INTERESTING ADDRESS

New Zealand Times, Volume XLVI, Issue 10541, 18 March 1920, Page 6

INTERESTING ADDRESS

PSYCHOLOGY AND TEACHING BEFORE WOMEN TEACHERS" ASSOCIATION. Thera was a large attendance at the monthly meeting of the Wellington Wo. men Teachers' Association, which was held in the Education Board's building last night. Miss Coad presided, and an address was given by Professor T. A. Hunter on the subject of the "Applications of Psychology to the Teaching ■profession." The professor said tuat the great advantage of psychology as applied to teaching was that we were bofinning to rely less and less on the lecturo system of instruction. Psychology, which was observation and experiment on the human mind, wa3 really a modern scientific conception, so that it was not surprising to find that people u'« not really investigate or understand the subject. The most fundamental change in modern education produced by tho study of phychology was thiit whereas the subject to be taught used to be the most important thing, the modern idea waß that the problem centred round tlie child, who was tho material on w~ich tho teacher had to operate. The change had cotno partly by the development of humanity laying a new value on child life, partly through new interest* arising from a, different point of view m regard to mental phenomena. The human mind was governed by law like material things. The war had had great effects on psychology, which played a big part in determining what work men or women should take up. In America thousands of dead-end occupations wore avoided by thorough scrutiny of tho people beforehand to 6oe if they were fitted for the work needed. New Zealand wan very far behind, seeing that we had not even got experimental psychology introduced into our universities. In America would be found psychological classes where children could be taken and investigated and expert advice given. This was very important, as if defectiveness was not taken cognisance of in its earliest stages the difficulties of dealing with it increased enormously. Experimental psychology and application must go hand-in-hand. The speaker thought that a teacher could not deal adequately with more than 20 children. Children received ideas differently. Some represent ideas to them in visual images, others in auditory images, and some in muscular movonient, so that if a teacher appealed only to the vision he was not understood by those other classes. The fundamental thing for teachers was to know what the material was with which they were dealing, and psychology could show- by simple tests the abilities of the child, and tho general intelligence. Tho only reason that we did not adopt this system was that it cost money, said the professor.

Dealing with the psychology of, the emotions- Professor Hunger said the emotional life had a great influence on the physical well-being and mental outlook of the individual, and what sort of emotional effect must some of our schools have, ho askod. If we are not developing tho finer emotions wo must be enveloping the grosser. Many children must grow up with no sense of beauty. Another problem to bo investigated by psychology was that of fatigue, what was tho best arrangement of work to get the maximum benefit of practice with the minimum period of fatigue? Tho study of this question had revolutionised industry to-day, but education was far behind. Experimental psychology had a great effect on moral conceptions. Moral development came from within man rot from without. Dealing with the question as to why there was plenty of money for commercial enterprise and little for education. Professor Hunter said that it was doubtless because in the community property was considered more important than human life. Education in this country could not provide what a civilised community should demand for less than five millions pounds. With regard to tho teachers thov should have the best since they were roallv training the child in fashioning the world of to-morrow. If people really appreciated this fact they would see that the most rigid tests wore made before anyone was allowed to take up the profession. Another danger was that people were driven to take up the work merely for broad and butter, and psychology showed that no effective work was done unless the people undertaking it were enthusiastic. The speaker •urged work in the direction of these reform* without fear—this, was the great stumbling block—fear of hurting someone's fecliniis. He considered it unlikely that nnv improvement would be made in tho status of the teaching profossion vntil someone's feelings were hurt.