education Congress may appropriate money for
the collection and dissemination of information about
education Congress has the right to maintain
schools for distinctively national ends, for the educa-
tion of its wards, and for the people in its territories
or in other lands over which it exercises sovereignty
- These principles are sufficiently broad to cover
every provision of the Smith-Towner Bill.

CHAPTER XII. THE NATIONAL EDUCATION ASSOCIATION
AND FEDERAL AID

The endowed universities have opposed Federal
aid - This opposition was clearly voiced in 1873 by
Presidents McCosh, of Princeton, and Eliot, of Har-
vard The public school men, generally, have
favored Federal aid - From 1873 until 1890, the
N. E. A. favored using the proceeds of public land
sales for the cause of public education
-The re-
moval of illiteracy was sought Senator Blair ap-
peared before the N. E. A. in 1887 and explained
his efforts in behalf of the removal of illiteracy —
Federal aid for normal schools was specifically in-
dorsed in 1876 and in 1906 - The predecessors of,
and the Smith-Hughes Bill itself, were indorsed -
The idea of a National University and specific bills
in Congress establishing such a university have been
favored For a half century, the leaders of public
education have favored Federal aid to education,
the expansion of the Bureau of Education into a
Department of Education, and a National University
This is reflected in the resolutions and acts of
the N. E. A.

CHAPTER XIII. WHAT THE WAR REVEALED

The

War always reveals educational defects
war brought out the facts about illiteracy in our
country - The need for Americanizing the immi-
grant population was clearly appreciated - The
inadequate support of education also became evident

- The need for equalization of educational opportuni-
ties and the taxation burden incident to the support
of public education was emphasized Health de-
ficiencies also became matters of common knowledge
- Teaching was revealed as a casual and temporary
occupation largely made up of young, immature, in-
experienced, untrained girls. The strength of the

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schools, as a means of reaching all of the people,
became evident The N. E. A. appointed an Emer-
gency Commission to advise the best procedure in
the crisis The high school and college graduates
readily developed the leadership necessary to pre-
pare our troops for the conflict.

CHAPTER XIV. CURRENT PROPOSALS IN CONGRESS .

The Owen Bill, expanding the Bureau of Education

into a Department, attracted some attention in Con-
gress - The Lane Bill, prepared in the Department
of the Interior, is designed to remove illiteracy among
native-born and foreign-born, but is poorly drawn
and probably is a violation of the Tenth Amendment

The Lane Bill seeks to remove illiteracy simply

by educating existing illiterates and does not seek

to prevent the creation of additional illiterates - It

also fails to meet the whole educational need of the

country - The Smith-Towner Bill seeks to expand

the public school system so as to meet the needs of

this generation in a comprehensive way by providing

for the removal of illiteracy, the Americanization of

foreigners, the equalization of educational oppor-

tunities, the establishment of programs of physical

and health education, the preparation of teachers,

and the creation of a Department of Education in

the Government.

CHAPTER XV. REDUCTION OF ILLITERACY AMONG THE

NATIVE-BORN

Illiteracy among the native-born is decreasing, but

at a very discouraging rate Present illiterates should
be taught through an expansion of the public school
system, and the public school system should be so
remedied that no additional illiterates will develop

Illiterates in the several states and the allotments
of the Smith-Towner Bill for the removal of illiteracy
- The function of the Federal Government is to
stimulate the states to undertake the removal of illit-
eracy and not to set up detailed methods and plans
in accordance with which the work must be done
Statistical tables show that illiteracy is not decreas-
ing as rapidly as national interest demands - The
states have had the problem of illiteracy with them
since the founding of the Union and no one of them
has worked out an adequate plan for dealing with it.

-

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CHAPTER XVI. AMERICANIZATION

Immigrants present a triple educational problem

- Immigrants enter this country and move about
freely in it under Federal Government regulations

Therefore, the states have done little about it

Figures showing rate of increase of immigrants are

astonishing, especially in view of the enormous in-

crease from countries in which education is at low

ebb - Americanization problem more than doubled

in the ten years from 1900 to 1910-Some form of
Federal stimulation is necessary to induce the states
to Americanize the immigrants within their borders
-The number of foreign-born in each state, the
percentage of foreign-born for each state, and the
allotments of the Smith-Towner Bill show that it
is possible to organize state-controlled systems which
will Americanize foreigners.

CHAPTER XVII. PHYSICAL AND HEALTH EDUCATION

Ill health is a constant economic and social waste.

The Surgeon General's report furnishes interesting
although disquieting data The Alabama Survey
also shows alarming conditions in that state Physical
fitness does not come about simply through employ-
ment - Education is needed - What is now being
done in a few states and in several cities points the
way to what ought to be done everywhere, but it
I will not be done if left to local or state initiative.

CHAPTER XVIII. THE WEAKEST LINKS

-

The rural and village schools are inadequate finan-

cially to meet the Nation's needs regarding the removal
of illiteracy, the Americanization of foreigners, and
the establishment of physical and health education
The rural school is very inadequate in every state

of the Union and part of this is due to the low status

of teaching as a profession and of the agencies for

the preparation of teachers Sixty per cent of the

next generation of American voters are enrolled in

rural schools - Rural schools are small with low per

capita wealth, thus requiring a high tax rate to secure

good schools or the expense of transportation to con-

solidated schools — The individualism of the Amer-

ican farmer is against paying high wages The

farmer is also tempted to keep his children out of

school The teacher finds it difficult to deal with

-

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184

children of all age limits and does not have adequate
supervision Inadequate rural schools have pro-
duced the excess of adult illiteracy in rural as com-
pared with urban communities - The rural school
also produces a limited literacy that does not meet
national needs — Physical deficiencies in rural com-
munities are more prevalent than in urban communi-
ties - The rural community has no means of Amer-
icanizing the immigrant population resident therein
-The rural school is proverbially of less average
length than urban schools - It is not fair to judge
all of our schools by the performances of our best
schools - The common defense cannot be safe-
guarded so long as rural schools remain as they are.
CHAPTER XIX. THE WEAKEST LINKS (Continued)

The immature and untrained teacher can never
make the rural school what it ought to be - The
best talent should go into these schools - The public
attitude toward public school service should be changed
- Compensation for teaching should no longer be a
gratuity nor pin money- - It must be otherwise in
order that teaching may become a profession - The
business world is competing for ability and public
education must be able to attract, train, and retain
youth of ability - The personnel of the public school
service analyzed - Teachers in Alabama - Teachers
in Nebraska Teachers in Wisconsin - Teachers
in Pennsylvania - The present shortage of teachers
– The factory plan of administration has come into
existence as a substitute for trained teachers
The present inefficiency of schools is due to untrained
teachers - The normal schools are not able to train
enough teachers for the public school service and
therefore need some form of additional revenue.

CHAPTER XX. EQUALIZATION OF EDUCATIONAL OPPOR-

TUNITIES

-

Taxation for the support of schools developed
slowly and with much opposition - State school
funds paved the way for state school taxes - Pro-
ceeds were distributed - Table showing present status
of educational funds in different states Equality of
educational opportunity is fundamental to democracy
and it is the business of the state to see that this
equality of educational opportunity becomes the

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opportunity of every boy and girl - The teacher is

the key to the situation - Educational and taxation

facts regarding Wisconsin and Pennsylvania pre-

sented in tabular form and discussed - Education

is a National necessity rather than an individual -

The Nation has an interest in every boy and girl-

There are great variations in the taxable wealth in

our different states - Table showing per cent of

wealth, per cent of population, and per cent of persons

of school age stresses these conditions - Provisions of

the Smith-Towner Bill for equalization include setting

aside a portion of the fund by the state for the payment

of salaries of teachers so that professional preparation

will be encouraged - Table showing allotments for

equalization of educational opportunities.

-

-

CHAPTER XXI. PREPARATION OF TEACHERS

Every child in the land should have a teacher who

has been especially selected and especially prepared

to teach
Teaching is a national service as well as
a state service and a community service - Leader-
ship will always emerge - The normal schools, as the
agencies for training teachers for the common schools,
have been neglected by the states — The Smith-
Towner Bill would double the resources of teacher-
training institutions - The equalization of educational
opportunities will make rural school teaching more
attractive- The Smith-Towner Bill makes possible
the application of the West Point policy to the prepara-
tion of teachers The Nation has a responsibility in
this matter A study of the facts regarding teachers,
population, children of school age, and the average
salary of teachers taken in connection with the wealth
of the several states convinces one of the necessity for
national aid to teacher-training institutions.

CHAPTER XXII. A DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

A Department of Education is created by the

Smith-Towner Bill following the precedent of the
non-executive departments such as the Departments
of Agriculture, Commerce, and Labor - Congress has
no power to control agriculture or labor or education,
- A
but it can be helpful to each without control
Department of Education is needed to prepare a
budget for the present educational activities of the
United States - A Department of Education is needed

-

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