Principles of Teaching Part 3

"A father and his tiny son Crossed a rough street one stormy day, 'See papa!' cried the little one, 'I stepped in your steps all the way!'

"Ah, random, childish hands, that deal Quick thrusts no coat of proof could stay!

It touched him with the touch of steel-- 'I stepped in your steps all the way!'

"If this man shirks his manhood's due And heeds what lying voices say, It is not one who falls, but two, 'I stepped in your steps all the way!'

"But they who thrust off greed and fear, Who love and watch, who toil and pray, How their hearts carol when they say, 'I stepped in your steps all the way!'"

Still another joy that attends teaching is the satisfaction of seeing pupils develop. The sculptor finds real happiness in watching his clay take on the form and expression of his model; the artist glories as his colors grow into life; the parent finds supreme joy in seeing himself "re-grow" in his child; so the teacher delights to see his pupils build their lives on the truths he has taught. The joy is doubly sweet if it is heightened by an expression of appreciation on the part of the pupils. Few experiences can bring the thrill of real happiness that comes to the teacher when a former student, once perhaps a little inclined to mischief or carelessness, takes him by the hand with a "G.o.d bless you for helping me find my better self."

An officer of the British army, in recounting those experiences which had come to him in the recent world war, and which he said he never could forget, referred to one which more than compensated him for all the effort he had ever put into his preparation for teaching. Because of his position in the army it became his duty to discipline a group of boys for what in the army is a serious offense. In that group was a boy who had formerly been a pupil under the officer in one of our ward organizations. Chagrin was stamped on the face of the boy as he came forward for reprimand. Regret and remorse were in the heart of the officer. They soon gave way to pride, however, as the boy a.s.sured him that worse than any punishment was the humiliation of being brought before his own teacher, and he further a.s.sured him that never again would he do a thing that would mar the sacred relations of pupil and teacher.

A further compensation attached to teaching is that of inspirational companionship. It is a blessed privilege to enjoy the sunshine of youth.

Every pupil contributes an a.s.sociation with one of G.o.d's choice spirits.

To live and work with children and adolescents is one of the finest of safeguards against old age. The teacher not only partakes of the joy of his group--they const.i.tute him a link between his generation and theirs.

Their newness of life, their optimism, their spontaneity, their joy, they gladly pa.s.s on to their teacher.

Moreover, the teacher enjoys the uplifting a.s.sociations of his fellow teachers. Among those consecrated to a n.o.ble service, there is a spirit unknown to him who has not enjoyed such communion. Whether he is conscious of it or not, the teacher responds to the pull of such a group. Scores of teachers have testified that the a.s.sociations they have enjoyed as members of a local board, stake board, or general board, are among the happiest of their lives.

And finally there is the contentment of mind that comes as a result of a duty well done. The human soul is so const.i.tuted that any task well performed brings a feeling of satisfaction, and this is doubly heightened when the duty performed is of the nature of a free will offering. Still more so when it is shared in by others to their blessing. Just as we hope for an eventual crowning under the blessing, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant," so we treasure those benedictions along the way that attend the discharge of a sacred obligation.

QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS--CHAPTER III

1. Quote some of the promises of the Lord to those who do His will.

2. How is teaching one of the surest guarantees of the blessings of eternal life?

3. What are the immediate joys attached to teaching?

4. Discuss the application to teaching of the truth--"He who loses his life shall find it."

5. What types of companionship are a.s.sured him who teaches?

6. As you now recall them, what distinct pleasures stand out in your teaching experience?

7. Discuss Section 76 of the Doctrine & Covenants as one of the most valuable promissory notes ever given to mankind.

8. Discuss the force of a duty done as a guarantee of joy.

HELPFUL REFERENCES

Doctrine and Covenants: Slattery, _Living Teachers_; Sharp, _Education for Character_; Weigle, _Talks to Sunday School Teachers_; Betts, _How to Teach Religion_.

CHAPTER IV

PERSONALITY

OUTLINE--CHAPTER IV

The worth of a great teacher.--Good teachers not necessarily born.--Some boys' observations on teachers.--A high school survey.--Clapp's _Essential Characteristics_.--Betts' _Three Cla.s.ses of Teachers_.--His list of qualities.

"A great teacher is worth more to a state, though he teach by the roadside, than a faculty of mediocrities housed in Gothic piles."--_Chicago Tribune_, September, 1919.

We may stress the sacred obligation of the teacher; we may discuss in detail mechanical processes involved in lesson preparation; we may a.n.a.lyze child nature in all of its complexity; but after all we come back to the _Personality of the Teacher_ as the great outstanding factor in pedagogical success. _That something in the man_ that grips people!

Very generally this _Personal Equation_ has been looked upon as a certain indefinable possession enjoyed by the favored few. In a certain sense this is true. Personality is largely inherent in the individual and therefore differs as fully as do individuals. But of recent years educators have carried on extensive investigations in this field of personality and have succeeded in reducing to comprehensible terms those qualities which seem to be most responsible for achievements of successful teachers. Observation leads us all to similar deductions and const.i.tutes one of the most interesting experiments open to those concerned with the teaching process.

Why, with the same amount of preparation, does one teacher succeed with a cla.s.s over which another has no control at all?

Why is it that one cla.s.s is crowded each week, while another adjourns for lack of membership?

The writer a short time ago, after addressing the members of a ward M.I.A., asked a group of scouts to remain after the meeting, to whom he put the question, "What is it that you like or dislike in teachers?" The group was a thoroughly typical group--real boys, full of life and equally full of frankness. They contributed the following replies:

1. We like a fellow that's full of pep.

2. We like a fellow that doesn't preach all the time.

3. We like a fellow that makes us be good.

4. We like a fellow that tells us new things.

Boylike, they were "strong" for pep--a little word with a big significance. Vigor, enthusiasm, sense of humor, attack, forcefulness--all of these qualities are summed up in these three letters.

And the interesting thing is that while the boys liked to be told new things, they didn't want to be preached at. They evidently had the boy's idea of preaching who characterized it as, "talking a lot when you haven't anything to say."

Still more interesting is the fact that boys like to be made to be good.

In spite of their fun and their seeming indifference they really are serious in a desire to subscribe to the laws of order that make progress possible.

A princ.i.p.al of the Granite High School carried on an investigation through a period of four years to ascertain just what it is that students like in teachers. During those years students set down various attributes and qualities, which are summarized below just as they were given:

_Desirable Characteristics_

Congeniality.

Broadmindedness.

Wide knowledge.

Personality that makes discipline easy.

Willingness to entertain questions.

Realization that students need help.

Sense of humor--ability to take a joke.

Optimism--cheerfulness.

Sympathy.

Originality.

Progressiveness.

Effective expression.

Pleasing appearance--"good looking."