Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-12-28

VI Dr- SuZZallo'S magnificent ad-
dresses, desire to observe that II the
parts which he withheld or failed to
express were as good as those demon
stratlons which he actually gave. then
his scholarly presentations were with
out fault or blemlsh that it would he
worth while to point out. But though
the doctor cleverly made the point OF
saying that the only realities ever seen
by some teachers are those which they
encounter on the daily journey from
their homes to the schoolroom vet nIs
attitude on the study OF real things as
opposed to words, was by no means
apparent.
ANOTHER AMBIGUITY.
There was also ambiguity in The
DOCTORS attitude towards the question
as TO whether real experiences from
nature and social life, or the invented
and often fictitious ones printed In
books, shall form the basis and hegin-
ming mot the end. mark you) of the
work in the elementary schools As 10
the high schools and colleges, the uues-
ton Is less grave. though they too have
discovered that laboratory methods
give the best education, whether In his
tory OF chemistry. But for the common
school. this decision Is more vital; 1t
concerns the whole future intellectual
life of the child. and almost determines
the nature of his subsequent develop
ment
MAN AND NATURE.
That the main study in the schools
shall be the study OF men, is freely
granted; but that the personal develop
ment of the child is best fostered by
making him too soon a member of $50
ciety." or, at least, by making him too
much a member of that complex md
none too clean or beautiful world that
Is comprehended under the name of
human society and institutions, Is e,s-
pressy denied
The child is not more of social
being than he Is child of nature. II
Is more to him that the birds sing, The
stars shine, that spring is beautiful,
that fruits are luscious. that play is
glorious. and that labor is life itself.
than. tis that Mrs. So and So gives u
tea party In such and such a manner
The former is nature. the latter Is
society" choose which shall be The
main inspiration of the opening life
OF your child. Read Rosseaus Emile"
FOR MODERN CULTURE.
Dr. SuZZalloS argument that modern
culture studies should form part of
the education of all school pupils In
America. will not in any way be qucs-
toned here. 1t was n high class. not
to say splendid demonstration. which,
from its motive alone, meets with gen.
eral approval. even from those who
might be inclined to criticise some of
the positions taken. That motive was
a double one-(D the good OF the in
dividual, and (2) the safety of the
Republic
But the precise question which
teachers need answered is this; How
shall we proceed to impart this mod
ernized cultural education to the
pupil? And this was the very point
upon which the doctors learned and
able reasoning shed no light. the
crucial point of the entire discussion
was overlooked.
THE MAIN POINT.
Here is the point: Many people arc
convinced that culture itself, in tho
broad and liberal sense in which the
loctor construes it. can best be at
-alned by making that training known
as vocational, agricultural and nature |
study the daily subjects of school in |
by way of experiment. prac- !
Use and first hand observation. In |
,lace of reading something about these
subjects from the printed page. the |
advocates of flrst-hand seeing. think |
ng. and doing In the school room. |
would have the child see, think, and |
10 for himself. Then, by telling and |
writing OF what he has thus seen and |
lone, he learns language. and IFS cor |
'ect use comes In giving expression to |
hat which he knows, feels, and de-
Iires to will-to express in some way. |
By this method. the child first acquires |
IDEAS, motives, purposes, stories, of
lis own: and he must flnd-he will
and expressions, drawings |
md figures, In which TO declare them.
This. by the way. is the method where
~ poets. prophets. orators. logicians.
md story-tellers have become such and
III of them find that the words already
lsed by others barely suffice TO ex-
'ress their own meaning. Forthwith
hey bend the language to their own
Use, stretch 1t. coin new words, or
make new combinations of them, in
rider to give vent to the ideas demand
ng expression. So in teaching child
he use OF language, there is little diff
Guilty about IL when he has something
hat he really wishes to say and Is
arnestly seeking To make known. II,
ow, IL so happens that In giving to
he child this wonderful and effective
tImulus to expression, you can also, in
ddltional effort give him an exper-
snce that is common to men i'm GER
ain vocations of life. that puts him
\ touch SO to speak, with what the
-orld of social Industry Is doing, and
hereby makes him practically familiar
nth some leading part OF tho great
;orld's work about him. you thus ac-
omplish the very result for which Dr.
uzzalIo so forcefully argues, and by
ieans of the very method at which he
GEMS to look askance-
THE OTHER WAY.
For the only other known OF at
elnpted way in which to train the
hid for social service. In so far as
his problem consists In a mastery of
peech and a knowledge OF the lives of
ther people. Is to tell the child these
hings and try 10 get him to imagine
hem. Then. by repeating OF memoriz-
1g the teachers words. or. worse still
hose In the book, the pupil may seem
} gain q mastery OF words and a knowl-
dge OF the lives OF others; but 1t is
My an appearance: for by this old
culture" method. the child gains only
batch OF memorized words. III the
hid be Of the imaginative sort and
an put mental pictures to the words
e thus learns. these pictures are
evertheless crude. imperfect. false.
nd often both. grotesque and mislcad-
lg.
LEARNING BIZ DOING
Teaching by doing is precisely similar