We have also noted the national cooperation with the states for agricultural extension work and for vocational education.  The United States Bureau of Education is under the direction of the United States Commissioner of Education.  It has exerted its chief influence through its investigations of educational methods and its numerous reports and other publications.  It serves as a sort of educational “clearing house” for local and state school authorities.  One of its chief endeavors has been to increase the educational opportunities in rural communities.

Report on the following: 

Provisions of your state constitution with regard to education.

Cost of public schools per year to your community; your county; your state.

How this cost is met in your town or county.  Portion paid by the state.

Organization of your state department of education.  Compare with the organization of state departments in neighboring states.

Arguments for and against the method of choosing your state board of education and your state superintendent.

Do the rural schools and city schools of your state operate under the same state supervision?  Why?

Use of state course of study in your school and community.

Selection of textbooks for your school.

Advantages and disadvantages of uniform textbooks and course of study.  Of uniform examinations throughout the state.

Management and support of your state university.

Qualifications for admission to the state university and state agricultural college.

Why you are (or not) going to college.

The value of the state university or agricultural college to your state.

State educational institutions for the blind, the deaf, etc.

Arguments for and against national control of education.

Chief provisions of any bill now before Congress for a national Department of Education.

READINGS

In lessons in community and national life: 

Series A:  Lesson 11, Education as encouraged by industry.

Series C:  Lesson 8, Preventing waste of human beings.

In Long’s American patriotic Prose: 

Educated men in politics (Grover Cleveland), pp. 255-257.

The educated man and democratic ideals (Charles E. Hughes), pp. 286-288.

In Foerster and Pierson’s American ideals: 

The American scholar (R.  W. Emerson), pp. 133-155.

Democracy in education (P.  P. Claxton), pp. 156-157.

Reports of local and state departments of education.

Publications of the United States Bureau of Education.

Latest annual report of the U. S. Commissioner of Education.  These annual reports contain excellent summaries of every phase of education in the United States and in many foreign countries.