MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE, MEDFORD, ORE.
WJ WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22, 1961
Reading Poorly Taught in Many
Schools, Harvard Group Declares
Br LOUIS CASSELS
UPI Correspondent
Reading is being taught
poorly in many American
schools. But the problem can't
be solved by a return to the
phonetic method of instruc
tion. . That is the conclusion of a
Harvard University study
group which has just com
pleted a year-long investiga
tion of the nation's number
one educational dilemma.
- The Harvard group was
headed by Dr. Mary C. Austin,
president of the International
Reading association, and its
study was financed by a Car
negie Corp. grant. The find
ings and recommendations
were published this week in
a paperback volume entitled
"The Torch Lighters" (avail
able at $1 per copy from Har
vard University Press, Cam
bridge 38, Mass.).
"Unlike some professional
educators, who have tried to
pooh-pooh the reading crisis
in U.S. schools, Dr. Austin
and her colleagues readily
acknowledge that millions of
children are not learning to
read.
Teaching Quality Blamed
But they say it is the qual
ity of teaching-not the method
of- teaching-that is to blame.
To improve the situation,
they call for better screening
of. college students preparing
for teaching careers, more
emphasis on training future
teachers specifically in read
ing instruction, and a thor
ough overhaul of the "prac
tice teaching" system under
which a student teacher gets
actual classroom experience
before graduation.
As Dean Francis Keppel of
Harvard's Graduate School of
Education notes in a foreword
to the report, this is hardly
a "dramatic" prescr i p t i o n.
"But," Dr. Keppel adds "it
has the great advantage of
being sensible."
In recent years, many critics
of U.S. education have argued
that reading problems would
disappear quickly if schools
would abandon "m o d e r n"
teaching methods and go back
to the time-honored phonetic
Appling Says Bill
To Save $100,000
Salem - (UPI) - Gov. Mark
Hatfield Tuesday signed a bill
that Secretary of State Howell
Appling Jr. says will save the
state about $100,000 over a
two-year period.
HB1288 transfers the ma
chine accounting function of
the state finance department
to the secretary of state, who
also does machine accounting.
The merger will give the
secretary the largest electron
ic data processing center in
Oregon state government.
Appling said the move will
eliminate some positions re
sulting in a saving of $65,000
in wages. It will also elimi
nate duplication of certain
equipment.
The new operation allows
the switch to higher speed
and higher capacity equip
ment, Appling said, and also
permits purchase of equip
ment over a three-year period
for the same cost as rental.
Appling has asked the legis
lature for the purchase author
ity, involving about $200,000.
approach, based on the sounds
of the letters of the alphabet.
Argument Rejected
The Harvard group rejects
this argument. It is convinced
that reading is best taught by
modern methods, which rely
primarly on visual clues to
word recognition, with some
supplementary use of phonet
ic analysis.
The real trouble, according
to the study group, is that too
many teachers don't know
how to use the modern meth-ods-or
any other methods-of
teaching reading.
On the basis of interviews
with faculties at 74 teacher
training institutions in all
parts of the country, and ques
tionnaires completed by 371
other colleges and universi
ties, the study group reached
these major conclusions:
1. There is great need for
better screening procedures to
insure that college students
who sign up for majors in
elementary education really
have a "marked potential for
teaching." At present, only
one-fourth of the nation's col
leges make any effort to size
up the capability of students
who embark on preparation
for teaching careers. Forty
per cent of the faculty mem
bers interviewed said that the
caliber of students preparing
FAVORS THE HOUSE
Las Vegas, Nev.-(UPD-In this
gambling resort motorists can
now gamble for free gasoline.
Service station owner John
Karas will fill your tank free
if the price for filling it
such as $3.33 corresponds
numerically to a figure posted
each day.
to teach in elementary schools
is lower than that of students
in other academic fields.
2. A 1 1 students preparing
for elementary teaching
should be required to take at
least one full semester course
in reading instruction. Only
half of the colleges now re
quire this. The other half in
clude reading instruction in
an overall course on the
language arts, and the actual
classroom time devoted to
reading is frequently less than
five hours.
Neglected Fields
3. Teacher training courses
should put much more em
phasis (at present, they put
very little or none) on helping
the future teacher learn how
to diagnose and overcome the
various disabilities which may
keep a child from learning to
read. Another neglected field,
which should be stressed, is
how to teach reading in the
intermediate grades - above
the third grade level.
4. When a student teacher
is sent out to get actual prac
tice in a classroom, she should
work under (he supervision of
a professional teacher who
really knows how to teach,
and is capable of evaluating
and correcting her perform
ance. At present, few colleges
make any effort to screen,
train or compensate adequate
ly the "cooperating teachers"
under whom student teachers
get their practice. Also, the
practice teaching experience
is usually scheduled during
the final semester of a stu
dent's senior year, when there
is no opportunity for further
training to correct the defic
iencies which may be revealed.
Heeding The Upswing
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LEA MOTORS, Bartlett at 5th
ENGAGEMENT TOLD Millionaire builder Hal B. Hayes,
frequent escort of some of the world's most glamorous
women, has announced his engagement to Rail I. Hannincn,
a 26-year-old former United Nations guide from Finland.
They are shown at a hotel in Washington where Miss Han
ninen told UPI they would be married during a round-the-world
trip they plan to take after, Hayes finishes testifying
in a Senate investigation on construction of houses he was
building for armed services personnel near military bases.
(UPI Telcphoto)
The Family Council
Editor'. Note: The Family Council consists of Judge, a psychia
trist, three clergymen, three editors and a women's editor. Each article
is a summary ol an actual case history. The council reports on proh
lems that have been dealt with by responsible agencies and counselors.
(Copyright 1961 General Features Corp.)
Carl P.-It's none of their
business where I go and when
I'll be back.
Mrs. E. P.-His father and I
can't ' relax until we know
where our children are.
Carl P.-I'm over 21 and, al
though I'm still living at home
with my parents, I'd like to
have some of the privacy, re
spect and independence I'd
have if I were living alone.
But if my parents continue in
sisting that I "report to heao
quarters" at every move, I'll
have to leave.
What makes it hard for me
is my sister's easy compliance
with their requests to know
all, see-all. But she's 21 and
a girl and maybe she likes
being babied.
To' me, my parents' cross-
examinations are annoying
and humiliating. I'd like to
remain under their roof for a
few years yet, not only to
help out financially, but also
because I'm genuinely fond of
them. But they must stop
treating me like a little boy.
If I were in the Army, or
on a trip, they wouldn't wor
ry about what time I get to
bed each night, would they?
Mrs. E. P.-All we ask Carl
is where he's going, or where
he can be reached if we need
him. We tell him the same,
whenever we leave the house,
it seems the natural thing to
do. But now when I ask,
"How long will you be?" he
flares up at me and answers,
"Until I get back."
It's not that I'm snooping
or prying. It's just that while
were all under the same
roof, we can't help counting
noses and keeping track of
who's in, who's out, and who's
where. We hear a key in the
door at two or three o'clock
in the morning, we like to
make sure it's Elinor or Carl
and not a "third-story man."
Suppose I really needed
Carl for an emergency? I'd
like some idea of how to reach
him. He's mistaken about the
Army. I wouldn't worry about
his whereabouts at all because
I could always ask his sergeant!
The Council - Writhing un
der the "tics that bind," Carl
is confusing affectionate In
terest with parental prying.
For an opposite viewpoint, he
might canvass the park
benches, depot waiting rooms,
and furnished flats. Here he'd
find the lonely and the lost
who d give a year of their life
if only somebody cared, if
only somebody had any inter
est in whether they were dead
or alive!
Independence is a two-sided
com. it s tine to stand alone,
free and strong. As Carl
would have it, he doesn't
need" his family and they
mustn't "need" him. But Carl
doesn't mean that literally. He
wants to hang around, on his
own terms. He wants to en
joy and absorb the warmth of
family, and be a completely
"cold potato" in return. That's
his selfish definition of "inde
pendence," and it doesn't ap
pear in any dictionary. It's
found more often in the an
nals of family misery.
It's a nice cozy feeling for
Carl to know he can reach his
folks at any old lime, if he
wishes. And even cozier (al
though completely selfish) to
feel he's completely out of
their reach.
No, he'd better be consist
ent. Either 100 per cent inde
pendent (and there's really no
such thing this side of the
grave!) or admittedly a mem
ber of a family household
where absent parties are
"missed," and homecomings
are hailed!
How about settling for be
ing 90 per cent independent
and 10 per cent human?
Lenten
Message
By THE REV.
ANDREW M. WEYERMANN
Our Savior Lutheran Church,
Raleigh, N, C.
(Written for UPI)
There is so much tragedy
in life. The newspaper screams
the bitter headline, "Six-Year-
Old Boy Killed By Drunken
Driver." The father grieves
in his soul, "My son, my son."
He hopes to hear an answer
ing voice, but there is onlyi
the stillness of the night. Per
haps God is hiding. Perhaps
He is dead. Perhaps He never,
really existed except in our;
fantasy. !
There is no simple elegant j
answer for stillborn children.
the rape of the innocent, and j
the failure of those who have!
truly tried. This is the way!
our world has been since the
day man thought he could be
like God. It is God alone who
holds all the answers within
Himself.
Reason To Hope
There is a sign that will
enable us to face the horrors
of our life and still have rea
son to hope. It is the sisn of
the cross. The terrible death
of the Son of God was possible
only because men crucify
love, justice and good by their
self-interest. The cross re
minds us of how cruel we
human beings are to each
other. Innocence is betrayed,
youth is killed and God seems
to be a million miles away.
Yet God is present in the
hour of darkness. The same
cross is the sign of God's un
fathomable love for us. The
curses of the murdering mob
are answered by the Son of
God's pleas, "Father, forgive
them." The innocent suffers
and dies unjustly, but not
meaninglessly. Ho fulfills
God's higher purpose of man's
redemption. The Prince of
Life dies, but the dead are
raised in the instant of His
death. Once the signal of re
jection, the cross is the sign
of reconciliation with God.
The answer to human suf
fering is not altogether clear.
Looking at the cross one is
reminded of his need for for
giveness and the lact that
God's love in Christ conquers
the evil that seeks to destroy
us.
-A 3
El K'lW I 1
KM
1
Bomb Scare Delays
Plane at Pendleton
Pendleton - (UPII - A United
Air Lines plane en route from
Pendleton tn Snokane wa rin-
layed Tuesday by a bomb
scare.
An unidentified man was
reported to have told the
stewardess to be careful when
she set his briefcase down
because there was a bomb in
it.
The stewardess Informed
the pilot who called police.
Two city police cars, two slate
police cars and two Umatilla
county sheriff's cars converg
ed on Ihe area. A search of
luggage failed to reveal a
bomb.
The man was being questioned.
Bills Approved
By Legislature
Salem - (UPI) - Measures ap
proved Tuesday:
By the Senate
SB34-Public employees re
tirement.
SB230 - Allows Dammasch
hospital to accept patients
from Clackamas and Yamhill
counties. ,
SB327-Local budgets.
SB338 - Commercial fisher
ies.
By ihe House
HB2068, 2069, 2073, 2077,
2079, 2083-Budgets for na
tional guard, state police, de
partment of justice, civil serv
ice commission, Oregon state
library, state game commis
sion. ,
HM2104, 2105-Budgets for
deaf and blind schools.
HB1007-Property tax de
ferrals on homes of the elderly.
ENVOY RESIGNS POST
Johannesburg, South Africa
-IUPD-U.S. Ambassador Philip
K. Crowe has resigned his
post here, the embassy an
nounced Tuesday. The an
nouncement said President
Kennedy has accepted the
resignation.
ADOPTS 5-DAY WEEK
Pierre S.D.-IUPII-South Da
kota became the last state In
the Union to authorize a five-
day work week for state em
ployees. The action, taken
Tuesday by the slate Board
of Finance, goes into effect
April 1.
Curb on Welfare
Move Gets Approval
Salem (UPI) The House
Health and Welfare commit
tee Monday voted out "do
pass" a bill seeking to prevent
Gov. Mark Hatfield from
moving Ihe State Welfare
commission from Portland to
Salem.
The vote was 8-2 with Reps.
Wlnton Hunt (R-Wooriburn)
and Frilzl Chulnard (R-Port-land)
opposed.
Voting to keep the commis
sion In Portland were Reps.
Grace Peck (DPortland);
Gust Anderson (D-Portland);
William Gallagher (R Port
land); Nancy Kirkpatrick (D
Lebanon); Ed Benedit (D-Port-land)
and Juanita Orr (D
Lake Grove).
Rep. Emll Stum (D Nyssa)
was bsent
I
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