ELEVENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART V 26? 



and more efficiently than it can be done without them. They will help 

 to train teachers for the vocational work in the smaller schools. The 

 county agricultural high school has been tried out with good results in 

 Wisconsin for a period of five or six years. In Minnesota, the policy of 

 state aid to consolidated rural schools, and to special high schools for 

 maintaining agricultural instruction, is strongly endorsed. In Nebraska 

 and in several other states, state aid is given to certain high schools for 

 maintaining instruction especially adapted for the training of teachers for 

 the rural schools. 



A bill providing liberal federal aid for vocational education is now 

 pending in congress and was favorably reported by the agricultural com- 

 mittee of the senate at the last session. There may be a difference of opin- 

 ion about some of the details of that bill, but there can be no question but 

 that federal aid in establishing vocational schools and providing for agri- 

 cultural extension work, would be of incalculable value, and it would 

 lead to immediate action, systematic effort, and co-operation in extending 

 the work in all the states. This measure is gaining rapidly in public 

 favor and it ought to have the support of all friends of industrial edu- 

 cation. 



The states should not wait for federal legislation. The movement 

 has already set in. Many states have made marked progress. This has 

 been the absorbing topic at every educational gathering during the past 

 year. We have received more calls at Ames during the past twelve 

 months for agricultural graduates to teach agriculture in secondary 

 schools than for all other lines of work combined, barring one — the man- 

 agement of farms — and more even than for that one. The agricultural 

 colleges are establishing courses to train teachers for this field and the 

 demand promises to be overwhelming for years to come. Unfortunately, 

 nearly all of the competent men trained for this work at Ames are 

 now being taken to other states. 



This is the most important educational problem that has confronted 

 the nation since the passage of the act providing for the land grant 

 colleges of agriculture and the mechanic arts. It ought to receive care- 

 ful consideration and intelligent, comprehensive encouragement by the 

 coming legislature. A new educational system cannot be put into full 

 operation at once, but this question will not be settled until a sound and 

 officient system of vocational education, places agricultural and indus- 

 trial training within the reach of every boy and girl of school age in 

 the school nearest at hand, and at the same time properly correlates it 

 with higher education along the same lines. 



The convention adjourned until 1:30 o'clock p. m. 



