Visual Education (Jan-Nov 1920)

Scope and Outlook of Visual Education 11 this in turn, takes it out of the reach of class work. The films are very expensive, and !'• t part have been made with the one aim of entertainment, or of advertisement, so may not be satisfactory or even usable for purposes of instruction. In short, the whole matter up to the present moment seems like an exhibition of misfit effort, .-bowing in a high degree a lack of intelligent cooperation on the part of the interests directly involved. And yet the perfection of motion is there; the interest compelling power of the thing is undeniably there ; the possibility of large service in school education thrusts itself before the mind's eye and will not down. It remains to bring the mechanical elements of projection to such a point of perfection that the machinery can be forgotten. This is practically an accomplished fact. An analysis of the shortcomings of present day motion picture projection has been made, solutions of the difficulties have been found, and the result is a new projector, shortly to appear on the market, in which the weaknesses of present machines are eliminated. With such projection the eye no longer suffers from flicker, distortion, spasmodic movement, etc. One is no longer conscious of the mechanical agency behind the picture. This is but a part of the activity of the Society for Visual Education, which has been recently formed. Educational experts in many lines have associated for the purpose of solving the problems in the adaptation of the cinema to purposes of instruction in the schools. All sorts of tests and measurements will be made to find out the place and best service of each of the devices in visual education in the administration of the school program. Carefully thought out films are being provided for the express purpose of class instruction. The scenario^ for these films will be made to meet the approval of the best teachers in the subject presented. Now let us make no mistake as to the efficiency of any or all the devices which may be used in visual education. No one of them or all of them will ever take the place of the live, earnest, competent teacher. Moreover, the best of teachers will have to be initiated into the best methods of using the graphic material, whatever it is. All of the visual devices together will not remove the need of effort, of work on the part of the pupil. The pupil's real achievement will be measured next generation as it was last by the attention and effort of the pupil. But the visual helps will create interest, stimulate attention and reduce effort. So more ground may be covered in a given time. So also may a higher record of achievement be won by a larger number of pupils. And this brings us to the economic phase of our quest. It will pay school boards to invest in the proven methods of visual instruction. This has been demonstrated in repeated instances, but one case will serve, by way of illustration. The Eacine, Wisconsin, schools in 1910 had a good record in efficiency. They compared well with the schools of other cities of similar size the country over. Their record of pupils failed at the end of the year was low — only one in ten of the pupils below the high school. A ten per cent failure was to be expected. In 1910 these schools began to adopt the stereographic equipment called the 600 set, and with the aroused interest, and better organization of recitation, the failures