CHAPTER XIV. THE EFFECT OF MANUAL TRAINING AND TRADE INSTRUCTION UPON THE INDIVIDUAL. As stated in the letter of transmittal the original intention of the Department, in carrying out the instructions of Congress, was to secure, on the widest possible basis, the actual results of experience in manual and trade instruction, as evidenced in the after lives of student workmen in the positions now occupied by them. This intention, for the reasons stated, has been only partially carried out. Even with much larger means at the disposal of the Department the difficulties of carrying it to any great extent were great. Manual training and trade schools in this and other countries are not in all cases in possession of information as to the location and employment of their graduates or those who have gone from their institutions to practical work; yet many such were found, and from their employers the information was sought and, in a large proportion of instances, gained. To secure the results in a uniform manner a schedule of inquiries was prepared and submitted to many experts, heads of manual training and trade schools, and, after their suggestions, adopted. This schedule was modified for the purpose of securing the results of trade schools, and of the teaching of sewing and cooking in public schools; but the principle of the schedule remained the same throughout, the inquiries being shaped to the desired end in each class. RESULTS OF MANUAL TRAINING SCHOOLS. The use of the schedule relating to manual training schools resulted in securing information for 808 student workmen from the countries and the number of schools in each country shown in the following statement: STUDENTS REPRESENTED IN THE TABULATION OF MANUAL TRAINING SCHOOLS. The tabulation of these results, exhibited in summaries, discloses, in three short tables following, the age, length of employment, the class of occupations covered, and the condition, when beginning work, of the students of manual training schools: SUMMARY OF NUMBER, AGE, AND LENGTH OF EMPLOYMENT OF STUDENTS OF MANUAL TRAINING SCHOOLS, BY COUNTRIES. SUMMARY OF OCCUPATIONS OF STUDENTS OF MANUAL TRAINING SCHOOLS, SUMMARY OF CONDITION, WHEN BEGINNING WORK, OF STUDENTS OF MANUAL TRAINING SCHOOLS, BY COUNTRIES. Digesting all the details drawn from the manual training schedule, which details it is not deemed important to print here, the economic. results of manual training schools have been secured for a large num ber of student workmen. These results are shown in the following summarized table: SUMMARY OF THE ECONOMIC RESULTS OF MANUAL TRAINING SCHOOLS, BY This table is easily understood, and the results shown by it must be exceedingly gratifying to those who favor manual training, either in schools established especially for it or as features of the public schools. It must be recognized that in the foregoing table the facts are as to whether the student workman is superior in the various lines indicated to the ordinary workman; that is to say, looking at the first three columns of the table, it is learned that in 671 cases the student workman is superior to the ordinary workman in the use oftools at the begining of his employment, while 135 have not shown themselves to possess such superiority; or, to take the section of the table relating to economy in use of materials, out of 808 student workmen 460 proved to be superior in economy in use of materials to the ordinary workman, while 261 had not shown any such superiority, and no reports were |