Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1894-04-21

fONNNiNH I"N
I'M, instructors In the Salt Lake Cts
bish school are given;
MArurNArics.
Ib,yc Seen asked 90 write Or
article boz the way of review COL ta
,.,.rt of tht conference on maiucml i-s
i.t.. Committee uf Zen of the Naulua
council of Education. The one tccOm-
ugrJafiln ui the conference deserving
consideration before ail others b. 'hai
u.iuting To- somewhat radical revision
uitle ordinary course in afiilm Zoe. u
ia suggested that thc elementary schools
should undertake tu teach fewer sun.
igcis combining The work TO the lundd'
mental operations performed upon in
t.g,s. fractions and duDmtIs, dCnom
iuaie numbers in actual use. aud such
operations and calculations in per-
ctuiagc and interest as the pupil is
IiscIg soon to- put To- practical use.
DO will ue seen that this viii leave out
d ycy great part OF the arithmetic now
usually taught However. ihU um. thus
saved Is not To he diverted from Matte
miiics IL is proposed that the subjects
r.uutd shall be iar more thoroughly
mastered. This IS 90 DE done by the
solution. at every step. oi a great mum.
bcf of practical question: involving The
principle. under consideration. Very
many of these questions arc TO Dee pro
posed hy ibc pupil himself from data
derived from hs own measurements aud
Investigations. Nothing is 10 be UNDER
a.un that the pupil Is not capable OF
mastering aud that De Is not gwen the
opportunity Of mastering. lie is TO
Itau the operations which he must be
familiar with va order TO DO work boz the
E.hur branches of mathematics and in
8uci udics Tie D. also To learn the
operations which be Is capable OF using
practically and which he probably will
have tau opportunity Don OF putting To
practical use. some Of the portion lea
uut is useless aud should never bee
learned ai 40. Some can De learned
much more easily aud satisfactorily in
algebra or geometry. Some, as % large
pare ul commercial arithmetic, BIS 60 uc
studied only wHCn the pupil eau com.
pfghgul % aud b about TO use 10.
IHis work viii not occupy 40 the time
90 present devoted TO arithmetic, aud
some of the fundamental ideas ui a'ge.
bu and geometry are 10 be introduced.
The pupil Is 90 become lam.iiJr with
aEthne language and with the use OF
equations. DE la 10 acquire some skill
boz ihc construction Of gcomeiuc figures
AND ls iu understand many %. their rcIa.
tons. Tine work 100 algebra and gcJm
uify d. nor Co De detached but b. TO bee
incidental largely 10 the work 30 arIin.
myuC.
The wisdom Of the proposed changes
need hardly b, argued. ID the pncuch
in education Is sought Tor. this seems TO
D q step toward o.. N II b. sought to
arrange work with reference 10 rs
natural sequence aud So as to be con.
at1ntly progressive n difficulty. then the
proposed arrangement b. certainly better
than The present one Almost 40 schools
give evidence OF the face that pupils are
hsyly 20 lose interest in their studies aud
quit school in tie seventh or eighth
ycar The changes suggested IA mathc'
MATES iu connection with those recon-.
mcnded in other branches might be
expected 60 DO much toward mitigating
this evil. II the faculties are being
developed nationally the process ought,
on the whole, 10 be % very pleasant one
10 the pupil
Tic conference recommends that the
study of geometry should begin with
the chiIuh INST year in school, ln the
kindergarten or in the primary school
The work 90 the lower grades Is, OF
course, 90 Doc concrete geometry and is
% bee chiefly of such % nature as TO Cxet-
else the faculty OF perception and the
power ui reproduction Nevertheless
Che chdJ D. 90 be taught very early 80
follow short chain, ol reasoning ~
ibla reasoning is Co De purely incidental
% seem, 10 me not TO be ub.tcuunanlyi
bat 60 DO is intended 60 make the Cultivl.
ton OF the reason az all prominent al
about the age Of tea" then the natural
order OF development rs not being
followed and the result will surely bc
lack Of Interest on the part OF the pupil
and failure ON the plrt of the teacher.
ltistccommcndcd that there should be
many "oHl exercises IN algebra, similar
20 those iu what b. called mental arithmc-
uu,' This suggestion deserves special
Commendation. Il seems To me to tend
toward emphasizing the fact lhlt clc-
meutary algebra furnishes q method Of
solving problems which Is very closely
related To- what many authmetics call
analysis" Besides, the pupil becomes
familiar with the principles OF algebra
la well as with those oil arithmetic, not
bY solving lew difficult and cumpi.
Gated problems, but Boy the prompt
solution OF a large number OF simple
ones.
ltis recognized that the chief end to
DE attained by the study Of dcmonstra.
tive geometry is the ability 10 reason
with rigid correctness ana TO express
thought with the utmost precision. In
order 10 obtain this result u is recon-
mended that the teacher insist on
vigorous correctness OF reasoning in the
demonstration as well as on carelulat
iglilun TO elegance OF form.
The report says geometry cannot be
mastered Iy reading the -mlnsiratlons
of % textbook" Probably no principle
gnung.atcd 10y the committee Is more
often violated IN practice than Is this
one, Most teachers OF language agree
that the best method of learning a
language Is not with a translation IN the
hands of the pupil Neither should the
demonstrations in geometry be in the
pupils hands unless Dc be only TO such
an extent as TO make INN familiar with
the form OF demonstrations, Indeed the
reasons in the latter case seem to me
Car stronger than in the case OF LAM
guagcs. For the purpose oi the pupil
On language is above an 20 become ac.
quAuied with the language; the develop
nent OF IBIS reason is Incidental While
90 The study OF geometry Ihe develop
ment OF the reasoning power rs the
chief end TO be attained And surely
tile heat NAV IA Ulutu the r,uar IA rNnapu