Ithaca High School - Ithacansian Yearbook (Ithaca, MI)

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ENGLISH Wlien he was president of Harvard, Dr. Eliot emphatically show- ed the necessity of studying our own language. He said I recog- nize but one mental acquisition as an essential part of the education of a lady or gentleman, namely, an accurate and refined use of the mother tonguef, In our complex civilization, where people are highly interdepend- ent, communication is absolutely necessary. Studying correct oral and written expression gives student command of the most common means of communication, it provides a key which unlocks opportunities in business and in society. Learning English, however, includes more than acquiring a means of communication. Literature, the second division of an English course, has great rewards. The study of Iiteratary masterpieces gives power to think more clearly and discriminately, to understand the present in the light of the past, to choose only that which is good and true. The series of literature books used in our school littingly is called Literature and Life , for literature reflects life, interprets life, and enriches life. Eileen Bitzer, A. B.

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CCMMERCIAL The commercial department prepares the student so it is possible for him upon graduation to secure a position in the business world without any further training, and to fill competently positions such as accountant, stenographer and typistg thus giving the student who does not go to college the means of making a living wage by immediate use of the training he has acquired from commercial courses. The courses offered are: one year of shorthand, one year of book- keeping, one year of junior business training, one half year of busi- ness arithmetic, one half year of commercial geography, and one and one half years of typing. These give the commercial students of the high school a good selection, and are beneficial to the average high school student regardless of his future occupation. If he goes into business he has the added advantage of commercial courses as his back- ground and if he goes to college, these same subjects will be an im- portant aid to him. He will use some of the information he has gathered regardless of his future. Thus it is clear that the commercial department serves a definite need that cannot be excluded from our modern curriculum. Homer Irwin, B. S.

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' fSee page 69 for identihcationj GIRLS' GYM Physical Education is instruction or participation in those activities that serve as a means of attaining or maintaining physical welfare. Games and physical activities can be traced back to the Egyptians, Romans, Greeks, and other countries but it was during the World War that the great need for a physical education program in our school system was realized. Physical education aims to develop and promote normal growth and organic development in boys and girls, to improve posture, and to establish desirable habits of health and conduct. It aims to develop such physical qualities as strength, quickness, skill, endurance, and grace. It also aims to develop such mental and moral qualities as alertness, courage, courtesy, good sportsmanship, honesty, and leader- ship. john Locke, the famous physician and educator of the seventeenth century wrote the treatise, Some Thoughts Concerning Education. In this work Locke gave as the first aim of education, vigor of the body. The opening paragraph of his book is, A sound mind in a sound body. The people of Ithaca believe in progressive education. They have seen the need for a physical education program and have given a beautiful building so that students might participate in the activities they longed for. Our motto here is, A sound mind in a sound body. Irene Clements, B. S.