The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-10-25


and art. OF these English is most fun
damental; mathematics most disciplin-
airy; geography most Instructive; histo-
ry most enlghtening; science most
sharpening; art most refining. Taken
all together, taught at their best, they
will prepare even the boy or girl VINO
must leave school at fourteen to get
and give that service and joy in life
which is the end of education
At the outset / called attention to
three physical roots of education IN
kindergarten work, manual training
and physical culture. In conclusion let
/ me commend three spiritual principles
which are demanded by the great end
of education; rational examinations;
ethical discipline and the personal inf1u-
4 ence of the teacher,
First: Rational examinations. BY
rational examination | mean one Whlch
secures a broad review of the main fea-
lures of a subject on the part of the
class as a whole, without worry or fret,
or wasted energy on the part OF any in
/ dividual Now | would by no means do
away with all examination in the effort
! to make all things easy for the chill
| dren On the contrary BoWdoin college
is one of the three colleges in New
/ England, Harvard and Yale being the
other two, which require an entrance
examination of all candidates for ad-
mission to college But | would insist
on a few principles in the examination
of children in the elementary schools
First, memory should have a definite
important, but very restrictive place in
4 ;,,, A Fp,+ 1aEl
in grammar, certain arbitrary facts in
spelling, some first principles and Ia
bles in arithmetic, a limited number OF
leading dates and events in history
certain immutable boundaries and for
nations in geography, little technical
Technology in natural history must be
learned by heart; and when forgotten,
learned over again; and kept in memo
ry. In addition to this, very generous
selections from the best literature may
be committed, for the sake of the form
quite as much as for the matter. These
things should be explicitly marked off
as matter to be committed to memory.
They should be the subject of incessant
drill and repetition. They should be-
come so familiar that when they appear
on examination they will wear the APP
pearance of old and familiar friends.
They should know so definitely what
they are expected to remember that
there will be no anxiety about what
will be put upon the paper; and there
will be no element of luck in its make
up Shis part of the examination
should be brief, and of course passed
without the aid of textbook or note
book
The greater part of the examination
should consist of work to be done with
the books, notes, maps, rules before !
them, and encouragement to make all |
the use of them they can In writing
they may consult dictionary and gram /
mar. Do not we all do as much in ao-
tual life? In arithmetic they may get |
what help from the book they can in /
the time allowed. Does anybody come |
along and look up our books when In |
actual life we wish to measure room, |
or compute the height of a tree, or
meas sure a load of wood? In geogra
ply they may consult the map. Does
anybody deny lis the use of a guide
book when we are planning a journey? I
In history they may look up all the ref
erences there is time for, and consult
their notes with perfect freedom. Does
anybody take our encyclopaedia out of
the room when we wish to compare two
historical characters, or trace the caus-
es which led to certain events? In bot
any the important question Is not so
much what we can do without our
helps, as whether we can do anything
with them.
= at
ton of education which confines it to
the few facts and names and rules we
can carry in conscious memory.
Trained power to work, and familiarity
with the tools and processes are the
main thing All that lies far deeper
than memory. Examination should
chiefly test the power to do quiet, intel
igent work with the tools which previ-
Gus training has taught the pupil to
use. For example, in writing this adj
dress on the typewriter, l do not sup
pose l have hit the wrong letter once in
all the thousands of letters / have
struck, Yet If you We're to ask me
where X, f, Y or L are on the key
BOARD of this typewriter which I have
oeen using for ten years, ] could not tell
you without looking. My fingers know
lnerringly, but my memory doesn't
lnow, and doesn't care ] should con-
'ider 1t great injustice if some one
were to come along with an examina- /
ion paper, asking me where these let
ers are on my keyboard; and then set ]
ne down as conditioned in typa-writing {
simply because I couldn't tell him off s
land out of my conscious memory. 7 /
'hould say to him Indignantly, "Sit y
loWn there, try the machine, you fool,
md see whether / can write correctly {
II not. And if I can, don't rank me by &
Eour miserable memoriter examining
Methods Beyond the few definite {
Kings which are specified as mat {
ers to be committed, make the great /
ulk of the examination a test in pow 6
+. That eliminates the elements of 7
uck and chance, and fret and worry a
rom the examination, and make 1T G
ational test of progress In so doing t
removes the nervous strain which Is +
0 serious an evil to sensitive boys and i
iris The examination which attempts 4
. test the whole work of a term indis- a
by random questions which o
lvolve memory alone, is as unfair and e
bsurd, and demoraliZing, as it would Il
e to test the worth Of a months board o
V the amount of crude material the t.