Birmingham state herald., 1895-11-10
HERBART CLUB.
Fruitful Discussions of PsycOIogy and Kindred
 TonieS


 The meeting of the Herbart club at
 the high school building Tuesday night
 was we'll attended by enthusiastic stu dents of psycology. The meeting was de- voted tQ q general presentation of the life and doctrines of Herbart. The president,
 Prof. A c. Moore outlined the plan and
 purposes of the club. Psyeology, he stated, would form the basis of the work not so much the psycology of text
 books as current psycology-the psycol- ogy which Is brought to our attention
 through. discussions in the current mag azines. Psycology underles many other sciences, and proper solution of many Of the pressing problems of today de- l bends largely upon a correct understand ing of psychological principles. The name | Herbart was chosen because Herbart' 8 philosophy Is arevolutionizing educational thoughts. Membership in the club does 1 not carry with 1t an indorsement of Her bartian principles The object of the club | is an honest search after truth. No the- ory Is to be blindly adopted. While edu- l cational topics will form a part of the work of the club, other lines will be pur- l sued and all who are interested in phil | osophieal study are, invited to become members, whether teachers or not. The | local club will maintain a general connec- 1 tion with the National Herbart society. 1 recently organized, for the scientific l study of education. This society has at Its head some of the leading educators of 1 the day.
 l Miss Mary A. Cahalan read biograph- | ical sketch of Herbart. Johann Freid- l rich Herbart was born at Oldenburg May 4, 1776, and died August Il, 1S41, at Gottingen. His early life was spent as a l tutor, soon after which he came under 1 the influence of Pestalozzi His work as | a teacher suggested the study of philos- ophy and he is distinguished as having frfc Ot. afro rNP eral of the great universities of Germany. The height of his ambition was reached when he was placed in the chair made va- cant by Kant
 resume of Herbarts philosophy was presented by pr. J. H. Phillips. His fun damental doctrines were set forth in a clear cut and forcible manner. review of system of philosophy is no small task when ample time is allowed, but it is rem dered much .more difficult when only a few minutes can be devoted to it. Her bart's philosophy has its starting point its center, in education. Thus 1t differs from all other previously existing sys- tems. His inspiration was drawn from the school room. He stands with Hegel as the greatest of the post-Kantian phil losophers. His philosophy was the out growth of his pedagogy. His works are embraced in his logic, ethics, ontology, asthetics, psycology and pedagogy. His psycology distinguishes him from all oth- CT philosophers since he discarded the traditional division Of the human mind into separate faculties. He regarded the mind as simple essence, with the power to look out, as it were, through the win dows of the soul upon the external world and receive impressions. These impress sions entering the soul through the sense constitute so many ideas or presenta- tions, which by mutual attraction may become united as an organized mass or nf VQxr 14 @A4@ .I interaction of these presentations other ideas and states of the soul are origi- mated, as isolated idea seeking entrance into the mind is either attracted or re- pelled by the apperceiving mass. If at- traction prevails the feeling of pleasure ensues; if repulsion, pain. Thus he ac- counts for the development of feeling, emotion and even volition. Feeling in general is the product of ideas in motion. Feeling in motion, that is, progressing to- wards an attainable object, becomes de- sire; and desire, when accompanied by the hope of attainment, eliminates in Yolition Thus Herbart accounts for the I development of the sensibilities and the will In this, be it understood, he is at variance with the accepted psycology of his predecessors.
 Morality Is the dominating idea of his system of pedagogy; character the first word in his science of education. It is the proud claim of Herbartians that the subjects of the common school curricu- lum, when properly selected and present ed, tend to develop character. In the old systems culture was placed first, knowl- edge afterwards; in Herbart's system culture through knowledge properly pre- sented, constitutes the central idea
 Principal F. M Roof then followed with concise presentation of the leading rep resentatives of Herbartian pedagogy in Germany and the United States. The two leading representatives in Germany, he said, were Professors Stoy and Filler, each founding separate school based on the teachings of Hcrbart. The differ- ence between these schools consisted chiefly in the application of the Herbart- ian doctrine of correlation of studies. These eminent interpreters of Herbart were followed by pr. Prick and pr. Rein, the latter succeeding Dr. Stoy in the chair of pedagogy at the University of Jena. This school has become justly famous as the resort for educators from all parts of the world. Tn the United States, he said. the leading interpreters of Herbart are Dr. DeGarmo, president of Swarth- more college, and also president of the National Herbart society; also pr. M. c. Murray and Colonel Parker of Illinois and Drs. Butler and McMurray Of New York
 In discussion of the objects of the club President Samuel Ullman of the board of education emphasized the importance of the study of psycology as the means through which the teacher may be led to understand and properly guide his pupils. Even children of the same family, he said however much the family resem- blance may be, and however similar their treatment in rearing may have been, yet all differ in important points. The wise parent must understand these differences if he is to guide and direct the child. To the teacher psycology means much more. In every child the teacher must see before him the future man or woman. Every child presents to the teacher skeleton which must be clothed with living tissues.
 Principal J. B. Cunningham then briefly discussed the philosophy of Herbart and emphasized its reforming tendency upon the individual, society and the state. He said that if the pedagogy of Herbart were n,,1Io rip fr, Ia hoyv1o IVY ho