Promotion, premature, 144. Prussian Realgymnasium, programme of studies of, 437. Psychology, value of course in, 115; time, 120 ; for teachers, 197, 205. Pupil, 243-267 ; characteristic traits of, physical, 244, intellectual, 248, emotional, 249, volitional, 230, social, 251, moral 252; other traits, 253, 285-292; differences between girls and boys, 255; needs of, 259, 285, 303 ; individual cases, 265, 292. Rank of small schools, 154. Reaction of pupil, 102. Recitation, change in methods of, 51. Recitation periods, number for pupil, 131-13S ; length of, 158 ; number for teacher, 158. References, 34, 83, 133, 174, 189, 221, 241, 267, 283, 301, 339, 360, 398. Religion, 77, 213. Religious influences, in Latin gram- mar schools, 14 ; in academies, 20 ; in high schools, 77. Reorganization of curriculum, 43, 366, 409. Report of Boston School Committee, 24; of Committee of Ten, 37, 414; of Committee on College Entrance Requirements, 60; of Commission of North Central Association, 172; of Committee of Seventeen, 204 ; of N. E. A. committee on secret so- cieties, 321; of committee on six- year course of study, 409. Responsibility, 262. Reviews, of common branches, 120. Rhetoric. See English. Roxbury, Mass., 8. Sachs, J., 133. St. Paul's school, 3. Salem, Mass., 8. School management, value of course in, IIS ; time, 120. Schurman, J. G., 213. Sciences, 112, 118 ; equipment for, 181. See also iotany, physics, etc. Secret societies, character of, 319; attitude of teachers towards, 320; report of N. E. A. committee on, 321; the Seattle case, 323; attitude of parents towards, 326. Self-discovery, 74. Self-government, 73, 298. Sex, of teachers, 218, 240, 383 ; infor- mation concerning, 263, 389 ; coedu- cation, 303, 31S, 386. Six-year plan, 44, 367, 409. Skill, 72. Small high school, 134, 169, 216 ; one teacher, 148; two teachers, 148; three teachers, 133; four teachers, 135 ; methods of improvement, 381 ; reports from, 438-433. Sociability of pupils, 291, 303-306. Social education, 380. Social efficiency, 83, 380. Social life of high school, needs of pupil, 260, 283, 303 ; sex interest in, 303, 313; problem of, 306; social necessities of school, 307; social units, 307; necessity of control and direction of, 309, 337 ; value of, 311 ; cooperation in, 314, 317; forms of social activity, 317. Social progress, 84. Societies, open, 318; elective, 319; secret, 319 ; athletic, 327. Sororities. See secret societies. South Carolina curriculum, 432. Spanish, value of course in, no; time, 117. Spencer, H., 92. State, education by, 80-84, 'Oi- Stenography, value of, 114; time, 120. Superintendent, 145, 133, 163, 164, 228. Supervision, of study periods, 139; of teaching, 167; of social life, 321, 323.332.337; of athletics, 331. Support of school authority by com- munity, 334. Sympathy, 209. Tact, 212. Teacher, academic scholarship, 162, 193 ; professional training, 197, 395 ; personality, 207; experience, 273; sex, 218, 383 ; selection of, 164 ; and 462 INDEX principal or superintendent, 167, 229 ; and community, 346, 356; problem of, 394- Technical school, 66. Tennessee law, 55. Text-books, selection of, 165-167. Thorndike, E. L., 389. Time, in educational values, 103; of studies, 117. Tradition, intluence of, 90. Traits of adolescence. See pupil. Trigonometry, 107, 118. Typewriting, value of, 114; time, 120. Uniformity, Act of, 15. University, and high school, 56, 63. Values, educational, 96-103. Virginia, 6. Vocational training, the problem, 369; plans for, 370 ; dangers of, 373. Voice, 213. Ward, L. F., 84. Zoology, value of course in, 112; time, 118 ; equipment, 181.