VOL. XII

No. 26

An inquiry, addressed to me recently, for aid in the compilation of a bibliography of articles relating to Latin in the Junior High Schools suggested the publication of the list which is printed herewith:

Carr, Wilbert Lester. The Desirability of Latin in the Eighth Grade. The Classical Journal 9. 385-394 (June, 1914).

Deutsch, Monroe E. Latin Instruction in California Intermediate Schools. THE CLASSICAL WEEKLY 8. 122-125 (February 13, 1915).

D'Ooge, Benjamin L. Aims and Problems of Junior High School Latin. Journal of the Michigan Schoolmasters' Club, 53d Meeting, 37-39 (1918).

Green, T. Jennie. Latin Below the Ninth Grade. Bulletin of the First District Normal School, Kirksville, Missouri, Vol. 16, No. 11: Latin Series, No. 2, 3-7 (November, 1916).

Hale, Florence E., and Study, Harry P. Course of Study in Latin and Latin-English, Junior-Senior High School. Privately printed, Neodesha, Kansas (1918). Jones, Anna S. Latin in the Grades. THE CLASSICAL WEEKLY 8. 130-132 (February 20, 1915).

-Latin in the Grades Again. The Classical Journal 13. 436-441 (March, 1918).

Lodge, Gonzalez. Latin in the Junior High School. School and Society 1. 300-304 (February 27, 1915). Nutting, Herbert C. Latin in the Seventh and Eighth Grades in California. THE CLASSICAL WEEKLY 7.154-157 (March 21, 1914).

-Language Work in the Grades. THE CLASSICAL WEEKLY 8. 172-173 (April 10, 1915).

-Methods of Teaching Latin. The Classical Journal 11. 7-24 (October, 1916). See especially pages

22-24.

Scott, Mrs. George B. Junior High-School Latin; Its Place in War-Modified Education. The Classical Journal 14. 167-175 (December, 1918).

Symposium. Latin in the Eighth Grade. Journal of Education 82. 563-568 (December 9, 1915).

Nine short letters, on the possibilities of Latin in the Junior High School.

University of Pittsburgh Bulletin. Vol. 11, No. 6: Latin Series No. 2 (May 15, 1915). 24 pages.

Contents: Adams, L. P., Should Latin be Taught in the Seventh and Eighth Grades?, 3–9; Ullman, Berthold Louis, First Report of the Committee on Seventh and Eighth Grade Latin to the Classical Association of Pittsburgh and Vicinity, 10-22 (the

to which Latin was then taught in the Grades, and brief statements from about 20 teachers who had been engaged in this work).

West, Andrew Fleming, and Whitney, Allen S. Should our High-School Courses in Latin be Extended Downward into the Seventh and Eighth Grades? The School Review 15. 219-222 (March, 1907).

An outline of a discussion, as follows: West, Andrew Fleming, I. The Point of View of a Department of Latin, 219-221; Wh Whitney, Allen S., II. The View-Point of Department of Education, 222.

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FUNDAMENTAL AND AUXILIARY STUDIES OF THE CLASSICAL TEACHER1

You will not expect me to discuss the value of the Classics, or the place of the Classics in American education. I find equally incongruous and amusing some of the efforts to gather testimony as to the value of the Classics. It is like the evidence of good character which in legal proceedings is intended to bolster up the reputation of the party on trial. Are we in such a desperate plight? Can we not retort that nowhere in the School course is it possible to determine with a tapemeasure the exact advantages that grow out of the pursuit of a specific subject? Does our study of English, for instance, effect greater ability in literary appreciation of English? Have we advanced the standards of pure, unadulterated use of the language? Must we not rather be content with a more modest outlook, the power of straightforward reproduction, through words, of whatever thoughts we entertain? It is structural work along the whole line that we are engaged in, and the foundations are often buried deep under the ground; yet are they vital to the efficiency of the superstructure. In truth, we teachers will do well to face hostile criticism, to be grateful for faultfinding, for it goads us on to more persistent efforts to make our work effective, pervasive, stimulating. Will you join me, then, in considering the problem of the classical teacher's initial preparation for his task, and in determining how he can supplement this initial preparation by

This paper was read before The Classical Forum of The New York Classical Club, at Hunter College, March 15, 1919.

expanding the range of his intellectual interests in his chosen field?

I shall not hesitate to assume as fundamental certain features which I hope you will accept as basic propositions; otherwise we shall not be speaking in terms of a common understanding. Our classical teachers must, one and all, belong to an élite in the teaching force. We have no room for hack work, for perfunctory teaching. By a rigorous process of exclusion we must eliminate from the roster of classical teachers those who dole out a minimum of daily information, just sufficient to meet the bald requirements of a state-syllabus or a city-syllabus. Unless we can enrich our subject by creating new vistas of mental response, our insistence on the liberalizing influence of the Classics is devoid of meaning. It is, then, not so much what lies inherent in the subject that counts, but what we teachers extract from it, the cross-relationships which we establish, the collateral suggestiveness from a diversified range of information, the juxtaposition of the near and the remote. These are the various flashlights that illuminate the possibilities of classical teaching. Unless our teaching of the Classics touches the souls of our pupils, we have no brief to urge for the retention of classical teaching. The body of classical teachers must not be hewers of wood, drawers of water; they must be filled with an insatiable desire to reinforce their message in method and content.

I recognize two different educational aspects to the quality of our work, each one essential, if we would retain and strengthen its significance. First, we are to operate in our class-rooms not as handicrafts men, as mere purveyors of a bundle of facts that we have acquired, but must be filled with a spirit of artistry. If we admit the fact (and who would gainsay it?) that every subject will be enhanced in its effectiveness by the teacher's skill, then in classical teaching particularly it must be our aim to make accuracy and precision a vivifying, not a deadening, force. It is repugnant to sound sense to have teachers insist that teaching is a transfer by a mechanical, a purely physical process, of what they know to the pupil who does not know. Broad general principles underlie good teaching, and they are not gathered in a desultory fashion. Theoretic and practical guidance in the art of imparting should, if possible, be gained in a Training College, in courses specially designed to consider the values of the teaching processes. Where participation in such courses is not feasible, the young teacher should accumulate as comprehensive a series of practical devices as possible, and incorporate them in his teaching. Criticism and comparison of the various methods in vogue, of the tools in the shape of text-books, analysis of the pupil's capacities and interests at the several stages of his advance will determine acceptance of the one or the other method. It will often result in the suggestion of educational processes not previously applied. The specific subject-matter must be viewed in the light of

the general mental activity of the pupil. If the development of self-activity, if suggestion and imitation are significant aids to the acquisition of knowledge, if the formation of certain mental habits like the training of the power of attention, of memory, of judgment are processes fundamental to all growth in mental attainment, the accentuation of these requisites would be. particularly valuable in the teaching of the classic tongues. A consideration of the true function of the recitation is vital to this work. In the elementary stages of Latin teaching you may find it desirable to concentrate your attention, as Mr. Perkins has done, upon word-study; you may aim through the study of Latin to build up an extensive English vocabulary; you may practice the development of derivatives from their Latin stems. The establishment of cross-sections through the different languages may seem to you a particularly desirable goal. Personally I attach much importance to this. It would be well if our elementary teachers of Latin acquainted themselves with the parallelism in the grammars of a number of languages. They would be able to emphasize features common to them; they could economize the pupils' efforts in acquisition, because things identical need not be mastered anew as though they had never before been known. A comprehension of Latin paradigms, a serviceable grouping of vocabulary depends on the perspective in which you view your theme. Because of its importance, the first year of the Latin course cannot with impunity be entrusted to the tyro in the profession. The best teaching talent may not unworthily be employed to direct these initial steps. Our experienced teachers often deplore the inaccuracies and narrowness of vision of their Second and Third Year pupils. Let them freely assume charge of First Year classes, let them demonstrate the possibility of combining habits of precision with the broader outlook that goes with scholarly range. It is a pleasure to establish correct fundamental concepts on which the later development of their subject can be securely built. To lament what is commonly called the drudgery of foundation work is an evidence of narrow-mindedness. To overcome the helplessness of the beginner, to plan carefully for the expanding range of intellectual acquisition, in this dwells the veritable triumph of good teaching.

Acquaint yourself with every scheme of work that has been suggested to facilitate the work of the beginner in Latin. Construct from them your own plan of procedure. Do not attempt to use all recorded devices. Find those which you can make most effective. If you have evolved a scheme peculiar to yourself, set it forth in reports, or in the form of a book for the possible benefit of others, so that their judgments may fortify or disprove your method.

Fertility in resources of technique is indispensable, but the teacher will leave the heart of the work barren, if comprehensive knowledge of the fundamentals is not at his ready disposal. We should know more, far