STUDY
1840
STUDY
Teachers may be willing to practice silence in class and to accept development of initiative on the part of their pupils as a very prominent aim. But until the children themselves become clear in regard to the direction in which initiative is to be exercised, they are likely themselves to be provokingly silent. What, then, are the further principal factors in proper methods of study?
Both children and college students generally recognize two main factors in study — i. e., memorizing and thinking. Which should come first is the next important question to be met. Custom says: Memorizing. "Fix the facts or thoughts in memory, then reflection upon them can follow at leisure" is the common thought. But there are always more duties in life than time allows us to perform, so that reflection is habitually postponed until it is omitted. In consequence, to the great majority of persons, studying signifies mainly the stultifying work of memorizing. Suppose now, this order were inverted, and young people were taught to undertake, first, whatever thinking was expected to them in each lesson. They would then at least make sure of the more interesting part. But, more than that, thinking thoughts through, in the various ways required in good study, is the very best method of memorizing them, and psychologists recommend this method even in the case of verbatim, memoriter work. Conscious effort to memorize would then be largely or wholly unnecessary, because the memorizing would become a by-product of thinking instead of a substitute for it. Here is a very important fact to be taught to young people about how to study. If it were applied, there would need to be less of dull drill in school; one reason for so much of it now is that there is so little thinking. Some drill might still be necessary, but by coming after most of the thinking, the motive for it would be made plainer and it would be less wearisome.
What kinds of thinking are to be expected is the next important question. The remaining principal factors in study might well be expected to be the principal factors involved in thinking.
First of all comes the selection of what is relatively most valuable. There always is a tendency for young people to regard ideas as all on the same plane of work, and many teachers encourage rather than overcome this tendency. It is encouraged by assigning lessons by pages, and then requiring practically everything to be reproduced in class. It is encouraged, also, by allowing facts to be reproduced in the order in which they have been presented in the text, since this method emphasizes again the importance of everything.
To combat this tendency it is well to
require pupils or students to recite by topics or points rather than by pages; to take up first what they consider the most important thought in the lesson, even though it happen to come last in the "work; to suggest marginal headings and even write them into the margin if-they own books. By such means the habit of watching for the main issue or issues can be inculcated.
Directly connected with, this should come training in the habit of overlooking or neglecting what is relatively unimportant. A pupil who has so good a memory that he reproduces practically everything in a lesson seldom deserves praise. Such a memory merely relieves him from the necessity of thinking enough to discriminate between what is especially valuable and that which is insignificant. Some clearness as to the meaning of thoroughness in study is here involved. So long as young people are brought up with the idea that thoroughness means attention to everything, recognition of relative values will be wanting. A pupil should be now and then condemned, therefore, for paying attention to what is not worth the time. You cannot teach emphasis of some parts without presupposing neglect of others, for the two are correlatives.
The outcome of good training in these two directions should be a habit of seizing quickly on the main ideas presented and of grouping the details bearing intimately upon them around the central thoughts. That would mean organization of thought, a most valuable factor in proper study. Not only should relative values thus always be very prominent in study, but the soundness, in final value, of ideas in life should also be considered. Many persons have a profound respect for print, and willingly try to hold as valuable whatever they find in a text. But from childhood good judgment in this direction should be developed, and such attempts should be a part of a teacher's work, who is endeavoring to instruct pupils in the art of study. How often are newspaper and magazine articles, as well as whole books, unworthy of perusal! Young people must be trained, therefore, not only to judge what is relatively most valuable among a lot of ideas and facts, but what is valuable for life or lacking in such worth. In other words, they must practice judging practical worth, must be made critical to this extent, and learn to believe in their right and ability in this direction. This is nothing more than saying that children and college-students should develop independent judgment or be made self-reliant and sensible.
Intimately related to this last factor of study is the need of finding the specific bearings or relation that a given topic has for daily life. It is very common for
