CHAMBERS'S INFORMATION FOR THE PEOPLE. 



own notions. This is the most important work 

 that can be done for a boy. As we have seen, all 

 accurate reasoning depends upon accurate notions. 

 But there is no tendency to which we are more 

 liable than to form our notions hastily ; and to 

 form them hastily is generally to form them 

 inaccurately. Any study that can make us linger 

 over them, and realise their contents in a clear 

 and definite manner, is of inestimable value ; 

 and foreign languages perform this service. And 

 they perform this service the more effectually, 

 the wider the difference is between the foreign 

 language and our own. 



But all this real educative work implies on the 

 part of the pupil the acquisition of some arts or 

 crafts. 



The first of these is the art of speaking. It is 

 remarkable how little attention is paid to this 

 subject ; yet it is one of the most important. 

 Language is the means of communication between 

 man and man ; and a great deal of the mischief 

 and misunderstanding that arise among men is 

 to be attributed to the incapability of many to 

 express accurately and clearly what they intend 

 to say. Children should be taught to say accu- 

 rately what they have to say, and this practice 

 should continue up to the latest stage of education. 

 1 1 is not enough that the pupil should be taught 

 to compose accurately ; speech and written com- 

 position are quite different accomplishments. At 

 the same time there is a danger to be guarded 

 against in this training. The power to express 

 accurately depends on the power to think accu- 

 rately. This, therefore, implies that when the 

 person has not reached accurate and definite 

 thought, he is not in a position to express himself 

 clearly on the subject. The time during which 

 a young man is working out a new subject is one 

 in which he cannot give full expression to his 

 thoughts. And after one has given expression 

 to his thoughts, especially if that expression is 

 given deliberately in writing, it is difficult for him 

 to begin thinking over the subject again. The 

 expression implies that the matter has been so 

 far settled, and only a decided effort on the part 

 of the person can again open up the question as 

 one for further examination and consideration. 

 The injunction of Pythagoras, that his followers 

 should be silent for a certain period, contained 

 a great deal of wisdom in it The follower was 

 not to make up his mind rashly, not to commit 

 himself to a definite expression of thought, but 

 was to continue thinking. When a man has a 

 few definite thoughts, he may well express them 

 clearly ; and, hence it happens that many people 

 are fluent enough though they have no great 

 ability, and many people destroy their power of 

 thinking by talking too much, or speaking publicly 

 too soon and too often, or by writing too much 

 and too soon. 



The next art is the art of reading. In reading, 

 there are three points to be carefully noted. 

 First, there is the actual thing in external nature, 

 or it may be only in the imagination ; but still, 

 for our purposes, it is the reality. Then there is 

 the spoken word which is the expression of it. 

 And then there is the written word which is the 

 symbol to the eye of the spoken word. It is quite 

 apparent that all reading is useless which does 

 not bring the reader into close connection with 

 the reality ; and, therefore, it is of prime import- 



572 



ance that the instructor should see to it that every 

 word uttered by the pupil is distinctly understood. 

 At the earliest stages these words should denote 

 for the most part external objects, or the ordinary 

 feelings of man. In the case of the external 

 objects the instructor should bring the actual 

 thing before the senses of the pupil, and he should 

 do this as often as is necessary. He should also 

 try to make the child understand what the feeling 

 is ; though it is plain that the child cannot under- 

 stand unless he has first felt the feeling. 



In the spoken language, the word is the unity. 

 The word is composed of elements ; and before 

 the child begins to read, he might have consider- 

 able practice in analysing the sounds. This is a 

 mere matter of ear. And the subsequent learning 

 of the letters might be greatly facilitated, if before 

 he began to read, he could distinguish the ele- 

 ments which go to make up the one word. 



In learning to read, two ways are admissible. 

 The instructor may take an object, speak the 

 name of it, and shew the printed symbol to 

 the child. The child thus learns the words at 

 once. After he has gained a knowledge of a con- 

 siderable number of words in this way, he may 

 proceed to analyse the words, and so learn the 

 letters. This method has many advantages, and 

 has been carried out with great success. But it 

 requires energy and patience on the part of the 

 instructor. 



The other method is to exhibit to the child a 

 letter, and then utter the sound which it generally 

 represents. This plan does not contain in it so 

 much interest as the other ; but with some chil- 

 dren it may be more effective. 



The names of the letters are on no account to 

 be taught to children at an early stage. These 

 names are utterly confusing. The child imagines 

 that the name gives the sound, and the confusion 

 is all the greater, that there is some connection 

 between the name and the sound. Great mischief 

 is done by giving the names, and a very unneces- 

 sary obstacle is thrown in the way of the child's 

 progress. Thus the word 'usurp,' if spelled accord- 

 ing to the names of the letters, gives us ' you-ess- 

 you-are-pea.' The child can see no connection 

 between these five words, as they really are, and 

 the one word which he has to pronounce. 



In teaching to read, the instructor should always 

 remember that in the mere attainment of the art of 

 reading there is little educative power. But the 

 art of reading may itself become a powerful instru- 

 ment in education ; and therefore the instructor 

 will so arrange the matter that is read, as to help 

 in the development of the child's powers. He will 

 choose such subjects as are appropriate to the 

 child's stage, with no abstract terms, and no moral 

 precepts. He will give goodness and love and 

 beauty in concrete, and interesting examples and 

 stories. 



Closely allied to reading is spelling. At first 

 this process must be carried on by the mouth ; 

 but as soon as the pupil is able, he must learn 

 spelling by the pen. Spelling is more a matter of 

 eye than of ear. And accordingly, a child who 

 has been taught to spell words accurately by 

 mouth, will find himself at a loss when he comes 

 to write the words. He must practise the writing 

 of them before he can do it accurately. And here, 

 as in morality, the child should be asked to do 

 only what there is every reason to expect that he 



