THE 
 GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 HOUSEHOLD ARTS 
 
 By 
 EVA W. WHITE 
 
 GENERAL EDUCATION BOARD 
 
 61 Broadway New York 
 
 1918 
 
HOUSEHOLD ARTS 
 
THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 The results of the study of the Gary Pubhc 
 Schools, undertaken on the invitation of the Super- 
 intendent and the Board of Education of Gary, will 
 be published in eight parts, as follows: 
 
 The Gary Schools: A General Account 
 
 By Abraham Flexner and Frank P. Bachman 
 
 (25 Cents) 
 
 Organization and Administration 
 George D. Strayer and Frank P. Bachman 
 
 (15 Cents) 
 
 Costs 
 Frank P. Bachman and Ralph Bowman 
 
 (25 Cents) 
 
 Industrial Work 
 Charles R. Richards 
 
 (25 Cents) 
 
 Household Arts 
 Eva W. White 
 
 (10 Cents) 
 
 Physical Training and Play 
 
 Lee F. Hanmer 
 
 (10 Cents) 
 
 Science Teaching 
 Otis W. Caldwell 
 
 (10 Cents) 
 
 Measurement of Classroom Products 
 Stuart A. Courtis 
 
 (30 Cents) 
 
 Any report will be sent postpaid on receipt of the 
 amount above specified. 
 
THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 HOUSEHOLD ARTS 
 
 BY 
 
 EVA \V. AVIIITE 
 
 GENERAL EDUCATTOX BOARD 
 
 61 Broadway New York City 
 
 1918 
 

 COPYRIGHT, I9I9, 
 
 BY 
 
 General Education Bo.veb 
 
 JAN 16 \m 
 
 ICI.A5ll3r3 
 
 ^— {.-TO I 
 
- ^ 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 PACE 
 
 Introduction vii 
 
 I. Aim of Household Arts Work ... 2 
 
 A. COOKING 
 
 II. Time Schedule and Enrollment . . 3 
 
 III. The Cafeteria 12 
 
 IV. Staff and Instruction 17 
 
 V. Tests 23 
 
 VI. Merits and Defects 28 
 
 B. SEWING 
 
 VII. Time Schedule and Enrollment . . :^^ 
 
 VIII. Equipment, Staff ant) Instruction . . 39 
 
 IX. Tests 41 
 
 X. Merits and Defects 44 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 The G.vry Plan 
 
 In the last few years both lawmen and professional 
 educators have engaged in a lively controversy as to the 
 merits and defects, advantages and disadvantages of 
 what has come to be called the Gary idea or the Gary 
 plan. The rapidly increasing literature bearing on the 
 subject is, however, deficient in details and too often 
 partisan in tone. The present study was undertaken 
 by the General Education Board at the request of the 
 Gary school authorities for the purpose of presenting an 
 accurate and comprehensive account of the Gary schools 
 in their significant aspects. 
 
 In the several volumes in which the main features of 
 the Gary schools are separately considered, the reader 
 will observe that, after presenting facts, each of the 
 authors discusses or — in technical phrase — attempts to 
 evaluate the Gary plan from the angle of his particular 
 interest. Facts were gathered in a patient, painstaking, 
 and objective fasliion; and those who want facts, and 
 facts only, will, it is believed, find them in the descriptive 
 and statistical portions of the respective studies. But 
 the successive volumes will discuss principles, as well as 
 
viii INTRODUCTION 
 
 state facts. That is, the authors will not only describe 
 the Gary schools in the frankest manner, as they found 
 them, but they will also endeavor to interpret them in the 
 light of the large educational movement of which they 
 are part. An educational conception may be sound or 
 unsound; any particular effort to embody an educa- 
 tional conception may be adequate or inadequate, effec- 
 tive or ineffective. The public is interested in knowing 
 whether the Gary schools as now conducted are efficient 
 or inefficient; the public is also interested in knowing 
 whether the plan as such is sound or unsound. The 
 present study tries to do justice to both points. 
 
 What is the Gary plan? 
 
 Perhaps, in the first instance, the essential features of 
 the Gary plan can be made clear, if, instead of trying to 
 tell what the Gary plan is, we tell what it is not. Ex- 
 cept for its recent origin and the unusual situation as 
 respects its foreign population, Gary resembles many 
 other industrial centers that are to be found throughout 
 the country. Now, had Gary provided itself with the 
 type of school commonly found in other small industrial 
 American towns, we should find there half a dozen or 
 more square brick "soap-box" buildings, each accom- 
 modating a dozen classes pursuing the usual book studies, 
 a playground, with little or no equipment, perhaps a 
 basement room for manual training, a laboratory, and a 
 cooking room for the girls. Had Gary played safe, this 
 is the sort of school and school equipment that it would 
 now possess. Provided with this conventional school 
 
INTRODUCTION ix 
 
 system, the town would have led a conventional school 
 life — quiet, unoffending, and negatively happy — doing 
 as many others do, doing it about as well as they do it 
 and satisfied to do just that. 
 
 As contrasted with education of this meager type, the 
 Gary plan is distinguished by two features, intimately 
 connected with each other: 
 
 First — the enrichment and diversification of the 
 curriculum; 
 
 Second — the administrative device that, for want of a 
 better name, will be tentatively termed the duplicate 
 school organization. 
 These two features must first be considered in general 
 terms, if the reader is to understand the detailed descrip- 
 tion and discussion. 
 
 As to the curriculum and school activities. WTiile 
 the practice of education has in large part continued 
 to follow traditional paths, tlie progressive literature of 
 the subject has abounded in constructive suggestions 
 of far-reaclung practical significance. Social, political, 
 and industrial changes have forced upon the school 
 responsibilities formerly laid upon the home. Once the 
 school had mainly to teach the elements of knowledge; 
 now the school is charged witli the physical, mental, and 
 social training of the cliild. To meet these needs a 
 changed and enriched curriculum, including community 
 activities, facilities for recreation, shop work, and house- 
 hold arts, has been urged on the content side of school 
 work; the transformation of school aims and discipline 
 
X INTRODUCTION 
 
 on the basis of modem psychology, ethics, and social 
 philosophy has been for similar reasons recommended on 
 the side of attitude and method. 
 
 These things have been in the air. Every one of them 
 has been tried and is being practised in some form or 
 other, somewhere or other. In probably every large 
 city in the country efforts have been made, especially in 
 the more recent school plants, to develop some of the 
 features above mentioned. There has been a distinct, 
 unmistakable, and general trend toward making the 
 school a place where children "live" as well as "learn." 
 This movement did not originate at Gary; nor is Gary its 
 only evidence. It is none the less true that perhaps no- 
 where else have the schools so deliberately and explicitly 
 avowed this modern policy. The Gary schools are oflBi- 
 cially described as "work, study, and play" schools — 
 schools, that is, that try to respond adequately to a many- 
 sided responsibility; how far and with what success, the 
 successive reports of the Gary survey will show. 
 
 It must not, however, be supposed that the enriched 
 curriculum was applied in its present form at the out- 
 set or that it is equally well developed in all the Gary 
 schools. Far from it. There has been a distinct and 
 uneven process of development at Gary; sometimes, as 
 subsequent chapters will show, such rapid and unstable 
 development that our account may in certain respects 
 be obsolete before it is printed. When the Emerson 
 school was opened in 1909, the equipment in laboratories, 
 shops, and museums, while doubtless superior to what 
 
INTRODUCTION xi 
 
 was offered by other towns of the Gary t}pe, could have 
 been matched by what was to be found in many of the 
 better favored larger towns and cities at tlie same period. 
 The g>Tnnasium, for example, was not more than one 
 third its present size; the industrial work was not un- 
 precedented in kind or extent; the boys had woodwork, 
 the girls cooking and sewing. But progress was rapid: 
 painting and printing were added in 191 1; the foundr}-, 
 forge, and machine shop in 19 13. The opportunities 
 for girls were enlarged by the addition of the cafeteria in 
 1913. The auditorium reached its present extended use 
 as recently as the school year 1913-14. The Froebel 
 school, first occupied in the fall of 191 2, started with 
 facilities similar to those previously introduced piecemeal 
 into the Emerson. 
 
 These facihties, covering in their development a period 
 of years, represent the effort to create an elementary 
 school more nearly adequate to tlic needs of modem 
 urban life. The curriculum is enriched by various ac- 
 tivities in the fields of industry, science, and recreation. 
 Questions as to the efficiency with which these varied 
 activities have been administered wOl be discussed by 
 the various contributors to the present study. Mean- 
 while, it is perhaps only fair to point out that the modem 
 movement calls not only for additions to, but elimina- 
 tions from, the curriculum and for a critical attitude 
 toward the products of classroom teaching. How far, on 
 the academic side, the Gary schools reflect this aspect 
 of the modem movement will also presently appear. 
 
3di INTRODUCTION 
 
 The administrative device — the "duplicate" organiza- 
 tion, noted above as the second characteristic feature of 
 the Gary plan — stands on a somewhat different footing, 
 as the following considerations make plain. 
 
 Once more, Mr. Wirt was not the inventor of the in- 
 tensive use of school buildings, though he was among the 
 first — if not the very first — to perceive the purely educa- 
 tional advantage to which the situation could be turned. 
 The rapidity with which American cities have grown has 
 created a difficult problem for school administrators — 
 the problem of providing space and instruction for chil- 
 dren who increase in number faster than buildings are 
 constructed. The problem has been handled in various 
 ways. In one place, the regular school day has been 
 shortened and two different sets of children attending at 
 different hours have been taught daily in one building 
 and by one group of teachers. Elsewhere, as in certain 
 high schools, a complete double session has been con- 
 ducted. The use of one set of schoolrooms for more than 
 one set of children each day did not therefore originate 
 at Gary. 
 
 Another point needs to be considered before we discuss 
 the so-called duplicate feature of the Gary plan. In 
 American colleges, subjects have commonly been taught 
 by specialists, not by class teachers. The work is "de- 
 partmentalized" — to use the technical term. There is 
 a teacher of Latin, a teacher of mathematics, a teacher 
 of physics, who together instruct every class — not a 
 separate teacher of each class in all subjects. Latterly, 
 

 1 ,1 ^jRflkV ' 
 
INTRODUCTION xiii 
 
 departmentalization has spread from the college into 
 the high school, until nowadays well organized high 
 schools and the upper grades of elementary schools arc 
 quite generally ''departmentalized,'' i.e., organized with 
 special teachers for the several subjects, rather than 
 with one teacher for each grade. 
 
 Out of these two elements. Gar}- has evolved an admin- 
 istrative device, the so-called duplicate school, which, 
 from the standpoint of its present educational signifi- 
 cance, does indeed represent a definite innovation. 
 
 For the sake of clearness, it will be well to explain the 
 theory of the duplicate school by a simplified imaginary 
 example : 
 
 Let us suppose that elementary school facilities have 
 to be provided for, say, i,6oo children. If each class is 
 to contain a maximum of 40 children, a schoolhouse of 
 40 rooms would formerly have been built, with perhaps 
 a few additional rooms, little used, for special activities; 
 except during the recess (12 to 1:30) each recitation 
 room would be in practically continuous use in the old- 
 line subjects from 9 to 3 :^o, when school is adjourned till 
 next morning. A school plant of this kind may be 
 represented by Figure I, each square representing a 
 schoolroom. 
 
 The "duplicate" school proposes a different solution. 
 Instead of providing 40 classrooms for 40 classes, it 
 requires 20 classrooms, capable of holding 800 children; 
 and further, playgrounds, laboratories, shops, gardens, 
 gymnasium, and auditorium, also capable of holding 
 
XIV 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 800 children. If, now, 800 children use the classrooms 
 while 800 are using the other facilities, morning and after- 
 noon, the entire plant accommodates 1,600 pupils 
 throughout the school day; and the curriculum is greatly 
 enriched, since, without taking away anything from their 
 classroom work, they are getting other branches also. A 
 school thus equipped and organized may be represented 
 
 FIGURE I 
 REPRESENTS OLD-FASHIONED SCHOOLHOUSE 
 
 40 rooms for 40 classes, of 40 children each, i. e., facilities for the academic instruc- 
 tion of 1,600 children. A school yard and an extra room or two, little used, for special 
 activities, are also usually found. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 by Figure II, in which A represents 20 classes taking 
 care of 40 children each (800 children) , and B represents 
 special faciUties taking care of 800 children. As A 
 and B are in simultaneous operation, 1,600 children are 
 cared for. 
 
 This method of visualizing the "duplicate" school 
 serves to correct a common misconception. The plan 
 aims to intensify the use of schoolrooms; yet it would be 
 
INTRODUCTION xv 
 
 incorrect to say that 20 classrooms, instead of 40, 
 as under the old plan, accommodate 1,600 children. 
 For while the number of classrooms has been reduced 
 from 40 to 20, special facilities of equal capacity have 
 been added in the form of auditorium, shops, play- 
 ground, etc. The 20 classrooms apparently saved 
 
 FIGURE n 
 REPRESENTS THE GARY EQUIPMENT 
 A B 
 
 20 classrooms for academic instruction Special facilities, takinR care of Soochil- 
 
 of 20 classes of 40 children each (800 chil- drcn in the mominR hours and an equal 
 drcn) in the morning hours and an equal number in the afternoon hours (1,600 in all 
 number in the aftcrnwn (i.Ooo in all daily) daily) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Auditorium 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Shops 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Laboratories 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Playground, gardens, 
 gymnasium and library 
 
 have been replaced by special facilities of one kind or 
 another. The so-called duplicate organization and 
 the longer school day make it possible to give larger 
 facilities to twice as many children as the classrooms alone 
 would accommodate. The duplicate school, as devel- 
 oped at Gary, is not therefore a device to relieve conges- 
 tion or to reduce expense, but the natural result of 
 efforts to provide a richer school life for all children. 
 
JEvi INTRODUCTION 
 
 The enriched curriculum and the duplicate organ- 
 ization support each other. The social situation re- 
 quires a scheme of education fairly adequate to the 
 entire scope of the child's activities and possibilities; 
 this cannot be achieved without a longer school day and 
 a more varied school equipment. The duphcate school 
 endeavors to give the longer day, the richer curriculum, 
 and the more varied activities with the lowest possible 
 investment in, and the most intensive use of, the school 
 plant. The so-called duplicate school is thus a single 
 school with two different t}^es of facilities in more or less 
 constant and simultaneous operation, morning and 
 afternoon. 
 
 Such is the Gary plan in conception. What about the 
 execution? Is it reahzed at Gary? Does it work? 
 What is involved as respects space, investment, etc., 
 when ordinary classrooms are replaced by shops, play- 
 grounds, and laboratories? Can a given equipment in 
 the way of auditorium, shops, etc., handle precisely 
 the same number of children accommodated in the class- 
 rooms without doing violence to their educational needs 
 on the one hand, and without waste through temporary 
 disuse of the special faciHties, on the other? To what 
 extent has Gary modified or reorganized on modern lines 
 the treatment of the common classroom subjects? How 
 efficient is instruction in the usual academic studies as 
 well as in the newer or so-called modern subjects and 
 activities? Is the plan economical in the sense that 
 equal educational advantages cannot be procured by 
 
INTRODUCTION xvii 
 
 any other scheme except at greater cost? These and 
 other questions as to the execution of the Gary plan are, 
 as far as data were obtainable, discussed in the separate 
 volumes making up the present survey. 
 
 The concrete questions above mentioned do not, how- 
 ever, exhaust the educational values of a given school 
 situation, f'rom every school system there come im- 
 ponderable products, bad as well as good. Aside from 
 all else, many observ^ers of the Gary schools report one 
 such imponderable in the form of a spiritual something 
 which can hardly be included in a study of administra- 
 tion and eludes the testing of classroom work. These 
 observers have no way of kno\nng whether Gar}- school 
 costs are high or low; whether the pupils spell and add as 
 well as children do elsewhere; but, however these things 
 may be, they usually describe the pupils as characterized 
 by self-possession, resourcefulness, and happiness to an 
 unusual degree. While different schools and indeed 
 different parts of the same school var)- in this respect, 
 the members of the survey staff agree tliat, on the whole, 
 there is a basis of fact for these obser\'ations. Gary is 
 thus something more than a school organization charac- 
 terized by the two main features above discussed. 
 
 The reason is not far to seek. Innovation is stimu- 
 lating, just as conformity is deadening. Experiment 
 is in this sense a thing wholesome in itself. Of course 
 it must be held to strict accountabiUty for results; and 
 this study is the work of persons who, convinced of the 
 necessity of educational progress, are at the same time 
 
xviii INTRODUCTION 
 
 solicitous that the outcome be carefully observed. 
 The fact that customary school procedure does not rest 
 upon a scientific basis, does not wiUingly submit itself 
 to thorough scrutiny, is no reason for exempting educa- 
 tional innovations from strict accountability. The very 
 reverse is indeed true ; for otherwise innovation may im- 
 peril or sacrifice essential educational values, without 
 actually knowing whether or not it has achieved definite 
 values of its own. Faith in a new program does not 
 absolve the reformer from a watchful and critical atti- 
 tude toward results. Moreover, if the innovator for- 
 mulates his purposes in definite terms and measures his 
 results in the fight of his professed aims, the conservative 
 cannot permanently escape the same process. Gary, like 
 all other educational experiments, must be held account- 
 able in this fashion. Subject however to such ac- 
 countabihty, the breaking of the conventional school 
 framework, the introduction of new subject matter or 
 equipment, even administrative reorganization, at Gary as 
 elsewhere, tend to favor a fresher, more vigorous interest 
 and spirit. Defects will in the following pages be pointed 
 out in the Gary schools — defects of organization, of ad- 
 ministration, of instruction. But there is for the reasons 
 just suggested something in the Gary schools over and 
 above the Gary plan. Problems abound, as in every 
 living and developing situation. But the problems 
 are the problems of life, and, as such, are in the long 
 run perhaps more hopeful than the relatively smooth 
 functioning of a stationary school system. Thus, not- 
 
INTRODUCTION xix 
 
 withstanding the defects and shortcomings which this 
 study will candidly point out, the experiment at Gary 
 rightly obser\'ed and interpreted is both interesting and 
 stimulating. 
 
I. AIM OF HOUSEHOLD ARTS WORK 
 
 In Professor Richards' report^ it is pointed out that 
 the industrial work for boys is not vocational in aim. 
 Shop activities are not meant to make carpenters, paint- 
 ers and plumbers, but to furnish growing boys with op- 
 portunities for the development of senses and muscles 
 and concrete experiences which will enable them to par- 
 ticipate intelligently in a social order in which industry 
 bulks large. Fundamentally, the same principle holds 
 of the work in the household arts for girls; that is, it is 
 not primarily intended to train expert seamstresses or 
 expert cooks. Still, instruction in cooking and sewing is 
 not on precisely the same footing as instruction in 
 foundry work or carpentering; for, in addition to general 
 educative value, the household arts have for girls greater 
 personal value and a more intimate social bearing than 
 has shop work for boys. 
 
 Besides stenography and t>'pewriting, the Gary schools 
 provide instruction for girls in printing, gardening, cook- 
 ing, and sewing. The present report deals only with 
 cooking and sewing. - 
 
 •See report on Industrial \\i)rk. 
 
 'For printing, sec report on Industrial Work, and for gardening, see 
 report on Science Teaching. 
 
A. COOKING 
 
 II. TIME SCHEDULE AND ENROLLMENT 
 
 COOKING is taught regularly in the elementary 
 schools in the seventh and eighth grades, with 
 pupils from the lower grades acting as helpers. 
 The instruction is condensed into courses from ten to 
 thirteen weeks in length, one or two hours daily. Pupils 
 must enroll for at least one course one hour daily, and 
 may take more. While cooking is thus compulsory for 
 elementary pupils, it is optional for high school girls, 
 and may be elected by thcni in the ninth, tenth, eleventh, 
 and twelfth grades, at the Emerson and Frocbel schools, 
 which alone have high school students. During the 
 first term, 1915-1916,441 elementary school pupils, includ- 
 ing helpers, were enrolled in cooking classes, and during 
 the fourth, 280.^ (Tables I, III, IV.) 
 
 The reports from Jefferson, Glen Park, and Beveridge 
 do not distinguish between helpers and those regularly 
 enrolled, though it may be assumed that children from 
 
 •The greatest care has been exercised in preparing the enrollment data 
 for cooking and sew-ing, but owing to the frequent change of classes and 
 changes in the make-up of the same class, and to differences in reports 
 which we were unable to reconcile, we arc not satisfied that the tables 
 are more than appro.\imatcly correct cither as to numbers or grade distri- 
 bution. 
 
4 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 the third to the sixth grades are helpers, rather than 
 students (Table I). At Glen Park, of the 78 pupils 
 enrolled, 42 took cooking one hour a day and 36 for two 
 hours daily from September to December, and all took 
 one hour per day from December to April. At Beve- 
 ridge, pupils continued in cooking one hour per day 
 throughout the year. This is a considerable amount of 
 time for elementary grades. It occurred, however, not 
 because it was considered wise to stress household arts, 
 but because of a shortage of teachers in other depart- 
 ments of special work. 
 
 Comparatively few high school students elect cooking. 
 Emerson, for example, enrolled during 1915-1916 a total 
 of only 32 for thirteen weeks, and Froebel, 57 for ten 
 weeks (Table II). They belong chiefly to the first 
 two high school years ; no junior or senior elected cooking 
 at Froebel, and but two seniors and one junior at 
 Emerson. It is to be noted, however, that many high 
 schools do not provide household arts. 
 
 The classes in cooking are always small, never con- 
 taining over twenty and averaging from twelve to fifteen. 
 This would be admirable, if the group were homogeneous; 
 unfortunately, a class in cooking is seldom made up of 
 pupils from one grade or from closely related grades. 
 Not infrequently a class comprises pupils from the third 
 to the ninth grades. To be sure, the younger children 
 are supposed to assist the older; nevertheless, their pres- 
 ence renders difficult the concentration of attention upon 
 the needs of the regular pupils. 
 
TIME SCHEDULE AND ENROLLMENT 
 
 w o 
 
 3 
 
 M 
 Z 
 
 u 
 H 
 
 ea 
 
 
 in 
 
 in 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 1 hr. 
 
 12 
 
 IS 
 
 d&£ - H r. i 
 
 Ten 
 Weeks 
 
 No 
 
 infor- 
 mation 
 
 g 
 
 
 Pupils 
 
 EnroUc'l 
 
 1 hr. 
 
 13 
 26 
 
 15 
 
 3 
 
 57 
 
 o:3:§ 
 
 d§-S 
 
 M-- in n M 
 
 2 
 u 
 
 Z 
 
 
 2 2 
 
 
 M »r r 
 
 d&2 
 
 n ^ r". 
 
 
 M 
 O 
 
 M-*in!cr^« 
 
 1 
 
 
 t~M31» 
 
 fR 
 
 No. of Pup.I Pupils En- 
 Enrolled rolled 1 hr. 
 
 ?3 = 2 
 
 
 — — r~ M c> X 
 
 1 
 
 
 r-;TU-.Xt-« 
 
 3 
 
 0.3, 
 
 o o 
 
 u 
 
 ! T in -.c i^ 00 
 
 3S-S2 
 
 O ? J 
 
 S E „ 
 
 -' 5 o E 
 
 G I «_ 
 " • -< 
 
 1 F X E 
 — 1 t> o.— 
 
 J. '- .-Em 
 e £-9 
 
THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 to 
 
 05 
 
 w 
 
 w 
 
 i 
 
 H 
 
 3 2 
 
 -1 
 
 oeoi-((M 
 
 (M 
 
 -i 
 
 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 OCOi-l(M 
 CO 
 
 CO 
 (M 
 
 w 
 w 
 
 w 
 w 
 
 H 
 
 w 
 
 H 
 
 Q 
 
 z 
 o 
 
 O 
 C/2 
 
 3 2 
 
 N 2 CO 
 
 CO 
 
 
 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 eo 
 
 CO 
 
 i 
 
 \A 
 
 w 
 w 
 
 w 
 « 
 
 t-H 
 
 H 
 
 H 
 
 ^X3 
 
 3 2 
 
 <nJ 
 
 CO 
 
 CO 
 
 -i 
 
 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 eo 
 
 CO 
 
 
 H 
 
 9 
 S 
 
 
 OJOtHN 
 
 l-H l-H i-H 
 
 3 
 
 o 
 H 
 
TIME SCHEDULE AND ENROLLMENT 
 
 at 
 
 u: 
 
 u 
 a 
 
 z 
 
 u 
 H 
 
 OS 
 
 p 
 o 
 
 11 
 
 -J 
 
 »-( 
 
 - 
 
 ^i 
 
 t- 
 
 c- 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 C-i-« 
 
 00 
 
 u 
 z 
 
 M 
 
 H 
 
 § 
 
 5 
 
 
 -1 
 
 CJ w 
 
 ^ c oo.-( oj 
 
 1 1 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 00 CO 
 1—1 
 
 CM 
 
 13 
 
 u 
 u 
 
 2 
 
 g 
 
 o 
 u 
 u 
 
 Regularly 
 Enrolled 
 
 ^j 1 
 
 
 •"1 
 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 o>eo 
 
 N 
 
 w 
 z 
 
 H 
 
 a 
 
 ^ S 
 
 -J 
 
 00 
 
 00 
 
 J3 
 
 m\a 
 
 00 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 woo 
 
 
 
 O 
 
 
 OiOi-tpJ 
 
 3 
 e2 
 
8 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 The time allowance for cooking is unusually liberal. 
 On the basis of two hours per day for five days a week for 
 13 weeks, 130 hours are offered as compared with two 
 hours per week for 40 weeks or 80 hours in the average 
 school system. This number of hours added to a like 
 number of hours in sewing shows that 260 hours may be 
 devoted to household arts in a year. On the basis of the 
 minimum of ten weeks' cooking for one hour per day 
 and the same for sewing, 100 hours are scheduled for 
 these subjects. 
 
 But the allowance does not work out in practice. The 
 groups are in continuous flux. Pupils are withdrawn 
 in the course of a term; new pupils are admitted irreg- 
 ularly. There is no record of the make-up of the group 
 or of the specific tasks accomplished. The method of 
 grading, that is, dividing the grade into A, B, C sections, 
 and the change of classes at the end of each ten or 
 thirteen week period also add to the confusion. 
 
 While records show the number of girls enrolled in 
 cooking classes, it is impossible to say precisely how much 
 instruction and experience they have had, inasmuch as 
 term lengths are not uniform in the different schools 
 and as the periods are sometimes one hour and some- 
 times two. Thus, for example, eighth grade pupils at 
 Emerson had one hour of cooking daily in the first 
 term of 1915-1916, while those who took cooking in 
 the second term had twice as much (Table III). At 
 Froebel, on the other hand, the eighth grade pupils were 
 enrolled for two hours during the first and second terms, 
 
TIME SCHEDULE AND ENROLLMENT 
 
 
 •o£ 
 
 nC 
 
 
 
 
 2si 
 
 .c 
 
 
 
 t£ 
 
 £5 
 
 
 
 
 U 
 U 
 
 
 '^ J3 
 
 — •^in t^ 
 
 s^ 
 
 ■X 
 
 
 
 
 
 • 
 
 
 
 u 
 u 
 
 ■^ 
 
 -J 
 
 
 
 
 a= 
 
 
 
 
 ae 
 
 
 
 
 n 
 
 «« 
 
 "^JS 
 
 
 
 •u 
 
 
 
 H 
 
 *0:S — 
 
 
 
 
 d&'e 
 
 -"'Tin t^ 
 
 t^ 
 
 
 
 M 
 
 
 ;?;b- = 
 
 
 
 
 1^ 
 
 
 
 
 St 
 
 n 5 
 
 
 
 M 
 
 £5 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 u 
 
 u 
 
 14 
 
 
 tC — 'S) f 
 
 s 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 Ul 
 
 >-o 
 
 nC 
 
 2 
 
 w 
 
 Ul 
 
 I- o 
 
 f 
 
 
 
 M 
 
 
 
 
 
 " j: 
 
 
 
 g 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 _"0 
 
 
 
 U 
 
 *— tfl Jj 
 
 
 
 M 
 
 or: — 
 
 
 
 (/3 
 
 6&£ 
 
 (O '- VO -T X 
 
 lO 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^^5 
 
 
 
 
 •'S 
 
 nE 
 
 « 
 
 ■O 
 
 
 ^s. 
 
 J3 
 
 
 
 « 
 
 £| 
 
 
 
 
 U 
 
 w 
 
 "3 
 
 ■"' J3 
 
 g22 
 
 S^ 
 
 Jj 
 
 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 u 
 u 
 
 ±-o 
 
 nJ 
 
 
 
 a 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 '^ ja 
 
 «^£tO 
 
 o 
 
 s; 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 m 
 
 •fl 
 
 
 
 b 
 
 
 o 2 2 * 52 2 
 
 g 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 u 
 
 
 ■3 
 
 
 a 
 
 MTlfltCr- X 
 
 
 
 
 S 
 
 
 H 
 
 
 O 
 
 
 
 
lO 
 
 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 TABLE IV 
 
 ENROLLMENT IN ELEMENTARY COOKING CLASSES, 
 
 1915-1916: FROEBEL 
 
 FmsT Ten Weeks 
 
 
 No. of 
 
 Regularly 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 Enrolled as Helpers 
 
 GRADE 
 
 Pupils 
 Enrolled 
 
 
 
 
 
 Ihr. 
 
 2 hrs. 
 
 Ihr. 
 
 2 hrs. 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 10 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 4 
 
 5 
 
 39 
 
 33 
 
 ; 
 
 6 
 
 
 6 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 7 
 
 11 
 
 11 
 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 12 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 
 Total 
 
 79 
 
 44 
 
 12 
 
 19 
 
 4 
 
 Second Ten Weeks 
 
 Total 
 
 12 
 26 
 
 11 
 
 49 
 
 12 
 
 12 
 
 11 
 
 11 
 
 26 
 
 26 
 
 Total 
 
 3 
 4 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 7 
 8 
 
 Total 
 
 Third Ten Weeks 
 
 26 
 28 
 
 69 
 
 15 
 
 15 
 
 23 
 19 
 
 4 
 17 
 
 2 
 
 "65" 
 
 Fourth Ten Weeks 
 
 13 
 2 
 
 21 
 
 26 
 13 
 
 47 
 
 17 
 
 19 
 
 4 
 
 40 
 
TIME SCHEDULE AND EXROLLIMENT ii 
 
 but in the other terms for a single period (Table IV). 
 Again, the helper system extends at Emerson as low as 
 the third grade, but at Froebel not below the fourth. 
 The variation in hours for regular cooking pupils is due 
 to the fact that additional time beyond one hour is 
 optional. Helpers, however, generally speaking, have 
 no choice. They are allotted either to cooking or sewing 
 as the program is worked out, in the making of which 
 teachers, pupils, and resources are considered. 
 
III. THE CAFETERIA 
 
 THE work in cooking centers about the school 
 luncheon. Many of the children go home at 
 the noon recess ; many get their entire luncheon 
 at school, while others bring a luncheon from home, 
 supplementing it with hot soup, cocoa, or dessert. The 
 lunch rooms are open from 11:15 to 1:15. During 1915- 
 1916 Emerson served 44,582 persons, including teachers 
 and guests; Froebel, 17,842; and Jefferson, 7,889. 
 
 The cafeterias in the newer school buildings are well 
 equipped ; those in the older buildings have been arranged 
 as conveniently as possible. At Emerson there is a large 
 kitchen and separate dining room, tastefully decorated 
 by the art students. The kitchen is equipped with a 
 hotel size range, steam table, continuous cooking tables 
 with individual gas plates, and storage place for uten- 
 sils in drawers and small cupboards; a refrigerator, 
 wall closets and a supply room, and serving counters. 
 The dining room is furnished with substantial oak chairs 
 and tables; cutlery and china are provided in restaurant 
 quantities. 
 
 The quality of the food supplied is good, and the prices 
 are reasonable, as shown by the schedule at Emerson for 
 September : 
 
THE CAFETERIA 
 
 13 
 
 Vegetable soup 
 
 Noodle soup 
 
 Bean soup . 
 
 Corn chowder . 
 
 Cold meat . 
 
 Baked beef hash, Span 
 
 ish sauce . 
 Leg of veal . 
 Braised potatoes . 
 Mashed potatoes . 
 Glazed sweet potatoes 
 Cabbage 
 
 StufTed tomatoes . 
 Sweet corn . 
 Stuffed sweet peppers 
 Ham sandwich . 
 Peanut butter sandwich 
 Cabbage and cucumber 
 
 salad 
 
 Orange and grape salad 
 Grape and nut salad . 
 
 04 
 04 
 04 
 04 
 
 05 
 
 ^5 
 07 
 
 03 
 03 
 03 
 03 
 05 
 03 
 03 
 03 
 03 
 
 05 
 07 
 07 
 
 Fruit salad . 
 Peach tapioca 
 Apple dumpling, sauce 
 Chocolate pudding 
 Apple sauce 
 Scalloped apple, cinna 
 
 mon sauce 
 Orange float 
 Punch 
 
 Grape punch 
 Baked apple 
 Ice cream 
 Apple 
 Banana . 
 Cake 
 
 Hot bread 
 Hot rolls 
 Lemonade 
 CofTce . 
 Cocoa . 
 
 ^5 
 03 
 03 
 03 
 03 
 
 03 
 03 
 03 
 03 
 02 
 
 05 
 03 
 03 
 03 
 02 
 02 
 03 
 05 
 03 
 
 The average lunch charge per person was, at Emerson, 
 13.9c.; at Frocbel, 14.2c.; and at Jefferson, 15c. 
 
 At Froebcl the lunches are cooked and served in one 
 room, although there is a small alcove for the teachers 
 and guests. The equipment is of the same general char- 
 acter as that of the Emerson, though neither so extensive 
 nor so complete. Its present inventory value is S750. 
 
 Jefferson shows what can be done on an extremely 
 modest scale. A basement room, not originally con- 
 
14 
 
 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 structed as a cooking laboratory, has been partitioned 
 off and painted white, one side serving as the kitchen, the 
 other as the lunch room. A similar use is made of ordi- 
 nary basement rooms at Beveridge and Glen Park. 
 
 The entire operating expenses of the cooking depart- 
 ments, with the exception of fuel and the salaries of the 
 instructors at Emerson and Froebel and half the salary 
 of the teacher at Jefferson, are met from the proceeds of 
 
 TABLE V 
 
 'Financial Statement of Emerson Cafeteria, 1915-1916 
 
 
 NUMBER 
 SERMiD 
 
 RECEIPTS 
 
 DISBURSE- 
 MENTS 
 
 PROFITS 
 
 September 
 
 October 
 
 3,958 
 
 4,127 
 3,869 
 4,255 
 4,998 
 5,080 
 4,738 
 3,711 
 4.851 
 4,995 
 
 $ 465.32 
 547.08 
 540.64 
 623.81 
 705.24 
 739.40 
 730.28 
 604.04 
 653.13 
 602.81 
 
 $ 410.62 
 
 499.62 
 508.64 
 573.45 
 674.49 
 693.68 
 721.70 
 576.25 
 632.00 
 519.24 
 
 $ 54.70 
 47.46 
 
 November 
 
 December 
 
 January 
 
 February 
 
 March 
 
 32.00 
 50.36 
 30.75 
 45.72 
 8.58 
 
 April 
 
 May 
 
 27.79 
 21.13 
 
 June 
 
 83.57 
 
 Total 
 
 44,582 
 
 $6,211.75 
 
 $5,809.69 
 
 $402.06 
 
 the cafeteria. An examination of the receipts and dis- 
 bursements, as submitted by the Gary authorities, at 
 Emerson, Froebel, and Jefferson is interesting as bearing 
 on the question of financing such departments. 
 
 The total receipts at Emerson for 1915-1916 were 
 $6,211 and the disbursements $5,809, leaving a net 
 profit of $402 (Table V). These disbursements in- 
 clude, however, not only the cost of food, but also the 
 
THE CAFETERIA 
 
 15 
 
 salaries of two adult helpers at a monthly wage of S65 
 and S40 respectively, who assist in preparing the lunches 
 and do most of the rough work. It also includes pay 
 for a pupil cashier, and for pupils who assist in ser\-ing 
 and in washing dishes. 
 
 While the Frocbel cafeteria shows a net profit of only 
 $22.63 (Table VI), the actual profit was in excess of this, 
 for the disbursements include not only the pay of the 
 
 TABLE \1 
 1 i\\xciAL Statement of Froebel Cafeteria, 1915-1916 
 
 September . 
 October. . . 
 November . 
 December. 
 January . . . 
 February. . 
 March . . . . 
 
 April 
 
 May 
 
 June 
 
 Total. 
 
 number 
 
 RECEIPTS 
 
 DISBURSE- 
 
 SER\ED 
 
 
 MENTS 
 
 1.787 
 
 - .- ".(J 
 
 $ 148.94 
 
 1,943 
 
 IJb&i.M 
 
 232.76 I 
 
 1,677 
 
 238.82 
 
 247.80 
 
 1.184 
 
 171.29 
 
 172.69 
 
 2.018 
 
 250.48 
 
 232.57 
 
 2,035 
 
 284.90 
 
 207.22 
 
 1,938 
 
 271.25 
 
 311.57 
 
 1,353 
 
 189.39 
 
 243.36 
 
 2.162 
 
 302.72 
 
 333.33 
 
 1.745 
 
 354.01 
 
 394.30 
 
 $2,547.17 
 
 $2,524.54 
 
 $ 66.56 
 
 36.05 
 
 —8.98 
 
 —1.40 
 
 17.91 
 
 77.68 
 
 -40.32 
 
 —53.97 
 
 —30.61 
 
 -^0.29 
 
 $22.63 
 
 adult helper at $60 per month, but also expenditures for 
 equipment amounting to Si 50. 
 
 JcfTcrson makes the best showing of all, for even after 
 paying half the salary of the instructor and an assistant 
 for two hours a day at $10 per month, there remained a 
 net profit for the year of $453.30 (Table VII). In all 
 instances it is the policy of the school authorities to use 
 the surplus for the benefit of the pupils either in adding 
 
i6 
 
 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 to the teaching staff or in improving the equipment. An 
 accimiulation of profits is not permitted. 
 
 The financial experience of Emerson, Froebel, and 
 Jefferson demonstrates that cooking departments offer- 
 ing hmited opportunities may be operated, after the 
 original capital outlay, without cost to the system other 
 than the salaries of professionally trained teachers, and 
 may even be made to pay a part of this expense. 
 
 TABLE VII 
 Financial Statement of Jefferson Cafeteria, 1915-1916 
 
 September . 
 October . . . 
 November . 
 December . 
 January. . . 
 February. . 
 March . . . . 
 
 April 
 
 May 
 
 June 
 
 Total. 
 
 NUMBER 
 
 RECEIPTS 
 
 DISBURSE- 
 
 served 
 
 
 MENTS 
 
 417 
 
 $ 57.15 
 
 $ 59.12 
 
 886 
 
 143.95 
 
 89.97 
 
 649 
 
 71.23 
 
 40.58 
 
 877 
 
 115.65 
 
 62.68 
 
 970 
 
 112.45 
 
 50.13 
 
 520 
 
 126.47 
 
 88.00 
 
 1,099 
 
 191.13 
 
 146.27 
 
 595 
 
 86.69 
 
 64.63 
 
 959 
 
 153.31 
 
 76.31 
 
 917 
 
 125.69 
 
 52.73 
 
 7,889 
 
 $1,183.72 
 
 $730.42 
 
 -1.97 
 53.98 
 30.65 
 52.97 
 62.32 
 38.47 
 44.86 
 22.06 
 77.00 
 72.96 
 
 $453.30 
 
TV. STAFF AND INSTRUCTION 
 
 THE teachers fall into three groups. Emerson, 
 Froebel, and Jefferson have professionally trained 
 instructors from the University of Chicago, 
 from Cornell University, and from Valparaiso University. 
 Their salaries are Si,ooo, S750 and S600 respectively. 
 At Glen Park a regular teacher with slight special 
 preparation conducts the work, and at Beveridge a prac- 
 tical housekeeper, with no professional training, is in 
 charge. Practical housekeepers receive from $40 to S65 
 a month. 
 
 It is difTicuIt to determine definitely the content of 
 the cooking instruction in cither the elementary schools 
 or the high schools, since there is no systematic course 
 of study for either all schools or any one school. !More- 
 over, the year of the sur\'cy chanced to be one of unusual 
 disorganization. The teacher at the Froebel school 
 had been in the system only since September and was 
 preparing to leave, as was also the instructor at Emer- 
 son. Teachers changed at JelTerson during the spring, 
 and at Glen Park all cooking gave way in April to 
 gardening, while at Beveridge nothing more than the 
 preparation of the school luncheon has ever been at- 
 tempted. However, effort was being made, at least 
 
 17 
 
i8 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 at the Emerson, Froebel, Jefferson, and Glen Park 
 schools, to meet the minimimi elementary, and at Emer- 
 son and Froebel the minimmn high school, requirements 
 of the State Department of Public Instruction.^ Be- 
 yond these minimum requirements, each teacher was free 
 to plan and to execute such daily tasks as in her judg- 
 ment were calculated to meet local and individual needs. 
 
 As has already been stated, the preparation of food for 
 the cafeteria forms the basis of the Gary work whether 
 of elementary or high school grade. There are no cook- 
 ing laboratories or facihties other than the kitchens 
 and utensils employed in the preparation of the noon 
 luncheon. The same equipment is used by both ele- 
 mentary and high school students and the same in- 
 structor directs both groups. The children help to pre- 
 pare the food, set the tables, and do the serving, the 
 older pupils being held for the more responsible tasks. 
 
 Under these conditions, the content of the cooking 
 instruction can be best inferred from typical menus : 
 
 MONDAY TUESDAY 
 
 Cream of tomato soup Roast pork 
 
 Boiled ham Sweet potatoes 
 
 Baked potatoes Stewed tomatoes 
 
 Tuna fish salad Cabbage salad 
 
 Tomato salad Brown betty 
 
 Cup cake Chocolate cream 
 Peach dumplings 
 
 1" Domestic Science must be taught to the girls of the 7th and 8th 
 grades . . . two regular recitation periods per week." 
 
 "High Schools must provide at least one full year's work." f Bulletin 
 No. 17, State Department of Public Instruction, p. 214.) „ 
 
STAFF AND INSTRUCTION 19 
 
 WEDNESDAY THURSDAY 
 
 Lima bean soup Hot roast beef sandwiches 
 
 Roast beef Scalloped meat 
 
 Boiled potatoes Steamed cabbage 
 
 Banana salad Ham sandwich 
 
 Washington pie Orange salad 
 
 Stew'ed prunes Marble cake 
 
 Steamed pudding 
 Lemon cookies 
 
 It is possible to cover the field by means of such 
 varied menus quite as thoroughly as by means of defi- 
 nitely organized courses, provided the teacher keeps track 
 of what the pupils have done and what remains for them 
 to do. Unfortunately, however, except in one school 
 there were no such records, so that between the absence 
 of records and the frequent change of teachers, there was 
 danger of repetition without progress. 
 
 Unquestionably, in the Emerson school, where 
 individual records were found, the pupils were getting 
 broader and more adequate instruction than elsewhere, as 
 is apparent from the schedule given on the following page. 
 
 This schedule shows that the instructor responsible 
 for the schedule had a plan underlying her w^ork. Note, 
 for example, the soup column. The making of cream 
 soup of various kinds was driven into a girl's under- 
 standing by repetition and yet the monotony was 
 relieved by varying the kind of cream soup. By tabu- 
 lating what the pupils had done, the teacher had a record 
 of accomplislmient to guide herself and her successor. 
 
20 
 
 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 « 
 
 Clove 
 Sauce 
 Baked 
 
 Custard 
 Bread 
 
 Pudding 
 Rice 
 
 Custard 
 
 
 
 
 J3 
 
 c 
 
 1 =^3fSf^^5g '^w 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 > 
 
 cj U cS 
 000 
 
 UUU 
 
 
 ! 
 
 g 
 
 '3: 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■a 
 ta 
 
 m 
 
 
 
 
 
 •a 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 -^1 
 
 
 
 
 -w ■« ja 
 W Pi W 
 
 •^ S 4> 
 </l -rj Ci.'3 in 
 fS C g 1) 
 
 mm 
 
 
 
 a 
 
 3 
 
 00^ 
 
 u u 
 
 S "tj 2 
 uu 
 
 Sen g E Su 
 
 5h5" 
 
 U UUP-i 
 
 
 
 1» 
 
 P4 
 
 
 Ph 
 
STAFF AND INSTRUCTION 21 
 
 It will be observed, however, that only one girl made 
 bread. Obviously an instructor following the one in 
 charge, or the present instructor herself, should immedi- 
 ately endeavor to give drill in breadmaking and in- 
 creased drill in that subject to those who have had little 
 or no training in it. 
 
 Children who attend cooking classes at the Frocbel 
 and Emerson schools arc urged to repeat at home the 
 work performed at school. Only one teacher, however, 
 attempted, by means of a report made by the child her- 
 self, to hold children accountable for elTort in this direc- 
 tion. The following are samples of reports made by the 
 pupils themselves, telling what tliey have done at home 
 and their opinion of it: 
 
 Student Report of Work at Home 
 
 STUDENT 
 
 DISH MADE 
 
 SUCCESS AS 
 JLDCED BY PUPIL 
 
 "A" 
 
 Chocolate pudding 
 
 Excellent 
 
 
 Boiled rice 
 
 <( 
 
 
 Creamed carrots 
 
 Good 
 
 
 Cocoa 
 
 <( 
 
 
 Caramel frosting 
 
 (I 
 
 
 Jelly 
 
 Fair 
 
 
 Baked tapioca 
 
 (4' 
 
 "B" 
 
 Boiled frosting 
 
 Excellent 
 
 
 Cocoa 
 
 Fair 
 
 
 Boiled frosting 
 
 Excellent 
 
 
 Cocoa 
 
 Good 
 
22 
 
 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 UDENT DISH MADE 
 
 SUCCESS AS 
 JUDGED BY PUPIL 
 
 "C" Doughnuts 
 
 Excellent 
 
 Jelly 
 
 u 
 
 Rice pudding 
 
 a 
 
 Potatoes in half-shell 
 
 Good 
 
 Jelly 
 
 (( 
 
 Creamed carrots 
 
 Fine 
 
 JeUy 
 
 Good 
 
 Rice pudding 
 
 Excellent 
 
V. TESTS 
 
 FOR the purpose of obtaining objective evidence 
 as to what the Gary method accomplished, prac- 
 tical cooking tests were given. To make sure 
 that the children had at some time had the particular 
 dishes to be cooked and were familiar ^\ith the recipes, 
 the teachers in each case selected the test dishes. A 
 sufficient number were chosen so that each pupil in each 
 test group might have an individual task, and in each 
 case the pupils drew lots for these. The numbers in 
 each test group, it will be noted, are small, but they 
 include all the cooking pupils in both Emerson and 
 Froebel in grades 8 to 12 inclusive. 
 
 The tests and the results were as follows: 
 
 Group A 
 
 This group of ten ninth grade pupils were set the 
 following dishes to cook by recipe : 
 
 Hash (made from cold chops and cold potatoes) 
 
 Mashed potatoes 
 
 Tomato and cucumber salad, French dressing 
 
 Creamed asparagus 
 
 Cocoa cake, with plain frosting 
 
 Banana float 
 
 23 
 
24 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 The results, when expressed in common, nontechnical 
 terms were: 
 
 Hash: Satisfactory, though nearly an hour was spent in 
 cutting up the meat and potatoes. 
 
 Mashed potatoes: Satisfactory. 
 
 Tomato and cucumber salad, with French dressing: Satis- 
 factory. 
 
 Creamed asparagus: Too much cream. Pupil did not con- 
 sider the quantity of asparagus she had. She knew the 
 principles of making the white sauce, but did not reason. 
 
 Cocoa cake: Satisfactory. 
 
 Plain frosting: Satisfactory. 
 
 Banana float: A failure. By some error the recipe did 
 not specify when the yolks of the eggs were to be added. 
 
 Group B 
 
 Group B, four ninth and tenth grade pupils, had had 
 practically individual attention for some weeks. They 
 used recipes, and all their dishes came out well; these 
 were : 
 
 Creamed cabbage 
 Mashed potatoes 
 Two-egg plain white 
 Tapioca cream 
 
 This same group also wrote on the following questions : 
 
 1. State the most helpful things you have learned in 
 your cooking lessons. 
 
 2. In what ways do you help at home? 
 
TESTS 25 
 
 3. How many ways of cooking potatoes do you know? 
 
 4. Why do we need food? 
 
 In answer to No. i, nearly all the children implied they 
 had learned to be tidy; some to measure correctly; some 
 to bake. There was no attempt to enlarge upon their 
 experience; each child merely stated one or two points. 
 
 In answer to No. 2, all the children reported that they 
 assisted at home in washing dishes and cooking. 
 
 In answer to No. 3, it appears that boiling, frying, and 
 baking are the three favorite ways of cooking potatoes. 
 
 In answer to No. 4, it was generally stated that food 
 builds up the tissues, gives strength and warmth. 
 
 Group C 
 
 Group C, composed of seven ninth grade pupils, 
 cooked without recipes. The dishes and the results 
 were as follows: 
 
 Kidney bean salad: Satisfactory. 
 
 Strawberry jelly: Used twice as much gelatine as should 
 have been used. No sugar added. 
 
 Oatmeal cookies: Not enough oatmeal used. By an unac- 
 countable mistake bay leaf was added, giving a very strange 
 flavor. Yet oatmeal cookies have a frequent place on the 
 cafeteria menu. 
 
 Plain cake: Satisfactory. 
 
 Group D 
 
 This group of ten ninth grade pupils took a written 
 test on these questions: 
 
26 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 1 . For what needs should the income of a family provide? 
 
 2. What are the essentials of a good meal? 
 
 3. What factors should determine the patronage of a 
 market? 
 
 4. What do you do in the way of applying your domestic 
 science instruction at home? 
 
 5. What are the main classifications of food? 
 
 6. Why is dust dangerous? 
 
 7. What interest has a home maker in a city board of 
 health? 
 
 8. What steps would you take to lessen the waste of 
 food-stufifs? 
 
 9. What are the characteristics of good bread? 
 10. State briefly your idea of a well run home. 
 
 The answers to these questions showed a narrow range 
 of knowledge and interest, and a lack of understanding of 
 the application of what is learned. For example, to 
 these children the family budget (Question i) is a remote 
 matter; the interest of a home maker in a city board of 
 health, nominal; the ideal of a well run home, weakly 
 formulated. 
 
 Group E 
 
 This group, numbering two twelfth grade students, 
 one eleventh grade student, and one tenth grade student, 
 wrote on these questions: 
 
 1 . What considerations should enter into the selection of 
 a home? 
 
 2. What constitutes good buying? 
 
 3. What elements enter into the cost of food? 
 
TESTS 
 
 27 
 
 4. Wliat kinds of food should an anemic person eat? 
 
 WTiy? 
 
 5. What factors affect the kinds of foods needed? 
 
 6. What influence has woman as a consumer? 
 
 7. How should a refrigerator be cared for? 
 
 8. Give a recipe for bread. 
 
 9. Write a list of the most important kitchen utensils. 
 10. Describe the way you would lay the table for break- 
 fast. 
 
 Answers to questions 2, 4, 7. 8, 9 and 10 evidence 
 emphasis on technique only. Answers to i, 3, 5, and 6 
 show a grave lack of general understanding of anything 
 but definite facts. The pupils do not draw on their per- 
 sonal experience, and evidently arc not able to make 
 deductions properly from their general studies. 
 
VI. MERITS AND DEFECTS 
 
 IT IS not easy to pass a single or simple verdict on 
 the instruction in cooking at Gary, for there are 
 two sides to almost every one of its characteristic 
 features. For example, the introduction of household 
 arts into the lower grades through the helper system 
 revives in a measure the wholesome participation of the 
 child in the activities of the home — an order now all too 
 rapidly passing away. But the helper system is not free 
 from dangers and drawbacks. The child's interest may 
 be deadened. She may conceive positive disUke for the 
 household arts, if she is kept at the same routine tasks 
 for prolonged periods. To avoid this, helpers should be 
 rotated from task to task — an arrangement which does 
 not always obtain in the Gary cafeteria. 
 
 Again, young children cannot gain unless they are 
 helping older persons who really understand what they 
 are engaged in doing. Too often the older girls do not 
 measure up to this standard. The instructors labor 
 therefore at a threefold task — they guide the older girls 
 (their main educational task), keep the helpers out of 
 mischief, and must have the school luncheon ready at 
 the stroke of eleven. Under this burden the capable 
 instructor becomes discouraged; the weak instructor 
 
 28 
 
MERITS AND DEFECTS 29 
 
 evades her full responsibilities, leaving the practical 
 cook to prepare the important dishes. 
 
 So also the cafeteria. Much is to be said in its favor. 
 Pupils learn to work with proper regard for time, to 
 handle quantities, to consider money values, to con- 
 trive dietetic combinations. Thus the cafeteria not 
 only suppUes the school lunch, but enlarges the scope 
 of school work in cooking and gives practical point to 
 the child's effort and interest. But danger lurks in the 
 division of responsibility. One and the same in- 
 dividual at one and the same time teaches cooking and 
 conducts a commercial enterprise: few persons are 
 equally interested and equally effective in both fields. 
 When, for example, the instructor's attention inclines 
 to the commercial side, the scope and opportunity of 
 the pupils inevitably suffer. Little or no risk can be 
 taken witli tlie food, for the quantities are large and the 
 hour approaches. The practical cook therefore scarcely 
 realizes how often she prompts the pupils or does things 
 for them; nor does the teacher realize how small a part 
 of the responsibihty for the menu is borne by the chil- 
 dren. The theory is sound that children must learn to 
 cook by cooking. But in practice, the importance of 
 the immediate practical interests at stake seriously 
 compromises the educational view point. Occasionally, 
 of course, a girl goes about her tasks vdth assurance. 
 At Beveridge, for example, a child ser\'es as assistant 
 manager; she does her own work and is capable of assist- 
 ing her classmates. But it happens that this particular 
 
30 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 child has considerable responsibility at home and likes 
 to cook. A few children here and there display similar 
 characteristics. But, in the main, the exigencies of the 
 situation tie the pupils to recipes — paid helpers and in- 
 structor constantly aiding even when recipes are followed. 
 So wedded are the pupils to recipes that they are well 
 nigh helpless without them. 
 
 Cafeteria activities center about the preparation of 
 the luncheon; in consequence the afternoon instruction 
 in cooking lacks motivation. As a meal is not imminent, 
 there is really no program that must be followed. Hence 
 the instruction lacks vigor and content; the children soon 
 recognize the situation and cease to attend regularly. 
 Moreover, the teachers are exhausted by the morning's 
 ordeal, and are hardly in condition to attempt a 
 systematic effort. A few dishes are prepared — cake, 
 gelatine desserts, or bread — by a late afternoon class, 
 but baked by another group next morning. On Friday 
 afternoon, the children simply mark time, bringing note- 
 books up to date or copying recipes, while the instructor 
 checks up luncheon receipts, makes out market or grocery 
 orders, or looks after clerical details. 
 
 It must be frankly admitted that the results of the 
 cooking instruction at Gary are disappointing. It must 
 also be frankly admitted that home making in its well 
 rounded aspects has not been developed and cannot be 
 developed so long as cooking is confined almost entirely 
 to the cafeteria. The cafeteria, as we shall point out 
 later, has its part to play in^a well thought out scheme. 
 
MERITS AND DEFECTS 31 
 
 But from the point of view of home making, a cafeteria, 
 organized on a large scale, is as far removed from appli- 
 cation to the home as were the individual quantities 
 used almost universally a few years ago. The cafe- 
 teria problems of purchasing, preparing, and serving 
 food are quite difTercnt from the problems the house- 
 wife faces. 
 
 To achieve the desired results, cooking needs to be 
 taught under conditions as nearly hke those of the 
 home as can be devised and as are practicable, the 
 endeavor being to train a girl so thoroughly that she 
 will be able to think in home terms. This requires a 
 laboratory kitchen so that the instruction will not be 
 sacrificed to the demands of serving the noon lunch. 
 Wherever possible the laboratory kitchen should be 
 supplemented by an apartment or practice house, where 
 the multiple tasks of the household can be carried on 
 simultaneously. 
 
 This brings us to the part that the cafeteria should 
 play. It cannot take the place of a laboratory kitchen, 
 nor can the two be combined. The aim of the lab- 
 oratory kitchen is educational — to train for the home ; the 
 cafeteria is a business proposition and it must be so 
 conducted. But the two may well supplement one 
 another. The family meals planned in the laboratory 
 kitchen can be arranged according to the cafeteria 
 menu, and the food, if up to standard, can be utilized 
 for the luncheon. The advanced students in the cook- 
 ing classes may at the proper time take their place in the 
 
32 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 cafeteria, and help with the work during definite periods 
 of apprenticeship; the household arts instructor, acting 
 as "coordinator," should see to it that the tasks 
 assigned are properly graded and that pupils are properly- 
 rotated. The cafeteria, if of any size, should be in 
 charge of an assistant chosen because of trade experience 
 in large scale catering or lunch room management. 
 Such a person may or may not have had household 
 training. Business experience is the essential require- 
 ment. The second asset is the power to guide pupils 
 and the willingness to take advantage of their aid. 
 The type of organization here suggested frees the house- 
 hold arts teacher for teaching and makes her respon- 
 sible for education only; at the same time, it obtains 
 from the cafeteria certain educational advantages, since 
 through it the children get opportunity to acquire skill 
 and independence. 
 
B. SEWING 
 
 VII. TIME SCHEDULE AXD EXROLLMENT 
 
 SEWING at Gary is optional for high school 
 i^irls; girls in the elementary school are required 
 to take a minimum of fifty hours in either the 
 seventh or eighth grade. As in cooking, most of the 
 elementary pupils choose to take more. It was found 
 that greater numbers were enrolled in the sewing classes 
 than in cooking and at a much younger age (Table VTII). 
 Although a majority of the pupils in the sewing 
 classes come from the fifth and upper grades, pupils as 
 young as those of the third grade are found engaged in 
 class work. They are not helpers, but students. In 
 fact, the helper system is not so conspicuous in the sew- 
 ing as in the cooking department; only in rare in- 
 stances is it employed. These young children are 
 seated in groups at the side or the corner of the room. 
 The instructors give them a certain amount of attention, 
 teaching them crocheting stitches, how to km't, how to 
 put an article of underwear together, and the like. 
 They apparently enjoy the sewing room, and seemingly 
 do not annoy or hinder the work of the older pupils, who 
 have no responsibility for them. 
 
 33 
 
34 
 
 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 TABLE VIII 
 ENROLLMENT IN ELEMENTARY SEWING CLASSES, 1915-1916 
 
 Emerson 
 
 FIRST THIRTEEN WEEKS 
 
 
 No. of 
 PupUs 
 
 Regularly Enrolled 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 IS Helpers 
 
 GR.\DE 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 hr. 
 
 hrs. 
 
 hr. 
 
 hrs. 
 
 3 
 
 23 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Total 
 
 23 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 
 
 SECOND THIRTEEN WEEKS 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 
 4 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 
 5 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 31 
 
 
 17 
 
 14 
 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Total 
 
 43 
 
 
 17 
 
 26 
 
 
 THIRD THIRTEEN WEEKS 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 
 5 
 
 33 
 
 
 
 33 
 
 
 6 
 
 18 
 
 
 
 18 
 
 
 7 
 
 12 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 71 
 
 
 12 
 
 59 
 
 
TIME SCHEDULE AND ENROLLMENT 35 
 
 Froebel 
 First Ten Weeks 
 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 Regularly Enrolled 
 
 Enrolled as Helpers 
 
 
 1 hr. 
 
 2 hrs. 
 
 1 hr. 
 
 2 hrs. 
 
 3 
 4 
 6 
 6 
 
 7 
 8 
 
 5 
 
 39 
 18 
 15 
 
 16 
 
 11 
 
 15 
 
 1 
 
 15 
 
 5 
 
 28 
 18 
 
 
 Total 
 
 93 
 
 27 
 
 15 
 
 51 
 
 
 Second Ten Weeks 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 24 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 19 
 
 5 
 
 ;J6 
 
 
 
 20 
 
 16 
 
 6 
 
 40 
 
 25 
 
 15 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 7 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 5 
 
 5 
 
 
 
 
 Total 
 
 112 
 
 37 
 
 15 
 
 25 
 
 :. 
 
 
 
 Thirx) Ten 
 
 Weeks 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 55 
 
 
 
 39 
 
 16 
 
 5 
 
 33 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 10 
 
 6 
 
 15 
 
 15 
 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 27 
 
 8 
 
 19 
 
 
 
 Total 
 
 130 
 
 23 
 
 19 
 
 62 
 
 26 
 
 Fourth Ten Week> 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 22 
 
 
 
 12 
 
 10 
 
 5 
 
 22 
 
 
 
 22 
 
 
 6 
 
 13 
 
 13 
 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 15 
 
 11 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 5 
 
 5 
 
 
 
 
 Total 
 
 77 
 
 29 
 
 4 
 
 34 
 
 10 
 
36 
 
 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 
 o 
 o 
 
 w 
 
 u 
 
 b^ 
 
 
 
 in 
 
 
 
 M 
 
 
 M 
 
 
 
 M 
 
 ^73 
 
 J 
 
 
 
 H 
 
 T- 1) 
 
 
 
 
 M 
 
 rt a 
 
 C<J 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 Is 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 § 
 
 f^W 
 
 i 
 
 O5c<iooio 
 
 Ti* 
 
 t4 
 
 
 COCOi-H 
 
 05 
 
 H 
 
 
 1— I 
 
 
 
 H 
 
 
 
 
 
 a 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 w 
 
 
 
 
 H 
 
 
 
 
 H 
 
 •'S.'o 
 
 C3(MOOU5 
 
 Tf 
 
 M 
 
 O 3 C 
 
 CO CO i-H 
 
 Oi 
 
 fi 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^-a 
 
 u5 
 
 mt> 
 
 (M 
 
 (M 
 
 H 
 
 53 :S 
 
 (M 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 ? 2 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ?P c 
 
 
 
 
 
 f^w 
 
 
 I— ( 
 
 to 
 
 03 
 
 H 
 
 
 1-H 
 
 
 
 a 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 TS 
 
 
 
 
 ••-I u) <u 
 
 
 
 g 
 
 • EX'S 
 
 (Ni-HCDCi 
 
 00 
 
 o 
 
 031: 
 
 (Mi-Hi-I 
 
 m 
 
 w 
 
 ^^fS 
 
 
 
 tn 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 tn 
 
 
 
 t/3 
 
 ^-73 
 
 
 
 
 
 >5 CJ 
 
 3 2 
 
 (M 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 K* 
 
 M S 
 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^« 
 
 
 t-IM«DOO 
 
 CO 
 
 W 
 
 
 COCOr-l 
 
 C5 
 
 w 
 
 
 1—1 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 »-( 
 
 
 
 
 w 
 
 
 
 
 H 
 
 73 
 
 
 
 N 
 
 0:3:3 
 
 • a 
 
 tXM^DOO 
 
 CO 
 
 
 3 fc! 
 
 oocoi-H 
 
 en 
 
 ^^^ 
 
 
 
 
 w 
 
 
 
 
 § 
 
 CT>Oi-((M 
 
 3 
 
 
 pj 
 
 rH T-H rH 
 
 "0 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 H 
 
TIME SCHEDULE AND ENROLLMENT 37 
 
 u 
 z 
 
 ;2 
 
 ^T3 
 3 2 
 
 -J 
 
 N 
 
 N 
 
 -^ 
 
 
 CO 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 t-;D?CCT) 
 
 00 
 
 CO 
 
 
 II 
 
 "? 2 
 
 -J 
 
 »0 NN 
 
 »— 1 
 
 
 TT CONGO 
 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 Ol CO TJ" U5 
 
 
 H 
 
 g 
 
 
 
 u 
 
 N 
 CO 
 
 
 c^J 
 
 00 MN 
 
 N 
 
 ^H *- 
 
 TTOOmtO 
 
 CO 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 <MOOt-00 
 
 CO 
 
 U3 
 
 us 
 
 u 
 u 
 
 u 
 H 
 
 H 
 
 a 
 
 RcRularly 
 Enrolled 
 
 
 N 
 
 
 -i 
 
 U3O0U3U3 
 
 CO 
 
 CM 
 
 No. of 
 
 Pupils 
 
 Enrolled 
 
 lOOCt-ia 
 
 in 
 CO 
 
 
 a 
 
 < 
 
 
 
 
 CTSO'-CO 
 
 
38 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 A group of sixth grade boys also received instruction 
 in sewing at Emerson. They learned to sew on buttons 
 and were engaged in making caps for workers in the 
 steel mills and cloth pencil holders for use in the schools. 
 
 In contrast with cooking, sewing is rather popular 
 with high school girls (Table IX). Whether they 
 choose sewing in order to gain individual skill or be- 
 cause, with the assistance of the instructor, they make 
 clothes for themselves and members of their family is a 
 question. At all events, they elect it, and, as might be 
 expected, follow their choice with varying degrees of 
 enthusiasm and ability. 
 
VIII. EQUIPMENT, STAFF AXD INSTRUCTION 
 
 ALTHOUGH there is a little sewing at Glen 
 L\ Park school in the form of busy work, and 
 -*- -^ somewhat more at Jl'lTerson, there is really 
 no systematic work in sewing except at the Emerson 
 and Frocbcl schools. The equipment at these two 
 schools is ample for what is attempted, the same equip- 
 ment serving both elementary and high school pupils. 
 It consists of foot-power and electric machines, model 
 busts, sewing tables, pressing boards, and electric flat- 
 irons. 
 
 At Emerson, sewing is in charge of an academically 
 trained teacher, who also teaches geography and his- 
 tory. At Froebel, the household arts instructor di- 
 rects the work. In each school there is a practical 
 woman assistant, and these assistants do most of the 
 teaching. This arrangement .should bring about an 
 admirable balance. The practical woman learns tried 
 methods of instruction and comes to appreciate the 
 step-by-step explanation necessary in guiding pupils, 
 while the professionally trained teacher learns the 
 "short cuts" of trade work. 
 
 It would be difficult to find a harder working corps of 
 trade assistants than those in the sewing departments 
 
 39 
 
40 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 of Emerson and Froebel. They teach seven hours a 
 day and are constantly on the alert. The teaching is 
 highly individualized, and, although the pupils are 
 assembled in classes, no two members are likely to be at 
 work on the same kind of article, or to be at the same 
 point even if making the same thing. Each step is taught 
 as it comes up. 
 
 Instruction in sewing at Gary centers around the 
 practical needs of the children. Accordingly, no course 
 of study is marked out. Pupils work on what they 
 want or need to make, or on garments provided at the 
 request of parents. The teachers buy cotton cloth, 
 flannel and dress findings at wholesale, selUng them to 
 the pupils at cost, unless the parents prefer to furnish 
 material themselves. Thus, a younger sister needs a 
 dress, which at once becomes a project, even though 
 the elder sister, who is expected to make it, does not 
 know how. In such a case the instructor cuts the dress, 
 while the pupil looks on. In the making, all the ele- 
 mentary stitches are explained and tried before the 
 child proceeds. 0\'er-reiinement of execution is, of 
 course, not emphasized, as the child would become 
 bored and the mother impatient at the delay in finish- 
 ing the article. Thus, no time is lost on preparatory 
 stitches or on samplers; the children work from the 
 beginning on real things. The courses run from ten to 
 thirteen weeks in length, varying with the school. 
 
IX. TESTS 
 
 IX ORDER to ascertain whether the Gar>' children 
 receive the explanatory and supplementary in- 
 struction necessar}'' to make their practical work 
 intelligible, two written tests were given. The ques- 
 tions addressed to 2$ ninth, tenth, and eleventh grade 
 girls were as follows: 
 
 1. Name the common sewing stitches. Tell how each 
 should be used. 
 
 2. Explain a French seam. Give an example of its use. 
 
 3. To do good sewing, what supplies should be on hand? 
 
 4. How do you test a new paper pattern? 
 
 5. What t^pes of persons should avoid plaids? Stripes? 
 Bright colors? 
 
 6. What do you consider essential to good gowning? 
 
 7. WTiat points should be remembered in sewing a sleeve 
 into a garment? 
 
 8. How can a woman, when buying, influence factory 
 conditions under which clothing is made? Explain. 
 
 9. What decides you to choose between ready-made 
 and home-made garments? 
 
 10. How much instruction have you had in sev^'ing? 
 Name the articles you have made. 
 
 Questions i, 2, 3, and 5 were answered correctly. 
 Questions 4 and 7 brought out surprisingly loose, 
 
 41 
 
42 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 general answers, considering that question lo elicited a 
 long list of articles. 
 
 Questions 6 and 9 were answered incompletely, only- 
 one factor, as a rule, being mentioned. 
 
 Question 8 was not attempted by most of the pupils. 
 
 The second test was given to 35 tenth, eleventh, and 
 twelfth grade students. The questions were as follows: 
 
 1. What considerations enter into the choice of different 
 kinds of fabrics? 
 
 2. When is a woman "well dressed"? 
 
 3. How should a paper pattern be altered if the waist is 
 too long? If the waist is too short? 
 
 4. Name, in succession, the steps to be taken in cutting 
 out a skirt when a paper pattern is used. 
 
 5. Which is easier to make, a shirt-waist of plain ma- 
 terial or a shirt-waist of plaid material? Explain. 
 
 6. Explain what a placket is. 
 
 7. TeU how to press a seam. 
 
 8. With what sewing machine are you familiar? What 
 are its special characteristics? 
 
 9. How do you figure the cost of an article of underwear? 
 10. Write a list of articles you have made at home. 
 
 Questions 3, 5, 6, and 7 were answered, in the main, 
 correctly. 
 
 Questions i and 2 were answered in very general terms. 
 
 Question 8 was not answered correctly by a single mem- 
 ber of the group, yet all stated the make of a machine. 
 
 Questions 4 and 9 elicited indefinite and inaccurate 
 answers. 
 
TESTS 43 
 
 Question lo brought out a long list. 
 
 The pupils do reasonably well, it will be observed, with 
 questions dealing with facts and with questions related 
 closely to their experiences, but they are weak when 
 called on for general information and for reasoned 
 answers. In justice to the pupils, it should be said 
 that there is practically no class discussion. And in 
 justice to the teachers, it should be remembered that the 
 numbers tested are small, that the courses in sewing are 
 narrow, and there is no leeway for related work. Though 
 the teachers recognize the value of supplementary 
 comment and instruction, the opportunities for it are 
 very Limited. 
 
X. MERITS AND DEFECTS 
 
 THERE is no doubt that sewing instruction in the 
 past has erred by too close application of the 
 A, B, C of technique, and by devoting too 
 much time to drill on valueless objects. Gary is to be 
 commended for breaking away from this lock-step pro- 
 cedure. But in attempting to construct a course in 
 sewing around personal and family needs, it is quite 
 possible that she has gone to the other extreme. 
 
 The theory of the Gary work in sewing assumes that 
 the reality of the task assures the child's interest and 
 that, as compared with this, logical sequence in the 
 tasks set is of inferior importance. The proposition 
 cannot, however, be accepted in this simple form. While 
 the older model exercises have been rightly banished, 
 some form of regular progress is unquestionably indis- 
 pensable. It is the teacher's business to advance the 
 child more or less regularly through the main steps of 
 plain sewing, dressmaking and millinery, with constant 
 regard at each step for the realities possible. Thus, 
 merely formal training is avoided; but, on the other 
 hand, some consideration beyond the practical needs of 
 the moment controls procedure. 
 
 Gary wisely avoids mass teaching in sewing. On the 
 
 44 
 
MERITS AND DEFECTS 45 
 
 other hand, with its classes of 25 or 30, helpers being 
 included, individualization is apt to distract the teacher 
 and to dissipate her energies. As each pupil goes her 
 own way, it is necessary to make the same explanation 
 over and over again, and the teacher is constantly on the 
 jump. Far more, we beUeve, could be done for the 
 children if they were handled in groups. Certain prin- 
 ciples in all household art processes can be demonstrated 
 and explained to a number of pupils at one time. The 
 majority will be able, as a result of the demonstration, 
 to carry out the process, and thus the instructor is left 
 free to help those in need of special assistance. 
 
 It may be, too, that this excessive elTort to individual- 
 ize instruction accounts for the strain noticeable among 
 the practical assistants, especially when this is coupled 
 with a seven hour day. A trade day is a day of eight 
 hours, it is true, but there are difficulties involved in 
 instructing mLxed groups of cliildren which make a 
 seven hour day in the classroom more exhausting than 
 eight hours in the work shop of a dressmaking estab- 
 lishment. 
 
 Again, the emphasis at Gary on actual production is 
 commendable, but sewing instruction is something 
 more than learning to sew on buttons and hooks and 
 eyes, and learning to mend and make simple gamicnts. 
 AbiUty to do these things and to do them well is desir- 
 able, but it is quite as important that children give 
 attention to the kind and character of the garments 
 required for different purposes, to the worth and quality 
 
46 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 of different fabrics, to dyes, and to a multitude of other 
 matters essential to the proper background for clothing 
 a modern family. 
 
 Owing to the lack of appropriate records, it was im- 
 possible to determine the amount of sewing the children 
 had had and to judge their accomplishments in the light 
 of the amount of time given to their training. Observa- 
 tions of the classroom work and inspection of garments 
 yielded a few vivid impressions. 
 
 In the first place, the standard of accomplishment is 
 by no means high. In the lower grades this may be due 
 to the fact that pupils with little or no prior experience 
 often begin at once to make garments. Under these 
 conditions a finished product of high quality could not 
 be expected. Much of the work of the advanced pu- 
 pils is also below standard. While it is true that trade 
 work and school instruction differ, still, in so far as the 
 processes are common, the home making standard 
 should equal the trade standard. Gary certainly 
 Judges its products more leniently than does the trade. 
 
 Again, the instruction is hardly calculated to result 
 in capacity to do independent work. Obviously, not 
 much can be expected at the outset of children who 
 begin their school work in sewing with garment making. 
 The difficulty is that throughout the course the teachers 
 are apt to do so much of the thinking that it is doubt- 
 ful whether many pupils can, on completing their 
 course, put a dress together by themselves. There are, 
 to be sure, exceptions and for these the system is en- 
 
MERITS AND DEFECTS 47 
 
 titled to full credit. That is, there are students who 
 sew skillfully and who cut and lit with sureness. 
 On the whole, however, it remains true that suffi- 
 cient drill is not given in the principles of garment 
 making, nor is the power to think, as applied to sew- 
 ing and garment construction, satisfactorily devel- 
 oped. 
 
 Finally, too little pressure is put on the students; as a 
 result, they do not take their work seriously. A degree 
 of inattention in the elementary grades is excusable, but 
 in the high school grades, there should be e\ddence of 
 concentration aiming at a dcfmite object. This was 
 by no means commonly in evidence. A class supposed 
 to start at 2:15 did not get down to work until 2:35. Of 
 a group numbering 14, only nine were occupied. These 
 were busy — three on underwear, one on an apron, an- 
 other on a duck skirt, a sixth in making bloomers, a 
 seventh embroidering a sofa cushion, an eighth, a center- 
 piece, and the ninth was cutting out a dress. A monthly 
 school paper had just been published and the remaining 
 five members of the class were absorbed in looking through 
 the issue and in discussing the same. The thread at a 
 sewing machine broke. The pupil did not re-thread 
 that machine but moved to another. At another time 
 a group of girls came into the se\\Tng room and part of 
 them went to work. The rest were absorbed in reading 
 **The Tempest," which was to be performed that after- 
 noon by the senior class. 
 
 In sewing as in cooking, the experience of Gary shows 
 
48 THE GARY PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 that mere practical ends — the cooking of the daily school 
 luncheon or the making of needed garments — are not 
 alone broadly or sufficiently educative. Training should 
 aim to give the pupil an intelligent grasp of both subjects. 
 The child must of course be able to cut, fit and sew; but 
 she must also have an interest in fabrics, designs, uses, 
 etc. The instruction must have a conscious, central 
 aim; it must touch, now here, now there, the child's other 
 studies and activities. 
 
 A course can be conceived and executed in this spirit 
 only if there is team play between instructors under 
 proper supervision. At Gary, unfortunately, the single 
 supervisor of manual work devotes himself almost 
 entirely to the industrial work for boys. The household 
 arts themselves require the full time of a supervisor. 
 Not only is there need of a supervisor to stimulate and 
 assist the teachers, but to exercise leadership in solving 
 the perplexing problems surrounding the practical train- 
 ing of girls, in experimenting with courses of study, or- 
 ganization and methods, and in working out connections 
 with other studies and especially with the home. 
 
 The foregoing pages endeavor to depict with complete 
 impartiality the actual instruction given in the Gary 
 schools in household arts and the theory on which the in- 
 struction is based. No effort has been made to extenuate 
 defects; every effort has been made to do full justice. It 
 remains, however, to be said that there is danger that 
 such an account as has been given may mislead because 
 
MERITS AND DEFECTJj 49 
 
 it fails to give the reader a proper realization of the atti- 
 tude and spirit of the Gary pupils. These pupils are 
 happy and this is a point that cannot be ignored when an 
 inventory is taken. In the writer's judgment, the hap- 
 piness and spontaneity of the children are due to a variety 
 of causes — to the flexibility of the schedule, to the develop- 
 ment of special activities, to the absence of repressive 
 rules, to the general feeling that the school exists for 
 the child, not the child for the school. 
 
THE PUBLICATIONS OF THE 
 GENERAL EDUCATION BOARD 
 
 REPORTS: 
 
 THE GENERAL EDUCATION BOARD: AN ACCOUNT OF ITS ACTIV- 
 ITIES, 1902- I9I4. 254 PAGES. 
 
 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL EDUCATION BOARD, 
 I9I4-I915. 82 PACES. 
 
 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL EDUCATION BOARD, 
 1915-1916. 86 PAGES. 
 
 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL EDUCATION BOARD, 
 I916-I9I7. 87 PAGES. 
 
 STUDIES: 
 
 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN MARYLAND, BY ABRAHAM FLEXNER AND 
 FRANK P. BACHMAN. 2ND EDITION. I76 PAGES, WITH APPEN" 
 DI.X. 
 THE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL, BY THOMAS H. BRIGGS.* 
 COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY FINANCE, BY TREVOR ARNETT.* 
 
 OCCASIONAL PAPERS: 
 
 1. THE COUNTRY SCHOOL OF TO-MORROW, BY FREDERICK T. 
 
 GATES. 15 PAGES. 
 
 2. CHANGES NEEDED IN AMERICAN SECONDARY EDUCATION, 
 
 BY CHARLES W. ELIOT. 29 PAGES. 
 
 3. A MODERN SCHOOL, BY ABRAHAM FLE.XNER. 2} PAGES. 
 
 4. THE FUNCTION AND NEEDS OF SCHOOLS OF EDUCATION IN 
 
 UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES, BY EDWIN A. ALDERMAN. 
 31 PAGES, WITH APPENDI.X. 
 
 5. LATIN AND THE A. B. DEGREE, BY CHARLES W. ELIOT. 
 
 21 PAGES, WITH APPENDI.X. 
 
 6. THE WORTH OF ANCIENT LITERATURE TO THE MODERN 
 
 WORLD, BY VISCOUNT BRYCE. 20 PAGES. 
 
 * In Preparation. 
 
 The REPORTS issued by the Board arc official accounts of its ac- 
 tivities and expenditures. The STUDIELS represent work in the field 
 of educational investigation and research which the Board has made 
 possible by appropriations defraying all or part of the expense involved. 
 The OCCASIONAL PAPERS arc essays on matters of current edu- 
 cational discussion, presenting topics of immediate interest from vari- 
 ous points of view. In issuing the STUDIES and OCCASIONAL 
 PAPERS, the Board acts simply as publisher, assuming no responsibil- 
 ity for the opinions of the authors. 
 
 The publications of (he Board may be obtained on request 
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
 014 184 374 6