The Journal of True Education for 1947
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The JOURNAL of TRUE Education VOLUME 9 JUNE. 1947 NUMBER .3 The JOURNAL o T IM Education KELD J. REYNOLDS, EDITOR Associates ERWIN E. COSSENTINE JOHN E. WEAVER LOWELL R. RASMUSSEN FLORENCE K. REBOK CONTENTS Cover Photograph By H. M. Lambert Education in the Adventist Community By Keld J. Reynolds page 4 The Quality of the Seventh-day Adventist Elementary School By John E. Weaver 6 A Sampling of North American Division Elementary Schools: Photo- graphs 8 The Academy—A Fundamental Link By L. R. Rasmussen 10 A Cross Section of Our Secondary Schools: Photographs 12 The Service of the College By E. E. Cossentine 14 Colleges in the North American Division: Photographs 16 Representative School Activities and Equipment: Photographs 18 For a Wider Horizon By W. Homer Teesdale 20 Organization of Education 21 School News 24 ISSUED FIVE TIMES A YEAR—FEBRUARY, APRIL, JUNE, OCTOBER AND DECEMBER—BY THE DEPART- MENT OF EDUCATION, GENERAL CONFERENCE OF SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS, TAKOMA PARK, WASH- INGTON 12, D.C. SUBSCRIPTION PRICE, $1 A YEAR. ENTERED AS SECOND-CLASS MATTER AT THE POST OFFICE AT WASHINGTON, D.C., UNDER THE ACT OF CONGRESS OF MARCH 3, 1879. 2 THE JOURNAL OF TRUE EDUCATION BIRTHRIGHT—An Editorial SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS through the simple uneducated person are an education-minded people. Fur- whose life is consecrated to Him, He can thermore, they are a people who appre- accomplish greater things through the ciate and appropriate to themselves the trained leadership of the equally conse- blessings and advantages of Christian crated person of superior capacity and education. More specifically, having paid education. their public school taxes, the Adventist The church, then, has the double re- people are yet willing to support and pay sponsibility to see that Christian schools tuition to church-related schools and col- are provided, and that the willing young leges. This they do because they want 'people of its members have the privilege their children in a Christ-centered learn- of attending. This is a responsibility of ing institution, under teachers who are the entire congregation. The searching Christians. To safeguard the spiritual question, "Where is thy flock?" will be and social objectives of the church and asked of the biological parents, but not the intellectual integrity of its young of them alone. The spiritual welfare, and people, only Seventh-day Adventist staff therefore the Christian education, of members are employed in the schools of Adventist youth is the responsibility of the church from the first elementary the entire Adventist community. grade through college. This responsibility is inescapable. It This denomination has developed one had better be met. Some churches and of the most extensive and comprehensive conferences need and can afford school church-related educational systems in plants as well organized and equipped as our time. It has been built and is main- those of the State. A small rural church tained out of the devotion and sacrifice community may house its school in a log of the people, who see it as an absolute cabin. But large or small, simple or com- necessity. And it has been conceived and plex, the absolutely essential factor is a developed in wisdom. Christian teacher-learner relationship. When Christianity and education are When every child in the church cap- separated, education tends to become the able of receiving an education is brought enemy of. Christianity; when united, they into contact with well-trained Christian reinforce each other. When combined teachers, equipped with adequate facil- with a living Christian faith, education ities for the practice of their profession is constructive and socially safe, because —only then is the obligation being met. it is lighted by a superior code of ethics No substitute for Christian education and built upon a rock of moral respon- can properly reinforce the Christian sibility. Christianity, when united with home. No substitute is just as good. No sound educational practices, tends to excuse for substitution is valid. A church- raise the individual above fanaticism and sponsored education to the limit of his narrow bigotry, and enables him better capabilities is the birthright of every to comprehend the deeper meanings of Seventh-day Adventist boy and girl, his faith. While God can do great things young man and young woman. VOL. 9, NO. 3, JUNE, 1947 3 Education in the Adventist Community Keld J. Reynolds ASSOCIATE SECRETARY, GENERAL CONFERENCE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION CHRISTIAN education as con- of the week, nine months of the year, ducted by Seventh-day Adventists, is, like some 24,500 boys and girls in the first the Advent message, a world-wide work. eight grades study the Bible and standard Schools follow the evangelist and the courses under teachers who, by precept missionary. Secondary schools and col- and example, put Christianity into their leges are established as they are needed instruction. In the secondary grades and as conditions permit. Today the some 8,800 young people are in attend- value of the denomination's school prop- ance, and an additional 6,500 in the col- erties totals more than $20,000,000. Ap- leges. Here also, courses in religion are proximately 150,000 children and young an integral part of the curriculum, and people are in attendance, and are served the instruction is vitalized by consecrated by more than 8,000 teachers. teachers. In the colleges are 2,400 former Educational opportunity to the limit servicemen and servicewomen, averaging of individual capacity for every boy and three years older than their grade, and girl has long been the dream of social working with grim determination to reformers. And it has been for many make every day count. years the plan of the Seventh-day Advent- One medical college, one theological ist church to provide educational facili- seminary, and one correspondence school ties under Christian teachers and admin- with a world-wide enrollinent list, also istrators, from the first grade through serve this community, besides sixteen college, for every child of the church schools of nursing, a school of dietetics, capable of using such opportunities and and others of medical technology and willing to make the most of them. physical therapy. These add about 1,300 How well has the denomination suc- to the college enrollment, exclusive of ceeded? This report attempts to answer, the correspondence school. in a statistical way, the question of success Approximately 3,000 young people are in but one of the world divisions, the in college this year for the first time, and North American, comprising the United about 575 will be graduated this summer. States and Canada. It can be safely predicted that from the Let us imagine a city of 273,579 people, colleges at least 400 men and women will a city the size of Toledo, Ohio. This is enter the organized work of the denom- the size of the Seventh-day Adventist de- ination within the year. nominational community in the North In the Adventist schools the teacher- American Division (220,122 baptized pupil ratio is low, to permit individual members, with the added children who attention, as these averages will show. In are below the age of baptism). This com- the elementary school the ratio is one munity is served by thirteen colleges and teacher for 17.6 children. In the second- junior colleges, seventy secondary schools ary schools the ratio is one staff member spaced for the convenience of the patrons, for 11.5 pupils. And in the colleges the and 885 elementary schools. Five days average is one teacher for 11.6 students. 4 THE JOURNAL OF TRUE EDUCATION The school properties in this com- there are 34,590 young people of college munity have a combined value of more age, of whom 18.78 per cent are in Ad- than $17,000,000. Instructional operating ventist colleges. These enrollments in costs total more than $4,275,000 per year. relation to the total population of the The institutional investment per ele- Adventist community, and compared to mentary child is $84.71, and the cost of the national figures, are shown in the instruction per year per child is $55.73. following table: The investment per student in the sec- PER CENT OF TOTAL POPULATION ondary and higher schools (not includ- AT EACH SCHOOL LEVEL Per Cent of Total Per Cent of Total ing the professional schools and the Adventist Population United States Pop- in Adventist Schools ulation in School correspondence school) is $970.95, and Elementary 13.5 13.5 Secondary 7.39 7.39 the yearly educational expenditures per College 18.77 12.64 student total $188.11. Adding housing The Adventist community is doing as to the cost of instruction in the secondary well as the nation on the elementary and and higher schools, the cost rises to secondary levels, and definitely better on $348.50 per student per year. * the college level. Considering that the The schools and colleges of our com- incomes of Adventists are generally in munity are bulging with record enroll- the lower brackets, this is an excellent ments, a condition which it is predicted record for the church. Perhaps the com- will continue to the winter of 1949-50. munity cannot be expected to do much We have reason to believe that room has better so far as college education is con- been made for all or nearly all fully qual- ified and worthy Adventist young people who have applied. But because of the crowded conditions, practically all of the schools have stopped systematic solicita- tion of those young people who, under different conditions, would enroll if personal work were done for them.