River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1877-03-15
Educational.
III. y. BAKER, A. H., Editor.
COUNTY sUPHRIETESDENT.)
Method Of Conducting a Recitation in History.
No. One Concluded.
BY PROF. A. BARTHxAS.

In answering the question contained
in the last sentence of my former az
ticle, it will become necessary to sub
divide as follows: l. How to prepare
the student for an intelligent study
of the topic assigned and 2: How to
hear the recitation.
The first of these topics is, by far,
the more important of the two, for
the reason that, if it is attended to
properly, the second will generally
take care of itself. And it is right
here that teachers fail they expect
perfect recitations when they have
done absolutely nothing towards so
desirable result. In no other branch
of study is the neglect of teachers in
this direction more patent than it Is
in History. ''The next page" or ''the
next chapter" is assigned; students re-
turn TO their seats; and the next
days recitation is an exhibition Of
whati The students incapacity to
master the subject! No. The Teach
er's utter inability to teach the SUBJ
ject.
But, not to digress too much. Let
us imagine that the teacher under
stands the subject as indicated in the
first paper, and that he has class of
students who are beginning the study.
The teacher knows that the entire
History of the United States divides
itself into only four or five eras, or
epochs, and that we mt it go back to
the discovery of the continent for a
starting point. OF course, as this dis
covery of the continent was only le-
Ultimate result of causes previously
existing, the condition of Europe in
the fifteenth century must not be left
out of the consideration. Well, then,
the period of discovery and explora-
tion suggesting itself as the first topic,
this is made the study. The subject
is written upon the board. The name
Columbus, already familiar to every
student, suggests the first sub-head.
''The Spanish. This word deter
mines the following questions: Why
the Spanish, rather than other Euro
pean nationsl What Spaniards en-
gagged in the work For what pur-
pose! What portions of America
were visited? Time! Results
These several questions will suggest
the items to be placed, in outline, up
on the board, In the consideration of
the joarneys-performed, the mapmust
not be forgotten; on the contrary. the
careful study of the map will assist
materially in fixing historic events in
the mind.
In the manner briefly outlined above
the teacher will Indicate to the student
how the study of History may be sys-
tematized; how important items may
be separated from those that are of a
secondary character how the map
may be made useful auxiliary i'm
short, how to prepare, intelligently
and to the best advantage, for the
recitation.
After some time, the epitomizing
may be done by the student but,
even then, the necessary hints on the
part of the teacher must not be dis
pensed with. Above all other things,
however, the teacher needs 20 pos
sess a comprehensive knowledge of
tie subject; he will then be able to
give to the student such hints and
and suggestions. while preparing the
synopsis of the topic under consider
alton, as will stimulate him--the stu
dent--to search outside of his text
book, and to acquaint himself with
the treatment, by other authors, of
the same topic.
When the teacher has done his duty
toward the student, then, and only
then, can he reasonably expect the
| student TO DO his duty toward him.