370:6 NI9Q Hamfiton College Library oO BULLETIN OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS Issued Four Times a Year: January, March, May, and October OCTOBER, 1926 Entered as second-class matter, December 29, 1925, at the post office at Berwyn, Illinois under the Act of August 24, 1912 BULLETIN NUMBER 13 Secondary-School Administration Abstracts NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS H. V. CHURCH, Secretary 3129 Wenonah Avenue, BERWYN, ILLINOIS J. Sterling Morton High School CICERO, ILLINOIS BULLETIN of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS Issued Four Times a Year January, March, May, and October OCTOBER, 1926 Bulletin Number 13 SECONDARY-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION ABSTRACTS Published under the direction of the National Association of Secondary-School Principals with the co-operation of the Judd Club The Judd Club is a group of principals of the high schools of the suburbs of Chicago who meet once a month during the scholastic year for dinner and the evening with Charles H. Judd, Director of the School of Education of the University of Chicago. At the meetings administrative problems of the secondary school are discussed. Members of the Judd Club contributing to this issue: Editor-in-Chief, W. C. Reavis Under-editors Douglas Waples G. W. Willett All communications for secondary-school administration abstract serv- ice should be directed to H. V. Church, 3129 Wenonah Avenue, Berwyn, Illinois; J. Sterling Morton High School, Cicero, Illinois, Secretary of the National Association of Secondary-School Principals. These abstracts are free to all members of the National Association of Secondary-School Principals. NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT The National Association of Secondary-School Principals will hold its next annual convention in St.tLouis, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Febru- ary 24, 25, and 26, 1927. After a very careful inquiry, the {Executive Committee decided that, for this meeting, St. Louis is accessible to the larger num- ber of the members of the Association. The Com- mittee has positive assurance that ample accom- modation can be had at the best hotels of St. Louis. In setting the convention just previous to the Dallas meeting of the Department of Superintendence, it was felt that the National Association would thus, both as to time and place, accommodate a large number who would desire to attend both meetings. The program will have six sessions, beginning Thursday evening: three general sessions, two ses- sions separated into junior and senior high-school meetings, and a luncheon. A sincere effort has been made to make the program interesting and profit- able throughout, both to junior and senior high- school principals. Hotel Statler will be the head- quarters of the Association. SECONDARY-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION ABSTRACTS CORRECTION On page 2 of Bulletin Number 12, (the May bulletin of the National Association of Secondary-School Principals) there oc- curred an error in the second paragraph of the abstract of Henry C. Morrison’s book, The Practice of Teaching in Secondary Schools. The paragraph should read: The book consists of four parts. Part one presents one of the author’s main propositions; namely, that the pupil’s class- room performance of the customary type only produces useful learning by accident. A different approach is necessary in achiev- ing useful learning, an approach which demands the formulation of new techniques. Reduced to formula, the general teaching procedure recommended is to alternate teaching and testing until the tests show that the given unit of work has been mastered to the point of usefulness in daily life. The discussion therefore deals with the means of establishing a genuine teaching situation regardless of the nature of the subject or class. ABSTRACTS Books Briccs, THomas H. Curriculum Problems. New York: Macmillan Co., 1926. Pp. xiii + 138. In this little volume of 138 pages the author has issued a stirring challenge to educators engaged in secondary education to attack the fundamental problem of providing a proper curriculum to meet the needs of the varying pupil personnel of the modern secondary school. He presents in the first chapter 27 questions which must receive con- sideration by the students of secondary education before any con- structive curriculum modification can take place. His purpose is to stimulate large numbers of educators and research workers to under- take curriculum studies with the view of eventually finding answers to fundamental questions in composite results. Each of the 27 ques- tions is presented with brief comment. The casual reader may won- der why answers are not proposed. “There are two reasons: one is that for many of the questions no satisfactory answer exists; the other is that the purpose of the presentation is not to advocate any theory of education that the author may hold, an advocacy that might 3 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS easily confuse the issues, but rather to reveal the importance, the extent, and the complexity of the curriculum problem, so that an in- telligent, comprehensive attack may be made by a large number of educational workers.” In the two remaining chapters the author sets forth two neglected phases of the curriculum, namely, “Emo- tionalized Attitudes” and “Mores.” He believes that the curriculum must concern itself with the whole life of the pupil and, therefore, any reconstructive effort which is restricted to intellectual elements will be woefully inadequate because “life is wholly, or almost wholly, colored by emotions.” Education is concerned, in the opinion of the author, with the established mores of pupils, the attitudes which good citizens should establish, and the degree to which each should be emotionalized. Hence the curriculum must take into consideration the question of providing the learning situations which will permit the forming and reforming of these controlling factors in the behavior of pupils. Douctass, Hart R. Modern Methods in High-School Teaching. New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1926. Pp. 544. This volume has been prepared by the author with the convic- tion that there is a widespread need on the part of teachers and prin- cipals for a comprehensive treatment of the methods of teaching in high schools. The fundamentals of both theory and practice are set forth, and an attempt has been made to outline and describe the newer types of procedure, which are being employed in different subjects in the best secondary schools. The author assumes a familiarity on the part of his readers with the nature of the learning process, adolescence, and the psychological foundations of interests and motives as they relate to whole-hearted pupil activity. He launches at once into a discussion of the impor- tant outcomes of teaching in general and the recognized methods of developing them. The third chapter begins a discussion of the more modern technique, devices and methods. Such topics as supervised study, teaching pupils how to study, visual instruction, socialized class procedure, problem and project teaching, quizzes, examinations, the use of standardized tests and scales, and marking are elaborated in succeeding chapters. In the last two chapters the author discusses the adjustment of instruction to individual needs and the technique of scientific experimentation in classroom teaching. Throughout the volume the attempt has been made clearly to rep- resent practices rather than to advocate their adoption. The reader is permitted to draw his own conclusions. The book will appeal to the type of reader who wants to be intelligent about what is going on in high-school teaching. 4 SECONDARY-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION ABSTRACTS Munck, E. Letcu. Varieties of Adolescent Experience. New York: The Century Co., 1926. Pp. xv + 134. This book consists of 10 short chapters which treat different types of adolescent experience. The chapter headings are: “Self- Discovery,” “The Adolescent Egoist,” “The Shifting Complex of Impulses,” “Adolescence and Sex,” “The Imagination of Youth,” “The Active Life,” “Personal Influence and Suggestion,” “Moral and Social Development,” “The Normal Development of Religion,” “Varied Religious Experiences.” The author comments in each chapter on various types of adolescent experience and supports his statements with brief autobiographical reports gathered from col- lege students who were asked to recall and describe their attitudes and thought reactions to various problems which concerned them during adolescence. The author’s views are invariably supported by one or more case statements of the type mentioned. The plan of the volume and the technique of the author are admirable. The weakness of the work lies in the supporting data. In the first place, his case reports are from women only, and secondly, they are from women of the intellectual type. The range of experi- ences would without doubt be greatly extended if reports were gath- ered from non-college women, to say nothing about the material which might come from men of different types. The author, how- ever, has made a splendid beginning and his work points the way to further effort in the study of adolescence. Boraas, Jutius, and SELKE, GeorcE A. Rural School Administra- tion and Supervision. Boston: D.C. Heath & Co., 1926. Pp. 256. The book was written especially for county superintendents of schools and his or her assistants. Rarely does a book that treats of rural schools interest the principal of a city high school. In almost every chapter one loses the thought that it was written about rural school supervision. Although its purpose is to show how the rural schools may be made more efficient, and how their “effective- ness may be built up, until it approximates that of the urban schools,” yet, it will be found very helpful to any superintendent, principal, or supervisor of teachers, especially to the younger members of these groups. It contains a discussion of the more important ques- tions of administration and supervision in any school, such as ad- justment and supervision, selection and placement of teachers, im- provement of teachers in service, grading of pupils, psychology of school work, and supervision of school work. These discussions are practical, suggestive, and worthy of thoughtful consideration. 5 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS WaceEnnorst, Lewis Hocu. The Administration and Cost of High School Athletics. New York: Teachers College, Columbia University. Pp. 134. The first part of this volume is an investigation of state high- school interscholastic athletic associations in the United States, and the second is a review of the local administration and cost of high- school interscholastic athletics. Part one deals with the state athletic problems of championships, eligibility rules, standards of awarding emblems to athletes, finances and the National Federation. Part two is based upon a report secured from 366 high schools in 28 states. The chief topics concerning local athletics are the coach, expenditures of boards of education for interscholastic athletics, expenses for physical training, and financing athletics including business manage- ment. At the close the author summarizes his conclusions and makes recommendations. A number of tables included in the report gives a good idea of current practices. Russet, CHARLES. Classroom Tests. Boston: Ginn & Co., 1926. Pp. 346. In the foreword the author compares the construction of useful tests to the designing, planning, and erection of a building. He is of the opinion that the greatest satisfaction will follow if every teacher is his own architect. The book is a detailed account of experimental work done by teachers and administrators in the public schools of Toledo. Part I deals with, “Why and How to Make Teacher’s Class- room Tests.” After discussing the uses of tests and testing, the author considers the advantages and limitations of the various kinds of tests used in schools. Part II is a treatise on, “Why and How to Use Teacher’s Classroom Tests.” Information is here given relative to interpreting the results obtained under the plan outlined in Part I. Teachers and administrators who are interested in improving the technique of instruction will do well to study this book. GarreET, Henry E. Statistics in Psychology and Education. New York: Longmans, Green & Co., 1926. Pp. xiii + 317. The primary purpose of this book is to present the subject of statistics in a simple and concise form, understandable to those who have no previous knowledge of statistical method. In the intro- duction by R. S. Woodworth we read, “It lays out before him (the statistician) the tools of the trade; it explains very fully and care- fully the manner of handling each tool; it affords practice in each.” Thus we find that proofs of formula are not given, for the author 6 SECONDARY-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION ABSTRACTS is more concerned with the use of mathematics in psychology and education than with the mathematical theory. The topics treated are not those usually found in an elementary course. The treat- ment of the normal curve is very full and illustrative. Under cor- The book is relation, the coefficient ratio method or ‘eta’ is given. definite in its directions, and its mathematics is reduced to a minimum, considering the range of topics discussed. It is a volume to be ‘worked through’ rather than just to be read. Magazines SPENCER, PETER L. “Diagnosing Cases of Failure in Algebra,” School Review, XXXIV (May, 1926), 372-76. The article presents the plan used by an algebra teacher to dis- cover and remedy faulty study habits in a class of students who were repeating algebra. The teacher administered a diagnostic test of his own construction which was designed to cover specific fallacies in problem-solving. Fifteen problems of increasing difficulty, each dealing with a different type of reasoning ability were given. On basis of the findings the writer points out the futility of attempting mass instruction in a class of that kind. While many pupils had difficulty with the same problem, the evidence indicates that not all pupils were experiencing the same kind of difficulty. LorEE, D. H. “Methods of Discovering and Removing Specific Causes of Failure in Ninth-Grade Science,’ School Review, XXXIV (May, 1926), 377-86. Administrators and teachers will welcome any plan which en- ables students of all levels of ability to develop to their utmost capacity. By a home-made test and the Otis intelligence test the author discovered and remedied the faulty study habits of the mem- bers of his ninth-grade science class. Attention was given the fol- lowing: rate and comprehension in reading from the textbook; ability to use an index, to find topic sentences, to identify summary sentences, and to find the relationship of topics to each other and to the chapter as a whole. Some of the deficiencies were over- come by group instruction, and some by individual instruction. Four examples are given to illustrate the technique in handling problem cases. NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS Barrows, Rutu P. “Problems of American Democracy,” School Review, XXXIV (June, 1926), 422-25. This is an account of how the Contract Plan of teaching a sub- ject succeeded in a class of seniors. Each pupil decided the amount of work he would do for a given mark and “contracted” for that amount of work. At first the students did not like the plan; but by the end of the first semester they were almost unanimously in favor of continuing it. The author believes the plan can be adapted to any high-school subject. Dustin, C.R. “An Investigation of the Scope, Working Practices, and Limitations of Pupil Participation in Government in Sec- ondary Schools,” School Review, XXXIV (June, 1926), 431-42. Believing that school society should be regarded as a unit, and that government should be an agency for the promotion of citizen- ship training, the author has sought to determine what is the best plan to secure such training. He reviews reports from schools in which some form of pupil participation is in operation and is con- sidered desirable. He presents the findings of a detailed study of the pupil-government organizations in various high schools in Cleve- land. The study reveals four important factors which determine the extent to which pupil participation in government may be prac- ticed in any high school. Wuuinc, MatrHew H. “The Value of an Experimental School,” School and Society, XXIII (May 15, 1926), 605-15. The author discusses the possibilities of the experimental school in the light of the work being done at the Lincoln School, Teachers College, Columbia University, now under the direction of Dr. Otis W. Caldwell. Although Lincoln School includes grades one to twelve, the author devotes considerable attention to the experi- mental work being done on the curriculum of the junior and senior high schools. He points out the fact that in all experimental educa- tion there are two apparently contrasting points of view. On the one hand there are those who study the curriculum problem from the point of view of society—its present nature and needs; and on the other hand those who attack it from the point of view of the child—his nature and his needs. DistLer, THEopoRE A. “The High School Problem in Regard to College Entrance,” School and Society, XXIII (May 15, 1926), 629-30. A closer degree of cooperation between those who have college admissions in their charge and those who arrange the high-school 8 SECONDARY-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION ABSTRACTS curricula is urged by the author. He declares that the problem of harmonizing the high-school curricula with college entrance require- ments need not be at all difficult. His conclusion is that the prob- lem could be solved by requiring all students who contemplate college work to include the following subjects in their high-school course: “Four years of English; three years of one language and two years of another ; elementary and intermediate algebra and plane geometry ; two years of history; and at least two years of the three standard sciences (physics, chemistry, biology).” With very little addition, all of which could be made in the senior year, this schedule would prepare the student for practically any type of course in an Amer- ican college. Curtis, Henry S. “Sportsmanship in School Athletics,” School and Society, XXIII (May 22, 1926), 655-56. In a short article the suggestion is forcibly made that every school should work out sportsmanship codes for the different sports, and that these codes should be printed and discussed as a form of character training. The practicability and far-reaching effects of such education in business, politics, and society cannot be too highly estimated. Hero worship of the right sort is encouraged to train leaders. Briccs, T. H. “Propaganda and Printing,” School and Society, XXIII (June 5, 1926), 720-22. Mr. Briggs takes a brochure, “Printing in the Junior High School,” as an example of commercial propaganda used by manu- facturers of trade equipment, for influencing the curriculum-maker. He discusses the unsupported, misleading arguments for printing in the high school, and warns the unsuspecting schoolman against any claims set forth by any company which are not “substantiated by objective, quantitative evidence.” Gopparp, H. H. “The Child Labor Amendment,” School and Society, XXIII (June 12, 1926), 753-54. The author pleads for the reorganization of the National Child Labor Committee under a name such as the National Child Health Committee, believing that in so doing, the principle for which the organization is fighting may be more easily recognized and under- stood. The term “Child Labor” is misleading, and appeals only to greed. The term “Child Health” is honest and would make a universal appeal to the best instincts as well as to reason. 9 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS Anonymous. “Educational Events: New Plans of Study in Sec- ondary Schools of Two Latin-American Countries,” School and Society, XXIV (July 17, 1926), 68-9. Bolivia and Panama, two Latin-American countries, have re- cently adopted new plans of study in their secondary-school systems. The Bolivia pian provides that secondary education shall cover six years, divided into two periods of three years each. The first course of three years is required for entrance to the normal schools. The second course of the next three years is preparatory for university studies; this course enables students to train and specialize in the fields of engineering, medicine, and law. In Panama there are three different courses: the first two, of six years each, lead to bachelor of arts and bachelor of science degrees; the third course, of four years, leads to a diploma in commercial work. The National In- stitute offers in its normal section a five-year course. The domestic- science section of the Women’s Professional School offers two four- year courses. Jones, Atrrep H. “Co-Curricular Activities,’ School and Society, XXIV (July 17, 1926), 79-80. Mr. Jones puts forth strong arguments as to reasons why the term “extra-curricular activities” should be discarded because of its false connotation, and the term “co-curricular activities” sub- stituted in its place. Due to the fact that the most of the seven cardinal principles of education are attained through this work, they should not be called “extra.” The co-curricular activities are the workshop practices and laboratory opportunities of true educational guidance, and the part they play in educational and social adjust- ment should be recognized. RAEBOURN, SARAH B. F. “The Principal of a Modern High School and his Committees,” School and Society, XXIV (September 11, 1926), 332-34. The writer of this article, a member of a faculty of sixty-four in a large high school at Fresno, California, tells how the principal effected a democratic organization of his faculty by dividing the members into various committees which rendered most useful serv- ice to the school. Each committee made extensive investigation in its own field, later reporting its findings to the principal, which find- ings in the form of recommendations were accepted “almost without exception.” 10 SECONDARY-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION ABSTRACTS “Educational Notes and News,” School and Society, XXIV (Sep- tember 18, 1926), 364. On the basis of a questionnaire sent by the commissioner of secondary schools of California, to which 95,000 student replies were received, it “was deduced that an average of from 45 to 60 minutes would be required for thorough preparation of a high- school recitation.” ~ Hopkins, L. Toomas. “The Outlook for Home-Economics Educa- tion,’ The Teachers Journal and Abstract, I (May, 1926), 323-26. The basis of the article is a detailed study of home-economics education in Denver. It suggests the trend which home-economics education should take, viz., training to meet every type of problem which may arise in social or family relationships. Three periods in the development of home-economics education are traced, viz., the pioneer, the diffusion, and the modern. It is stated that the purpose of this type of education during the pioneer and diffusion periods was to give the girl the vocational training necessary to prepare her for her future life of homemaking, while the modern period has accepted the purpose as being that of training girls to live their lives more abundantly in the present, to grow in their ability to adjust themselves to problems of home life as they arise now, and to meet the ever widening and expanding problems of the morrow. Koos, Leonarp V. “The Shift of High-School Subjects in one North-Central State,’ The Teachers Journal and Abstract, I (June, 1926), 397-401. The varying emphases given high-school subjects since 1895 are shown, using Minnesota as a type example, because this state has had an almost uniform system of reporting enrolments in sub- jects over a rather long period of years. The data presented show that where only about one-fourth of the total enrolment took English in 1895, practically all pupils now take this subject. The registra- tion in foreign languages shifted from Latin as the most prominent to the modern languages—chiefly German—and then, with the prac- tical disappearance of German, back to Latin. There has been a slow falling off in mathematics registrations which now are about 56% of the total enrolment. “General” or “unified” mathematics enrolls about one-fourth of those taking mathematics. The shifts in science have been caused by the abandonment of half-year courses in the separate sciences for full-year composite courses. The social 11 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS sciences show a steady gain, attributable partly to the addition of the non-historical courses. The practical arts showed the most remarkable gains of all subject-groups. Physical training gained rapidly after its appearance in 1915. The fine arts show little gain. Somewhere back of these shifts must be operating a changing con- ception of values of subjects of study, positive toward some sub- jects and negative toward others. Wepeck, Harry E. “Js the Dalton Plan Practicable in High School Latin?” The High School Teacher, II (September, 1926), 264-65. In the large high school “its articulation with other departments run on established lines would be a difficult matter, and from the viewpoint of organization of the school the scheme would not be acceptable.” From the standpoint of instruction “the classes would become merely an enlarged tutorial establishment.” Froin the stand- point of the ability of the average pupil in Latin to make progress, “assisted by guidance when he thinks it necessary,” as the Dalton plan contemplates, it would result in great loss of time and energy. Only in the advanced classes could the plan have any appreciable success. “To make its adoption city wide, in the Latin depart- ments, would under conditions, be an educational holocaust.” Brown, H. Crarx. “Boys and Poetry,” The High School Teacher, II (September, 1926), 266-68. Boys and poetry constitute a hopeless combination for the teacher lacking in inspiration. To the writer of the article under review, literature is a delightful subject to teach, poetry is the cream of it, and nobody is more susceptible to its magic and charm “than a group of live, honest, high-school boys.” He selects to begin with a poem with marked rhythm and genuine appeal. It is well to start with modern authors, Thistle, Guest, Lindsay, Dunbar, Field, Stevenson, Van Dyke, Sandburg, and Masters. He reads to his boys and with them—not explaining the meaning but supplying an interesting background. “Our trouble is not in interesting boys in poetry, but it is rather in destroying old tradition and in starting our freshmen anew with a love for poetry rather than a hatred of it.” Hupp, J. L. and Hecx, A. O. “Public School Salaries in Four- teen Ohio Cities,” Educational Research Bulletin, V (May 12, 1926), 197-204. This is a brief study of the distribution of salaries in a group of cities ranging in population from twenty thousand to forty thou- 12 { ! SECONDARY-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION ABSTRACTS sand. Men teachers in high schools received on the average ap- proximately $150.00 a year more than did women teachers. Ele- mentary principals received salaries closely approximating the salaries of high-school teachers. Advanced training did not correlate at all with salaries, but years of experience were closely correlated with salaries. Ricwarps, H. C. “The Obligations of the High School Principal to his Community,” Educational Research Bulletin, V (May 12, 1926), 204. Information was secured from principals of forty-six city high schools in Ohio, representing cities varying in population from thirty- five hundred to two hundred and seventy thousand. Better than four in five high-school principals were actively engaged in welfare work in their communities. Only one in ten found such activities burdensome. The principals gave from one to fifteen hours weekly to community activities. Approximately four in five took an active part in religious services. 7 Boyton, F. D. “Single, Continuous or Double Sessions for High Schools—W hich?” School Board Journal, LX XIII (July, 1926), 47. The high school’s increasing responsibility for the proper direc- tion and supervision of its pupils makes necessary a longer school day, with the continuous or double, rather than the single session. The school is no longer an intellectual machine but a public service station. Opinions of prominent educators and replies received from sixty-nine cities in eight states indicate clearly the trend toward the longer day, with adequate provision for supervised study, physical education, and other desirable activities of the modern high school. Monouan, A. C. “High School Science Laboratories,’ School Board Journal, LXXIII (July, 1926), 54. The steady increase in science enrollment has made the laboratory problem an important one. High-school science classes in 1922 were enrolling 63% of all high-school pupils. More than eighty per cent of our high schools and academies are one-science-teacher schools. In many cities high-school laboratories, with their ex- pensive equipment, are used less than 50% of the school day. Econ- omy in laboratory space and the advantages of the combination laboratory and recitation room are discussed in this article. 13 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS F, A. Bev. “The Mental Ability of Athletes in Comparison with Non-Athletes in High School,” School Board Journal, LXXIII (August, 1926), 45. The conclusions of this article are based on a study of 1100 Illinois high-school students, both from large and small high schools. The comparison of athletes and non-athletes indicates that the former have equally as much native and acquired intelligence as the latter. Athletes are not older than non-athletes. The athletes have a much higher percentile rank than non-athletes, but the correlation between scholastic record and percentile rank was lower. This article may help to dispel the notion in some quarters that athletes, as a class, are “boneheads.” Roursack, Q. A. “Training in Leadership,’ American Educational Digest, XLV (May, 1926), 389-91. This investigation, embracing 4401 students found in public and private secondary schools, yields the following conclusions con- cerning office holders in non-athletic activities : 1. The chances to be elected to officers are in favor of the normal age and over-age student. 2. Fifty-four and six-tenths per cent of the offices are held by students taller than the normal for their age. 3. The opportunities for holding office diminish from the twelfth year to the seventh year, with very meager opportunities in the ninth year of the senior high school. 4. Fifty-two and forty-seven hundredths per cent of the office holders have a scholastic standing of “B” or better. 5. Eighty-three and nine-tenths per cent of those holding office have a behavior rating of “A.” 6. Participation in other activities is not marked in the case of office holders. 7. Extreme cases of multiple office holding were discovered. A point system for limitation of office holding is recommended. 8. Office holding in co-educational schools is uniform between the sexes, when a large number of cases are considered. 9. Facilities for training in leadership through activities sHould be considerably extended in the secondary school. 1 LAKE, CHARLES H. “The General Science Course,’ American Edu- cational Digest, XLV (June, 1926), 437-40. “Too wide election of courses has been permitted in junior and senior high schools and, probably, in the colleges of liberal arts.” 14 SECONDARY-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION ABSTRACTS Mr. Lake advocates that the teaching of science be started in the first grade and be made continuous through the twelfth grade. The course should include biological and physical science adapted to the pupils’ environment with the balance strongly on the physical science side in the seventh, eighth, and ninth years. In the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth years the sequence should be biology, chemistry, physics. Lee, Epwin A. “Jndustrial and Vucational Education,” American Educational Digest, XLV (June, 1926), 447-49. Industrial arts education should be distinguished from voca- tional education. The former program usually extends from the sixth to the fifteenth year; in the elementary grades it aims to give an “appreciative understanding of the great work currents of the world through reading, observation, and participation, particularly with reference to the evolution of these currents”; in the junior high school, the various aims may be summed up in the purpose “to give the child a controlled set of experiences in a selected group of occupations.” In vocational education, the problem is essentially that of preparing the individual to participate, effectively, in the calling that he has chosen as his life work. Fartey, BELMonT. “An Avenue of Publicity,’ American Educa- tional Digest, XLV (July, 1926), 483-85. The writer points out that extra-curriculum activities offer the best opportunity for bringing the work of the schools before the public. School clubs, class plays, school newspaper, may be so con- ducted as to maintain a daily exhibit of school work. Indeed some extra-curriculum activities may be organized for the chief purpose of interesting the public in the schools. Community service, com- munity projects in agriculture and demonstrations of classwork be- fore various organizations are some of the ways suggested to keep the community informed about school accomplishments. Garpner, C. A. “Why High School Pupils Think They Fail,” American Educational Digest, XLVI (August, 1926), 5-8. After directing a study of failures from the teachers’ view- point, the writer attempted to discover the pupils’ reasons for failures by the questionnaire method. The data from the teachers and pupils show a wide variance of opinion as to the causes of failure. This lack of agreement between pupils and teachers in assigning causes for failure suggests that a careful scrutiny of all the factors 15 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS which condition success in scholastic effort should be investigated, “in order to get an inside view of the situation,” before a proper diagnosis of the failure can be made. “When one-third of the failures in a high school report dislike for the teachers as one of the major reasons for failing, another third assign discouraged as a factor, and almost one-half declare that dislike for the subject contributed to their low grades, a grave problem exists which should challenge the thought of every sincere teacher and administrator of education.” \ TouTon, Frank C., and HemMan, Kart K. “Achievements of California High School Seniors in Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary, and Spelling.” California Quarterly of Secondary Education, I (January, 1926), 174-94. In this study 1137 tests were used. The scope is wide enough to make the results significant. Tests were given in reading com- prehension, vocabulary achievement, and spelling achievement. “The data reveal a high correlation between knowledge of the meaning of words and ability to secure the meaning from the printed page, a very high correlation between a knowledge of the meaning of words and an ability to spell words correctly, and a low correlation between ability to spell words correctly and the ability to secure the correct meaning from the printed page.” Such tests might with much profit to the pupil, be used for diagnostic purposes, at the beginning of the course, when remedial measures might be used more profitably. / Lory, KaTHLEEN D. “Conferring Scholastic Honors of High School Students,” California Quarterly of Secondary Educa- tion, I (January, 1926), 210-18. Many local societies for the recognition and encouragement of scholarship have been organized from time to time, but not until recent years has this idea reached national proportions in growth. We have today the Cum Laude Society and the National Honor Society. The chief criticism of the National Honor Society is that of the lack of uniform standards of selecting members, and perhaps not enough attention given to scholarship alone. It has many good features and effort is being made to overcome the weak points. California has a state organization which, it is thought by its ad- vocates, has overcome many of the weak points in the other societies. The good results of such organizations argue strongly for a wide acceptance of the idea. 16 SECONDARY-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION ABSTRACTS Kemp, W. W. “Training of High School Teachers in Relation to the Subjects They Teach,” California Quarterly of Secondary Education, I (June, 1926), 409-12. The results of a recent study including 486 teachers shows that about one-fourth of the subjects taught were not represented in the list of the candidates’ majors, while more than one half of the sub- jects in which teachers had received training were not being taught by them. In this the small school is by far the worst offender. Can this problem be solved by the high-school principal in a more careful organization of the work? Organization will give relief, but not immediate solution. Should the colleges be more careful in the selection of majors and minors, allowing only such combina- tions as meet the needs of the smaller schools in teaching com- binations? These are questions worthy of careful consideration. Keppig, Ex1zABETH E. “Dramatic Art—Its Value in the Socialized Curriculum,” California Quarterly of Secondary Education, I (June, 1926), 412-18. Dramatics until recently as a course in high schools has found little place. This subject has real educational values if rightly taught. As a nation we have been negligent in instruction of youth in the use of the mother tongue. Dramatics is of educational value in development of pure diction, appreciation of literature, high moral standards, and an understanding of social problems; in fact it serves as a valuable prevocational training in almost any line of work. It also serves a real purpose in training in the proper use of leisure time both for youth and adults. The school seems to be the only agency to use this subject effectively in the training of youth today. Foster, FrepericK M. “An I. Q. of 90 or Less,” California Quar- terly of Secondary Education, I (June, 1926), 431-33. The pupils of less than normal intelligence present real prob- lems in the high schools. The school has a duty to try to educate them, yet the cost is a question which comes from the taxpayers. Repeaters in high school are expensive. The only reasonable solu- tion of the problem seems to be to adjust the course of study to their needs and abilities and keep them in high school, for this train- ing makes of them much more desirable citizens. 17 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS HeEpPNER, WALTER R. “The Counseling Function in High School,” California Quarterly of Secondary Education, I (June, 1926), 470-75. The writer describes the plan used in the Fresno High School, which, though not altogether satisfactory, is working very well. Headships have been abolished by the board of education. Directors have been substituted both in the junior and the senior high schools. This rings a closer articulation between these schools. The director is a counsellor and is responsible for the pupils’ progress. The dean adjusts cases referred to her by the directors. Pupils are assigned to advisory groups which meet two or three times a week. The curriculum allows for more or less exploration of courses, and a course in occupations is required of all. The advisory staff meets weekly for counsel and for planning the work. Results seem to justify the organization. Tuompson, O. S. “High School Fraternities—Some Court Dect- sions,” California Quarterly of Secondary Education, I (June, 1926), 481-84. The author cites three important decisions, one in the State of Washington, one in Illinois, and one in Iowa, in which the courts upheld the local board of education in a rule prohibiting fraternity membership by high-school students. In the first two cases there was no state law prohibiting high-school fraternities. The courts maintained that the legislature has the right to delegate certain powers to the local boards of education, and that the rule against fraterni- ties was within that power. WEsstTER, Hanson Hart. “Let Us Study the Constitution,” Jour- nal of Education, CIV (August, 1926), 106-8. A plea to have the youth of our land become thoroughly familiar with this great document. The author points out that the social studies in our secondary schools should be a preparation for citizen- ship. Our students should become familiar with the democratic ideals which have influenced our national life. Along with the dis- cussion as to how the constitution should be studied and in what order, the author gives a selected list of useful references that should be on every high-school principal’s desk. StTRAYER, GeorGe D. “The Development of a Supervisory Pro- gram,” Journal of Education, CIV (August, 1926), 109-10. In this article the author points out the most common inter- pretation of supervision and mentions the most common instru- 18 SECONDARY-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION ABSTRACTS ments used. First, constructive criticism must be based upon prin- ciples understood and acknowledged by both supervisor and by teacher before the supervision becomes effective. The most signifi- cant of all criticism is creative, or that which carries a teacher beyond any previous achievement. Second, the demonstration lesson in which the supervisor does the teaching and the teacher observes, or in which the supervisor demonstrates and is observed by an entire group of teachers who follow the demonstration with a discussion under the leadership of the supervisor. Both of these methods will always find their places in any good supervisory program. The successful supervisor will inspire his teachers to carry on experi- ments of their own, or at least become thoroughly familiar with the work of scientific investigators in their fields. Jupp, CHartes H. “Scientific Methods of Supervision,’ Educa- tional Administration and Supervision, XII (May, 1926), 345-7. The article is an abstract of a paper presented to the Super- visors of Student-teaching, Feb. 23, 1926. It states that there is great danger of the supervisor’s imposing his method upon a teacher, not recognizing that there are marked individual differences in suc- cessful teachers. A plan of “follow-up” methods is not important, and this is the supervisor’s task. He must be acquainted with the major causes of failures, to be able to give a critical estimate of teaching materials used, and in general, maintain a position analogous to that of a consulting physician. Waite, Wittiam A. “Mental Hygiene of Childhood,” Mental Hygiene Bulletin, IV, Number 7 (September, 1926), 1-3. Healers of mental diseases like physicians come to the con- clusion that prevention is more profitable than cure. Their efforts have taken them back along the patient’s life to his childhood and home surroundings. They have found that the earlier a mental illness can be treated after it appears the more successful will be the treatment. It is of utmost importance that.those who surround the child should be possessed of wholesome characteristics and habits. Heredity counts for little while surrounding influences are vital. 19 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECONDARY-SCHOOL PRINCIPALS Bureau of Education Publication Winpes, E. E., and GreENLEAF, W. J. Bibliography of Secondary Education Research, 1920-1925, Bulletin No. 2. Washington, D. C.: Bureau of Education, 1926. Pp. 95. This is a mimeographed bulletin which contains a descriptive bibliography of secondary-school research studies which have ap- peared from 1920 to 1925 in educational magazines, in bulletins and monographs, and in books and theses. Almost all the material is of a statistical nature. This is the first of the productions of the National Committee on Research in Secondary Education, a commit- tee which acts as a clearing house for the great educational bodies that are devoted chiefly or in part to the secondary field of education in the United States. ADDRESSES of PUBLISHERS WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THIS BULLETIN The Century Company 353 Fourth Avenue New York City Ginn and Company 15 Ashburton Place Boston, Massachusetts D. C. Heath and Company 239 West Thirty-ninth Street New York City Houghton Mifflin Company 2 Park Street Boston, Massachusetts Longmans, Green, and Company 55 Fifth Avenue New York City The Macmillan Company 60 Fifth Avenue New York City Public School Publishing Company Bloomington, Illinois 20 + 3