dominant aims of a person or group of persons at any given time. should determine the content and the method of the appropriate educational process.

When an individual starts upon his life work, either by definite preparation for a particular vocation or by actual participation in the work of that vocation, his interest in studies possessing exclusively a general or interpretative value is eclipsed by the immediate focusing of his attention and by the concentration of his efforts upon Vocational interests.

Except in the case of a few professions, such as law, theology, and medicine, until comparatively recent times, men have learned vocations by entering upon them. During the last century, however, there has been a rapid growth of vocational schools of many kinds, such as normal schools, dental colleges, pharmaceutical schools, training schools for nurses, engineering schools, agricultural colleges, and business schools. As society has developed needs for the services of persons trained in special vocations, schools, either private or public, have been established to prepare persons who have chosen for a life work service in particular vocational fields. Vocational schools have not been organized, however, until the vocations themselves have developed a content, technique, or method to such an extent that adequate preparation could no longer be given by apprenticeship or shop-training methods.

It must be assumed as axiomatic that vocational education is intended and provided for individuals who have made definite vocational choices, and for such individuals only.

A clear understanding that this determination of aim is an essential prerequisite to effective vocational training of an individual would clear up much confusion which now exists as a result of the use of the term "vocational" to describe certain subjects of study in the general elementary or secondary school, such as manual training or mechanical drawing and shopwork, which are pursued by those who probably have not yet selected a vocation. While the educational value of these and other "practical" subjects is not questioned, there rests clearly upon the school and the community an obligation to set up adequate means to help the pupil and his parents to determine wisely upon specific vocational preparation.

TYPES OF VOCATIONAL CLASSES.

Vocational education is for two distinct groups of students. Boys and girls enrolled in public schools who are preparing to enter a particular occupation may be given instruction in all-day vocational schools; and workers who have already entered upon employment may be given vocational training in part-time and evening schools.

As regards day vocational schools, while the number of persons who can undertake long periods of training in day schools as a preparation for entering upon industrial employment may be comparatively small, the measure of the value of day vocational schools can not be found in the number of pupils they serve. It is found rather in the importance of the service rendered. When organized, planned, and administered so as to give work which will in part take the place of the former apprenticeship training, the day schools should prepare persons for leadership in the skilled trades and vocations. They should also become centers for the standardization of the trade taught. There are limitations to the possibilities for day-school work, however, which should be frankly discussed.

Unfortunately few persons in the past have entered upon employment with a definite choice of a life work, and these are, therefore, not definitely candidates for any specific course of day-school training. Moreover, relatively few trades or industries have enough content to make up an extended course of study for a day vocational school; and, finally, the per capita cost in a separate day vocational school is high-usually much higher than it is in secondary schools giving general education.

A community should give careful consideration to these limitations in determining what kind of vocational schools it should establish. The public cosmopolitan high school can, under favorable conditions, undertake courses of one to four years, provided a separate department for the vocational courses is created, and provided such courses are supported by a sufficiently broad conception of community needs on the part of those charged with this sort of secondary education. Such a high school will assume its full responsibility if the vocational courses meet two sorts of community needs: First, those of the youth in that community who will seek employment before or at the completion of the high-school course; and, secondly, those of the industries of that community for greater efficiency in their labor force.

The ways in which a community should determine what kind of Vocational schools it should have, if any, will be pointed out later. The Federal Board believes that the most careful consideration should be given to this matter before a final decision is made to establish day trade or industrial schools.

Schools for workers are of two types. First, those for persons who are employed under such conditions that they can give a part of the regular hours of employment to educational work, and, secondly, those for persons who must secure their further education, if at all, outside regular working hours. The former are part-time schools, the latter evening schools.

NEED FOR PART-TIME EDUCATION.

The distribution of the total school enrollment of the country emphasizes the fact that great numbers of boys and girls quit school during the upper grades of the elementary school. The Report of the Commissioner of Education, 1917 (p. 7), shows that the total school enrollment of 1915 was 21,958,836, distributed as follows:

In elementary schools__.

In high schools, academies, and secondary schools‒‒‒‒‒‒
In higher institutions-----

Per cent.

91. 03

7. 13
1.84

It is estimated for the year 1915 that more than two-fifths (42.3 per cent) of the youth of the country between 15 and 17 years of age were not in school. The attendance begins a precipitate decline at the end of the fifth grade, and at the age of 14 years. According to the Federal census in 1910, the percentage of boys not in school increased from 11.7, or about one-ninth, in the age 13 years to 66, or two-thirds, for the age 17 years, the corresponding percentages for girls being 10.7 and 63.4.

Approximately 2,000,000 school children arrive at a given age annually. One-half of the children of 16 years and under 17 have left school either in that year of age or at some younger age. Of those 17 and under 18 years, as noted above, two-thirds have left school, and of those 18 and under 19, that is to say, of those classified in the census as 18 years of age, more than three-fourths have left school. Of all boys 14 and 15 years of age, i. e., between the exact ages 14 and 16 years, 41.4 per cent or two-fifths, and of all girls in these ages 19.8 per cent or one-fifth, are in gainful employments. (Federal census, 1910, Vol. IV, p. 69.) The number gainfully employed in the ages 14 and 15 years may be estimated for 1918 as being approximately 800,000 boys and 400,000 girls.

Because of the large numbers of children who leave school at an early age, without opportunity for choice of an occupation or an adequate understanding of the need of preparation for it, and because these same boys and girls drift into uneducative and unprogressive jobs, it is imperative that the public school extend its responsibilities to meet the needs of these youths who have already entered employment by establishing part-time schools and classes.

TRAINING OF TEACHERS.

The experience in training teachers for trade and industrial subjects has not yet been extensive enough to enable the Federal Board to state what shall be the final approved procedure in training such teachers.

Each of the 48 States has entered upon a program which includes the securing of men and women with adequate industrial training

to be teachers of particular trades and industries and also has provided for the training of related subjects teachers.

It may be stated that as a general proposition a teacher-training course for teachers in trade and industrial schools is effective in proportion to the degree in which it meets the following conditions:

1. It must draw upon the largest possible group of people having the necessary preliminary training.

2. It must be made accessible to that group.

3. With due regard to producing teachers who will be able to do the required work in trade and industrial schools, the course must be as short and practicable as possible.

In some States it has been proposed to bring to the State institutions chosen to give the work groups of qualified artisans for a two-year course of instruction in residence. Unless some method of stimulating such attendance is found, this method of training is not likely to produce a large number of teachers. The demands for men in industry to-day are great, wages very high; properly qualified artisans of sufficient maturity are likely to have family obligations. All these considerations will operate to make a rather restricted group of men who can be attracted to a training course for teaching.

In many States plans are under way providing for extension courses at appropriate centers where skilled men can readily be assembled; such courses to be conducted either by an agent of the State board or by an extension teacher employed by an accredited institution chosen by the State board for vocational education to give courses for trade and industrial school teachers.

It is recommended that State boards for vocational education give careful attention to possibilities of attracting a group of men with proper preliminary qualifications to attend evening classes, dull-season classes, and through shortterm arrangements adapted to the conditions in their respective States.

In offering the following for consideration it is suggested that the State board would do well to survey the conditions and probable demands in the State, and determine what kind of schools and, therefore, what kind of teachers will best promote the industrial interests of the State and the welfare of the children to be trained in the schools.

So far as can be seen at present, the most productive and effective industrial education will for some time to come be given in evening and part-time courses. Under present industrial conditions the great bulk of industrial education will be so given. The courses on the whole will be relatively short, of an intensely practical character, which implies many teachers on part (or extra) time employment, and of expert trade skill.

To recruit such teachers is no easy task, and whatever training is given them prior to their taking charge of a class will be short in time and intensive in purpose.

(a) As to time: Relatively few men can or will separate themselves from a job to take a long-term course of training for teaching—say, a year or more-at an institution. There are too many risks involved from the man's point of view, and almost universal lack of money and family obligations would prevent. Again, the inducements to enter school-teaching are not great enough to offset the risks. Consequently, we must infer that the teacher training in trades and industries must be done for the most part in short-time courses, and at hours when the man is not engaged in his regular employment. This implies an evening training class, about 4 hours a week for about 30 weeks in a year.

(b) As to purpose: Given a skilled mechanic for 120 hours, what shall be given him, and how, in order to prepare him to become an effective trade teacher? Obviously, not a knowledge of his trade, but equally obviously, a training in the "mechanics of teaching," of school methods, of organization, and a point of view.

This includes teaching him

(a) How to analyze his knowledge of his trade and the processes and methods therein.

(b) How to arrange the elements in an effective teaching order.

(c) How to teach instead of show and tell.

(d) How to manage a class.

(e) How to handle discipline.

(f) How to work with other teachers.

(g) How to keep school records.

(h) Legal obligations and responsibilities of a teacher, etc.

All these and a hundred other things second nature to the experienced, thoughful teacher are new to him, but must get into his consciousness and eventually into his practice, or he will be a poor teacher.

The function of a teacher-training class for teachers in trade and industrial subjects is largely limited to learning the elements of the teaching occupation. It can, for reasons above stated, concern itself very little with long discussions as to the pros and cons of vocational education theory, social and economic theory, other types of education, vocational education in other countries, or types of schools. Valuable and desirable as these are as a part of the equip ment of every teacher in an industrial school, relatively few can ever be expected to get them in their preemployment training.

Furthermore, any such class as above mentioned, devoting its time to a discussion of the general aspects, rather than the intensive study of how to teach, defeats its own proper purpose.

If in a given State teachers in evening classes and part-time classes can in large numbers be held over from year to year and a plan for professional improvement be organized, thus insuring the continuous growth and development of the teachers, at least through a period of two or three years, the possibilities of the extension scheme of teacher training seem to offer the best solution under present conditions of the problem of securing trade and industrial school teachers.

It is believed that at present the best method of securing trade teachers is by training skilled workmen in extension classes, it being understood that such classes may include evening classes, short courses at dull seasons, summer schools, and possibly other provisions for relatively short periods of attendance and little interruption to the student's daily wageearning occupation.

There are several other groups of teachers to be secured and prepared which have not yet been discussed, such as

Related-subjects teachers (trade technical).
Teachers of nonvocational subjects.

Continuation-school teachers.

It has been suggested that the engineering college can probably organize effective courses for preparing teachers of technical subjects. Such courses, however, should be organized with the distinct aim of preparing teachers for service under the particular conditions presented by vocational schools and will differ in many ways from courses primarily intended to prepare men for the engineering professions. There are a few State normal schools and State colges which have the necessary plant, including shop and laboratory equipment,