“PARDOCENTRICISM.”

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19259, 25 August 1924, Page 2

“PARDOCENTRICISM.”

MODERN EDUCATION. SOME MARKED TENDENCIES VIEWS OF PROFESSOR ADAMS PUTTING “THE CHILD IN THE MIDST.” Tho arrival of Professor Adams, emeritus professor of education of the University of London, is an event of no small importance to Dunedin where the interest in education in its various phases is so wide and deep. In educational circles throughout the Eng-lish-speaking world ho has long been well known, by repute and through his writings, as one of the greatest living educationists; and glowing reports from Wellington and Christchurch, which he has just been visiting, have shown that he is not only a great scholar and teacher but a brilliant and most engaging lecturer, and a charming and attractive personality. Careful preparations for Professor Adams’ visit hero have been made by a committee of educationist, among whom not the least enthusiastic have been some who are proud to claim the honour of having sat as students under the professor. His visit hero is to last only three days, and tho fullest use is to be made of all his time. It was a large and notable group that welcomed him at tho station on Saturday on his arrival from the north. The Mayor (Mr H. L. Tapley) officially welcomed him on behalf of the city. Tho de.puty-Mayor (Mr J. S. Douglas) was also present, and there were representatives of the University, the Education Board, the Training College, and inspectorate, and other educational bodies. During their stay in Dunedin Professor and Mrs Adams are tho guests of Professor Jack, who is one of his enthusiastic old students. Professor Adams’ first lecture in Dunedin was in Bums Hall on Saturday evening on the subject of “Tendencies in Modern Education.” Tho ground floor of the hall was filled with an audience among whom members of the teaching profession formed a large proportion. Professor Jack presided and was supported on tho platform by representatives of the University Council, of the Educational Institute, of the Headmasters’ Association, of the inspectorate, of tho medical profession, and other prominent citizens.

Dr Jack, in introducing the professor said ho was really in the front rank of educationists, and he (the speaker) was sure that those present would foel that for themselves after hearing the address. At the present time they were hearing of the approach of Mars, but they had a more important event in the coming of Professor Adams.—(Applause.) The professor was much appreciated in America and Britain, and to illustrate this he would point out that the professor started on his way to New Zealand on December 22, 1922, and had only just arrived in the dominion. He was thought so much of in America that ho had to promise to revisit that country. A number of people would be acquainted with Professor Adams' hooks, and must have felt as if they would have liked to meet him. The professor had a large range of interests, and the speaker would quote an incident that did not appear in any of hi? hooks, A distinguished professor of theology once told the speidcer that he had heard toe driest of addresses on theology, and it had been given bv Professor Adams. There was a time when the professor and Sir Robertson Nicol used to meet regularly, and settle all things in the world and make them ran smoothly for another week. —(Laughter.) The speaker said he had once been a pupil of Professor Adams in Glosgow, and it Had been a great pleasure to be under the control of such a distinguished man. It was there that the pupils called the professor ‘‘Johnny” (laughter), but it was only done because they loved him and had a great reverence for him. Having found Glasgow too small for him the professor went to London, but this was not largo enough, and so he started communicating with the rest of the world with books. In the end he decided that after all the best way to carry out his work would be to visit various countries of (he world, and so he had taken to travelling. Professor Adams, without wasting a single unnecessary preliminary word, moved immediately into the midst of his subject—tho development of education, especially in its newer aspects. The question arose, ho said, whether there was such a thing a? a newer education. They knew quite well that tho more we changed certain things the more they appeared the same. Those of them who were familiar with the history of education would know that they had only to turn back a little while to find some anticipation of the things that were put forward as mast now. He had n great illwill to some old writers in Greek, Plato and Aristotle, whom he called the great anticipators. Whenever he found some thing he thought entirely new, the moment he turned up these writers ho found at least some indication of the same thing long before he was born or thought of. So they were not to expect something entirely new or unheard of, but there certainly was a new wave, a new way of looking at things, and a new way of accepting our responsibilities. For his own part ho was convinced that there were changes ns they passed through tl.o world. Tho doctrine of old Heraclitus that “nothing is but everything is becoming was- as true now as it was in his day. Things would not stand still, and teachers especially must bo continually on tho look cut, on tho qui vivo, alive and thinking and acting.

Looking into the nast he said that the first period that night bo called nodal—where things met together—was tho year 333 8.C., which marked the height of Greek literature and thought. Next was tho Augustan age, then the year 1000 when there was something like a false renaissance followed by the Renaissance in 15C0. Tho nodal periods became more frequent as we had fuller knowledge of the times, but the biggest of all was tho Groat War. Tho world was not the same as before; Every’ great war was followed by an educational revival, and that was true of this great war as much as of any other. He wished to find out whether there was any principle underlying the now education of to-day that could explain a groat many of the. changes that were taking place. Ho thought, he had discovered one groat principle that underlay many of the changes. Of course it was not a new principle, tut a principle that though old had now developed and become strong and powerful. This change represented a change of attitude altogether, and it. was known by a huge word for which he was not responsible. It was a big clumsy pedantic hybrid word, invented by an American—paidocentricism. The moaning of it was centring interest in the pupil. There was a time when we did not centre our interest in the pupil. In the old Greek days tho interest really was in tho pupil, but by-and-hye wo fell away from that, and the subject began to occupy a very prominent place. A certain grammar book rule had made a great impression on him. Verbs of teaching govern two accusatives, one of the person and tho other of the thing, as, ‘The master taught John Latin.’ Even at that early stage he began to see a double meaning. There were two objects, and they did not seem to get fair treatment. They were driven tandem, the subject first and John behind where ho was conveniently near the whip.—(Laughter.) Tho newer way was not to reverse the process and put; John first, hut to drive them abreast os ranking equal. Tho teaching process was an organic and not a mechanical one. Lor, them look into the changes that had been made and see how far they could be referred to this principle of paidocentricism.

Take first, the reforms introduced by Mme. Monfessori. the only woman educationist so far who had ever attained a world-wide reputation. Tho truths she taught went further back than she or her disciples appeared to he aware of. Being a m O-fl icid woman as well as a teacher people listened to her, and many things that had been known before were now listened to from her lips. She was continually saving how scientific she v.-(i<i and continually exhibiting how emotional she was. Emphatically her doctrine was essentially paidocen'tric. Her groat work was the turning of attention to tho individual child, but it was wrong to think that she allowed the children to do as they pleased. There were three conditions laid down limiting thoir freedom. They must attend fwhool and not leave before the bell rang, they wore not allowed to interfere with other pupils, and they must use the apparatus for the purpose for which it was intended. Mme. Monleesort believed that every child would want to do something sooner or later, and she was willing to wait until something happened.--(Laughter.) Out of the Montessori system there arose the Dalton system, with which they wore fairly familiar. It again was nothing new. and his colleague and successor at London University was using it 20 years ago. It

was certainly a paidoceiitric plan: ho took it (hat they know it meant throwing the responsibility upon tlie pupil. Work was mapped out to be clone in a month or throe weeks, and the pupil allowed to carry it out at his own pace and in his own order. Probably the biggest application of the Dalton plan was in the Streathani High School in London, which was turned into a Dalton school in a night. Mrs O’Brien Harris started another form of the plan, depending not upon the class but upon the, “bouse.” The schools were divided up into artificial units called “houses.” and the public spirit in that unit acted and reacted upon the other units and so helped the spirit of the school. Mrs Harris had in this way introduced certain valuable improvements to the Dalton plan. Hero again they had the indiviudal put into the prominent position and the child was made tho centre of everything. Continuing, the speaker said another of the great changes was the new discipline. It had been exemplified in a satisfactory way in many countries. While coming to Dunedin ho bad heard some views on this movement of self-government. It meant taking the pupils' view, and it was important to allow them to have a share ir. the government of tho school. There were probably a good many parents who did not like to think of the prefect system. It appeared to them one where the younger and smaller boys had to “fag” for their elders. Those people had no doubt read “ lorn Brown’s Schooldays,” and if so would have got the idea, that “fagging” should not bo permitted, in that it led to bullying. Thomas Arnold knew what he was about, went on the speaker, when he had stated that wherever there were big and little boys, the bigger ones demanded a certain amount of service from tho little boys. Generally speaking, the latter did not resent this as there was usually a big difference in the ages. The trouble arose when the ages were more equal, and friction was liable to occur, but Arnold thought that to avoid abuse on the part of the bigger boys they should be given a definite constitutional power. In an ordinary school a little bey would not “sneak” or tell tales, but with the bigger boy having a definite power tho younger lad could quite justly complain if he were ill-treated, as ho would no longer be a sneak. So there was introduced a constitutional mode by which little boys could get their rights. After the scheme had been working for some time there was a great deal of discussion in the newspapers of the time, hut it was all in favour of Arnojd. In regard to discipline, it was regarded in stages taken from tho fifteenth and sixteenth centuries to tho present day. A writer in England, continued Professor Adams, named Norman M’Munn, had said that there were three stages. First, there was “phlebotomy,” and no one. wanted this in schools, although it went on in some schools in England, but had disappeared when Arnold came. The second system embodied the “impressionists,’ 1 or. in other words, those who impressed their personality on their pupils. Mr M’Munn did not think impressionists should rule, and said they were no better than pbiebotomists. Ho suggested the emancipationists. Another view was the “play way.” A schoolmaster Caldwell Cook, wrote a book before the war and called it “The Play Way,” in which he took up the attitude that the best plan was to get the most work done in the spirit of play. Under this scheme it was simply the glorification of drudgery, and Mr Cook’s “Play Way” exercised a certain influence in England. Continuing, the speaker said teachers fell into two great groups, the good old grinders, who believed in hard, disagreeable subjects, and those who believed in encouraging hard work by arousing (he individual interest of the pupils. On the other hand there were the “Primrose Fathers.” Interest and pleasure Avero by no means synonymous, and a certain amount of necessary drudgery was called for to develop a boy, but the automatic drudgery inseparable from schools was sufficient. If the work was clone with interest behind it, it ceased to be a druggery. To attack work in the spirit of play was the solution of Mr Cook, but sporadic work was not encouraged. An excellent example of paidocentricism was the plan by which each boy was encouraged to address the others in the position of a supposed teacher. Teachers had to realise when dealing with children that they were organisms and not machines. Their point of view bad to be appreciated and adopted. They had to live their own lives and be themselves while they were being taught. In other suggestions, such as the project plan, they had again the child put in the forefront. In the project plan each subject was taught not in its elements but in its applications. You get children to learn certain things because they wanted to do them. Thus in the first three grades children were taught reading, writing, and arithmetic by means of shopkeeping. The children started with a problem in each particular case, and they , had to work it out. A good many of those present shook their heads—and ho thought rightly shook their heads—-over the plan. After eight or nine months of this kind of work the children could stand a month or two of regularising the knowledge they had gained. There, again, the child was the centre of interest, and the subject was used only in its relation to that child.

In Ernest Younc’s book, “The New Era in Education,” there were about 30 or 40 experiments in the newer education described by more or less enthusiastic teachers. The bonk had done a great deal of good in stirring up interest in the newer .points of view, and a certain small amount of harm by conveying the impression that England was seething with new idea?. (Laughter.) That, unfortunately, was not true, Ihoir profession was always a more or less conservative one. Teachers naturally kept the old methods till they were quite sure about the new ones, and a coriai nnumber of them were quite impervious to influence from without.—(Laughter.) Experience was sometimes a disadvantage, not an advantage. He thought they would find that about 75 per cent, of the schemes described in this bool,- were paidocentric. Our Lord on one occasion, they might remember, when He was teaching the disciples, called to Him a little child and put him in the midst and from that He taught some wonderful things. He wished to ait down with this slogan for them on his lips. “The child in the midst.(Loud applause.) Dr Jack said he was sure they would all agree that the address had given great pleasure. Ho knew the teachers were too conservative in their methods, and such information as had been given by Professor Adams would no doubt create new ideas and bring about necessary changes. Mr R. R. Hunter said he felt it a great honour, as president of the Otago Teachers’ Association, to move a hearty vote of thanks and appreciation to Professor Adams. They were all grateful to him for his strenuous efforts in working for the advancement of education, and in general for his wonderful love of children. As teachers, they should read widely and earnestly and endeavour to follow in the stem of Professor Adams. The motion was carried with enthusiasm.

SUNNY SIDE OF SELFISHNESS. ANOTHER LECTURE BY PROFESSOR ADAMS. A large congregation mot in First Church on Sunday afternoon to hear Professor Adams lecture on “The Self." Tho Rev. Dr Gumming, who introduced tho lecturer, said that they welcomed Professor Adams, a noted Scottish educationist, particularly for three reasons: Dunedin's chief industry was education; Dunedin was the Scottish capital of New Zealand, and it was tho centre of Presbyterianism in tho dominion. Professor Adams prefaced his address by remarking that the subject chosen for him that afternoon. “The .Self,” was not an entirely appropriate one to be given in a church, and that ho therefore proposed to consider this subject of “The Self" in relation to another subject, “The Education of tho Devil." The words self and selfish had come to have a significance of ill-nature not wholly deserved, since all were selfish whether they willed or not. Tho most selfish creature in tho world was a baby, and yet in its selfishness, its desire to have its own way, and its methods of making its selfish needs known, the baby was but obeying nature, and following the plan dictated by nature's God. The baby's selfishness was enviously a good kind of selfishness. 1 here was a good type of selfishness, as well as a bad type. Teachers and parents were inclined' to resent tho assertion of self on the part of the child. To use an American phrase, they liked the child ' to stay put anti appreciated the virtues of stay-put-ters” who sal with arms folded as required. The A morieans n : !*o talked of “standbackers.,” people who could not be. moved to effect anything, and the “stnyputters,” if left to themselves, were apt to become "standbackors,” and that was not a desirable thing in ordinary life. On the other hand, there were certain kinds of selfishness which were really bad, and which on gin to bo eliminated from the character more and mere as the individual grew older. Progress through life ought to he a process in tho elimination of the self a getting away from tho continual regarding of oncsself as tho centro of the universe. On tho other hand, there were certain

points of view from which selfishness might be regarded as desirable, and this brought up tho second part of the subject, “the Education of the Devil,” since the ego, the self, was tho object upon which the devil worked, since the devil’s occupation was that of professional tempter. Tho outstanding stories recording the work of tho devil as tempter ought sometimes to be considered from the tempter’s point of view. In the first groat temptation in the Garden of Eden the devil had that “beginner’s luck” with which so many golfers were familiar. Tho temptation of Job revealed a man bullied, cajoled, terrified by the devil, but yet undefeated Our Lord s temptation showed a groat advance in tho education of the devil. Tho tempter was now full of courtesy, and presented his case with such skill as must have conquered any but the Being Who “was able not to sin.” The temptation of Faust, the learned man who had 1 not become wise, showed a victory of the devil, although tho dramatist Goethe put it that Faust tricked the devil in tho end. The question of the work of the devil nowadays caused us to ask to what extent temptation came from within and to what extent it came from without. Here the subjective had to be clearly distinguished from tho objective, and it had to bo understood that the self could get at once subject and object. The self could tempt tho self. In resisting temptation and conquering the self we had the sunny side of selfishness. TO-DAY’S MEETINGS. This morning Professor Adams will speak in Knox Sunday School Hall at 9.30 on “Tho Death Knell of Class Teaching.” In tne evening at 8 he will give another address in Burns Hall on “Education and the Newer Psychology.”