Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1889-07-25
SYSTEM IN TEACHING.
How to Make It Useful, wholesome and,
Best of All, RedeeminR.

System. system, system; all is sys-
tem," says the tagging. desultory
teacher. System, system, system; we
have nothing but system. We eat by
system, SO many times day, and at
such and such hours. We sleep by
measurements. We dress by rule We
must get all our gala days in before
Lent and crowd our summer pleasures
into two small weeks and keep pace
with this cease.ess, clock-like blinking
round of system; and then to add the
final cap-stone - the Sunday-school
specialists have caught the spell and
cry system, system. SYSTEM" And so
it is, and so it will be. The successful
teacher will have system. Like the
universe about us, every thing that op-
crates harmoniously runs by system--
not in ruts, but by a wholesome, gen.
erous, life-infusing system.
System in preparation is essential in
securing well-digested teaching ma
terial. Contact with the ideas that un-
derlie every lesson will produce ideas
upon the lesson. A habit of going reg
ularly to the fountain will keep the
teacher desiring to go. 1t will pro-
duce necessity Of going. Many q
teacher looking at the topic produces
q talk. 1t were better to talk over the
lesson and produce q topic. Topics
born of careful and systematic prepara-
tion produce teaching points, and
teaching points are rivots OF truth
which can be fastened inside and out
. side of the students life and character
System in preparation will produce
material and power in teaching.
One must not have all system
husky, unserviceable system. General
Braddock. who attempted to fight the
Indians near Fort Du Quesne, used
system without sense, and his army
would have altogether perished had
not young Washington covered the re-
treat with q sensible system of eau
tion and bravery. System in prepara-
tion and teaching is like foundation
and framework in building-it consti-
tutes the preliminaries about which
you are going to spread the lasting
effects of truth. And again, system in
teaching has another likeness to foun-
dations. 1t suggests that the in
structor begins with what the pupil
already knows, and from what the
pupil knows, direct to what may be
''new'' and unknown. This might be
illustrated in the lesson on sThe Timid
Woman's Touch" by referring to dis
eases that are common among people
"a sore upon the hand, q patch OF
scrofula-and work up the conception
of running sore lasting twelve years
in its ravages, and at length cured by
some skillful physician: Then de-
scribe o. hemorrhage of the lungs, OF
nose, or ears, lasting twelve years, and
hea'ed by Christ at once. Then pict
ure the analogy Of sin--the multiplicity
and duration Of its effects-and the
one undeniable and sole magic power
to save-namely, Christ. In propos
ing lesson always arrange tho teach
ing points 80 as to increase the inter
est at each successive step, and mak
each point or illustration or applica
tion have the same effect, IL possible
as the closing events in n story givel
in parts. 30 that the pupils anticipa
tion will be sustained to the close; o
SO introduce the teaching points as Il
make similar effect to the successiv
strokes of q crayon in the hands of q,
artist, to bring into completeness tn
picture. which at first was only an out
line. Do this, and system in teachin,
will be useful, wholesome, redeeming
Chicago Inter Ocean.