VIII 1 CURRENT EDUCATIONAL PUBLICATIONS 1 Aguayo, Alfredo M. La pedagogia en las universidades. Habana, Imprenta Avisador Comercial, 1909. 18p. 8°. Allen, J. W. The place of history in education. Edinburgh and London, W. Blackwood and Sons, 1909. 258p. 12°. Assuming that a system of education can be based only on agreement as to values, the author, who is Hulsean professor of modern history at Bedford college, University of London, discusses the place of history in a hypothetical system founded on a basis of agreement below all controversies. The book is readable and suggestive. Betts, George H. The distribution and functions of mental imagery. New York, Teachers College, Columbia university, 1909. 99p. 8°. (Teachers college, Columbia university, Contributions to education, no. 26) Cole, Percival R. Later Roman education in Ausonius, Capella and the Theodosian code; with translations and commentary. New York, Teachers college, Columbia university, 1909. (Teachers college, Columbia university, Contributions to education, no. 27) 39p. 8°. Congres international d'enseignement menager. Fribourg, les 29 et 30 Septembre 1908. Second volume. Compte rendu des séances. Fribourg, Suisse [Office international de l'enseignement ménager] 1909. 320p. 8°. Congresso nazionale dei capi d'istituto. 2d, Rome, 1908. Atti. La riforma della scuola media. Roma, Amministrazione della Rivista pedagogica, 1909. 186p. 8°. (Supplemento della Rivista pedagogica, anno ii, fasc. v) Dewey, Henry B., ed. History of education in Washington. Preliminary edition issued for distribution at the A.-Y.-P. exposition. Olympia, Wash., E. L. Boardman, public printer, 1909. 83p. 8°. Dudley, Gertrude and Kellor, Frances A. cation of women. New York, H. 268p. 12°. Athletic games in the edu- Dugas, L. Le problème de l'éducation; essai de solution par la critique des doctrines pédagogiques. Paris, F. Alcan, 1909. 344p. 8°. 1 Compiled by John D. Wolcott, Acting Librarian of the United States Bureau of Education, to which books and pamphlets should be sent for inclusion in this record. Eaton, Ethel Mason. Kindergartens in the public schools. New York city, The Public education association [1909] 24p. 24°. Elson, William H., Superintendent of schools. Preliminary report on simplified course of study, Cleveland public schools. Cleveland, Board of education, 1909. 40p. 8°. Contains development of course of study since 1836, status of present course as compared with earlier conditions and other cities, opinions of representative citizens and elementary school principals; simplification by elimination of studies, by selection of topics, by revaluation, and by correlation; conclusions and recommendations. Formiggini-Santamaria, E. L'istruzione popolare nello stato pontificio (1824-1870). Bologna, Modena, A. F. Formiggini, 1909. 288p. 8°. Frere, Margaret. Children's care committees; how to work them in public elementary schools. London, P. S. King and son, 1909. 86p. 12°. "The purpose of this handbook is to help local managers, and more particularly women managers, of elementary schools in carrying out the social and charitable, as distinct from the official work, which awaits them in these schools." Gaudig, Hugo. Didaktische präludien. Leipzig und Berlin, B. G. Teubner, 1909. 272p. 8°. International congress for the development of drawing_and_art teaching. 3d, London, 1908. The transactions of the Congress; ed. by C. Myles Mathews. [London] Offices of the Congress [1909] 593p. 8°. Kikuchi, Dairoku, Baron. Japanese education. Lectures delivered in the University of London. London, J. Murray, 1909. 397p. 8°. The Embodies the substance of two courses given in 1907, one on Japanese Kirkpatrick, Edwin A., ed. Studies in development and learning; contributions from the department of psychology and child study in the Fitchburg normal school, made by the advanced class of 1907. New York, The Science press, 1909. 101p. 8°. Laurie, Simon S. Institutes of education; comprising an introduction to rational psychology. 3d ed. New York, The Macmillan company, 1909. 391p. 8°. "This volume contains my class lectures after frequent revision and condensations. It is the third edition, but the changes on the second edition are merely verbal."-Pref. note. Mackenzie, John Stuart and Mackenzie, Millicent. Moral education: the task of the teacher; the training of the teacher. [London, Moral education league, 1909] 30p. 8°. Reprinted from the International journal of ethics, July 1909. The secretary of the Moral education league, Mr. Harrold Johnson, knows of no more adequate statement of its position than that contained in this paper of its president, Prof. J. S. Mackenzie. National congress of mothers. How to organize parents' associations or mothers' circles in public schools, with suggestions for programs. [n. p.] National congress of mothers, 1909. 40p. 24°. National education association. Proceedings of the Department of superintendence at the annual meeting held at Chicago, Ill., February 23, 24, 25, 1909. [Chicago] Pub. by the Association, 1909. 187p. 8°. Newman, Carrie S. The kindergarten in the home; a book for parents and for all interested in child-training. Boston, L. C. Page & company, 1909. 259p. 12°. Pritchett, Henry S. The twentieth century type of education. Hampton, Va., The Institute press, 1909. 8p. 8°. A commencement address at Hampton institute, delivered May 23, 1909. Reprinted from the Southern workman. Gives as the motto of the eighteenth century school and university “I believe; " of the nineteenth century school and university, I believe, but I think;" of the twentieth century school, "I believe and I think, in order that I may work." Sandison, Howard. The problem of method. Terre Haute, The Moore-Langen printing company, 1909. 442p. 8°. "In this volume it is the intention to consider method as essentially the psychological process of the pupil in obtaining possession of the subject-matter."-Pref. to first ed. Upham, Alfred H. Old Miami, the Yale of the early West. Hamilton, O., The Republican publishing co., 1909. 274p. 8°. Virginia. University. Rural life conference. Addresses delivered at the University of Virginia summer school in connection with the Conference for the study of the problems of rural life, July 13 to 16, 1909. [Charlottesville, Va., The Michie company, printers, 1909] 98p. 8°. Willmann, Otto. Aristoteles als pädagog und didaktiker. Berlin, Reuther & Reichard, 1909. 216p. 8°. (Die grossen erzieher; ihre persönlichkeit und ihre systeme, hrsg. von R. Lehmann, 2. bd.) IX DISCUSSION THE INEFFICIENCY OF MODERN SCHOOLS A REPLY In the March number of the North American review a call was sounded by Harold E. Gorst, urging an educational reform; a plea was made for specialization instead of general education; it was urged that since the welfare of a nation depends upon the education of its youth, the children should have the best education attainable, and that that education should be along those particular lines which interest the children most. Mr. Gorst's article gives the impression that to specialize from the very beginning of a child's education is the ideal way to do; we are to believe that the educational system should be so changed that there should be great bureaus established at which the little tots should be subjected to examination to find out what the bents of their minds are, and whether their inclinations would lead them to be mechanics, authors,. farmers, civil engineers. After the officials in charge had past upon each case, the children should be sent to various schools-or, rather, "workshops "-where, from the very beginning, they might have such training as would fit them for their life work. We grant that there is something the matter with the modern school, but is the theory advanced by Mr. Gorst the solution of the difficulty? If children should start their education in such preliminary technical schools, and if they should specialize from their youth up, how broad-minded would they be when they had completed their education? They might all be master bricklayers, or master lawyers, they might be experts in their own professions and trades, but they would have nothing in common with the rest of mankind and would, of necessity, be but fine machines capable of doing efficient work and nothing more; the members of the different trades would be compelled to associate only with members of their own guilds, and that would be ruinous to society. It is hard to say in what a state society would be if the preliminary technical school idea were carried out. The love in the home is one of the redeeming feelings in this weary old world, and the admiration or adoration of the children is one of the greatest and best of the home loves. If babies would begin to prepare for their life work there could be no childhood and, if there would be no childhood, there could not be the happy home life God intended for man. But it seems useless to discuss the scheme of specialization in the elementary schools, for even the theory seems impracticable. Experts would be required to pass upon the cases of the little children in order to decide in what field the labors of each one should be directed and expended. It can easily be seen that such a great number of experts as would be required could not be found. For instance, consider the country districts. The country children have as much right to advantages as city children have, yet it is a patent impossibility to provide the expert examiners to examine the children of every country district. Even if the offices in central positions were opened, the state of the finances of the common people would preclude the possibility of the children being taken there for examination. The common school system of today offers a common education to all the children. specializing would affect only a favored few. great examining offices could be opened, the impracticable since, in the country districts, special department schools would be an absolute impossibility. Even tho the children might be able to go for examination to nearby cities, they could not go regularly to school there. They could not travel back and forth, and they could not board in town. Only city children, and, of those, only ones of means, could go to the schools. For America, then, at least that system is impracticable since the Americans stand for an equal chance for every one. The system of But, even if the system would be But, altho the system suggested seems useless, we must offer a better substitute for it, since we, too, have lamented the fact |