An Occupational Study of the Graduates of the Fordson High School

lll‘ I I l l lit I I | ;| i f ‘ ' ‘31 'H i |‘' ' 1mm .HNA _mmm AN OCCUPATIONAL STUDY OF THE GMEWES OF THE FDRDSUN HlGH SCENE. DEARBDRN, Mia-23:3. ii THESiS fDR THE DEGREE OF M. A STANLEY 8. SMITH W32 S‘L ' I.....‘ .t‘lul‘ll‘llr THESIS A THESIS BASED UPON AN OCJUPATIOHAL STUDY OF THE GRADUATES " OF THE FORDSOH HIGH SCHOOL DEARBCRN , iISHiGAN Submitted as Partial Fulfillment of the Recuirements For the Degree of Easter of Arts Michigan State College July 1952 By Stanley S. Snith THESlS CONTENTS Page INTRODUCTION ............................................ .1 The Purpose and Nature of the Study ................. l The Method of the Study ............................. 5, THE COMNUNITY ............................................ 9 The City of Dearcorn ................................ 9 The City of Detroit ................................ 11 E nployznent Conditions in Detroit from 1925-31 ...... 13 THE SCHOOLS OF DEARBORN. ................................ 16 The Fordson Public Schools ......................... 18 ' The Fordson High School ............................ 17 Vocational Guidance in the Fordson High School ..... 20 The Fordson High School Placement Service .......... 21 The Henry Ford Trade School ........................ 23 FACTORS INFLUENCING GRADUATES' CHOICE OF AN OCCUPATION..29 Nativity of the Graduates and their Parents ........ 31 Present Occupations of the Graduates and their Fathers ....................................... 35 The Choice of an Occupation ........................ 4O OCCUPATIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF GRADUATES BY CURSES ....... 44 Present Occupations of Graduates ................... 44 Occupational Readjustment of the Graduates ......... 48 Distribution of Graduates by Courses Completed ..... 52 Number of Graduates Continuing their Education.....57 RELATION OF SCHOOL RECORD AND OCCUPATIONAL RECORD OF GRADUATES ..................................... .....ES Relation between graduate's Mental Rating and their Activities .............................. 59 Relation of Record in High School and Occupational Record after Graduation ....................... 64 Graduates Estimated Value of School Studies and Activities .................................... 7O SUHLARY ................................................. 76 APPENDIX ................................................ 80 Questionnaire ...................................... 80 Detroit Advanced Intelligence Test ................. 83 \. J h a an“ Hui .58 r0 ma x I TABLES Number Page I Employment Index Numbers for Detroit, Years 1925-1931 .................................. 15 II Students Placed since the Organization of the Placement Department ............................. 22 III Placement of Fordson High School Graduates ....... 22 IV Number of Graduates fIOH Fordson High School and the Nunber Replying ......................... .28 Average Age of Graduates Replying to Questionnaire .................................... SO VI Nativity of Graduates ............................ 31 VII Nativity of Graduate's Father .................... 32 VIII Nativity of Graduate's hother .................... 33 IX Number of Years Foreign Born Parents have Lived in the United States ..................... ....... 33 Classification of Occupations of Graduate's Fathers .......................................... 36 XI Classification of Occupations of the Graduates...37 XII Influence of Graduates Fathers' Occupation upon the Occupation of the Graduate ................... 39 XIII Occupations Followed by both Graduate's Father and the Graduate ................................. 39 XIV Similarity of Occupations of Graduate's Father and that of the Graduate ......................... 39 XV Age Graduate Decided upon his Life Occupation....4l XVI Did the High School Training Aid the Graduate \ in Choosing his Occupation ....................... 42 XVII Number of Graduates EXperiencing Difficulties in Choosing Occupations .......................... 42 XVIII Various Types of Difficulties Experienced by Graduates in Choosing their Occupations .......... 42 TABLES Nui‘lber Pag XIX Influences that Aided in Choice of an Occupation. ...................... ............... 43 XX Present Occupations of College Preparatory Graduates ........................................ 44 XXI Present Occupations of Commercial Course Graduates ........................................ 45 XXII Present Occupations of Industrial Course Graduates ...................................... ..45 ‘s\ XXIII Present Occupations of General Course Graduates..46 XXIV Total Employment of all Reporting Graduates of all the Courses from the Fordson High School.....47 XXV Length of Tine Graduate has Followed the Same Occupation. ...................................... 48 XXVI Number of Times Graduates have Changed their Occupation .......... ......... .......... ...... .49 XXVII Reasons why Graduates Changed their Occupations..50 XXVIII Number of Enployers who have Discussed with the Graduate his or her High School Training ........ .51 XXIX Su.gestions Offered cyL Miloyers to the Graduates Con -cerning their Hi; h School Tra ining............51 >~J $4 N Distribution of College Preoaratory Graduates According to Occupation Pursued at the Present Titlle 000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 54' XXXI Distribution of Commercial Graduates According to Occupations Pursued at the Present Time ....... 54 XXXII Distribution of General Course Graduates Accord- ing to Occupation Pursued at the Present Time....55 XXXIII Distribution of Industrial Course Graduates According to Occupation Pursued at the Present Time ...................... ... ................... .55 XXXIV Nonthly Salary of Graduates Exployed at the Present Ti e ........................... ... .......58 N urnb e r Page XXX Percent of College Preparatory Graduates Going to College....... ............. .......... .58 XXXVI Number of Years Scent in College by College Preparatory Graduates. ....... ..... ...... ....... 58 XXXVII Iumber of College Preparatory Course Graiuates who Attended other Scaools other than Colleges..58 XXXVIII Post-Graduate Status of Graduates of Different Mental Ratings.. ..................... .. .........SI/ XXIX Type of Employment Graduates with an "A" Mental /' Rating are Engaged in at the Present Time.. ....62 XL Type of Euployuent Graduates with a "B" Mental Rating are Engaged in at the Present Time.......82 XLI Type of Employment Graduates with a "cu mental Rating a.re Er Ia ed in at the Present Time.......83 XLII Type of Employment G13 cuates whose Me ntal Rating is not known are En H O; :3 : (D at the Present Time.8 3 “I CO XLIII Post-Graduate Status of Graduates of Different Grade Ratings Obtained in High School ...... .....85 XLIV Type Of E5910Ynent Graduates with a "A" Grade in Hiéh SChool are Engaged at the Present Time..€7 XLV Type of Eaploynent Graduates with a "B" Grade in High School are Engaged in at the Present Time..67 XLVI Type of Employment Graduates with a "C" Grade in High School are Engaged in at the Present Time ..88 XLVII Comparison of Graduates with "A" Ian tel Rating and those with “A" Average Grade in School vith Graduate Record ................................. .68 XLVIII Coznparis son of Gra .duates having a "B" Mental Rating and those Receiving a "8" Average Grade in High School with Graduate Record.. ...... .. 89 XLIX Comparison of Graduates having "C" Mental Rat- ing and those Receiving "C" Average Grade in High School with Graduate Record.. .......... ....89 TABLES Number Page L Subjects Taken in Hi h School tha Grzd1ctes Believe have been th most Useful Since Graduation... ..... ... ................ ...72 L I s Engaged in at Hir1 School t lieve have been the most Use ti :1. ooooooooo o oooooooooooooooo 0.0.73 L ll ”eye in Which Activities have Helped the Graduates Since Graduation...... ........ ..... .71 LIII Subjects Taken in Hiqh School the Gr duates Believe have been of no alue Since Graduation.74 L. t—C id in at Hish School that Graduates Belie "e nave been of no Assistance to then Since Gr gduation. ....... ...............75 INTRODUCTION The Purpose and Nature of the Study. The Fordson High School with which the writer has been associated as Head of the Commercial Department for the last three years and as a teacher in the Commercial Department for the four years preceding is located in an industrial community whose population showed the highest rate of growth of any city in the United States during the decade 1920—30.1 Due to the rapid growth of the C ity of Dearborn the Fordson Public Schools have had an equally phenomenal eXpansion. The first graduating class of the Fordson High School was granted diplomas during June 1925 when two boys and three girls were graduated. Each year since then graduation exercises have been held until the total pupils graduating, including the June 1931 class, havereached the number of 173 boys and 171 girls, or a total of 344. During recent years, much attention has been given to vocational training and guidance. In order to deter- mine the success of the various types of training given in the Fordson High School, the writer has endeavored to gather the occupational history of the Fordson High School graduates with a view to discovering how far the training given in the various courses has been of service in preparing the graduates to obtain positions in their 1 . - ' Federal Census, 1930. Pepulation 1980 (8,470), lQKﬂ (Rn ZRR\ innrnnco lQTQ Qﬂ chosen fields and in furthering their progress along vocational and cultural lines.) Although classes have been graduating for seven

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