Page 32 - 1916 February - To Dragma

TO DRAGMA OF ALPHA OMICRON PI 111

On his part, the advisor looked around and listened carefully to

keep in his mind the answers to certain questions later to be filled

u t on a card for the purpose; such questions as these:
What is the parents' attitude toward the school ?

d- What can you say about the surroundings?
be What does the parent wish the child to do after leaving school?
al
th How many children in the family?
ch Are any of them working? I f so, at what?
he Of course extreme care had to be exercised in ascertaining the
in answers in some cases, and often very little information could be
he obtained, as it was desirable to avoid antagonizing the parents in
re any way. By gaining some knowledge of the background of the
pupil the advisor could clear up many matters: so frequently is a
child misjudged, or misunderstood, or fails to be appreciated at

school.
s- There was the case of a bright, attractive boy who made life
t. miserable for his teachers. Upon investigation it was found that

f he had no home, his father being a drunkard, his mother dead, and

m his only relative a sister living in a nearby town who occasionally

e sent him money. To support himself he worked as waiter in an

n ice-cream parlor where he was kept up until twelve o'clock or later

s. each night. The next day, when he fell asleep and was awakened

p by the teacher, naturally the extreme nervousness of his tired l>ody

d found vent in every sort of misbehavior. Matters were arranged so

n that he was relieved a little of the pressure, and there was a corres-

e ponding improvement in conduct.

d Jenny Wilson, a frail, delicate little blonde with an almost
a ethereal look, who wanted to become "an art teacher," was found
r- to be utterly alien to her environment. Armed with the assurance
e from Jenny's drawing teacher that she had "fine feeling" and un-

doubted talent, the advisor called at the address given. A swarthy,

e sullen-looking Italian woman surrounded by several young children,
s in a semi-squalid tenement house, was the mother of Jenny.
s Across the street, in his miserable little "Second Hand Clothing

n Store," the father, also foreign, was interviewed. From the condi-

w tions in both home and shop it was evident that there was not a great

y deal of capital for the art education so earnestly desired. I t devel-

e oped that her father wanted his daughter to go to school but one

e year more (she would have been graduated in three) then to enter

d a business college where she could learn to bring in something to
- help. His was a perfectly just view, perhaps, considering the cir-
o cumstances ; the wonder was that his daughter should have nourished

such an aspiration.