The united American : a magazine of good citizenchip., June 01, 1925, Page 36, Image 36

Page Thirty-six
THE UNITED AMERICAN
can government will shoulder the responsibility which
properly belongs to it — that of supplying Americaniza­
tion Schools for the immigrants.
Evening schools for aliens were first established
in Astoria about seven years ago; however, their
largest growth has been within the last two years.
Last year, I think it is fair to say that fully ten percent
of all adult foreign-born people of the city were
enrolled in these institutions and showed a deep interest.
These adult students are divided into three classes
or groups.
The first group includes those who know very
little or no English, mostly recent immigrants. The
work of their teachers is the teaching of the reading,
writing and speaking of the English language. Little
else is attempted altho no opportunity is lost to in­
culcate certain fundamental American ideas of social
and political relationship. A very direct, conversa­
tional method is used. Certain objects are brought
into the room and named, certain acts are done and de­
scribed. These words are used over again and again
until the alien has learned to pronounce and use them.
Although we believe it desirable that the teachers of
these classes know the native tongue of their students,
we insist that only English be spoken. During the in­
struction period, the student must depend absolutely
upon the tongue he is to learn. And so the time is
spent in naming familiar objects and acts, in writing
the names on the blackboards, and in simply worded
conversational exercises. Much time is given to the
effort to bring about correct pronunciations. To do
this the teacher personally demonstrates how lips,
tongue and teeth are placed and drills individually and
collectively until the correct sound can be given.
Through such methods we have secured from these
people very rapid and very excellent progress. In fact,
some in three or four months are speaking English
with considerable fluency. It is very important, how­
ever, that the classes be small. Hence, we insist that
no class be above twenty and prefer-that there be about
twelve or fifteen. This is because we feel that the
success of our work depends very largely upon in­
dividual teaching, a condition which* is impossible in a
large class.
The second group includes those who can speak and
read the language. To these students, we give a con­
siderable variety of work, that is, we give them more
diffcult lessons in English, and we attempt through
the lesson to teach them something of the history and
geography of our country. One of our greatest pur­
poses is the arousing of an intense pride in America.
To reach this end, we tell of our greater historical ac­
complishments, of our eminent men and women and
what they have done for the service of the nation, and
of the magnitude and wealth of the country. They
learn about our great railways and manufactories,
our mines and forests. We stress the opportunities
before them and their children and call attention to
the many foreign-born Americans who have risen high
in our country. In short, we do all we can to build up
such a pride and love of our country as will lead them
to portray America in their letters to their home land
as a wholly desirable place in which to live. We be­
lieve that the producing of this pride is an indis­
pensable step in the Americanizing of these people. I
JUNE 1925
believe it safe to say that our greatest aim in dealing
with the second group is, and should be everywhere
in the adult schools, the building of such a mental
attitude. For such classes, we prefer as teachers the
children of the foreign-born, men and women educated
in our normal schools and colleges who appreciate most
fully what America has done and can do for the immi­
grant. It seems to me that such teachers impart the
needed lessons more efficiently than those whose
parents have been long in America. Possibly they feel
more deeply the attitude which we would give.
The third class is the citizenship group. It is made
up of men and women who have been in America long
enough and have learned the language well enough to
prepare for naturalization. These students learn of
our government, how it was originally built, how it has
developed, and the part all citizens should play in it.
We urge that they frankly express their criticisms of
America; there is no other way for us to find out and
explain away their doubts. And we find many of them.
The governments of their native countries are not alone
so very different, but many of them believe that the
ideals of government they have formed in their old
countries are much more nearly perfect than we have
been able to attain in America. Then again their
foreign language papers in America are very often
mildly or severely caustic and politically of a socialistic
tendency.
For these reasons we find among the foreign-born
much condemnation of America’s government. The
wise teacher does not condemn his students for these
doubts; he knows full well that placed in a similar
position he too, might easily get the wrong point
of view. It is the teacher’s business to explain,
to discuss, kindly, fairly, intelligently. He must
make clear the great fundamental ideas upon
which our government is founded; he must show
clearly that it is so constructed as to depend ab­
solutely upon its citizenship, that it cannot rise higher
than their level and that the only way America or any
other free country can even approach ideal political
conditions is by building an active, loyal, intelligent
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Methods of instruction based on thorough
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Anna Helene Anderson
662 East 70th Street N.
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Phone Garfield 0701
Portland, Oregon
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