The Educational screen (c1922-c1956])

rials ami present the art program. Only two children appear on the program, but all the others have a share in I he preparations. The children who do not go to the studio view the program with breathless and personal pride, while children in other schools watch eagerly and afterwards are impatient to begin classroom work on uhat they saw. Parents, Too Parents, too, follow this program regularly. Following each telecast come phone calls and letters requesting further information. One woman called to say, "My phone rang just before the candles were finished . . . how do you get them out of the molds?" Another wrote, "1 am a cripple and take care of my granddaughtA-. How did you tie the ends of the rug you made yesterday? She didn't quite get it all." The children have a ready sympathy when minor catastrophies occur. One child wrote, "1 liked the program, but the part 1 liked best was when all the candle fell off Danny's wick when he was dipping." Another TV series, "The World at Your Door," has impressed pupils with the sameness of humans everywhere. One youngster wrote, "The girl from Poland seemed just like us, except she had an accent. She must be smart to learn English so fast!" This reaction is typical. Music & Socio/ /.Q. "Children Make Music" is a series for primary grades. The children follow it avidly and take part as the leader teaches them how to use rhythm instruments, how to create a tune, how to move to rhythm. A third-grader expressed her appreciation this way: "I like music. I like the teacher. We lurned the word percussion today." This music series for primary grades is extremely popular with teachers who are not musicians. Several hundreds of letters were received as a result of the first few presentations of the telecast. "Here's Music" is for upper elementary and secondary schools; each program is a unit of music appreciation. One school reported that the telecast "River Music" resulted in a request by the children to begin a unit of study on the rivers in America. Another teacher said that the excellent student musicians on the programs encouraged her children to practice and improve their own music. Letters from people of all walks of life have been received commending the young performers and expressing thanks for the information given. A principal of a senior high school in an underprivileged community wrote to express appreciation for "How's Your Social I. Q.?" He said that the boys and girls were extremely grateful for information on the social amenities since they did not receive much of it at home. This program leads to many teen-age discussions and arguments, in both club and classroom, on manners and etiquette. There are a number of other reactions that should be reported. For example, at least a half of the survey returns state that the classroom telecasts resulted in requests from children for field trips to such places as Franklin Institute, Fels Planetarium, the Art Institute, the filtration plant, the zoo. City Hall, Independence Hall, shipyards, and other similar places discussed and presented in the programs. Also — and this is important — almost half of the replies reported that following the. programs children asked for books so they might read more about what they saw. Several telecasts have been designed especially to stimulate reading. On "Philadelphia Scrapbook," a program that presents a different community of Philadelphia each week, the branch librarian from the neighborhood covered suggests specific books for children and adults who want more information. This procedure, according to librarians, has yielded results. One third of the survey replies state that children note particularly the diction, grammar, and vocabulary of the children on the programs. Oral English has become increasingly important and purposeful to children in this televi ision age Tofol Community Undertaliing In many school communities, classes without TV receivers are invited into nearby homes to view the telecasts. Mothers, who act as hostesses, report increasing interest in the programs. When the local school is presenting the telecast, it becomes a total community undertaking. Every store, home, and club with a television set is invaded by neighbors, parents, and pupils. And after the local school has performed, following programs are watched for comparison. The interest in some communities is almost at fever pitch! Understandably, there has been greater use of television in elementary schools than in high schools because of scheduling difficulties. During May, however, a concentrated effort was made to attract more secondary schools. Dr. Roy Marshall, well-known scientist of "The Nature of Things" and "commercial" on the Ford Hour, presented a special school series, "How Television Works." This program stimulated special efforts on the part of high school teachers to take advantage of the television potential for teaching. The survey replies have given plenty of concrete evidence that the school TV programs are being enthusiastically used. And Philadelphia's teaching telecasts will be even better next year. Plans are already underway for improvements in line with such suggestions as these: More programs for primary grades, slower pace on several programs where processes are demonstrated, more programs on reading and arithmetic and civics, less talking and more demonstration, advance information on programs sent earlier to schools. How fo Teoch with TV Not only is it important that the programs become even better teaching tools, but teachers themselves must know more about teaching with television. In July a workshop will be held in Philadelphia to teach teachers how to teach with both radio and television. The workshop is open to educators everywhere, and college credit can be arranged with either Temple University or the University of Pennsylvania. Each year increasing numbers join this group and swell the ranks of those who understand and appreciate the teaching potential of radio and television. June, 195! 227