Date of Award:

5-1954

Document Type:

Thesis

Degree Name:

Master of Science (MS)

Department:

School of Teacher Education and Leadership

Department name when degree awarded

Education

Committee Chair(s)

William E. Mortimer

Committee

William E. Mortimer

Committee

E. A. Jacobsen

Abstract

The child is the reason for the school. He is the one for whom learning experiences are provided. Our understanding of the child as a growing individual and as a learner, his personality and his purposes and interests, supply the foundation for developing an effective educational program.

No longer do we look at the education program as a sole preparation for some future life. Instead it has now become more a process whereby we make the most of present living in order that we might live a more full and rich life each day. Education is something that goes on from birth to death both in and out of school. Going to school is, therefore, only part of one's whole education.

The curriculum is the heart of the school. The activities which comprise it, therefore, should be chosen cooperatively with parents, children and teachers and guided or directed with the utmost skill, for it is through the curriculum that education policies, philosophies, principles and objectives of pupils, teachers, parents, and other members of the local community gain expression in concrete form.

America today is moving rapidly from a relatively new agrarian culture to an industrial civilization. It is difficult to determine and operate a curriculum in a relatively stable era, but the problems are multiplied in a time when changes are so rapid that even the leaders are confused.

Teachers and curriculum directors, therefore, have a definite responsibility for attacking problems both economic and social of vital personal concern in such a manner that elementary school pupils of differing maturities and backgrounds can gain insight into and effect solutions to persistent problems concerning family and community life.

It is recognized that a curriculum for boys and girls living in this present complex society, cannot be planned in advance with a hierarchy of learning experiences following a fixed sequential pattern. It is improbable that a curriculum of that type would be based upon the experiences of a single learner, and therefore, would not be meaningful to any one. This does not mean, however, that it is impossible for the teacher to plan activities which are generally within the experiences of the pupils of a given age. She should have some suggestions for the learners as she works with them to help attain individual goals and those of society.

With this in mind, the purpose of this study becomes not one to plan in advance a specific curriculum following a fixed sequential pattern of activities, but rather, as suggested, to provide, through a careful study involving parents and children concerned and literature written on the subject, a suggestive list of activities which can be used in carrying out a more desirable program in industrial arts in the elementary schools of Box Elder County: a program which will more fully meet the needs of the youth and the parents of this area and incorporate to a greater extent the educational policies, philosophies, principles and objectives of all concerned.

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