Houck, Frances

Robertson, Julia

English

James Madison University

March, 1929] THE VIRGINIA TEACHER 77 lessor Mossman, published by the Macmil- laiTCompany, gives a comprehensive line of work in each phase—food, clothing, shelter, and so on—for each of the first six grades, and indicates many of the relationships to other school subjects. To teach this work, of course it is de- sirable that teachers have a background somewhat more extensive than the mere content to be taught in the elementary school. For elementary school teachers, a course in home economics one year in length, distributing the work appropriately among studies of food, clothing, shelter, child care, and family relationships, should be adequate to give students a fair back- ground for the work in the first six grades. If such teachers have also additional work in some other phases of industrial art and in fine art, they should possess a minimum background for conducting the practical ac- tivities appropriate for the elementary school. But with this background should go specific work and training in organizing, adapting and directing the work in the grades. Such work should center about a training school in which the teaching of these lines is an integral part of each of the grades. The work of one term as a meth- ods course would enable teachers to see how the work is adapted to different grades, to become acquainted with the best sources of materials and references, and to leam how to use the activities and resources of the homes and the community. Instead of a special term's work in teaching method, the adaptation of the different units to elemen- tary grades might be taken up with the courses given for the background content. Just how the adaptation of the work to ele- mentary school needs is made is not im- portant, but that it is made in some efficient way is very highly important. Those teach- ers' colleges in which all of the phases-— household, industrial, and fine arts—are or- ganized into one course of at least one year's length for teachers of the elementary schools seem to get best results in actually getting the work under way in the grades. The home and its place in community and national life are important in a degree not fully appreciated. The schools can do a great deal to improve the conditions and in- fluences of home life. So far they have almost ignored the problem. To make a substantial contribution in improving the health, the thrift, the beauty, and the citi- zenship qualities of the members of each home and therefore of the whole commun- ity is the opportunity and the challenge to the broad field now represented by home economics. Through the elementary school all children and nearly all homes may be reached. Every elementary school teacher should therefore be educated and trained to appreciate and to teach those elements of home and family life which make for these higher values and which will make the teaching of all subjects more simple, more efficient and more joyous. F. G. Bonser A PUPIL ACTIVITY SURVEY AS A BASIS FOR THE HOME ECONOMICS CURRIC- ULUM LA.ST fall when the home economics teachers at the Harrisonburg High School decided to reorganize the home economics curriculum of the junior high grades they found that much prelimi- nary work must be done. First, it was necessary to be clear in their own minds just what the aims of home economics in junior high school are; second, the best methods of attaining those aims must be determined; third, the material must be ar- ranged in proper sequence and form for teaching. If home economics is to make its right- ful contribution toward a sane well-rounded curriculum for the junior high school girl, its aims and purposes must be the same as the general aims of education. The com- mittee therefore accepted the following defi- 78 nition as their conception of education : "To teach pupils to do better those worth-while things they are going to do any way, to re- veal higher types of activities, to make them both desired and to an extent possible."1 Accepting the above definition of educa- tion as their starting point meant that the next step was to determine the desirable ac- tivities in which Harrisonburg junior high girls were engaged. Although in recent years many most excellent pupil activity surveys have been made from which help could be secured, it was felt that unless a survey were made of the activities of the Harrisonburg girl there would be no as- surance that any course planned would be meeting her needs. A questionnaire was therefore submitted to all girls in junior high. It was answer- ed by them immediately upon presentation and without consultation with any one, and the papers were collected as soon as finish- ed. As the girls were told not to sign their names, the answers were entirely imper- sonal. The number of pupils filling in the questionnaire was seventy-four. The questionnaire was divided into seven parts; the first dealt with activities relating to the daily and weekly care of the house; the second, with laundry work in the home; the third, with the care of children; the fourth with activities relating to family and community relationships, and the girl's use of her leisure time; the fifth had to do with clothing practices in the home; the sixth, with food preparation; the seventh, with the girl's personal budget. Table I shows the tabulation of these ac- tivities with the frequency in the seventh and eighth grade, separately, and the total number of both grades combined. Table II gives some other information which has a bearing on home economics studies, but which could not be tabulated as an activity. The results of this questionnaire agree very generally with the Denver Survey2 in that ^riggs, The Junior High School, p. 157. ZResearch Monograph No. I. Home Econom- ics, Public Schools, Denver, Colorado. [Vol. 10, No. 3 helping with the cleaning, washing dishes, making beds, doing one's own personal laundry, and helping with the meals—sup- per usually—were major activities in both surveys. There are, however, some differ- ences in the findings of the two surveys. One, for example, is in the care of children. Harrisonburg girls report a much larger per cent of girls as being responsible, to a degree, for their younger brothers and sis- ters ; but a very small number reported any responsibility for the family marketing. The results regarding clothing show that a large number of the girls buy ready-made underwear as well as dresses. As for the girls' activities in regard to the family meals, helping with supper was the one most frequently checked. It is readily apparent that the required work in junior high home economics must place less emphasis upon skill in food prep- aration, and clothing construction and more upon clothing selection and purchase, food selection from the stand point of health and economics, care of the home and sanitation, household and personal laundry, care and training of children, and family relation- ships. TABLE I Activities Performed by Girls in the Home Dur- ing the Week 7th 8th Activity Grade Grade Total Care of the House Help with cleaning Daily  43 29 72 Weekly  76 10 36 Clean—alone  43 24 67 Own room—daily  31 17 48 Other rooms—weekly ... .25 12 37 Clean woodwork  14 6 70 Clean rugs  18 13 31 Clean windows  70 13 33 Clean closets  16 8 74 Clean stove  11 10 21 Clean sink  31 23 54 Clean refrigerator  13 8 21 Clean pantry  13 6 19 Clean cabinet  IP 16 35 Clean bath room  37 IS 55 Clean porches  37 22 59 Clean basement  14 4 IS Clean yard  77 12 34 Wash Dishes  30 29 68 Make Beds  37 27 64 Straighten misplaced articles. .31 26 57 Arrange flowers  77 18 45 THE VIRGINIA TEACHER March, 1929] THE VIRGINIA TEACHER 79 7th 8th Activity Grade Grade Total Care of the House Help with cleaning Polish metals 10 9 19 Scrub floors 19 11 30 Care for Younger Children Bathe baby  8 S 13 Prepare baby's bottle  6 2 8 Give baby his bottle  7 2 9 Play with baby 10 8 18 Dress baby  9 6 IS Put baby to bed  9 7 16 Prepare lunches for younger children 13 5 18 Play with younger children.. .21 11 32 Clothing Plan purchase of clothes Self 26 23 49 Others  8 2 10 Plan how clothes shall be made Alone 12 18 30 Help plan 26 14 40 Make own dresses Wool  2 . 2 Silk  1 • 1 Cotton  5 7 12 Make own under clothes Gowns 10 10 20 Pajamas  2 10 12 Slips  5 10 IS Slips  S 4 9 Brassieres 19 23 42 Buy Ready-made Underclothes Gowns 12 13 25 Slips 16 IS 31 Pajamas 17 7 24 Bloomers 28 28 S6 Brassiers 19 23 42 Buy Ready-made Dresses Wool    20 19 39 Silk 26 22 48 Cotton 19 14 33 Preparation of Meals Breakfast Alone  S 4 9 Help with  7 S 12 Dinner Alone  4 6 10 Help with  S 4 9 Supper Alone  7 10 17 Help with IS IS 30 Put up lunches 13 S 18 Do marketing Go to Store  4 2 6 Phone 10 8 18 Laundry Do alone—personal 28 19 47 Do alone—Family  6 2 8 Help with 21 S 26 Iron 27 4 31 Make starch  9 6 IS Hang out clothes 21 4 25 Dry clean IS 9 24 TABLE II Other Information Which has a Bearing on Home Economics 7th 8th Grade Grade Total 1. Have an allowance 16 16 32 2. Have a job on Saturday  5 9 14 7th 8th Activity Grade Grade Total Care of the House Help with cleaning 3. Have sewing machine at home 37 29 66 4. Have an electric washing machine 16 13 29 5. Have a vacuum sweeper.... 1 11 12 6. Mother does laundry at home  24 16 40 7. Go to movies with: Mother 17 17 34 Father  H 6 17 Some other girl 31 26 57 A boy  2 5 7 Alone  20 14 34 8. Favorite Magazines McCalTs   8 4 12 Pictorial Review  3 1 4 Ladies Home Journal  9 S 14 Liberty  1 2 3 American  4 7 11 True Story  3 3 6 Child Life   3 2 S Movie Magazine  1 1 2 American Girl   1 1 9. How Spend Vacation Visiting 17 22 39 Stay Home 13 4 17 Go to camp  2 1 3 Work  1 1 10. To what organizations do you belong ? Girls Scouts  3 1 4 Christian Endeavor or League  4 2 6 4-H Club  3 . 3 Small group clubs  6 4 10 None  ■ 51 The next steps to be taken in developing a home economics curriculum from the find- ings of the survey are: first, the major ac- tivities must be selected and arranged in order of frequency of occurrence; second, an analysis of each activity must be made as to the smaller activities involved in its per- formance and the information and skills necessary for an "understanding" perform- ance ; third, the activities should be grouped into short units of study for the various school years; fourth, desirable supplemen- tary information and activities, which will enrich, stimulate to further growth, and make these activities more effective, must be selected and incorporated. There is yet much work to be done before this home economics curriculum is complet- ed. Perhaps further comment may be made at some later date. Julia Robertson Frances Houck 

A Pupil Activity as a Basis for the Home Economics Curriculum

https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2407&amp;context=va-teacher

A Pupil Activity as a Basis for the Home Economics Curriculum

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

James Madison University