The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

J [su __physical features; much more do they * who has been shielded carefully by the called vocational guidance. It is an lined. Best quality for Thanksgiving at wear. Every Parent should read this article. Far too little attention is given to the choice of our children's life work. Vocational Guidance. Address delivered at the Commercial Section, Ontario Educational Association, Toronto, Wednesday, By George M. Henry, of McMaster University, Hamilton. The Individual It is said that, even if one were to make unremitting search, it would be impossible to find even two pebbles exactly alike. There would be differ- ence in texture, beauty, colour, and shape. Even so is it with human be- ings. No two are alike even in their differ in tastes, physical strength, and mental outlook and abilities. . One is a giant in body, another a weakling; one a master of the most abstract philosophy, the other a master me- chanic; one a workman in ideas, the other in iron; one is religious, the other secular; one has the character- istics that make a leader, the other is a good follower. Occupations Due to the differing needs and ca- pacities of men, different occupations have arisen. The range of the world's work is tremendous--from ditch dig- ging to the writing of the most ab- stract philosophies--a range that has been magnified almost beyond our imagination by the machine and fac- tory system of industry. In support of this I need only cite the fact that the American Expeditionary Force had represented in its ranks about 800 different recorded occupations. The Problem Comparatively early in life, the in- dividual with his innate and varied capacities must somehow make his choice of life's work from the laby- rinthic maze of occupati pread out before him. The problem clearly is: How is a young man or woman, whose physical and mental sinews have not been tried in the fires of experiences, home and the school, to make an in- telligent choice of one of these 800 or more occupations, each equally strange and unintelligible, that pre- sent themselves at the dawn of man- hood and womanhood? ; Vocational Guidance This function of leading the individ- "ual through this maze of vocational s into the right vocation, is oy WHER® PEOPLE Lise Th sme? : fis _ ON SALE for Thanksgiving All Ladies' Ready-to-Wear Coats, Dr 1 fen at Greatly Reduced Prices. 'COATS FOR LADIES Beautiful fur trimmed coats, furs. Coats selling up to $37.50 ......... ..............For $32.50 Coats selling up to $27.50 rer breve 3 only Coats, sizes 16-40 .,.......... 12 Coats, good quality Broadcloth and Tweeds interlined. Sizes 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19 - CHILDREN'S COATS Good heavy Blanket Cloth and nicely fur trimmed. Sizes from 6 to 12 years. See these coats priced at $7.50. Children's Coats, suedene cloth with fur collars, sizes 2 fo 4 years, $3.95 fesse DRESSES Good quality Flat Crepe Dresses, neatly trimmed, $8.95 and $9.95. Dresses of all wool Crepe and Jersey--good warm dresses for winter To clear at $5.59. Ladies' Velvet Hats, good styles, neatly made.~ Prices $2.50 to $3.75 Ladies' Felt Hats, latest of styles, good quality felt. $1.95 to $2.50. SUTCL WHERE "FRY OUR 15¢. PATTERNS IFFE & PEOP of opinion is also that the organization known as the "school" with its inti- mate knowledge of young life, is the logical organization to which to en- trust this delicate task of vocational guidance. In this address, I shall en- deavour to show how the school should go about this work. 1. The School Should Study the Student It is, unfortunately, too much the habit of school officials, including teachers, to accept the individual student as a matter of course, with- out enquiring into the particular needs of each individual. But, if vocational guidance work is to be done with ef- fectiveness, wé®must know more about the student than we do at present. His natural interests as demonstrated in his tendengies both in school and out; his economic status; his home conditions; the occupation of his par- ents; the history of his family; the opinion of social workers and others who have contacts with him; his physical health; the results of intel- ligence tests, aptitude tests, employ- ment experience; his school record; his character and personality; his out: standing good and bad qualities; his social qualities; his impression on his fellows--all should be noted. The Record The gathering of this information requires several things: (a) A cumulative record of the tudent. At p t the el tary school makes a record, the secondary school makes a record; the college keeps a record, and between any two of these records there is a great gulf of lack of connection fixed. The know- ledge necessary to vocational guidance necessitates a complete history of the individual on 'one card, a card that will follow the student from one school to another, and that will contain the ob- servations of those who have had intimate contacts with the students at the various stages of his school pro- gress. It should show as much as possible about his scholastic record, his character, home background, per- sonality, leadership qualities, apti- | tudes. The best cards of this type that I have met with in this study are those of the Technical Institute, Hamilton, and of the Commercial De- and even these do not of imported Broadcloth, lined and inter- Evia ay For $22.95 cieeeniione.. For $8.50 , fur trimmed, lined and con- | S . , and Millinery | ..To clear at $15.00 "good style. On sale SONS April 23rd, Vocational counselors should have one Or more personal interviews with every individual in the school, to set- tle the boy's problems as far as it can be settled. These -interviews should have as their aim the proper orienta- tion of the individual student in the educational and vocational field. Is he taking the right course? What is he going to do when he leaves the school? What are his preferences ? In what lines does he excel? The work of the counselor should include the giving of intelligence tests, apti- tude tests, (Otis Group tests, Stan- ford Revision of Binet-Simon tests, Dr. Payne of Columbia Teachers' Col- lege for aptitude tests) either by him- self, if he has the training, or by a person trained for that purpose. The counselor seeks all possible informa. tion about the individual and advises accordingly. He should also make certain that the result of his investi- gations of the student is recorded on the card suggested above. IL The School Should Study the Various Vocations. The term "Vocation" includes all occupations listed in the census plus housekeeping. (a) It is the business of the school, through some official, to investigate local industries in order to accumulate information respecting the following things; general nature of work; ad- vantages and disadvantages; qualifi- ti and, training needed; possi- bilities of promotion; how to enter the vocation; remuneration to be expected at the various stages; relationship to school, ete. (Reference to outline of survey used in connection with print- ing trades in Oshawa.) The results of such surveys should be published in pamphlet form, and made available to teachers, parents and students. (Note examples of such studies in Minneapolis, Montreal, Government pamphlets.) (b) It is the business of the school | to see that students are taught the use of this occupational information. This must be done in the class-room, either as separate subjects, called "Occupations" or in connection with some other subjects. If it is presented as a separate subject, it should be done by a teacher sympathetic to the cause, and under the direction of the 'who does the individual ad- vising of the pupils concerned, and by the use of local industrial studies, and with the help of some occupational Ginn & Co., and written by Gowin and PORT PERRY ------------ be successfully imparted in connection with the study of English composition, in which case two birds are killed with 'one stone--composition is given moti- vation, and occupations are effectively Mll| investizated. (See Davis: Vocational and Moral ('uidance.) "ILL 'The School Should Give Educa- 5 tional Guidance. This I consider to be the most im- portant of all the phases of a guidance programme. The curricula of our various schools should be so varied and related that the individual student will be able not only to choose from a large number of courses, but will be able to try out several courses to find his particular bent. There are at least two kinds of students in our schools--those who can follow the present elementary and matriculation courses with success-- the academic child; and those who find it very difficult to absorb these studies without repeated failures--the non- academic child. Studies of Non-Academic Students A study of six elementary schools, made by the Director of Mental Hy- giene, Toronto, and reported by Mr. Frank T. Sharpe, in the March num- ber of "Social Welfare" revealed that from 13 to 36% of the pupils in these schools were non-academic in their mental outlook. A committee of Teachers' Institute No. 6, Toronto, re- ports in the same magazine that 39% of the pupils in Junior I to Senior IfI grades repeat grades from one to four times before promotion is gained. It is obvious that the courses which this thirty or forty per cent. of these pupils are taking are not suited to their abilities, A study of the 1928 Report of the Minister of Education for Ontario shows that for the province as a whole, out of every 100 pupils in the Third Grade in the Elementary Schools, 9 do not get into the Senior Third; 17 do not get into the Junior Fourth; 23 do not reach the Senior Fourth, and 44 do not enter any Se- condary School. If all these studies are correct, they constitute a terrific arraignment of our elementary school courses as at present arranged. The Secondary Schools In the Secondary Schools, the tale to be told does not differ materially. Out of every hundred pupils entering the usual matriculation course, 45 do not enter second form, 64 do not enter third form, and 74 do not enter the fourth form. These figures indicate that not more than 25 out of every hundred students in our matriculation classes, really matriculate. In Secondary Vocational Schools the tale is similar. Out of every 100 en- tering these schools, 52 leave without entering second form, 76 without en- tering third form. Many of these, however, enter positions that even their meagre training enables them to fill, but the situation is none the less serious in view of the fact that they are not adequately prepared for Jife's work, Je What is the reason fora this great deflection from formal education? Is it a necessity? Mayor Bloomfield in his book "Youth, School and Vocation" (chapter 11) quotes an investigation of 622 American children who left school. the finding being that only 36% left because of economic neces- sity or ill-health, the inference being that the rest left because they were not interested, or because the courses did not suit their needs. I investigated the relationship of age to school progréss in the schools of Ontario, based on the 1928 report of the Minister of Education, and found that the average age in the Junior Third was 10.8 years, and that 27% 'of the pupils were retarded from 1 to.5 years, that is, they were 1 to 5 years older than the average for that grade; in the Senior Third 28% were retarded; in the Junior Fourth, 24%; in the First Form, 36%; in the Second Form, 31%; in the Third Form, 27%; and in the Fourth Form, 28%. This retardation should seem to indicate that the pupils find the course either uninteresting or too difficult, with the latter explanation thé more probable. It would appear that many of these students are taking the wrong courses, but in many cases no suitable course is provided. It is the business of the school to provide such courses. The following steps are suggested in this connection: 1. An extension of the principle of the prevocational school, or junior vocational school, to accommodate the .| non-academic pupils of the elementary schools, who would find here junior in- dustrial, commercial and household arts courses suited to their abilities. 2. A composite course in our High STAR : fering technical, commercial and ma- triculation courses. There are many students now taking the matriculation course who hav no idea of completing full matriculatfon even when they first enter. All they want ig a general education. = But: the matriculation course does not give a "General" training. Far better for their pur- poses would be a composite course made up of 26% business studies, 256% industrial studies, and 50% academic studies. This course should include wood-working, automotives, 'drafting, for the boys; domestic science, dress- making, millinery, for the girls; typewriting, business arithmetic, junior bookkeeping and office practice, business arithmetic, English, history, economics, French, for all. Such a group of studies would provide a bet- ter citizenship and general training than the present matriculation course for the average individual. 3. An organization in all depart- ments of the school of courses suited to the duller pupils who cannot carry the full course; for example, in the course just cited, French could be omitted for the duller pupils. 4. Another problem that is before educationists is the lack of opportun- ity on the part of the boys and girls for acquiring a practical knowledge of what the various vocations are like. A boy or girl must choose carpentry or stenography, with very little idea of whether he or she is fitted for that course. The Junior High School which embraces the Junior and Senior Fourth grades of our elementary schools, and the First Form, of our High Schools, offers exploratory courses in academic, commercial and shop subjects. After experimenting fully the individual student is better equipped to enter the Senior High School and specialize in the subjects of his choice, a choice that has been exercised on the basis of some slight experience. 5. The school should arrange for placement of students in positions and for follow-up work after placement. As far as possible placement should be conducted scientifically, with a full knowledge of the nature of the work to be done, the kind of office or shop in which the vacancy has occurred, and of the student who is recommend- ed. Placement is really the crowning effort of vocational guidance work and can scarcely be done effectively unless the other work of guidance here de- scribed has been undertaken as a background. It cannot be too strong- ly emphasized that mere placement is not guidance, but is merely the last step in the guidance process. 6. The School Should set up Vo- cational Guidance Organization. With our present intricate and varied educational system, daily be- coming more intricate by the addition of such items as are suggested above, it is a physical impossibility for a school principal to give the necessary attention to guidance. About all the best principal can do is to give atten- tion to problem cases which arise leaving the average member of the student body to look after himself. To take care of this, the following or- ganization is suggested. our customers' attention to it. It in all our dealings with them. situation. asking for it. Port Perry 183 LIMITED wie : A short talk about a much talked about subject, * | SERVICE The word has been used, like charity, to cover a multitude of sins.' We seldom have to call You will find it the ideal of every member of our organization. You will find it in the en- deavour of each one of us to serve you in the i extraordinary situation as well as the ordinary , You will find it is something of which we are proud, and it is always forthcoming without Oshawa Lumber Co. Port Perry is so apparent Schools are practically unknown in Ontario, but are becoming prominent in British Columbia and Manitoba. There are at least ten Junior High Schools in Winnipeg alone. Such di- versification of training opportunities only emphasizes the more the neces- sity for the guidance of our youth through this labyrinthic educational maze. Very few occupational studies have been made. The Department of Labour at Toronto and Ottawa have made a few such studies, but have not made them available for class-room work. "The Study of Educational and Vocational Opportunities in Montreal" is a commendable departure. No course in "Occupations" is being given in any Canadian school to my know- ledge, certainly not in one of about 75 schools surveyed. Placement is being carried on quite effectively in many schools, Those in charge are usually given time to co- relate their work with the offices and shops of the city, but the time allowed work in most cases. But there is in no Canadian com- munity a director of guidance whose direct all guidance functions in the community, a fact which possibly ac- counts for the haphazard method which we employ in the little guidance CAW « Owing to the lower (a) Advisory Council, including re- presentatives from employers, labor, the professions, social service organ- izations, educational organizations, | and any other community organization interested in the problem, to act in somewhat the same way as the Advis- ory Vocational Committees act in re-: lation to vocational education--that is to form the connecting link between the iommunity and guidance pro- grame. (b) The Director of Vocational Guidance, to be responsible for all the! actual work of guidance in the com-' munity. In a large community his' work would be largely supervisory, directing a staff of experts--investi- gators, psychologists counselors, placement officers. In the smaller community, he would be a guidance Jjack-of-all-trades, combining in one office the many guidance functions. He would necessarily work in close har- mony with other community educa- tional executives and workers. (c) The Counselor. I have already explained in another connection the work of this officer, whose business it is to give occupational courses to classes, and personal advice to individ- ual students in the schools. He is the key. man in the guidance system and upon his work with the students de- pends the success of any guidance programme. Vocational Guidance in Canada. Guidance has not reached great heights in this country as yet, al- though it has made a start. Great strides have been made in diversifying the educational opportunities by means of technical and commercial Schools, especially in those combined Collegiate and Vocational Schools, of- high schools and departments, and by means of junior vocational and pre- vocational schools. Junior High is so inadequate that it would seem al- | most impossible to do really effective business would be to co-ordinate and and placement work we are doing. I found only three schools in which there was an official guidance coun- gelor, the Kitsilano High and Junior High School in Vancouver, Windsor- Walkerville Technical School, and Pickering College, at Newmarket, Ont. In Kitsilano, a lady teacher devotes five periods per day to the duties of counselor for the girls. The same school will have a similar official for the boys next year. In the Newmarket School, Mr. Taylor Statten, directs a complete guidance programme for the boys of that school. Several schools allow one or two men half-day per week to visit offices' and shops, co-ordinate the work of the industry with that of the school, and to look after placement. Toront. technical schools have one full-time co-ordinating officer, who is very handicapped by lack of adequate assistance. 000 AUCTION SALE OF HOUSEHOLD FURNITURE ---undey direction of N. Ewers, at his residence, Queen street, on Thursday, November 13, Oak Dining Room Table, 6 Dining Room Chairs, 1 cabinet Victralia and recorlls, 6 rockers, settee and chair to match, settee, and 2 chairs to match, music cabinet, bed, com plcte, sser, Highboy, cream enamel, stoves and several other articles, Terms cash. Geo. Jack- son & Son, Auctioneers. WKER BROS. CHEAPER MEATS prices on the Live Stock Market, we are able to buy better and are offering choice cuts of beef, veal and lamb at reduced prices. Phone in your orders--29w THIRTY C AND OPIES OF "SCUGOG I'TS ENVIRONS" b REV. F. G WEIR PRICE 50c. Apply at Star Office