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HANDBOOK FOR USE IN THE
N-SERVICE EDUCATION OF T E;A^ g ^ S
N<i'eRA RY
&
W. P. A.__Technical Series
Community Service Circular Number 5
Education Circular NO. 2
JULY 18, 1940
FEDERAL WORKS AGENCY
JVORK PROJECTS ADMINISTRATION
Division of Professional and Service Projects
Washington, D. C.
A1201M
A1294
FOREWORD
This circular offers suggestions on a program for in-
service training of teachers.
It contains suggestions on practices used in the teachers'
training programs in a number of states during the past several
years. The materials contained herein have grown out of dis¬
cussions by state, regional and Washington personnel of the
Work Projects Administration Education Program.
This circular relates only to techniques of training.
Nothing in this circular is to be construed as affecting or
modifying in any way administrative procedures of the Work
Projects Administration.
F. C. Harrington
Commissioner of Work Projects
A1294
Tablo of Contonts
Page
X. Introduction 1
II, The Purpose of In-Service Education of Teachers
in an Adult Education Program 3
III, Where Help is Heeded in Tecacher Education
A. General Help Needed 7
B. The Workshop, or Working Conference 13
C, Other Instruments of Teacher Education 16
D, Other Problems 16
IV, The Content of an In-Service Education Program
A, Orientation in the Field of Adult Education
and in the Work Projects Administration 17
B, Teaching People , not Subject Natter - 18
C, Importance of Growth in One's Special Field 19
D, Special Interest Fields Cannot be Cut off
from One Another 19
E, A Community Centered Program 20
F, Use of Advisory Committees 22
G, Community Council's and State Sponsorship 22
H, Knowledge of the Work Projects Administration
Essential for Every Teacher 23
I, Materials of Instruction 24
J, A Classification of Teaching Materials by
Subject Fields 26
K, Library Services Provide Training in
Selection and Use of Materials 27
L, Evaluation of Materials 28
V, Methods of In-Service Teacher. Education
A, The Teacher's Workshop 32
1, Workshop Objectives 34
2, Housing and Facilities 34
3, Inadequately Planned Summer Workshop
Conference 35
4, A Carefully Planned Summer Workshop
Conference 38
5, Characteristics of Satisfactory Workshop
Centers in Adult Education 40
42
43
43
44
44
45
47
50
59
59
61
62
66
71
B. Supervision .19 a Method of In-Service Education
1. The Necessity for Creative Supervision in
the TOA Education Program
2. Basic Purpose in Suporvision
3. Importance of the TOA Supervisor
4. Qualifications of a Good TOA Supervisor
5. Function and Responsibility of the
Supervisor
6. Training Local Supervisors for the Job
C. Individualized Teacher Education
The Personnel for In-Service Education of Teachers
A, The Personnel for Planning
B, What Use Shall be Made of Consultants?
Criteria for Evaluating the Work of Teachers
Year—Round In-Servico Education
Conclusion
A1294
1-1
Handbook for Use in the
IK-SERVICE EDUCATION 0F
She Work Projects Administration Education Program
Professional and Service Division
I. INTRODUCTION
This bulletin has been prepared for the use of supervisors,
teachers, and others of the Work Projects Administration to summarize
the experience and current thinking of those on the adult education
program on the problem of education of teachers. It is designed
to provide suggestions and advice for a continuous program of in-
service teacher education. This bulletin will avoid repeating matters
presented in earlier Technical Series Bulletins. The reader is urged
to review WPA Technical Series Education Circular No. 6, Conferences for
the Education of Teachers, for a description of the characteristics
of teachers and the goals of the teacher education program of the Work
Projects administration, and other Technical Series Bulletins for
specific goals of teacher education in special fields within the
program. This bulletin will serve as a clearing house rather than
as a blue print for action. It has grown out of the discussion of
state supervisors of education together with the Washington staff of
the education program.
The original inspiration for the suggestions here given
came from the work of a national ^oonmittee called together last year
to make suggestions and to outline a program which would meet the
particular conditions and needs of the Work Projects Administration
education program. This national committee was: made up of experienced
people in administration and supervision from different parts of the
country. Their contributions grew out of the technical operation of
their own state programs. These various offerings have been carefully
edited by the Washington staff.
In this bulletin, then, the attempt has been made to supply
to answers most frequently given to certain basic questions with
reference to the education of teachers. Those questions may be grouped
under four headings. The first of these is: Why do we have teacher
education in the Work Projects Administration? What is the purpose of
a training program for adult education teachers? The second and and
probably the most important is the answer to: What should be tha content
of an in-service education program? The third, answers the question,
How do we conduct a program of in-service 'teacher education: What are the
methods and techniques most commonly used? The fourth question concerns
the -personnel to carry on the program of in-service education. Should this
A1294
1-2
work be left to the colleges and ■universities? Should the state
staff take major responsibility for in-service education? What is
the place of the sponsors? How should consultants be used? Does the
public or do the students have any share in educating teachers? In
what way can we utilize the experiences of teachers themselves? Is
there a problem of training supervisors, as well as training
teachers? And, finally, where and when is a teacher education
program conducted? Do we have teacher education only when we have
formal conferences in colleges or elsewhere, at stated times
during the month or the year? If we answer the question of where
and when by recommending continuous year-round education for
teachers how do wc integrate all of the various educational ex¬
periences? How do we evaluate the work of the teachers and make
each experience contribute to their continuous growth?
Obviously, no final answer can bo given. As a. report of
progress and a restatement of experience over a period of time and
wide geographical area, it is hoped that the suggestions here given
may stimulate new efforts and clear thinking on the part of the
directors, supervisors, teachers, sponsors, and others concerned
with the education of teachers. It is hoped, too, that many addi¬
tional suggestions will be made for future programs which will be
better than any which this bulletin proposes.
A1294
11-3
11. THE PURPOSE OF IN-SERVICE EDUCATION
OF TEACHERS IN AW AEULT EDUCATION PROGRAM
One of the objectives of the Work Projects Administration
is the maintenance of skills and abilities of persons assigned to
work on the program* This involves in many cases the adaptation of
skills of persons to the specific type of work to be performed, where
the previous experience of the person has been in a related but not
identical field.
Persons assigned to WPA education projects represent a
wide range of backgrounds and interests. They may have special skills,
experience, or training in a single field of adult interest. They may
have had broad experience in teaching. They may or may not have diplomas
or teaching certificates. They may or may not have followed teaching
as a profession. They represent a wide range of occupations. Upon
the basis of their previous training and experience they may be roughly
classified into four groups: (l) Recent graduates of colleges and
high schools, who have had little or no teaching experience; (2)
persons who have followed teaching as a profession, either in public
or private schools; (3) undergraduates of colleges who have been
forced to drop out of school to go to work, and who have had little
or no teaching experience; (4) workers from the professions and trades,
many of whom have had neither teaching experience nor education in
professional methods of teaching-Iif
A majority of those in the first three groups, through their
educational background and working experience, have been conditioned
to the teaching of children of regular school age, while most of
those in the fourth group lack training in educational methods. Thus
in many cases they may not have been fully prepared, either by educa¬
tion or teaching experience, to work with adult students, and parti¬
cularly with those having little or no formal education. Their know¬
ledge of the philosophy, principles, and practices of adult education
nay be slight. Few of them further have a complete understanding of
the organization and operation of the Work Projects Administration,
whose Education Program brings then into strange new educational terri¬
tory with its own duties and responsibilities. Where else would one
have encountered the same emjjhasis upon education for the under¬
privileged, socially and educationally; its informal approach and
varied methods of teaching; its diverse offerings originating in the
interests and needs of the learners; its plans and devices for recruit¬
ing end organizing classes; and, finally, its emphasis upon the use
of fresh vital materials selected from current magazines, pamphlets,
newspapers, and the like, rather than from textbooks?
I,/ See Also WPA Technical Series Education Circular lie, 6,
Conferences for the Education of teachers, p, 2.
A1294
11-4
In the WPA Adult Education and Nursery School Program
many teachers for the 'first tine discover the satisfaction which
cones from helping people to holp themselves through education.
The task of this program in the education of teachers is to reveal
to the teachers their opportunities as environmental engineers,
offering the students in their classes-a new chance through reading
and writing, through homemaking education, through public affaire
education, or through some self-selected project or study to fashion
a life that is a little "bit better than it night have been if these
teachers had not come into their lives. If WPA teachers get that
vision of their work, and most of them already have it, there will
have been established the basis upon which a vital adult education
program can be built.
In other words, if the in-service training does its job
properly, teachers on the program are offered an opportunity to build
up their own philosophy of adult education through the soundest possible
method-experience. Through trial and error, they first learn the
best and most effective practices of adult education. Prom these
they gradually deduce the principles by which the best practices are
governed. Eron the principles they build up a working and expanding
philosophy which can serve as a daily -guide.
The teacher pre-conditioned to conventional and formal methods
of teaching learns an entirely new approach. He must abandon the
"now class all together" attitude which pours facts into sponge-like
minds for storage rather than use. He finds out that adults can learn
and want to learn. He explores the interests of the pupils and their
daily life experiences and realizes because he has himself lived
through it, that real learning is evolved only through experience.
Experience serves a threefold purpose. It is first a process
through which we learn; next a function by which we learn; and third,
a residuum'which serves as a guido for future conduct. Eor example,
the teacher discovers that different ones of his foreign-born pupils
have difficulty in understanding his speech. When he adds these
instances one to another in his daily experience he gradually learns
that he talks too fast. He uses the experience functionally to
amend his ways and slow down his tempo, and stores up the knowledge
for future use.
Learning is itself a cooperative process which must include
both stimulation and response before the cycle is complete. It is an
active process tha.t requires constant activity on the part of the
learner. But people vary in the rate of spoed with which they learn.
A1294
11-5
Some start in high gear; some in low. Others require a long
period for warming up the engine, while others perversely keep straying
into reverse before getting really started. In each instance they are
btiilding on the foundation of the past. The structure of yesterday
is used in the process of learning to erect the structure of tomorrow.
This is the process of living and we learn only as we live, and live
fully rand completely only as we learn.
The rehabilitation of teachers then means giving to the
teacher a belief in himself and a belief in the worthwhileness of
the work which he is asked tc do. The experience in the education
program has demonstrated that people want adult education. They rise
to it whenever it is offered in a way which they find useful and
stimulating. Furthermore, the program's task of rehabilitation will
mean not only that the teachers are helped to do a worthwhile job well
but it moans also that if this job is well done a public demand will
be created which the public schools will in time be expected to fill.
The increasing percentage of older people in the population and the
recognition of the urgent need for continuous education in a rapidly
changing society will provide the basis for this demand. The iff A
education program can demonstrate that the need can be net. Already
in many places teachers trained and experienced in the WPA program
have been taken over by the organized agencies of education in their
communities. Thus if the program is good enough it is creating a
demand for permanent jobs in a permanent program of adult education,
at the same time that it is preparing teachers to take these job's.
Teachers are also being prepared to be able to take per¬
manent jobs in other fields. Over and over it has been demonstrated
that a person who can teach adults learns a technique of adjustment
to people, a way of working with adults which can lead to success
in other occupations. Experience in adult education then is not
necessarily lost if there is no permanent employment in adult education.
If, then, this program is providing a needed and useful
service in the community, and if it is giving employment to people
at tasks which are demanded by the community, it is imperative that
the type of education which the toachers give be the best possible
under prevailing conditions. Adult education until recently has been
a relatively limited field. Few teachers cone into the program
with experience or knowledge of its scope and its needs. The type
of service which they can provide for the community without further
training is extremely limited. While it is true that many teachers
with very little training have been successful and acceptable to
classes, increasingly the public is demanding a better education program.
A1294
11—6
It is not possible to justify the employment on a professional program
of people who do not do professional work. But teachers cannot be
expected to do a professional job of adult education if they do not
know what is involved in such a job, A continually improving service
of education can be brought about only if teachers-are constantly
growing in their ability to provide such service. This is possible
only through continuous teacher education.
Since students in the adult education program are not children
they will not for long accept uncritically a poor type of service.
The contribution which the Work Project Administration can make to
the future of adult education depends entirely upon the extent to
which it can prepare teachers to do the kind of work which will meet
the standards, unceasingly growing higher, which the field demands.
Inasmuch as at the present tine the great bulk of service in adult
education in this country is offered by the Work Projects Administration,
it has a unique responsibility as well as an opportunity offered by
the adult education movement.
Literally, for more than two million persons, the WPA program
provides the first and often the only contact they have with adult
education. On the WPA and preceding programs an average of 30,000
teachers or more a year has been employed over a period of six years.
If persons responsible for the program genuinely believe that the
education of adults is one of the most important tasks to be done in
this country, and that the future of democracy depends upon how well
that task is done, they cannot lightly pass up the responsibility for
doing the job well. It is not enough to put teachers to work, to
get classes together, and to hold them, to make just a little im¬
provement over things as they wore. Valuable as all this is, it is
imperative that they utilize these resources put into' their hands to
do the best job of adult education that can be done within the limits
of these resources.
A1394
111-7
III. WHE3E HELP IS NEEDED IN TEACHER EDUCATION
It would "be futile as well as dangerous to attempt to
over-simplify the problems which are faced in teacher education.
Because we know we cannot solve them all is no reason for not care¬
fully examining then as far as possible and selecting for solution
those which seen most urgent and most capable of solution. Each
Nstate will find its own most urgent problems and take the steps
for their solution, which are most suitable in view of its circum¬
stances ana resources, A pooling of experience through group dis¬
cussion by persons who have had experience and have responsibility
for working out a worthwhile program brings to light many problems
and many points of view, Such discussions brought forth a listing
and classification of problems of teachers and suggested approaches
to their solution which may well form the basis for extended study
and discussion by every state staff. For that purpose they are
listed here.
This outline raises questions which exist ir, all parts of
the country and which will find their counterpart in some form in
most states. Though no final solutions are offered, they are des¬
cribed in sufficient detail to stimulate th.rough.tful analysis,
A, General Help Needed,
1, How to tie together all the service of supervision and the
job of teacher education, including the summer conferences,
into an integrated, continuous and progressing year-round
program,
2, How to meet the particularly acute need for providing com¬
plete and continuous year-round service for teachers in
smaller communities and rural sections, who often cannot
attend teachers' meetings or even summer conferences.
(North Carolina's thirty workshop centers and Michigan's
and North Carolina's use of correspondence courses),
3, How to plan a program of teacher education directed toward
clearly defined goals, which grow out of
a. The needs of which teachers are already aware as they
go about their work,
b. Social needs which might be met through this program
if the teachers and supervisors were adequately aware
of them and of ways of meeting them
A1294
111-8
A part of the job of teacher education is to "broaden
the teacher's view of his personal needs, so that he
cones increasingly to think of his own professional
needs in relation to the social needs of the com¬
munity in which he teaches.
How to ascertain and specify these needs,
a. How to find out what teachers want and need, (Teachers'
meetings, teachers' questionnaires and written reports,
supervisors5 visits and observations, supervisors'
conferences with teachers, etc.)
b. How to help teachers better to understand and define
their own needs. Is it likely that this can be done
except as teachers study the needs of their own com¬
munities and of persons in their classes?
5, How to translate what is learned about teachers' needs into
a teacher education program. Taking the things which teachers
say they went as the point of departure, can we develop a pro¬
gram which will give them what they want and at the sane time
enlarge their concepts of social and educational needs and of
their part in meeting them2
6, How to help teachers to get a better understanding of broad
subject fields (such as home and family living, public
affairs, or foundational subjects), and to develop the
ability to organise readily and effectively within these
fields materials adapted to the particular needs of students
in their classes,
(Ohio is proposing to place emphasis on methods rather than
materials, -on the ability to adapt, apply and use available
materials in specific situations rather than on the production
of new materials, on the question: "How are we going to help
people, with the aid of the materials at our disposal, in
relation to their needs as these have been analyzed?")
This point, therefore, involves the planned use of a reason¬
able proportion of "WPA and sponsors' funds for the purchase
of materials needed by teachers, a practice which is as yet
found in but few states, and might involve a general change
in policy and procedure.
The tendency to set "materials" over against "methods", of "phi¬
losophy" over against "practice", gives evidence of considerable
uncertainty as' toways in which training in the relationship of
A1294
111-9
these nay best ,be given, Reports indicate that "philosophy"
instead of being evolved through experience is often thought
of as being presented by means of lectures, possibly followed
by discussion, while training in "methods" and "materials" is
given through workshop groups. It is clear, however, that
philosophy, however acquired, cannot be separated from content,
nor materials from methods, but that all depend upon teachers1
ability to analyze the total learning situation with which he
is working into its consitituent parts or experiences, and
through their progressive reorganization to develop a workable
guiding philosophy.
This point, therefore, necessarily involves the ones which
follow;
7. How to help teachers to build their teaching plans and pro¬
grams on the carefully ascertained needs of students in their
classes and of communities in which they teach.
Do teachers and supervisors now do this? Do they understand
the methods of doing it? What methods'have been most success¬
fully used? How has it been found possible to train
teachers and supervisors in the use cf these methods?
8. Where teaching and training are usually centered in depart¬
mental fields, how to relate the training in these various
fields so that each teacher will understand the character
and aims of the program as a whole and cooperate with teachers
in other, fiolds as far as possible.
Shis problem is particularly acute in the case of nursery
schools and adult education, since the training conferences
for these two groups are frequently separate; but it exists
as between the several fields in adult education also.
9. How to develop criteria for the evaluation of the work of
teachers, which teachers and supervisors nay use together
as a means of helping the teacher to improve his work.
Evaluation and comparisons of some sort are inevitably
made by both supervisors and teachers; and in some cases,
very poor evaluation instruments are used for administra¬
tive purposes. Can this bulletin, therefore, suggest either
a defensible set of criteria for evaluation, or a method of
developing such criteria by supervisor-teacher grouns in the
states?
A1294
111-10
Criteria of evaluation are needed also for materials produced
and used. A large amount of very poor material has been pro¬
duced and distributed in states. If responsibility for evalu¬
ation is to rest with states, as it should, then help is
needed in the development of standards for evaluation. It
was suggested that a part of the work of the workshop confer¬
ence night be the evaluation of materials which teachers have
used (rather than the production of new materials), by groups
of teachers and supervisors working together primarily to
help one another improve their materials.
10. How to develop in teachers a broader knowledge of governmental,
economic and social natters, as a background for their teaching,
whatever their particular fields nay be.
Many think there is increasing emphasis on this. Others be¬
lieve that there is a, tendency to "shy away" from the public
affairs field. Two questions may be raised: (a) Do such mat¬
ters have significance for teachers in all fields? (b) How
can such natters be taught in relation to the work of the
teacher in a field not directly concerned with the teaching
of public affairs? (A proposed course on "Social Problems
and Adult Education", to be based on community surveys of needs
which can be met by education, should be a useful contribution
here.)
Two other problems often raised in discussion are listed here:
A. What should be the role of the teacher in the group,
especially during the consideration of controversial
issues?
B, What is the place of leadership in ai democratic situa¬
tion? Who finally decides the course to be followed?
The group without the leader? The leader alone, pos¬
sibly with a gesture to the group? Or the leader and
the group together? If the last, how?
11. How to plan and conduct teacher education to meet the needs
of individual teachers or of small groups.
A1294
I11-13
should result in wider extension of the services of the
Education Program to persons employed elsewhere on WPA
and to other WPA projects with, educational objectives;
in the use by teachers and supervisors of the services
and products of other WPA projects; in the cooperation
of all WPA services in related fields in developing
better coordinated programs of community service; in
the understanding of the rightful and proper functions
of sponsoring and other cooperating agencies and the re¬
lation of these to WPA.
16. Eow to give teachers and supervisors help in planning and
practicing community cooperation and in dealing with com¬
munity problems which cut across departmental linos.
17. How to include in the teacher education program provision
for whatever help is needed in methods of organizing classes,
publicising and promoting the program, preparing and setting
up exhibits.
18. How to use "outside" people in the training program so as
to be of greatest help to teachers.
a. How decide when and where "outside people" are needed
and can be used?
b. How prepare such people to work with our teachers?
(Is it essential that "outside" people, in order to be
helpful, shall have had experience in teaching adults?)
c. How assure that "outside" people will (l) relate their
"philosophy" or subject matter to the teaching needs
of this program; (2) set problems for teachers to work on
which are related, to teachers' experience on the program;
and (3) use methods appropriate to adult education?
19. How to use the more capable and experienced teachers to help
in training the less experienced?" (Without depriving the for¬
mer of opportunities for advanced training, and without re¬
leasing supervisors from their responsibilities.)
20. How to use, in teacher education programs, the methods which
teachers should learn for their own work as teachers.
a. Which methods can be so used mcst readily? Which not?
b. What is a good discussion group? Good discussion leadership?
A1294
III - 13
c. What are thr nossable uoes nncl limitations of "demonstra¬
tion centers"?
d. May critical analysis by teachers of methods used in
teacher education be a possible means of training in the
uso ox methods?
The Workshop. or Working Conference
1. How to know.when, how, and why to use a woikshop.
a. What educational problems can be especially well tested,
and what educational objectives best attained through
the workshop?
b. Which, activities can be actually worked through in the work¬
shop, and which treated only in a preliminary way?
c. When does the workshop fit the needs of the situation?
2. How to plan and redirect the workshop program.
a. What are the essential pre-planning stops?
b. Woo take part in the planning? What decisions are made
by WPA Administrators? Sponsors? Supervisors? Teachers?
c. What agencies outside WPA should participate in planning?
How much responsibility for planning and conducting training
conferences should such agencies as universities, colleges,
and public schools have?
d. How set up e pre-conference laboratory to try out the
methods to be used with the larger group end thus avoid
costly errors end waste of time? '
e. How retain the values of pre-planning and yet keep the
conference program flexible, subject to constant revision
as new needs emerge? How organize end use a steering
committee for this purpose? What are the proper functions
of such a committee?
See also general problems related to planning, above.
3. How to make arrangements for facilities necessary to assure
efficient operation of a workshop.
a. Space: for committee rooms, discussion groups, curriculum
laboratories, demonstration centers, libraries, exhibits, etc.
b. Library facilities: so as to insure use by people who may
not be familiar with libraries, of the materials most
likoly to be of value.
Ill - 14
c. Recreation facilities.
d. Housing and Doard.
e. Exhibits: space, materials, equipment, set up so
as to insure use, not merely inspection; time
for use.
How to conduct a workshop.
a. How organized? On the tasis cf teachers' problems, major
subject matter fields, or otherwise?
b. If there are "general sessions" and "departmental sessions"
should the latter follow the plan of the former, or be
independent?
c. What methods are most effective in accomplishing each
of the main purposes appropriate to the workshop?
d. "What uses should be made of community resources:
museums, schools, colleges, social agencies, radio,
other cooperating agencies, and the like? How, within
the limited time available?
e. What uses should be made cf the library, exhibits, printed
materials? What materials, course plans, outlines,
bibliographies, etc., may teachers profitably prepare in
workshops? How many teachers evaluate materials they have
already prepared or used, as a part of the workshop program?
See also the general questions on materials, above. There
seemed to be agreement that in several of the workshops
too greet emphasis had been placed on the production of
course materials as an end in itself, sc that there
was a strong compulsion' to produce, often at the
sacrifice of other values. What is the proper place of
work on materials in the workshop?
If materials are produced in the workshop, what provision
can be made for their evaluation, with the aid of supervisors,
when they are used in the field after the workshop is over?
f. What uses of consultants and experts? Of representatives of
other agencies? What dangers to be avoided hero? Who will
relate the outside consultant or expert to the teachers?
See also the general question on "outside" people, above.
A1294
III - 15
g. How can the experience of the workshop "be analyzed
and evaluated by teach;rs and supervisors, as a
means of studying and evaluating teaching method?
h. How can the workshop be used to plan for a continuing
program of teacher education to follow?
i. How provide, in the workshop time schedule, for:
(1) pre-planning
(2) daily planning and re-directing
(3) saving people's energies and keeping them fresh
for the meetings at which heaviest work is required.
(4) adequate rest .and recreation
(5) individual conferences and counseling
(6) Teachers' work, on individual problems
(7) opportunity to examine carefully all materials
which may be useful to the teacher
(8) evaluation of the workshop
(9) other
5. How to prepare a conference report of greatest value and
usefulness to teachers
a. Report should be easily readable, and readily usable
by teachers in relation to specific needs (Colorado
uses uniform format for sectional reports; 1. Objectives,
2. Procedures, 3. Materials produced or available,
4. Evaluation}
b. Sectional reports are desirable for technical work, but
an inclusive report presenting "highlights" of all
sections is needed to keep the program as a whole
before teachers.
c. There are two types of conference reports: 1. Proceedings
and products, 2. Analysis and evaluation. Reports are
usually of the former type, but the latter may have
greater educational value for teachers and supervisors.
Reports should include criticisms, list of inadequacies,
suggestions as to how to do it better next time, etc.
A1294
III - 16
d. Reports usually Include only majority findings.
Should minority reports he included also?
e. Should reports show how and why problems were selected?
Other lines of inquiry which were suggested hut not
pursued because of lack of time? Process by which con¬
clusions were reached as well as conclusions themselves?
f. Should all teaching materials included in reports be
accompanied by suggestions for their use in teaching?
g. Feed for annotations and suggestions for use should, oc
stressed in all bibliographies.
C. Other Instruments of Teacher Education
1. How to make the best use of continuous courses or series of
teachers' meetings during the school year:
a. Departmental course^ or meetings
b. Courses cutting through departmental lines, such as the
eight-week courses in Colorado
Same problems of objectives, planning, leadership, program,
etc., as have been discussed above.
2. How to make the best use of correspondence courses for all
teachers:
a. For what purposes arc such courses particularly effective?
b. Can thov be used as the basis for teachers' meetings?
(So used by Forth Carolina and Michigan)
3. How to utilize attendance at regular college extension courses
as a means of teacher education
4. How to secure apprenticeship assignments as pre-service training
for new teachess.
5. How to provide vocational and educational guidance for teachers,
especially with a view to the occupations.! rehabilitation of
teachers.
D. Other Problems
1» How to correlate more closely the training of professional workers
on the Education Program with those on the Recreation Program.
2. How to correlate training"of■ professional workers on the Education
Program with those of the F.Y.A. and other community agencies.
3. How to make a similar correlation with regularly constituted
t cache r s' group s.
A1294
IV - 17
IV. THE CONTENT OF AIT IN-SERVICE EDUCATION PROGRAM
Orientation in the Field of Adult Education :md in the '/fork Projects
Administration.
Since this is a specialized field in which few teachers,
however well trained, have had preparation, every newly assigned
teacher should have a period ox training or orientation preceding
the taking over of a class. These teachers now actively engaged in
the program who have not had some work designed to provide the
content hero described, should he given an opportunity to get it at
the earliest possible moment.
If the workers are to GET THE EIGHT STAET all nood
orientation in the principles and practices of adult education
in general and of the W?A program in particular. Therefore,
their pro-service training represents an important part of the
task of teacher education. On the basis of their education and
experience, most of them probably need:
1. A thorough understanding of the setup and operations of
the Work Projects Administration
2. An understanding of the objectives of the WPA Education
Program
3. A working knowledge of the routines of the program
(reporting, record keeping, etc.) and an appreciation of
their purpose.
4. Information concerning the program, methods and materials,
history of the adult education movement and its manifestation
in the community 1./
5. An acquaintance with some of the fundamental concepts of
adiilt psychology including intelligence levels, learning
habits and motives
6. Practice in the methods of organizing and conducting
classes
7. Practice in the selection and organization of material
for adult classes
In addition to orienting newly assigned teachers in respect
to these fundamentals of the program, the supervisor should give some
attention to behavior resulting from certain attitudes that have
proved to be handicaps to many "WPA teachers in the past. A number
of these objectionable ways of acting have been listed in recent
summer conferences, some of which have to do with the background
and experience of the beginning teacher, and therefore shod light
upon needs in the pre-service training of teachers. They include:
1/ See WPA Technical Series Education Circular No. 7 for source
references
A1294
IV-18
Inability to change readily from old systems of teaching;
failure to sel°ct subject matter based on community interests;
too much formality end rigid adherence to empty form; lack of
tact and evident sincerity; residence outside the community,
hence failure "to belong"; false claims of scholarship or
achievement; thinking that the government owes them a living; lack
of knowledge of professional standards in teaching and the consequent
attempt to manage everybody's business except their own.
In general the job in teacher education is to help the
teacher provide the kinds of adult education services which the
community wants and needs. In analysing this job it is possible to
define it best in terms of what the teachers are expected to do.
The teacher is expected to be a leader in learning. Learning, comes
about through a change in the individual - a change in skills and
abilities, in attitudes, in understanding and appreciation. These
changes are to be brought about by the individual himself with the
aid of the teacher.
Most of the teachers who come to the program ladf much of
the information and the specific skills with which to do that job.
Teachers must therefore themselves learn, must themselves change
continuously, in order to do a better job of helping others to
change. They need a. continually growing fund of information, and
continuously improving skills.
B. Teaching People, not Subject Matter. It is to be assumed that teachers
assigned to this program have some particular contribution to make to
it. They may be trained in a special field of interest or have
achieved particular success in some area of adult life. It is fre¬
quently true, however, that these teachers-to-be do not, without
training, recognize the relationship of their special field to the
purposes and program of adult education. The teacher training pro¬
gram must provide this link in their thinking if they are to do the
best job of which they are capable. Most frequent is their need to
realize that in this task of adult education they must teach people.
not s\ibject matter. The subjects in which they are particularly
interested and skilled may or may not interest the people in their
classes. To get that interest is their responsibility, and they can
learn to do it by becoming interested in and by thoroughly under¬
standing the individuals in their groups. Helping teachers to
secure a knowledge of how to study people, how to learn their needs
and interests and how to build a program to meet these needs and
interests is the second major responsibility of teacher education.
A1294
IV - 19
C, Importance of Growth in One's Special Field. Regardless of how veil
grounded a teacher may he in his own field, he must continually study
and work to keep up with the growth and changes in it. This is true,
of course, of all education hut it is particularly true of adult
education where students arc critical of the teacher whose methods,
material and information are out of date. Hot many persons would
knowingly go to a physician who had not read a professional book
or periodical in ten years nor attended the professional meetings
of his colleagues. A physicist, a business man or a. lawyer who
had not kept up with his changing profession for the past ten years
would he hopelessly lost in his field today. Adults who are willing
to give up their limited free time to study are entitled to and
expect to secure informed, able leadership. The better qualified
a teacher is, the more quickly he recognises his own needs for
growth. Few good teachers fail to read at least one professional
periodical in their own field. Few do not keep contact through
books, professional organisations or correspondence with recognized
leaders in their field. The teacher education program can help all
teachers to profit by the experience of the best, and to lead all
teachers increasingly to grow in mastery of their special field.
D. Special Interest Fields Cannot Be Cut Off From Each Other. The
psychologists and social scientists, among others, are increas¬
ingly often pointing out the interrelatedness of all aspects of human
living. We may easily enough compartmentalise homemaking, liter¬
acy, public affairs or vocational education in the classroom but
we cannot so compartmentalise them in life activities. Homemaking
is handicapped when the cook cannot read a recipe; the mother fails
her children when she cannot write the excuse for a school absence;
the man who cannot express his ideas in the town meeting participates
ineffectively in public affairs. How to fix the broken doorstep may
be equally a part of safety education, homemaking, public affairs
or vocational training. Help in recognising this interrelatedness
of various aspects of living and the relationship of each field to
other fields and the possibilities of mutual contributions of
different fields to life problems is an important part of the content
of teacher education.
The nursery school teacher soon learns her responsibility
for parent education. But does she always see how literacy or public
affairs education might serve these parents and through them the
children in the nursery school? Would an understanding by parents
of the community health program or the traffic safety regulations
mean better nursery school education? Is this not a valuable aspect
of the content of teacher education for nursery school teachers?
Does singing patriotic songs contribute to citizenship education for
the foreign bornf Can the music teacher be expected to lead this
singing and also to know where to get answers to the citizenship
questions which prospective citizens will inevitably ask, or to know
how to get help in pronouncing the difficult English words? If the
answer is "yes" teacher education must supply the necessary skills
and techniques and a philosophy of adult education which would make
this mutual cooperation effective.
A1294
IV- 20
Within the Division of Professional and Service Projects
of the Work Projects Administration, the Recreation Program, the
Workers' Service Program, the Writers, Art and Music Projects, the
Sewing, 'Visual Aids, Research and Records, School Lunch, Library and
Training Programs, each has much to contribute to education, and can
benefit by help from the Education Program as well. Any program
designed for the education of teachers should recognize this
mutual interdependence of these various projects and prepare the
teacher for it. In addition to cooperation within the Work projects
Administration it is important for the teacher to utilize and
work with other agencies of education and social welfare in the com¬
munity- This involves an appreciation of the place of this whole
program in the comrmuiity and the services which the Work Projects
Administration can contribute to community living.
E. A Community Centered Program. It does not take long if you know
where to look to discover the essential reason for the almost
incredible vitality of the adult education movement. It has grown
out of the lives of the people, sharing their worries, helping to
shoulder their burdens, showing them how to discover ways to find
more fun and satisfaction than they neve oner had in their lives.
With newfound faith in themselves, they are "learning by doing".
Even if we were foolish enough to try it, we could not
pull up the root.s that bind us inseparably to the community. These
thirsting roots draw into the adult education movement the vitali¬
zing energy which makes it live and grew. Lacking them the program
would be a dead, sterile thing retting away with decay. Fortunately,
its roots now roach so deejj into community life that they can be
counted on to keep the movement a vigorous, healthy thing as we
strive to become more familiar with the processes through which
community interests and problems can best be discovered and best
be served.
This is where the year-round programs of teacher education
get their underlying drive and motive. The attempt is made to discover
shortcomings and to chart steps to overcome them without further delay,
not to achieve some academic standard of professional excellence as
educators, but simply in order to do a better job of helping these,
our people.
Keeping everlastingly in mind a mental candid-camera view
of the community, a teacher can avoid some of the traps which have
been responsible for many of our failures. Harrow specialization
A1294
IV-21
in some pre-determined subject matter field, of course, brands
itself "outsider" the minute it seeks to mould the community to
its rigid pattern. A leader of adult groups must be a whole
person with the capacity to serve each group along whatever broad
fields of interest it may choose to go.
Another trap which can be avoided by a clear concep¬
tion of community interests and needs is the human-enough tendency
to over-simplify every problem. Snap-judgment appraisals of
"community needs" have no place, as he who works with adults dis¬
covers very soon. He makes himself sensitive to the "wheels
within wheels" and the many cross-currents which play upon the
major currents of community life. He learns the real significance
of minorities in a democracy and of the processes by which they may
win their fair share of the good things life holds, while respect¬
ing "the greatest good for the greatest number". 1./
Thinking in terms of the life of the community, the
teacher learns to respect the established folkways of the people
he serves.
The community educates the teacher, especially after the
teacher has learned self-analysis and has acquired the knack of
placing himself in the shoes of those who look to him for leader¬
ship. The learning process is a two-edged sword which cuts both
ways, and when a teacher has once witnessed what happens during
the process of group thinking under creative leadership, he has
found the key to the mastery of his own problems.
No wonder teachers chafe under the yoke imposed by some
teacher-training systems which set up elaborate superstructures
almost wholly unrelated to the process of learning. Regeneration
and improvement of the adult education program, the teachers know,
comes about most naturally when teacher education is consistent
with student education - when groups of teachers faced with mutual
problems growing out of the life of the communities they serve,
come together under creative leadership to tackle those problems
through group thinking.
One of the first things learned by the teacher of adults
is that he is expected to be a walking encyclopedia of information
concerning the public service agencies functioning in his community.
He must know the objectives, functions and current undertakings of
u For a more complete analysis of methods of studying the community
see Young, Pauline Y. - Scientific Social Surveys and Research.
New York, Prentice Hall, Inc., 1939
A1294
IV-??
eacli one. Moreover, he must understand how their activities overlap
and supplement one another. If he does not have this knowledge, he
is handicapped in serving Mo community,
E, Use of Advisory Committees, It is becoming increasingly easy to or¬
ganize intelligent, enthusiastic, and active advisory committees, as
schools and communities become aware of the educational and social
\ values cf adult education and nursery schools. These committees have
functioned as go-betweens in making valuable contacts for the nursery
school with other schools, organisations, and individuals. These
contacts have resulted in securing for the children expert and pro¬
fessional services of doctors, dentists, nurses, psychologists, psy¬
chiatrists, and educators, both as consultants and speakers. They
have also resulted in obtaining classrooms and housing for nursery
schools, contributions of food, materials, and equipment, anc" serv¬
ices such as extra janitor service and laundering. Financial assist¬
ance through the work of committee members and aid. in carrying on
class work by those who are, qualified are among other rosolts fre¬
quently obtained through advisory committees. As the members of the
advisory committees become better informed about the adult education
program and nursery school Procedures, they have become valuable as
friendly critics in interpreting the program to the community and
keeping it up to high standards. More use should be made of them
in adult education programs.
G-, Community Councils and State Sponsorship. The effectiveness of a
program of this type will bo greatly increased if re-pro sent a tire
groups, drawn from all adult education agencies in each community,
are invited to assume a large part of the responsibility for policy
formulation, for program planning, and for the evaluation of results.
Representative bodies of the type referred, to are already
to be found in many cities, such as 17ew York, Cincinnati, Denver,
San Diego, Chicago, and. Toledo, in the form cf established Adult
Education Councils. In such cases, the State and local school offi¬
cials should organize a representative advisory body to serve the
Federal programs, with the hope and expectation that it may develop
into a permanent community council.
Representation on councils and advisory committees for
adult education should not be limited to professional educators and
employed officers of agencies. It should be a rule that each member
agency should be represented by at least one lay officer or member,
as well as by a member of its employee, staff. Furthermore, the inter¬
pretation of the term "adult education agency" should bo very broad,
to include all organisations which, arc concerned with any phase of
adult education, such as Chambers of Commerce, Women's Clubs, health
agencies, labor unions, radio stations, church councils, and community
centers, as well as the more obvious agencies of adult education, s tCil
as public schools, public libraries, museums, colleges and universities,
Parent-Teacher Associations, Y.M.C.A.1s and Y.¥.C.A.'s.
There is not space to develop fully the reasons in support
of this viewpoint. But a brief summary will servo to convince..
1. Any program of adult education, to bo effective, must
bo closely related to educational needs growing out of the
A1294
iv_yy
daily lives of the people in the community. These needs can "oe
known only by people who arc in close touch with all phases of
life in a community, and with all population groups, Hence the
need in a widely representative council for policy formulation
and program planning.
?. Any inclusive program of adult education, to be
effective, must include a wide variety of educational of x o i*i rigs,
functionally related to the people to be served. Adults will not
long sustain interest in a program organized around the traditional
subject-matter courses of high school and college alone. They will
sustain interest in learning which clearly contributes to the im¬
provement of vocational efficiency, health, home and. family life,
civic participation, or avocational interests. Honce the need for
program planning by a body of people who represent collectively
agencies which are concerned with all phases of adult life.
3. Any program of adult education, to continue its effec¬
tiveness, must bo subjected to periodic evaluations and reconstruc¬
tions. Such evaluations should be based on observation of the
effects of education in the lives of people served. Hence the need
for evaluation by a community-wide representative group of persons
who have had opportunities for direct observation of results.
4. Any program of adult education to become permanent,
must have the widespread support of laymen in all walks of life,
as well as of professional educators. Hence the need for those
Federal programs, which aspire to lay foundations for ado.lt
education as a permanent part of the established educational systems
of states and communities, to build a broad base of informed support¬
ers among the taxpaying lay public.
ti. Any program of adult education which claims to be
democratic should provide for maximum participation in policy¬
making, planning, and evaluation, by representatives of the groups
to be served. This experience in itself is the highest type of
adult education in a democratic society.
H. Knowledge of the Work Projects Administration Essential for Every
Teacher. Too little attention has been given to the matter of
helping teachers to get acquainted with agencies and organizations
whose undertakings play major roles in community life. Most neglected
of all, perhaps, is the matter of giving our teachers an opportunity
to obtain a thorough understanding of our own agency cf Work Projects
Administration itself. The services of the State Training Supervisor
vhero available may be particularly helpful in this connection .
Although our education program works hand in hand with
many phases of the WPA's widely-diversified undertakings, our
teachers often receive little or no help in getting acquainted with
A1294
IV-24
other phases of the program. Our supervisors provide the neces¬
sary minimum of information as to how a time sheet should "be made
out, plus some training in the matter of keeping records and making
reports. At institutes and conferences, administrative officials
make "brief talks about the general objectives of the program giving
a little history and making, some reference to notable projects.
Some states have gone a little farther. But real orientation studies
of the Work Projects Administration, carefully planned and democratic¬
ally conducted, are still very scarce. Teacher education geared to
community needs and interests will include some delving into WPA
philosophy and purposes, the structure of the organization, nature of
the work done on various kinds of projects, rights and privileges of
WPA workers, defects of the program (from the teacher's analysis of
his own job), some of the program's achievements and its place in the
community, and in the national scene.
The community finds the teacher who is well-informed on
these matters a more valuable public servant. The teacher finds
his work more effective, and from his enlarged vision of his place
in the program, he derives increased satisfaction.
The Work Projects Administration stands to benefit in
many ways when our teachers are' better informed about the organi¬
zation for which they work. Unification of the program will be
fostered, as will interchange of services between our section and
other sections. Mistakes caused by our teachers' lack of knowledge
of procedures cost money, and the money saved by improving the
efficiency of our staff is needed for useful work. Mot the least
important is the matter of fostering increased public use of WPA
services to enrich community life.
Materials of Instruction. Materials, as the term is used in this
discussion, include not only reading matter but all types of equip¬
ment, teaching aids and the like.
"The material of instruction is t'o be found in
the intellectual accumulations of the ages —
some of it in systematic form; much of it in a
conglomerate mass; some embodied in the arts
and sciences, in folkways, institutions, govern¬
ments and laws. Such is our cultural inheritance." l/
Development of knowledge of available material and skill in selec¬
tion is a major problem of teacher education. The basic assumption
1/ James E. Russell, Journal of Adult Education, April 1939.
A1294
17-25
is that a choice must be made. The question is, who is to make
the choice? On what basis is the choice to be made? In what ways
can we help through teacher education?
Teachers must be made aware of the vast quantities of
material in every field of knowledge. Beyond that they must be
helped to know enough about that available material to choose
or adapt it to the needs of their students. To do that would in
itself be a great step forward*
Teachers need to have an inquiring mind about materials.
They must learn, by experience, the use of libraries, of biblio¬
graphies, catalogs, and indices. They must take advantage of oppor¬
tunities for consultation with specialists such as librarians,
readers' advisers, and experts in special fields. Annotated biblio¬
graphies, suggestions to teachers, and criteria for selection need
to be developed.
The teacher wants help in learning how to relate materials
to the needs of students. This may be a problem of organization,
in which the teacher makes plans or study outlines in terms of the
objectives to be reached for,a given group. It may mean adaptation
of avaiable material for \ise by students in terms of the interests,
problems, and abilities of the students.
It may mean the preparation of needed materials not other¬
wise available, or too expensive to buy. Literacy materials and
materials on problems not usually considered important by enough
readers to warrant commercial publication, must frequently be pre¬
pared by the teacher. It may mean the making of simple teaching
equipment and visual aids, which are cheaper to produce than to
buy, or which are not available commercially.
Teacher education should help teachers to set up minimum
standards for all materials produced. Are the materials justified
by recognized need, and do they really serve that need? Are they
carefully organized and grammatically correct? Is adequate credit
given to original sources for all questions or adaptations? The
question of how to determine these standards and on what basis the
choice is to be made is a serious one*
Too rigid a set of criteria at this time is to be avoided
since as yet there is too little experience, and such criteria may
operate as straight-jackets as well as measuring devices.
Al'394
17-26
J. A Classification of Teaching Materials "by Subject Fields
The teaching materials on file in the Curriculum and Teacher
Education Unit of the Washington office of the W.P.A. are
classified as follows:
1. Community Organization for Adult Education
2. Curriculum Content
a. Cultural and Academic
(1) Arts and Crafts
(2) General Academic
(3) Literature and Language Arts
(4) Music
(5) Speech Arts (Public Speaking and Dramatics)
b. Family Life Education
(1) Homemaking
(2) Nursery Schools
(3) Parent Education
c. Foundation Fields
(1) Citizenship - Naturalization
(2) English to Non-English-Speaking Adults
d. Health and Safety Education
(1) Health (Mental and Physical)
(2) Recreational Skills
(3) Safety
e. Socio-Civic Education
(1) Economics - Cooperatives - Consumer Education
(2) Political. Science and Government
(3) Public Affairs: Current Events, Forums
(4) Sociology (Welfare Agencies)
(5) Workers' Education
f. Vocational Education
(1) Agriculture
(2) Business and Commercial
(3) Industrial and Distributive Trades
(4) Professional and Service
3. Teacher Education
a. Courses in Adult Education
b. Institutes and In-Service Training
c. History, Principles, and Philosophy of Teacher Education
d. Supervision
e. Teacher Qualifications
4. Teaching Methods, Techniques and Aids
a. Audio-Visual Aids - Radio
b. Bibliographies
c. Correspondence Study Courses
d. Curriculum Building
e. General and Specific Techniques
(1) General: Inductive and Deductive
(2) Specific: Demonstration, Discussion, Educational Tours,
Individual Instruction, Lectures, Projects
Surveys
f. Guidance
5. Bulletins and Reports
A1294
17-27
K. Library Services Provide Training in Selection and "Jse of Materials.
In one state, library services were inade the focal point in con¬
tinuous in-service programs of teacher and supervisor education.
Teachers without reference materials are weak teachers. Library ser¬
vices of many kinds are essential to a good education program. City,
community, and state libraries are usually anxious to cooperate,
often providing special books, services, and valuable counsel on
library problems. In many states essential books, periodicals, charts
and maps, pamphelts, and other reference materials needed for teacher
and supervisor education and not otherwise available are purchased
for the use of Education projects. These materials are of little value
unless they circulate. Moreover, specialists in the selection and use
of reference materials are needed to direct these materials to the atten¬
tion of the individual teachers on the program, and to keep the materials
in circulation. In localities where there aro WPA Library Service
Projects, these can be of valuable assistance in extending library ser¬
vices.
It has been found desirable in some states to have workers
from certain departmental fields take a large measure of responsibility
for the circulation and maintenance of departmental collections within
the combined statewide library service contor. One state's library
service uses two si^.ch specialists as aides to the general library staff,
one in charge of materials on nursery schools and parent education and.
the ether covering the field of social and economic problems.
While departmental library services aro valuable, those are
most useful to the whole program when all reference materials are pooled
in a statewide circulating library responsible for circulation of all
reference materials owned by the program.
One of the best ways to get out of the rut of narrow special¬
ization is to acquaint all teachers with interesting materials avail¬
able from other specialized, fields, while keeping up a high standard
of materials for each section or department of the program. Loan or
deposit collections from local and. state public libraries can be dis¬
tributed with the more specialized materials purchased with nroject
funds. Package libraries for the isolated, teacher and the regular
visit of the "bookmobile" are featured in some states. Heedless to say,
the specialized library facilities of the WPA are supplementary to all
other library services available and should bo developed with the helm
of trained librarians.
Local libraries have shown eagerness to develop their own
collections of adult education materials geared to the reading interests
of groups served by WPA teachers. Frequently librarians provide special¬
ized bibliographies to meet groan needs, cooperating with teachers in
preparing them. "Adult Education Sections" arc appearing in many commun¬
ity libraries, with materials displayed and classified so as to provide
an easy follow-up to classroom instruction, forums, and other activities.
Increased efforts can make such practices more widespread. Tho local
A1294
IV-,96
library, where there is one, can be the "headquarters" for pro¬
fessional development of teachers, and in turn stimulate students
to discover for themselves the wealth of interesting reading mater¬
ials available in their own community,
Staf.f-produced materials, digests, annotated biblio¬
graphies and workbooks, produced as part of an in-service
program, provide an admirable means of gearing teachers'
contributions to community needs. This is particularly true
when the materials so produced become available through the
library to learners in all walks of life.
Workshop groups frequently meet in library rooms. This
is particularly true at some of the longer work conferences where
the whole library collection for adult education, with departmental
displays, is sometimes set up in the college library, Tho teachers
work at tables surrounded by all available materials pertinent to
the studies of each specialized workshop group.
When every teacher has reason to consider himself a
"research specialist" making a contribution not only to his own
knowledge and that of his group but also to that of tho entire
community, groat progress will have been made in the development of
more "scholars" of tho type Chaucer had in mind"when he said, "And
gladly would ho learn, and gladly teach".
L. Evaluation of Materials. Techniques for evaluating materials
have not yet been successfully established. But various efforts
have been made in this direction which are worthy of note.
1. Sample evaluation committee:
One region sot up a clearing house for mimeographed material
on adult education. A regional evaluation committeo cf five
members was set up in November 1938. Tho membership of tho
Committee was composed of especially selected teachers repre¬
senting the various subject fields.
The Committee has had no permanent chairman. Although a
variety of subject divisions was represented, all members
have had equal voice, oven when dealing with subjects not
in their particular fields. In some cases the material was
also submitted to authorities outside the Committee but
within the program.
The Committee worked under the immediate supervision of tho
local Assistant Project Superintendent. Membership was
changed from time to time. The Secretary of the-Regional
Clearing House was the only constant member.
IV-29
The function of this Committee was to evaluate materials
and rate them for their usability and adaptability in
advancing adult education.
The Regional Supervisor of Education and Recreation ap¬
proved materials for mimeographing. This approval (or
disapproved) was facilitated by the Committee's Statement
of Evaluation.
The Committee did not revise material; it appreciated,
criticised, and made receommendations for revisions. It
also suggested the preparation of new and related materials,
and called attention to similar or related materials already-
available in the Regional Clearing House, or in libraries.
The materials evaluated may or may not have been used locally.
The Committee considered their actual and potential values,
both for local and wider use. The following outline of criteria
used for evaluating material has been adapted from that of the
above committee.
Criteria "used in Evaluation
a. Physical form and appearance
(1) Number ing (correct numerical identification of
divisions and pages) Harvard system recommended.
(2) Arrangement on Page
(a) Adequate marginal spacing
(b) Linear spacing (sufficient white space for
easy reading)
(3) Clear titles and topical headings (to stand out
well for quick reading)
b. Nature of subject content
(l) General (viewing material as a whole)
(a) Does the material fulfill the expectations
implicit in the title and objective as stated?
(b) Has it practical value for the Adult Education
program of the WPA?
((l)) Is there unnecessary duplication of
material already available?
((2)) Is it adaptable to specific needs of
teachers and students?
((3)) Is it based on sound Adult Education-
Philosophy?
(c) Is the presentation complete?
((l)) Sufficient coverage
((2)) Pibliography or teaching aids
((3)) Omission of extraneous material
A1294
17-30
(2) Specific (viewing material in sections or parts)
(a) Suitability to purpose
(b) Tactual accuracy
(c) Impartial presentation
(&) Origin of material
((1)) Borrowed, (citing of sources for mate¬
rials quoted, adapted, or consulted)
((2)) Original (merely personal ideas, or
based on experience and study of
groups or individuals)
HOTE: When evaluating instructional materials only, add the
following also:
(e) Evidences of knowledge of subject field
(f) Understanding of backgrounds, abilities,
interests and attitudes of students or
teachers
(g) Conformity with progressive educational
Practice
(h) Teaching aide such as books, pamphlets,
visual aids, exhibitions, tours, demonstra¬
tions, etc.
((l)) Adequate
((2)) Weil chosen
((3)) Giving sufficient information regarding
nature, cost, etc.
c. Literary Composition
(l) General (viewing its organization as a whole)
(a) Introduction and summary
The material should have an introduction
indicating its nature and scope and for
whom intended. Usually the material
should be followed by a summary or con¬
clusion.
(b) Logical arrangement of thought and facts
(c) Unity, clearness and coherence of the com¬
position
(d) Simplicity of expression; that is to say,
due consideration given to the educational
background of both the teacher and the
students
(2.) Specific (viewing the material as to sections or
parts)
(a) Readable language (suited to the reading
level of the individual)
((l)) Vocabulary
((2)) Diction
(b) Grammatical construction
IV-31
How the Committee Evaluated:
Each member of the Committee was divert a copy of the material
to be evaluated, 011 which he noted criticisms - cither general
or specific.
The individual evaluations were pooled and recorded by one
member of the Committee, acting as secretary. This acting
secretary also wrote the final statement, as formulated by
the group. In cases of fundamental differences provision
was made for minority report.
Expressed in outline form the procedure was as follows:
a. Recording of first impressions (general)
(1) Scanning (hasty reading) and. making of marginal
notes
(2) Di scussing and note-taking
b. Evaluation by sections or parts
(1) Careful reading (within or outside of committee
meeting) and noting of individual appreciations
and criticisms
(2) Discussion of specific points
(3) Contrasting of (l) and (2)
c. Preparation of Committee statement
y-
Ordinarily the statement was written in committee,
although occasionally it was found that the work
was facilitated by having one or more members draft
the statement. This was then submitted to the Com¬
mittee, revised where necessary, and accepted as
final.
A1294
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V. METHODS OF IN-SERVICE TEACHER EDUCATION
Many methods of teacher education have been used in the Work
Pro,loots Administration. A brief listing (sec pp. 9-10, WPA Technical
Series Education Circular No. 6) gave more than thirty. Many of these
are practiced widely with varying degrees of success. Others are less
well known and have not had sufficient testing to demonstrate their
effectiveness or entire practicability. Some have been described in
earlier releases; others have had little publicity.
Eor purposes of this study, it has been decided to direct the
discussion to three methods, namely, teachers' Workshop, supervision,
and individual program planning, and to demonstrate how, within these
three techniques, (l) programs may be planned by individual teachers,
and (2) curricula developed by groups or individuals. Prom the workshop
in particular, the initial activities in curriculum building may well be
projected. Since this is a work program, the appropriateness of the
workshop needs no justification. It is more commonly used than any other
technique in the programs throughout the various states. It follows most
closely the newest and best progressive practices. It gives the indivi¬
dual teacher opportunity to experiment in her own field and develop mate¬
rials adapted to her particular groups. With the common lack of prescribed
courses of study and set text materials, it gives teachers an opportunity
to create their own.
Supervision is chosen for discussion because of its strategic
importance in a program where, because of the very nature of the setup,
so little technical training and. skill can be required as a prerequisite
to employment. This will be developed further in the section on Super¬
vision.
Individualized teacher education for the same reason is a
sine qua non in the WPA program. Each individual teacher in the last
analysis must develop and perfect his own tempo and technique for growth.
No two have similar training or identical wants. Each requires help on
his own level in terms of his course materials and personal needs.
His service to the program in the long run is measured in terms of the
adjustment of his powers and practices to the daily needs of his pupils.
A. The Teachers' Workshop.—/ Among the many methods of teacher educa¬
tion developed to meet the needs in various states, there is no one
type of practice which can be considered "standard" in the sense of
meeting all conditions and needs. Workshop philosophy and methods,
however, are being used more and more on all occasions when groups
of teachers and supervisors get together to think about ways and
means of improving their work. Although particular interest in
the past has been shown in the role the workshop can play in the
longer work conferences and institutes, it has been found an equally
effective technique for continuous, year-round training.
if See also Technical Series Education Circular No. 6, p. 16 ff.
A1294
V-33
Not all groups of teachers, it is true, are ready for
the workshop type of conference. Where previous training has been
entirely lacking, a group sometimes needs more thorough grounding
in the principles and oractic.es of adult education before it can
think problems through sufficiently well to make a workshop profit¬
able. Again where the previous training has been ultra academic,
the elasticity of the workshop is sometimes a little bewildering.
It demands a type of initiative which conservative pedagogical training
may have paralysed temporarily. This requires resuscitation prior
to independent action.
With a keen realization of the existence of such in¬
stances as the above, there is no thought of imposing the work¬
shop upon groups of teachers as a sine qua non of in-service
training. But it is recommended as characteristic of many of
the more successful year-round programs of teacher education.
The workshop is exactly what the name implies. It
implies a place where teachers work on educational problems.
Flexible in its organization and informal in atmosphere, it
offers opportunity to the individual teachers to follow their
own professional interests in various ways. Sometimes these
ways are activities which are manual and physical. Again, they
may be mental activities which include group discussion, indi¬
vidual contribution, and group evaluation. One group of teachers
at a conference decided that a workshop is;
A place provided with space, light, quiet, books,
materials, and leadership, where individuals may
work out what they feel they need for the improve¬
ment of themselves and their classes.
A place where teachers may experiment and produce
materials for use in their classes.
A place where others who are interested in the same
things may work with them. There is time to talk
things over and pool ideas.
A place to work where the teacher can be prepared in
the light- of the needs of his various student groups,
their backgrounds, their educational levels, their
geographic situation, community resources and facili¬
ties.
A place where someone who has a rich background and
experience in some special field is available to
furnish help and information.
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1* Workshop Objectives. In the workshop, there is opportunity for
individuals to practice group and self-education under guidance.
The teacher may investigate intensively those professional matters
of particular importance to him. He may show his findings to the
group and in turn receive from them suggestions and criticisms.
The need to present and defend his position results in the develop¬
ment of his personality in a way that opens new areas of interest
and achievement.
The workshop demands more time than other conferences, because indi¬
viduals are entering into an independent and creative activity.
Individuals differ so greatly in their modes of thought, that time
must be allowed for the process.
Certain workshop activities require time to carry them
through to completion. Tor example, an individual is
learning to make a clay bowl. He should be allowed to
continue this to the point where the bowl can be left
without danger of injury. Another person is baking a cake.
He should not have to leave it before it is finished.
If libraries are open and materials arc there to be used,
time must be allowed to make use of them.
2. Housing and facilities. Just as a workshop calls for plenty of
time, it also needs plenty of room. Auditoriums for lectures may
be easier to obtain than enough workshop rooms to uake care of
many groups with varying needs. But the latter provide more
effective training. Small rooms for group discussion will be
needed, a library, and perhaps laboratory rooms s\ich as a home
economics-rooms for cooking. A demonstration nursery school
will have to be provided or opportunity for visits to a nursery
school.
One state provides for a workshop in connection with
each local supervisor's office. There teachers may come to find
help through books and other assembled materials, through advice
from the supervisor, and discussion with other teachers. In con¬
nection with each workshop is a demonstration adult school, a group
of classes well taught, where teachers may observe work going on
and afterwards discuss what took place and why. No teacher in the
state is farther than 40 miles from such a center. Small groups
of teachers with special interests are characteristic of the effec¬
tive workshop.
Summer conferences have been conducted on a workshop basis
in many states. The reader has already been referred"'to WPA Tech¬
nical Series Education Circular No. 6 for a detailed discussion of
these conferences. The following eye witness accounts of a poor
and a good workshop conference indicate vividly the need of care¬
ful planning and the importance of safeguarding the teachers' time
in order to achieve the ends desired. Whether or not a long con¬
ference is held these detailed descriptive observations will pro¬
vide many suggestions for year-round programs of teacher education.
A1294
V-35
3. An Inadequately Planned Summer Workshop Conference. The WPA educa¬
tion director and the state staff in a certain state had heard that
workshops were a popular type of conference. Therefore, they decided
to have a workshop conference, and after obtaining approval from
the state administrator, some 300 teachers and supervisors of adult
and nursery school education were called in.
The individuals, of course, varied widely in age, educa¬
tion and social background. They came from densely populated cities,
from small towns and. from isolated "off the road" communities where
life is simple to the point of being primitive. Many racial and
traditional customs were apparent. Individual differences were the
outstanding characteristics of this large group.
In planning the conference the State college whore the
group was to meet, had been contacted, but the last minute checking
which is very necessary had not been done. The teachers arrived
with no information on rooms, dormitories, and boarding facilities.
As the college was "officially" closed for the summer, its staff
was greatly depleted, rooms were locked, the library closed, the
cafeteria which was to be used was running with a reduced staff,
some of whom were new. The teachers, some of whom had never been
in a large city before, were bewildered and confused. Many came by
automobile and found traffic rules almost too much for them. The
day was unbearably hot with the thermometer hovering at 98°.
A.s a result about three days were required to weld this group into
a functioning unit whose members could live together with any
degree of comfort.
The state staff had planned the daily schedule of activi¬
ties very carefully. The cooperating state college was furnishing
an instructor to-lecture each morning from 8:30 to 9:30 on "The
Principles of Adult Education." All members of the conference
were required to attend. This lecture was followed by a break-up
into groups of abo\it twenty-five each to discuss the morning's t; Ik.
These smaller group discussions wore led by teachers and supervisors.
Some showed understanding and ability in handling a group, others
found themselves required to give leadership on a subject- about
which they knew little or nothing. The period allowed for this dis¬
cussion was twenty-five minutes which included getting to and from
the meeting place. Often the group would just be getting into
a subject when it was time to leave. Others had practically no
discussion at all due to inefficient leadership - the group members
met regularly and exchanged experiences and "just talked" which
was probably just what they needed to do.
At 10:05 - 11:00 a.m., the whole group returned to the
auditorium for an inspirational lecture. At 11:00 o'clock, the
large group broke up into special interest groups representing
functional fields - literacy, family life education, current af¬
fairs, workers' education, nursery school education. Those groups
A1294
V-36
were led by state staff members assisted by experienced teachers,
supervisors and consultants drawn from the college and permanent
agencies. There were not enough well-qualified people to staff these
special groups adequately, so some other touchers wore asked to
"read up" on certain subject matter and act as leaders of groups
assigned to them by the State education director- After an hour's
work in these small groups, there was an hour and a half noon inter¬
mission. All assembled at 1:30 p.m. and worked until 3:30 p.m. in
their special groups at which time they were expected to produce
tangible results such as simple reading materials for illiterate
groups, one lesson a day; simplified materials to be used, in citi¬
zenship classes; a bulletin on parent education which included child
development, family health, making the home a happy one, etc.
As the conference was using college buildings and regular
janitor service, the various rooms had to be given over at 4:00
o'clock each day for cleaning.
The conference was sot up for three weeks including two
half days on Saturdays as the last Saturday was to be spent in
travel. There were, therefore, sixteen working days, three of
which had been used in getting started. With only thirteen days
left in which to produce a*sizeable bulletin, there was constant
pressure all through the conference to get something ready for
mime ographing.
There was a Steering Committee which had been appointed
by the state staff. The members were not clear as to their functions
and developed into a "grievance committee" which could do nothing
about suggestions and. criticisms received because the college and
state WPA stuffs made it very evident that the conference setup
was not subject to change.
The Steering Committee, the Recreation Committee, Excur¬
sion Committee for "seeing the city," and an Editorial Committee
which was responsible for collecting, editing and assembling ma¬
terial from various groups for a bulletin were all rushing about
in a desperate attempt to take care of their various responsibilities.
The impression one received was of tired people endeavor¬
ing to do something which was beyond them - a lack of understanding
of what was expected and what was meant by the whole activity. A
few typical comments from individuals illustrate the weakness in
this particular conference:
"What is a workshop? Does it mean you always have to
produce some tangible result like a bulletin, a unit of work, or a
piece of equipment?"
"Can a successful workshop be planned for four or five
hundred people? How much can be done beforehand, and what can bo
left to do after the conference opens?"
A1294
7-37
"What is a Steering Committee? Who chooses the people
on it? Why are these people chosen? What are they supposed to do?"
One State Supervisor said, "One of'the most important
things in the conference for me is to meet the individual teachers
of my program and discuss their individual problems. I have to
lead discussion groups for two hours each day, act as technical
consultant all afternoon, attend staff meetings, recreational
activities and excursions, and assist in assembling materials. I
am not seeing my teachers."
A group leader said, "1 don't know much about homemaking -
the people in my class are better informed than I am. If I let
them talk, they show me up. I have spent hours reading and. writing
in the library about modern inventions in the home. How these
teachers say. the people in their classes are still cooking over
fires in their back yards, and washing clothes in the brooks.
What kind of help can I give them?"
Another lender sa.id, "I am afraid some of the people in
my class won't get anything done if I turn them loose. They visit
with each other or 3tart reading a book. They need to know the
history of banking, and the rise of industry. I have so much
material to give them that I can't spend time in discussion."
A teacher said, "I looked into the library and noticed
a book on low-cost meals. It is just what I need. It was on a
table and I should have liked to take it out but I have never been
in a big city library before and didn't know what to do."
Another teacher: "I just get started on something in a
small group and then I can't finish. The building closes at four
and I can't get in early enough in the morning to accomplish any¬
thing. "
Another teacher: ."I wish we could do our own special
interest work in the morning. Ip the afternoon the time is so
short and it gets so hot that I can't seem to get anything accom¬
plished."
Another teacher: "I should .like to find out how to get
some chea.p pamphlets and inexpensive materials."
Another teacher: "Miss A has a group quite like mine.
She is getting men in her parents' group regularly. I do wish we
had time to talk this over but the recreation committee expects
us to come out to attend things they nave planned for every evening."
A college instructor said, "I feel my talks are not hitting
these people. I wish- I had known what I know now about them when I
was getting my course ready for them,"
A1294
V-38
Another nrofessor: "I should like to have time for them
to tell me their experiences but they have to hurry away to another
class the next hour."
The Dean of the College: "It's too bad you were crowded.
There are plenty of available rooms. It's true our librarian is on a
vacation and the school library is closed, but we could have
opened a smaller library if we had received book lists from your
supervisors in advance. We could also have assigned student assis¬
tants. By making previous arrangements, it would have been possible
to keep certain rooms open later in the afternoon."
4. A Carefully Planned Summer Workshop Conference. As the teachers
arrived in a certain large city to attend a workshop conference of
adult education and nursery school teachers, they were met at trains
by local teachers and driven immediately to the college campus where
provisions had been made for their living while there. Those driving
had been furnished with definite directions for getting to the col¬
lege campus. All of these preliminary arrangements had been sent
on a mimeographed sheet to each teacher in attendance. While it was
a very warm day, a ten mile drive to the campus was a delightful
introduction to the three-weeks conference ahead. Time had been
provided for getting settled in their rooms.
As they entered the long college corridor to register,
they found people who would help them decide what Studio group they
wished to join. There were large signs over the various tables and
one teacher remarked, "Oh, there is the Art studio sign. I sug¬
gested to Miss X that some of \).s wanted to work with art materials
ourselves - not just talk about it."
Another said, "I see Miss Y is at the Family Life Educa¬
tion table. She visited me with our supervisors and our mothers
liked her so much."
It was evident that the teachers had made suggestions and
discussed their needs in pre-planning for the conference. The state
supervisor was free to talk with individuals and assist them in
working out schedules. From the materials acquirod by questionnaire
surveys, visits, conferences with local supervisors and administra¬
tors, with sponsors and the teachers themselves, provision had been
made for Mrs. Jones who wanted to work out a series of programs for
her working mothers, for Mrs. Black who felt she herself needed some
technical help in the making over, cleaning, dyeing and laundering of
clothing and for Mrs. Wells who felt the need of new idoas in her cook¬
ing classes.
An hour was set for a general assembly. At this time the
state education director, state supervisors, and assisting consultants
were introduced and the machinery of the workshop explained. The
A1294
V-39
question of a Steering Committee was introduced and its functions
explained. The group asked questions ana decided how they would
like to "run the conference."
If there was some need expressed which had not been pro¬
vided for, it was possible to form another group. An example of
this arose when the state supervisor in checking over the groups
found that fifteen people wanted help in such crafts as designing,
crocheting, block printing, etc., which they thought they would find
helpful in their classes. Another room was found, a consultant was
obtained and the next day this additional studio was opened.
A great deal of pre-planning had gone into the setting
up of the various studios. Each room set the stage for its special
group work. An example was the Family Life Education room. Here
were charts which the teachers had sent in or the supervisor had
picked up in her visits in the field. Some had on them pictures
cut from magazines illustrating such subjects as "Things Families
Can do Together," "The Family Plays," "The Family Learns" (places of
interest in various communities), "Food for the Family" (pictures
of proper foods).
There was a "Parents' Corner" set up by a group of tea¬
chers. Here all kinds of materials to catch the interest of parents
had been brought together -books, pamphlets, pictures, magazines.
There were three simple shelves made and painted by some father in
a certain group. The teacher who brought them said she saw that
there was always something on display on these shelves - a little
exhibit of some kind; children's books borrowed from the library
at Christmas time, toys for children of different ages, a baby's
layette, a collection of stamps which always interest men, boys
and girls, or a collection of stones.
The literacy teachers had assembled simple health posters,
highway signs, pictures, models and dioramas for dramatizing and
making vivid the process of teaching language. Easy-to-read materials
on topics of adult interest were readily available for examination
or copying.
Hew naturalization teaching materials were .shown in another
room. A series of charts on the functioning structure of the govern¬
ment were displayed. Treasures from foreign homelands were brought
for exhibit. The records of the radio programs "Americans All —
Immigrants All" could be heard by the teachers.
As people became interested, they would lend something to
be shown. Great interest was aroused among racial grotips when a
grandmother brought in some beautiful hand-woven embroidered linens
from Sweden. The teachers would often place on the shelf some choice
A1294
7-40
possession of their own for all to enjoy. This particular confer¬
ence group became very enthusiastic about the possibilities of these
small exhibits as educational experiences.
Materials for making scrapbooks and scrapbooks already
made were on the shelves.
There was a bulletin board on which were posted notices
of current interest. The collection and changing of these from
time to time was the responsibility of some individual in the group,
but all were asked to contribute.
"Package materials" were available—current magazine ar¬
ticles were placed in these envelopes. A label on the outside gave
title, source, and date. They served not only to out the teachers
in touch with subject matter but demonstrated how it was possible to
take care of their own materials. There were envelopes of pictures
illustrating many different topics; there were simple games which
might be played and even made by fathers and mothers.
There was no mistaking the activities to be carried on in
each room. Whatever pertained to the special field had been brought
in to give a proper setting. Chairs wore arranged to invite infor¬
mality and ease in discussion. The atmosphere was one of interest
and learning.
The following check-list of characteristics of a satis¬
factory workshop provides a useful set of criteria, against which to
measure existing practices in teacher education of this type. Many
of these various items were suggested by teachers in conferences.
5. Characteristics of a Satisfactory Workshop Setup.
a. Personnel
(1) Teachers who are ready at least to try to do independent
thinking and who desire the opportunity. Teachers who are
aware of specific phases of their work on which they need
help. Need may have been demonstrated during supervisory
visits, and desire for it stimulated by follow-up indivi-
ual conferences.
(2) Supervisors who understand what different teachers need,
can interpret these needs to consultants, and help teachers
relate to their own problems the help that consultants may
give.
(3) Technical consultants who are willing to let teachers do
independent thinking; who know how to ask questions, make
comments, end give help which stimulates teachers to work
out their own problems, which aids them iii accomplishing
some special purpose, or which helps them to define their
problems.
A1294
V-41
"b. Program
(1) Setting up of groups in terms of specific interests and.
teaching problems, with teachers free to join group or
groups of their choice.
(2) A chairman and secretary for each group.
(3) Provision for steering committee to help plan doily
proceedings and evaluate them.
(4) Regular reporting of progress and problems to the steering
committee and/or the general conference.
(5) Enough flexibility to allow for adjustment of schedules to
meet emergencies or unexpected needs arising after workshop
is in operation and for reorganization of groups or forma¬
tion of now ones if the situation calls for it.
(6) Opportunity for teachers to have such individual consulta¬
tions as are needed (a) to help them select the groups best
suited to their purposes, (b) to help them make the most of
available help, and (c) to find out where further help is
needed.
(7) Provision for such necessary conferring of supervisors, con¬
sultants, and representatives of teachers, etc., as to
insure an understanding of what the teachers need and want
and of the help which can be given to them.
(8) Provision at appropriate times for voluntary recreation,
e.g. At one conference where midday heat was intense, work
hours were from 8 to 12 noon and 7:30 to 10 P.M., with
the afternoon free for swimming, boating, or relaxation.
(9) At least one social gathering where inspirational purpose is
served.
(10) Effective interpretation to the community of workshop activi¬
ties—"Open House" for the community.
(11) Provision for integration of various programs
e.g. Recreation group can plan social or sport activities
for whole group.
Parent and homemaking classes may visit nursery school.
Music group can provide programs for assembly, etc.
(12) Provision for final evaluation and culminating activities.
Some written report should sum up activities of each
group and be related to the whole conference.
(13) Record of activities kept in some permanent form.
(14) Some provision for filing suggestions for future conferences.
c. Physical setup
(1) Adequate space and separate room for each group to set up its
own workshop.
(2) Facilities for the organization and display of visual aids
and exhibits.
(3) Adequate library containing pertinent materials available
when needed.
(4) Sufficient and suitable recreational facilities.
(5) Provisions for typing, mimeographing, and hectographing.
(6) Organization of demonstrations in terms of community activities.
(7) Provision of bulletin board for daily notices.
(8) Provision for demonstration nursery schools.
A1294
V - 42
4. Pre-Planning
By teachers, leaders, supervisors (local and state), WPA and
regular education administrators, advisory committee, sponsors,
and technical consultants when available. This is essential to
the setting up of a good workshop.
(1) Preliminary program based on needs of teachers as determined
by questionnaires, correspondence, supervisory visits, teach¬
ers' suggestions, etc.
(2) Selection of suitable center.
(3) Arrangement of time schedule to provide opportunity for all
desired activities.
(4) Provisions for living quarters, transportation, road maps, etc
(5) Careful survey of community facilities available.
e.g. University, college, school buildings, recreation
grounds, water sports, etc.
Supervision as a Method of In-Service Education
Before teachers can participate with profit in a workshop
conference such as that just described, they need sympathetic super¬
vision which will convincingly demonstrate their needs and point the
direction in which to search for instruction and help. In fact the
success of the workshop technique is determined to a large degree
by the type of supervisory guidance which precedes and accompanies
it. Supervision is always a crucial part of the function of teacher
training. Both because of the wide variety of previous professional
experiences and of the different and often inadequate academic back¬
ground of WPA teachers, their need for assistance and advice on-the-
job is insistent and continual. Not only do they need to be shown
\irhat they lack and how to get it, their basic requirement is to under¬
stand fully and appreciatively the principles which govern these
needs, plus the why and the how of their operation. Supervision, in
fact, serves as the keystone of the arch of educational understanding.
Upon creative supervision wo must rely heavily and hard for
continuous improvement in the program. Por that reason major emphasis
in this bulletin will be given to the professional development of the
supervisor as a key individual in the program of teacher education.
Help ing the teacher to do the best job possible is the primary purpose
of supervision, although distinction must be clear between the basic
purposes of supervision and the function of the supervisor.
As a special function of public education, supervision has
passed through two stages—the demonstration stage, and the inspection
stage—and is now at the early beginnings of the third—the cooperative
or creative stage. In the first and second stages it was essentially
authoritarian. The supervisor either demonstrated the good methods
of instruction, or observed the teachers at work and made recommenda¬
tions. In any situation it was assumed that the supervisor knew the
answers to all problems. The teacher merely carried out orders.
A1294
7 - 43
In the stage now developing, supervision has become a cooperative
process. Teachers and supervisors seek, together, to find ways
out of their difficulties, whether they relate to the development
of a working point of view for instruction, the selection and
organization of instructional ma-terials, the choice of methods of
presenting subject matter and conducting activities, or any other
matters, such as organizing classes, planning programs, and main¬
taining good community relationships.
1, The Necessity for Creative Supervision in the WPA Education Program.
In the WPA Education Program supervision to be effective must develop
along creative lines. The program is being conducted on a new
educational frontier, where the general aim is the betterment of
those educationally or socially underprivileged. To accomplish its
purpose it provides a wide diversity of offerings adapted to the
interests and needs of' the students. There are no prescribed courses
of study, no manuals containing the approved methods of attack, no
required textbooks. In fact, there is an actual scarcity of suitable
instructional material. Informal methods of teaching are used. Both
the materials and methods, moreover, are the subject of constant an¬
alysis and criticism.
The situation makes both teacher and supervisor fellow
workers in a great adventure, the end of which may be predicted
with confidence, but the roads to which are not yet clearly re¬
vealed. In this relationship respect must be mutual. Each must
have the imagination to put himself in the other's place. Each must
approach their joint task with the humility of a simple learner, yet
with the full recognition of the size, importance, and complexity of
the task. There must be harmony every step of the way. They must
work together, share new experiences together, create together, to
attain their common aim.
2. The basic purpose of supervision is improvement of instruction.
This may be measured in terms of the growing skill and insight of
the teacher, and the acquisition by the pupils not only of new
knowledges and skills but of a better adjustment to life and improved
social attitudes. Specifically supervision aims to develop a balanced
and worthwhile program which will serve the community in terms of its
most urgent needs, and will utilize to the greatest possible degree
both the talent and capacities of the teaching personnel and all such
social and communal resources as ere available.
Such a program should be flexible to the highest degree,
for we are living today in a rapidly changing social order, where
human wants vary in time, place, and degree, and traditional sources
of satisfaction are entirely inadequate. In fact part of the purpose
A1294
V - 44
of supervision is to break educational tradition, abandon outworn
practices, and build up now standards of teaching based on a demo¬
cratic and cooperative approach to the problem. Specifically,
wise supervision requires continual exploration of community needs,
both in social and individual terms. It seeks to supplement rather
than duplicate other available offerings. It enables teachers to
catch a vision of the potential values of their services in terms
of social and personal rehabilitation.
3. Importance of the WPA Supervisor. The supervisor is the key person
in successful instruction. He or she disposes of administrative
details preparatory to instruction, and selects candidates for
teaching. The supervisor is charged with the responsibility of
assigning classes, helping to obtain materials, encouraging and
inspiring teachers to develop the best that is in them. The
supervisor's philosophy of life, of education, his or her insight
and human -understanding, professional education, experience, and
total personality are vital elements in the success of all in¬
structional activity.
4. Qualifications of a G-ood WPA Supervisor.
A. State Supervisors need:
(1) Vi sion of the potentialities of the program in relation
to the needs of the State, and ability to interpret
them to the public.
(2) Sincerity in all relationships.
(3) Sufficient tact and insight to recognize what phases
of a problem supervisors should handle and those
which should be left to local authorities.
(4) Specialized ability, knowledge, skill, and experience
in the field supervised.
B, The local supervisors need:
(1) Executive and administrative ability.
(2) Tact, sympathy, poise, and vision.
(3) Ability to build up a sense of security and common
understanding through constructive suggestion.
(4) Sense of responsibility as representatives of a Federal
program and sufficient personality to impress others.
A1294
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The desired personal traits of the supervisor arc many.
A good supervisor is cheerful, optimistic, humble, sympathetic,
patient and gifted with human understanding. His outlook on life
is one of curiosity, looking forward rather than backward, living
in confidence rather than despair. He is progressive, and instinct¬
ively views life's problems and perplexities with a "can" instead of
a "can't". The question he helps the teacher to solve is more often
how than whether.
Concievably a good type of training will consist of a
background in educational administration, supervision and method.
Special study in adult or nursery education, as the case may be,
is much to be desired. Above all, the supervisor should be one
who views education as a functional process based upon learners'
needs and whose training represents the progressive, human-centered,
democratic philosophy of education as contrasted with the traditional
teacher-centered monarchial philosophy.
As in the case of education, no one pattern of experience
can be outlined as the best. It is entirely possible to say, however,
that the richer the experience, both in and outside of the pro¬
fessional field of education, the broader will be the horizon and
the deeper the insight and understanding of the duties which must
be performed.
The Function and Responsibility of the Supervisor.
The function of the supervisor in its simplest terms is
to help the teacher on the job to do an ever better job of teaching;
to work out his own techniques of thinking through his own daily
problems; to analyze and develop his own capacities and powers;
to seek out his own resotxrees in terms of persons and tools; to
realize his responsibility in a democratic society; and to form
socially useful individual and group relationships.
The technique of the good supervisor as has been stated
will always be a cooperative one. He will establish a basis of
friendly relationship which will forever dispel the fear of the
teacher that he is merely the traditional inspector or "snooper-
visor". Once this relationship is developed he can stress the
establishment and maintenance of minimum standards of instruction,
including the use of adequate teaching material and aids, the know¬
ledge of a variety of teaching techniques, and the importance of
lesson plans, course outlines, and teaching records.
A1294
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The supervisor will discuss with the teachers the relative
advantages of centralization and decentralization in program organi¬
zation, giving detailed examples of appropriate times and places for
each. He will explain the importance of and reasons for WPA rules,
which so frequently and unnecessarily irk the teachers and lower
morale because their purpose is not clearly understood. He will
demonstrate the value of maintaining friendly personal relations at
all times and the necessity for a functional understanding of the
principles and philosophy of adult education, Finally he will foster
the development of an ever growing appreciation of professional and
ethical standards of conduct.
The good supervisor will see that all theoretical instruc¬
tion which he gives is demonstrated by actual practice. He will
show, not tell. He will practice, not preach. In order to have time
for this, he needs to balance administrative and educational responsi¬
bilities and see that there is time for education.
The good supervisor will further be continually on the
alert to enrich the general content of the program with fuller cul¬
tural resources and new and pertinent material. He will be conscious
of the orientation of each teacher and each subject matter field in
the general program, and will maintain an integral relationship be¬
tween each part and the whole. He will sense the special problem
of the rural teacher, the itinerant teacher, etc., and meet such
need with every available resource. He will judge in terms of
results rather than methods which may be unfamiliar, new, or unortho¬
dox from his point of view. He will learn to anticipate problems
and methods of meeting them.
A simple outline of the supervisor's responsibilities may
be helpful in giving an over view of the job. It is, however, a one-
dimensional picture of a three-dimensional activity which varies in
practice from place to place in accordance with the local setup.
As such it must be accepted with proper reservations. But duties,
in so far as they can be categorically listed, may roughly be said
to include the following:
a. The supervisor needs to explore community resources and needs,
and plan with the sponsors and co-sponsors a general community
program based on these resources and needs.
b. He will then set up the program, organize classes (with the
help of ¥PA teachers), visit classes in operation, and after
thorough acquaintance with work in progress, will evaluate
it in terms of methods ana results, remembering that the teacher
is primarily responsible for results and that methods will vary
widely with individual ability and aptitude.
c. After a careful analysis of teaching needs, he will follow up
his class visits in terms of:
(1) Individual conferences between supervisor and teacher.
(2) Staff meetings: These may require reservation of certain
percentage of time for administrative procedures, but
major part should be for educational improvement.
V- 47
(3) Teacher conferences and institutes: These are follow-ups,
the contents of which are determined by needs previously
revealed.
(4) Suggestions for extension and correspondence courses.
d. The supervisor will be conscious that such in-service training
as is set up should provide for the following:
(1) Specific help for individual problems such as holding at¬
tendance, preparing visual aids, and choosing appropriate
methods of teaching such as discussion, demonstration, etc.
(2) General discussions on a cooperative and democratic basis,
of problems, techniques, and needs.
(3) Stress on the importance of adapting the program to the
needs of the students and of utilizing the experiences of
.thsir daily lives as the best, cheapest, and most easily
available curriculum material. Current conversation in
elementary English classes, for example, may concern it¬
self with the daily marketing and household chores.
(4) Genuine inspirational help which will make the teacher want
to do a better job.
(5) Delegation of all possible responsibilities to teachers
themselves.
(6) Empahsis on preparation and organization of: (l) course
outlines, lesson plans, and other curriculum materials;
(2) bibliographies; (3) audio-visual aids; (4) reports
and records; (5) techniques for rating teachers, measuring
results, and establishing evidences of progress.
(7) Gradual establishment of higher and higher standards of
teaching.
(8) Build-up of a sense of social responsibility to the community,
state, and nation. The teacher of adults must be a part of
and not apart from the throb of everyday life.
#. Outstandingly and always the supervisor must know his teachers as
persons and friends in order to do an adequate supervisory job.
He must visit their classes, and become familiar with the types
of students. He must discover the individual teacher's strength
and capitalize it, building up confidence in himself through
praise that is merited. At the same tine he may discount weak¬
ness if necessary to prevent discouragement, for this will take
care of it self if a major strength is developed in some line.
This help must be given through repeated conferences on a basis
of mutual respect and friendliness.
Training Local Supervisors for the Job. The objectives of the WPA
Program should be clearly understood by a new supervisor prior to
appointment, for no one can be a successful supervisor whose educa¬
tional principles are not in accord \^ith the underlying philosophy
of the whole program. With an over view of the whole organization,
study should be centered upon the educational program. A manual of
instructions should be available which provides information with
A1294
V- 48
reference to routine matters, educational forms and reports,
teacher selection and placement, requisitioning materials, and
the like. The nature and extent of the adult curriculum and its
organization into suggestive department fields should be studied.
Reality could be added by viewing some pictures showing class
activity in actual situations. Examination should be made of
textbooks, units and courses of study, and other literature used
in and suitable to the program. Members of the state staff might
well be available for daily consultation.
Before leaving the state office the new district or
local supervisor might have a conference with the entire staff which
would clarify, amplify, and add color and perspective to what he
had read and observed. In this conference he would receive an
outline of, and suggestions on, his three-fold responsibilities:
administration, supervision, and teacher education. He would have
become acquainted with prefessional books which can be read with
profit, and magazines for which he should subscribe. Loaded with
charts, bulletins, books, bibliographies, and a manual or two, he
would leave the state office for a period of training in the field,
featuring observation and participation in a successfully operating
program.
Thus the new supervisor becomes an apprentice, helps in
the office, notes what takes place, how and with what materials.
Classes are visited. With the local supervisor, he attends club
and group meetings which are held for the purpose of promoting,
organizing, and explaining the services of the program. He sees
how contacts are made with the P.T.A,, service and women's clubs,
the American Legion Post, and other local organizations. He
follows through the many elements which enter into a successfully
operating program.
There are advantages in having a state supervisor work
with the new local supervisor for several days when he first takes
ever his own post. If he is new to the community, he will need
help with his initial contacts with organizations and introductions
to the superintendents, local, city and WPA officials. Visits and
other assistance from the state staff should be plentiful during
the supervisor's early months of service.
After the period of induction and guidance, training of
district and local supervisors might well become a part of the
supervisory function of the state staff. Periodic visits ordi¬
narily are made by the state supervisors, during which they spend
sufficient time in each center to observe the complete program
in operation. This usually fakes one week during \</hich classes
are visited and conferences are held, not only with supervisors
but with the teachers. Some of these meetings last one day, and
some last two or three days. Problems are raised, difficulties
analyzed, and constructive suggestions offered.
A1294
V- 49
a. Questions. Many questions might be raised in connection with
supervision which would prove fruitful topics for periodic
conferences. Such questions as the following have been sug¬
gested:
(l.) What kind of help does the teacher hope to get from the
supervisor?
(2.) What kind of help does the supervisor welcome from a teacher?
(3.) How can supervisor and teacher best cooperate to achieve their
mutual aims?
(4.) If a supervisor is not a specialist in the subject matter
field in which a given teacher is prepared, how can he still
be of help?
(5.) How can the supervisor be of moot help during a class visit?
Under what circumstances is it advisable for the supervisor
to take notes, make comments, or participate in discussion?
Is it wise for him to alter the physical setup or make a speech?
If not, why not?
(6.) What kinds of follow-up can be used to make a. supervisory visit
as useful as possible?
(7.) How can the supervisor use the specialist in various fields?
There is no one categorical answer to these and other
like questions. Edticational patterns which are good must be suf¬
ficiently flexible to meet ever changing demands.
b. Perhaps the following educational devices might be as
helpful as any in enabling the newly appointed supervisor to ap¬
proach his job.
(l.) Use the immediate environment as a starting point.
One must fashion a garment with the cloth that she has.
(2.) Blase new trails as often as possible. This uractice
will give new outlooks and inlets on life and prove a
source of inspiration and joy which is infinitely
contagious. The routine of always following beaten
tracks makes of Jack a dull boy and an uninspiring
leader.
A1294
V- 50
(3). Face liabilities squarely and try to turn them into
assets. Any given fact when approached from a new
angle may take on a different tone, color, or accent.
It is good strategy to stress rather than to defend
or excuse. The foreigner, for example, may be proud
of the cultural contributions of his race, rather
than ashamed of being an alien.
(4) Thiiik through problems in terms of their relation¬
ship to life and daily function. It is not so im¬
portant what talents one has as how one uses them.
Individualized Teacher Education. Since in most of the educational
activities described in this bulletin, emphasis is placed upon co¬
operative effort, the question might well be asked: Is there a
trend toward standardization of teacher training? During the years
when the foundations for the adult education movement were being
built, a goodly measure of individualized work with teachers was
necessary in setting up the program. As programs have become bet¬
ter established and have grown larger and larger, there arises a
danger of excessive standardization. Now, as more and more time
is devoted to group conferences and other mass education devices
for the further training of teachers, the question is: Can the
program measure up to its increased responsibility to teachers
as individuals? Or will the trend be the other way?
The WPA philosophy of education is rooted in an appre¬
ciation of the individual personality, and this includes the per¬
sonality of the supervisor and the teacher, as well as of the
student. Individualized instruction is one goal which may never
be forgotten. Consideration of teachers as individuals naturally
includes individualization of teacher training.
WPA teachers necessarily are "on their own" to a much
larger extent than are most workers. Even if there were a defi¬
nite plan of action for all the teachers, it would be almost impos¬
sible to carry it out with anything like the present supervisory
staff. Since WPA teachers must function in the community as indi¬
viduals with a large measure of personal responsibility, it is es¬
sential that they receive the kind of training that will develop
them as individuals.
A1294
V- 51
How can the Supervisor Keep Informed? — Hard as it may be to work
out machinery for doing it, the supervisor must keep himgelf informed
about the progress of each undertaking of each teacher. Merely keeping
track of each teacher's current schedules is not enough. A timekeeper
should be able to do that. What the supervisor needs is the information,
week by week, which will show him, through the teacher's eyes, how each
group is getting along on its path toward its objective. Merely watch¬
ing the rise and fall of the group's attendance figures will not serve
the purpose, important as that aspect may be. Many supervisors use an
"activity sheet" as part of their continuous record of each group or
other -undertaking in each teacher's schedule. The important thing to
gather through the activity sheet is the makeup of the group and know¬
ledge of what the members of the group want to get out of their par¬
ticipation. With this information in hand, supplemented by brief but
pertinent comments in the teacher's weekly report, it becomes possible
to understand what is happening from week to week as objectives undergo
shifts, empahsis changes, and the subject matter covered seems to go
off on new and uncxpoctcd tracts. The teacher who knows that his super¬
visor is keenly interested in the problems he faces with each group is
aware that he is doing his part toward receiving individualized atten¬
tion from the supervisor. If he does not get it, it is obvious that
the supervisor is not taking advantage of his chance to give personal
attention to the teacher's problems.
An interesting instance of individualized instruction is
reported in the plan for workbook making, described in one State as
follows: 1J
The professional problem being considered at present is
the training of teachers and leaders in Workbook making. A
workbook is an adaptation of the teacher's planbook and the
course of study to the needs of adult education and recre¬
ation. A course of study, in formal education, is usually
made by the state office, wliilc'-thejplanbook is made by the
teacher. A course of study outlines the general topics and
facts to be taught, but the planbook contains the day-to-day
details which he will follow in the classroom. It was
thought wise, because of present educational trends and prac¬
tices, and because of the peculiar curricula needs of adult
education and recreation programs, to combine the course of
study and the teacher's planbook into a cooperative effort
between the supervisor and the teachers. Instead of the
state office making out a course of study for each subject
or activity and handing it down to the teacher, who, in
turn, would make his daily planbook, the supervisor meets
with each group of teachers and they plan the work together.
The result is sometimes called the workbook.
Another instance of such instruction is reported as follows:
"A correspondence course taken by nearly 450 adult educa¬
tion teachers is also being studied by the supervisors."
if A more detailed discussion appears in Section D.
A1294
V - 52
An illustration — that of a lar^e rural county having
few teachers in isolated sections - shows how individualized in¬
struction is given in small grotip meetings held at regular in¬
tervals. Because of the varied nature of this work and the many
different subjects taught by members of the group, the in-service
training differs somewhat from that of other groups.
Direct examinations are not given. Suggestive criticism
is asked for, and received, on anything offered. These
criticisms include presentation, manner of delivery,
subject, text matter, general interest, etc.
Courses are scheduled for four weeks in advance. A
chairman is chosen by the group, from the group, to
take charge of meetings for four weeks in advance.
Schedule of \fork includes: Discussion of problems of
mutual and individual interest and concern; discussion
of best methods of handling various subjects offered;
book reviews on vital subjects of the day; camp problems;
current events; public speaking; debates.
Courses arc organized on a four weeks basis.
On the chairman chosen rests the responsibility of his
particular meeting. On each individual member rests
the responsibility for the particular subject assigned
to him for that meeting. The work is under the direction
of ( ) head teacher. ( ) teaches public speaking.
Meetings are held Friday from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the
District Educational Office.
In addition to establishing and maintaining a constant
exchange of ideas with the teacher concerning his week-to-week
problems, through visits supplemented by reports and correspondence,
the supervisor can insure individualized training of the teacher
by bringing into the picture a local agent or agency: For example
in one State one or two local "backers" of the teacher provide
closer and more continuous contact with the teacher than the
supervisor of a statewide program is able to provide. Such an
individual may be a student i;i one of the teacher's classes who
shows more than usual interest in the teacher's work in the com¬
munity. It may be the official sponsor, or,a local supervisor,
although these persons xisually have too many teachers to look
after to give them all individual coaching and guidance and en¬
couragement. More likely it will be some lay person who makes
the teacher's field of interest his own hobby, and who will wel¬
come a chance to make his contribution to advance the work.
A1294
V - 53
When the supervisor has established the right personal
relationship with the teacher, has established a simple but effec¬
tive method for continuous two-way exchange of information and
ideas, and has made sure that someone in the teacher's own com¬
munity will take a measure of responsibility for the growth and
improvement of his work, perhaps the next major responsibility of
the supervisor is to see to it that the teacher has access to a
constant stream of stimulating and pertinent reference materials
in his specialized field and in broader fields of interest. Whether
this presents an easy task or a difficult one, the supervisor cannot
shirk this responsibility if his teacher is to grow on the job. If
materials cannot be found in the teacher's community, then channels
must be opened up so that he has access to the best sources of ma¬
terials in some large city or in the state office. Library ser¬
vice facilities are discussed more fully elsewhere. They are of
very great importance if the teacher is to receive individualized
help.
Within all three of these methods, as lias been stated, in¬
dividual programs may be planned by teachers either singly or in
groups,, or curricula for groups or localities may likewise be de¬
veloped by individuals or by groups. Perhaps a word of explana¬
tion as to individual program planning and curriculum development
may be in order.
Individual Program Planning. The teacher who thoroughly knows his
students, his organization, his field in its whole educational set¬
ting, and his community, has the basis for building an educational
program. He still needs help in putting these elements together ef¬
fectively so that individual student needs are progressively
met, so that education takes place, so that learning creates
desirable change in the student. It is at this point of planning
an effective program that many teachers lose confidence. Their
thinking becomes cluttered up with meaningless words like "curriculum,"
"surveys," "units of work," "objectives," and other technical jargon
which like the proverbial mote prevent their seeing the task clearly,
for frequently they expect to find in these words some mystic formula
for solving their problems. These words are useful - but not magical;
they are merely names for a process of organization and planning
which every teacher carries out whether or not he knows these words.
It is wiser to forget the technical jargon, at least until the teacher
gains confidence in his ability to organize and plan an educational
program for his own group. Help in this process should be a definite
part of every teacher's educational program.
Among the understandings and skills he should have are the
following: how to make a general plan in the light of recognized
student and community needs and desires; how to adapt that plan to
specific individual goals; how to bring abstact generalizations
within the students' experiences and abilities to understand; how
to modify the plan as needs and interests change; and how to provide
for individual differences in rate of learning, in ends desired and
A1294
V - 54
in likes and dislikes. The teacher who can organize and plan his
work to do these things is rewardod "by the whole-hearted response
he gets from his students. People cone to classes hopefully hut
often skeptically. When they find that they are actually growing
their delight and faithfulness is highly stimulating to the teacher.
The teacher as well ?s the student gets new motivation from success¬
ful accomplishment. It is as important in teacher education to pro¬
vide the means for this experience as it is for teachers to provide
for successful experience for students.
The needs of adult students are as many and as varied as
are the problems of life. If adult education is the 'process by
which the individual continually prepares to meet his ever changing
problems, a complete and balanced program would include in the curri¬
culum all of these problems not solved in some other way. Such a
program would do much more than merely supply information. While
facts are very important, the mere acquisition of information does
not in itself constitute learning.
Much education goes on informally all of the time. We
learn from our own experience; we learn from the experiences of
others, both our contemporaries and our ancestors. We study, dis¬
cuss, and observe the action of others and use their experiences
to solve our problems.
Curriculum Building by Study Groups. Both individually and in group
conferences teachers are at work continually on curriculum building.
The curriculum which develops with the growth of the teachers and
their ability to adapt their talents to the pupils' needs and desires
will always be more effective than, one superimposed by remote authority.
A curriculum which is flexible will be more effective than one
which is set and rigid.
Setting up a curriculum involves making a -plan and gathering
the material to help individuals grow and develop with the least
amount of effort or waste of time.
In any one program the curriculum includes all of the acti¬
vities, the books and materials, and exchange of ideas bet\^een the
me ibers of the group, and the teacher and students—all that goes 011
and all that contributes to the desired growth.
What we write down in planning a curriculum is what we can
think of beforehand and prepare. The whole process is one of problem-
solving in which the following steps are distinguishable:
Gathering of all the facts likely to bear on the problem:
a. Study of the field, every problem and each .group.
(l) What are the student's and community's educational
needs and interests? What are the student's immediate
desires? These may be discovered through interviews,
surveys, the pooling of individual knowledge, observa¬
tion, reports of various agencies, statistical reports
on population, size of families, number of foreign-
born, illiteracy, per capita wealth, average education,
A1394
V - 55
industries and occupations, studies made by churches
and other organisations, and in many other ways.
(2) Examination of resources to meet needs - these
include the teachers, students, schools or other
meeting places, leadership, and equipment.
(5) Consideration of the community's resources in
libraries, parks, museums, radio programs, in¬
dustrial plants, lectures, movies and many others.
b. Comparison of the work of other teachers and leaders through
conference, observation, and study.
c. Thinking through one's own experience as well as teacher and
student experiences.
2. Selection of the -pertinent facts, preferably in cooperation with
the learners. Organize these in a form which will lead to the
solution of the problem. The fo 11owing six major headings
probably include all the items which need consideration. The
terminology may and should differ according to the group.
a. Objectives should be clearly shown:
(1) For the student, to promote individual growth and
development in skills, knowledge, understanding,
attitudes, and appreciations. These should be
specific and different for each course.
(2) For the teacher, to lead the student to attain in¬
dividual ends and to reach beyond them. Personal
professional growth and individual self-realization;
end promotion of the social objectives of education.
(3) For the community or society, to contribute to in
creased productivity, improved attitudes, more har¬
monious relationships, happier and more satisfied
individuals, intelligent electorate, social and
economic literacy.
b. Subject matter or content should be selected with attention
to usefulness to student and to society, adult level, com¬
pleteness for purpose, limitations of time, authenticity,
timeliness, interest and attractiveness, adaptability in
terms of teachers' ability and student capacities, pro¬
gression of units ana lessons, relationship to life
activities or situstiens, possibility of leading to other
worthwhile activities.
c. Teaching materials and devices should be planned in terms
of applicability to problem; authenticity; adaptability;
and the comprehension of students.
A1294
V - 56
(1) Beading materials will include books, periodicals,
pamphlets, mimeographed lesson sheet or units, ref¬
erence works.
(2) Audio-visual aids such as charts, maps, graphs,
slid.es, blue prints, demonstrations, bulletin
board items, exhibits, pictures, motion pictures,
and radio programs, will be determined.
(3) Manipulative materials - such as supplies of many-
kinds of sewing, cooking, gardening, arts and
crafts; tools and machines will be checked.
(4) Community resources will be planned for.
Teaching methods and procedures should be based on prin¬
ciples growing out of a sound psychology of learning; and
on effective adult teacher-student relationships.
Student activities planned so as to promote greatest learn¬
ing include problem solving, study, recitation> manipula¬
tion of tools, and materials, discussion, observation,
drill, field trips, including visits to other classes,
committee work, and testing end self-measurement.
Standards of achievement shall be set up and evaluation be
made in terms of objectives.
(1) Keep student records to show progress for com¬
parisons.
(2) Measure progress in skills and information acquired
through information tests, discussion and workbooks,
standardized tests; self-measurement; comparison of
progress with others, and with own past record, fre¬
quent and varied measurements are best both for stu¬
dents and teachers.
(3) Mea sure intangible results cf work through change in
student's attitudes and interests; increasing partici¬
pation in discussion; attendance records; wider par¬
ticipation in community activities; and through
changes in homes and lives of students.
3. Making a tentative -plan in cooperation with the learners based
on pertinent facts selected.
a. Units should be planned with consideration of available
time, materials, interests, needs, and abilities of stu¬
dents and teachers.
b. Provision should be made for each learner himself to
achieve satisfaction.
A1294
V - 57
c. Large units should he flivicled into sub-problems and ten¬
tative daily lessons planned so that each is a unit in
itself which is to he adapted to current situations.
4. Testing of -plan by mentally visualizing elements of strength
and weakness.
5. Putting the -plan into action. Reorganize continually, making
necessary adaptations. Evaluate the results in terms of ob¬
jectives s~t up, constantly revising. Determine success by
frequent measurement of self and students.
The greatest value of curriculum making by teachers
in study groups lies in the fact that it gives, the teacher a chanco
to do effective thinking about his job in a working situation with
curier teachers, using the advice and guidance of specialists. He
discovers other solutions to similar problems in addition to his
own. He may leave the institute with a series of techniques and
materials worked out, and a plan of action which he can use, but
he should understand that all of this is tentative, to be revised
according to the needs of his group from time to time.
The plan for developing the curriculum materials out¬
lined under the five major headings above should be looked upon as
a convenient organising device for thinking about problems and not
as a rigid framework which must be followed. This plan was followed
in California. A group of teachers met in a six weeks summer course
to study curriculum making. The first week was spent discussing the
meaning end purposes of adult education in a changing social order.
"What could it do that was not already being done by the schools?
How could we put it into practice in various areas of human experience?
-How could we bring knowledge to bear on the problems in adult life?
How could o\ir classes go about helping individual students meet their
problems?
After a week or ten days of general discussion, each
group wanted to work on problems in those areas in which they had
special interests. The group was divided into committees. In
these committees the teachers discussed the purposes of education
in that particular area and how best to go about attaining them.
After a six weeks institute in which they had developed
no single complete teaching unit, but an approach toward developing
such units for themselves, some came back and said, "We want to work
on the special units we are going to teach next month." They needed
guidance in thinking through and getting source material. Most of
the teachers felt they had a new point of view on adult education
and a new method of working out their teaching problems.
A1294
V - 58
This is not a device to be handed over to the teachers.
They must learn it by working through the process themselves. It
is necessary to guide the teachers, and to give them experience
in organizing. Teachers cannot completely answer many of the students
questions. The class members must work them out to the best of their
ability at the time. We must not get the idea that the teacher is a
fixed quantity. Teachers are changing in their ideas, skills and
knowledge all the time. Then too, students1 ideas and interests
change. At one time students are more interested in economic prob¬
lems, at other times in recreation. Material presented one time
nay go over easily, at another time it nay fail to go over because
the group is not thinking in the same way. Continuous revisions
must be made in the program. Some things now seem more or less
important than at first. The group is meeting continuously with tho
teachers, and they should make revisions in their programs. A rigid,
planned-in-advance program cannot long be successful in adult educa¬
tion. For this reason, if no other, it is essential that teachers
learn to plan programs for their own classes, to adjust them for
each student and to revise, adapt and remake them as the circum¬
stances and needs require.
The Advantage cf the Group Approach to Training Problems. — Prob¬
ably the most successful method of educating teachers in the WPA
program has been the group discussion under skilled and informed
leadership. It is important to recognize the need for able leader¬
ship in this process since otherwise the group discussion may de¬
generate, as someone has said, into a "pooling of ignorance" ra.ther
than a helpful sharing of experience. The leader must be able to
draw out significant contributions, relate them to genuine prob¬
lems and organize the discussion into a coherent and useful state¬
ment upon which further action or study can be based. The group
discussion technique has been described in earlier releases
(WPA Technical Series Education Circular Wo. 5, pp. 36, 37) and
excellent studies cf it are available. In any new field, where
authoritative experience does not already provide satisfactory
leadership, this method is useful.
Group discussion, however, is only one aspect of a. group
approach to training. One state uses group analyses of written
reports as a, training device. Each teacher writes up in detail
a record of his actual experience in teaching, including des¬
criptions of students, a statement of methods used, problems un¬
solved, reactions noted and results obtained. The practice in
writing such narrative reports was an excellent exercise in clear
thinking, and the analysis following reading of the report by the
group clarified ideas not only for the individual reporting but
for all concerned. It was found that in the very -croc-ass of or¬
ganizing and stating a problem a possible method of attack or a
solution suggested itself.
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VI. THE PERSONNEL FOR Iil-SEP-VICE EDUCATION OF TEACHERS
Since teachers, supervisors, and directors differ widely
in their interests, purposes, abilities, viewpoints, etc., it is
obvious that conferences planned for them and by them do and will
differ widely. Furthermore, differing state and local conditions
of many sorts affect the kind of conference to be held.
It is necessa.ry therefore for each state to make its own
plans in light of what it is believed is needed, and feasible in
that state at that time. Only the people familiar with the teachers
and the supervisors and their problems, and with the facilities
available can or should decide on what the conference should be.
Other persons can often give general help by passing on ac¬
counts of what has been done in other places, uointing out per¬
tinent general principles to be considered, suggesting ways to
utilize local resources, etc. The final responsibility, however,
lies with the persons directly concerned with the operation of the
program throughout the year.
Before it is possible to make all of the final decisions
concerning the conference there are many questions which have to be
answered one way or another. The answers to these questions will
determine the type of conference which will be held and will indi¬
cate the 'way in which it will operate. Whatever the answers may be,
the careful consideration of these questions is an essential part
of planning the conference.
The Personnel for Planning. Who shall plan the program of education
for teachers in the WPA program? Shall the education of teachers be
planned by the supervisor? the supervisory staff? the sponsor?
the teachers? or some combination of these? What part shall each
have in the planning? When shall the different ones come into the
planning? Shall all work on the plans from the beginning or shall
one person make tentative plans bringing other people into the plan¬
ning later?
Shall persons likely to be use" as consultants be brought
into the planning? If so, when and how? Shall people from local
communities in which the program operates be brought in at any point
in the planning? If so, where?
Who shall take initiative in launching the planning? Who
shall have responsibility for various details? Shall this be divided
among individuals or groups? Shall one person take responsibility for
keeping all planning unified or shall this be a group responsibility?
If the former, who shall it be? If the latter, what representation
shall make up the group? e.g. supervisors, administrative personnel,
sponsors, teachers, community leaders other than sponsors?
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Throughout the year the State Supervisor and some of the
teachers think about different points on which they would like to
have further help and suggestions. In some states the State Super¬
visor formulates a few tentative plans in his own mind and informally
asks different supervisors, sponsors and others what they think
should be done, thus gathering the ideas of several different people.
Sometimes the State Supervisor calls together the state
supervisory staff to make the plans or perhaps the entire super¬
visory staff including area, district, and local supervisors.
In some instances the sponsors and other persons directly
interested in getting help to the teachers are invited to meet with
the State Supervisor and supervisory staff to make plans. The State
Supervisor with a staff inexperienced in planning conferences may feel
that it is better for the staff to plan alone first, more or less
feeling their way, and to bring others in later. State Supervisors
in some states feel that the supervisors are the ones most familiar
with the problems of the teachers ar.d consequently that they are in
a better position than others to plan, the training program. Many
'states now call in at least a few representative teachers to take
part in continuous planning. In the judgment of certain State Super¬
visors, the teacher's viewpoint is adequately represented through
the supervisors. Such State Supervisors go no farther than to use
a questionnaire designed to give the teachers a chance to express
their wishes.
Teachers frequently e2tpress the feeling that they are
left out of the planning. Many supervisors agree with taem and
urge that teachers be allowed a voice in plans for their own
growth, so that their practical everyday problems wi 11 receive
attention.
"Teachers don't know what they want anyway, and when
they do they aren't able to express it." More than one supervisor
has expressed this cynical view. Others say that this very fact, if
it be true, is all the more reason for giving the teachers opportunity
to analyze their problems and express their convictions. Partici¬
pating in planning their own education, tney say, is one way of
helping teachers to grow.
Supervisors with a wider range of experience than the
teacher may see through and beyond immediate and evident needs tc
others of which the teacher is yet unaware. These broader impli¬
cations may well lead teachers to new understanding and insights.
Since teachers ana supervisors serve many different kinds
of communities and their education must be planned with community
needs in mind, persons not on the staff but interested in the pro¬
gram may be invited to participate in planning and to interpret
A1394
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the needs of the community. These sane advisors nay "be asked to
participate in the program itself.
What Use Shall "be Hade of Consultants? Shall they give lectures
primarily? Shall they be the group leaders or shall they sit in
merely as group members? Shall they sit in on all group delib¬
erations, or be on call when some problem in their particular field
comes up?
Is it necessary or desirable that consultants be famil¬
iar with the specific problems with which WPA teachers are con¬
fronted? Should they be familiar with the WPA set-up? If they
need any of this information, how can it best be furnished? Should
they participate in planning the conference or only in carrying
cut the plans? Who shall choose the consultants? On what basis?
It is the belief of some state staffs that many consul¬
tants highly skilled in their own field are unable to relate their
specialized knowledge to the specific problems of WPA teachers, be¬
cause of their inability to interpret such knowledge in terms of
the teachers' immediate requirements. While recognizing that this
may sometimes be true, others think that the connection can be made
through discussion groups and that ail will profit from the contact
with well-known specialists. Many times consultants become famil¬
iar with the problems of the teachers through frequent contacts
during the year. Those who are brought into the planning confer¬
ence have an opportunity for still further knowledge of immediate
problems.
At conferences and teachers' meetings consultants have
been used in many different ways. Many supervisors believe that
their specialized knowledge is most useful when directly related
to some recognized problem. They, therefore, ask consultants to
come into a group after the group members have discussed their
problems, defined the issues, and clarified tne points at which
they want specialized help. More common practice, however, is to
have the consultants sit in with the group during the entire process.
Sometimes one or more consultants are secured for the duration of a
conference and others brought in to give some specialized help as
needed.
Whether they are used at conferences or meetings through
the year, on advisory committees, councils or as sponsors repre¬
sentatives, it is invaluable for the program and essential for the
growth of teachers to utilize the services of highly trained spec¬
ialists. While the WPA education program has unique problems and
a considerable experience which must always be taken into account,
it has continuous need also of professional advice and should take
sdvantage of every opportunity to secure it.
Al?54
VII - 62
VII. GP.ITHRIA FOR. LVAIUATII'IG- THE WORII 0? ■mCHERS
Self-education comes c-nly when there is self-knowledge,
and among- the ways in which we help the teacher to know himself
is that of self-measurement in terms of his ovrri growth and progress.
In this area we arc treating in untried fields and must tread lightly
if we are not to be bogged down in the mire of controversy. The
section on evaluation which follows indicates by the lightest of sign¬
posts the paths in which others are slowly making headway. These
directions may leacl. into blind alleys—they may be making the trails
which will seme day become highways. We offer them here for further
study and wider discussion.
We can measure distance in miles or yards, and liquids
can be measured by the gallon or quart, but how and with what
shall we measure the work of our teachers in order to find out
how good a job. they are doing? The amount of work they do is
measurable, and because it is easy to measure, it often gets more
attention than it deserves. But how to measure the value of their
work—that is not so simple. Yet the quality and effectiveness of
their work is what wo most need to know if we are to help them to
make the best of their opportunities, and to expand the sphere of
their community services.
In proper educational terminology, this is the problem:
how to develop criteria for the evaluation of the work of teachers.
Teachers and supervisors—not to mention administrators and spon¬
sors—are at work on this problem. Their findings are being used
to help teachers to improve their work, which is enough incentive
to keep both supervisors and teachers on their toes.
Whatever else evaluation may be good for, it ought to
be obvious that it should help the teacher to grow in her capacity
to serve. Can we accept this point of view as fundamental? The
fact that evaluation has its uses for administrative purposes is
not incompatible with this point of view. Administrative practice
and educational purpose travel down the same road when everyone is
engaged in the effort to solve this problem. We cannot maintain
the integrity of the program any other way. We do not do it if
we use one set of standards to evaluate the v/ork of a. teacher
when we are trying to help him do a better job, and then turn
around and use a different set of standards when we are judging
him for promotion, demotion, or transfer.
A1294
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The evaluation of teacher's work should "be and can be a
vital part of the plan of helping those teachers. As the teacher
and supervisor come together to analyze the kind of job the
teacher is doing, the teacher sees his needs and shortcomings more
clearly. The teacher learns to lock upon his occasional conference
with his supervisor as an opportunity for self-improvement and as
the basis for future assistance from that supervisor.
Tentative lists or criteria for evaluation have been
developed in many state and local programs, and it is worthwhile
to study these. One set of criteria is based upon an organized
description of the accomplishments and activities of the teacher.
In this, selected evidences of successful functioning have been
agreed upon and aro used in determining the teacher's effective¬
ness. Those who developed this measure of the quality of the
teacher believe that desirable character and personality traits of.*
a teacher as well as skill in teaching, knowledge and ability, are
reflected in his work. The "evidences of success" used are matters
which do not depend entirely upon the opinion of the supervisor but
can bo determined objectively.
What are the elements which are most essential for
effective work in the present stage of the adult or nursery
education program? Does the supervisor know? Docs the teacher
know? We are a long way from knowing what all of these essential
elements are, and have great difficulty in defining those about
which we are fairly certain. This is precisely why our present
instruments of evaluation are so faulty. But so far as it is now
possible to define those elements that make a good program, and
those that'indicate good work, they must bo studied fairly and
objectively before it will be possible to determine how to measure
the work of teachers.
The program has come a long way in tho past few years in
defining its specific purposes. Some'headway has been made in under¬
standing the techniques by which those purposes can bo achieved.
Knowing the purposes and the techniques which have been found
valuable, instruments are gradually being developed for evaluating
the work. Those now instruments are not very dependable and the
chief interest is in developing bettor ones, but the ones which are
being experimenting with now work much better than the "by guess
and by gosh" methods which have been used at times.
The process by which criteria of evaluating the work of
teachers are developed is in itself a valuable educational experience.
A1294
VII - 64
One state discovered that written narrative reports,
prepared by the teachers about the groups and communities they
were serving, were giving the teachers new insight into their
own problems and the progress they were making in solving them.
Just that—written reports, done objectively—and the teachers and
supervisors had found a valuable new device by which the teacher
could measure his results. -
Those who tackle the job of developing a workable method
of evaluating "•"heir work soon learn to consider very carefully the
specific program being carried on, its scope, its purposes and
practices, the kind of human beings involved and tho oresont stage
of development of the teachers as well as of the students. They
learn that tho evaluator needs to stop and evaluate himself every
little while to make sure he is not being led astray by his
emotions or his hurry to find tho answer.
Such a study should bo made by those responsible for
carrying on the work that is being judged, although others who
are directly concerned should share in the process. The teacher,
himself, has the "best opportunity to learn how good a job he is
doing. It is difficult for anyone not actively working in the pro¬
gram to appreciate the significance of many of the "little
things" upon which the education program must place emphasis.
Outsiders will try it, of course, but their chances of getting at
the truth are slim. Furthermore, the study needed to develop
adequate criteria inevitably leads to a clearer understanding of
what is desirable,practice and consequently provides an immediate
stimulus to improvement of tho program. If anybody is going'to be
improved by this process, it ought to be our supervisors and
teachers. Everybody directly concerned with the development of
the program should have some share in working out the criteria by
which they are to judge and be judged.* 1./
Among these "yardsticks" are success in group work (as
sho\im by attendance, interest-and group a-ctivities of students);
success in promoting the growth of individual students (as shown
in their lives); success in utilizing varied methods, materials,
end special teaching devices (determined by observation); profes¬
sional interest and growth (as shown by the teacher's activities
contributing to this end); interest in community life and the
community's estimate of the teacher (as evidenced by his community
activities and reports concerning him by local persons outside the
program); and the social significance of his work (as it is compared
with community needs).
1J An article in the Adult Education Bulletin. June 1939,
p. 19, on "Standards without Standardization" by R. G,
Hemdahl, describes how this process carried on by one
group of WPA supervisors and teachers helped to clarify
their thinking.
A1294
VIII - 65
Another state has worked out in group discussion a
set of criteria hased on a selected list of desirable characteristics
and qualities of teachers and elements considered significant to
the success of any educational program, such as:
understanding of general field of adult
education;
knowledge of subject taught;
ability to organize and adapt materials to class
and community interests and needs;
ability to secure group participation;
success in developing good student-teacher
relationship;
student growth;
cooperation with fellow workers;
sense of responsibility;
ability .and initiative to work effectively
without constant supervision; and
professional growth.
The degree to which a teacher measures up to desirable
standards in these elements is judged by the supervisor, who
attempts to make this judgment as objectively as possible but who
is not expected to state the objective evidence for the rating
given. The teacher and supervisor may discuss the report before or
after it is made.
An entirely different type of evaluation comes through
examinations by which one state attempts to judge the teacherls
knowledge of her work. Long true-false tests have been developed
for this purpose, covering practices in adult education, its
philosophy and programs. The questions are designed, not only
to test knowledge but to stimulate thinking as well.
A1294
VIII - 66
VIII. YEAR-ROUND Ifl-SFfiVICE TEACHER EDUCATION
Summer conferences, teachers1 meetings, supervisors'
visits and books, bulletins and materials are all intended to
help the teacher. But sometimes these confuse as veil as help.
Advices may conflict. "We have to do so many different things
in the name of training," said one teacher. "We take courses,
run a workshop, prepare materials, go to conferences, write re¬
ports, confer with specialists - why couldn't all these things be
brought together?" And, indeed, why not? This bulletin has
repeatedly indicated ways in which that is being done. We need
now everywhere to do it more consciously and deliberately.
Continuous, year-round in-service training, closely
related to the teacher's job can and should bring super¬
visor, director, sponsor, community and student together in a
common task; that of continuously improving tho adult education
and nursery programs. Most states are now ready to take the
neccssarv stops to draw together into a single, continuous
integrated program their miscellaneous efforts to help teachers.
This bulletin by bringing together the experiences of many state
programs is intended to provide useful suggestions. In it have been
discussed many of tho major factors involved in a continuous
program of teacher education and the manner in which some of the
most significant aspects of it arc being carried out has been described.
In any area of living we make progress far more rapidly
if we accept and. adapt to our needs the best practices of others
whenever we can, although wo must also continuously develop and
invent ways of our own to meet our own ever-changing problems.
Guiding Principles Developed in the Actual Working out of ono
Three-Year Program. In conclusion, it seems worthwhile to examine
the program of a state in which the vision of its leadership in
1936 looked ahead over a three year period and planned its toachor
education as well as all its activities in terms of three year
goals. This state now bases its work on guiding principles which
the teachers have come to call "a handful of shared knowledge"
developed through that three year period. Those principles arc
hero listed.
1. What is the philosophy of tho Adult Education Program?
It is an experience program
It is based on the interests and problems of adult and
pre-school students and organised around their purposes
and vrobloms.
A1294
VI11-67
2. What have wc found to "be the major interest? and problems
of sdult elementary students?
Self and home improvement
Job
Community relationships
Ee creation
3. What is the two-fold purpose of the program?
To help individuals in the adjustment and enrichment
of their lives
To help the state in the conservation of human resources
4. Why do we have a culminating activity each year? What is the
theme of the culminating activity for this year? What are
the purposes of such an activity?
Our work is motivated and integrated through culminating
activities. if
The theme of the culminating activity in 1139 was "Changed
Communities Through Changed Lives and Changed Homes."
Certain major purposes of the culminating activity are:
(l) To interpret the whole program to the public, to
students — both enrolled and prospective —, to state and
field staffs and teachers of both the WPA and State-aid
programs; (?) to serve as a measuring rod for all con¬
cerned and to dramatize for them the satisfaction of
shared achievements.
5. Under what three topics do all of our problems seem to group
themselves:
Materials
Methods
Management (Including organization, supervision, adminis¬
tration, etc.)
1! For a detailed discussion of these see The Adult Education Bulletin
January 1939, p. 23, "Can This Be Teacher Education?"
A1294
VIII-68
6. What is the roaster key for attacking all of our problems?
Reflective thinking, or "Kow to tl ' ik", as developed in
service studies, l/
7. What are the steps used in thinking through our problems?
a. Outline problems - a clear statement of
(1) Genernl or large social problem
(2) Spo cfic problem
(;") Sub-problems, or enabling problems
b. Gather data - (facts)
(1) Types of data needed - (What wo need to know)
(2) Sources of fata - (Where- can vo find out what vo
need to know)
(f) Methods for securing the data - (how can wo find
• out what we nood. to know)
(4) Organizing and interpreting the data
c. Pormulative summary - (In practical, usable form)
8. What methods have we discussed which are basic in all learning
situations?
Methods which enable the student:
To start where he is
To go in the direction he wants td go
To'go at his own pace
What additional basic methods have we found to be highly
desirable?
Methods which enable the student:'
To make satisfying use of now learnings for present purposes
To see next steps ahead
To want to take those steps
To sec the relationships with larger social problems
9. What three related activities have we found to be essential in
making cur plans successful?
Preparation
Activity
Polio W_Up
1/ For a full discussion of Service Studies sec Waples, Douglas &
Tyler, R. W», Research Methods and Teachers' Problems. New York
Macinillan, 1930.
A1294
71II - 69
10. What have been our objectives both in student activities
and in in-service teacher-development?
Hew information
New skills
New attitudes
New insights
New habits
11. With what allied programs have we cooperated effectively
during the years of initiation and development?
Many public and private agencies too numerous to mention
12. Why is measuring progress important in adult teaching?
It is important to make freauent and varied measurements
of progress, for purposes of guidance
13. What is one of the basic factors in measuring progress?
In measuring progress it is necessary to set up clear-cut
objectives in the beginning in order that achievements may
be checked against them.
14. Has knowledge of students' hobbies increased effectiveness in
helping students solve their problems? Has each ones own
hobby been a help in his teaching?
Some of the soundest progress made has been based on the
hobbies of both students and teachers.
15. What is Dr. Thorndike's estimate of how much most of us get
out of a lecture?
According to Dr. Thorndike:- We understand less than tw-o-
thirds of what speakers tell us, v/e remember less than one-
third, and we can organize and use loss than one-sixth.
16. What are some of the criteria developed for evaluating a con¬
ference from the standpoint of the individual?
I gave something to tho conference.
I got something from tho conference.
I tried this and this and this when I went home.
I wondered if I could adapt this and this and this and I did.
The conference had a certain charm.
I worked without a feeling of tension.
My imagination was kindled.
I knew I had grown.
A1294
VIII - 70
17. What is the most economical way of discovering principles?
The simplest way for us to discover principles has
been this:
To discover weak points and strong points and to
tell why we think them weak or strong.
Very likely no other state will find this statement exactly suit¬
able to its needs. Some will think it too simple to cover the
multitude of activities carried on in its program, others will find
that it attempts to cover in one statement too wide a range and
too long a period of time. Some will no doubt check their own
philosophy and program against this outline and find that it helps
to clarify their thinking. The same will be true of many of the
practices here described.
Shared Experience. It is hoped that this bulletin has served as a
clearing house of suggestions for meeting the most urgent immediate
problems of teacher education in the Work Projects Administration
Education Program. Further suggestions and reports of practices will
be welcomed. We should like to hear of ways in wnich proposals made
here have been utilized, adapted or have led to other experimenta¬
tion. It is through shared experience that progress has been ma.de
in the past and it is urged that this most useful of all devices
for growth be fully utilized for continued progress.
A1294
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IX. flONCLUSIOH
This "bulletin, as was stated in the introduction,
is designed rather as a clearing house for ideas than as a
"blue print for action. It has explained and amplified the
content of an in-service education program which must be
based faithfully and under standingly on the immediate needs
of the teachers and pupils, if it is to fulfill its purpose.
It has attempted to answer the questions:
Why have a Teacher Training Program?
What shall such a program include?
How shall such a program be administered?
Who shall participate in it?
Although limiting its discussion of methods in
teacher training to three, the bulletin has attempted to give
a practiced, and detailed plan for a workshop conference, and to
demonstrate the integral and vito.l relation between training and
supervision. It stresses the fact, however, that no one plan is
always suitable. Local factors will in every case be the best
guide for determining the pattern chosen.
The bulletin has further discussed the personnel,
the human element., by all odds the most important factor in
the in-service program — and has endeavored to set up a few sug¬
gestions for evaluating growth and progress. For the final test
of the effectiveness of any training program will be the lasting-
ness of its effect upon the teachers and their teaching. As
Mr. Coue' has so graphically put it, they need help "every day,
in every way."
Will this bulletin and the type of training outlined
give them such help? This is the crucial test of its effective¬
ness. If it does, the teacher will daily and perceptibly develop
and mature. He will become growingly and specifically conscious
that adults do want to learn and can loarn. He will realize, how¬
ever, that adulthood is not entirely determined by age but rather
by maturity, which is gradually accumulated through experience,
through the discipline of life and living, with its resultant
training of the emotions and of the power to make reflective
judgment s.
A1294
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(Conclusion - Continued.)
He will realize that adult experience is not
confined to increasing one's stock of information "but
includes increasing the intensity and richness of feeling and
the power to control it. Undigested and unassimilated "bits of
information merely clutter thought and hinder growth. Here
facts must be grafted into the tree of experience before- becoming
functionally valuable.
He will learn that creative growth must be based, on
impulsion, impelled by interest or desire from within, not an
outside compulsion. Learning cannot be compelled.
He will learn that intelligent citizenship requires
that the pupils who come to him as individuals must become
socially conscious of their functioning part in a democracy in
the making.
Lastly ho will learn that adult education must start
where the learners arc and work with what they have. The im¬
mediate environment, in terms of the lives, background,
experiences, problems, ideals, hopes, and even ambitions and
dreams of the pupils, is the most valuable and immediately
available educational material. It is ever ready and rire for
use by any teacher who can relate it to his needs and use it
to serve his ends.