Manual training of children between 7-14 years =: Arbetsstugor för barn in Sweden

Author(s): Hierta-Retzius, Anna Wilhelmina

Source: Earl Grey Pamphlets Collection, (1900)
Published by: Durham University Library
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/60226702
Accessed: 09/09/2010 04:31

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless
you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you
may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use.

Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed
page of such transmission.

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of
content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms
of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.

Digitization of this work funded by the JISC Digitisation Programme.

Durham University Library is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Earl Grey
Pamphlets Collection.

http://www.jstor.org
 THE SWEDISH WORKSHOPS. GreyPam 1701

MANUAL TRAINING

OF

CHILDREN

BETWEEN 7—14 YEAES

ARBETSSTTJGOR FOR BARN

IN SWEDEN

BBPOET
GIVEN
BYMRSANNAHTEETA-E.ETZIUS
COUNCIL
ATTHEINTERNATIONAL INLONDON,
OFWOMEN JUNE1900

*JK,

STOCKHOLM
AKT1EBOLAGS
AFTONBLADETS TRYCKERI
1900.
T
 Th lie remarkable changes that have taken place in our
civilized societies, require new methods of education and in¬
struction for the young generation.
In former times, children learned in their homes, from
the parents and the surroundings, or as apprentices of trades,
the necessary knowledge and'skill to prepare them to become
useful members of their family, and good citizens. The children
were educated for practical life. Book learning had but small
place in their training.
In this century, a revolution has taken place in the educa¬
tion of the nations. The introduction of public board-schools,
with compulsory attendance, has raised book learning to become
the centre of education; it has grown to be regarded as the
most important of popular instruction. At the same time, the
great industries have done away with the former manual home
work, when every piece of dress and food was prepared at
home; and not the least feature of modern life is that such a
number of parents have to leave their homes, in order to work
from morning until night in the manufactories.
In consequence the children are left to themselves during
the hours free from school. They have been taught reading,
writing and arithmetic, and several other good things at school;
but the exercise of their practical and executive powers, which
in former times had been trained at home, are left undeveloped.
In order to repair these defects, technical education —
— has, to a certain
drawing, pedagogical slojd and cooking
degree, been introduced in many schools; but only a few hours
are given to this, while still almost the whole of school time
is devoted to book training.
Then, there is another danger of modern life. The chil¬
dren, whose parents are absent and cannot take care of them,
roam about in the streets during their free hours. The lessons
they there learn, and the temptations for a poor and hungry
child, all of which are the consequences of a vagrant life in
the streets, are so evident that I need only to mention them.
These dangers are of course worst in the centres of industry
and the great cities. By the bad example of older comrades,
the young are easily tempted into bad habits, and can early
glide into mischief.
The very education, which has sharpened their intelligence
without teaching them to love work, is an additional danger
to many of the young. The parents often are strangers to
their children, and confess that they are beyond their control.
In most countries — oven in England, France and Austra¬
lia — juvenile offenders have, as I learn from the »Beport
of the Howard Associations, increased in recent years. The
leagues of vagrant children and young roughs are becoming a
plague to their home and to their parents, and a danger to
modern society.
In order to make them inoffensive, or in the hope of
saving them, the States or communities take the neglected
children from their parents, and put them into costly »indu¬
strial schools*, or socalled »reformatory schools*, and »hom«s»,
or — in prison.
It is considered a charitable thing to take the children
away from bad parents. In this way, not only do the children
lose the consciousness of owning a home, but also the parents'
sense of responsibility gets weakened.
Great authorities on this subject tell us, that it is much
better to let the children remain even in bad homes, and to
force the parents to improve, than to take them away altogether.
 The experience from the Reformatory schools is not en¬
couraging to continue in this direction. Young criminals are
expected to be reformed in the daily association with each other!
How much wiser would it not be to prevent the evil by
saving the children from entering the path of crime, rather
than afterwards to try to correct them at great cost in re¬
formatories and prisons!
But, by what means is this to be done?
The greatest charity is, as an experienced man says, to help
people to help themselves.
The whole system of education and instruction of the
young must be reformed.
As a step towards gaining this end, the institutions called
Arbetsstugor for bam — »Workshops for children* — were
founded in Scandinavia.
I had recognised, that the ago of the first schoolyears
were of the greatest importance for the training of the children
in a good direction. And I fully agree with the american
pedagogue Mr Charles Leland's conclusions, that the years of
7—14 are momentous for their development. This is in fact a
discovery of great bearing. Mr Leland tells us, that in those
years quickness of perception may be brought forth to an
astonishing degree in every mind and that almost in all chil¬
dren in this age handiness can become developed.
With this purpose, in the beginning of 1887, I founded
the first Swedish Arbetsstuga with the aid of money given
by a Memorial Fund of my father, »Lars Hierta's Minne->.
In a few years, one Arbctsstuga after another was esta¬
blished in different parishes of Stockholm and in many other
towns of Sweden.
At present, there are Arbetsstugor in every parish of Stock¬
holm, and altogether 38 in Sweden. This autumn, several new
ones are to be founded, so the number next year will be at
least 40,
 The excellent influence these institutions have had upon
the character of the children has been proved everywhere, and
they are now becoming favourite schools with the children,
with their parents and with the governing bodies of the com¬
munity.
They have grown quietly, and with full liberty. Every
Arbetsstuga is managed by its own council and with its own
organization. Though there exists a healthy competition amongst
them, they are all founded on the same principles, which from
the beginning have proved successful. They are organized and
conducted by ladies, though some gentlemen also are members
of the councils. Thus, they are chiefly the work of Swedish women.
Kp the number of children, who need to be taken care of
is very large, the Arbetsstugor are organized with as little
expense as possible, in order that as many pupils as possible
may profit by them.
We have indeed succeeded to an astonishing degree in
maintaining the schools at a small cost, without failing to make
them attractive to the children
The parish generally provides the rooms gratuitously.
The teaching is given by a staff of young ladies who
mostly give their time freely, or for very small remuneration.
The head of every Arbetsstuga is a lady who, as a rule, gives
up the whole or part of her time to this work. We have many
young ladies who have devoted year after year to this noble
and blessed vocation.
Practical tradesmen are also engaged to teach the diffe¬
rent trades.
Boys and girls attend the Arbetsstuga separately every
other day; that is, three times a week each, for two conse¬
cutive hours. For the younger children, the classes are mixed.
The number of children attending one Arbetsstuga varies from
50 to 200. Ten to twelve form one class. They sit around
tables, as in a home. In some of the largest buildings each
separate trade is taught in a separate room Even small rooms
will do, with the simple and excellent new method of ventila¬
tion that has been invented by a Swedish pedagogue, Doctor
Sven Nilsson.
We are very particular never to choose such kinds of
work that will hurt the eyes of the children, a thing that
the German medical men complain of as being done in the
Kindergarten.
In order to counteract the restless dispositions so common
to children part of the plan of the Arbetsstuga is, that the
pupils shall make several of each sort of article before they
begin a new kind of work. This gives them handiness, rapidity
and perfection in work.
The ivorlt that is taught has been of various kinds: for
the youngest (from 7— 9 years), chip and bast plaiting and
needlework; for the elder pupils (10—14) various styles of bast
work, fret-sawing, brush-making, netting, weaving, basketwork,
shoe-mending, carpentering, wood-carving, metal work, &c. &c
Thus, the children have made numerous different kinds of
objects. They have plaited hats, made slippers, chairs, baskets
of many kinds, tables, shelves, baking troughs, mended shoes,
made waistcoats with the buttonholes, pantaloons, children's
dresses and aprons; they have woven mats, petticoats, aprons;
they have made iron and steel instruments, hammers and other
tools, rakes, spades, small iron beds, sledges, &c.
These numerous articles, of the children's own work, are
sold once or twice a year at a kind of bazaar in the Arbets¬
stuga, which is visited by the inhabitants of the parish and
the friends of the cause, or at one great public sale for all
such worshops of the city. These sales more than cover the
expenses of fresh materials for further work; they contribute
towards the maintenance of the Arbetsstuga. The work done
is not given to the children, but they get a meal instead, as
a reward, either dinner or supper, or both, for those who spend
the greater part of their day in the Arbetsstuga. The food is
well prepared, and is chosen with regard to the tastes of the
children, as well as to health and economy.
The expenses for food, service, materials, coals, gas and
the teachers' salaries are defrayed by the above mentioned sales
of work, by voluntary gifts and by contributions from the parish
and from the municipality. When the income increases, the
ladies still keep as economical in their management as before,
in order to be able to receive proportionately more children.
At present therefore, 1,500 poor children are taught and fed
in the twelve Arbetsstugor of Stockholm. The average cost of
each child has amounted to from 15 shillings to one guinea
a year, everything included.
The pupils wTho can do their work well receive, as a re¬
ward for good behaviour or dexterity, materials for »home¬
work*, as the children call it, for which a small payment is
given. They may thus get chips, or raffia bast for hat plaiting,
payed so much a yard, and also other materials. The money
thus gained by their own efforts is extremely valuable to them,
and they are most anxious to get this work, considering it a
severe punishment to be deprived of it. They put by the money
received in this way, in a savings bank by the help of the
headmistress. The children will often say to the teachers:
»please give us some home work, even if not paid for; we do
so want to have some occupation at home».
The home-work has proved to be a valuable means of
education; it teaches the young how to make good use of their
leisure hours. The parents too appreciate it highly. Thus,
unconsciously and quietly, many a child, through its enthusiasm
for work, has acted as a missionary at home and been the
instrument of reforming bad parents.
I may here quote what a Swedish sister af charity has
told us:
»I occasionally visited the home of a poor family living
 9
4
in the outskirts of Stockholm. The husband was out of work
and a drunkard, the home looked dirty and desolate; almost
everything was pawned and misery reigned in the family.
A year after I came to the same place. Their home now
looked orderly and the furniture was restored; a certain well-
being seemed to prevail. I saw a great deal of raffiabast in
the room and asked what it was for.
»Father and I are making baskets out of it>, said a young
daughter who came forward. >I have learnt this work in the
Arbetsstuga and have taught father how to do it and it does
interest him so much. Mother sells the baskets and we earn
a good deal of money by it.
The husband had left off drinking and the family had
been able to pay their debts.*

After this short sketch of the aim and organization of the

Arbetsstugor of Sweden, there remains but to state briefly their
results and their influence upon the children, which an expe¬
rience of twelve years has afforded.
In my report of 1897 upon the ten preceding years, I
have already shown, by quotations from various authorities,
that the results have been most cheering and encouraging.
Their influence upon the children is very evident. The pupils
come, as a rule, from the poorest of homes, where the parents
are unable to give them care and training; indeed, a great
number have not had what might be called a home, the parents
— or, not seldom, only a mother! — belonging sometimes to
the lowest grades of society.
Still, those from even such homes have become kindly,
truth-loving, industrious and obedient. Moreover, children who
had before shown themselves untoward, who had been dull and
lazy in the board-schools have, after some time, been awakened
 10
*
and have been able to master their lessons with diligence and
understanding. This beneficial influence upon the pupils is
borne witness to by the boardschool teachers.
One of the suburbs of Stockholm has rather a bad repu¬
tation for the low condition of its inhabitants. Ten years ago
an Arbotsstuga was opened there on behalf of the numerous
badly behaved children of the district, both boys and girls;
and it has been of such service that when the 10 years' report
was published by the council, they were able to state, that not
one of these pupils, even in after years, had had to do with
the police
The experience of other countries about the excellent in¬
fluence upon the young of manual training, is in agreement
with ours.
Manifestations of wickedness and bad actions seldom occur.
In visiting these workshops, one is struck by the good behaviour
that reigns there. One would imagine that the pupils had
come from good and happy homes. They devote their entire
attention to their occupations.
Severe discipline is not necessary. Manual work and move¬
ment are inseparable, and several of the trades require the
children to move about; but it seldom happens that they are
too restless. Unless that occurs, the teacher does not interfere.
This allowance of a certain amount of freedom is of no small
importance, although a matter generally too little considered
by pedagogues.
To sit still for hours at a time, is unhealthy for grown
up people, and is so, to a far greater degree, for children. The
usual severe school discipline, which forbids children to move
in their seats, is a danger to their health and contrary to the
laws of physiology.
But greater still, from the physiological and hygienic point
of view, is the clangor from the continual brainwork of our
 11

schools. I have heard several medical men and physiologists*)

pronounce themselves very decidedly against it. Manual training,
on the contrary, is a most useful employment of all the faculties.
The experience of our Arbetsstugor has taught us how
attractive manual training is to the young, and how wonder¬
fully it develops mind and body.
The children's attendance at the Arbetsstugor is not com¬
pulsory; but they love to come there. They consider the place
as a second home, and non-attendance is rare. They want to
come, even if ill, and during school holidays; on Sundays too
they would like to come. If, for some reason, it is suspended
or closed, they are very unhappy. They love their Arbetsstuga.
There are many touching instances of this love. In illustration
of this, I will quote some:

One day a board-school in Stockholm was closed for clea¬

ning. A comrade early in the morning came to fetch one of
the pupils who used to spend most of the day in the Arbets¬
stuga, for a long walk.
»Oscar*, said his mother, a poor widow, who went out
as a charwoman, »I hope you will mind the time and not miss
the Arbetsstuga; you should be there at one o'clock.'
*Oh mother*, exclaimed Oscar, »you need not remind me,
our Arbetsstuga is the clearest of all to me!»
At 11 o'clock Oscar was already at work in his Arbets¬
stuga, though the lessons did not begin til one.
This little fellow was then 10 years old; he is 12 now
and so clever arc his little fingers, that ho can copy any fancy
work he sees, and constantly invents new models of baskets
and fancy work. In the postoffice saving bank he has got 60
kronor (3 guineas), that he has earned farthing by farthing

r) See prot. Angelo Moss>o'sspeech at the ClarkUniversityin 1899:Psychic

processesand muscular exercises.
 12

during the 6 years that he has been a pupil in the Arbets¬

stuga and in the board-school he has the highest certificates
for behaviour and for all other subjects

A deeply touching story is told in the report of the

council about a pupil of the Arbetsstuga in Upsala:
*She was humpback and the bones of both legs were
decaying, she consequently was unable so walk, but her sister
every day carried her to the Arbetsstuga and back, although
she was 13 years old and no light weight. She could not
—
walk, nor stand, nor sit she knelt, supported by her elbows
on the table! But it was her greatest and only joy when
she was allowed to be at the Arbetsstuga.
Now she is dead, poor little Anna, but a blessing must
come from the happy hours that this sad and much-tried poor
little girl spent there.*

Little John, a small boy of eleven who had been a pupil

in the Arbetsstuga of the Swedish university-town Lund and
was immensely fond of working there, was told he could not
be allowed to remain, »because the Arbetsstuara was made for
poor boys and he was not poor enough*.
»Mother* exclaimed little John the next morning, what
shall I do to become poor to be allowed to remain at the
Arbetsstuga?

When first founded, the Arbetsstugor had many adversaries,

as is often the case with new institutions. But, it was not
long before the judgments were altered; and they are now the
object of warm sympathies, and are looked upon with great
confidence. The opinion has become more and more general,
that they are among the best means we have of saving poor
children from falling into the temptations to which they are
 13

usually exposed. Here, the}r have a refuge from roaming about

the streets, docks and markets. Here, too, they get a substi¬
tute for the homelife of which they have been deprived, as
they are treated with unfailing kindness by their teachers.
Their education and development are early — just in those years
when it may be done with profit — led in a good direction.
They get, at the same time, their handiness and the faculty
of perception developed. They learn practical work and trades,
which enable them to earn their living when they go out into
the struggle of life, and which bring them the self-reliance that
the poor are in such need of. Here also, are opportunities
of finding out their special gifts. Above all, they imbibe that
love of worlc, and enthusiasm for it, which is the best spur,
and the surest guide during their future. Thus, is their cha¬
racter formed, and their lifework prepared for.

Before closing this short account, I wish, in connection

with it, to emphasize a matter of the greatest importance in
the education and happiness of the coming generations.
From experience gained in the Swedish Arbetsstugor, we
are more and more convinced that a total reform in the educa¬
tion and instruction of the young is absolutely necessary. We
must abandon the one-sided book-learning, and give the chief
part of school time to manual training and practical work.
Particularly is this essential during those early years when, as
Mr Leland asserts, handiness and the faculty of perception
— between the —
may be best developed ages of 7 and 14
a period when we, in our modern education, put only almost
books in the hands of the young.
We must, howTever, choose manual work of such kinds
that are best adapted for their mental and physical benefit.
Personally, I have, for many years, been convinced of
these principles. Twenty-four )-ears ago, I tried together with
 14

some friends to introduce them practically in our first school

for coeducation in Sweden and, as above mentioned, the ex¬
perience of our Arbetsstugor afford abundant proofs throughout
of very great advantage.
It is most gratifying to witness that these views are gaining
ground more and more in other countries. Several great autho¬
rities have given their favourable opinion in this direction. I
do not hereby allude to Froebel and the Kindergarten, which
have to do with early childhood — from 3 to 7 years — but
to the following periods in child life. I will here only quote
the words of Canon Faeeae:
The traditional system of booktraining which we call educa¬
— I
tion, says Canon Farrar quote Mr Woodward's -excellent
book »Manual training in Education* — neglect some of the
faculties of all minds, and nearly all the faculties of some minds.
The programme of studies and exercises needs to be
carefully revised. On the one hand it should be pruned of
worthless appendages; on the other it should be enriched by
judicious additions. It needs invigorating; it must interest,
attract and inspire with love those whom it now tires, repels
and disheartens. /
»The proper education of to-day is a preparation for the
duties and responsibilities of life*, says Mr Woodward. »Our
students must therefore come out of school with the elements
of high character, with a vigorous, healthy body and mind,
able to put both hand and brain to work*.
The introduction of manual training will make school
work interesting and school attractive. It will furnish oppor¬
tunity for personal action, for the training of the character
and of the will, and for culture of the executive powers. Its
result is, that when the child steps out of school into life, he
does not find himself in terra incognita.
 15

When this is recognised, it will lead to an entire change

of our whole system of teaching, the primary as well as the
secondary, for the upper as well as for the lower classes.
But, to the poor, who must earn their bread with their
hands that reform will become of the greatest importance
and blessing.
 \