Principles of Teaching by Adam S. Bennion (primary phonics books .TXT) đź“•
The following definition of teaching, contributed by a former statesuperintendent of schools, is rich in suggestion:
"Teaching is the process of training an individual through theformation of habits, the acquisition of knowledge, the inculcation ofideals, and the fixing of permanent interests so that he shall becomea clean, intelligent, self-supporting member of society, who has thepower to govern himself, can participate in noble enjoyments, and hasthe desire and the courage to revere God and serve his fellows."
Teaching does not merely consist of an inquisition of questions withappropriate answers thrown in; it surely is not mere reading; nor can itbe mistaken for preaching or lecturing. These are all means that may beemployed in the process of teaching. And they are important, too. Wehave been cautioned much, of late years, not to lose ourselves in theprocess of doling out facts--but that rather we should occupy
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But if the outline is made simple—if it is considered as merely a skeleton upon which is to be built the lesson—it is one of the greatest assets a teacher can have. Perhaps we can make the matter clearest by going through the process of outlining a lesson, indicating the essential steps involved.
Suppose we are asked to prepare a lesson on prayer. Keep in mind that in such a preparation we face the problems listed at the beginning of this chapter: the aim, the illustration, the application, etc., and keep in mind also that each of these subjects will be taken up in its turn and that for the present we are concerned primarily with the query, "How can I organize a lesson on prayer?" Let us assume, too, that we are preparing this lesson for young men and women about twenty years of age.
First of all, I must decide why I am to teach the subject of prayer. In view of the fact that the matter of the aim is to be considered fully in the succeeding chapter, suppose we agree that our purpose in this lesson shall be to establish prayer as a habit of life.
Step number one, then, is the selection of an aim—a focus for the thought of the lesson.
Step number two is the collection of random thoughts. As I begin to ponder the subject of prayer and its influence on life, all sorts of ideas crowd into my mind. Perhaps I read some one's discussion of prayer—perhaps I talk to a friend relative to it—perhaps I just ran the subject over in my mind. The thoughts that come to me may be vague and wholly disconnected. My immediate concern is content—order will come later. And so I jot down, either in my mind or on paper, such ideas as these:
"Prayer is the soul's sincere desire." The Song "Sweet hour of prayer." What is the use of prayer? Are prayers answered? How often should I pray? Does the Lord hear and answer our prayers, or do we answer them ourselves? What kinds of prayers are there? How may I know how to pray? Should prayers always be answered affirmatively? What are the characteristics of a good prayer? What prayers have impressed me most?And so I go on. My task in step two is to scout about intellectually in search of available, suitable material. Many of my jottings may duplicate others already set down; others may not be appropriate for my need; still others may be wholly irrelevant. But I am seeking a wealth of material that I may make my recitation as rich as possible.
Now, step three becomes a process of correlation and elimination—a process of hitting upon my main headings—setting up the milestones to mark my course of development. And I so sift the material in my mind and sort it out under appropriate captions. After a good bit of intellectual rummaging about, I find that my random thoughts on prayer fall rather naturally into four main divisions, each capable of expression in a question:
I. What is prayer? II. Why should I pray? III. How should I pray? IV. When should I pray?But now that I have these major headings, I still face the problems of enriching them and elaborating them so that they will have body enough to stand. In other words, I build up my sub-headings. Under the first question, for instance, I group these thoughts:
I. What Is Prayer? 1. It is communion with God. 2. It is the key to God's storehouse. 3. It is the key to God's heart. 4. It is "The soul's sincere desire." 5. It is the great anchor of faith.Under question two, I group:
II. Why Should I Pray? 1. Because I am commanded of the Lord to pray. 2. Because through prayer I keep in tune with the Spirit of the Lord. 3. Because it is through prayer that I acknowledge the goodness of God. 4. Because through prayer I petition for needed blessings. 5. Because through prayer I establish and preserve an attitude of humility.Under question three:
III. How Should I Pray? 1. Simply. 2. Sincerely. 3. In spirit. 4. After the pattern of His prayer. 5. In secret as well as in public.Under question four:
IV. When Should I Pray? 1. Regularly. 2. Morning and evening. 3. To meet special needs. 4. My attitude should always be one of prayerfulness.This matter of organization may be diagrammatically illustrated as follows:
The hymn
The song
What is the use of prayer?
Are prayers answered?
How often should I pray?
What are the characteristics of a good prayer, etc.?
Focus
or
Aim
To establish prayer as a life habit.
I. What is Prayer?
II. Why should I pray?
III. How Should I Pray?
IV. When Should I Pray?
In short, organizing involves the search for thought and the bringing of order out of chaos. Having selected the aim, the main headings, and the sub-headings, we now face step four—the enriching of these sub-headings in illustration, incident, etc., so that we may link up these thoughts with the experience of our pupils. We may think of so much stimulating material that during the ordinary class hour we can cover well only one of these questions. Our purpose and the needs of the class must determine the extent of our detail. The actual material that could be used to enrich this lesson on prayer will be given in the chapter on illustration.
Step five involves the problem of application, or "carry-over into life"—a subject to which another chapter will be devoted. Of course, we ought to say here, in passing, that application is not something added to or "tacked on" a lesson. It may be emphasized at the close of a lesson, but in reality it pervades and is inherent in the whole lesson.
Questions and Suggestions—Chapter XV
1. What is meant by calling teaching a composite process?
2. Point out the essential advantages in outlining lessons.
3. Show how outlining is not in conflict with inspiration.
4. Name the essential steps in lesson organization.
5. Choose a subject from one of the manuals now in use in one of our organizations and build up a typical lesson.
Helpful References
Those listed in Chapter XIV.
CHAPTER XVI ILLUSTRATING AND SUPPLEMENTING A LESSONOutline—Chapter XVI
The force of illustrations.—Three kinds of illustration material: 1. maps; 2. pictures; 3. incidents.—The force of maps and map drawing.—The appeal of good pictures.
Illustrations
Illustrative material for a lesson on prayer.
Having discussed the organization of a lesson together with the formulation of the aim, let us now turn to the problem of illustrating and supplementing a lesson. In organizing a subject for teaching we drive the nails of major thoughts—through illustration we clinch those nails so that they will be less likely to pull out of the memory.
The three chief classes of illustrative and supplementary material are:
Maps, pictures, incidents—actual, imaginary.
It is clear that in the lesson outlined on prayer, in chapter fourteen, we should have little occasion for the use of a map. We can, however, in connection with that lesson, point out the force of pictures and incidents.
Maps naturally are of greatest service in lessons with historical and geographical background. The journeyings of Israel mean so much more to us when we can follow them from place to place on a good map. So the Book of Mormon account clears up if we are similarly guided. Had we authentic maps of the lands named in the Book of Mormon, how much clearer and more interesting the history would become! We would know the exact spot on our present-day maps where Lehi and his family landed from their heaven-directed barges; we would know where to find the land Bountiful; where may now be found the ancient site of the City of Zarahemla; where flows the River Sidon; what country is indicated by the "land northward"; the journeys of the Nephites as they were being driven; what states saw there continued struggles against their inveterate enemies, the Lamanites, and how they reached their final battle-ground near the Hill Cumorah. To visit with Jesus in Palestine adds a charm to the New Testament that is really hard to evaluate, and surely the travels of our own pioneers call for the aid of a good map. Thoroughly to appreciate all that they did requires that we travel over the wonderful trail they followed—that being impossible, the next nearest approach is to see actually drawn out the magnitude of their achievement. The appeal to the eye couples so forcefully with the appeal to the ear that no classroom ought to be without its maps. Perhaps it is not beyond possibilities to conceive that at a not distant date we shall have made available films for class use to intensify the great lessons we draw from history.
Pictures make a wonderful appeal, particularly so to children. It is impossible to measure the inspirational appeal that a single masterpiece exerts on a class of boys and girls. A theological class in one of the Sunday Schools of Salt Lake County was once blessed with a most magnetic and powerful teacher. Upon his death, the class had his picture framed and hung on the front wall of the room in which he had taught. From that day to this the silent inspiration of that picture has stimulated scores of young men and women to the high ideals for which he stood.
More generally applicable and more easily available, of course, is the Incident. The ability to tell a story is one of the finest attainments of the teacher—particularly if he will take the pains to find vigorously wholesome and appropriate ones. May we repeat the warning that stories ought not to be told merely to fill out the hour, nor to tickle the ears of the class, but to intensify and heighten the truths contained in our lessons.
Included under the heading Incident may be listed short poems and all kinds of literary bits that fit in appropriately as spice to a lesson. On the subject Prayer, the following are some possibilities:
Under question I, "What is prayer?" the hymn, "Prayer Is the Soul's Sincere Desire."
Uttered or unexpressed;
The motion of a hidden fire
That trembles in the breast.
The falling of a tear,
The upward glancing of an eye,
When none but God is near.
That infant lips can try;
Prayer, the sublimest strains that reach
The Majesty on high.
The Christian's native air;
His watchword at the gates of death;
He enters heav'n with prayer.
Returning from his ways,
While angels in their songs rejoice,
And cry, "Behold, he prays!"
In word and deed and mind,
While with the Father and the Son
Their fellowship they find.
The Holy Spirit pleads,
And Jesus, on the Father's throne,
For sinners intercedes.
The Life, the Truth, the Way!
The path of prayer Thyself has trod;
Lord, teach us how to pray!
The two songs: "Sweet Hour of Prayer," "Did You Think to Pray?"
"For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart, yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads." (Doc. &
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