L B 1628 B55 ED-P VIENTARY EDUCATIONAL MONOGRAPHS Published in conjunction with C. REVIEW and THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL JOURNAL June 1922 $B ST 7Mb CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES By FRANKLIN EOBBITT THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO CHICAGO, ILLINOIS i;l. f % EDUCATION DEPT. igitized by the Internet Archive I in 2007 with funding fro . Microsoft Corporation jAA^rc h ivet 6 r^ etai fe^ SUPPLEMENTARY EDUCATIONAL MONOGRAPHS Published in conjunction with THE SCHOOL REVIEW and THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL JOURNAL No. 20 June 1922 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES By FRANKLIN BOBBITT THE UNIVEEISITY OF CHICAGO CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 3355 ■ frtytfOi Wl^'fl Copyright 1922 By Franklin Bobbitt All Rights Reserved Published June 1922 (//TK TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. Organizing for Curriculum-Making i 11. Educational Objectives 5 III. The Composition of an Ability 33 IV. The Work of the Several Departments 37 V. Literature and General Reading 45 VI. Social Studies 50 VII. Mathematics 62 VIII. Biological Science . . . . ' 67 IX. Physical Science 70 X. Physical Development and Maintenance 74 XL Home Occupations 79 XIL Practical Arts FOR Boys . 83 XIII. Visual Art 86 XIV. Music : 89 XV. English Expression 92 XVI. Modern Languages 95 XVII. Latin 99 Index 105 752824 CHAPTER I ORGANIZING FOR CURRICULUM-MAKING The practical school man wants to know how to draw up courses of study which look in the direction of current progress, and which he can have ready for next year's work. He knows the value ef s';ientift■' Strange as the statement may seem, high schools have not yet (J \v/ / clearly differentiated between general training and vocational training. They have not clarified their ideas as to what should be the content of either, when it is to be considered wholly separate from the other. The general training is that training to be given to all, irrespective of the specialized calling into which they may go. Except as they \ \ differ in natural capacity and aptitude, it will be much the same for all. It is for the things which they have in common. It must be drawn, therefore, without any consideration of specialized vocational needs, since these are not needs in common. For the vocational training must then be included the things which are not needed in common, but which are demanded by the specialized activities of the specific callings. This V \ THE WORK OF THE SEVERAL DEPARTMENTS 39 training must be only for those who have chosen a calHng; and they will pursue only those educational objectives appropriate to the calling chosen. But subjects are involved in both. Mathematics, for example, is concerned in general training. It is also involved in specialized ways in many kinds of vocational training. The high-school problem is how to care for the mathematical element in each without excess or deficiency in either. The usual high-school solution is to organize one series of high-school mathematics courses without looking clearly to either general or vocational needs with the hope, nourished by reiterated assertion, that it will provide both the best general training and the best vocational training. In the usual case it is an evasion, not a solution. | There can be no solution until we draw up the mathematics for general/ training and that for specialized training wholly independently; and' each on a previously and carefully prepared foundation. An analogous problem confronts every high-school department. Every department must draw up the content of its program twice: once as general training; once as vocational training. The work in Los Angeles here reported relates to one side of the problem only, namely, the general training. The objectives of the several departments herein presented, and the other matters, are only those of the general training. When this side of the work is finished, the vocational will be undertaken. A department cannot know where to begin with its vocational program until it knows what foundation is to be provided in the general training. III. PUPIL ACTIVITIES AND EXPERIENCES After each department had assembled the objectives at which the department should aim in its labors, the first departmental problem was solved — for the time being and until a better solution was forth- coming. The next question then was, What are the activities and experiences on the part of the pupils which are necessary for achieving these objectives? The pupil experiences and activities are the cur- riculum. The plan employed was to take each objective individually or to take a related group of them collectively and to draw up a statement of the several specific things which a pupil may or ought to do or to experi- ence in order that he may arrive at the desired goal. The form of state- ment of the pupil experiences is illustrated in the chapter, which follows, on literature and general reading. ^ 40 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES IV. BASAL ASSUMPTIONS It is not enough merely to have the objectives for guidance in formulating the series of pupil activities and experiences. Naturally one must have in mind the physical and psychological natures of the pupils; and also a knowledge of the environment^ scholastic and non- m^ scholastic, in which the students will secure their experiences. Over and beyond these each department really needs a comprehensive series of general educational principles for guiding thought and judgment through the endlessly intricate mazes. Unfortunately educational science is on such a primitive level that no such list of educational principles is available for any department of education; nor upon any academic level, whether kindergarten or college of liberal arts. Current (education in every department and on every academic level is today administered on the basis of hypothesis and assumption. Except for a very few things, all we can do in any department is to elaborate and make definite our hypotheses and basal assumptions. These can provide us with better guidance than nothing at all. Actual use of the best hypotheses which we can formulate will test their validity and thus gradually develop the science. The initial stage of every complex science is hypothesis. The /science develops by testing out the hypotheses, correcting them, rejecting the things that will not stand the test and keeping those things which do stand the test. This is certain to be the road of science in establishing the major things in the field of education. Careful experimentation * will here and there provide supplementary and confirmatory tests. Statistical studies will be for the purpose of accurately assembling evidence relative to the ways the h3rpotheses actually work out. A fundamental problem therefore for the teachers of Los Angeles was, What are the hypotheses or basal assumptions which should be employed by the several departments in formulating the pupil activities ? The long task of assembling these assumptions is not yet finished. The tentative series which were employed as starting-points in the deliberations are the ones which are presented in this monograph. It is possible that some of them will undergo large modification before they are accepted by the departments, and by the supervisory authorities. For suggestion to the several departments in their formulation of assumptions appropriate to their special fields, a list of general assump- tions was sent out for reference. It was expected that these, so far as they appeared valid, would be translated into the terms of the several special departments. They were the following: h THE WORK OF THE SEVERAL DEPARTMENTS 41 ASSUMPTIONS RELATIVE TO THE OBJECTIVES 100. The efUhHicterislics and abilities which should be possessed by men and women of the adult world are the things to be developed through the processes of educaton. These are the educational objectives. loi. The first practical task involved in curricidum-construction is to determine as fully and exactly as possible the entire range of characteristics and abilities which should belong to well-developed men and women. 102. The abilities and characteristics are to be discovered only by careful analysis of desirable human activities in all fields of human affairs. [The first step is preliminary analysis, largely non-quantitative and therefore tentative; it can be made final, only as it is made quantitatively exact.] 103. The characteristics and abilities must be no narrow or limited series. The list should be as wide as human life in all of its desirable aspects. 104. Each characteristic or ability to be aimed at should be definite. 105. The entire range of ultimate objectives should be determined without reference to the means to be employed in attaining them. 106. Individuals differ in the capacity to develop the several abilities and characteristics. 107. In the case of any individual, education will aim at the abilities and characteristics which are possible for him. 108. Education will not aim at abilities that are not potential in the native capacity of the individual. 109. Education will aim at different degrees or levels of ability for different individuals according to their native capacity. no. Education will often aim at different degrees of ability for individuals of the same native capacity because of differences in their social, geographical, or vocational situation. lit. Each child — so far as it can be administratively managed — is to be trained according to his individtml capacity and needs. 112. Outside of training for their specialized occupations, the educational objectives, in kind and in general outh'ne, will be much the same for all indi- viduals; in details and in degree of achievement, they will differ greatly among individuals according to natuaral capacity and social situation. 113. The characteristics and abilities discovered through analysis should be divided into two lists: (i) Those that are sufficiently developed through the outside normal processes of living, and which, therefore, require no scholastic labor; and (2) those that require scholastic effort in addition to the outside experiences of normal living. Only the second list will require professional attention in formulating the school's curriculum. Note. — The experiences involved in the normal processes of living, at whatever age, we shall call fundamental educational experiences. Those which are consciously designed to prepare one for the normal processes of living — which are not regarded as life itself, but only as preparatory for life — we shall 42 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES call accessory educational experiences. Fundamental experiences include: (i) AU genuine play experiences — whether physical, social, intellectual, or aesthetic — and whether at home, at school, or at any other place; (2) the normal work activities of the world in general, outside of schools, which involve sense of responsibility — occupational activities, unspecialized practical activities, civic activities, health activities, etc. The accessory experiences are those work experiences found in schools or directed by schools which aim definitely and consciously at producing the skills, habits, powers of judgment and self- guidance, etc., needed in the world of practical affairs. The accessory activities involve sense of responsibility for results, and all the other characteristics of work. The things are to be done without reference to whether they are pleasant or unpleasant at the moment. Accessory activities are prompted in the main by derived interests. In so far as instincts and interests can be awakened, they may be suffused with the spirit of play and thus present characteristics of both fundamental and accessory activities. 114. The two lists will differ according to the native capacities and the social situations of the children. 115. The diagnostic method of using defects, shortcomings, and errors as evidences of the need of professional effort is most fruitful in discovering the objectives that require accessory activities in addition to the fundamental. 116. Objectives requiring directed effort should be divided into three lists: (i) Those to be cared for wholly by agencies other than the school; (2) those to be cared for partly by the school and partly by other agencies; (3) those to be cared for wholly by the school. 117. Diversity of objectives, especially as regards level of attainment, negative the possiblity of uniform inflexible courses of study, the same for all. 118. For each ultimate objective, progress objectives should be set up to mark the several levels of attainment. These are the standards of achievement for the several grade levels. 119. The major objectives of education should be analyzed by way of discovering the factors involved in each of them. These are in part the still more specific objectives; and in part, imderlying fxmdamentals. ASSUMPTIONS RELATIVE TO THE PUPIL EXPERIENCES 130. Experiences alone educate. 131. After making allowance for the heredity factor, the education of any person is wholly determined by the experiences he has had. 132. A curriculum is the series of experiences to be had by an individual as the means and condition of achieving the several educational objectives. 133. Fundamental experiences — as defined above — are the ones that are educationally most effective. 134. For attaining each objective, fundamental experiences of the best practicable type are to be used in maximum measure. THE WORK OF THE SEVERAL DEPARTMENTS 43 135. Fundamental experiences are to be had both at school and within the general community life. 136. For attaining each objective, accessory experiences are to be used only in the degree in which the results cannot be effectively or economically attained through fundamental experiences. They are to be used in minimum measure — though, of course, as much as conditions make necessary. 137. Accessory experiences are to be had mainly at school, or in work elsewhere directed by the school. 138. Accessory experiences are effective in the degree in which they are involved in or related to the fundamental experiences with which they are concerned; or in the degree in which they are suffused with the play-spirit while maintaining the work vision and sense of responsibility. 139. A major test of the success of the school work is the measure in which the accessory activities have taken on the characteristics of fundamental activities. 140. Play experiences should be actual play — ^vigorous, strenuous, and joyous. 141. Most fundamental experiences of the play- type require careful guidance and leadership, much of which should be provided at, or in connection with, the schools. Educational play experience must not be irresponsible. 142. Work experiences should be actual work — with full sense of responsi- bility. 143. Even where the fundamental experiences prepared for are those of play, the accessory experiences will be work experiences — though they may be suffused with the play-sprit. 144. All preparatory or accessory educational experiences should be definitely and consciously preparatory for clearly seen activities or abilities. [The child should never work in the dark, not knowing his objective. He may play without knowing the educational objectives of his play. His teachers will know.] 145. The fundamental experiences, whether of play- type or work- type, must differ with the stages or levels of maturity of the children. 146. The curriculum must therefore consider the physical and psycho- logical constitution of the children on their different age-levels; and for each level utilize only types of fundamental experiences that are appropriate to that level. 147. Accessory experiences must differ with the levels of maturity: the curriculum must provide according to the physical and psychological possi- bilities of each level. 148. The beginning of the work of developing any objective will be made only when the pupil has attained the requisite degree of maturity. 149. The training for any objective is to cease as soon as that objective is attained in desired degree — whatever be the stage of maturity. 44 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 150. After an ability has been developed, the educational purpose then becomes changed. The purpose then becomes maintenance of the ability, so as to prevent deterioration. 151. So far as possible, maintenance experiences will be fundamental experiences. 152. Pupil experience at any given stage of development must be a normal continuation of previous experiences. 153. Fundamental experiences of play- type will differ with the native capacity of the children. 154. Fimdamental experiences of the work-type will differ with the natural capacities of the children. 155. Accessory experiences will differ with the native capacities of the children. 156. Pupil experiences will differ with the social situation and opportunity of the children, even with the same objectives more where objectives differ. 157. In determining the pupil experiences to be employed in attaining each objective, the curriculum-maker should find the well-springs of action and effort that can be utilized in prompting to greatest endeavor. 158. The method of practical, and when possible, experimental try-out is to be used in testing the efficacy of pupil experiences of all types and on all levels. 159. Diversity of needed experiences, even in the case of the same general objectives, negatives the possibility of uniform inflexible courses of study, the same for all. 160. The pupil experiences should always be normally vigorous; and often, in most fields, on both play and work levels he strenuous — sometimes even beyond the point of pain. 161. Experiences on all levels of maturity should be diversified and involve all normal and desirable aspects of one's being. CHAPTER V LITERATURE AND GENERAL READING As previously mentioned the teachers of literature went through the comprehensive series of abilities and selected those which should be kept in view as the goals of the work in literature and general reading. After they had thus pointed out the abilities to be aimed at, a statement of literature objectives which involved the more fundamental ones chosen was drawn up and submitted to the teachers for their considera- tion. The following list includes the fundamental objectives as they were chosen. 1. The ability, disposition, and habit of abundant and greatly diversified reading as a means of enjoyable and fruitful indirect observation of men, things and affairs, and of vicarious participation in those affairs. 2. The ability through reading to enter into and participate in the varied, but especially the serious, thought-life of the world. 3. A proportioned intellectual apprehension, such as one's native capacity will permit, of men, things, and affairs; together with the necessary normal interests, emotional accompaniments, etc. Specifically, such as the following: a) The nature of man, types of men, social classes, etc. h) Human institutions. c) Manners and customs. d) Special human groups and their specialized situations, activities, duties, problems, etc. [This includes occupation groups.] e) The genesis of man and his institutions, customs, arts, etc. /) Man's creations of myth, legend, and folklore. g) The world of technology. h) The world of fine arts. i) Man's physical and geographical habitat: (i) The world of plant life; (2) world of animal life; (3) world of chemical phenomena; (4) world of physical phenomena; (5) the geological world; (6) the astronomical world. 4. A mind enriched with the world's great literature. 5. A "human race, " "brotherhood of man, " " large-group" social conscious- ness. Sympathetic and intelligent social attitudes and reactions — to things local, state, national, and international. 6. Language abilities which in part result normally from abundant and diversified reading: a) Ability to read with proper ease, speed, and comprehension. h) Ability to spell the words of one's writing vocabulary. c) Command over an adequate reading, speaking, and writing vocabulary. 45 46 CURRIGULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES d) Ability to use English which is grammatically correct. e) Ability to organize and express one's thoughts effectively. /) The abiHty to get the essential thought of books or articles quickly with a minimum amount of reading. g) Ability to read a foreign language. h) A proper character and degree of language-mindedness. i) Amateur ability to do literary production of different kinds. This tentative list may be modified. The foregoing objectives, how- 'ever, were accepted with such unanimity that it is improbable that any of them in substance will be rejected. Further changes are likely to be in the mode of a statement; and by adding others to the list. The objectives practically coincide with some of those presented by the Committee on the Reorganization of English in Secondary Schools. They differ, however, in two essential respects. On the one hand, they give greater emphasis to literature as a field of human experiences, used for the sake of the experiences. On the other hand, they place less emphasis on the technique of producing literature. In larger measure than recognized by the Committee, they are the objectives of literature as a means of general education, and in less meas ire the objectives of literature as a field of training amateur or professional writers. They look to the everyday needs of loo per cent of the men and women of Los Angeles rather than to the specific professional needs of that i per cent or less of the population which may at one time or another engage in professional or amateur literary production. With the foregoing objectives before them the next task of the teachers was to formulate a statement of pupil activities and experiences necessary for achieving each of them. For objective I for example, they were to draw up a list of which the following is only a beginning: LITERATURE OBJECTIVE I 1. The pupil will read Hterature several hours each week in ways and under conditions as normal as possible. 2. He will read books, stories, articles, etc., appropriate to his level of maturity and degree of achievement. 3. He will himself, with the advice of, and within the limits set by his teachers, choose the books that he will read. 4. He will read hterature that reveals Hfe and institutions in the different countries of the earth. 5. He will read literature which reveals human life and affairs at different periods in the world's history. 6. He will do most of his reading at home. [Except where home-life is abnormal.! LITERATURE AND GENERAL READING 47 7. He will often talk over his reading with his associates, both juvenile and adult. 8. In most of his reading, he will read silently; and as far as conditions permit, rapidly. 9. He will 10. He will 11. Etc. It is indispensable that education be stated in terms of what the pupil does or experiences. For this reason it was suggested that, as shown in the example, each of the pupil activities and experiences begins with the words, "The pupil will " After having decided upon the objectives, it was found necessary to agree upon certain basal assumptions which could be used for the guidance of committees of teachers in considering the pupil activities and experiences required for achieving the several objectives. The thing really needed is a set of basic general principles; but owing to the embryonic character of educational science in this field, it is not possible at present to have anything which can be dignified by the name of principles. The only thing possible at present is to set up certain general assumptions, which are admittedly tentative, but which can serve until something better can be provided. In large measure, they are but hypotheses. But nine-tenths and more of the practical work of education proceeds on the basis of hypothesis. The science of educa^ tion is to be derived in time through the testing out of these hypotheses. The general assumptions considered by the principals and teachers of Los Angeles were the following: LITERATURE — GENERAL ASSUMPTIONS 1. The content of the courses in literature and general reading is indicated by the answers to the following questions: (i) What literature and general reading should be currently used by the men and women of the city? (2) In what manner ? (3) Under what circumstances ? (4) For what purposes ? 2. Literature and general reading should be used to provide a large portion of the experiences involved in the general training of all boys and girls. 3. For the rank and file of our population, including those who graduate from high schools, literature is a thing to he used; and nothing more. 4. Neither knowledge nor skill in the technique of literary production is necessary for those who only use literature. [One can use a watch without knowing the technical make-up; equally well, literature.] 5. The major experience in using Hterature for education is reading it — abundantly — with enjoyment — ^under normal reading conditions. 48 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 6. Reading habits are to be formed under conditions as nearly like those of desirable adult reading as practicable. 7. In using literature and general reading for education there should be a maximum oi fundamental experiences; and a minimum of accessory activities. 8. Practically all normal reading of literature nowadays is silent, individual, and relatively rapid reading. 9. Pupil choices and activities will not be of desirable type without adult guidance, stimulation, and leadership; yet pupil self-direction should be utilized as fully as practicable. 10. For equal values secured from the literature, if they can be tested, self-directed home or club reading should be accorded larger credit than teacher-directed school reading. 11. The literature used for education — except that relatively small portion that is consciously playful — ^will present reconstructions of human nature, human action and reaction, the background of individual experiences, etc., that correctly represent the realities. 12. The things chosen to be revealed by literature must be things worth while. 13. Literature is to be used for its experience value; not studied for technique and form. 14. The criterion of worth for general educational purposes, to be applied to any proposed literary selection, must be experience value as measured by its fruits. 15. The literature used by pupils at any given time should look to their immediate natures and needs as well as to ultimate outcomes. 16. The experiences involved in using literature are wholly of play type — the intellectual [and emotional] play of indirect observation and vicarious participation. 17. Literary history is a matter of little significance to the men and women of the city. 18. A knowledge of literary types, beyond that learned incidentally through the normal use of literature, is not a necessary portion of the general training. 19. Knowledge of the technical construction of literary types, beyond that acquired through using them, can be of no service in the general training of the men and women of the city. ^ 20. Studies about literature, for those who need such studies, will be undertaken only after they are thoroughly familiar with literature through having widely used and experienced it. 21. Since literature is to be chosen for its revelation, it is a matter of indifference in what language it was originally written, or what the nationality of the writer was. Translations are to be freely used. 22. Those who read a foreign language should secure a portion of their literary experience through readings in that language. LITERATURE AND GENERAL READING 49 23. General training in literature in our high schools is not for the vocational training of writers. 24. Only those are to be trained for vocational production in this field who have definitely chosen this as their work; whom studies of capacity show to be fitted for it; and who are capable of a large degree of self-direction in achieving the skills and understanding. 25. Training for amateur literary production is to be given only to those of proven capacity, aptitude, and industry — and who require no great amount of teacher-effort and assistance. 26. Literature in its content and revelation is a "social study." It should be classified with the "social studies" group; its content chosen on the basis of the "social studies" objectives; and made an integral portion of the "social studies" program. The foregoing series of assumptions represent the first tentative draft presented to the teachers for their consideration, criticism, amend- ment, acceptance, rejection. It presents most of the major problems. At the same time it suggests the solutions — in hypothesis. The teachers are yet considering which of them they will accept, which ones modify, which ones reject. At the same time they are looking for any others which, in their judgments, they can consider valid. The series which they will finally use has not yet been formulated. CHAPTER VI SOCIAL STUDIES The teachers of social studies pointed out a large number of the specific abilities as matters that could be served by the social studies. The fundamental ones appear to be the following: THE OBJECTIVES 1. Ability to think, feel, act and react as an efficient, intelligent, sym- pathetic, and loyal member of the entire social group — that group that is prior to and above differentiation and within which social differentiation occurs. Large-group or citizenship consciousness. Sense of membership in the total social group, rather than in some special class. Large-group local consciousness when dealing with local problems; large-group state consciousness when deahng with state responsibilities; large-group national consciousness when dealing with national matters; large-group world-consciousness when deahng with mankind's responsibilities for world-co-operation and management. 2. The abihty of the citizen to do his individual share in performing those social functions for which all citizens are equally responsible in the support, protection, and oversight of the specialized groups and agencies into which society is differentiated for effectiveness of action. The student is to acquire that ability which, when adulthood is reached, will enable him to perform the following things in connection with the several specialized social agencies: a) Setting up in public opinion and maintaining standards of results to be achieved by the service agency. b) Keeping informed relative to the labors of the service agency by way of noting whether it is aiming at the standards of achievement sanctioned by public opinion. • c) Keeping informed in general ways relative to procedure employed by the service agency in achieving the desired results. d) Keeping informed relative to material working conditions necessary for continuously efficient service on the part of the agency. e) Supplying the money required for providing the necessary material facilities. /) Keeping informed in general ways relative to amounts and types of labor needed, and number and character of the personnel of the agency. g) Supplying the money required for providing the necessary personnel. h) Directly or indirectly selecting or approving the selection of the personnel of the agency. 50 SOCIAL STUDIES 51 i) Currently or periodically examining directly or through publicity reports, or both, into the results achieved by the agency, and the degree of economy employed. j) Where results achieved and degree of economy employed comply with standards of expectation, approving and properly rewarding the labors of those who have thus given good service, k) Where results do not reach the standard of expectation, or where there has been waste, find the cause of the deficiency, and remove it as expe- ditiously as practicable. Note. — This second objective thus involves a whole series of specific abilities. Because of their inseparable and interrelated character, however, they should be treated together as one highly composite ability. This series is complicated in still another way. For each separate specialized social agency, it needs to be stated anew in relation to and in terms of that agency. Thus at one time it should be stated in terms of the public-school system; at another, in terms of the city-streets department; a third, the postal system; etc. As many series are needed as there are specialized social agencies. 3. The ability and disposition to use general principles in dealing with economic, political, and other social problems. 4. The ability, the disposition, and the habit of using facts as the sine qua non of thought and decision relative to social matters. 5. Ability, disposition, and habit of diversified observation of men and things and afi'airs as an enjoyable and fruitful leisure occupation. 6. Ability, disposition, and habit of abundant and greatly diversified reading as a means of enjoyable and fruitful indirect observation of men, things, and affairs, and of vicarious participation in those affairs. 7. Ability, disposition, and habit of conversation and formal discussion of economic, civic, and other social problems as enjoyable and fruitful leisure- time occupations. 8. AbiHty wisely to utilize the participative and observational opportunities of travel as leisure occupations of maximum pleasure and profit. 9. Ability, disposition, and habit of taking up occasionally the systematic study of some new thing. 10. A proportioned intellectual apprehension, such as one's native capacity will permit, of men, things, and affairs; together with the necessary normal interests, emotional accompaniments, etc. Specifically, such as the following: a) The nature of man, types of men, social classes, etc. b) Human institutions. c) Manners and customs. d) Special human groups and their specialized situations, activities, duties, problems, etc. [This includes occupational groups.] e) Man's physical habitat. /) The genesis of man and his institutions, customs, arts, etc. g) Man's creations of myth, legend, and folklore. 52 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES II. Ability to act in those sjonpathetic, tactful, and human ways that are both most agreeable and also most efifective in the conduct of one's relations with one's associates. This is the first or tentative statement of the objectives selected. As the work proceeds it may be modified by the addition of other objec- tives, by changes in the mode of statement, by amendment and qualifica- tion, etc. Thus to know the destination is one of the surest guaranties of safe arrival. It is not sufficient however. One must also know the road to be traveled. Dropping the figure, we must know the pupil's activities and experiences which will safely bring him to the goals of the social studies. We need therefore general principles to guide in the selection of pupil activities. For reasons already mentioned we cannot yet have general principles. It is therefore desirable to draw up a list of general assumptions for the sake of guidance until the principles can be established. The teachers of social studies in Los Angeles are at present engaged upon the problem of formulating a set of basal assumptions which they can employ in the guidance of the social studies curriculum- formulation, and of the teaching. In the following list is presented the formulation of tentative principles which was the starting-point of their labors. It was suggested that they choose those which were acceptable, modify those which were only partially acceptable, reject the unaccept- able, and to extend the list by the addition of omitted ones which the majority could accept. Thus the following represent only the starting- point of the practical work; they do not pretend to be in finished form. Presented in this way, they reveal the problems, and economize the teachers' time in arriving at their own formulations. ' TENTATIVE ASSUMPTIONS AND PRINCIPLES Social Stydies 1. The fundamental purpose of all of the social training is to develop power to act in desirable civic and social ways. 2. Power to act with ease, certainty, economy, and efficiency in any specific way is acquired mainly hy acting in that specific way. One learns to do by doing. 3. Power to act wisely and forcefully in discharging one's civic, economic, and the other social responsibilities of today demands power to think in terms of general principles as applied to concrete situations. Power to think, judge, and decide must therefore be a proximate objective of education. This means not merely knowledge of general principles, but skill in applying such principles to practical situations. SOCIAL STUDIES 53 4. The general principles of society can have meaning, significance, or value for one only as they grow up out of the concrete experiences in which they manifest themselves. 5. General principles cannot be taught through mere verbal presentation of them — not even with the best of the illustrations and explanations of " teaching." Generalizations in the mind must grow out of concrete experiences; they cannot be manufactured by any easy verbal "teaching" process. The thing mainly needed by the students is not teaching but experience. 6. Development of the social knowledge needed — that of social principles — therefore demands first and foremost the provision and utilization of oppor- tunities for social experiences. 7. The social experiences needed exist upon two levels: (i) the level of intellectual and social play; (2) the level of work. 8. Both play and work levels are indispensable. Both need to be fully developed. Neither can perform the function of the other. 9. Play experiences provide the broad, rich background of social under- standing, interests, attitudes, sympathies and antipathies, likes and dislikes, sense of proportion, social vision and perspective, etc. 10. Work experiences of civic type are to develop skill, forcefulness, sense of responsibility, etc., in performing the actual civic functions of the citizen. 11. Play and work experiences in this field need to be clearly distinguished in order that play should be play and work should be work; in order that the present usual relatively useless hybrid which is neither the one nor the other may be supplanted by things genuine and effective. 12. The background training of the play level necessarily precedes the specific training of the work level. This does not mean that one will be finished before the other begins. The two will run alongside throughout the high school, the one continually laying the foundation for the other. 13. The social experiences upon the play level will be entering into the experiences of social groups: i) Through participation [sometimes]. 2) " observation [more frequently]. 3) " reading [abundant]. 4) " conversation, etc. 14. There are many groups, formed on different bases. Boys and girls are to enter abundantly into the experiences of all kinds of groups. 15. The central concrete realities with which the students are to be con- cerned primarily are the social groups, territorial and functional. 16. The boys and girls should so enter into the experiences of social groups as to become familiar with their composition, social situation and relationships, purposes, ambitions, motivating forces, duties, rights, responsibilities, services, needs, etc. 17. They will become familiar with these things through experiencing the group life, not by coldly studying abstractions about the group. Primarily they 54 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES will live — and learn by living; not learn in the impossible way of memorizing verbal abstractions. 1 8. Abstracted aspects of society are not to be the central things of the educational process. 19. Experiencing the affairs of a group — territorial or functional — at the different stages of its career is to see it historically. 20. Viewing those experiences from the point of view of the physical controls of the general environment is to view it geographically. 21. Singling out the economic factors of the composite group-experiences is to view the group affairs economically. 22. Singling out the political science factors is to view it politically. 23. Viewing the group from the point of view of a composite of social factors, influences, and relations is to view it sociologically. 24. Whatever the aspect studied, the concrete reality before one should always and clearly be the social group, or groups. 25. It is desirable that territorial groups — localities, states, nations, regions, etc. — be severally and collectively viewed from these various points of view. 26. It is likewise desirable that functional groups — economic groups, religious groups, political groups, etc. — be viewed severally and collectively from the various points of view. 27. The group-experience in the concrete should be the central thing in consciousness in considering any one of the several aspects of this experience. 28. Out of the concrete experiences with groups should grow up generaliza- tions and principles which should be formulated and stated as exactly as practi- cable. For convenience these may be classified as economic principles, political principles, geographical principles, etc. This, however, is the culmina-- tion of the process; and comes after the concrete experiences. 29. As general principles are formulated out of the concrete experiences of groups, general readings in principles of economics can be of assistance in formulating economic generalizations; in principles of political science for generalizations in that field; in principles of geography for generalizing the geographic controls; etc. Such books, however, must be aids, not bases, of study. 30. General principles will not be formulated at any one stage in the studies; they will be gradually formulated as the basic experience accumulates, and as pupils become sufficiently mature. 31. General principles once formulated will be used and tested over and over again as studies of still other concrete groups are undertaken. Thus they are further developed, and mentally assimilated. 32. Except as one observes and participates directly, the basic concrete social experience will be history. Along witli this will go literature and travels. Into this narrative reconstruction of experience will be woven such description, exposition, and other explanatory material as needed ; and continually, though never obtrusively, the generalizations. SOCIAL STUDIES 55 $S- The fruit of these educational experiences is to be the enriched and generahzed social mind; not a mere walking encyclopedia of social facts. The thing desired is power — ^power to think and feel and act; not mere power to regurgitate undigested facts in verbal form. 34. The enriched and informed social mind is not the ultimate objective of social training. It is the ultimate objective of the training on the play level. But this latter then looks to the farther objective of the work level — viz., power to discharge one's civic responsibilities. 35. Specific powers to perform the specific functions of the efiicient citizen are mainly to be developed by actual functioning upon the work level. 36. Activities cannot be genuinely upon the work level except as they involve felt sense oj responsibility. 37. Civic responsibiHty rests primarily upon the adult citizens and not upon adolescent boys and girls; if the latter are to bear genuine civic responsi- bility in order that work experiences be genuine work and not academic make-believe, then the adults must share certain of their civic responsibilities in sufficient measure for training purposes. Civic sense of responsibility is not to be developed in a social vacuum. Reference is not here made to the pupil's sharing in the labors of the specialized service agencies. These are specialized vocations into which he cannot really enter. We refer to sharing in the labors of the lay citizens in general in discharging their civic responsi- bilities. ^^. Public opinion is the fundamental controlling social force. To gather, organize, and present facts needed for developing, maintaining, and focusing public opinion is to perform tasks on the work level. The tasks involved relative to any agency are very numerous, and the agencies are equally numerous. The work opportunity is, therefore, inexhaustible in amount. [See objective No. 2 above.] 39. On the work level the tasks are to be performed with all possible exactness and thoroughness. 40. Facts to be gathered relative to any specialized service agency should be largely in quantitative terms. Civic studies should be as mathematical as physics or engineering. 41. Outside of one's vocation and one's unspecialized practical activities, one's mathematical thinking will be mainly in connection with one's civic responsibilities. 42. The mathematics of civic and economic thinking will be mainly applied arithmetic and statistical method; and taught by the teachers of civics and economics as an aspect of the handling of their problems. 43. On the work level, students will make surveys of matters involved in civic, economic, and other social fields, and prepare statistical tables, charts, diagrams, etc., for general community purposes. 44. As pupils make analyses and interpretations on the work level, they will continually use for guidance, and as the fundamentals of their thought. 56 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES the general principles which were the outcomes of the social studies on the play level. 45. The programs of social studies and of literature and general reading need to be drawn up together as portions of one program of experiences. 46. Fiill social training should be required of all pupils in every year of their general training. 47. On the side of one's general [not vocational] training, the social studies and training for each year of the course should receive a generous allotment of time — the largest on the program. History 100. Teachers of history should answer the following question as definitely and completely as practicable: What specific thinking, judging, feeling, deciding, etc., should be done by the men and women of the city that should involve matters which are the fruits of experience and study in the fields of history ? loi. History is primarily a thing to be used for the sake of the concrete social experiences; only secondarily is it a thing to be studied. 102. History is not to be studied in the sense of memorizing the facts. It is to be studied for the purpose of discerning the forces and influences at work in the world, and the laws governing the action of those forces. History is to be studied for the generalizations. The study is to be analyses — not a mechanical memorization of the raw materials analyzed. 103. Study, of the type indicated, must be subsequent to fullness of historical experience. 104. Historical-mindedness of the kind nowadays greatly needed is by no means identical with a "mind filled with verbal historical textbook informa- tion." 105. History as fully and vividly as literature — though not in so personal a way — will present a reconstruction in imagination of the experiences of nations, peoples, institutions, social groups, etc. 106. The basal history experience should be indirect observation and vicarious participation of play-type. 107. Habits of doing historical reading should be formed in youth in ways and under conditions in which they should continue to function during adult- hood. 108. Education for mental maintenance during adulthood is as necessary as education for mental development during childhood. 109. The primary experience in using history for general training is reading it — abundantly — with enjoyment — under normal reading conditions. no. The historical reconstruction is not adequate if the operative geo- graphical factors are not evident. III. The reconstruction is not complete if it does not reveal the operative economic factors; civic factors; sociological factors; biological factors; etc. SOCIAL STUDIES 57 112. Out of the concrete experiences, after they have been sufficiently abundant, generalizations are to be arrived at: the broad movements, the forces operative in shaping human affairs, the principles of social growth and decay, etc. 113. The primary question is not. What historical periods shall be taught ? but, What social forces and principles are to be revealed and made instruments of social analysis ? 114. The needed multiform revelation of many of the social forces requires that they be shown under all sorts of conditions: the very ancient past, all subsequent periods, in dififerent countries and regions, etc. 115. History should reveal all the coimtries and regions of the earth. 116. History should reveal all important social institutions and agencies. 117. The experiences demand an abundance of historical reading materials. 118. History for the general training is to reconstruct the things and experiences as they were in their living form; not merely to present the frag- ments that have been recovered from the debris of the past. 119. The things to be reconstructed and revealed and vicariously partici- pated in are to be things worth while — from the point of view of the needed type of mental life today. 120. There should be much discussion of historical matters. This should not be a mere memoriter and thoughtless question-and-answer reproduction of verbal textbook facts; it should be group problem-solving by way of arriving at formulation of generalizations and principles on the basis of the data of experience; and by way of applying previously formulated principles in analyzing and interpreting new data. 121. Clearness and accuracy of thinking on the part of the students is possible only as it is done in terms of language — expressed or imexpressed. The unexpressed is likely to be feeble and halting. Only thought that is expressed is likely to be clear, forceful, and adequate. The thought will possess these quahties if the expression exhibits them. Teachers of social studies will therefore demand a type of pupil expression which reveals clear sequential proportioned thinking. 122. If there is to be much thinking then there must.be much ex- pression. 123. Those who read a foreign language should probably secure a portion of their concrete historical experiences from readings in the foreign tongue. [If they cannot thus read their foreign language, their language training is clearly not a success.] 124. The ability to do elementary historical research is not a valid objective for high-school students. 125. The objectives of history and Hterature in the high school are practi- cally the same. The programs should be drawn up together as parts of one general task. 58 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 126. The enlarged and enriched social mind needed today is impossible without an abundance of historical experiences that reveal mankind and human affairs in a balanced, proportioned way. 127. History — local, state, national, and world history — should be required of all students in far larger measure than at present. Social Geography 200. Geography as a study purely of the physical features of the earth is a physical science, and is not the kind here meant. 201. Geography as a study of mankind regionally distributed and controlled by earth conditions is a social study. It is this latter type of geog- raphy that is referred to in this section. 202. Social phenomena are very largely determined by geographical factors. An understanding of the latter is necessary for social thinking and judgment. 203. The way to learn the stage upon which the human drama is enacted is to view the drama. The stage will be sufficiently seen; and under circum- stances that give it meaning. If any portion needs to be seen specially clearly and learned specially well, it is aU the more necessary that it be seen i^n relation to man and his affairs. 204. On the high-school level, geography therefore needs to be an aspect of history, literature, travels, and general reading — an aspect of the concrete social studies. 205. Habits of reading travels, geographical matters, etc., should be formed in youth in ways and under conditions like those in which they should continue to function during adulthood. 206. All historical and travel readings — and frequently literature — should be accompanied by full series of maps and pictures.- 207. The narrative reconstructions should clearly reveal the geographical factors that provide opportunity for and operate in the "control" of human affairs: the nature of the factors and the results. 208. Most or all of the physical geography needed for social understanding can be introduced incidentally in the reading, and in the accompanying maps and pictures. 209. The analyses of the experiences of peoples, nations, institutions, economic organizations, etc., should be utilized for arriving at the needed geographical generalizations. 210. The problem-solving in the social studies will aim in due measure to develop the geographic generalizations and principles. 211. Geographical generalizations cannot be learned through merely memorizing abstract verbal presentations of them — however many the maps and pictures employed. They are really learned only when crystallized out of concrete experiences. SOCIAL STUDIES 59 212. A statement of geographic principles iand generalizations may be employed as a "help" in analyzing one's concrete experiences and arriving at one's own generaUzations. It cannot be a substitute for the latter. 213. Geography of economic or other social type as a separate abstract textbook study probably has no place in the high school — unless it be a very short summarization course given late by way of summing up the general principles. 214. To omit the geographic factors in the social studies is to omit things essential. Economics 300. Teachers of economics should answer the following questions as completely and definitely as practicable: (i) What current or occasional economic thinking and deciding should be done by the men and women of this city? (2) What activities do they or should they perform which require efiicient economic thinking and judgment ? 301. Economic factors are involved in the experiences of most social groups; and especially of those which we call economic groups. 302. To be rightly seen the economic factors need to be seen as factors of the total group-experiences; they need to be seen in situ within the concrete situations. 303. Economic forces and conditions do not exist separate and apart from group-experiences. Economic "principles" are only abstractions — drawn from the concrete experiences. 304. Social studies need to be based on concreteness as fully as the laboratory sciences. 305. The experiences of most groups, territorial or functional, are not adequately revealed if the economic aspects are not made clear. 306. Thus revealed in the concrete, the economic factors can be geneiralized. 307. Through economic problem-solving, the students will arrive at the economic principles. 308. Books that present in the abstract the "principles of economics" cannot be the bases of the training. They can be serviceable as reference helps — when one knows how to use them as "helps" and not as dominating influences. 309. The economic presentations must be quantitatively exact, much of it in mathematical terms; yet not facts to be memorized but facts to be used. 310. Much of the pupil experience here will be on the play level; much, on the work level. 311. Pupils should observe as abundantly as practicable the economic matters involved in the community Ufe. [Intellectual play level.] 312. So far as it is to be accomphshed by reading, the basic experience in developing a vision, appreciation, interest in, and understanding of economic 6o CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES matters wiU be concrete stories of economic and other groups and institutions, and stories of nations that reconstruct their economic vicissitudes — all on the intellectual play level. 313. Habits of doing general reading in the fields of economic matters should be formed in youth in ways and under conditions in which they are expected later to function during adulthood. 314. Economic surveys, together with the fact-organization and presenta- tion, done by the students for responsible community purposes, should provide much experience on the work level. 315. After pupils have had concrete economic experiences, they can both generalize for themselves, and understand the generahzations of others, 316. After the student has grown fully familiar with economic matters in the concrete, they probably should have a short intensive summarization course in the principles of economics. 317. All men and women need a well-developed economic understanding and powers of judgment. 318. Economic studies should be required studies in the general training of all. Civics 400. Teachers of elementary political science [civics] should answer the following questions as completely and definitely as practicable: (i) What specific political science thinking and deciding should be done by the men and women of this city? (2) What specific activities should they perform which requires the use of political science, thought, judgment, and decision ? 401. The civic training of men and women should be designed to prepare them for definite and specific practical civic action. 402. Civics is primarily to train the lay citizen for the performance of his lay duties. It is not primarily to tell him what senators or governors should be or do, or what should be done by the police or streets departments, etc., but what he should himself do. 403. The ability to do civic thinking and to arrive at civic judgments is to be developed in youth in ways and under conditions as nearly like those in which it later is to function during adulthood as practicable. 404. The ability to act in civic ways is to be developed in youth by acting in the ways desired — except for a few effectuating functions hke voting, paying taxes, doing jury service, etc., which clearly immature youths cannot be trusted to perform. 405. The factor of social control is an element in the expeiiences of groups of every sort. An adequate presentation of group-experiences in the concrete will be an adequate presentation of the forces, methods, and mechanisms of social control. 406. Pupils should observe as abundantly as practicable the phenomena of social and political co-operation, control, and management as exhibited in the conununity life of city, county, and state. SOCIAL STUDIES 6l 407. So far as political science is to be developed through reading, the basic materials will be concrete stories that reconstruct the political experiences of cities, countries, states, nations, social institutions, etc. 408. Pupils should do part-time work along with the adults of their community in performing tasks involved in directorial and inspectorial civic functions, as necessary concrete civic experience. [Work experience.] 409. Discussion, formal and informal, oral and written, must be a large factor in the civic training. 410. Students should be members of and participate in civic organizations which are engaged in doing responsible civic work. 411. The dramatizing of legislatures, courts, juries, voting, etc., is a form of childish make-believe that has no place on the high-school level. 412. After pupils have had concrete experiences in the field of political forces, relations, and control, then they can both generalize for themselves, and understand the generalizations of others. 413. The principles of social control are not to be learned by memorizing abstract verbal statements of them; but by seeing the social forces, processes^ and mechanisms in concrete operation, and generalizing from the concrete. 414. Late in the training, after students are familiar with civic matters in the concrete, they should probably have an intensive summarization course in the principles of social control. 415. Civic understanding is of urgent necessity. Full civic training, far greater than that of the present, should be requited of all future citizens; even, were it possible, of present citizens. 416. Citizenship training should be continuous and uninterrupted through- out the high-school course. CHAPTER VII MATHEMATICS It seems that the department of mathematics in the high schools has looked rather less than almost any other department to the actual social needs of men and women. It has found the usual high-school mathematics to be of vocational service to a minority of the high-school population, and on this vocational basis tends to prescribe it for the entire high-school population — a manifest absurdity, though happily diminishing in progressive school systems. Los Angeles, we are glad to say, has advanced far beyond this point. Yet much remains to be done. No department more than that of mathematics needs to make clear distinction between general training and vocational training and to organize the two entirely independently. The highly differing mathematical needs of dififerent vocations must not be permitted to dictate the content of that general training course which has no reference to the vocation into which one goes. On the other hand, the general training in the field of mathematics must not serve as a limitation upon the mathematics prescribed for vocational purposes. In view of certain of these difficulties the following statement was issued to the teachers of Los Angeles as they began their considerations: It is probable that no department of the high school has a more difficult or baffling problem of reorganization of its activities than the mathematics department. Let us illustrate: The city has decided that commercial students going into business do not need algebra, geometry, or trigonometry for general, cultural, or disciplinary training. Since this is a large and representative group of students it appears to follow, if this decision is correct, that students in general do not need algebra, geometry, or trigonometry for general, cultural, or disciplinary training. The city has decided that commercial students need full and intensive training in the mathematics of their vocation. This probably typifies the need of every vocational group. It needs full and intensive training in the mathematics of its vocation. But the mathe- matics wiU differ greatly from vocation to vocation and must be administered, therefore, according to the special needs and as a part of the vocational training. The vocational mathematics for commercial students is administered in this city as a vocational course in the commercial department. 62 MATHEMATICS 63 This appears to represent the proper placement of all vocational mathe- matics courses, not in the general department of mathematics, but in the appropriate vocatiortal department. It is the belief of the writer that these decisions of the city as regards the mathematics of the commercial students are educationally correct; and that the deductions that appear naturally to follow are educationally correct. If this is true, then algebra, geometry, and trigonometry have justifiable place in the curriculum only when they are necessary portions of vocational courses; and in such cases the specific content is dififerently dictated by different vocations. These statements are equally applicable to those who finish their schooling with the high school and those who take additional years of work in college. Neither the length nor the place of one's training dictates one's needs. In the foregoing statements there is one possibility of error. It may be that commercial students do need the disciplinary values of algebra and geometry; but that they must forego them because of the exigencies of the time schedule; that those who take the longer training of both high school and college need not forego them and, therefore, may secure the disciplinary values. There is, however, no proof of the disciplinary values. The general intelligence-quotient does not seem to be raised by a study of algebra and geometry; and one, therefore, is not given greater power to think in general outside of the mathematical fields. The college-entrance demand is largely dictated by the disciplinary hypothesis — without proofs. In far larger measure, however, it is held to for selective purposes. It is not that the students need algebra and geometry, but that the colleges need a selected body of students, and algebra and geometry have been, aside from classic languages, until recently, the best selective devices. So long as the colleges demand them for this purpose, the high schools must administer them for this purpose. They should know, however, that they are doing it for the good of the colleges; and not because they are demonstrably serving their students. The teachers of mathematics looked through the entire series of abilities as presented in chapter ii and selected those which mathematics might assist in achieving. The following is the first tentative statement of the fundamental objectives as drawn up on the basis of their choices. I. Ability to supply the needed quantitative aspect of the thought involved in each of the many specific activities in which one at one time or another engages. The major list of such activities [outside of one's specialized occupation] is suggested by the list of abihties in "Educational Objectives" [chap. ii]. By going through that list, one can discover the outlines of the mathematics actually needed by men and women in general, outside of their occupations. 64 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES In the great majority of the activities, the only mathematics needed is appHed arithmetic; and that of simple character. Most of it will be cared for on the high-school level, not by the department of mathematics but by the department whose training involves the quantitative thought: Teachers of gardening will care for the quantitative aspects of gardening thought; home- economics teachers, that of home economics; teachers of civics, that of civics; etc. 2. Ability to read and interpret statistical and graphical materials; to organize and express facts statistically and graphically; and to do one's thinking along many lines in statistical and graphical terms. In its purely mathematical aspects, this is as large a field as first-year algebra; in its applications, however, to modern problems, particularly economic and civic, it is many times larger. In its "pure" form, it should probably be developed by the department of mathematics. In its "applied" forms, in the departments where applied. 3. A proportioned intellectual apprehension of the subtle abstract world of number and quantity, with the necessary accompanying awakened interests, appreciations, etc. — the proficiency to be attained differing according to natural aptitudes, capacity, and interests. This appears clearly to have practical value on the level of specific or arithmetical number. The possibihties of high-school arithmetic for general training are probably not completely developed. How far the training can be profitable on the more general algebraic level for people in general — at least the brighter ones — outside of their vocations, is not known. 4. A proportioned intellectual apprehension of the world of form and space-relation, with the necessary accompanying interests, appreciations, etc. — the proficiency to be attained to differ according to natural aptitudes, capacity, and interests. The mental content referred to is best exemplified by well-developed courses for people in general in form-design and mechanical drawing. The demonstrational geometry gives but a little of the world of form and space- relation that people in general need. On the other hand, the drawing and design courses rightly constructed can give all of the concrete geometry needed for the general training. It is believed that other objectives mentioned, particularly the disciplinary ones, are incidental to and involved in the above-mentioned ones. As one examines this series of objectives, one must remember that it is drawn for the general training of the population. No attempt is here made to present the mathematical requirements of the several hundred vocations. These requirements must necessarily be stated sep- arately for each vocation. Since the foregoing list of objectives was assembled, the report on "The Reorganization of Mathematics in Secondary Education" by MATHEMATICS 65 the National Committee on Mathematical Requirements has appeared. It is interesting to observe how the two methods of approach to the objectives arrive at very different conclusions. In the Los Angeles study, the starting-point was the functional abilities needed by the men and women of the city without regard to subjects, departments, or any other of the means to be employed. Their approach was such as automatically to shut out purely academic objectives, without shutting out anything actually functional. The National Committee, on the other hand, seems to have employed no device for neutralizing their special departmental valuations and predilections. As a result, while their objectives include those suggested above, it is just those that are least valued and least developed in the discussion. Their major objec- tives are the familiar academic ones. As one reads the pages, one feels one's self wholly within an academic atmosphere, and never at any time does he get a real whiff of the world's actual life, and of the mathe- matics that actually functions in the real lives of men and women. BASAL ASSUMPTIONS The basal assumptions which should probably underlie the mathe- matical aspect of the general training, as stated below, are intended to be those which underlie the general, not the vocational training. 1. The mathematics to be included in the general training should be determined by what men and women actually need in their general affairs out- side of their several callings, and by the common mathematical element of all vocations. 2. The major thing needed is not ability to solve difficult mathematical problems; it is rather ability and disposition to think accurately and quantita- tively in one's affairs. The latter frequently involves mathematical operations as incidental matters — ^never as the fundamental ones. 3. The way to learn to think quantitatively is mainly to think quantitatively in those various fields where quantitative thought is possible and desirable. 4. The ability to do quantitative thinking is to be developed in youth under conditions as nearly like those in which it is to function in adulthood as practicable. 5. The ability to think quantitatively is a general need. It should, therefore, be a portion or aspect of the required training. 6. While the mathematical operations are not the main things, yet it is indispensable that one perform the needed ones with certainty and skill. 7. Outside of their vocations, the citizens of Los Angeles do not use algebra, demon strational geometry, or trigonometry. 8. Outside of their vocations, the only mathematics content really needed by the men and women of the city is applied arithmetic. 66 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 9. Even in their vocations, only a small percentage of the citizens of Los Angeles use algebra or trigonometry; and practically none use demonstrational geometry. 10. The mathematics needed for one's vocation should be determined strictly with a view to that vocation* It should then be administered only to those who enter that vocation; and it should be very thorough, especially along the applied lines involved in that vocation. 11. As fields of intellectual play, neither algebra nor demonstrational geometry lay foundations or centers of systems of ideas and thought generally needed throughout life. 12. As matters of pure general discipHne, the city cannot afford to adminis- ter algebra and geometry purely on faith: the specific disciplinary values should be made clear; and it should be demonstrated that they are or can be attained. 13. The value of applied mathematics, intensive and thorough, for produ- cing power to think, to assemble and organize facts, etc., has been amply demon- strated. 14. The content of the economic and civic studies needs to be developed so as to include the necessary large amount of applied mathematics. 15. The mathematical element of the science studies, particularly general science and the biological sciences, needs much further development. 16. The needed mastery of the world of number is to be attained mainly through using number — not by studying abstractions about number. 17. The needed mastery of the world of form and space-relations is to be attained mainly by using forms and by constructing forms that are to be used. Studies about forms needs be only brief and incidental. It will be interesting to see after another year of work by the teachers of the city what series of objectives and of basal assumptions they will have worked out and accepted for the guidance of the mathematics department. Naturally, they will be much handicapped by college- entrance requirements, particularly those of eastern colleges to which a few students go and which for this reason have tremendous power in dictating the training of all of the students. As a matter of fact, however, college-entrance requirements tend to relate to what the high schools themselves propose and are able to do. It is well that the colleges should prevent freakish programs formulated on the basis of hasty superficial consideration. They do not, however, tend in the long run to inhibit progressive movements which are actually justified by condi- tions. The high schools, which can make socially justifiable progress, can, within a reasonable time, secure all the recognition for their work on the part of the colleges which they desire. The college-entrance bugaboo, therefore, should not be permitted to serve as an excuse for inertia. CHAPTER VIII BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE The teachers of the biological sciences went through the series of abilities presented in chapter ii and selected those that should be aimed at by their department. Summarizing their selections the objectives of the biological department appear to be somewhat as follows: THE OBJECTIVES 1. Ability to perform the several processes involved in the effective development and maintenance of one's physical efficiency. This involves many specific abilities. [See chap, ii, Nos. 101-49.] Let us specially note the following one: Abib'ty to see and think one's physiqtie — structures, fimctions, processes, relations within, relations to things without, capacity or potentiality, develop- ment, protection, maintenance, etc., etc. — in biological terms. The department needs to scrutinize carefully the specific tasks involved, in all their multiplicity and complexity, by way of discovering just the places where thought in biological terms is desirable or necessary; and to list the biological matters that will prepare for such thinking — ^not biological matters in general, but the specific things. They are numerous. 2. The unspecialized abilities involved in the care of plants about one's premises. [Nos. 330-^2, 335-48, and a few other similar ones.] This needs also to be reduced to great specificity before the necessary biological items can be discovered. 3. The unspecialized abilities involved in the care of poultry, bees, live- stock, pets, etc. [Nos. 370-78.] This is of less general serviceability, and therefore is appropriate to only a portion of the pupils. Same method to be employed. 4. Ability, disposition, and habit of observation of significant biological phenomena as an enjoyable and fruitful leisure occupation. 5. Ability, disposition, and habit of reading relative to biological matters as an enjoyable and fruitful indirect method of viewing biological phenomena; also a leisure occupation. 6. A proportioned vision [according to one's intellectual capacity] of the biological world as a whole — ^plant and animal series — as it exists today, and in its genesis. 7. Ability wisely to control the several biological factors — so far as control is possible or desirable — involved in the responsibilities of parenthood. 67 68 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 8. Ability, disposition, and habit of viewing Man in world-genesis and relation — as a major foundation of one's sense of human brotherhood, and as one of the most inspiring visions of one's religion. The biological studies can have minor and incidental values in achieving certain other objectives. The basal ones, however, must be dominant in drawing up the program. If there are other basal ones, they should be included. ^ BIOLOGY — GENERAL ASSUMPTIONS 1. Teachers of biological science should answer the following questions with the greatest practicable definiteness and completeness: (i) What biological thinking should be currently or occasionally carried on by the citizens of Los Angeles ? (2) What activities require the guidance of thought which involves biological science ? 2. Thinking in terms of biological science is needed for the practical guid- ance of many activities, and for producing the general type or state of mind necessary to many kinds of activities. 3. The biological program should look wholly to the desirable current activities of the men and women of the city. Nothing should be included which cannot justify its existence in terms of actual human action or experience. 4. The observational program should be large, but it should be drawn with a definite view to the objectives to be achieved. 5. Biological phenomena are to be observed where the observation can be most adequate and effective. This is usually where the forms are viewed within their natural environment. 6. Except for microscopic observation, most direct observation will be extra-mural. 7. Pictures and charts will be abundantly used for indirect observation. 8. Except for the concrete alphabet of the field, obtained through direct contacts, the major biological revelation will be obtained through reading. This should be well illustrated through pictures, charts, diagrams, and often supplemented with special direct observation in laboratory or field. The reading should be abundant. 9. Reading can be an effective method of presenting the concrete realities of science. 10. Habits of doing biological science reading should be formed in ways and under conditions in which they should continue to function during adult- hood. 11. The major biological vision, understanding, interests, appreciations, attitudes, etc., are to be developed mainly through experiences on the level of intellectual play. 12. The biological factors in human history should be clearly and fully revealed. BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE 69 13. The history of health, disease, and sanitation is largely a history of biological phenomena. The story needs to be full and clear. 14. Historical geology and historical biology should be developed together in one vivid, well-illustrated narrative. 15. The history of the domestication, variation, and improvement of plants and animals is a biological story of great interest and value. 16. The biological science needed for the objectives above-stated should be required; but with the expectation that results will differ with the capacities of individuals. 17. College courses in biology have not been drawn for the general education of men and women — but for training research specialists [and incidentally teachers, through using the same method]. The content of college courses cannot serve as guides to the content of biological courses needed by the men and women of this city. 18. Merely because a thing is true is no reason in itself for teaching it. 19. There are many biological matters significant for college research specialists in this field but of no sufficient significance for the men and women in general of this city. 20. The special technique of the biological research specialist is of no value to men and women in general. 21. The laboratory methods of the research specialist have been in the past much over-done in high schools. 22. Adequacy of thinking in this field is inseparably related to adequacy of expression. There should be much careful well-organized expression by pupils relative to biological matters. 23. Much biological thought, reading, and expression should be quanti- tative. 24. Much biology should be "applied" science; much should be "pure" science. CHAPTER IX PHYSICAL SCIENCE The teachers of the physical sciences selected from the lists of abilities of chapter ii the following as the objectives of their department: OBJECTIVES 1. Ability to deal effectively with matters of mechanics, heat, electricity, light, sound, physical state, chemical constitution, etc., etc., as these are involved in the performance of unspecialized practical activities. [The detailed matters will be discovered by scrutinizing the specific items Nos. 200-571 in chap, ii — together with any others of like character that should be added. Also i-a to 53-a, in chap, iii.] 2. Ability effectively to deal with physical and mechanical matters involved in health protection and maintenance. [The detailed matters needed are to be discovered by analyzing the abilities Nos. 100-149 i^ chap, ii; also i-a to 53-a.] 3. AbiHty to participate in a civic way in the directive and inspectional pubHc opinion that provides the ultimate social control over specialized service agencies and labors which have to do with matters involving physical science factors: City water-supply system, street lighting, street and road construction, sewer system, ventilation of pubHc buildings, bridge construction, fire protection, tunnels and subways, gas supply, telephone system, milk supply, ice supply, etc., etc. [Nos. 600-610, i-a to 53-a.] 4. Ability, disposition, and habit of diversified observation of the endless physical phenomena which are ever-present before one's eyes as an enjoyable and fruitful fife-long, leisure occupation. 5. Abifity, disposition, and habit of reading as a life-long indirect mode of observation of physical phenomena; also, a leisure occupation. 6. A proportional intellectual vision and apprehension of the world of matter, forces, and physical phenomena in the midst of which one lives and acts. [This naturaUy involves interests, emotional reactions, etc.] 7. Abifity to see one's environment, sub specie aeternitatis, as a vast and restless sea of forces and phenomena, infinite in number, subtlety, and com- plexity, and unlimited on every side — as a major factor in an enlightened religious consciousness. The foregoing list of objectives is the first list drawn up. It is being used as the basis of departmental discussion by way of improving it. Thus the department is free to take the initiative in formulating 70 PHYSICAL SCIENCE 71 its own objectives; and yet at the same time is held within bounds by the abilities and other personal qualities set up and agreed upon by the entire body of teachers and supervisors in the city, without regard to the work of special departments. Except as they can convince the entire body of the teachers as to the need of other abilities not yet included in the comprehensive list of chapter ii, it is not probable that they can greatly extend the list — for the general training. The objectives of physical science for vocational training is another matter. The vocational objectives must be drawn up separately for each vocation. This task the city has not yet undertaken. The assumptions here scheduled relate to the general training — not to the specialized vocational training. The latter must be taken up separately for each different vocation, and first by the specialists in the vocation itself. PHYSICAL SCIENCE — BASIC ASSUMPTIONS 1. Teachers of physical science should first answer the following questions as completely and definitely as practicable: (i) What physical science thinking should be done by the men and women of this city ? (2) What activities do they, or should they, perform which require physical science for proper guid- ance? 2. Thinking in terms of physical science is needed for the practical guidance of many activities, and for producing the general type or state of mind necessary to many kinds of activities. 3. The physical science program should look whoUy to the desirable current activities of the men and women of the city. Nothing should be included which cannot justify its existence in terms of actual human action or experience. 4. The basis of all science learning must be abundant experience with the concrete realities. i)Working with them. Using them. Controlling them. 2) Play that involves them. 3) Observations of them. 4) Abundant revealing reading. 5. Practical activities which involve the use of control of the science realities should be as abundant as practicable. [Fundamental experience.] 6. The observational program should be large, but it should be drawn with a definite view to the objectives to be achieved. 7. Physical phenomena are to be observed where the observation can be most adequate and effective. This is usually where the things are viewed within their natural environment. 8. Much, possibly most, observation of physical science phenomena should be extra-mural. This is the observation of fundamental type. 72 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 9. Much physical science observation must be in the laboratory. This is largely of preparatory or accessory type. 10. Pictures and charts will be abundantly used for indirect observation. 11. Except for the concrete alphabet of the field obtained through direct contacts, the major physical revelation will be obtained through reading. This would be well illustrated through pictures, charts, diagrams, and often supplemented with special direct observation in laboratory or field. The reading should be abundant. 12. There should be a sufficiency of interesting readings that reveal the major matters in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiography, geology, astronomy, the various fields of technology, etc. 13. Reading can be an effective method of presenting the concrete realities of science. 14. The major physical science vision, understanding, interests, apprecia- tions, attitudes, etc., are to be developed mainly through experiences on the level of intellectual play. 15. Habits of doing physical science reading should be formed in ways and under conditions in which they should continue to function during adult- hood. 16. Much physical science should be "applied" science. Much should be "pure" science — whatever the mode of organization. 17. The science matters should be approached from different angles, and seen in diverse ways. At one time they will be seen as organized in "pure science" logical fashion; at another as involved in the composite situations of everyday life [as in so-called "general science"]; at another as guidance in practical "projects" or activities; etc. As one adjusts his thought to the general training actually needed by the men and women of the city in general, and divests himself of the preconceptions of training specialists in the physical sciences, it will be found that such a plan is entirely feasible. 18. The history of technological developments is largely a physical science narrative. It should be full and clear. 19. The training in science should aim at developing life-long interests, attitudes, appreciations, mental alertness, etc., as fully as knowledge. 20. College courses in physical science have not been drawn for the general education of men and women — but for training research specialists [and incidentally teachers, through using the same method]. The content of coUege courses cannot serve as guides to the content of physical science courses needed by the men and women of this city. 21. There are many physical science matters significant for coUege research specialists in this field but of no sufficient significance for the men and women in general of this city. 22. Merely because a thing is true is no reason in itself for teaching it. 23. The special technique of the physical science research speciahst is of no value to men and women in general. PHYSICAL SCIENCE 73 24. The laboratory methods of the research specialist have been in the past much overdone in high schools. 25. Adequacy of thinking in this field is inseparably related to adequacy of expression. There should be much careful, well-organized expression by pu- pils relative to physical science matters. 26. The science thinking should grow increasingly quantitative as the pupil matures; but the mathematical aspect should be an aspect, and not get too much in the center of consciousness. It should also be in those mathe- matical terms in which one will later do his mathematical thinking in this field — applied arithmetic, in the main, with simple numbers. 27. The quantitative accuracy will follow considerably behind the quali- tative aspects of the science. 28. For the general training, extensity of vision, interests, appreciations, etc., is more important than the intensity and accuracy appropriate to the research specialist, and to the several vocational fields involving applied science. 29. The physical science needed for the objectives above-stated should be required; but with the expectation that results will differ with the capacities of individuals. 30. The physical science understanding should be a gradually expanding thing. It is not to be produced at any one period in one's development. 31. Some of the physical science training should be cared for by the departments having to do with unspecialized and health activities. CHAPTER X PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE It appears that the objectives of the physical training are set forth in the main in the Kst in chapter ii, Numbers 101-49. They need not be reproduced here. Relative to their objectives, the following state- ment was sent out to the teachers of the physical training: From the papers that came in from teachers of physical training, it is not certain that the list 101-149 is approved in its entirety. It seems, however, to be approved. On the other hand, there is a strong tendency to set up social aims and general intellectual discipline as objectives of the training. Doubtless this is justifiable, but they should 'be secondary or incidental; and cared for only as details of the basal program. The department will have all that it can do, for the present, if it will adequately care for physical up-building and maintenance. There are plenty of other departments, each taking partial care of social and intellectual training; but no other caring for physical up-building. We suggest, therefore, that the department confine its attention to the physical and hygienic side until this portion of the problem is measurably solved. After this is done, it will be time to see if further contribution can be made to general mental and social training. PHYSICAL TRAINING — BASIC ASSUMPTIONS 1. Physical development and training will be the center of interest of the physical training department. Social training will be incidental. 2. Education during childhood and youth is preparation for the mature life of adulthood. This applies to physical education as fully as to any other. 3. The first questions which the Department of Physical Development and Maintenance should answer as fully and completely as practicable are: (i) In what physical maintenance activities should the men and women of this city currently engage throughout life? (2) What thinking should they do by way of guiding these life-long activities? (3) What habits should be fixed in youth ? (4) What appreciations, valuations, attitudes, and traditions relative to physical matters should be developed ? 4. The physique is developed and maintained through exercise of function, normal in character and amount and under normal conditions. 5. Every portion and aspect of the physique is to be provided for in the training for physical development and maintenance. Exercise of fmiction must therefore look not only to muscular exercise, but also to nutrition, oxy- genation, eliminations, sleep, temperature regulation, relations to micro-organ- isms, etc. 74 PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE 75 6. The physical training department has too much speciaHzed on muscular exercise, to the relative neglect of other necessary matters. 7. Physical education is a matter of right physical living throughout the 24 hours of every day and the 7 days of every week. The 3 hours [net] per week out of the 168 hours of physical experience can accomplish directly relatively Uttle. 8. The entire 30 hours of the pupil's week at the school plant should be utihzed as physical training opportunity. i) Ventilation 5) Diversification of physical 2) Lighting experiences 3) Temperature 6) Noon-day meal 4) Physical activity 7) Etc. 9. The total program of the school should be drawn with a view to proper physical living and development of the children. 10. The 138 hours per week of physical experience away from the school plant should be utilized as fully as practicable for physical training purposes. 11. In all hygienic training, doing must be the basal feature — ^with every- thing else subordinate and focused upon the doing. 12. Physical experiences of "normal living" type should be the central and major feature of the physical training — and utilized in maximum measure. 13. Activities of preparatory or accessory type should be reduced to a minimum. 14. The ability to do hygienic thinking is to be developed in ways and under conditions as nearly like those under which it will function in adulthood as practicable. 15. To have value, talks and readings relative to the technical matters of hygiene should be but an accessory portion of the practical hygienic activities of the individual pupils. 16. General talks on hygiene, and technical readings, unrelated to the individual hygienic activities of the pupils, can be of relatively little value. 17. The principles of physical development and maintenance, and of hygiene and sanitation are to be intellecitml results of the labors of this depart- ment as fully as principles and generalizations are results of the labors of other departments. A well-developed generalized understanding of things in this field is indispensable for proper self-guidance. 18. Through physical examination, analysis, diagnosis, those responsible for physical development will discover the specific training needs of the indi- vidual children. 19. As fully as their degree of maturity will permit, children are to be made acquainted with their diagnostic analyses, and with the consequent objectives of their physical training. 20. Each pupil will have the objective of his physical development and maintenance made perfectly clear to him as soon as he is mature enough to imderstand. 76 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 21. Each pupil will keep tabular and graphic representation of his activities and degree of achievement in the case of the specific objectives — until habits, attitudes, and understanding are thoroughly formed. 22. Major features in the administration of physical education should be: i) Definite knowledge of all specific objectives by teachers and pupils. 2) Easy and dependable methods of self-measurement of results achieved. 3) Complete but simple and quickly read system of individual records. 23. Ajier students become conscious of their individual hygiene problems, they will listen to talks on those problems by physicians, nurses, dentists, dietitians, and other speciahsts. They will also read fully relative to the problems. 24. By way of visualizing health factors, influences, processes, etc., in a proportioned way, and in their social setting and relationships, pupils will read abundantly relative to matters in this field. The readings must be such as reveal the factors in vivid concrete ways that awaken interests and hold attention. 25. For normal children, the muscular physical training exercises are primarily to develop and maintain bodily vigor, strength, endurance, and health; they are not primarily for social discipline. 26. For normal children in normal condition, the value of a physical training exercise is, within reasonable limits, approximately in proportion to the amount of energy expended. 27. Physical exercises that are not enjoyed by the children are relatively unprofitable. 28. In the formation of habits of exercise, full regard should be had to the matter of interest and pleasure and favorable attitudes. 29. Habits of physical exercise should be formed during adolescence in ways and under conditions in which they are later to function during adulthood. 30. If "setting up exercises" are to be employed daily throughout life by individuals, then in training for such exercises conditions as nearly like those in which the exercises are later to be had are to be employed in youth in develop- ing the habits. In such case, home habits; not school habits. 31. If group-gymnastics are to be employed throughout life at word of command as a means of physical maintenance, then the group-gymnastics are to be administered during adolescence in ways and other conditions that are to continue during adulthood. 32. If one is to secure one's daily exercise throughout life largely in one's practical imspecialized activities, then interests should be awakened and the habits formed during adolescence. 2fS- If physical plays of diverse kinds are to be the things upon which adults are to depend for exercise, then interests, habits, and skills are to be formed during adolescence. PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE 77 34. The physical-development-and-maintenance activities that are to persist throughout life are the ones mainly to be employed during adolescence. 35. Special effort should be made to develop a full knowledge of the need of life-long continuing habits of vigorous muscular exercise. 36. The boy or girl who has found ways away from school to secure a sufficiency of physical exercise of proper kinds, and who will keep himself up to physical standard without the use of the school's facilities, should not only be permitted to do so, but encouraged by giving extra credit for the self- direction. The proof should be maintenance of normal physical condition, and continuance of normal development as shown by periodic physical tests and examinations — the things that appear on his physical record. 37. Pupils should be encouraged in every way possible to develop ways at home and elsewhere away from the school to secure their necessary amount of daily and weekly physical exercise. 38. The schools should provide nothing for the physical development and maintenance of the children that can be as well or better provided by the homes under the supervision of parents, teachers, and nurses. 39. The away-from-school physical play should have the stimulation and supervisory influence of the measurement and record of physical achieve- ment. 40. Owing to the frequent or usual paucity of opportunity at home or otherwhere in the neighborhood, the schools should provide such physical development opportunities as they can. 41. The physical training spaces should be' given over most to those of greatest educational need of them: (i) Those who have least opportunity away from the school; and (2) those in greatest physical need of the training experience. 42. The boys of the type who go on the interscholastic teams are probably less in need of physical training at pubhc expense than the average of high- school boys and girls. They should therefore probably have correspondingly less use of the physical training fields and equipment and of the publicly paid teachers' time. 43. While there is much in favor of interscholastic athletic games /^r the hoys who participate, these games must be judged — from the public-school point of view — from their relation to the educational needs of the entire student body. 44. For the sake of the physical maintenance of the men and women of the commimity, as well as the development and maintenance of the boys and girls, the physical exercise opportunities of the schools should be in operation as community centers for seven [or six] days of the week. 45. If physical training is to be adequate, parents must either perform a larger amount of co-operative labor in supervising physical development activities of their children, or pay a far larger amount than they now pay for getting it done by the schools. 78 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 46. The major training in good posture should be a holding to proper postures [largely self-directed] throughout the day in all one's work and play. Effective incentives are necessary. 47. Mental alertness and normal quickness of response ought to characterize pupil-activities in all departments. It is not certain that we have here a major justification of formal gymnastics. 48. Self-directed thought and action of efficient type is a major — possibly the major — need of our population today. Instant and unquestioning obedi- ence to the verbal commands of others, on the adolescent level, where habits of self-direction should be forming, appears to operate in quite the wrong direction. 49. The best muscular exercise is that of vigorous play under normal conditions; or of physical work that is enjoyed. 50. A varied play program takes care of the entire musculature in a sufficiently balanced way. 51. A varied play program takes care in a human way of all of the desirable objectives of formal gymnastics; and of many others besides. 52. The physical training one receives should be related in some measure at least to the character of the occupation one probably will enter. 53. The development of student leaders for squad and club exercises should be fostered in every way practicable. 54. In the degree in which the physical training activities can be effectively led and directed by squad or club leaders, it should be so arranged. CHAPTER XI HOME OCCUPATIONS It is uncertain how far women should go in performing home occupa- tions, and in what measure they should turn them over to outside special- ized industries. For example: 1. To what extent should a woman do the family sewing, and to what extent should it be left to the outside trades ? 2. How much of the laundry work should she do or direct in her home, and what portion should she turn over to the trade laundries ? 3. Should she do her own baking, or secure it ready prepared from the bakeries ? 4. To what extent should she care for the household equipment and contrivances, and to what extent leave the care to the men of the household or to tradesmen ? 5. How much of the gardening should she do? 6. To what extent should the parents be responsible for the health of their children, and to what extent should the matter be turned over to physicians and nurses ? 7. To what extent should parents be responsible for the training of their children, and to what extent should it be turned over to teachers ? 8. What should parents do by way of providing home recreations,, and how far depend on outside amusement agencies ? 9. How far should parents care for religious activities and trainings and how far leave the matter to ecclesiastical agencies ? These matters must be considered and tentative decisions reached before the objectives can be determined. The following series of objectives appears to represent the majority judgment of the teachers, THE OBJECTIVES 1. Ability to perform the household clothing activities. [There was a majority of vote in favor of all of the items in "Educational Objectives,*' Nos. 400-437, except 428. A few further similar items were suggested.] 2. Ability to perform the household food activities. [Every item, 440-74, received majority sanction.] 3. Ability to perform the household cleaning activities. [Every item, 480-506, received majority vote.] 4. Ability to care for the household sanitation. [All items, 510-18, approved.] 79 8q curriculum-making in LOS ANGELES 5. Ability to guard the house against fire. [Approved, all items, 320-28.] 6. Ability to keep household tools in good working condition. [This is the only one — No. 200 — of the 200-213 list that was approved.] 7. Ability to perform activities involved in the general planning, manage- ment, and care of house and equipment. [Of the 220-82 list, the only ones receiving majority sanction were: 241-43, 246-47, 259, 263, and 269-82.] 8. Ability to operate, adjust, and make simple repairs upon the household electrical system and appliances. [Majority sanction was given only to Nos. 301-2, 305, 309.] 9. Ability to care for the household financial accounting, and to perform the household financial and commercial operations. [Majority approval of only items 552-54, 563-64, 566-68, 570-71.] Note. — Of the 330-68 section relating to gardening and other activities about the premises, nothing was approved. Of the activities 370-78 relating to care of dogs, cats, pets, poultry, etc., not one was approved. This was likewise true of the series 380-95, relating to travel and out-door Hfe. Other "Home Occupations" objectives, though not necessarily belonging to the department of home economics, are probably the following: (a) ability to render "first aid" to the injured, to care for the sick, and to direct and take the precautions necessary for preventing sickness; (b) ability to care for infants and little children ; (c) ability to lead and direct in the recreational activities of the home; (d) ability to perform a certain portion of the training of the children; and to co-operate with educational, vocational, ecclesiastical, and other outside agencies in accomplishing this training. Where other depart- ments of the high school are not sufficiently caring for these matters, there is at least the question whether responsibility does not rest on the home- economics department. GENERAL ASSUMPTIONS 1. The term "home economics" has not the proper connotation to indicate the chief responsibiUty of the department. 2. Training for home occupations is needed by most or all girls. 3. The objectives and the degree of proficiency should differ according to the nature of the homes and the native capacities of the girls. 4. The training must not be obligatory. The girl must be attracted, not coerced. 5. The courses should include stimulating readings by way of developing interests and attitudes. 6. To awaken interests, right attitudes and sense of responsibility should in every case be things of central aim. 7. The abilities to perform home occupations should be developed in ways and under conditions in which they are later to function during adulthood — so far as practicable. HOME OCCUPATIONS 8l 8. Self-directed parentally supervised home activities performed at home, when of proper character, are better for training than school activities, and, results being the same, should receive higher credit. 9. The school should demonstrate. The practice should be obtained in the girls' homes. 10. Pupil-tasks, once begun, should be carried through speedily to comple- tion, even if other things must wait for a time. 11. Teacher-parent co-operation in supervising home-training activities is indispensable. 12. Home projects are practicable only as printed guidance materials are available for students, parents, and teachers. 13. The training should be devised with a view to developing power of unsupervised self-direction. 14. The training should seek to develop power to self- judge the character of quality of one's labors. 15. In home occupations, practical skill, habits, right attitudes, etc., are in the case of most things more important than technical knowledge. 16. The home-occupations training should not aim to prepare for activities that require skill of high degree, difficult to attain and to maintain. . Those, in the main, should be left to outside industries. 17. The technical information given should be that which is actually needed for guidance of the practical activities; all that is needed, but no more. 18. The theoretical information of appHed type needed for guidance in the home economics should be taken care of by the teachers of home economics in the applied science, applied mathematics, applied design, etc. They should be able to presuppose, however, that the necessary general foundation for the applied studies had already been laid by the other departments. 19. Technical instruction for guidance should mainly accompany the practical work as an integral part of it. 20. Technical instruction much in advance of practical application is of little value; often harmful. 21. Home-occupation training on the high-school level should not be "over-technical" and "excessively wedded to book and laboratory," to the practical exclusion of home activities. 22. A thing does not necessarily cease to be educational when its informa- tional possibilities are exhausted. The informational learning is only prepara- tory to experiences that lie beyond which look to habits, interests, attitudes, abiUty to bear responsibility, and a general condition of mind. In the matter of the unspecialized activities, these latter are usually more important than the informational. The latter frequently represents no task at all. 23. The school training should begin about the time when the girls begin — or ought to begin — to perform the activities in their homes. It should not be arbitrarily determined merely by way of mechanically filling out a program. 82 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 24. The diiferent types of home occupations should be organized into intensive short-unit courses to be given when the girl has reached an age to undertake the practical labors in her home. After the short-imit course is ended, the training will then be a matter of her home opportunities during the rest of her school life — for practice under normal conditions, and for main- tenance. 25. The things to be most emphasized in the training are, all else being equal, the things which the girls do least well in their actual home activities. The diagnostic method of discovering short-comings will be employed. 26. In the matter of clothmg, the abiHty to judge and select wisely is at present much more important than the abihty to make clothing. This apphes also to furniture, house-equipment, decoration, etc. 27. As the purchasing members of the families, women should be competent judges of the offerings upon the market. 28. They should be familiar with the tests or criteria to be employed in judging the quahty of every usual kind of article. 29. Their training should involve much observation and analyses of things used in the home or by members of the family. 30. It should involve much reading that reveals possible qualities and characters of things. 31. In the training, there should be abundant use of pictures, charts, diagrams, etc., which show the possible qualities or characters of things. 32. In studies of the qualities of things, the problem-method, and the application of general criteria, should be widely employed. 2,S' Education should aim consciously to prepare for enough home labors to off-set the disintegrative effects upon the home of over-specialization. CHAPTER XII PRACTICAI. ARTS FOR BOYS Distinction must be made between those courses that a boy takes by way of preparing himself for a specific vocation, and those other courses which involve or deal with productive industry as a means of general training, and which are consciously not training the boy for his vocation. Here we are dealing only with the latter courses, which we shall call the practical-arts courses. The practical-arts courses for boys — agriculture, mechanical arts, mechanical drawing, printing, etc. — are not vocational. Neither are they pre-vocational, in the sense that any one of them taken is the first step toward his later vocational training. They are pre-vocational in about the same sense that arithmetic, science, or geography are pre- vocational. They are portions of the boys' general training. This is not to say that they are not important. The general training is certainly as important as the vocational. These courses do look toward work; but it is the wide range of unspecialized activities for which one bears responsiblity to himself and family. It appears that the basal objectives of the general practical-arts training for boys are about as follows: THE OBJECTIVES 1. Ability to perform unspecialized activities about the house, basement, garage, yard, garden, motor-car, etc. [Possible specifics are enumerated in chap, ii, Nos. 200-395. The lists can be considerable extended.] 2. Ability as consumer to judge the qualities and values of the products of specialized occupations. 3. Ability, disposition, and habit of observation and reading of things in the world of productive industry as enjoyable and fruitful leisure occupations. 4. A proportioned intellectual apprehension of the world of productive industry; of the specialized occupational groups which compose it; and of tools, machines, raw materials, processes, products, etc., involved. Ability to think in terms of the realities. 5. Ability to choose one's vocation. 6. A disposition and habit of being up and doing, independent, active and positive, in one's home hfe, and in one's affairs in general; not dependent upon others, passive and negative. 7. A disposition and habit of holding one's practical labors to reasonably high standards of performance; of always doing one's best. Dislike of things 83 84 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES careless, faulty, incomplete, etc. [This must be interpreted in tenns of the conditions. The general practical-arts courses are not designed to develop the high degrees of skill necessary for the well-trained vocational worker.] In the teacher's papers, there was some tendency to go beyond these last two objectives and to set up the entirely general virtues of honesty, accuracy, sincerity, truthfulness, etc., as general discipline objectives. It is probable, however, that Objectives 6 and 7 go far enough in the direction of general discipline. If they are sufficiently attained, then probably as much has been done as the practical arts can do in achieving those still more general virtues. The assumptions here scheduled relate to the general training — not to the specialized vocational training. The latter must be taken up separately for each different vocation, and first by the specialists in the vocation itself. BASIC ASSUMPTIONS 1. The several objectives taken singly appear to demand different pro- grams. The actual program must take all of them into account at once. It must be a composite of the different programs. 2. For the general training in this field, there is no reason for the school's attempting to develop any high degree of operative skill. 3. Choosing things as a consumer is a practical task more important than making or repairing things in unspecialized ways. 4. Operating, caring for, adjusting, and repairing things are more important practical operations for men in general under present conditions than making things in unspecialized ways. 5. The theory of thorough specialized vocational training has too greatly dominatQd most general non-vocational practical-arts training. 6. The abilities to perform unspecialized practical labors are to be developed in ways and under conditions in which they are to fimction during adulthood — as nearly as practicable. 7. Practical unspecialized activities should be performed at home as fully as practicable; all things else being equal, credit for self-directed home or club activities should be greater than credit for teacher-directed school activities. 8. A thing does not necessarily cease to be educational when its informa- tional possibilities are exhausted. The informational learning is only prepara- tory to experiences that lie beyond which look to habits, interests, attitudes, ability to bear responsibility, and a general condition of mind. In the matter of the unspecialized activities, these latter are usually more important than the informational. The latter frequently represents no task at all. 9. In large measure, training for unspecialized activities will take the form of short exploratory courses, and thus care for two aspects of general training at the same time. PRACTICAL ARTS FOR BOYS 85 10. Many, even most, of the unspecialized home activities that are used for training cannot be organized into short-unit courses. It must be a matter of utilizing home opportunities as they occur throughout all the years of one's school life. 11. The short-unit practical-arts courses are specially helpful in giving a boy a large portion of the concrete alphabet, so to speak, of the vast and to him endlessly important world of productive industry. The ones to be given, therefore, should be in part chosen on the basis of the relative importance of the occupation. The other major basis is value for unspecialized abilities. On these two bases should the short-unit courses be chosen. 12. The short-unit courses, .so long as few in number, and foimd on the junior high school level only, can be of relatively little service for vocational guidance. 13. The "exploratory" course should be but one means of acquainting the pupil with a given occupational field. 14. The theoretical information of applied type needed for guidance in the practical arts should be taken care of by the teachers of practical arts in the applied science, applied mathematics, applied design, etc. They should be able to presuppose, however, that the necessary general foundation for the appHed studies had already been laid by the other departments. 15. All of the unspecialized practical arts for boys should for administrative convenience be included in a single department. The present differentiation is due to the influence of the theory of vocational specialization. But this is not vocational training. 16. Direct observation of the occupational activities of the commimity should be as abundant as practicable. 17. In the training for consumption, the observation and analyses of the products of the world of industry should be full and abundant. 18. The direct observation should be fully supplemented by pictures which reveal the world of productive industry: charts, diagrams, etc. 19. There should be much well-illustrated technological reading. CHAPTER XIII VISUAL ART Training in visual art for vocational technicians is for technical skill, and for the understanding, appreciation, and powers of judgment needed for skill. Training in visual art for people in general, who do not need it for vocational purposes, is for activities they will or ought to perform; but rarely are these such as require any great degree of technical skill in drawing or painting. The schools should train both groups; but the courses of training should be very different. This bulletin relates to the general training; only slightly and incidentally to the vocational, which really must be taken up separately for every vocation in which visual art is involved. The objectives for the general training of the people in general of the city appear to be somewhat as follows. THE OBJECTIVES 1. A proportioned understanding and appreciation of the world of form and space-relation as everywhere manifest in one's visual environment. This is to be interpreted as involving the awakened interests, the normal emotional reactions of aesthetic experiences, sensitiveness to matters of propor- tion and disproportion, appropriateness and inappropriateness, beauty and ugliness, etc. Degree of attainment will differ according to natural capacity and aptitude. 2. A proportioned understanding and appreciation of the world of color as manifest in one's visual environment. [Qualified as in i above.] 3. A mind enriched with the imagery of the great art of the world. 4. Ability to use the products of the fine arts [of visual type] as sources of needed kinds of aesthetic [and intellectual] experiences, 5. Ability as a consumer of economic products involving form, color, composition, etc, to judge, select, and arrange them according to the dictates of the principles of visual art. [This refers both to individual and collective or civic activities.] 6. Ability to apply principles of form and color design in the performance of certain unspecialized practical activities: a) Home decoration, arrangement of furniture, etc. h) Planning of garments. c) Arranging landscape effects about one's home. d) Etc. 7. An amateur and presumably prevocational ability on the part of carefully selected and specially talented pupils, to draw, design, model, etc. 86 VISUAL ART 87 BASIC ASSUMPTIONS 1. All men and women of the city need a full understanding and apprecia- tion of what constitutes beauty and ugliness in form and color in the things that make up their ever-changing environment. 2. Visual-art training — for judgment and appreciation — should be required of all. 3. The first questions for the teachers of visual art and expression to answer with as great definiteness and completeness as practicable are: (i) What thinking, judging, deciding, etc., in terms of form and color should the men and women of this city [outside of their specialized vocations] be currently or occasionally doing? (2) What activities should they be performing that require the guidance of such thought ? 4. Outside of vocational training, most art training will be for judgment and appreciation, not for skill. 5. For one's general purposes, the main thing is to think and to judge and to enjoy, not to create or produce art forms. 6. In this field as in every other, one learns to judge by judging, to think by thinking, to apply general principles by applying general principles. 7. Except as art training is vocational its major purpose is consumption, not production. 8. Outside of certain vocations, and possibly also outside of certain simple geometrical and mechanical drawing, the majority of the men and women of the city have not enough need of practical drawing skill to warrant the necessary educational time and expense. 9. Opportunities will be offered students for short-unit courses in pro- ductive art which give that minimum of productive art that is helpful to understanding, and which give an opportunity to talented ones to discover their possibihties. 10. Except in the case of the talented ones, the fruits of much public-school drawing are practically nil on the productive side; and of relatively little value as training for consumption purposes. 11. Those who show no promise of skilful execution should be excused from the productive side of the training as soon as this is discovered, and trained merely as "consumers." 12. There should be an abundance of concrete observation — studying things in the environment — analyzing them into their elements — ^judging them in terms of principles — ^making "visual-art surveys" of many, many things. 13. There should be an abundance of fully illustrated reading which presents surveys of visual-art possibilities in the various important fields. 14. A certain amount of constructive or creative art and design is necessary or advisable in developing powers of judgment and appreciation. 15. Classified sets of pictures of things to which principles of art have been appHed should be used in making surveys of possibilities. 88 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 1 6. The ability to do form and color thinking and judging is to be developed in youth in ways and under conditions as nearly like those in which it will later function during adulthood as practicable. 1 7. The amount of geometrical and mechanical drawing needed by people in general, outside their vocations, is so slight that for reasons of economy it should be cared for by the department of visual arts. 18. Mechanical drawing needed for vocational purposes should be directed by the vocational department to which the mechanical drawing appUes. 19. For those who need skill in creative or constructive art in their voca- tions, the training should be intensive and thorough. 20. Training for skill in creative or constructive art has little or no place in the high school except as it is definitely vocational; and directed according to the needs of the particular vocation in which it is involved. 21. Amateur art work as a leisure occupation — except as it is a feature of unspecialized practical activities — ^has little or infrequent appeal and is not particularly fruitful. 22. Studies of art and design as applied to clothing, furniture, rugs, etc., should be directed in part by the home-economics department and in part by the art department. 23." A similar division should be made in the case of commercial art, printing art, architectural art, etc. CHAPTER XIV MUSIC For a small percentage of high-school students, musical training should be vocational training. For another small percentage, it should be for amateur instrumental or vocal production or interpretation of relatively good quality. A much larger percentage will profit from chorus or community singing; some of these will master the musical notation, while some will not. The great majority of students — all who are capable of it — should develop an appreciation of good music so as to be discriminating "consumers." Some of these will develop a high degree of appreciation; others a relatively low degree — all according to native capacity and aptitude. Finally, there are probably some so entirely lacking in musical aptitudes that it is unprofitable for them to give any time or attention to music. This diversity of needs and of power to profit greatly complicates the curriculum problem. Really, the objectives should be determined separately for each of the different groups of students. This the depart- ment ought to undertake. We shall here limit ourselves to stating probable objectives for the musical training of that majority of students who should learn to sing, and who should have those appreciations of music that will enable them as "consumers" to select and patronize with discrimination. For this group, the following appear to be objectives: THE OBJECTIVES 1. A mind enriched with the auditory imagery of the great music of the world. 2. Ability — ^as auditor or musical "consumer" — ■judiciously to utilize music for healthful, abundant, and varied awakening of one's emotional nature. 3. Ability, disposition, and habit of participating in home, chorus, or community singing. Note. — For those relatively few who go on to higher levels of production, other objectives should be added to the above. BASIC ASSUMPTIONS I. The first questions for the high-school teachers of music to answer with as great definiteness and completeness as practicable are: (i) What are the musical experiences which the men and women of this city [not profes- 89 90 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES sional musicians] ought to be having throughout Hfe? (2) Which of these are so necessary or desirable as to warrant preparation for them at pubUc expense ? 2. An appreciation of good music on the part of all who have anything to do with music, whether as auditor or producer, is greatly desirable. Education should therefore make as great contribution to the development of a wide- spread musical appreciation as practicable, all conditions considered. 3. In the case of the majority of men and women, singing is a valuable type of social and physical experience. 4. As mechanical methods of musical reproduction are perfected, the need of training the general population for skill in execution diminishes and the need of musical appreciation and judgment increases. 5. The ability to experience music of desirable types and quantities is to be developed in ways and under conditions as nearly like those in which it later is to function in adulthood as practicable. 6. The basic thing involved in developing appreciation of music is hearing it under conditions that permit full and appropriate emotional reactions. For this purpose, all things else combined are of minor worth. 7. Music is normally an aspect or accompaniment of social activities of many types. The best training for appreciation comes from using it or experi- encing it as an aspect of social experiences. 8. Only secondarily and in derived way is music a "language addressed to the emotions" of a purely passive listener. 9. For the sake of normal training for appreciation, music of proper quality should enter abundantly into the general life of the school. 10. Home player-pianos and phonographs will be utilized for training in musical appreciation as fully as practicable. 11. Music for the consumer is to be intellectualized only enough to enable him to select good and appropriate music for his uses. Not structure or technique primarily, but emotional [and other personal and social] values. . 12. In the main, for non-performers, music is a thing to be experienced y not a thing to be studied. 13. When one's mind has been saturated with the great music of the world, even though he know nothing of the technique of music, his standards of appreciation are automatically pitched upon a relatively high plane. 14. Pupils should be made reasonably famUiar — so far as ability permits — ^with the criteria to be employed in judging the worth of music. 15. For individuals who are not responsive to music, it is of no value. It is in no wise an ''essential" for them; and should be omitted. To force it upon them is to waste time, money, labor, and opportunity. 16. The Seashore tests should be used in classifying pupils for musical training. 17. It is imperative that pupils of all grades be classified on bases of aptitudes and objectives actually aimed at. MUSIC 91 18. Time is to be found in part for the pupil's hearing of music by making it accompaniment and interlude to school activities throughout the school day. 19. Credit for musical training should be not in terms of courses taken but in terms of level of achievement attained. 20. If musical training is to be effective, there should be an auditorium at every school large enough to accommodate the entire school at one time. 21. Owing to the difficulty of securing enough expert piano and orchestral music, the auditorium and the main corridor in every school should be provided with both player-piano and phonograph of best type. 22. Those in training for vocational or high-grade amateur performance should off-set much of the extra expense of their training by supplying a considerable portion of the auditorium and other school music. 23. Training in singing should be only for those of sufficient aptitude to profit; and of sufficient diligence and industry to master it without undue effort by teachers. All others should be excused since results will not be great enough to warrant the labor and expense. 24. The fundamental experience in learning to sing is, of course, to sing. A maximum of time should be given to this; with accessory training reduced to the necessary minimum. 25. Unless singing is to find a larger place in community life than now appears probable, it is doubtful if more than a small minority of pubHc-school pupils should be expected to learn to read musical notation for sight singing. 26. Pupils should learn to sing a great number of the world's best songs; but for most pupils, it will be rote singing on aU levels of their training. 27. The standards of thoroughness and completeness of training that are justifiable for the talented ones who are to become high-grade performers are not to be set up as the standards for those who cannot sufficiently profit from such training. 28. Through the use of an effective method of measuring and crediting achievement, pupils will be encouraged to secure a considerable portion of their vocal training in club and home singing. Results being equals this should have larger credit — ^because of the self -direction. CHAPTER XV ENGLISH EXPRESSION In this field the objectives are more completely agreed upon than in any other. Basal ones for the general training are the following : THE OBJECTIVES 1. Ability to pronounce one's words properly. 2. Ability to write with proper legibility, ease, and speed. 3. Ability to spell the words of one's writing vocabulary. 4. Command over an adequate reading, speaking, and writing vocabulary. 5. Ability to use English which is grammatically correct. 6. Ability to organize and express one's thought effectively. 7. Ability to write a letter according to forms in general use. 8. Ability to use good form, order, and arrangement in all of one's written Expression: capitals, punctuation, abbreviations, syllabication, margins, align- ment, etc. 9. Ability to converse easily, agreeably, and effectively. Ability to utilize conversation as a profitable and enjoyable means of participating socially in the thought of the world. 10. Ability to join in more or less formal discussions of topics. Ability to participate in public discussion of current social problems as a leisure occupa- tion. 11. Ability to present one's thought orally to an audience. 12. Ability to present written or printed thought effectively through oral reading. 13. Ability in speech to use the voice in ways both agreeable and effective. 14. The ability to prepare an outline, brief, or summary of a lecture, article, chapter, or book. 15. Ability to draw up or fill out business forms in common use. For the general training of a minority of students, those with the necessary special aptitudes and capacities, the following appear also to be approved: 16. Amateur ability to do literary production of different kinds. 17. Ability to take part in dramatics, theatricals, pageants, etc. BASIC ASSUMPTIONS I. The general training in English expression is not for vocational literary- production; nor for any special type of English expression in any vocation. It is only for the ordinary oral and written expression of everyday life. 92 ENGLISH EXPRESSION 93 2. The first questions which the teachers of English expression should answer accurately, definitely, and completely are: (i) In what ways and under what circumstances should the men and women of this city [outside of their special vocations] express themselves orally ? (2) In writing ? (3) With what degree of proficiency ? 3. The ability to express one's self in oral or written English is to be developed in ways and under conditions as nearly like those in which adults will currently express themselves as practicable. 4. The way to learn to express one's self effectively in English is to express one's self, within normal situations where one greatly wants to express one's self well. 5. The preparatory or accessory activities should be reduced to a minimum. 6. English composition has been too much for the purpose of making amateur literary producers. This has stood in the way and in large measure prevented its doing well the simpler things needed by everybody. 7. The English expression is an indispensable aspect of the work of all departments in the high school. 8. There is no more reason for tying the English expression up with the literature than with the history or the science. 9. Composition has been too intimately tied up with the literature because of its aiming too greatly at developing amateur literary producers. 10. The basic aspects of English expression are the same whether it be oral or written. This being the case, it should be taken care of as one thing; but a thing of many aspects, each one of which should be adequately cared for. 11. In every department in the high school, there should be much English expression — for the sake of the thought or content side of the department's work. The expression should be carefully organized and adequate — for the sake of the thought. There should be as much oral expression by each individual pupil as the limited time will permit. There should also be a reasonable amount of written expression in each department. 12. Those dealing with the realities of the thought of the pupils should be responsible for the pupils' verbalization of that thought. 13. Careful and exact thought is impossible in most cases without a parallel careful and exact expression. 14. A diagnostic study of the language abilities of each individual student needs to be made. Where he reveals weakness, he is to be trained; where he is already sufficiently strong he is not to be trained, since he does not need it. 15. In discovering the language errors and defects of individual pupils, the oral-speech defects of pronunciation, enunciation, voice quaUty and placement, etc., are to be looked after as carefully as any others. 16. In each aspect of his expression, the student should keep a record of the types of error against which he should be continually on guard. His major task is to eliminate these errors. 94 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES 17. The entire series of objectives in terms of ability to do should be made as clear as possible to the students, and as early as they can understand. 18. Each student should keep for himself a continuous record showing his progress in attaining each ability in which he is deficient. 19. Students should be stimulated to attain each objective as expeditiously as practicable, and with a minimum of teacher-labor. The more it is done without teacher-assistance, through pupil self-direction as proven by measured results, the greater the credit that should be given. 20. Owing to the size of classes, there is at present an insufficient amount of individual oral expression in every department of the high school. 21. Written expression can be made sufficiently serviceable for training purposes only when the writer is conscious that his production is to be read by or to others whom he desires to please or convince or instruct or impress. He must write within a normal expression situation. 22. As expressed by one of the teachers: The basic thing is "the upward surge of one's whole personality" in eagerly and earnestly thinking and saying the things that one greatly wants to say by way of affecting the thoughts or reactions of others. 23. The English department has not control over a sufficient quantity of normal expression situations to give pupils enough practice in normal written expression. 24. The auditor is as necessary for normal expression as the speaken The reader, as necessary as the writer. 25. The most difficult single problem of the department is how to bring the children greatly to want to use a good quality of EngHsh. 26. Only those are to be trained for vocational literary production who have definitely chosen this as their work; whom studies of capacity show to be fitted for it; and who are capable of a large degree of self -direction in achieving the skills and understanding. 27. Training for amateur literary production is to be given only to those of proven capacity, aptitude, and industry — and who require no great amount of teacher-effort and assistance. CHAPTER XVI MODERN LANGUAGES From the papers that came in, it appears that the basal objectives approved by the department of modern languages are about as follows: THE OBJECTIVES 1. Ability to read the foreign language. 2. Ability to think in terms of and to write the foreign language easily and correctly. 3. Ability to understand oral speech in the language. 4. Ability to speak the language with ease and correctness. 5. An improved understanding of, and sympathetic attitudes toward, the people whose language is mastered. 6. A habit of reading the literature in the foreign tongue as a fruitful and Hfe-long leisure occupation. 7. To eliminate provinciality of thought and to develop a world- consciousness. 8. To assist in laying those grammatical foundations valuable in one's use of the mother-tongue. The writer's comment upon the objectives chosen by the teachers of modern languages, in suggesting further consideration on their part, was as follows: The writer feels that for the general [non-vocational] education of the men and women of this city, the committee greatly over-emphasizes Objectives 2, 3, and 4, in the case of French, and of any other modem language, except possibly Spanish. It is doubtful if the taxpayers of the city are justified in investing in a speaking and writing knowledge of French or German. A reading knowledge can be developed inexpensively, if one aims only at that. For those who will achieve Objectives 5-8, the profit will be full justification of the expense of developing a reading ability. These objectives, 5-8, do not require anything more than the relatively inexpensive reading ability. Probably a reading knowledge of Spanish should be widely diffused among the people of this city and region. This would easily enable most persons in the city to write and speak as fully as they really need to. For the relatively few who need for business purposes a high degree of fluency and correctness in speech and writing, it should be developed in connection with or as an aspect of their vocational training. The need of fluent speech for social purposes is much exaggerated. 95 96 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES For the French, we therefore suggest that Objectives 2, 3 and 4 be omitted, and that for Spanish, they be made secondary, except where they are specific objectives of vocational training, and administered as such to selected voca- tional groups; and that the reading ability be made the central objective in the case of both languages. BASIC ASSUMPTIONS 1. A considerable percentage of the citizens of Los Angeles, probably greater than at present, should learn to read French. 2. A still greater percentage should learn to read Spanish. 3. French, Spanish, and English are not the only languages of value in developing a world-consciousness. [Objective No. 7.] 4. There is no sufficient warrant for teaching the growing citizens of this city at public expense to speak or write French. That they read it is enough. The very, very few who need speaking or writing knowledge for vocational purposes should secure this as part of their vocational training. 5. Public taxation should not be employed to provide or to train for mere enjoyments that cannot be justified on a basis of positive social values to those who pay the bills. 6. Where immigrant children in our schools are already bilingual, the schools should develop both languages. This is the class of students from which should be drawn those who are to fill vocational positions demanding fluent use of two languages. It is the only really practicable method. 7. No one should specialize in modem languages, except as it is vocational specialization; or a phase of such. 8. The student who requires a large amount of teacher-effort to keep him going will not profit sufficiently to warrant giving him the language. 9. The basic experience in learning to read a modem language is to read it abundantly. All else should be reduced to a minimum. 10. Reading should begin in the very beginning of the study; and it should be fairly abundant by the end of the first semester. 11. Translation serves no sufficient purpose — after a beginning has been made. It should be reduced to a minimum in the first year, and omitted thereafter. 12. Modem language reading experience should be wholly [or mainly] on the play level — pleasant but strenuous intellectual play — strenuous because of the abundance of reading to be covered, not the steepness of the climb. 13. A forced study of language will not result in attaining any of the objectives mentioned. If not mastered on the play level, for the joy of the experience and of the achievement, it will not be mastered. 14. The content of the reading on each level should be adapted to the general mental maturity of the pupil. On the thought side, it should be interest- ing; and not difficult. MODERN LANGUAGES 97 15. In grading readings, there should be consideration of the simplicity or complexity of grammar, vocabulary, and story or thought-content. 16. Pupil-readings, from recommended graded lists should be largely self-chosen, but chosen. 17. A genuine reading ability is not to be developed until the students read at least ten times as many pages as now covered each year. 18. At present, an easy fluent reading ability is not aimed at. The objective that should be central has been pushed into a secondary place. 19. After a proper start is made, a reading ability can be acquired by those who want it enough to acquire it, without much labor on the part of teachers; probably not more than one period per week. 20. After the start has been made, a language is to be mastered in ways and under the conditions in which it is to be used after school days are over. 21. Results being the same, as shown by supervisory tests, self-directed home-reading of foreign-language books and newspapers should be accorded larger credit than school -directed reading involving teacher-labor. 22. Fundamental language-experiences should be used in maximum measure; accessory, in minimum measure. 23. A student who is learning to read a modem language should be expected to do an appreciable portion of his reading of literature, history, science, etc., in that foreign language. 24. The reading should continue through all the years of the high school after it is begun. Otherwise Objective 6 is not attained. But this does not demand class work. Reading is best done outside of class. 25. In beginning a foreign language for reading purposes, the oral element should be sufficient to develop good pronunciation habits and the necessary auditoiy-articulatory imagery. 26. For those who only read the language, nothing more than a moderate accuracy of pronunciation is worth while. 27. Power oifull comprehension is to be developed through much reading rather than through complete understanding of every phrase read from the very beginning. Attempt to secure the latter is in the end a most wasteful process. 28. For those learning to read the language only, composition serves no sufficient purpose. 29. Not much technical grammar is needed prior to beginning the reading. 30. The school should look after the maintenance of a foreign language once learned — as long as the pupil is in school. [If it is to lapse at once, why teach it at all ?] 31. A ** knowledge of the life and thought of foreign nations" — many foreign nations — is now so important that we cannot afford to trust the matter to the usual amount and character of reading in one foreign language. 32. Teachers of modem languages tend to exaggerate its values for achiev- ing Objectives 5, 7, and 8. 98 CURRICXJLUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES SS. If Objective No. 7 is to be accomplished through learning languages, it seems to demand some acquaintance with several, since the nations are many. "Short-unit" language courses. 34. The brighter children should be provided opportunity for acquiring the ability to read a half-dozen modem languages. 35. Some of the objectives of modem-language training are vague wishes and hopes; and not objectives at all. Even the two reading objectives [i and 6] have not been held to as objectives. CHAPTER XVII LATIN Latin is to be employed as a means in the general training of only a portion of the adolescent population. In the main, this will be the more competent minority. The following basal objectives appear to be approved by the department: THE OBJECTIVES 1. An enrichment and exfoliation of the language-aspect of one's current mental life — through extension and diversification of language experiences which build out and refine the vernacular. This involves or tends to produce heightened appreciations of one's language; increased sensitiveness to matters Unguistic; increased responsive- ness to the dictates of the accepted canons of usage; greater watchfulness over one's language; elevation of standards of usage; a bulwarking of standards once set up; and in other ways, growth and refinement of one's language. 2. The ability to read Latin as a language. This is a more immediate objective, a means to the first. The thing referred to is reading the language for the thought and general mental experi- ence, not translation. 3. Increased ability to understand and use the less familiar English words derived from the Latin. 4. An augmented appreciation of the vocabulary of English speech through the vision Latin gives of the genesis of English words. Certain minor objectives were mentioned which appear legitimate, but which are mostly taken care of incidentally in caring for the major ones listed above. They are: a) Increased ability to spell English words of Latin origin. [Value is sUght.] b) Increased ability to understand Latin plurals which have been carried over into English. [They are few.] c) Increased knowledge of grammar in general, and therefore of English grammar. [English is largely a '' grammarless tongue, " so not much is needed.] d) Assists in mastery of Romance languages. [Places the more difficult language first. Rarely used for this purpose.] e) The classics read give a little knowledge of the life, history, mythology and rehgion of the Romans. [Fragmentary; vernacular readings are far better for this purpose — ^more effective and more economical.] 99 lOO CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES /) Provides opportunity for practice in English expression in the transla- tions. [One who observes the results will rarely make the claim seriously.] g) An elevation of literary taste. [Not probable that present methods, involving so little reading, accomplish much in achieving this objective.] h) Ability to remain sedentary or physically passive for extended periods, while at the same time one is highly active intellectually. [This is a more or less artificial and induced condition, and highly necessary — indispensable — for civilized life. Any study that involves the conditions will achieve the result. It is not certain that the physical passivity or the intellectual activity is more pronounced or effective with Latin than with any number of other possible studies.] i) The tendency is observable to set up pure mental discipline objectives: "AbUity to reason with abstract materials"; ''general ideals of accuracy, thoroughness, and persistence"; etc. These, however, are not objectives peculiar to Latin or any other single subject. Naturally every subject should be so handled that it makes its due specific contribution to the individual's general mental unfoldment. It is the belief of the writer that if the four major objectives stated above are held to and fully attained, all practicable contribution of Latin to general training will be made, and more than at present. BASIC ASSUMPTIONS 1. One who has the ability to read Latin with fluency and pleasure wiU secure all the values that can be expected from its use as a means of general training. 2. The high schools are not justified in attempting vocational training of specialists in classic languages. 3. A larger percentage than at present of the high-school students should acquire the ability to read Latin. 4. High schools should use the most effective and economical methods of developing the ability to read Latin. 5. The basic experience in learning to read Latin is to read it abundantly. AU else should be reduced to a minimum. 6. Reading should begin as nearly as possible in the first year of study; and it should be reading, not translation. 7. After a beginning has been made, translation serves no sufficient purpose. It should be reduced to a minimum. 8. The boys and girls should have a fairly generous amount of easy repeti- tious reading even in the first year; and an abundance of easy reading in each year thereafter. 9. Pupils need at least ten times as much reading experience — ^genuine reading, not floundering — than they now secure. [Twenty times as much would be nearer the mark.] LATIN loi 10. Story or thought-content being suitable to the pupil's maturity and interests, reading materials should be graded on the basis of difficulty of vocabulary and grammar. 11. Not much technical grammar is needed prior to beginning the reading. 12. Most of the actually needed grammar can be developed alongside the reading; the rest can be omitted. 13. Fundamental language experiences should be used :w^ JHftximum measure; accessory, in minimum degree. './' ','•: : '/ . 14. The classic literature was never written for teaching purppses;^, certainly not for training beginners in the language. It shouifd not. lie^ undfe)^-'' taken imtil one reads the language in a way that can be called reading it — ^not mere stumbling through it. 15. The major values of the Latin are derived from the language, and not from the content of the Roman literature. As a literature, its values are not great. 16. Latin reading experience should be wholly [or mainly] on the play level — ^pleasant but strenuous intellectual play — strenuous because of the abundance of the reading, requiring concentration, not because of the steepness of the climb, or the number of obstacles in the road. 17. The road of drudgery has not been a road of success in Latin training. It enabled Latin to be an excellent selective device. The other fruits have been meager. 18. The worship of drudgery by the Latin department must end, or the department will end. It will go the way of Greek. 19. The graded Latin readings should be such on the side of content as to be of value for one's literature, history, science, etc. 20. None of the objectives demands Latin composition [so-called]. 21. One can more fully and effectively enter into Roman life, into the Mediterranean civilization, into classic mythology, legend, and history, through the vernacular than through the Latin. 22. The student who requires much teacher-effort to keep him going will not profit sufficiently from the language to warrant the labor of forcing it upon him. 23. After a proper start is made, the main thing needed is reading by the student; not teaching effort by the teacher. The latter will provide conditions . and stimulations, but class-meetings need not be frequent. 24. The supposed disciplinary value of Latin is largely a phenomenon of its selective value. 25. The objectives are not to be achieved merely by enunciating them in the abstract, and then neglecting them and organizing the subject merely according to one's personal predilections. 26. The objectives must be kept clearly in view in planning every step to be taken. No step is justifiable that does not demonstrably advance the student toward one or another of the goals. INDEX INDEX Abilities, list of, 8-32 Ability, nature of an, 33-35 Accessory pupil-activities, 41-44 Agriculture, 83-85 Animals, care of, 16 Appreciations, 33-36 Art, 86-88 Assumptions: general, 41-44; literature, 47-49; social studies, 52-61; mathe- matics, 65-66; biology, 68-69; phys- ical science, 71-73; physical training, 74-78; music, 88-91; home occupa- tions, 80-82; practical arts for boys, 84-85; visual art, 87-88; English expression, 92-94; modem languages, 96-98; Latin, loo-ioi Attitudes, 33-36 Biology, 38, 67-69 Care of the person, 21 Citizenship objectives, 7, 23-25 Civic agencies, 23 Civic education, 23 Civics, 60-61 Cleaning, 19-20 Clothing activities, 17-18 College-entrance requirements, 37, 66 Committees, course of study, i, 2 Composition, 92-94 Cooking, 18-19 Department of Educational Research, i, 3 Departments, high school, 37 Domestic science, 79-82 Dorsey, Susan M. , 3 Drawmg, 86-88 Economics, 59-60 Educational objectives, general, 3-32, 37 Electrical, 14 EngUsh language, 8, 92-94 Fields of human activity, 7 Financial activities, 21-22 Fine arts, 20-21 Fire protection, 14-15 Foreign language, 8 French, 95-98 Fundamental pupil-activities, 41-44 Garden, 15-16 Gardening, 83-85 General training, 38-39 Geography, 58-59 Good citizen, characteristics of, 24 Gould, Arthur, 3 Grammar, 33 Griffin, A. C, 3 Habits, 33-36 Health objectives, 9-1 1 History, 56-58 Home occupations, 79-82 House and equipment, 12-14 Hypothesis as basis of work, 6-7, 40, 47 Knowledge, place of, 33-36 Language, 8, 92-101 Latin, 99-101 Laimdry, 19-20 Leisure occupations, 7, 26-28 Literature, 37, 45-49 Manual training, 83-85 Mathematics, 38, 39, 62-66 Mental efficiency, objectives, 7, 28-30 Method of formulating the list of abilities, 5-6 Modem languages, 95-98 Music, 89-91 Objectives: home occupations, 11-22, 79-80; practical arts for boys, 11-22, 83-84; literature, 45-46; social studies, 50-52; mathematics, 63-64; biology, 67-68; physical science, 70; physical training, 74; visual art, 86; music, 89; English expression, 92; modem lan- criiaorpss nc—nff T.Jifin nn—inn O-^AX^XXOXX Vy.^^XX./OOXVfXX, V 9 XXXWX guages, 95-96; Latin, 99-100 los io6 CURRICULUM-MAKING IN LOS ANGELES Occupational objectives, 7, 22 Outdoor life, 16-17 Parental objectives, 7, 31-32 Pets, care of, 16 Physical science, 38, 70-73 Physical training, 9-1 1, 74-78 Play, 43-44, 48, 53 Practical arts for boys, 83-85 Premises, the, 15-16 Principles of curriculum-making, 41, 47 Pupil-activities, 39, 42-44, 46 Reading, 45-49 Religious education, 30 Religious objectives, 7, 30-31 Sanitation, household, 20 Science studies, 67-73 Short-unit courses, 84-85 Social intercommunication, 7, 8, 9 Social objectives, 25-26 Social studies, 50-61 Spanish, 95-98 Superintendent of schools, i, 3 Teacher-participation in curriculum- making, 2, 6, 32 Tools, materials, and processes, 11-12 Travel, 16-17 University of Chicago, 5 Unspecialized practical labors, 7, 11-22 Visual art, 86-88 Vocational training, 38-39 Watson, Helen, 3 Work experiences, 43-44, 53 PRUraED IN TH£ U.S.A. 7 DAY USE RETURN TO This publication is due on the LAST DATE and HOUR stamped below. SFP 8i983 IRVINE tNTERLIBRARY ICiAK lo-lo-'^^^ Q^^^ R-^'eJl-'prf i'!1 !ntor!ihr;sn/ |n?!n Mnif n Trr WB 0£C OS 199J RBl7-30m-10,'73 (R3381sl0)4188 — ^A-32 General Library University of California Berkeley yC 49034! 758834 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA UBRARY In view of the rapid changes which are taking place in the cost of pubKcation, future monographs will not be grouped in volumes but will be listed and announced as individual issues. The number- ing will continue the series of whole numbers. No. 17. An Experimental Study of the Eye-Voice Span in Reading. By Guy Thomas Buswell, Ph.D. Pp. xii+106. Ii.oo, postpaid. No. .18. How Numerals Are Read. An Experimental Study of the Reading of Isolated Numerals and of Numerals in Arithmetic Problems. By Paul Washington Terry, Ptt.D. Pp. xiii-l-105. $1.00, postpaid. No.'ig. The Selective Character o^ American Secondary Educaiion. By George Sylvester Counts, Ph.D. Pp. xviii~f-i56. $1.50, postpaid. No. 20. Curriculum-Making in Los Angeles. 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