Malden High School - Maldonian Yearbook (Malden, MA)

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Valedictorian and Salutatorian EDUCATION AS AN EXPERIENCE Traditionally, educational systems have functioned to perpetuate the society of which they are a part. This role of the schools exists because it is a necessity. Each new generation must be prepared to replace the preceding one if an organized society is to survive. With this end in view, education in the United States has achieved unparalleled success. For the first time in history, a nation has been able to provide most of its citizens with sufficient food, clothing and shelter to eliminate the basic problems of survival. Without the organized training of the young, this could never have been accomplished. The base from which to work for the continuation of our society has been constructed—the physical needs of the people have been satisfied. But while American education has concentrated on its role of achieving a materially secure country, other facets of education have had to be sacrificed. It is now the time to determine what has been neglected in our pursuit of physical well-being. An examination of the results of our system reveals that many of those result s interfere directly with the future suc¬ cess of our society. The emphasis during school years is on the future—the children are being trained to be the respon¬ sible citizens of tomorrow. Unfortunately, because of this, childhood is suddenly stopped short at age 6. The active first-grader is forced to sit up straight in his seat and stop moving about the room. His natural tendency toward com¬ plete freedom and curiosity is inhibited, instead of gradually modified to fit into the practices of the community. The desire to play is not allowed to grow itself-out—it remains with the student throughout his life. Thus we have adults who can never fully adjust themselves to the duties of the grown-up world—adults who, at forty, need the security of the corner-gang with its secret handshakes and magic pass¬ words, and who find this security in the many fraternal organizations. If the obligation of maturity were not thrust on students before they were ready to accept it and its privileges, they would be better able to face the realities of life. They would be able to accept the challenge of diffi¬ culties without the desire to retreat into a fantasy world which had never been allowed to flourish during the child¬ hood years. The emphasis placed in education on the continuation of the existing society has often lead to the child’s disas¬ sociating in his own mind the ideas of school and life. Despite the observations of such educators as A. S. Neill, the founder of the Summerhill School in England, that the community sense of social responsibility does not de¬ velop naturally in children until the age of 18, we expect VALEDICTORIAN DIANE PANSEN receives from Mrs. Holland the long-awaited diplomas which she distributes to graduates. Diane Pansen—Valedictorian children from grade school on to work hard, in order that they may one day be able to vote intelligently, earn a living, and be respected and responsible citizens. We must begin to understand that young children live for the present —their sense of time is not developed enough to have them aim for vague goals in a future that exists for them only in their imitative-imaginative play. Since the child does not consciously care about what he will do in the fu¬ ture, he regards school as a waste of time which prevents him from enjoying the wondrous possibilities for adventure that he sees about him. Although most children do eventu¬ ally reconcile themselves to school, not deeming it worth¬ while, they rarely devote their full capacities to it. These are the students who become content with mediocrity. These are the students who will determine the future course of our culture. Democracy, to work successfully, needs a well-educated citizenry. But, by overstressing this fact in our educational system, we have produced indifference in the very people upon whom the future of a democratic America depends. Clearly, a change in emphasis is required in our schools if our society is to continue to prove its worth. Modern education tries, for 12 years, to prepare each srudent for the future. But the student is ready to live and wants to live in the present; he thinks of himself, the individual, as being more important than the plumber, physician or soldier he will one day become. Educators must learn to respect this belief. In present education, the student is regarded as a lump of clay to be molded from nothingness into a desired shape. Rather, educators should approach the student as a sculptor would a fine piece of marble. The sculptor sees the possibilities of the marble, judges its hardness, grain and color—and then proceeds to use these qualities to their best advantage, thereby creating a beautiful and satisfying work. The teacher, likewise, must learn the capabilities of his students, their Strengths and weaknesses, and work with them to allow a complete and worthwhile human being to appear from the potential they possess. Only if the teacher himself regards each stu¬ dent as unique can the student, in turn, come to discover his own uniqueness and personal worth. 18

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' Weather Favors Graduation of 630 in Malden Municipal Stadium June 8, 1966

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Deliver Messages Emphasizing Education WHO IS THE EDUCATED PERSON? The Greek philosopher Socrates, when questioned about his idea of the educated person, answered in the following manner: Whom do I call educated? First, those who control circumstances instead of being mastered by them, those who meet all occasions manfully and act in accordance with intelligent thinking, those who are honorable in all dealings, who treat good naturedly persons and things that are disagreeable, and furthermore, those who hold their own pleasure under control and are not overcome by misfortune, finally those who are not spoiled by success. An education, then, is not to be acquired easily. However, today there exists a popular misconception that a person who has received a diploma of some sort has automatically received an education. As Socrates intimated, this is far from the truth. The person who seeks an education cannot lean upon the school too heavily. The school is, for one thing, a passive agency which cannot transform human material. It merely provides the student with a set of op¬ portunities, which can form a basis for an education. The student must be the active party in this relationship. It is also true of many schools, that they feel that the most im¬ portant aspect of education is the acquisition of informa¬ tion. It cannot be denied, as Mr. Walter S. Myer, Director of the Civic Education Service, stated, that Facts, the learn¬ ing of the past, are foundations without which no in¬ tellectual edifice can be built. Nevertheless, it is more important to a student’s education that he develop the initiative to learn on his own and to acquire a better un¬ derstanding of certain issues, an understanding which goes beyond books. Furthermore, it is necessary for an educated person to acquire certain habits which cannot be categorized under learning as we know it. A peison cannot call himself edu¬ cated if he does not possess the qualities of honor, up¬ rightness, and dependability. These attributes constitute character. Although character is vital, it cannot be taught in all schools. Therefore, it is the person’s task to acquire it. Character is essential to a true education. Habits other than those contributing directly to character are also important in the educational process. Education never reaches maturity; its life depends upon continuous growth. Thus an education does not end with graduation. A person should never be satisfied with activities that are not educative. He should continue to receive new informa¬ tion and acquire fresh knowledge. Otherwise, he will soon become indistinguishable from the uneducated person. CLASS PRESIDENT JAMES TUXBURY, who, because of an injury, was not able to help distribute diplomas, gives words of encouragement to Salutatorian Gerald Brodsky. Gerald Brodsky—Salutatorian Another distinct sign of an educated person is tolerance. However, it is possible to go through school without de¬ veloping this. A student might accept a new idea or concept only when it agrees with his former beliefs. This is not education; his old prejudices remain, his old limitations are retained. He refuses to free his mind and explore the world of modern thought. This retardation is characterized by anger when an idea which disagrees with his own beliefs is brought before him. A person who attributes undeserved motives to those who hold views against his own demonstrates ignorance and narrowmindedness. An intellectually trained person will not throw away his own ideas when confronted with a new thought, but he will not immediately reject the new idea, either. He will examine it; hoping that it will add to his knowledge and enrich him in other ways. Intellectual progress and educational growth mean change. A stagnant mind is not an educated one, while a growing mind is a changing one. Discarding inadequate beliefs and substituting truth is essential to education. An inclination to examine new facts and ideas truthfully is a sign of an educated person. It is my opinion that acquiring an education is one of the greatest achievements that any man can attain. The task is difficult; the hardships are many, but an education is a priceless reward. As Horace Mann, one of our greatest edu¬ cators, said: If ever there was a cause, if ever there can be a cause, worthy to be upheld by all the human heart can endure, it is the cause of education. 19