The Penn's Grove record., 1913-06-13
INDUCTIVE


The inductive method is called the
new and correct way to teach children
to think for themselves, to induce them
to discover something already known,
instead of giving them the information.
Then they expect the pupil to make ii
rule explaining the operation.
Herman II. Harne, PHI. D., professor
of philosophy in Dartmouth College, i'll
his 1.-The Psychological Principles of
Education" says: Induction leads the
pupil to inform himself; deduction i'll
forms him. Deduction is the way tile
race has usually taught its children,
thus very quickly putting them abreast
of the learning of their ancestors"
Our idea of education is to teach chill
dren all the facts known as quickly as
possible and not to have them spending
their time and muddliEg their brains to
discover something already known and
trying to make rules which have been
more clearly stated by men skilled in
the use of the language, and who know
how to explain in the clearest and most
concise way.
The New Jersey Commissioner o.
Education, Calvin Kendall, and John G..
Stone, the erratic mathematical genius
at the MOntclair Nor nal School, in COM
mon with other educational writers adj
vocate eliminating many thing from
the arlthmetics which are practical and
useful, altho they do not think so be-
cause not i'll their line of business; and
have the children spent their time dis
covering something 10y induction when
they might learn quicker. They advo-
cate eliminating higher arithmetic and
the introduction of algebra which is
mostly training i'll abstract generaliZa-
ton of no practical value except to me-
chanical OF civil engineer who desire a
college education.
Instead of algebra being in the gram
mar school arithmetic should be in the
high school.
One who advocates tile old way which
puts children quickly abreast of the
parents in arithmetic is called antiouat.
ed and not acquainted with the new
and proper way by which the prog ess
Of the race has been made. There was
only one each OF Pytho9aras, Copernl-
Gus, Kepler, GallileJ and Newton who
discovered great nIathtma zeal tru hs.
1t is a waste OF valuable time to induce
children to discover what is already
known.
We publish this at the present time
because the book agents are SWarming
to replace other books in schools which
have not proved a success because OF
the induetive methods therein. In
most cases, these new books with some
fad to sell them, contain the same meth
cd which have failed in other books.
But we must have the new method TO
be up-to.date, and to meet the require
ments presented by the high educa-
tors who are trying to bring methods fit
only for mature thinking minds down to
children vino have not learned the ele-
mentary principles of grammar and
arithmetic.
The new method. No, not at all
new, because the contest between the
dedUctive and inductive methods in
teaching were waged centuries ago.
The inductive method lost prestige in
The middle of the past century and the
hnAnnfIUn nnnfhn6 ulo n1n,o,t o.4.I-
used FROM 1850 until about twenty
years ago when authors began to repub-
lish such books. We quote from a
book, Browns Grammar of Grammars:
copy written in 1851;
Granted the principle to be true il
makes nothing for this puerile method of
induction; because the regular process
by definitions and explanations is both
shorter and easier, as we'll as more eff
feclual. In a word, this whole scheme
of inductiye grammar as we'll as arith-
metic is nothing else h a series of
leading questions and manufactured
answers; Tie former being generally as
unfair as the latter are silly. 1t is a
remarkable tissue of ill-laid premises
and OF forced illog cal ~sequences.n
John Milton, I600-I674, the writer of
Paradjs Lost was IL of the worlds
greatest inductive thinkers. "Milton
IN his academy, profe 'sed to teach
thihg5 rather than words; and many
others have male plausible profession
OF the same thing since. But it does
not appear, that even in the hands of
Milton, the attempt was crowned with
any remarkable s~uccess.u
10 those not acquainted with deduc-
i've education We may illustrate deduc-
ton with the American use of the
plane by pushing It from you. Undue
ton by pulling it towards you like the
Iapanoo1 do l