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TH MAUI-NEWS SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1907 FADS. The following paper was read by C. E. Copeland Principal of the Wailuku Public school at the Maui Teachers Association held at Wailuku, Decem ber 20, 1907. What is a "fad '? Webster savs a fad is a freak, a whim or a hobby. In education, then, the term fad would mean some comparatively trifling, fanciful or unimportant subject of instruction; or, some cmpMcal or ar bitrary method of teaching. More broadly speaking, a fad might be de fined as a subject or method foreign to the generally accepted scope and purpose of the grade of school work under discussion. To decide whether or not a given topic or method is a fad, is to open the whole question as to the nature, methods, purposes and objects of education in general. Moreover, it is conceivable that a topic or method in the hands of one teacher might be the most extreme of fads, while in the hands of another, it might har monize completely with a conserva live and thorough system of instruc tion. So much depends upon the skill and personality of the teacher, and so little upon the efficacy of any method, that it is very difficult to rope and brand a fad. Again, what might be clearly a fad in a lower grade, might be perfectly legitimate in a higher one. Or, what might be a fad in a country school might he legitimate in the city. .Furthermore, . the fad of to.dav may become the standard of to morrow. In common schools, the various branches of nature study, manual training, music, drawing, school city or other plans for self-government, cooking, weaving, basket-making, &c, have all been' called fads. Upon these topics I shall not dwell. They all have their appropriate place in a legitimate scheme of instruction, end can properly be called fads only wheu prematurely or unskillfu'.ly used. Fads in the methods of teaching are usually much more seiious in their effects than fads in the subject matter of instruction. They are also more difficult to get rid of, or to dis credit, since the fallacies upon which they arejased are usually subtle and plausible. Most fad methods, elso, appeal strongly to a class of teachers who are content to follow the line of least resistance in their work, and who find it easier to apply a ready made method than to work out one for themselves. The only test as to the validity of a method is to ex amine its results. The cheaper educational journals are full of "nlans" and 'methods" for doing this, that or the other thing. They serfre to fill the pages of the papers, but accomplish no other purpose. The royal road to learning is yet to be discovered. Modern invention has contrived no way of escape from the labor of learn ing. Any method for which itfe advo cates claim extraordinary results in education should be regarded with suspicion. We must inquire about the results. In the language of the street, ''Does it deliver the goods?" - If it does, it is legitimate; if it does not, it is a fad. I propose to examine three of these method-fads, which have had a great vogue in the schools of Hawaii, and which, judged by their results, have proven themselves conspicuous fail ures. I refer to the plan of teach ing without books, to the word-met!) od of teaching reading, and to the five-step method in reading, geogra phy, nature-study, Ac. The use of these fads in Hawaii was greatly encouraged and promot ed by the visit aud lectures of Colonel Parker, a nan of great personal lorce and individuality. He had suc ceeded to a remarkable degree in stirring up teachers all over the United States, and awakening them to a deeper sense of their opportuni ties. He himself could probably have used almost any method with success, but he apparently supposed tnat his own mental processes and points of view were those of the child. ' He talked as if he believed that the same general plan of instruction which lie used in teaching adults in his normal school would be equally efficient in primary teaching. "Don't teach books," said Parker; "teach things. Let nature be your guide. Let your children learn as naturally and as spontaneously as the young robins, or the baby on its mother's knee. Dou't worry over technicalities, but devote your attention to essentials, &c;" Very beautiful talk to listen to, and also very profitable to Colo eel Parker. Uufortuuately, the Colonel's exhortations were accepted here, literally in ilieir most extreme sense, and were made t tie authority for the fads I have mentioned. And first, as to teaching without books. Seven years ago I attended a meeting of this association, at which for the first time, 1 heard this doctrine advanced A leading fea ture of this meeting was a debate on the ques'irn: "Kesol ed, That Read ing can bu taught better with books than without them." The leader of the affirmative side begun his speech by saying that lie was thoroughly opposed to the use of text-book", and debated in favor of them only for argument's sake, vor his part he was convinced that books had no place in a well regulated ' school. Hooks are dry, dead, artificial, stupufying things at be.-,t. The scriptural udac, "The letter killeth, but the spirit makcth alive," is directly applicable to school work. Out of his own treasures of wisdom the teacher is amply competent to find, select and arrange all materials necessary for practice nnd informa tion; And, in addition, can impart to them a life and interest which books never can give. Ileal education re ntes to things, not to books; and no body, except pedagogues far gone in the d.itage of second childhoodwoulci think of trying to impart, an educa tion from or by means of hooks. The real, wideawake, up-to date teacher goes direct, to nature, to life and business for his material, and then puts it into vital and interesting form cm the blackboard for his pupils. This was about the line of argument adduced in favor of the fad. Iti was quite useless to argue that reading in any adequate sense is learned by long and abundant practice in read ing; and that proper materials for such practice are available in bonks only. The argument that no teacher, vhatever,h.s qualifications, has the time, skill or opportunity to prepare and present as good a collection ,of material as may be found in even the worst of our text books, was laughed to scorn. In vain was it pointed out that to teach reading without suit able printed matter for study, re view a id practice is just as irratioi.al as to teach swimming in the sands of Sahara, or piano playing on the edge of the kitchen table. In either casf the motions may be gone through with, but no results worth while will ever be obtained. I feel that T am justified in reliting the following incident, which applies forcibly to 'he subject of discussion, since the principals of the school re ferred to are no longer engaged in teaching: A board of registration, in the dischaige of its duties, held a meeting on the premises of a school whose principals for several yea mm had been zealous advocates of the no book fad. A number of yount men presented themselves for regis try as voters, but could not read or write sufficiently well to enable them to qualify. Surprised at their igno ranee, a member of the board asked: "How is it Uiat you young iimmi cannot read?" "VVe do not know why." ' "Have you never gone to schnof?" "Yes, we went to school." "Where?" "Here at this school." "How long?" "From six to fifteen." "You have . not forgotten your books, have you?" "We know nothing of books; we never had any " This, then, is the full and perfect fruit of the no book fad. Young men, compelled by law to attend a public school for seven or eight years, grown up to manhood, are debarred from th privileges of citizenship, never hiving learned to read. It is gratifying to me to be able to say that tiiis, one of the most mischievous and senseless fads that ever infested the schools of Hawaii, is decidedly on the wane, and that the course of study now prescribes readers for use in the schools. The word method of teaching read ir-g is a reaction from the old A 13 C method of our grandfathers. By the ABC method the child first thorough Iv learned to name aud recognize all the letters of the alphabet, and lien was tiiught to use those letters in the building of words. A prac tical, though quite unintentional drill in phonics generally resulted from this process; so that after a year or two of A 15 C work, as it was called, the child was usually able to make substantial progress in the recogni lion and pronunciation of words. Oral drill in spelling was a favorite exercise in ioniiccti.ni with this method; and there is no denying that the results obtained were substan tial, although slow at first. Hut fifter a while it was discovered that the child can learn a small word bv its form just as readily as a letter, and that lie may be reading fluently in less time than is usually required to learn the alphabet atone. Skillful teaches at once availed themselves of this fact to make the lessons more interesting and profitable to begin iie'-s, hut were cartful to teach the alphabet and He powers together with the words learned. When the pupil had learned the alphabet and mastered lis phonic value tie was able to pronounce simple words at sight, regardless .of their niean'ng, and the word-method was no longer useful to him. I have always been somewhat in doubt a to the exact value of the gain made by the use of the word method, even when employ ed by judicious and intelligent teach' ers. There seems to be no question, however, that its use ought to lie confined entirely to the first vear of school. Wher. the word-method began to attract attention, the faddists, always on the lookout for some gel-rich-quick scheme in education, took it up nnd pushed it entirely hev.ond its legitimate use. If a little of it was a good thing, they argued, more would be better. If children could begin learning words by this method, they could keep on learning them. These extremists entii ely lost sight of the fundaments! fact that our written language is essentially alpha betic and phonetic. The alphabet, defective and redundant though it be, is yet, for those who know it. a sufficient key to the pronunciation of most English words. Moreover, correct spelling, which of late years bids fn'r to become a lost art, is possible only to those who know the names, sounds and uses of the letters. The proper division of words into syllables, so important to the writer, is utterly incomprehensible to pupils taught by the woi d -niethol. To such a pupil, the dictionary, with all its uses, is a sealed bonk, to which he has no key. A story in dialect would be, to such a pupil, as meaningless as though written in a foreign tongue. In short, to a pupil taught only or largely by the word-moth od, the language is ideographic, like the Chinese, in which the form of the word affords not the slightest clue to pronunciation. The word-method, as ordinarily used, and with average pupils, com monly results in the confusion of words similar in form. "It," "is and "in" are often mistaken one for the other. Likewise, "was" and "saw"; -'left" and "felt"; "of" and "for"; besides others too numerous to mention. Ss far a my observa tion has gone, not one pupil in ten, taught by the word-method, is able to read even the little words witi any reasonable degree of accuracy. Consequently, since the meaning of the sentence so largely depends upon nil- iii lie wiirus -uiu worus oi reia tion, transition and connection the failure to recognize these little words Results in very incomplete coin pre hension of the thought More than any other one. thing, the word method wastes the teacher's time. The pupils, having no clue to the pronunciation of new words, must ask the teacher to pronounce for them. This is an endless task, and one that grows heavier as the classes advance and the new words become more numerous. Even though per fectlv familiar with the spoken word, pupils fail o recognize it in the print I'd form unless it lias been specifically taught. Again, the use of the word method is largely responsible for the vague, indistinct and incorrect writ ten work so often seen in our schools While the written form as a whole may resemble the word it was intend ed to represent, yet the letters are often incomplete or incorrectly form ed. Thus we see that the word laeth od, when employed as the 'chief means of teaching reading, produces two se: ious evils. Word method pupils can neither read correctly nor write correctly such words as they may be able to read. Hut there is a third evil more serious iu practice than these two. A pupil taught only by the word method k;iows how to read only the words he ha been specifi cally taught. Words which he has not been taught are utterly beyoi d his reach. When lie attempts to reed matter containing words to which his attention has not been pre viously directi d, lie tbsolutely fails, Nor can he resort to tiui dictionary for aid, for, as J have just meutioiiel, the dictionary is as useless to him as a silk hat to a gorilla. In all practi cal and essential respects, the word method as a means of instruction, -is a total and in qualified failure, except in the first year of school. Yet, in spite of all'these facts, which a com petent and well informed educator c.-n scarcely avoid knowing, this method still finds advocates. I nave heard a very prominent and influen tial educator of the Territory contend st. enuotisly that, it was the only pro per method to be employed in the mechanical port of reading, and that if lie had his way no pupil should eveg know that there was such a thing as a letter. Fori unai ely, however ih practice this fad eventually breaks down of its own weight. Pupils gen erally find out for theinse've some of the powers and tixes of the alphabet, and are thus in a measure saved from I 'ie logical and inevitable consequen ces of this method where carried out to its limit. I hope that the intelli gence and good sense of our teachers will soon relegate the word method to the educational scrap heap 'along with the no book lad and other such rubbish. The word method is an exotic, in Hawaii,-having been imported hither from the mainland. I now proceed to ti e consideration of a fad that is nutive to the soil. The glory of its discovery and application belongs t Hawaii alone. If we are to trust, to the enthusiasm of some of our Island "UtiOiiorsou this subject, t he heavens and the earth are destined to pass away, but. the five step method shall not puss away. Pot so conspicuous and loudly-praised a process the five step method is singularly indefinite and elusive. I have for so ne time ci deavored to obtain a clear and si raigu ciorwaru statement as to what it really is; but so far I have been unable to do so. One of its mo-it at dent advocates, ii Normal Inspect or, in one of his reports to th Super intendent, affirmed that it was "real ly no method at all " So it happens that I am unable to inform this As sociation just what the live step met hod is, iu the minds of those who are responsible for its use. I am able, however, to show m a general way how it works out in practice which, after all, is the essential thing to know. The proof of the pudding is in the eating,, not the chewing of the rag in which it was boiled In application the five step method is something as follows: f. The teacher reads or tells the lesson or story 2. The teacher writes on the board, pronounces and gives the meanings of the new words. 3. The teacher then asks questions usually leading questions about the story. 4. Pupils then express their idi as of the story or lesson by telling, acting or drawing 5. Pupils then read the lesson from the book or board, as the case may be. This method admits of many variations in its application to different classes and subjects, but its principle re mams the same. I he teacher is to do the work, and the pupil is to re produce the work which the teacher hiis done. There is no question but that this method, especially in con t.ection with the use of the word-meth 0.1, and where there are no books used, will yield apparently astonish mg resul's in a very short time. It is a method which is especially adapt ed to purposes of demonstration and exiiiDition. i oo not know of any other plan which will show off a class to auch advantage. It resembles the word method in that it has a certain leg'tiinate use, which is restricted almost entirely to the first school year. Like the word-method, also, when applied outside of its proper liijiit, it becomes most injurious and iurlful. Tiie reasons for this are self evident. Pupils learn to read by reading not by being read to. Power is attained by doing, not by seeing or bearinjj others do. Friiifi,! thoughts come from the ciT rts of the thinker and not from the speech of the 'teacher. Sim e the five-step method seeks to impart knowledge from withojt, ruther than to de.elop powers of apprehension from within, it is diame trically opposed to the fundamental principles of pedagogics. No better inetnod of training parrots could pro bably be devised, nor a poorer way of developing the minds and faculties nt children. We may accept it as an axiom iu education, that the teacher should do as little, and the pupil as im.eii of the lesson as possible. The pup:! should get the thought of a lesso i by his own study of the printed page and not from the spoken word of liia instructor. The pupil's owu MAKE YOUR OWN GAS The Sunlight "OMEGA" Acetylene Generators HAVE NO EQUAL. We are the Agents for the "OMEGA" ami will cheerfully give estimates on: GENERATORS from 10 Its. to WO Its. FIXTURES of nil kinds. COMPLETE PUNTS properly installed. Let us talk "GAS MACHINE'' to you nnd we can convince you that you require an outfit to make your home complete. KAHULUI RAILROAD CO'S MERCHANDISE DEPARTMENT Sole Agents Exclusiveness. "AH America" fine shoes men are the shoes of today. Coun try Stores that carrv this great line of men shoes enjoy the en largement of lwisiliess. ion at tract the liest of trade by selling "All America" Specials. You can carry a large variety of styles, nnd size up quickly from our immense stock. Laeh pair .shows the sound, honest quality of workmanship. Island orders solicted. Wliol:1 snle and retail. SPECIAL WHOLESALE HAT I S. MANUFACTURER'S 1051 FORT STRCKT, effort to reduce the printed word to spoken form, and to grasp its mean ing, should be the first step in the lesson, and not the last. The meaning should be the prize to reward the learner's endeavor, and t& stimulate his besj efforts. But, when the teach er has pointed out and explained the new words in the lesson; has read or told the story, and has found out by means of questions just what the pupil knows of the matter, nothing now remains for the pupil to do. Why then should he crack over again the empty shells of a lesson from which the meat uf interest has been re moved? His situation i-: preci-i ly that of the man who owps fir r d il horse he won't pay uincssl e Las i.. And, the pupil seldom, i:;ts to. yie will make no further ftet on that lesson, and hi rending of it, a the final step, will be perfunctory indeed, Since the story is evidently On- main thing and he can have it told him without any effort on his part, the pupil uat in ally makes no effort Making no" -ffi.rt, hi develops ro ability; aid when he readies the stage in which ability i th 'mdi-ijen sable requisite to progress, he simply stops. He becomes ore of Hie fifty odd per cent wl.o never p'o-s bcyo;;d thp fiis1 giade, or f il.i. i-ighly per cent, who never ndvuree beyond ti e third grade. And you may hear his teacher eeinpjaii irg. "I don't know what in the world N ti e irmi icr with Johnny. He used to be such a bright litth fi p.iw, and nmv he is h-.ipelcss'y stupid. 1 can't understand ii at all." And poor John leaves se'. ool. Ilehas been compelled to attend for seven or eight years nt a cost to thu lax payers of from t'.'O to '25 a year, and now fine's, 4iiinse!f uuabiu t.j read a of an ordinary newspaper to write a letter inleMigibly or legibly, and about all ho can expect to do is to work -it ill paid, unskilled manual labor the rest of his life. My experience of ten, years as a teacher in the Hawaiian Islands has uot convinced me that our pupils, as a rule, are either stupid or incapable. Nor do I think that our teachers lack energy or enthusiasm. But, I read in our Superintendent's last report to the Governor that more than fifty per cent, of all our pupils rank below the second grade; nearly seventy per cent, below the third, and over eighty per cent, below the fourth. Counting the high, normal and Lnhainaluna school all i.i, only eleven per cent, of for SHOE COMPANY, Ltd. :- : HONOLULU. our pupils ever get out of the primary grades. What is the reason for this state of affairs? The legislature gives liberally of the Territorial revenues for school purposes; the Department of Educa tion provides the teachers' with suit able supplies and facilities for their work, the compulsory school law compels tl:e regular attendance of the pupil. And, I have never seen teachers work harder than In the schools of Hawaii. Why thn this lask of results? Why then this piti ful eleven per cent, of pupils who ueepd in pseapins; from t n'-mary Grades? . Why the eiirht v-r.hie per' cent, whofi'il io acquire ai ,y useful or etfeein-e edu 'ation?' 't'iie chief reft son vVhie lo th naked i ye is the prevalence of these fads lei trio of efficient causes of inefficiency the no -bonk fad; the word-method fad; and, last but not least, the live-step fad. When these have bueii thrown, overboard, and the course of our edu cation tl hark guided by Hie compass of reason and experience, we may expect to peach the desired haven of practical, useful and aiit.,j ,.,tt, ,,ju-, cation, Wailuku express A NToN E DO UEilO, 1'Rol', niYI.0 and EXPRESSING. Contracts taken for Haufctig. Teh phone Xo. -p Office: Qnern lodging House, Main Stropt Hawaiian Iron Fence and ' Monument Works, Ltd W ml WiVt THAN WOOI t. 1 i Who F-nrer'-ivw! th Hifhogt Award, 1 kall Mvdul," N etll i air, M. L.iui, lutj. Prii- l fr 1 1t iu i iv('.4 ttil.it' ut fi'iii'u. lijr it"t iv.t" ' iii "M dm ii'iw will luat. at irif tiw IKON KVNOV Ill IIIkbI f iillttlllli'til I.'lHt Vitll I'll II IlllV. (u I I ' il' -it fi- .( lr..u Iniiv. Irtu Hoi. it n. Hcllft'. 1 etc.ehin.u iu ipiir m un. th-d mir;it teteyou CAM. AM wo Sell iron Fence Honolulu. T, , :)