Marist School - Guidon Yearbook (Atlanta, GA)

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5. Pohteness. Character. 6. Parental Co-Opera- tion. Blft this does not sumce. The boy must be a gentlemlan, not stlfl wlth the forms of etiquette, but, as Cardinal Newman suggests, attractive wlth an unceasing watchfulness to avoid 'palning others unnecessarily. 'He must be polite to all, to his masters, to his school- mates, to strangers, always, he must be refined in manners, neither loud-mouthed and quarrel- some in play, nor boisterous and disorderly in work. ' , Lastly, but above all, the formation of charac- ter, the increase ot the sense of responsibility and the capacity for independent action, must be dellnltely kept lfn view as the great aim of all schooling. 'Character will hav-e more to do with the boy's usefulness, success and happi- ness in after years, than wlll the extent and adequacy of the school bulldlng an-d plant, bodily development or intellectual training. By all means, these important matters must not be neglected, but due formation of charac- ter and the independence of the pupil are of more consequence than all of them combined. It ls clear, however, that edu-cation, even thus com-plete on the 'College slde, must Inevi- tably fail, lf lt have not the constant co-op- . 6 ' '

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!-4 4 1 COLLEGE

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eratlon of the parents. But a. merely passive. negatlve co-operation is by no means enough. It is not satisfying their obligations if par- ents refuse to ask for their son unreasonable exemptions-such as, for instance, permission to leave school before the last class, in order to attend a matinee. It is not living up to their duty to rest content with seeing that their boy does not miss school except for grav- est reasons, arrive late, appear without unl- form or'dress untidily. Parents are bound also to a lively interest in the boy's work. They should inquire about lt, watch how lt is done, notice the marks gained, the rank obtained, the punishments inflicted, etc. They should keep before their son's mind the one general object of all his studies. They should see-that he applies himself seriously two or three hours daily at home: and while afbstalfnlng scrupulously from affording help in the written exercises, they s-hould insist that these -be completed. They are held evcn more strictly to deliberately back the efforts and ap-prove the action of the professors, re- servlng for private explanations with the Vice- Presldent of the College whatever they find faulty ln character or metnod. ' Naturally, too, by word as well as by example, they will help the College to make character distinctly' paramount in their son's mind to learning or to more fntellectuality. 'Olnly thus, when the College influence of a few brief hours ls cordially supplemented and prolonged at home, can a just expectation be had of educational progress: nor is the parent who leaves the guarding and stimulating of a boy entirely to the College, who scrib- bles excuses on the slightest pretext, or who condones what the College au- thority condemns, quite consistent ln his surprise and vexation at a disap- pointment not altogether uncaused by himself. It is perhaps here the place to speak of a matter, the importance and scope of which ls oftentimes misunderstood. Homework, written and unwritten, is an indispensable, elemental and inte- gral part of the Marist educational scheme. When principles, rules and theories have been explained ln class, when analyses have been outlined, methods shown, models exposed, it is HSCGSSRYY that the pupil flx them ln- dellbly and practically in his intelll- 7 ,Z 1 l . If 7. Homework