£ SEVEN LK TEACHING OF GREGORY-BAGLEY-IAYTON Class L /c^/, A <^ V A 5' Book rZ ()Oi!yright}^»_ v'V 'n copyRiGin 'DEPOSm «' THE SEVEN LAWS OF TEACHING BY JOHN MILTON GREGORY First Regent of the University of Illinois NEW EDITION Revised by William C. Bagley and Warren K. Lay ton, of the School of Education, University of Illinois THE PILGRIM PRESS BOSTON CHICAGO COPYBIGHT 1917 By frank M. SHELDON NOV -9 1917 THE PILGRIM PRESS BOSTON © C[ A '•■ ? C 1 4 PREFATORY NOTE TO THE REVISED EDITION In this revision of Dr. Gregory's book, every effort has been made to retain both the form and the sub- stance of the original. Certain additions and altera- tions have been suggested by the recent developments in educational theory and practice. The most extensive changes have been made in the rewriting of Chapter III and Chapter VI. W. C. B. W. K. L. Urbana, Illinois. June, 1917. m CONTENTS I PAGE The Laws of Teaching 1 II The Law of the Teacher 13 III The Law of the Learner 24 IV The Law of the Language 41 V The Law of the Lesson 57 VI The Law of the Teaching Process ... 73 VII The Law of the Learning Process ... 96 vni The Law of Review and Application . . . 107 JOHN MILTON GREGORY The author of this book, John Milton Gregory, was one of the educational leaders of the genera- tion that has just passed from the stage. He was born at Sand Lake, in Rensselaer County, New York, on July 6th, 1822. His early training was obtained in the district schools and he became himself a dis- trict-school teacher at the age of seventeen. Three years later, apparently destined for the profession of law, he entered Union College at Schenectady, New York, but after graduating in 18^6, he gave up the study of law to enter the ministry of the Bap- tist Church. His heart, however, was in teaching, and in 1852 he became head of a classical school in Detroit, Michigan. Almost immediately he was recognized as a leader in the educational councils of the state. He was active in the affairs of the State Teachers' Association and was one of the founders and the first editor of the "Michigan Jour- nal of Education." His iniimate knowledge of educational affairs and his popularity among the teachers led to his election in 1858 to the State superintendency of public instruction, an office to which he was twice reelected. He declined a fourth nomination in 186^ when, as president of Kalamazoo College, he entered upon a new phase of his career, — the organization of institutions for higher education. In 1868, when the University of Illinois was es- tablished under the name, "Illinois State Industrial University," Dr. Gregory was asked to undertake the organization of the new institution. His work viii JOHN MILTON GREGORY for thirteen years in laying the foundations of one of the largest and strongest of the state universities gives him a secure place in the history of American education. After leaving the University of Illinois he served for some time as a member of the United States Civil Service Commission. The great work of his life, however, was the organization of the University, and just before he died in 1898 he asked that his body be laid to rest within the campus of the school for which he had done so much. This request was reverently complied with. Dr. Gregory's book, "The Seven Laws of Teach- ing," was first published in 188^. A clear and simple statement of the important factors govern- ing the art of teaching, it has been especially suc- cessful as a handbook for Sunday-school teachers. In recognition of Dr. Gregory's great service to the University of Illinois, two members of the School of Education undertook the revision of the book which is here presented. INTRODUCTION Let us, like the Master, carefully observe a little child, that we may learn from him what educa- tion is; for education, in its broadest meaning, embraces all the steps and processes by which an infant is graduaUy transformed into a full-grown and intelligent man. Let us take account of the infant. He has a com- plete human body, with eyes, hands, and feet, — all the organs of sense, of action, and of locomo- tion, — and yet he lies helpless in his cradle. He laughs, cries, feels; he has the attributes of the adult, but not the powers. In what does this infant differ from a man? Simply in being a child. His body and limbs are small, weak, and without voluntary use. His feet cannot walk; his hands have no skill; his lips cannot speak. His eyes see without perceiving, and his ears hear without understanding. The universe into which he has come lies around him unknown and mysterious. More observation and study make it clear to us that the child is but a germ. — he has not his destined growth — and he is ignorant — without acquired ideas. On these two facts rest the two notions of educa- tion: (1) tlie development of capacities, and (2) the acquisition of experience. The first is the ma- turing of body and mind to full growth and strength; the second is the process of furnishing the child with the heritage of the race. X Introduction Each of these facts — the child's immaturity and his ignorance — might serve as a basis for a science of education. The first would emphasize the capac- ities of the human being, their order of develop- ment and their laws of growth and action. The second would involve a study of the various branches of human knowledge, and how they are dis- covered, developed, and perfected. Each of these sciences would necessarily involve the other, as a study of powers involves a knowledge of their products, and a study of effects includes a survey of causes. Based upon these two forms of educational science, we find the art of education to be a two- fold one : the art of training and the art of teaching. Since the child is immature in the use of all his capacities it is the first business of education to give such training as will bring them to full develop- ment. This training may be physical, mental, or moral. Since the child is ignorant, it is the business of education to communicate to it the experience of the race. This is properly the work of teaching. Considered in this light, the school is but one of the agencies of education, since we continue throughout our lives to acquire experience. The first object of teaching, then, is to stimulate in the pupil the love of learning, and to form in him habits and ideals of independent study. These two, the cultivation of capacities and the transmission of experience, together make up the teacher's work. All organizing and governing are subsidiary to this two-fold aim. The result to be sought is a full-grown physical, intellectual, and moral manhood, with such resources as are neces- sary to make life useful and happy and as will Introduction xi enable the individual to go on learning from all the activities of life. These two great branches of the educational art, — training and teaching, — though separable in thought, are not separable in practice. We can only train by teaching, and we teach best when we train best. The proper training of the intellectual capacities is found in the acquisition, elaboration, and application of the knowledge and skills which represent the heritage of the race. There is, however, a practical advantage in keep- ing these two processes of education before the mind. The teacher with these clearly in view will observe more easily and estimate more in- telligently the real progress of his pupils. He will not be content with a dry daily drill which keeps his pupils at work as in a treadmill, nor will he be satisfied with cramming their minds with use- less facts and names. He w^ill carefully note both sides of his pupils' education, and will direct his labors and adapt his lessons wisely and skilfully to secure both of the ends in view. This statement of the two sides of the science and art of education brings us to the point of view from which may be clearly seen the real aim of this little volume. That aim is stated in its title —THE SEVEN LAWS OF TEACHING. Its object is to set forth, in a certain systematic order, the principles of the art of teaching. It deals with mental capacities only as they need to be consid- ered in a clear discussion of the work of acquiring experience in the process of education. As the most obvious work of the schoolroom is that of studying the various branches of knowl- edge, so the work of teaching — the work of assign- ing, explaining, and hearing lessons — is that which xii Introduction chiefly occupies the time and attention of the in- structor. To explain the laws of teaching will, therefore, seem the most direct and practical way to instruct teachers in their art. It presents at once the clearest and most practical view of their duties, and of the methods by which they may win success in their work. Having learned the laws of teaching, the teacher will easily master the phil- osophy of training. This little book does not claim to set forth the whole science of education, nor even the whole art of teaching. But if it has succeeded in group- ing around the seven factors, which are present in every instance of true teaching, the leading prin- ciples and rules of the teaching art, so that they can be seen in their natural order and relations, and can be methodically learned and used, it has fulfilled the desire of the author. THE SEVEN LAWS OF TEACHING Chapter I THE LAWS OF TEACHING 1. Teaching has its natural laws as fixed a s the laws of th e planet s or of growing_or- ga msm^ . It is a proc ess in wh ich definite forc es are emp loyed to produce definitaj^e- s ults, and these results follow as regularly and„£gj:tain1y as the day follows the sun. Wliat the teacher does, he does through nat- ural agencies working out their natural ef- fects. Causation is as certain — if not always so obvious nor so easily understood — in the movements of mind as in those of matter. The laws of mind are as fixed as material laws. 2. To discover the laws of any process, whether of mind or of matter, makes it pos- sible to bring that process under the control of one who knows the laws and can command the conditions. Knowledge of the laws of electric currents has made it possible to 2 The Seven Laivs of Teaching send messages through the ocean ; and h e that masters the law s o f teach ing may convey to t he mind s_of other s the exp erience of the race^ He who would gain harvests must obey nature 's laws for the growing of corn, and he who would teach a child successfully must follow the laws of teaching. Nowhere, in the world of mind or in the world of matter, can man produce any effects except as he employs the means upon which those effects depend. 3. Te aching, j n its simplest sense, is the communication of experience. This experi- ence may consist of facts, truths, doctrines, ideas, or ideals, or it may consist of the proc- esses or skills of an art. It may be^taught l^S^k^ me.Qf-WDxd^, by_signs715y_objects, h^ actions, or by ex ample s^; but whatever the substance, the mode, or the aim, of the teach- ing, the act itself, fundamentally considered, is always substantially the same: it is a communication of experience. Itjs painting in the min d of another the picture in one's o;vm;— the^shaping;^ of the thought and under- standing to_ihe comprehension of some truth which the teacher knows and wishes to com- municate. Further on we shall see that the word ^ * communicatiQiL' 1 is used here, not in the sense of the transmission of a mental something from one person to another, but rather in the sense of helping another to re- The Laivs of Teaching 3 produce the same experience and thus to maJge it common to the two . )^^^*it^h-^\^ The Seven Factors 4. To discover the law of any phenom- enon^^we must subjject that phenomenon to'a sc ientific analy sis and study its separate' parts. If any complete act of teaching be so analyzed, it will be found to contain seven distinct elements or factors : £1^ two personal f actors — a teacher^ and a learner ; (2J two m ental factors— a common language or me - d ium of communication, a n d a lesson or tru'S i or art to be communicated ; and (3,) t hree f unctional acts , or processes-^ thaf of the t eacher, t hat of the learner, an d a final or finishing proc ess to test an d fix the resu lt. ^, These are essential elements in every full and complete act of teaching. Whether the lesson be a single fact told in three min- utes, or a lecture occupying as many hours, the seven factors are all present, if the work is effective. None of them can be omitted, and no others need be added. If there is a true science of teaching, it must be found in the laws and relations of these seven factors. 6. To discover their laws, let us pass the seven factors again in careful review: (1) a teacher; (2) a learner; (3) a common lan- guage or medium of communication; (4) a 4 The Seven Laws of Teaching lesson or truth; (5) the teacher's work; (6) the learner's work; (7) t he review w ork, w hich organizes^ a pplieSj_^perfects^and fast- ens the work which ha s b een done. EacF7)f these seven factors is distinguished from the rest by some essential characteristic ; each is a distinct entity or fact of nature. Since every fact of nature is the product and proof of some law of nature, each element here described has its own great law of function, and these taken together constitute THE SEVEN LAWS OF TEACHING. 7. It may seem trivial so to insist upon all this. Some will say: **0f course there can be no teaching without a teacher and a pupil, without a language and a lesson, and unless the teacher teaches and the learner learns; or, finally, without a proper review, if any assurance is to be gained that the work has been successful. All this is too obvious to need assertion." So also is it obvious that when seeds, soil, heat, light, and moisture come together in proper mea- sure, plants are produced and grow to the harvest; but the obviousness of these com- mon facts does not prevent their hiding among them some of the most profound and mysterious laws of nature. So, too, a sim- ple act of teaching may hide within it some of The Laws of Teaching 5 the most potent and significant laws of men- tal life. The Laws Stated 8. These laws are not obscure and hard to reach. They are so simple and natural that they suggest themselves almost spontane- ously to the careful observer. They lie im- bedded in the simplest description that can be given of the seven elements named, as in the following; (1) A teacher must be one who KNOWS the lesson or truth or art to be taught. (2) A learner is one who ATTENDS with interest to the lesson. (3) The language used as a MEDIUM be- tween teacher and learner must be COMMON to both. (4) The lesson to be mastered must be ex- plicable in the terms of truth already known by the learner — the UNKNOWN must be ex- plained by means of the KNOWN. (5) Teaching is AEOUSING and USING the pupiVs mind to grasp the desired thought or to master the desired art. (6) Learning is THINKING into one's own UNDEKSTANDING a new idea or truth or working into HABIT a new art or skill. (7) The test and proof of teaching done — the finishing and fastening process — must 6 The Seven Laws of Teaching be a REVIEWING, RETHINKING, RE- KNOWING, REPRODUCING, and AP- PLYING of the material that has been taught, the knowledge and ideals and arts that have been communicated. The Laws Stated as Rules 9. These definitions and statements are perhaps so simple and obvious as to need no argument or proof ; but their force as funda- mental laws may be more clearly seen if they are stated as rules for teaching. Ad- dressed in thp teacher , thev^ may read as f ollows,: I. Know thoroughly and familiarly the lesson you wish to teach, — teach from a full mind and a clear understanding. II. Gain and keep the attention and in- terest of the pupils upon the lesson. Do not try to teach without attention. III. Use words understood in the same way by the pupils and yourself — language clear and vivid to both. IV. Begin with what is already well known to the pupil upon the subject and with what he has himself experienced, — and pro- ceed to the new material by single, easy, and natural steps, letting the known explain the unknown. V. Stimulate the pupiPs own mind to ac- The Laws of Teaching 7 tion. Keep his thoughts as much as possible ahead of your expression, placing him in the attitude of a discoverer, an anticipator. VI. Eequire the pupil to reproduce in thought the lesson he is learning — thinking it out in its various phases and applications till he can express it in his own language. VII. Eeview, review, REVIEW, repro- ducing the old, deepening its impression with new thought, linking it with added mean- ings, finding new applications, correcting any false views, and completing the true. Essentials of Successful Teaching 10. These rules, and the laws upon which they are based, underlie and govern all suc- cessful teaching. If taken in their broadest significance, nothing need be added to them or taken away. No one who thoroughly mas- ters and uses them need fail as a teacher, if he also has qualities that enable him properly to maintain the good order necessary to give them free and undisturbed action. Disorder, noise, and confusion may hinder and prevent the results desired, just as the constant dis- turbance of some chemical elements forbids the formation of the compounds which the laws of chemistry would otherwise produce. But good teaching, in itself, will often bring about good order. 8 The Seven Laws of Teaching 11. Like all the great laws of nature, these laws of teaching seem clear and ob- vious; but like other fundamental truths, their simplicity is more apparent than real. Each law varies in its applications with vary- ing minds and persons, although remaining constant in itself; and each stands related to other laws and facts till it reaches the outermost limits of the art of teaching. In the succeeding chapters we shall proceed to a careful study of these seven laws, reach- ing in our discussion many valuable prin- ciples in education and many practical rules which can be of use in the teacher's work. 12. These laws and rules apply to the teaching of all subjects in all grades, since they are the fundamental conditions on which ideas may pass from one mind to another. They are as valid and useful for the in- structor in the university as for the teacher in the elementary school, and for the teach- ing of a law in logic as for instruction in arithmetic. 13. There may be many successful teach- ers who never heard of these laws, and who do not consciously follow them; just as there are people who walk safely without any theo- retical knowledge of gravitation, and talk in- telligibly without studying grammar. Like the musician who plays ^'by ear,'' these The Laws of Teaching 9 *'iiaturaP' teachers have learned from prac- tice the laws of teaching, and obey them from habit. It is none the less true that their success comes from obeying law, and not in spite of law. Skill and Enthusiasm 14. Let no one fear that a study of the laws of teaching will tend to substitute a cold, mechanical sort of work for the warm- hearted, enthusiastic teaching so much to be desired, and so much admired and praised. ^riio ^^i1^ ViTiHiog pnr^ Trpppg alLze, enthiiaiasm by f yiviTify it suc ce ss where it would otherwise be discouraged by defe at. Th e^true wor k- er's love for his work grows wimTiis abin ty to do it ^ ell. Enthusiasm will accomplish a ll the more whe n guided by intelligence a nd a rmed with sk ill. 15. Unreflecting superintendents and school boards often prefer enthusiastic teachers to those who are simply well edu- cated or experienced. They believe, not with- out reason, that enthusiasm will accomplish more with inadequate learning and little skill than the best-trained and most erudite teacher wholly lacking in zeal. But why choose either the ignorant enthusiast or the educated sluggard! Enthusiasm is not con- fined to the unskilled and the ignorant, nor 10 The Seven Laws of Teaching are all calm, cool men idlers. There is an enthusiasm born of skill — a joy in doing what one can do well — that is far more effective, where art is involved, than the enthusiasm born of vivid feeling. The steady advance of veterans is more powerful than the mad rush of raw recruits. The world's best work, in the acLoda jasJ]lJiL£..shops, is done by lie calm, _steadyj_ and persistent efforts of skilled workmen who know how to keep their tools sharp^and to make every effort reach its 16. The most serious objection to sys- tematic teaching, based on the laws of teach- ing, has sometimes come from p astors, Sun - day-school teachers^ an d others,^ who have assu med that th e p rincipal aim of the Sun - da y school IS to im press rathe r t.hgr } to in- struct; and that skilful teaching, if desir- able at &11, is much less important than warm appeals to the feelings and earnest exhorta- tions on the proper occasions. But what ex- hortation will have such permanent power as that which is heralded by some clear truth? If the choice must be l3etween the warm- hearted teacher who makes gushing appeals, and the cold-hearted one who stifles all feel- ing by his indifference, the former is per- haps to be preferred; but why either? Is there no healthful mean between steam and The Laws of Teaching 11 ice for the water of life % Thp fpafiher wlio^ f^ o wn miTi H glaws with the trutli. and wh o sTn'1fin11j_jpar1« Vn'g pnp Us to a c lear nnda r- standin ^ of the sam e tr uth, will no t fail in inRpirntioTiql pnwftr 17. These questions may be left to call forth their own inevitable answers. They will have served their purpose if they repel the disposition to discredit the need of true teaching in Sunday schools as well as in day schools; and if they convince Sunday-school leaders that the laws of teaching are the la ws of mind^ which must be followed as faithfully in studying the Word of God as in studying his works. A Word to Teachers 18. Leaving to other chapters the full dis- cussion of the meaning and philosophy of these seven laws, we here urge the teacher, especially the Sunday-school teacher, to give them the most serious attention. While fac- ing your pupils, how often have you wished for the power to look into their minds, and to plant there with sure hand some truth of science or some belief of the gospel? No key will ever open to you the doors of those chambers in which live your pupils^ souls; no glass will ever enable you to penetrate their mysterious gloom. But in the great 12 The Seven Laivs of Teaching laws of your common nature lie the lines of communication by which you may send the thought fresh from your mind, and awaken the other to receive and embrace it. 19. In the discussion of these laws there will necessarily occur some seeming repeti- tions. They are like seven hilltops of dif- ferent height scattered over a common terri- tory. As we climb each in succession, many points in the landscapes seen from their sum- mits will be found included in different views, but always in a new light and with a fresh horizon. New groupings will show new relations and bring to light, for the careful student, new aspects and uses. The repeti- tions themselves will not be useless, as they will serve to emphasize the most important features of the art of teaching, and will im- press upon teachers those principles which demand the most frequent attention. Chapter II THE LAW OF THE TEACHER 1. The universal reign of law is the cen- tral truth of modern science. No force in man or nature but works under the control of law; no effect in mind or matter but is produced in conformity with law. The sim- plest notion of natural law is that nature re- mains forever uniform in its forces and op- erations. Causes compel their effects, and effects obey their causes, by irresistible laws. Thw£s^Mlkjwheit thej^^re by reason of the laws of their being, and to. learn the law j)? any fact is to learn jhe mo st fundamental^ truth that we can k now abouL it. This uni- formity of nature is the basis of all science and of all practical art. In mind and in mat- ter the reign of unvarying laws is the primal condition of any true science. The mind has freedom within law but no liberty to produce effects contrary to laws. The teacher is therefore as much the subject o¥ l£w as the star that shines or the ship that sails*. Many qualiScations are recognized as important to the teacher's position and work; and if alL t he requirements sought for could be ob- tained, the teacher would be a model man 14 The Seven Laws of Teaching or woma n, a perfect assemblage of impos si- ble excellences ^ (jrood character and rare moral qualities are desirable in an instructor of the young, if not for his actual work, at least to prevent harm from his example ; but if, one by one, we dismiss from our catalogue of needful qualifications for the work of teaching those not abolutely indispensable, we shall find ourselves obliged to retain at last, as necessary to the very notion of teach- ing, a knowledge of the subject-matter to be taught. The Law of the Teacher, then, — the law whicii limits and describes him, — is thisf The teacher must know that which he would teach. Philosophy of the Law 2. That we carmp t fenph wit h mi t kTiowl- ed^e seems too simple for proof. How can s'omething come out of nothing, or how can darkness give light 1 To affirm this law seems like declaring a truism: but deeper study shows it to be a fundamental truth, — the law of the teacher. No other qualification is so fundamental and essential. If the terma„,of the law are rever sed, another important truth i s revealed ; What the teacher knows he must teach. The Law of the Teacher 15 3. The word EIN O W stands central in t he l aw of the teach er. Knowledge is the m a- t erial with whifiht.hfi teacher works, a nd the first reason for th e law mu st be SQUghtULU t he nature of knowlftd^p . What men call knowledge is of all degrees, from the first glimpse of truth to the full understanding. At different stages the experience of the race, as we acquire it, is characterized^by : (Ij fainiE"fecognit^; (2) the abilit y to recall for oufs'elyeSajoj to^_describaJn n general way ,tP o thers^j what we have learned.: (3) thejower r eadily to e xplain, pro ve, i llustrate, and ap- pl^it; and (4) such_kn^wledge,„and, appre- ciation oflhe trutlijn its deeper significance and wider relations, that by the force of its importance we act upon i^, — our conduct_J~s modified by it. History is history only to him who thus reads and knows it. It is this last form of knowledge, or experience, which must be read into the law of the t;'ue teacher. 4. It is not affirmed that no one can teach at all without this fulness of knowledge ; nor is it true that every one who knows his sub- ject-matter thus thoroughly will necessarily , teach successfully. But imperfect knowing must be reflected in imperfect teaching. 'V^at a man does not know he cannot teach successfully. But the jaw of the teacher is^ only one of the laws of teaching, and failure 16 The Seven Laws of Teaching may come fr om the viola tion s of other con- di tions as well as f rom neglect of this. Like- wise success in so me measu re may come from o bedience to the oth er laws. However, teach - i ng must be u ncertain and li mping wh en characterized b;^ an inadequate know ledge o f the material to be taught. 5. A truth is known by its resemblances, and can best bC-seen in the Hght of otIGLer t ruth s. The pupil, inst ead of seeing a fact alone, s hould see it linked to the great body of trut h^n a ll its fruitful relation s. Great principles are discovered amid familiar facts vividly seen, and concepts clearly wrought. The power of illustration — a most import^t tool in t he teache r ^s art— comes only out.ijf clear a nd fam iliar knowledge. The un- knowing teacher is like the blind trying to lead the blind with only an empty lamp to light the way. 6. Consider the common facts taught in the geography of the schools, — the round- ness of the earth, the extent of oceans and continents, mountains, rivers, and peopled states and cities, — ^how tame and slight in interest to the half-taught teacher and his pupils; but how inspiring as seen by the Herschels, the Danas, and the Guyots! To them appear in vision the long processions of age-filling causes which have given shape The Law of the Teacher 17 to the globe. To such teachers geography- is one chapter in the science and history of the universe. So, too, with Biblical truths; they are meager in meaning to the careless reader and to the non- studious teacher, but they are brilliant with truth and rich with meaning to those who bring to their study the converging lights of history, science, and indeed all forms of recorded experience. 7. But the law of the teacher goes deeper still. T ruth must be clearlv understoo d be- f ore it can be vividly felt . Only the true sfu- dents of any science grow enthusiastic over it. It is the clearness of their vision which inspires the wonderful eloquence of the poet and the orator, and makes them the teachers of their race. It was Hugh Miller, the geol- ogist, whose eye deciphered and whose pen recorded **The Testimony of the Eocks.** Kepler, the great astronomer, grew wild as the mysteries of the stars unrolled before him, and Agassiz could not afford time to lecture for money while absorbed in the study of the fishes of an ancient world. That t eacher will he ^^]^ ?^^ lifele ss who onl y h alf knows t h e^ subject he would teack: but on e fired wit h e nthusiasm wi ll unconsciousl y ins pire his j )upil s with h is own intere st. "^ This e arnest Jppf^liu^ nf fmfT^ plpay'ly conceived is the secret of the enthusiasm so 18 The Seven Laws of Teaching much ad mired and praisedJ iL teacher and pr gacherf TJommon truths become trans- formed for such a teacher. History becomes a living panorama; geography swells out into great continental stretches of peopled nations; astronomy becomes the march of worlds and world-systems. How can the teacher's manner fail to be earnest and in- spiring when his subject-matter is so rich in radiant reality? 9. While Imowledge thus thoroughly and f amiliarly masteredlljous es into higher ac- tion all the powers of t he teachey . it also g lves^'Min the^ oJ^imand and use of those powers. Instead of a feeling of subservience to his text-book, th e teacher who knows his l esson a s h^ejiii g]irTR"lirhorne~iTi his recita - tion, and c an watch the efforts of his cla ss an^ direct ^^'^l^,_ea«^ th^ frp-nd of iljeir thoughts. He is ready to re cognize5a nd in- terpreMheir first gli mpses^of truth Tto re- move the" obstacles from their path^ and to^ aid and encourage them. 10. A teacher's rea dy and evident kno wl- edge helps to giv.Q.the~ pupil needed confi- dence. We follow with expectation and Be- light the guide who has a thorough knowl- edge of the field we wish to explore, but we follow reluctantly and without interest the ignorant and incompetent leader. Children The Law of the Teacher 19 object to being tau ght by o ne in wbom tlj^ey bavp Tin p,nnfirlPTip.ft. And this is not all. The great scholars, — the Newtons, the Humboldts, and the Huxleys, — kindle public interest in the sciences in which they themselves are working; in the same way t he well-prepare d t eacher awake ns in his pup ils the a ctive d e- sir e to study further . In some unfortunate cases, gre at knowledge is unaccompanie d by __^Ihe abilitY to inspire pupils with a l ove of stud y, and this is j i, rnnriitinn fntnl to successful tea gJiinff, especiall y with you ng pupils. Better a teacher with limited knowl- edge but with the power to stimulate his pu- pils, than an Agassiz without it. 11. Such is the philosophy of this first great law of teaching. Thus understood, it clearly portrays the splendid ideal which no one except the Great Teacher ever fully realized, but which 'every true teacher must approach. It defines accurately the forces with which the successful teacher must go to his work. From the mother teaching her lit- tle child, to the instructor of the most ab- stract science, the orator addressing senates, and the preacher teaching great congrega- tions, this law knows no exceptions and permits no successful violations. It affirms everywhere, the teacher must know that which he would teach. 20 The Seven Laws of Teaching Rules for Teachers 12. Among the rules which arise out of the Law of the Teacher, the following are the most important: (1) Pre£are_ each lesson by fresh study. Last year's knowledge has necessarily faded somewhat. Only fresh conceptions inspire us to our best efforts. (2) Find in the lesson its analogies to more familiar facts and prin ciples . In these lie the illustrations by which it may be taught to others. ( 3 ) Studvthe^LesRo n until it ta kes shaj^e i n familiar language . The final pro duct _of c lear tho ught is cle ar speej ^h. (4) Findthe^ natu ral ord er of the several stepso TlEe lesson . In every science there is a natural path from the simplest notions to the broadest views ; so, too, in every lesson. (5) I^djthe^reLaJiojil^^jL^ live s of the JBarners . Its practical value lies in these relations. (6) Use freely _a ll legitimate aids , but never r¥st until th e real u nderstand iup- is clearlvbef ore you. ^7) fiear in mind that complete mastery of a few things^^is better than an ineifectiye smattering of i nanv. " (8) Have a definite time for the study of The Law of the Teacher 21 e ach less( 2]2, i n advance of the teaching . All things help the duty done on time. One keeps on learning the lesson studied in ad- vance, and gathers fresh interest and illus- trations. (9) Have a plan_ o f study , b ut do not hes i- tate, when necess"ary, to st udy beyond th e plan. T he best mnemon ic dev ice is to ask a ndanswer thes e que stions abou t t he lesson : WhatI Hosl Whj f (10) Do not deny yo urself the help of good books bn t he sub;ject of your lesson s. Buy, boFrow, or beg, if necessary, but obtain somehow the help of the best thinkers, enough at least to stimulate your own thought; but do not read without thinking. If possible, talk the lesson over with an intelligent friend; collision often brings light. In the absence of these aids, write your views; ex- pressing your thoughts in writing may clear them of obscurities. Violations aiid Mistakes 13. This discussion would be incomplete without some mention of the frequent viola- tions of the law. The best teacher may spoil his most careful and earnest work by thought- less blunders. The true teacher will make as few errors as possible, and will profit by those that he makes. 22 The Seven Latvs of Teaching (1) The very ign or ance of h is p upils may - t empt the teache r t o ne^lect care ful prepara - t ion and study . He may think that in any event he will know much more of the lesson than the pupils can, and imagine that he will find something to say about it, or that the ignorance will pass unnoticed. A sad mis- take, and one that often costs dearly. The cheat is almost sure to be discovered, and from that time the teacher's standing with the class is gone. (2) S ome tea cher s assume that it is the p upils ' work, hot tneirs, to study the lesson , a nd that with the aid of the book in hand , ^^^ZJ!l!lJl^->S^ pasily in flp;p.prt.RiTi whpf~r the p upilsTiave done their duty. Better let one of the pupils who knows his lesson ex- amine the others, than to discourage study by your own indifference and lack of prep- aration. Teaching is not merely ^* hearing lessons.'' (3) Others look hastily through the les- son, and conclude that though they have not thoroughly mastered it, or perhaps any part of it, they have gathered enough to fill the periodj_ari3 can, if necessary, supplement the^Kttl£tti£^know with random talk or story. OrTTackingtime or heart for any prepara- tion, they dismiss all thought of teaching, fill the hour with such exercises as may occur The Laiv of the Teacher 23 to them, and hope that, as the school is a good thing anyway, the pupils will receive some benefit from mere attendance. (4) A more serious f ault is that of tho se w ho, f a jling to lin d stimul ation in tlie lesson, m ake it a "me re Tramework upoi Pwhich to hang some fan ci es of their own . (5) Thej:£4s_a^_mganer_wTong^ dq^ by th e teacher who seeks^ f, o c on peal b i Qazy" igno - r ance with_some_ p o mpous pretense of learn - ing^ hidin g his la ck of knowledge by an arra y o f high-sounding phrases beyond the com - Tp rehensioh of h ]> pn pils^ uttering solem n pl atitudes in a wise tone, or claiming exte n- s ive study and pro foun d informntinn -whif h h?^Eas not_the time to lay prop e rly befor e t hem . \Yho has not seen these shams prac- ticed upon pupils f Thus many teachers go to their work either partly prepared or wholly unprepared. They are like messengers without a message. They lack entirely the power and enthusiasm nec- essary to produce the fruits which we have a right to look for from their efforts. Let^ t his first fun da mental law of teaching t e tho roughly obey ed, and our schools will in- crease m numbers and in usefulness. ^ Chapter III THE LAW OF THE LEARNER 1. Passing from the teacher to the pupil, our next inquiry is for the Law of the Learner. Here the se arch must be for those chara cteristics wh ich differentiate i h e learne r fromothe r person ^; — fo r the essentiaf^ e- menis^ whichjnake him a learner. Let us place before us a successful student, and note carefully his actions and qualities. His in- tentjoot and absorbed manner ar e si^ns of his intere sF"an d attentio n. I nterest an d at- tention characterize t he^ mental state "oFlh e trueTearnerT' and constitute the essential basis on which the process of learning rests. The law of the learner, then, may be stated as follows: The learner must attend with interest to the material to he learned. 2. The law thus stated may seem to be a truism, but it is as really profound as it is seemingly simple. The plainest proof of its truth lies in the readiness with which every one will admit it. Its real significance can be found by careful study. The Law of the Learner 25 Attention Described 3. Attention mea ns the direct io n of th e mind upon s ome object . The object may be e xternal, as when one watches carefully the operation of a machine or listens intently to a piece of music; or it may be mental , as when one *^ calls to mind'' some past experi- ence, or * ^ reflects ' ' upon the meaning of some idea. The psychologist speaks of this direc- tion of the mind as the act of bringing the object into the ^'focus'' of consciousness. Consciousness is thus thought of as present- ing a **focus" and a ** margin." The f ocus_ is occupied bv our awareness o f t he object that is be ing- ^^attenr^pd^^ fr), thf> margin b y th ose sensations and fe eli ngs that, are_ jtili within t he range of consciousness, b ut which are vagu e, i ndistinct, a nd no t clear ly define d. Attention7then, is not a constant and in- variable condition. "W hen we speak of ^ ^ con - c entrated'' or * ^ absorbed' ' at tention we mean that thejFject attend ed to is r>r>p.n pying' the wH pIe^of consciousness^ But one may attend with varying degrees of absorption or con- centration. One may let one 's mind flit from this object to that, following each passing stimulus for a moment or two until something else *^ catches the attention"; or one may hold 26 The Seven Laws of Teaching oneself resolutely to a certain object and still be '* aware 'Hhat other objects are tempt- ing one in other directions; or one may be- come so completely absorbed in a given object that all other objects are practically non-existent so far as consciousness is con- cerned. There are, then, threp difPerppf, T^inds f)f attention^ each of which is important from the point of view of teaching and learning. {a) Attention, nf fhp ^^flitfiTig^^ kind^is o ften calle dM^lpassive ^ attention , beca use it in volves no effort of will . One simply fol- lows the behest of the strongest stimulus ; one is ^* passive'' because one is letting the forces that play about him control the mental life. TVns JR the pr imiti ve, instin ctive,^ ba^ic t ype of attentio:^^r — the attention of every one at so me times d uri ng the day ^ especially when one isj ire d or whei Ljoneis iii,a^plaxffl mood; b ut parti cularly the att ention of th e liHTe chjjd: {h) But the essen tial characteristic of _th e h uman mind jis ii iat it c an control, ra ther th an be controlled by^ th e forces thaJt su r- r dunTit . I t can ris e^above_itsjimfl£diata.„£li- ^^!12I!I!!SI!^^-^^^ To olTTieyon d the present In to theTnEure! It c an even atten d awa^^wm obje cts t)] at n aturally at tract attent iou-and hold itself per sistently a nd resolutely to The Law of the Learner 27 t asks and duti es tha t a re not immediate ly a ttractiveb ut wlnVh if. rpcog nizes a s impor - t ant and wn rfliy and Tior^ggaary. It can hold mo mentary fa ncy in leas h and worE reso - ^^^l^j£4^^Jl^^''^^^t£Illly toward a remote g()g1. T,his distinctively human type of attention is called ^^ ac tive ^^ attention be cause its first con dition is an elt 'ort of the will^ a determi- nation to do what should be done in spite of allurements to do something else that is pleasanter and more attractive. (c) But attenti on of this effortful^ aAtiye s^t is not always or oft en the mn sf pponoTr^i- caL^aaSZett^ctiyiZlQr lenrniw-g. Generally speaking we learn^jn pst easily ,, a, nd most economically when we are *^ absorbed ^^ in our workj whprTthe o bject^ th a t we are tryin g to ^x in mi nd an d rem embe r permanentl y r eally attrac t u s_.in their o wn right, so t o s pe^ ,^ — ^wh en our learningjg s o fasc inating that it simply '* car ries us withlt ^^'^^Siten- tion oT'this sort frequently grows out of per- sistent effort, — out of what we have just termed ^* active'' attention. This attention resembles passive attention in that its ob- ject is always attractive in itself and de- mands little or no effort to be brought into the focus of consciousness ; but it also grows out of active attention, out of effort and per- sistence; t his third tyne of attention is con - 28 The Seven Laws of Teaching s equently ter mftrJ ^^p^p^onr^QTy pQC!QiyQ>>^>if- t ention. It is obvious that at tention of the secon - d ary passive type i s. from the learner's point of view, the m ost desirable to cnltivate . It means economy o f learnin g, it means ple as- an t iearning^it mea ps effect ive learning . "But the general verdict of human experience is that these most desirable conditions are not easily fulfilled; — if they were, indeed, there would be little need for either teachers or schools. It seems to be generally true that these sustained and abiding ** interests'' are to be purchased only at a price — and the price is strenuous effort. One cannot lay this down as an unvarying rule, for there are doubtless some worthy interests that are ^* grown into" with little effort, — almost by following the lines of least resistance. This is possible, — but it is also possible that a ship which is left to the mercy of every wind that blows may be wafted ultimately into some safe and profitable harbor. Human experi- sonsthatarejgiore dependable than that which predicates effort ^ sacrifice, ari d p^^gig- t ence as the chief in g^redients of success, and t his holds as gen era llv of suc c ess in learnin g as it doei^of suc cess jn busi nes s, art, inven - tion, and industry, 'rhe man who simply The Laiv of the Learner 29 drifts into success in any field of human ac- tivity is almost as rare as the ship that drifts aimlessly into a safe harbor ; certainly those who know well and know thoroughly have paid the price of mental toil and mental ef- fort for their mastery, — and mental toil and mental effort a re onl y other words for acti ve attention. i Fwould be folly, however, for the teacher t o interpret this need of effort upo n t he part o f the learner a s me aning tha t th e art of te aching consists qtiIv of spttTrig tasks and dr ivin.o: pupils to the accomplishment of the se ta sks,-— for it is als o agreed that the kind of effort that comes fro m the in cit ement 6F5r iv- ing or me mcent ive of fear is~quite unlike ly to develop th ese perman en t and abiding in - terests. Thousands if lioFmillions of pupils under such treatment have never got beyond the stage of active attention ; more than this, they have developed a distinct and permanent dislike for what they have tried to learn. Thp Hnfy nf fliP fp^r>>ipr is essentially not th at o f a driver or a taskmaster but rathe r t hat of a c ounselor and gmi/lp His aim mu'st be to develop sec ondary passi ve attenti on. TKe^Msf^a^tojdo this is to make the stage s of ^advancement gr adual, so th at while the p upil must put f orth effort in g rasping eac h new step in tlie lesson or in the series of les- 30 The Seven Laws of Teaching sons^the completion of ea ch step will al^o m akethe effo rt seem wo rth wliil e. Modernjheories of teaching emphasize the importance of *^ pr oblem s ^^ in msuring this pfP gTHgsive ^series bf effort s, and tE^eTis mu ch to commen d in th i s movem ent T'he theory IS that, if you can interest the pupil in solving a problem, he will put forth the effort necessary to grasp the knowledge which is essential to the solution. Thus if the knowledge that one wishes to teach can be organized with reference to these prob- lems, the learning, it is maintained, will really take care of itself. As an example of this *^ problem'' method of teaching as exemplified in Sunday-school work, one may take the general topic, the geography of Palestine. The traditional method of teaching would consider this topic as an information-unit. Palestine would be located with reference to its place on the globe, and with reference to the adjacent countries; its natural features would be de- scribed, — its mountains, plains, seas, and rivers ; the climate would be referred to and perhaps explained by the various factors of latitude, altitude, prevailing winds, neigh- borhood of bodies of water, deserts, etc. ; the productions and the people would be consid- ered in conclusion. But the problem-method The Laiv of the Learner 31 would start in another way. A neffort rm 'g];if. b e made to inte res t the pup ils in an imag i- nary journey to P alestin e. How theY -Would r eacf the coun tr^how th^y wnnlH livp i\j\^ travgl wjiile~ih er ej Tiny t|^e peo ple lived and workecTa nd dres sed, — a ll of the pf^ flud tti^^tiv other suDoramate problems wo u ld creat e w hat might be called a^^ naturaT^^ dem and for the mtormation which , under the old er method, would be presented sy stemfltip.fl,]|y and somewhat abstractly . "TL'here is^an important place for the prob- lem-method in teaching, but it is clear that it cannot entirely replace systematic and pro- gressive study. It s value lies c hiefly, in b ringing about ai T^initia l momentum f or le arning . The mpfh^^ sTuvnld also be used ^ s a stimulating var ian t, breakin g the mon ot- o ny of a too l ogica l and^ bst ract prog ^dme. Most children,^once~l:hey have gained a start in study, will be able and willing to work systematically. Everything depends upon the skill with which the teacher passes from step to step, linking the new with the old, and gradually building up a whole that is composed of well-articulated parts. The Philosophy of the Law 4. However much teachers may neglect it in practice, they readily admit that without 32 The Seven Laws of Teaching attention the pupil cannot learn. One may as well talk to the deaf or to the dead as to at- tempt to teach a child who is wholly inatten- tive. All this may seem perhaps too obvious to need discussion, but a brief survey of the facts which underlie the law will make clear its force and authority. 5. Knowledge cannot be passed like a ma- terial substance from one mind to another, for thoughts are not objects which may be held and handled. I deas can be communi - c ated only by ind uci ng in the r eceivmg: min d p rocesses corresp on ding^ to those by whic h t hese ideas w ere nrst conceived. I deas mus t b e rethou^t^ exper ience mustl be r eexp en- e nced . It is obvious, therefore, that some- thing more is require d t han a mere p resent a- ti on,; the pupil must t hink. He must work with a fixed aim and purpose, — in other words, with attention. It is not enough to look and listen. If the mind is only half aroused, the conceptions gained will be faint and fragmentary, — as inaccurate and useless as they are fleeting. Teacher and text-book may be full of information but the learner will get from them only so much as his power of attention enables him to shape in his own mind. 6. The notion that the mind is only a re- ceptacle in which to stow other people's ideas The Law of the Learner 33 is entirely incorrect. The nature of mind, as far as we can understand it, is that of a power, or force, actuated by motives. The striking clock may sound in the ear, and the passing object may paint its image in the eye, but the inattentive mind neither hears nor sees. Who has not read a whole page with the eyes, and at the bottom found himself unable to recall a single idea that it contained? The senses had done their work, but the mind had been busy with other thoughts. 7. The vigor of mental action, like that of muscular action, is proportioned to the stimulus which inspires it. The pupil's mind may not at once respond to the com- mand of the teacher, nor to the call of a cold sense of duty. It is only when we begin our work **with a will" — that is, with interest in our work — that we are working with max- imal e:ffectiveness. Unexpected reserve powers come forth when the demand is strong enough. "With growing interest, attention grows, and we are enabled to accomplish more. Sources of Interest 8. The so urces of interest, wh ich are the ap proaches to fltt gntigQ, are ^^^^J - Each s ense-organ i s a g ateway to th e Tmri<\ nf tb^ pupiT Infants are lured by a bit of bright 34 The Seven Laws of Teaching ribbon, and will cease crying to gaze upon some strange object swung before their eyes. T he orator \g} ^p^^f urin g^ hand, hi s smiling, o r pa ssionate loo k, h is many-tonec^ voice, often d o more to Kol d the atten tio n of his auditors t han the mean in g^of his sp^e ck T he mind flfTi^ds to th^t whid^jaak^ a jn>pwprf n l,jap-" p eal to the sensg s. 9. The teacher may not have the orator ^s opportunity for free gesticulation and com- manding use of the voice; but within nar- rower limits he has it in his power to use face, voice, and hand. A sudden pause, with l ifted hand^ wil l arr est confusion and cau se th e -pupils toTTsten an d^prive attention. _ . TJ|;je s howing of a pict ure, or of some other illu s- tr ative materiairwi ll att ract the most car e- le ss and awaken "Tlie jj iost apathetic, The s udden raismg or lowering of the voic e a rouses fresh "atte ntion. All of these have value. But let it be remembered that th ese arg o nly devices t o be empli2^£djda£lLJl£caasary ; y our effort a t al j^times^s h ould be to mak e y our presentation so interestin g that thp at- ten tion of the j )upils will follow i t. Teach t he pupils to con cent rate : they w ill soon pj_ss t hrough thft sfl^gft of active a tiention and r each the effecti ve st age of sec ond ary passiv e att M^Mq^ . Eesort to artiiicial stimuli only as a last means to gain attention. The Law of the Learner 35 10. A source of ge nuine in ter est may be fo und in the rel ation of t he lesson to som e- t hing in me pa st li fe of the learner^ ,^ an'd a s till richer on^ i n the rel at ion of the less on to his future . We may add to these the sym- pathetic mterest inspired by the teacher ^s delight in the theme, and by the emulation of the pupil's fellow-learners in the same field. All these touch the pupiPs personality, for an appeal is made to enlightened self-interest. Interest Varies with Age 11. The sources of in tere st vary with the st ages of growt h a nd intelligence . This fact is important. The child of six, in general, feels no interest in and gives no attention to many themes which attract the youth of six- teen. Children_ and adults_are often inter- es ted in the same scenns and obJer,ts7^nt us ually not in the sa me p hases of the m. The child finds some striking fact of sense or some personal gratification an adequate stimulus to attention; the adult attends to the profounder relations, to the causes of the consequences. As children approach maturity, their interests tend to change from the concrete and more self-centered things to the abstract and ultimate. 36 The Seven Laws of Teaching Since attention follows interest, i t is foll y to a ttempt to gain att ention without fiy st st imulating interest It is true that it is the duty of children to pay attention to the per- formance of their lessons; but the sense of duty must be felt by the child as well as by the teacher. In the very little child, this sense of duty may be represented in part by affection and sympathy, and through these he may be made to feel the claims of obliga- tions which he cannot as yet fully under- stand. The little pupil may thus be led to feel an interest in things which the teacher loves and praises, before he has come fully to comprehend their importance. 12. The power of at tention increases with th e mental development, ^ nd is proportioned to the years of th ^ olf^^^± Very short les- sons will exhaust the attention of little chil- dren. ** Little and often" should be the rule for teaching these little people. Prolonged attention belongs to more mature minds. Hindrances to Attention 13. The two chief h ind rances to a jtantion are apathy and distraction. Tlio fovTYir^ may be due to aj ack of taste fo r the subj ect u nder consideration^ or t o weariness or some ot her physical conditio n. Dis traction is th e division of the attention among several oh- The Law of the Learner 37 j ects, a n d is the foe of all learning . If the apathy or distraction conies from fatigue or illness, the wise teacher will not attempt to force the lesson. Rules for Teachers Out of this Law of the Learner emerge some of the most important rules of teach- ing: (1) N ever begin a cl ass exerc ise until t he at tention __QiL_the class h as l^e en secure d. Study for a moment the faces'^ the pupils to see if all are mentally, as well as bodily, present. (2) Pause w h enever the a tte ntion is inter- r upted or lo st, and wa it until it is complete ly r egainej . (3) Never wholly ex haust fhp attentioT^ o f younpuj^s. JStop as soon as signs of fatigue appear. (4) Adant the le ug^^h o^ ^^^^ plagg pvpr^jjap to _the a.2:es o f t he ipupils ; the younger the pupils, the briefer the lesson. (5) Arouse a ttention whf^r nor^ogggj-Y Yj TTQTMQfy 11^ y^^iy^ p^/^pn-pf ,c,f ^ ^p^ l^^t be carcful to avoid distractions ; keep the real lesson in view. (6) Kindle and maintain fh^ hi ghost po s- s ilple interest in the subject . Interest and at- tention react upon each other. 38 The Seven Laws of Teaching (7) Pre sent those aspects of the lesson , a nd use"sif ^ jjlnsfrnfinTiQ ^^ ^ yill corresp'^ d to the ages and attai nments of the pupi ls. (8) Appeal whenever possible to the inter- ests of your pupils. (9) THe~favorite stories, songs, and sub- jects of the pupn gare ott^aJbzIl o theirlu; te rest and attention . Find out what these are, and make u se of them. ^ (lU) Look for sources ot' rjistr^ pfinTi^ si|y.Ti as unusual noises^ jns ide the classroom a nd o ut, and reduce them to a miTiiTmi TTi. (11) Pre pare beforehand thought-provo k- i ng questions ! Be sure that these are not beyond the ages and attainments of your pupils. (12) MaTrAjr^]7r prpapTitflfion as attractive as possible, using ill ustrations and all leg iti- mate devices . Do not, however, let these devices be so prominent as themselves to become sources of distraction. (13) Maintain and e xhibit in yon r self the clos^est^ttgjitiQii to and,maaL^finuiiie_.inter^t in the lessor ^ True enthusiasm is contagious. (14) Study the best use of the eye and the hand. Your pupils will respond to your earn- est gaze and your lifted hand. The Law of the Learner 39 Violations and Mistakes The violations of the Law of the Learner are numerous and they constitute the most serious errors of many teachers. (1) Eecitations are commenced before the attention of the pupils has been gained, and continued after it has ceased to be given. One might as well begin before the pupils have entered the room, or continue after they have left. (2) Pupils are urged to listen after their power of attention has been exhausted, and when fatigue has set in. (3) Little or no effort is made to discover the tastes or experiences of the pupils, or to create a real interest in the subject. The teacher, himself feeling no great interest in his work, seeks to compel the attention which he is unable to attract, and awakens disgust instead of delight. (4) Not a few teachers kill the power of attention in their pupils by failing to utilize any fresh inquiries or any new, interesting statements to stimulate interest in the sub- ject. They drone on through their work, thinking of it themselves as routine. Nat- urally the pupils soon assume the same attitude. 40 The Seven Laws of Teaching What wonder that through these and other violations of this law of teaching our school- rooms are often unattractive and their suc- cess so limited! And if _obedience to the se vu Te stis so impo rta nt in the public school s, wh ere the attendance o f ch ildren is compelle d, ATI d where the profes sio nal instructor teacn es w itF f uU authority of the law, it is all "^ e more nec p«««T-y in the Sunday school, wher e att endance and teaching are voluntary . The Sunday-school teacher who would win the richest and best results of teaching should give to this Law of the Learner his best thought and most thorough obedience. He should master the art of gaining and keep- ing attention, and of exciting genuine in- terest, and he will rejoice at the fruitfulness of his work. Chapter IV THE LAW OF THE LANGUAGE 1. We have now, confronting each other, the teacher with his law of knowledge, and the learner with his condition of inter- ested attention. We are next to study the medium of communication between them and learn the Law of the Language. 2. Two persons, who have material bodies which are limiting prisons, are to be brought into intellectual intercourse — the fine com- merce of thought and feeling. There are no known spiritual connections between indi- viduals in this world. Here the organs of sense are parts of material bodies, and can be touched and impressed only by matter and material phenomena. Out of these phenom- ena persons must construct the s^nnbols and signs by which they can signal to one an- other the ideas which they wdsh to communi- cate. A system of such s3rmbols or signs is a language. It may consist of the picture- writing of the savage races, the alphabet- systems of civilized peoples, the manual signs of the deaf-mutes, the oral speech of the hearing; but, whatever its form, it is language — a medium of communication be- 42 The Seven Laws of Teaching tween minds, a necessary instrument of teaching, and having, like all other factors in the teaching art, its own law. 3. This law, like those already discussed, is as simple as an every-day fact. It may be stated as follows: The language used in teaching must he common to teacher and learner. In other words, it must be understood by each, with the same meaning to both. The Philosophy of the Law 4. The Law of the Language reaches down into the deepest facts of mind, and runs out to the widest connections of thought with life and with the world in which we live. The power of^thooght rests largely upon this fabric oLspjeedi. 5. L angua ge in its simplest form is ja system o? arfifi^al ^^gng^ Its separate words or signs may have no likeness to the things they sign ifYy and no meanings, except those that we give to tliem arbitrarily. A word is the "sign of aiTidea only to the one who has the ideaandVho has learned the word as i!s sign or symbol. Without the image or the idea in the mind, the word comes to the ear only as a sound without meaning, a sign of nothing at all. No one has more language than he has learned. The vocabulan^ of the The Law of the Language 43 teacher may be many times larger than that of the pupil, but the child ^sjdeas are repre- s ented by hii^ -cmpnTJTlary^ flTTj_f}iP teacher must come with in this sphere^o f the chil(i2s la nguage pow er if he would be janderstoo^. Outside of these limits, the language of the teacher will be characterized by lack of mean- ing, or perhaps perverted meaning, in pro- portion as the unfamiliar words exceed the familiar ones. 6. Maiiy__jEarda^ in 9ur_ languaga . Jiase more than_pne meanings For example, con- sider the following expressions: mind and matter; what is the matter? what matters it? it is a serious matter? the suhject-matter . . .; the same word is made to carry several mean- ings. This variety, of naean in gs may enrirh words for the use of the orator or the poet, but It presents difficulty for th e voun g leajrner. Having mastered a word as the sign of a familiar idea, he is suddenly con- fronted by it with a new and unknown meaning. He has learned, perhaps, to tie a horse to a post, when he hears the strange text, ^^My days are sivifter than a post/' or reads the warning, ''Post no hills/' and hears of a ''military post.'' The teacher, knowing all the meanings of his words, and guided by the context in selecting the one required by the thought, reads on or talks on. 44 The Seven Laws of Teaching thinking perhaps that his language is rich in ideas and bright with meaning; but his pupils, knowing perhaps only a single mean- ing for each word, are stopped by great gaps in the sense, bridged only by sounds without meaning which puzzle and confuse them. It would often amuse us if we could know what ideas our words call up in little children. The boy who wanted to see ^Hhe wicked -flea whom no man pursueth, ' ' and the other who said, **Don^t view me with a cricket ^s eye,'' have many companions in the schools. The Vehicle of Thought 7. L^ngua^ehas been called the vehicle of thought; but it does not carry thoughts as trucks carry goods, to fill an empty store- house. Rather it c onveys them as the wires convey telegrams, as_^signalsJiiJhex£rr.e.mng oHeratoTj^who must retranslate the messages f rom the tick s lie^^i?^^! Not what^^e ^ s peaker expres ses fromTiLs own mind, J)ut what the hearer understand^ and reproduces in his mln^T^neasures the communicating powBF ofTire^ langua^ jij^^ Words thirare poor^nd weak to the young and untrained may be eloquent with many rich and impres- \ sive meanings to the mature, trained mind. \ Thus the simple word art may mean ^' craft'' to some minds, a mechanic's ^Hrade," or The Law of the Language 45 even the pretense of a hypocrite ; to a Reyn- olds or a Ruskin it is also the expression of all that is beautiful in human achievement, and of all that is elevating in civilization. It speaks of paintings, sculpture and cathe- drals, and of all that is beautiful in nature, in landscape, sky, and sea — all that is noble or picturesque in history and life — all that is hidden in the moral and aesthetic nature of man. MenTsjgrds are like ships laden with, the j-iches of eve rv_^hore of kiiowiedge_which t heir owner has j isited ; while the wpxd&--Qf the-x?hild are but toy boats oii which are lo^dgi-th^-eimple notiona^e has pickej.jup in_hia_ brief experien ce. 8. So, too, word s often come to be like d or disliked for th e ideas they sugge st. Thus the word religion to many is sublime with the divinest and most profound meanings. It paints on the dark background of human history, filled with sin and sorrow, all that is glorious in the character and government of God, all that is highest in faith and feeling, and all that is hopeful and bright in the future of man. To the more worldly, re- ligion is sometimes the name of a mass of more or less disagreeable ceremonies or of distasteful duties. To the atheist it suggests superstition and creeds. In some degree, such variations of meaning belong to hun- 46 The Seven Laws of Teaching dreds of the common words of our language. That teacher will do the best work who chooses his words wisely, raising the most and the clearest images in the minds of his pupils. 9. The reason goes further. In all ^f- ^§^iyj:i.§.§5kyJiV thought passes in two dTrec- tions^— from pupil to te acher a s well as from t eacher to pupil . It is as necessary for the teacherjllll^ to iinrlprsfaTiH fhA phiirij Ra~ tor th e child to rnidftrstand f^p t^^^her. Often- times a pupil will load ordinary words with some strange, false, or distorted meanings, and the mistakes may remain uncorrected for years. Children are often compelled by their very poverty of speech to use words with other than their correct meanings. The teacher must learn the needs of the pupil from his words. The Instrument of Thought 10. But ImignflgP. i> fhfi in font^ the shoulder, are often u sed in speech in ways that are most intel- ligible. Among savage peoples whose laiP 50 The Seven Laivs of Teaching guage is too meager to meet their needs, symbolic actions often take the place of words. The gestures of some speakers fre- quently tell more than the spoken sentences of others. There .is speech also in pictures. From rough sketches on the blackboard to paintings that are works of art, teaching by pictorial representation is swift and impres- sive. 16. Finally, nature aids speech. "... she speaks a various language." Her innumerable forms are always ready as effective illustrations, and her analogies throw light on many deep problems. No teaching was ever more instructive than the parables of Jesus, drawn from nature around him. 17. Ordinary artificial language probably must be the chief means of communication between teacher and pupil; but no wise teacher will forego the aid of all these vari- ous means of entrance to the minds of their pupils. Language by itself is at best but an imperfect medium of thought, and no one knows this better than the experienced teacher, who has sometimes found it in- eifective, and who has been compelled to re- sort to any available means of illustration to make himself understood. The Law of the Language 51 18. This discussion no t be intftrprfitfi d as .an eagoura gement to the teacher to hefio me a lec turer before his class. The lecture is useful in its place, but its'place is small in a school for children. It will be shown elsewhere that a too talkative teacher is rarely a good teacher. An ac- curate knowledge of language is, however, of great advantage; those who talk little should certainly talk well, and those who expect to teach through language should know lan- guage themselves. Rules for Teachers Out of our Law of Language, thus defined and explained, flow some of the most useful rules for teaching. (1) Study constantly and carefully the lan- guage of the pupils, to learn what words they use and what meanings they give to these words. (2) Secure from them as full a statem.ent as possible of their knowledge of the subject, to learn both their ideas and their modes of expressing them, and to help them to correct their knowledge. (3) Express yourself as far as possible in the language of your pupils, carefully correct- ing any errors in the meaning they read into vour words. 52 The Seven Laws of Teaching (4) Use the simplest and the fewest words that will express your meaning. Unneces- sary words add to the child ^s work, and in- crease the possibilities for misunderstanding. (5) Use short sentences, of the simplest construction. Long sentences are dijfficult to attend to and are frequently confusing to children. (6) If the pupil obviously fails to under- stand you, repeat your thought in other lan- guage, if possible with greater simplicity. (7) Help the meaning of the words by il- lustrations; natural objects and pictures are to be preferred for young children. Take illustrations from the children's own expe- riences whenever possible. (8) When it is necessary to teach a new word, give the idea before the word. This can be done best by simple illustrations closely related to the children's own expe- rience. (9) Try to increase the number of the pupil's words, and at the same time improve the clearness of meaning. Eeal enlargement of a child 's vocabulary means an increase of his knowledge and power. (10) As the acquisition of language is one of the important aims in the process of edu- cation, do not be content to have your pupils listen in silence very long at a time, no mat- The Law of the Language 53 ter how attentive they are. Encourage them to talk freely. (11) Here, as everywhere in teaching the young, make haste sloivly. Each word should be learned thoroughly before others are added. (12) Test frequently the pupil's under- standing of the words that he uses, to make sure that he attaches no incorrect meaning and that he sees the true meaning as vividly as possible. Violations and Mistakes This third law of teaching is violated more frequently than the best teachers suspect. (1) The interested look of the pupils often cheats the teachers into the belief that his lang-uage is thoroughly understood, and all the more easily because the pupil himself may be deceived and say that he under- stands, when he has perhaps caught only a mere glimpse of the meaning. (2) Children are often entertained by the manner of the teacher, and seem attentive to his words when really they are watching only his eyes, lips, or actions. Again, they will sometimes profess to understand simply to please their instructor and gain his praise. (3) The misuse of language is one of the common faults in teaching. Not to mention 54 The Seven Laws of Teaching those teachers who attempt to cover up their own ignorance or indolence with a cloud of verbiage which they know the children will not understand, and omitting also those who are more anxious to exhibit their own wis- dom than to teach others, there are still many honest teachers who try hard to make the lesson clear, and then think that their duty is done; that if the children do not under- stand, it must be either from wilful inatten- tion or hopeless stupidity. Th ese teache rs donotsus^^tL-that th ey may ha ve usM- words wEch had_n .Q mea ning for the cla ss, or into which the_^ hil dren read a WL ong meanmg. ^(4) it may be a single unusual or misun- derstood term that breaks the connection, but it does not occur to the teacher to hunt tip the break and restore the connection. Children do not always ask for explanations, discouraged sometimes by fear of the teacher, or shame for their own ignorance, and too often they are charged with stupidity or inattention when no amount of attention would have helped them to understand the unfamiliar language. (5) Even those teachers who naturally use simple language to their classes sometimes fail in the higher uses of this instrument of teaching. They do not take the trouble to The Law of the Language 55 secure from the child in return some clear statement, and they have, therefore, no test of their success. The children do not talk themselves, nor are their vocabularies enlarged. (6) Many teachers have no proper appre- ciation of the wonderful character and com- plexity of language; they do not reflect that modern society could scarcely exist without speech. Many persons have decidedly lim- ited vocabularies. It has often been found that one of the greatest obstacles to the gen- eral enlightenment of people lies in their lack of the knowledge through which they must be addressed. A commission from the Brit- ish Parliament was once sent to investigate the language of the coal miners and other laborers of England in order to ascertain the possibility of diffusing useful information among them by means of tracts and books. It was found that their knowledge of lan- guage, in a large number of the cases exam- ined, was entirely too meager to permit of such a means of instruction. How much greater this deficiency must be among the young, whose experience is so much more limited. If we would teach children suc- cessfully, we must widen and deepen this channel of communication between them and ourselves. 56 The Seven Laws of Teaching (7) Many of the topics studied in school lie outside the daily life and language of the children; and every science has a lan- guage of its own which must be mastered by the student who makes any progress in it. T he teacher in the Sunday s^^ '^ol s^'^^'^^^ rec ognize that here lies one of hi s probleni s ; nianyTim es the facts and trutns of religi^D u areTi^eTy to bedistorted by the half -under - s tood terms in wh i ch they are tolcj . To tj i e t eacher of children in the schools of Bibl e learning should co me the warnmg to mak e his words clear."' " Chapter V THE LAW OF THE LESSON 1. Our fourth law takes us at once to the core of teaching. The first three laws dealt with the teacher, the learner, and the lan- guage, the medium of communication between them. We come now to the lesson, the proc- ess to be mastered, the problem to be solved. This is where the teacher must pass on to the pupils the recorded experience of the race; the method of transmission of this crystal- lized race experience must be such as to in- spire these pupils with principles that shall be active forces in their lives, and at the same time furnish them with an instrument of research and further study, — this is the very heart of the work of the teacher, the condition and instrument, as well as the cul- mination and the fruit, of all the rest. 2. It is the Law of the Lesson that we are next to seek. Passing, as remote from this discussion, the steps by which the mind of an infant obtains its first notions of the world about it, we may go at once to the obvious fact that our pupils learn the new by the aid of the old and familiar. The new and un- known can be explained only by the familiar 68 The Seven Laws of Teaching and the known. This, then, is the Law of the Lesson: The truth to he taught must he learned through truth already known. 3. This law is neither so simple nor so obvious as those that have preceded it; but it is no less certain than they, while its scope is even wider and its relations are perhaps even more important. Philosophy of the Law 4. The Law of the Lesson has its reason in the nature of mind and in the nature of human knowledge. 5. All teaching must begin at some point of the subject or lesson. If the subject is wholly new, then a known point must be sought by showing some likeness of the new to something known and familiar. Even among grown persons, the skilful narrator struggles to find some comparison with familiar experiences, seeking some likeness of the unknown to something known before proceeding with his story. Until this start- ing-point is found, he knows that it will be useless to go on. To do so would be like tell- ing some one to follow you over a winding path in the darkness without first letting him know where you are or starting him on the path. Naturally, if adults must have this The Law of the Lesson 59 aid, children can scarcely be expected to do without it. Often pupils in the schools ex- plain their inability to understand the lesson by the simple statement: *^I did not know what the teacher v/as talking about. *' The fault lies distinctly with the teacher in such a case. 6. All teaching must advance in some direction. Its proper direction of march should be toward the acquisition of new ex- periences. To teach over again what is al- ready acquired and understood is to check the desire of the pupils for obtaining further knowledge and to deaden their power of attention by compelling them to walk in a treadmill, instead of leading them forward to the inspiration of new scenes and the con- quest of new fields. It is a serious error to keep the studies of pupils too long on familiar ground, under the assumed neces- sity for thoroughness. Old mines may be reworked if you can find ore at deeper levels, and old lessons may be worked over if new uses may be made of them. At this point it should be borne in mind that this does not contradict the Law of Review, to be discussed later. 7. Learning must proceed by graded steps. These steps must be those which link one fact or concept to another, as simple and 60 The Seven Laws of Teaching concrete things lead naturally to general and abstract things, as premises lead to con- clusions, and as an understanding of natural phenomena leads to laws. Each new idea mastered becomes a part of the knowledge of the child, a part of his equipment of race experience, and serves as a starting-point for a fresh advance. It adds its own light to the knowledge that preceded it, and throws increased illumination forward for the next discovery. But each step must be fully mas- tered before the next is taken, or ^the pupilg may find themselves proceeding mto un- known fields without the proper preparation. It is here that the demand for thoroughness arises; everything in the lesson which is within the range of the child's comprehen- sion, should be fully understood. Thorough- ness of this sort is the essential condition of true teaching. Imperfect understanding at any point clouds the whole process. The pupil who has mastered one . lesson, half knows the next; therefore the well-taught class is always eager for the next step. One of the sayings of Pestalozzi was, ^^It is easy to add to what is already discovered.'' 8. But the philosophy of this law goes deeper still. It must be remembered that knowledge is not a mass of simple, inde- pendent facts; it is made up of the experi- The Law of the Lesson 61 ence of the race crystallized and orgxmized in^tlie form of facts together with their laws and relations. Facts are linked together in systems, associated by resemblances of one sort or another. Each fact leads to, and ex- plains, another. The old reveals the new; the new confirms and corrects the old. 9. All this pertains equally to the limited knowledge and experience of children as well as to riper and maturer knowledge. New ele- ments of knowledge must be brought into relation with other facts and truths already known before they themselves can be fully revealed and take their place in the widening circle of the experience of the learner. Thus the very nature of knowledge compels us to seek the new through the aid of the old. 10. The act of hnoiving is in part an act of comparing and judging, — of finding some- thing in past experience that will explain and make meaningful the new experience. If a friend tells us of an experience or an ad- venture, we interpret his story by a running comparison with whatever has been most like it in our o^vn experience; and if he states something utterly without likeness to any- thing that we have Imown, we ask him for explanations or illustrations which may bring the strange facts into relation with our point of view. If children are told some- 62 The Seven Laws of Teaching thing novel and entirely nnfamiliar, they will probably struggle in vain to understand, and then ask for further information or light, if they do not at once abandon the attempt to connect the new idea with their own experi- ence. Figures of speech, such as similes, metaphors, and allegories, have sprung out of the need for relating new truths to old and familiar scenes and objects and experi- ences. They are but so many attempts to reach the unknown through the known — they try to jflash light from the old upon the new. 11. Explanation, then, means usually the citation and use of facts and principles al- ready understood to make clear the nature of new material. Therefore the unknown cannot explain the unknown. The knowl- edge already in the equipment of the child must furnish the explanation of new facts and laws, or these must remain unexplained. The difficulty so often met in answering the questions of little children, lies not so much in the difficulty of the questions themselves, as in the lack upon the part of the child of knowledge required in the explanation. To answer fully a boy's questions about the stars, you must first teach him some astron- omy. The lad who has seen a large city can perhaps understand fairly well a description of London or New York, but one whose ex- The Law of the Lesson 63 perience lias beeu confined entirely to his country home, cannot properly understand the network of streets, walled in by build- ings, and the shifting panorama of city life. 12. The very language with which new knowledge must be expressed takes its mean- ings from what is already known and familiar. The child without knowledge would be also without words, for words are the signs of things known. An American traveler in Europe might perhaps fancy that he could make people understand by speak- ing in a loud, clear voice, and with slow, care- ful enunciation; but his success would be measured only by the degree to which his hearers had a knowledge of the native tongue of the American; if they were for- eigners, familiar only with their own language, his words would be without meaning. A blunder analogous to this is that of the teacher who hopes by the mere urgency of his manner, and by his carefully chosen words, familiar to himself, to convey his ideas to the understanding of his pupils, with no reference to the pupils' previous knowl- edge of the subject. 13. Persons use by preference only the clearest and most familiar things in their interpretation of new facts or principles. 64 The Seven Laws of Teaching Each man is prone to borrow his illustra- tions from his calling: the soldier from the camps and trenches, the sailor from the ships and the sea, the merchant from the conditions of the market, and the ^^rt^isans and me- chanics from their crafts. Likewise in study, each pupil is attracted to the qualities which relate to his own experience. To the chemist, common salt is sodium chloride, a binary compound; to the cook it is some- thing to use in the seasoning of foods and in the preservation of meats. Each thinks of it in the aspect most familiar to him, and in this aspect would use it to illustrate some- thing else in which salt was concerned. Finding a new plant, the botanist would consider it in the light of known plants, to discover its ^^classification''; the farmer would be interested in its use, and the artist in its beauty. This bent of preference, while one of the elements of prejudice which may shut the eyes to some new truths and open them to others, is at the same time one of the elements of strength in intellectual work. 14. A fact or principle only vaguely un- derstood is used only rarely and reluctantly — and even then sometimes most errone- ously — in interpreting new experiences; and if used, it carries only vagueness and imperfection into the new concepts or The Law of the Lesson 65 judgments. A cloud left upon the lesson of yesterday casts its shadow over the lesson of today. On the other hand, the thoroughly mastered lesson throws great light on the succeeding ones. Hence the value of that practice of some able teachers who make the elementary portions of a subject as familiar as household words — a conquered territory from which the pupil may go on to new conquests as from an established base, with confidence and power. 15. But it must be carefully noted that so complete a mastery, like all thoroughness in study, is really relative. No human knowledge or power is perfect, and the capacities of childhood are necessarily much further from completeness than those of adults. And there are wide individual dif- ferences which must be recognized in the school. What to some children is as clear as day, is to others only vaguely suggestive. If the teacher makes the pupils talk about the lesson, as was suggested in the discussion of the law of language, some of these differ- ences will be revealed, and the proper means of meeting them and of adjusting the in- struction to them, may be discovered. 16. Our discussion of the lesson would be incomplete without some mention of the nature of the thinking process as applied to 66 The Seven Laws of Teaching the solution of problems. The word ** prob- lem '^ is a familiar one to the teacher; the problems and tasks of every day life in the schoolroom are very close to him. But let us now think of the problem in a rather different sense. We have been speaking of the ^^ lesson ^^ and its ^4aw.'' Let us think of the process of learning lessons as akin to the solution of problems, as a process in which the learner faces a real situation, the mastery of which, will involve the application of his power of thought. How is he to think? 17. The older notion that because the pupils in our schools are young and im- niature they are incapable of real thinking- is a fallacy. Too often teachers believe that their pupils think only in a symbolic way, — that they react only to artificial situations in which their task is to do what the teacher wishes, rather than to do real independent thinking for themselves. This is not necessarily true, and if true in some instances, the fault very likely lies with the teacher himself. The fact is that the power to think is part and parcel of the original mental equipment of the child, and develops gradually, as other capacities do. The situations that call out this power in children are simple, but they are none the less real. The difference in thinking between The Law of the Lesson 67 the child and the adult is a difference in degree. 18. If we are to set the learner at the task of real thinking in the solution of real prob- lems, we must define this process of thinking. There are three stages in the process. First, there must be a stage of doubt or uncer- tainty; certain things are known, and some- thing is to be done to them. For example, the loss of a cherished toy presents just this situation to a child: he sees what has hap- pened, and wonders what he can do in its absence — how he can replace it, perhaps. Second, there is an organizing stage in which the individual considers the means at his disposal to reach the ends desired. Lastly, there is a critical attitude involving (^^ selection and rejection of the schemes which have suggested themselves. This problem- atic situation arises very frequently in daily life, with children as well as with adults. The setting of school tasks should always be done with this process of thinking in mind; teachers in the day schools and in the Sunday schools should remember that if the train- ing which they give is to bear fruit, it must present real situations which will call forth this reflective attitude, and they should ab- jure the sorl; of tasks which can be met by trial and error, by blindly following the lead 68 The Seven Laws of Teaching of another, or by doing what one has already done in a similar situation merely because one recognizes the new situation as like the other. 19. In a very important sense, what we call knowledge is a record of solved prob- lems. Facts and laws have been collected and tested and organized into systems, but at basis they represent the results of facing situations and finding things out at first hand. In passing knowledge on to others the more closely we can approximate real, vital situations, the better will be our teach- ing. There are some who go so far as to say that no attempt should be made to im- part knowledge unless the child feels a dis- tinct need for it, — ^unless he sees that it is essential to solve some problem that is real and vital to his life. This is doubtless an extreme view, but it is none the less incum- bent upon the teacher to know what the problems of child life are and to utilize them in making his instruction just as rich and meaningful as possible. Rules for Teachers This law of knowledge, thus explained, affords to the thoughtful teacher rules of the highest practical value. It offers clear guid- ance to those who are teachers of children The Law of the Lesson 69 and anxious that their task shall be well done. (1) Find out what your pupils know of the subject you wish to teach to them; this is your starting-point. This refers not only to text-book knowledge but to all information that they may possess, however acquired. (2) Make the most of the pupils' knowl-\^ edge and experience. Let them feel its \ extent and value, as a means to further knowledge. (3) Encourage your pupils to clear up and freshen their knowledge by a clear statement of it. (4) Begin with facts or ideas that lie near your pupils, and that can be reached by a single step from what is already familiar; thus, geography naturally begins with the home town, history with the pupils' own memories, morals with their own conscience. (5) Relate every lesson as much as pos- sible to former lessons, and with the pupils ' knowledge and experience. (6) Arrange your presentation so that each step of the lesson shall lead easily and naturally to the next. (7) Proportion the steps of the lesson to the ages and attainments of your pupils. Do not discourage your children with lessons or exercises that are too long, or fail to rise to 70 The Seven Laws of Teaching the expectations of older pupils by giving them lessons that are too easy. (8) Find illustrations in the commonest \ and most familiar objects suitable for the purpose. (9) Lead the pupils themselves to find il- lustrations'from their own experience. (10) Make every new fact or principle familiar to your pupils; try to establish and intrench it firmly, so that it will be available for use in explaining new material to come. (11) Urge the pupils to make use of their own knowledge and attainments in every way that is practicable, to find or explain other knowledge. Teach them that knowledge is power by showing how knowledge really helps to solve problems. (12) Make every advance clear and familiar, so that the progress to the next succeeding step shall in every case be on known ground. (13) As far as possible, choose the prob- lems which you give to your pupils from their own activities, and thus increase the chances that they will be real and not arti- ficial problems. (14) Remember that your pupils are learning to think, and that to think properly they must learn to face intelligently and reflectively the problems that arise in The Law of the Lesson 71 , connection with their school work, and in con- I nection with their life outside of school. s Mistakes and Violations The wide scope of this Law of the Lesson affords opportunity for many mistakes and violations. Among the more common are the following : (1) It is not unusual for teachers to set their pupils to studying new lessons, or even new subjects, for which they are inadequately prepared or not prepared at all, either by previous study or by experience. (2) Many teachers neglect entirely to as- certain carefully the pupils' equipment with which to begin the subject. (3) A conmion error is the failure to con- nect the new lessons with those that have gone before in such a way that the pupils can carry over what they know or have learned into the new field. Many individual lessons and recitations are treated as if each were independent of all the others. (4) Oftentimes past acquisitions are con- sidered goods stored away, instead of instrum^ents for further use. (5) Too often elementary facts and defini- tions are not made thoroughly familiar. (6) Every step is not always thoroughly understood before the next is attempted. 72 The Seven Laws of Teaching (7) Some teachers err in assigning lessons or exercises that are too long for the powers of the pupils, or for their time, making im- possible an adequate mastery of principles that may be needful for future progress in the subject. (8) Teachers frequently fail to place their pupils in the attitude of discoverers. Chil- dren should learn to use what they have al- ready been taught in the discovery of new facts or principles and in the solution of new problems. (9) A common fault is the failure to show the connections between parts of the subject that have been taught and those that are yet to come. As a consequence of these and other vio- lations of the law, much teaching is poor, and its benefits, if any, are fleeting. People are found to have inadequate knowledge and to lack the power of studying for themselves. This is as true of Biblical knowledge as of any other. Instead of a related whole, a con- cept with one purpose, the Bible is viewed as scattering parts, like bits of broken glass, and its effect is many times only to puzzle and confuse ; it is never seen as a connected whole, as it should be. Chapter VI THE LAW OF THE TEACHING PROCESS 1. Our survey of the teaching art has thus far involved these four considerations: the teacher, the learner, the language, and the lesson. We are now to study these in action, and to observe the conduct of the teacher and his pupil. The previous discus- sions have already brought these partly into view, but as each of them has its own law, each demands more careful consideration than has yet been given it. In the laws of the teacher and the learner, we found neces- sarily reflected the actions of both; but an actor and his part are easily separated in thought, and each possesses aspects and characteristics of its own. Following the natural order, the teaching function comes first before us, and we are now to seek its law. The law of the teacher was essentially a law of qualification ; the law of teaching is a law of function. 2. Thus far we have considered teaching as the communication of knowledge or expe- rience; more properly, we should say that this is a result of teaching. Whether by 74 The Seven Laws of Teaching telling, demonstrating, or leading pupils to disc-over for themselves, the teacher is trans- mitting experience to his pupils; that is his aim and purpose, and his teaching is conditioned by that aim. But the explana- tion of the work of the teacher in teims of function is to be distinguished from the definition in terms of purpose. The actual work of the teacher consists of the awaken- ing and setting in action the mind of the pupil, the arousing of his self-activities. As already shown, knowledge cannot be passed from mind to mind like objects from one re- ceptacle to another, but must in every Cx^se be recognized and rethought and relived by the receiving mind. All explanation and ex- position are useless except as they serve to excite and direct the pupil in his own think- ing. If the pupil himself does not think , t here are no result^: of thp fpflPhir|o^; th^ words of the teache r are falling upon de^f ears., 3. We are now ready to state The Law of Teaching Excite and direct the self-activities of the pupil, and as a rule tell him nothing that he can learn himself, 4. The second clause in this law is of suf- ficient importance to justify its position in The Laic of the leaching Process 75 the f ormnlatioii of the law, although it is neg- atively stated. There are cases in which it mav be necessary to disregard this caution in order to save tune, or in the case of a very weak or discouraged pupil, or sometimes when intense interest has been arouse^i and there is a keen demand for information that the teacher can give quickly and effectively. but its violation is almost always a loss which should be compensated by a definite gaim ro-n>i«-^erM-l fiffirTnativelv. thU car;- ti pn would read : "Make your pupil a dis- coverer of truth — make him find out for himself.-' The great value of this lawTas been so often and so strongly stated as to demand no further proof. Xo great writer on education has failed to consider it in some form or another : if we were seeking the edu- cational maxim most widely received among good teachers, and the most extensive in its applications and results, we should fix upon this law. It is the same fundamental truth as the one found in such rules as the follow- ing: "'TTake up your pupils' minds": '"Set the pupils to th ink ing": ^'Arouse the spirit of inquiry''; ^'Get your pupils to work.'' All these familiar maxims are different expressions of this same law. In discussing the principles of attention. language, and knowledge, we have considere*i 76 The Seven Laws of Teaching to some extent the operations of the mind. We should now study these further. Philosophy of the Law 5. We can learn without ^ teaohpr, Chil- dren learn hundreds of facts before they ever see a school, sometimes with the aid of parents or others, often by their own unaided efforts. In the greater part of our acquisi- tions we are self-taught, and i t is quite gen - e ^^ally conceded that that knowledge is most p ermanent and best which is dug out by un - aided research. Everything, at the outset, must be learned by the discoverer without an instructor, since no instructor knows it. If, then, we can learn without being taught, it follows that the true function of the teacher is to create the most favorable conditions for self -learning. Essentially the acquisi- tion of knowledge must be brought about by the same agencies and through the use of the same methods, whether with or without a teacher. 6. What, then, is the use of schools, and what is the necessity for a teacher? The question is pertinent, but the answer is plain. Knowledge in its natural state lies scattered and confused; it is connecfed, to be sure, in great systems, but these connections are laws and relations unknown to the beginner, and The Laiv of the Teaching Process 11 they are to be learned by man only through ages of observation and careful study. The school selects for its curriculum what it re- gards as the most useful of the experiences of the race, organizes these, and offers them to the pupils along with its facilities for learning. It offers to these pupils leisure and quiet for study, and through its books and other materials of education the results of other people ^s labors, which may serve as charts of the territories to be explored, and as beaten paths through the fields of knowl- edge. True teaching, then, is not that which gives knowledge, but that which stimulates pupils to gain it. O ne might say that h e teach es test who teaches Ipast; p r fViaf. Tip, te ^ciies best whosepupils learn most witho ut b ei ng taught directl y But we should be a r in mind that in these epigrammatic state- ments two meanings of the word teaching are involved, — one, simply telling, the other creating the conditions of real learning. 7. That teacher is a sympathizing guide whose knowledge of the subjects to be studied enables him properly to direct the efforts of the pupil, to save him from a waste of time and strength, from needless difficulties. But no aid of school or teacher can change the operations of the mind, or take from the pupil his need of knowing 78 The Seven Laws of Teaching for himself. The eye must do its own see- ing, the ear its own hearing, and the mind its own thinking, however much may be done to furnish objects of sight, sounds for the ear, and stimuli for the intelligence. The innate capacities of the child produce the growth of body or mind. ''If childhood is educated according to the measure of its powers,'' said Saint Augustine, ''they will continually grow and increase; while if forced beyond their strength, they decrease instead of increasing." The sooner the teacher abandons the notion that he can make his pupils intelligent by hard work upon their passive receptivity, the sooner he will become a good teacher and obtain the art, as Socrates said, of assisting the mind to shape and put forth its own conceptions. It was to his skill in this that the great Athe- nian owed his power and greatness among his contemporaries, and it was this that gave him his place as one of the foremost of the great teachers of mankind. It is the "forc - i ng process'' in teaching wluch sf?pR rates p arrot-like ^n d p^rfimctory learmn^^Jxpm knowing. A boy, having expressed surprise at the shape of the earth when he was shown a globe, was asked: "Did you not learn that in school?" He replied: "Yes, I learned it, but I never knew it." The Law of the Teaching Process 79 8. The great aims of education are to acquire knowledge and ideals, and to develop abilities and skills. Our law derives its sig- nificance from both of these aims. The pupil must know for himself, or his knowledge will be knowledge in name only. The very effort required in the act of thus learning and knowing may do much to increase the capac- ity to learn. The pupil who is taught without doing any studying for himself will be like one who is fed without being given any exer- cise: he will lose both his appetite and his strength. 9. Confidence in our own powers is an essential condition of their successful use. This confidence can be gained only by self- prompted, voluntary, and independent use of these capacities. We learn to walk, not by seeing others walk, but by walking. The same is true of mental abilities. 10. The self-activities or mental powers do not set themselves at work without some motive or stimulus to put them in action. In ea rly life exte rn al stiniu li are stronger, and in riper years th e i nternal ex cita nts are th e onesJiQ-adii ch we re spo nd mo re_rea9ily\ To the young child the objects of sense — bright colors, live animals, and things in motion — are most attractive and exciting. Later in life, the inner facts of thought and feeling 80 The Seven Laws of Teaching are more engaging. The child's mental life has in it an excess of sensation; the mental life of the adult has more reflection. 11. But whatever the stimulus, the proc- esses of cognition are largely the same. There is the comparison of the new with the old, the alternating analysis and synthesis of parts, wholes, classes, causes, and effects ; the action of memory and imagination, the use of judgment and reason, and the effects upon thought of tastes and prejudices as they have been concerned with the previ- ous knowledge and experience of the learner. If thinking does not take place, the teacher has applied the stimuli in vain. He perhaps will wonder that his pupils do not under- stand, and will very likely consider them stupid and incompetent, or at least lazy. Unfortunately the stupidity is sometimes on the other side, and it sins against this law of teaching in assuming that the teacher can make the pupil learn by dint of vigorous telling, or teaching as he calls it, whereas true teaching only brings to bear on the pupiPs mind certain natural stimuli or ex- citants. If some of these fail, he must find others, and not rest until he attains the de- sired result and sees the activity of the child at work upon the lesson. The Law of the Teaching Process 81 12. Comenius ^ said, over two hundred years ago, ^'Most teachers sow plants in- stead of seeds; instead of proceeding from the simplest principles they introduce the pupil at once into a chaos of books and mis- cellaneous studies." The figure of the seed is a good one, and is much older than Come- nius. The greatest of teachers said: ''The seed is the word." The true teacher stirs the ground and sows the seed. It is the work of the soil, through its own forces, to develop the growth and ripen the grain. 13. The difference between the pupil who works for himself and the one who works only when he is driven is too obvious to need explanation. The one is a free agent, the other is a machine. The former is attracted by his work, and, prompted by his interest, he works on until he meets some overwhelm- ing difficulty or reaches the end of his task. The latter moves only when he is urged. He sees what is shown him, he hears what he is told, advances when his teacher leads, and stops just where and when the teacher stops. The one moves by his own activities, and the other by borrowed impulse. The former is a mountain stream fed by living 1 Johann Amos Comenius (1592-1671) was a Moravian clergyman, whose efforts to reform school practices have given him an enduring place in the history of education. 82 The Seven Laws of Teaching springs, the latter a ditch filled from a pump worked by another's hand. Knowledge Necessary to Thought 14. The action of the mind is limited practically to the field of its acquired knowl- edge. The individual who knows nothing cannot thinly, for he has nothing to think about. In comparing, imagining, judging, and reasoning, and in applying knowledge to plan, criticize, or execute one's own thoughts, the mind must necessarily work upon the material in its possession. Hence the power of any object or fact as a mental stimulus depends in each case upon the num- ber of related objects or facts which the in- dividual already knows. A botanist will be aroused to the keenest interest by the dis- covery of a hitherto unknown plant, but will perhaps care little or nothing for a new stone or a new star. The physician eagerly studies new diseases, the lawyer recent decisions, the farmer new crops, and the mechanic new machines. 15. The infant knows little, and his in- terest is brief and slight; the man knows many things, and his interests are deeper, wider, and more persistent. Thoughtfulness deepens and grows more intense with the increase of knowledge. The student of The Law of the Teaching Process 83 mathematics who has worked long and dili- gently in his field never finds it dry or tiresome; the wisest student of the Bible finds in its pages the greatest delight. All these illustrations show the principles which underlie our law and prove its value. 16. The two ch ief sprin gs o f intere st th rough Vhich the^^ind ('-^n he aroused ar e the love of knowledge fo r its own sake, th at is,_its ^7!n!tum L,:s:alue,_aiid the__desira_i£|i* knowled ^ to be use d as a to ol in solvin g probTe m^ p r nbt^jrji'ng othe r knowled ge. In the former are mingled the satisfaction of t he native curio si ty which craves t o k now fh^ ^^^^ nat u re and causes of t he phen omena around u s, the soluti on _ of the question in gs w hic h often trouble the minil^ the relief from apD rehensions which ig norance feels in the_presence of nature^ m vsteries^ th e sense of pow er and liKe rty wh ich knowledge of ten bring s, the_feeling of elevation whic h eac h new incr ement ^ f k nowledge givee; ; ^ and jhe ^^re]oicing in t he truth^^ beca use of its ow n beauty_aiid-sub- l imity, or jts moral charm a nd sweetness^ its appeals to our^tast e for wit and humor, an d fo r the wonderfu l. All these enter separately or together into the intellectual appetite to which the various forms of knowledge ap- peal, and which give to reading and study 84 The Seven Laws of Teaching their greatest attraction. Each affords an avenue through which the mind can be reached and roused by the skilful teacher. 17. It is evident that this manifold mental appetite must vary in character and intensity with the tastes and attainments of the pupils. Some love nature and her sciences of obser- vation and experiment; others love mathe- matics and delight in its problems; still others prefer the languages and literature, and others history and the sciences which deal with the powers, deeds, and destinies of man. Each special preference grows by be- ing fostered, and becomes absorbing as its acquisitions become great. The great mas- teries and achievements in arts, literature, and science have come from these innate tastes, and in all these ^Hhe child is father of the man.'' In each pupil lies the germ of such tastes — the springs of such powers — awaiting the art of the teacher to water the germs and set the springs in motion. 18. The respect fo r Im owledge beii au&e ^f its valueas a_tool includes the desire fo r ed ucation as a me ans of livf^ b'hnor | of ns r so urce o f bette"^ «oci al standing; f bp fpJ t or anticip ated need of some specia l skill or abil ity as an arti st, lawj,erjL^writ£Lr,.„o.r„§(^ other brai n worker; as well as study for the The Law of the Teaching Process 85 pur]QOse_Qf-JEdiining__rewurds or avoid ing p unishment s. This indirect desire for learn- ing varies with the character and aims of the pupils, but does not increase with attainment unless it ripens, as it may, into the true love of knowledge above described. Its strength depends upon the nature and magnitude of the need which impels the study. The activities aroused for such study go to a self-imposed task and are not very likely to continue their work after the task is done. T he rewards and punis h- m ents used in scho o1 to promotf^ thp> gfn dying of lessons have jusi this _force and no more. T hey inspire n o g enerous activity wlii^h wo rks for tl ja. Igve of the work a3ad_wliich rlnpgjiint ppnsA wIipti the assigned lessxmJias b een covered^ Witness the spirit that per- vades every school so taught and so managed. On the other hand, if the true uses of knowl- edge are constantly pointed out by the teacher and recognized by the child, the time may well come when respect for knowledge because it is useful becomes a real love of knowledge for its own sake. Knowledge and the Feelings 19. Our discussion thus far has taken for granted the intimate and indissoluble con- nection between the intellect and the feelings, S6 The Sevoi Laivs of Teaching the inseparable union of thought and feel- ing. To think without feelmg would be thinking with a total indifterenee to the object of thought, which would be absurd; and to feel without thinking would be almost impossible. As most of the objects o f thougj^it are obi ects also of desi re r>r ^^l^ftljli^j and therefore objec ts of choice, it follow s th at all impo rtant a ction of the intellect has a moral side^ This, again, Is an assumption that we have made throughout our discus- sion. The love of knowledge for itself or fo r i ts uses is~in ~ T^trty"~moral^ as __i^implies mo ral affections a n d purposes o f good or eviL All motives of stu dy have a moral cha r- a cter or couriecti on, in their early steps ; h ence no educat ion ^ or teacJ img can be abs'o- lutel y divorced, f rom morals. The affections come to school with the intellect. 20. T his moral consci ous ness finds i ts f uller sphere in the _ recognized domain of dut^l^^the hio'her realm of the affections an d the other moral qualitie s. From these come the highest and strongest incentives to study and also the clearest understanding. The te acher should c onsj^antly_address.J ]ip m ^^^^l na ture and sfm iul ate mora l s entime nts , if he w ishes to achie ve the grea test measure _o f su cces s. 21. This moral teaching was the chief The Law of the Teaching Process 87 merit of the work of Pestalozzi, and it is the leading characteristic of the work of all great teachers. Love of country, love of on£^s__fellows, aspirations for a ..fiobleZaiid usefnHifeJoye^or truth, — these are all mo- tives to which appeal should b e made. If these motives ar e lackm g in pupils, th p te acher must build them up._ The Self-Active Mind 22. It follows from all this that only when the mental powers Avork freely and in their own way can the product be sure or per- manent. No one can know exactly what any mind contains, or how it performs, save as that mind imperfectly reveals it by words or acts, or as we conceive it by reflecting upon our own conscious experience. Just as the digestive organs must do their own work, masticating and digesting whatever food they receive, selecting, secreting, assimilating, and so building bone, muscle, nerve, and all the various tissues and organs of the body, so, too, in the last resort, the mind must per- form its function, without external aid, building, as it can, concepts, faith, purposes, and all forms of intelligence and character. As Milton expressed it : — '' The mind is its o-v^ti place, and in itself Can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven." 88 The Seven Laws of Teaeh'nuj 23. If the fact of the mind's autocracy is thus emphasized, it is not for the purpose of belittling the "vvork of the teacher, but only to show more clearly the law which gives to that work all its force and dignity. Itjstlie_ t eacher's mission to stnuil •">^ tlip s pTritnn l g^^t^WPT'^ '^'^' ^^^-^ pupils' m inds ^ serv i u jr n<;. a herald of S(-ionr-p. .-l guide th rough Iiat urc^to s ummon the min ds to their work^ to p lace b efore them the, fa cts to be observed an d st udied., and to .guide them int o the right TD aths to be folL lwi^i. I t is his b y syrnpntJiVj bv_exam}3le^ and bv_ everv pieans of inHnpii fift — bv ob jects for the s enses 3 v facts_forJhe intelli gence — t o ex cite the mind of t he pupjl s, to s tinnilate their thought s. 24. The cautionary clause of our law which forbids giving too much help to pupils will be needless to the teacher who clearly sees his proper work. Like a skilful en- gineer who knows the power of his engine, he chooses to stand and watch the play of the splendid machine and marvel at the ease and vigor of its movements. It is only the un- skilled teacher who prefers io hear his own voice in endless talk rather than to watch and direct the course of the thoughts of his pupils. 25. There is no disagreement between this law and the first and third, which so The Law of the Teaching Process 89 strongly insist upon the teacher's knowledge of the subject. Without full and accurate knowledge of the subject that the pupil is to learn through his self-active efforts, the teacher certainly cannot guide, direct, and test the process of learning. One may as well say that a general need know nothing of a battle-field because he is not to do the actual fighting, as that a teacher may get on with inadequate knowledge because the pupils must do the studying. As we have said, there are exceptions to the rule that the pupil should be told nothing that he can dis- cover for himself. There are some occasions when the teacher may, for a few moments, become a lecturer and, from his own more extensive experience, give his pupils broader, richer, and clearer views of the field of their work. But in such cases he must take care not to substitute mere telling for true teaching, and thus encourage passive listening where he needs to call for earnest work. 26. The most important stimuli used by nature to stir the minds of men have already been noted. They might all be described as the silent but ceaseless questions which the world and the universe are always address- ing to man. The eternal questions of child- hood are really the echoes of these greater 90 The Seven Laws of Teaching questions. The object or the event that ex- cites no question will provoke no thought. Questioning is not, therefore, merely one of the devices of teaching, it is really the whole of teaching. It is the excitation of the self- activities to their work of discovering truth. Nature always teaches thus. But it does not follow that every question should be in the interrogative form. The strongest and clear- est affirmation may have all the effect of the interrogation, if the mind so receives it. An expla nation mav be so give n a s to raise new 27. T hf^ pyplmia t ion that settles ever y- thi ng and ends all q uestipns^usuallxjenda. all thi nking^ alsoi. After a truth is clearly under- s tood. or a fact or principl e estaSlTsEed^lKere sti ll remain its consequence s^ applications , and_US£3. Each fact and truth thoroughly studied leads to other facts which renew the questioning and demand fresh investigation. The alert and scientific mind is one that never ceases to ask questions and seek answers. The scientific spirit is the spirit of tireless inquiry and research. The present tim^e, so far excelling the past in the development of its arts and sciences, is the time of great questions. 28. As with the world, so with the_childJ His education begins as^ so on as he b egins The Law of the Teaching Process 91 to ask questions . It is only when the ques- tioning ~spirmas been fully awakened, and the habit of raising questions has been largely developed, that the teaching process may embody the lecture plan. The truth asks its own questions as soon as the mind is sufficiently awake. The falling apple had the question of gravitation in it for the mind of Newton; and the boiling teakettle pro- pounded to Watt the problem of a steam- engine. Rules for Teachers Like our other laws, this one also suggests some practical rules for teaching. (1) Adapt lessons and assignments to the ages and attainments of the pupils. Very y oung ch ildx^lL wi ll be int erested more^in whatever appeals to_iJi£_afijQ^Si_an(l_espe- ci ally in activities l th e more mature will, be attracted to.rpRsnning a]id,tjQLr£flBctiYe prob- l ems. (2) S elect less ons whidl_relat£-io-4he-«n- vir ojiment and needj_j)J_the^ pupils. (3) Consider carefully the subject and the lesson to be taught, and find its point of con- tact with the lives of your pupils. (4) Excite the pupil 's interest in the lesson when it is assigned, by some question or by some statement which will awaken inquiry. 92 The Seven Laws of Teaching H int that so mething worth knowing is to be f ound out if th e lesson is thoroughly studied, andjhen be„sare later to ask for the truth to be discovered. (5J Place yourself frequently in the posi- tion of a_;E>upil_among your pupils, and join in the search for some fact or principle. (6) Repress your impatience which cannot wait for the pupil to explain himself, and iwhich tends to take his words out of his mouth. He will resent it, and will feel that vhe could have answered had you given him time. (7) In all class exercises aim to excite con- stantly fresh interest and activity. Start questions for the pupils to investigate out of cla s s . The le sson that^ jip e s^ no t culmin|ii^ fr esh questioj is ^ends jgrong. (8) Observe each pupil to see that his mind is not wandering so as to forbid its activities being bent to the lesson in hand. (9) Count it your chief duty to awaken the minds of your pupils, and do not rest until each child shows his mental activity by ask- ing questions. (10) Repress the desire to tell all you know or think upon the lesson or subject; if you tell something by way of illustration or explanation, let it start a fresh question. (11) Give the pupil time to think, after you The Law of the Teaching Process 93 are sure that his mind is actively at work, and en courage him to ask questions whe n p uzzled . ( 12 ) Do not answer t oo promptly the ques - tions as ked, bu t restate them, to^giye them gr eater force and breadtlv^itd often answer wit h new question s to sec ure deeper thought . (13) Teach pupilsjo ask What? Why? and Howf — the__nat]ire, c ause ^ an d met hod 3f every fiict nr prin ciple tau ght them; also Where? JV henf By whom? ^i^d What_ofJtf — t he place, t ime^ actors^ and co nsequence s o f events .^ ' (14) Eecitations should not exhaust a sub- ject, but leave additional work to stimulate the thought and the efforts of the pupils. Violations and Mistakes Many a teacher neglecting these rules kills all interest in his class, and wonders how he did it. (1) The chief and almost constant viola- tion of this law of teaching is the attempt to force lessons by simply telling. ^^I have told you ten times, and yet you don't know!'' ex- claims a teacher of this sort, who is unable to remember that knowing comes by thinking, not by being told. (2) It is another mistake to complain of memory for not keeping what it never held. 94 The Seven Laws of Teaching If facts or principles are to be remembered, the attention must be concentrated upon them at the time, and there must be a conscious effort to remember. (3) A third violation of the law comes from the haste with which teachers require prompt and rapid recitations in the very words of the book ; and, if a question is asked in class, to refuse the pupils time to think. If the pupil hesitates and stops for lack of thought, or in apparent lack of memory, the fault lies in yesterday's teaching which shows its fruit today; but if it comes from the slowness of the pupil's thinking, or from the real difficulty of the subject, then time should be given for additional thought ; and, if the recitation period will not permit it, let the answer hold over until the next time. It is to this hurried and unthinking lesson- saying that we owe the superficial and impractical character of so much of our teaching. I nstead of learn i n g thoroughly th e material of ourJ bssoaaL. we .End eavor t o learn them on ly so as jt a_r ecite them p romptly ^ If faults of this characte£ _ja££ Dr evalent in our dav sc hools^ how much mor e se rious are thev in thp Rrnidfly sp]^ Pols'? _Tf the lessons of the Sunday schools are to carry over into the lives of the pupils by purifying and exalting their thoughts and The Law of the Teaching Process 95 making them wise in the religious beliefs taught them, the instruction must not be mere telling, but must be accompanied by the better methods used in the regular schools. How different are the results when this great law of teaching is properly followed! The stimulated self-activities operate in the correct manner, and the classroom is trans- formed under their power into a busy labora- tory. The pupils bpcom p thinkers^rrrdiscoy- er ers. The y master great, truths, ,and apply th em to thp grp at quest ions of life. They inv ade new fie lds of knowledge.^ The teacher me rely leads the mar ch. Their reconnais- sance becomes a conquest. Skill and power grow with their exercise. Through this process, the students find out what their minds are for, and become students of life. Chapter VII THE LAW OF THE LEARNING PROCESS 1. We must now pass from the side of the teacher to that of the learner. It has been seen that the teacher's work consists essentially in arousing and guiding the self- activities of the pupils. T he pupil.^V work , which we are now to consider, is the use of t hose self -n^ft^'^^^i es in studyin g. The laws of leaching and learning may seem at first to be only different aspects of the same law, but they are really quite distinct — the one applying to the work of the instructor, the other to that of the one receiving the in- struction. T he law of ihe teachinp process in volves the means by which t he self-activ i- ties are to be awakened; t he law of th e le arning prd C&^s^ dete rmihes the manner i n w hich these activities^ hai rbe employe d. H". If we observe a cmid as he studies, and note carefully what he does, we shall easily see that it is not merely an effort of the attention nor a vague and purposeless exertion of his powers, that is required of him. There is a clear and distinct act or process which we wish him to accomplish. It is to form in his own mind, by the use of his The Laiv of the Learning Process 97 own powers, a true concept of the facts or principles in the lesson. This is the purpose to which all the efforts of teacher and pupil must be directed. The law of the learning process may therefore be stated thus : The pupil must reproduce in his own mind the^ruth to be teamed, ~ ^^"^^ Witn tne laws previously discussed the teacher has been chiefly concerned; the law now before us concerns the pupil also. It brings into view the principles which must guide the student in his studying, and which it is the business of the instructor to empha- size and enforce. While telling the teacher how to teach, it also tells the pupil how to study. The Philosophy of the Law 4. We have said that merely pouring out before pupils the content of the teacher ^s knowledge is not teaching. It should now be pointed out that true learning is not memo - rization and r epeti tion of th e w ords and ideas o f the teacher. ^ T he wor^"^ of Huff^tigQ^ ^^n trary to common understanding, i s much moreJlie__warlL--Qf thejugil th an of J ^ te acher l^ This idea, which has been pre- sentecT before in this discussion, is here reaffirmed as fundamental. 5. We must distinguish between the 98 The Seven Laws of Teaching original disc overy of a truth and learning j t iroJA others. .D iscovery is made by pro^cg ^s oF^nftnal in vestigat ion and research wliid i are usually slow, fentatlTeTJand laborious. L earning comes ^by p rocesses of mtefprela - tion, which niay"1)e easy a nd rap id. Stijl t£eFe is mucn m common^ th e learner redi s- c overs in part th e material that he If^aj ris. No real learning is wholly a repetition of the thoughts of others. The discoverer borrows largely of facts known to others, and the student must add to what he studies from his own experience. His aim should be to be- come an independent searcher in the fields of knowledge, not merely a passive learner at the hands of others. Both the original in- vestigator and the student must be seekers for new facts and principles, and both must aim to gain clear and distinct conceptions of them. It is indispensable that the student should become an investigator. 6. There are several ph ««^« ^f thf^ Ipnryi, i ng^ process w hich should be carefully noted here in order that the full meaning of the aw shall be seen and understood. First . A pupil is sometimes said to have learneH the lesson when he has committed it to memory, and can repeat or recite it word for word. This is all that is attempted by many pupils, or required by such teachers as The Law of the Learning Process 99 consider their work done if they can secure verbatim reproductions. Education would be cheap and easy if this were real learning and could be made to stay. Sacnmi' It is an evident advance over the memorizing of words w hen the pupil has also an understanding of the thought. It is so much better that many teachers are tempted to care only for the thought, and so to inform their pupils. There is a danger here, for in. man^jcases, as in the teaching- of- th o l osgK M is in the Bible, it is impor tant to know and to remember the w ordsj^ Thtrd.__ It is still better when the pupil can tr angSte the thought accura tel y into his own or otEer words :y itho ut detriment to the m eanin gs The one who can do this has ad- vanced beyonTihe work of mere learning, and has pl aced himself in the attitude of ji discoverer. H e has learned to deal with his o wn tEoughts a s wpH na tnp ^'^^^-■g-Ti^p ^ others.^ The capable teacher will recognize this, and will pardon possible crudeness of expression, while he encourages the pupil to more accurate thinking as a means to more accurate language. F^MXili. The pupil sho^v^s^ , stilL gr.eater pro gress :g lien he Jieji^s to^.§e£k evidence of thes tatements w hich he^ studies. The**5ne whn r>aTi giVp a rAasr>Ti f n r the things he be- 100 The Seven Laivs of Teaching lieves is a bett er student a^.welLa§^„sixii0^er believer than ji>i^ on^ who believes but dfles not know ^ hy. The real student seek£ proofs, and a large part of the work of a slu^ dent of nature is to prove the things which he discovers. The stu dent of the Bible ou^l;t t o seek to find ouTf r>r hnnself if these thing' s a re so . Even the youngest pupils will take a^stronger hold of the truth if they can see a reason for it. In searching for proof, the student encounters much knowledge on the way, like the mountain climber who finds the landscape always widening around him. The particular proble m with which he is en^a^eJ i s seen io J^ a part ot JEe^gfeat e mpire o f t ruth . Fif^ - Austin hi gher and more fruit^ j ^ l sta ge of learning is fo und in the study of th e uses and applications of knowledge. JNo les- ion is fully l^ariiiid hntil it is ti'aced to its connections with the great working machin- ery of nature and of life. Ever y fact has its^relation taJife, and every principlevits a pplications, an d u ntil the se are known»_lacts and principles,.are _idle . The practical rela- tions of fruth7and the forces which lie behind all facts, are never really understood until we apply our knowledge to some of the practical purposes of life and of thought. The boy who finds a use for what he has learned in The Law of the Learning Process 101 his lesson becomes doubly interested and successful in his school work. What was idle knowledge becomes practical wisdom. 7. T he learning p roce ss is not c om plete^ i unt il this last s tage JiasJbeen peached. The other steps aid in illumining the understand- ing of the pupils as they progress in their work, but our law of the learning process de- mands this final stage, and to this purpose the efforts of the teacher and the pupils must constantly be directed. . "V / j 8. The earnest student will be enabled, ^TT^J^^dJc^^^ means of these steps, to watch his own prog ress with his work. He can ask these que tions : What does the lesson say ? What its meaning'? How can I express this mea ing in my own language? Do I believe wh the lesson tells me, and why! Wliat is tl good of it — ^liow may I apply and use the ress with his work. He can ask these ques- ^^^'^^fr^ ing in my own language ? Do I believe whatl\ CX Z^-^.— ^ the lesson tells me, and why! Wliat is ^^ ^ \ ^ knowledge which it gives! }%\tj u 9. It is true that many lessons are not /(t^liwir^* learned with this comprehensive thorough- ness, but this does not change the fact that no lesson is really learned until so under- stood and so mastered. Limitations of the Law 10. We should consider t wo limitations to this jaw of learning. The first has to dowiffi J the age of the pupils. It should be remem- 102 The Seven Laws of Teaching bered that the mental activity of y oung ch il- dren lies close to the senses. Their knowl- e3 ge of a lesson will be large ly confineH^ fo th e facts whicJi appe al ToThe eye, or whic h can Te illustrated to the senses^ A little laTer the"desire of pupils for activity and for car- rying on some active enterprise may profit- ably be utilized in their training. As matur- ity is^approached^_^ung people thmFmiore a nd^"more a baft^--^^s ons, and iJi e lessgl ffe w hich will appeal mojt_to them will be th e ones which ask rea so ns an3 w hi ch' give con- clusions. ■ 'Ij Anoth er" limitation is one concerned with the rlifFerent fields of human k no wledge^ In each branch of knowledge there are distinct evidences and applications, and therefore the operation of the law of the learning proc- ess will vary to meet conditions. The capa- ble teacher will discover these differences, and will find the proper conditions of suc- cessful study of each. 11. Herman Kriisi, one of the best of teachers because one of the most sympa- thetic students of childhood, said: ^^ Every child that I have ever observed, during all my life, has passed through certain remarkable questioning periods which seem to originate from his inner being. After each had passed through the early time of lisping and stam- The Law of the Learning Process 103 mering, into that of speaking, and had come to the questioning period, he repeated at every new phenomenon the question, *What is thatr If for answer he received the name of a thing, it completely satisfied him; he wished to know no more. After a number of months, a second state made its appear- ance, in which the child followed its first question with a second: 'What is there in it?' These questions had much interest for me, and I spent much reflection upon them. In the end it became clear to me that the child had struck out the right method for de- veloping its thinking faculties.'' Kriisi's questions belong chiefly to the first period of growth and education; in the later periods come other questions. Practical Rules for Teachers and Learners The rules which follow from this law are useful both for teacher and pupil. (1) Help the pupil to form a clear idea of the work to be done. (2) Warn him that the words of his les- son have been carefully chosen; that they may have peculiar meanings, which it m.ay be important to find out. (3) Show him that usually more things are implied than are said. (4) Ask him to express, in his own words. 104 The Seven Laws of Teaching fhe meaning of the lesson as he understands it, and to persist until he has the whole thought. (5) Let the reason why be perpetually ashed till the pupil is brought to feel that he is expected to give a reason for his opinions. But let him also clearly understand that rea- sons must vary with the nature of the ma- terial he is studying. (6) Aim to make the pupil an independent investigator — a student of nature and a seeker after truth. Cultivate in him the habit of research. (7) Help him to test his conceptions to see that they reproduce the truth taught, as far as his powers permit. (8) Seek constantly to develop in pupils a profound regard for truth as something noble and enduring. yCU^ ^ (9) Teach the pupils to hate shams and sophistries and to shun them. Violations and Mistakes The violations of this law of the learning process are perhaps the most common and most fatal of any in our school work. Since the work of learning is the very heart of school work, a failure here is a failure in all. Knowledge may be placed before the pupils in endless profusion and in the most attrac- The Laiv of the Learning Process 105 tive gniise ; teachers may pour out instruction without stint, and lessons may be learned and recited under all the pressure of the most effective discipline and of the most urgent appeals; but if this law is not followed, the attainments will fall short of their mark. Some of the more common mistakes are these : (1) The pupil is left in the twilight of an imperfect and fragmentary mastery by a failure to think it into clearness. The haste to go on often precludes time for thinking. (2) The langTiage of the text-book is so in- sisted upon that the pupil has no incentive to try his own power of expression. Thus he is taught to feel that the words are every- thing, the meaning nothing. Students often learn the demonstrations of geometry by heart, and do not suspect that there is any meaning in them. (3) The failure to insist upon original thinking by the pupils is one of the most com- mon faults of our schools. (4) Frequently no reason is asked for the statements in the lesson, and none is given. The pupil believes what the book says, be- cause the book says it. (5) The practical applications are persis- tently neglected. That the lesson has a use, 106 The Seven Laws of Teaching is the last thought to enter the minds of many- pupils. Nowhere are these faults in teaching more frequent or more serious than in the Sun- day school. ** Always learning, but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth/' tells the sad story of many a Sunday-school class. If that class be taught as our law pre- scribes, the results might be very different. Chapter VIII THE LAW OF REVIEW AND APPLICATION 1. Let us suppose the process of teaching to be completed. The teacher and the pupils have met and have done their work together. Language freighted with ideas and aided with illustrations has been spoken and un- derstood. Knowledge has been thought into the minds of the pupils, and it lies there in greater or less completeness, to feed thought, to guide and modify conduct, and to form character. What more is needed? The teacher's work seems ended. But difficult work yet remains, perhaps the most difficult. All that haR be en accomplished L lies hidden i n the minds of the p upils, andJiSriherejas a potency rather th an as a possessio n. What process sliall iix into active ha^ts the thought-potencies which have been evolved? What influence shall mold into permanent ideals the conceptions that have been gained I It is for this final and finishing work that our seventh and last law provides. This law of the confirmation and ripening of results, may be expressed as follows: The com pletion, t est and confi r mation ^ f 108 The Seven Laws of Teaching t he, y)nrk of tp, ac hmq must h e made 3y r e- view and appli cation. _ % The statement of this law seeks to in- clude t he chief aims of the revie^^ : (1) to perfect kTiowledg'e^,(J^.;> to nor>firr>i Vnnwifirlo'p, a nd (3 ) f.n render this knowled^'e ready an d usefuL These three aims, though distinct in idea, are so connected in fact as to be secured by the same process. It would be difficult to overstate the value and importance of this law of review. No time in teaching is spent more profitably than that spent in reviewing. Other things being equal, the ablest and most successful teacher is the one who secures from his pupils the most frequent, thorough, and interesting reviews. Philosophy of the Law 3. A review is more than a repetition. A machine may repeat a process, but only an intelligent agent can review it. The repeti- tion done by a machine is a second movement precisely like the first; a repetition by the mind is the re thjpT^ing ()f ^ thong-bt. It is necessarily a review. It is more : it involveg f resh conceptions a nd new associations, and, b rings an increasa of facilityand power . 4. "Rp^^iPWQ a^VA n-P r]ifFovonf frvqdpg ^f onvr\- ple teness ^ll d^ thoroughness , from the mere repetitionof the words of lessons, or a rapid '^ The Law of Revieiv and Application 109 glance thrown back to some fact or phrase, to the most careful resurvey of the whole field, — the occupancy in full force of the ground of which the first study was only a reconnaissance. The simplest reviews are mostly repetitions ; the final and complete re- views should be thorough restudies of the lessons. 5. A partial r e view^m a v embrace a singl e leaa^Oir-^^:' it mavJnclude a s ingl e topic of th e sub ject^ — the development of a single fact or principle, the recall of some event, o r o£ . s ome difficult p oint or questian."<;/Th e_com- pjete review m ay be a cursor y r^ewmg o f t he^ whol e £eld in a few general questionsj^or i t may be a full andjfin^ reconsideration^^ fhp wbn]p''^'rr>nr>rl "TJach kind of review has its place and use. We shall see in our dis- cussion that no teaching can be complete without the review, made either under the teacher's direction, or voluntarily by the pupil himself. 6. A new lesson o r a f resh topic^ e ver re - vp^ls a11 n? its elf ^'t firsC It di^stracts th e ai fnnfinr> rnnr^ Uq y^ovplfiPg m ay dazzle th e mind. When we enter a strange house we do not know where to look for its several rooms, and the attention is drawn to a few of the more singular and conspicuous pieces of furniture or articles of decoration. We 110 The Seven Laws of Teaching must return again and again, and resurvey the scene with eyes grown familiar to the place, before the whole plan of the building and the uses of all the rooms and their furni- ture will stand clearly revealed. So o ne mi u^t r eturn again an d a gain to a lesson if he would s ee all there is^ in it^ a ndj ?ome to a true-,a ad v ivid understanding o f its meaning . We have all noticed how much we find that is new and interesting in reading again some old and familiar volume. 7. Even in the best studied book, we are often surprised to find fresh truths and new meanings in passages which we had read per- haps again and again. It is the ripest stu- dent of Shakespeare who finds the most fresh- ness in the works of the great dramatist. The familiar eye discovers in any great mas- terpiece of art or literature touches of power and beauty which the casual observer can- not see. So a.,tru£Lr£3d£LW-jaL!Kays adds some- thin^_to Jhfi^ Jl^^ "ti^ student wlxa makes itjj 8. Especially is this true of the Bible, of which the latest study is the richest and most interesting. Nothing more surprises or de- lights us in the great preachers than the new meanings they discover in old and familiar texts — meanings which clearly are there, but which we had not found in our own reading. The Law of Revieiv and Application 111 Sometimes these meanings are hidden in a word, and need perhaps only the right em- phasis to reveal them; sometimes they lie close by the path and appear by some side- light thrown skilfully upon them by the text. Repetition with v arying em phasis often ma y b ring to 1if>'ht ^^f^^f^ hidden meaning s. 9. On one occasion at least, the Great Teacher resorted to this power of repetition, when three times in succession he asked Peter the question, ^^Lovest thou me?'' The heart of the disciple burned under this pow- erful iteration, and with memory and con- science quickened he appealed to the Master to witness to the truth of his questioned love. 10. But the_ _repetition s^ of a review are not jnade the same hour^ They_ai&~spi^^d oyer ..daJSI^lSI^fi^ks,' andJbence^^ new elg - ment is brought into pl ay. T he lapse j )f time changes the point of__yiew.^At^very_xe- vi ew we survey the , lesso n from a ne w stand- Roint.^ I ts facts rise in a n ew order,fflil,§re RPPT1 1T1 T1PW rplatioTis" IVntfis that were over- shadowed in the first study now come forth into the light. When one climbs a m^ountain, from each successive outlook the eye visits again the same landscape, but the position of the observer is always changed. The fea- tures of the landscape are seen in different perspective, and each successive view is 112 The Seven Laws of Teaching larger, more comprehensive, and more com- plete than its predecessor. 11. The human mind does not achieve its victories by a single effort. There is a sort of mental incubation as a result of which some splendid discovery oftentimes springs forth. The physiologists call it unconscious cerebration, by which they mean that the brain itself goes on working unknown to us. It is an easier explanation that the ever growing mind reaches constantly new posi- tions, and obtains new light by which a new truth becomes visible. Some fresh experi- ence or newly acquired idea serves as a key to the old lesson, and what was dark in the first study is made clear and bright in the review. 12. The old saying, *' Beware of the man of one book,'' has this in it, that his repeated readings of his one book give him a mastery of the subject which makes him a dangerous antagonist in his chosen field. He shows the power conferred by frequent reviews. 13. Frequent repetiti on s are valuable to pnrrPptrnPTnn|-i7?^f.inTi and vf^^rlj Vf^o.f^M. Mptti- or y depe nd'^ upon thir-ass ociation of ideas , — the idea in -niind recalli ng: the ideas with w hich it has been j ink ed by some past ass o- ciatian. Fl gch review esfflhl is hes new asso- ci ations, ^ Q:hile at the same time_ it familiar - izes and streno-thens the old. The lesson that The Law of Review and Application 113 is studied but once is likely learned only to be forgotten. That which is thoroughly and repeatedly reviewed is woven into the very fabric of our thoughts, and becomes a part of our equipment of knowledge. Not what a pupil has once learned and recited, but what he pe rmanently remembers an d uses is the f,orrp ^,t Tnp.^^ irf> of hi^ aphievemer^t. 14. Not merely to know, but t o have know l- prlp ;ft for nsp ^ — to possess it fully, like money for daily expenditures, or tools and materials for daily work, — such is t he aim of true stiidjr. This readiness of knowledge cannot be gained by a single study. Frequent and thorough reviews can alone give this firm hold and free handling of the truth. There is a skill in scholarship as well as in handi- craft, and this skill in both cases depends upon habits ; and habit is the child of repe- tition. 15. The plastic power of truth in shaping conduct and molding character belongs only to the truths which have become familiar by repetitions. Not the scamper of a passing child but the repeated tread of coming and going feet beats for us the paths of our daily life. If we would have any great truth sus- tain and control us, we must return to it so often that it will at last rise up in mind as a dictate of conscience, and pour its steady 114 The Seven Laws of Teaching light upon every act and purpose with which it is concerned. 16. The well-known influence of maxims and proverbs comes from the readiness with which they are remembered and recalled, and the power which they gather by repetition. The Scriptural texts which most influence us are those that have become familiar by use, and which arise in mind as occasions demand. 17. From all this it will be seen that the review is not simply an added excellence in teaching which may be dispensed with if time is lacking; it is one of the essential con- ditions of al] true teaching. Not to review is to leave the work half done. The law of review rests upon the laws of mind. The re- view may not always be made formally and with clear design, but no successful teach- ing was ever done in which the review in some form, either by direction of the teacher or by the private impulse of the learner, did not take place — the revisiting and repetition of the lesson that had been learned. The ^^line upon line and precept upon precept^' rule of the Bible is a recognition of this truth. 18. The processe s of review Tnust n9x>.^^- s arily vary y\^it h the sjibjgct of fgfudy, and-also w ith the age and^ ^van cement of the -n npiig W ith very you ng pu j^ils th e revi ew can b e little more than simple repetition ; with older The Law of Review and Application 115 pupils, th e revie\^?^-JwdlL be aJJiQUghtfuLre- s tudy of-l lie groumLla ga.iTi dee ^r und er- s tandin g. A principle in mathematics may be re- viewed with fresh applications and problems. A scientific principle may be fixed by the study or analysis of a fresh specimen, or by additional facts in support of the same prin- ciple. A chapter in history may be restudied with fresh questions calling for a fresh view, or by comparing it with the new statements of another author. A Scriptural truth will be reviewed by a new application to the heart and conscience or to the judgment of the duties and events of the life. 19. In the Bible more than in any othe r TinnWrA rpvipyri:} Tiftpdfnl and vnln?^bl^ Not only^3oes the Bible most require and most repay repeated study, but most of all ought Bible knowlcdgg to be familiar to us. Its words and precepts should rest clear and precise in the thought as the dictates of duty. ^ ^ 20. A'"y pyer mse jmay.5; orvQ as _a revieis O^''^'"*^^*-'' ^ w hich recalls t he materi al to be reviewed/^ *#*.♦-* ^ O ne of th e besl^ and^osTpr act ical form s of ♦ *'^y^ r eview isT!ie" "cair mg up ofany f act or trut h le arned and ap T)lying ^ it to some use^ Noth- ing so fixes it in the memory or gives such a grasp of it to the understanding. Thus the multiplication table may be learned by 116 The Seven Laws of Teaching orderly repetitions of its successive factors and products, but its frequent review and use in daily computations alone give us that perfect mastery of it which makes it come without call. So in that largest, most won- derful, and most perfect acquisition of the human mind, — the thousands of wholly arti- ficial word-signs and idioms of the mother tongue, — nothing but the ceaseless repetitions and reviews of daily use could so imbed them in the memory and so work them into the habitudes of the mind that they come with the ideas that they symbolize and keep pace with the swift movements of thought itself, as if a natural part of the thinking process. 21. The ready skill of artisans and pro- fessional men in recalling instantaneously the principles and processes of their arts or professions is the product of the countless repetitions of daily practic^ This kind of review is available in all cases where the pupil can be called upon to apply the material learned to the solution of common problems, the conduct of any process, or the perform- ance of any series of acts. The_art_of the teach£3v4»-i Ms w x)r k, lies in i h e stating oF^f * questiouF i whi^h shal l properly, mgk^ nsp nf ihs^. Tnfl|eria1 |.o be reyiewef^^. 22. The use of handwork in review ought by no means to be neglected. The hand is it- The Law of Review and Application 117 self a capable teacher, and few reviews are more effective than those which are aided by the hand. Witness the power and value of laboratory work, now so common in all scien- tific study. The request for th e pu pils to bring lists of p ersons, object s, places, e tc., mentioned in the l essons^ for fa V>n1ar st atements ^f facts o r ev ents, for maps, plans, or drawings of pl aces or thi n gs , civ fnr fi hfvrtj^^'^t^T^ ataip- m rnto or ancwors, willH»e-ef-vf^1u abl o r ssjs- t ance in reviewing^ Practical Rules for Teachers Among the many practical rules for re- view, the following are some of the most use- ful: (1) Consider reviews as always in order. (2) Have set times for review. At the be- ginning of each period review briefly the preceding lesson. (3) At the close of each lesson, glance back- ward at the ground which has been covered. Almost every good lesson closes with a sum- mary. It is well to have the pupils know that any one of them may be called upon to sum- marize the lesson at the close of the class- period. (4) After five or six lessons, or at the close of a topic, take a review from the beginning. 118 The Seven Laws of Teaching The best teachers give about one third of each period to purposes of review. Thus they make haste slowly but progress surely. (5) Whenever a reference to former les- sons can profitably be made, the opportunity thus afforded to bring old knowledge into fresh light should be seized. (6) All new lessons should be made to bring into review and application the ma- terial of former lessons. (7) Make the first review as soon as prac- ticable after the lesson is first learned. (8) In order to make reviews easily and rapidly, the teacher should hold in mind the material that has been learned, in large units or blocks, ready for instant use. He is thus able to begin at any time an impromptu re- view in any part of the field. The pupils, seeing that the teacher thinks it worth while to remember and recall what has been studied, will desire to do the same, and will be ambi- tious to be ready to meet his questions. (9) New questions on old lessons, new il- lustrations for old texts, new proof for old statements, new applications of old truths, will often send the pupil back with fresh in- terest to his old material, thus affording a profitable review. (10) The final review, which should never be omitted, should be searching, comprehen- The Law of Review and Application 119 sive, and masterful, grouping the different topics of the subject as on a map, and aiding the pupil to a familiar mastery of the ma- terial which he has learned. (11) Find as many applications as possi- ble. Every thoughtful application involves a useful and effective review. (12) Do not forget the value of hand-work in review. (13) Encourage the pupils to ask ques- tions on the material of previous lessons. Let this be done frequently; the pupils will soon learn to come to their classes with ques- tions ready to ask, and with ready answers for other questions. Violations and Mistakes The common and almost constant viola- tions of this law of teaching are well known to every one. But the disastrous violations are known only to those who have considered thoughtfully the inadequate and stinted out- comes of much of our laborious and costly teaching. The lack of proper review is not by any means the sole cause of failure ; how- ever, a wider and more thorough use of the principle of review would go far to remedy the evils from other causes. We pour water into broken cisterns ; good reviews might not 120 The Seven Laws of Teaching at once increase the quantity of water which goes in, but they would stop the leaks. The first violation of the law is the total neglect of review. This is the folly of the utterly poor teacher. ^/^fiOTidi ^^niPR thf^ whoUy^ inadoquat e-re- v iew. This is the ..Ja)«lt~^f thfiJuurifiiLjjQji impatient teacher, w ho is often more con- cfernea with getti ng tE TOUM ' h Ih^ Woik of 't ;ll, e te rm or « ggeil5E!i.hpiTi m^^^^^:) ^''' "^•"■^' 1^^ pupils^ Q ^a» I'Jie tfiird mistake is that of delaying all review work until the end of the semester or term, when, the material of the course being largely forgotten, the review amounts to lit- tle more than a poor releaming, with little interest and less value. The fourth error is that of making the re- view merely a process of lifeless and color- less repetition of questions and answers and often the very questions and answers which were originally used. This is a review in name only. The law of review in its full force and phil- osophy requires that there shall be fresh vision — a clear rethinking and reusing of the material which has been learned, which shall be related to the first study as the fin- ishing touches of the artist to his first sketches. The Law of Review and Application 121 Conclusion We have now finished our discussion of the seven laws of teaching. If we have suc- ceeded in our purpose, our readers have seen: first, the true teacher, equipped with the knowledge he wishes to communicate; second, the pupil, with attention fixed and in- terest aroused, eager to pursue his studies; third, the true medium of communication be- tween the two — a language clear, simple, and easily understood by both; fourth, the true lesson, the knowledge or experience to be communicated. These four, the actors and the machinery of the drama, have been shown in action, giving, fifth, the true teach- ing process, the teacher arousing and direct- ing the self -activities of the pupils ; sixth, the true learning process, the pupils reproduc- ing in their own thought, step by step, — first in mere outline and finally in full and finished conception — the lesson to be learned; and seventh, the true review, testing, correcting, completing, connecting, confirming, and ap- plying the subject studied. In all this there has been seen only the working of the great natural laws of mind and truth effecting and governing that complex process by which a human intelligence gains possession of knowledge. The study of these laws may not 122 The Seven Laws of Teaching make of every reader a perfect teacher; but the laws themselves, when fully observed in use, will produce their effects with the same certainty that chemical laws generate the compounds of chemical elements, or that the laws of life produce the growth of the body. INDEX PAGE Action, Mental, proportioned to stimulus 33 Appeals, Basis of 10 Gushing 10 Attention, Description of 25 Typesof 26,27,28 Most desirable type of 28 Fresh, how aroused 30, 31 Because of duty 36 Power of, increases with mental development 36 Hindrances to 36 Aroused by pleasing variety 37 Secured by pertinent illustrations 38 Secured by favorite stories, songs, etc 38 Secured by questions 38 How not secured 39, 40 Sources of interest are approaches to 33 Child, Small vocabulary of 43, 44 Must be understood 46 Questionings of 89 Beginning of education of 90,91 What is required from, in study 96 Mental activity of 102 Questioning period of 102 How to develop thinking faculties of 103 Class, helped by teacher 18 Comenius, Saying of 81 Conclusion 121 Education, Great Aims of 79 Enthusiasm, kindled by skill 9 Kindled by knowledge 17 Secret of 17 Exhortations, Earnest 10 Experience; of what it may consist 2 How taught 2 Characterized by, at different stages 15 Explanations, which end thinking 90 Figures of speech, from what law they spring 62 Ideas incarnated in words 46 Must precede words 47 124 Index PAGE Illustration, Power of, comes through knowledge 16 Illustrations from nature 50 From what borrowed 64 Infant, the: Interest in new objects 82 Interest, Sources of 33 How increased 34, 35 Varies with age 35 Limited by knowledge 82 Two chief springs of 83 Knowledge and the feelings 85 Necessity of 14 Degrees of 15 The teacher's material 15 Imperfect, makes imperfect teaching 15 Power of illustration comes from 16 Full, necessary to greatest interest . 17 Pupils' confidence inspired by 18 How communicated 32 Not a mass of simple facts 60 An act of comparing and judging 61 Never perfect 65 A record of solved problems 68 Practical application of, to be made 70 Necessary to thought 82 Love of, for its own sake 83 Desire for, for practical use 83 Appetite for, grows by being fostered 84 Respect for, for its value 84 Ready for use 113 Kriisi, Herman, saying of 102 Language, The Law of the 41 The Law of the, stated 5, 42 The Law of the, stated as a rule 6 Philosophy of the Law of the 42 Rules for teachers 51 Violations and mistakes 53 Of what it consists 41, 42 Power of thought rests largely upon 42 The vehicle of thought 44 The instrument of thought 46 Expressing original thought 48 The storehouse of knowledge 48 The measure of knowledge 49 Nature gives aid to 50 By signs 50 Index 125 PAGB Language, An imperfect medium of thought 50 Misuse of 54 Complexity of 55 Lack of knowledge of, a great obstacle 56 Takes its meaning from old knowledge 63 Law, the universal reign of 13 The teacher subject to 13 Effect of discovery of 1 Learner, The Law of the 24 The Law of the, stated 5, 24 The Law of the, stated as a rule 6 Philosophy of the Law of the 31 Rules for teachers 37 Violations and mistakes 39 The true 24 A rediscoverer 98 How must progress 101 Rules for 103 Learning: Pompous pretense of 23 Its essential conditions 24 How it should proceed » 59 Without a teacher 76 Superficial course of 94 What is true 97 What is not real 98 How it comes 98 Its several phases 98 And memorizing 98 And understanding 99 Mastery of thought 99 And testing statements 100 And application of knowledge 100 Learning Process, The Law of the 96 The Law of the, stated , 5, 97 The Law of the, stated as a rule 7 ^" Philosophy of the Law of the 97 ^; Practical rules for teacher and learners 103 ^ Violations and mistakes 104 The two limitations of 101 Lecture plan, when justifiable 89 Lesson, The Law of the 57 The Law of the, stated 5,58 The Law of the, stated as a rule 6 Philosophy of the Law of the 38 Rules for teachers 68 126 Index PAGE Lesson. Mistakes and violations 71 Fresh study of 20 Analogies in 20 Natural order of the several steps 20 Relation to lives of learners 20 All aids to be used 20 Time for study of 20 Plan of study of 21 Good books on 21 Discussion of, with other thinkers 21 Making mere framework of 23 Relation of, with the learner 35 Lessons, thoroughly learned 101 Maxims, Influence of 114 Meanings, New, in old texts 110 Memory: Conditions of its retentive holding 112 Dependence on association of ideas 112 Mental powers: Essential condition of their exercise 79 Stimulus of 79 Processes of cognition of 80 Work in their own way 87 Mind, The laws of 1 A power actuated by motives 33 Reserve powers of 33 How controlled 34 Sources of its interest 35 The adult 35 The self-active 87 Action of, limited 82 Autocracy of 88 ^ " The mind is," etc. (Milton) 87 True stimulus of 89 Does not achieve victories by single effort 112 Objects, the language of 49 Powers, command and use of 18 Preparation, lack of ^ 22 Pupil, Confidence of 18 Ability to inspire with love of study 19 Ignorance of 22 Must think 32 Needs of, to be learned from his words 46 Taught to make clear statements 51, 55 Seeming attention of 53 Stupidity of, explained 59 Two obviously different classes of 81 Too much help for 88 Index 127 PAGE Philosophy of: The Law of the Teacher 14 The Law of the Learner 31 The Law of the Language 42 The Law of the Lesson 58 The Law of the Teaching Process 76 The Law of the Learning Process 97 The Law of Review and Application 108 Questions as excitants 89 Review and Application, The Law of 107 The Law of, stated 5, 107 The Law of, stated as a rule 7 Philosophy of the Law of 108 Practical rules for teachers 117 Violations and mistakes 119 Different grades of 108 Partial 109 Fresh themes discovered by 109 Additions to knowledge gained by 110 Establishes new associations 112 Gives the mind firm hold 1 13 One of the essential conditions of teaching 114 Processes of, vary 114 Practical forms of 116 Ready skill, produced by 116 Use of hand-work in 116 Sense organs, gateways to the mind 33 Sentences, short and long 52 Signs as a medium of speech 49, 50 Skill and enthusiasm 9 Spirit, scientific: What is it 90 Study of the lesson 20 Time for 20, 21 Temptation to neglect 22 Not the pupil's work only 22 Thoroughness in, relative 65 Talking is thinking 47 Teacher, The Law of the 13 The Law of the, stated . 5, 14 The Law of the, stated as a rule 6 Philosophy of the Law of the 14 Rules for teachers 20 Violations and mistakes 21 Qualifications of 13 Powers of, roused 18 128 Index PAGB Teacher as a helper of the class 18 Confidence of pupil in 18 Loss of standing with class 22 What he has within his power 34 The too-talkative 51 Necessity of 76 The best 77 The true 81 Mission of 88 The Great Ill Teachers, Enthusiastic versus Trained 9 Rules for, concerning: The Law of the Teacher 20 The Law of the Learner 37 The Law of the Language 51 The Law of the Lesson 68 The Law of the Teaching Process 91 The law of the Learning Process 103 The Law of Review and Application 117 Enthusiastic from knowledge 17 A word to 11 Teaching, Fixed natural laws of 1 Definition of 2 Seven factors of 3 Analysis of 3 The Seven Laws of, stated 5 The Seven Laws of, stated as rules 6 Essentials of, successful 7 Real complexity of laws of 8 Laws obeyed by all successful teachers 8, 9 Aim of Sunday-school 10 Systematic, objection to 10 Laws of, the laws of mind 11 Helping the child to expression 47 Where it must begin 58 How it must advance 59 Forcing process 79 Teaching Process, The Law of the 73 The Law of the, stated 5, 74 The Law of the, stated as a rule 6 Philosophy of the Law of the 76 Rules for teachers 91 Violations and mistakes 93 Thought, the vehicle of 44 The instrument of 46 Two excitants of 83 Index 129 PAGE Truth a basis of appeal 10 Understood through other truths 16 Necessity of understanding 17 Mastered through expression 47 Imperfectly known 64 Truths, Common, transformed 18 Unknown taught through the known 58 Cannot be explained through the unknown 62 Violations and mistakes: The Law of the Teacher 21 The Law of the Learner 39 The Law of the Language 53 The Law of the Lesson 71 The Law of the Teaching Process 93 The Law of the Learning Process 104 The Law of Review and Application 119 Words: Small number in child's vocabulary 43 Different meanings of 43, 44, 45 Liked or disliked for their ideas 45 Loaded with false meanings 46 As clues 48 Group or family of 49 Not the only medium of speech 49 Unnecessary 52 As signs 63