The Teaching of Geometry Part 7

There are two difficult crises in the geometry course, both for the pupil and for the teacher. These crises are met at the beginning of the subject and at the beginning of solid geometry. Once a cla.s.s has fairly got into Book I, if the interest in the subject can be maintained, there are only the incidental difficulties of logical advance throughout the plane geometry. When the pupil who has been seeing figures in one plane for a year attempts to visualize solids from a flat drawing, the second difficult place is reached. Teachers going over solid geometry from year to year often forget this difficulty, but most of them can easily place themselves in the pupil's position by looking at the working drawings of any artisan,--usually simple cases in the so-called descriptive geometry. They will then realize how difficult it is to visualize a solid from an unfamiliar kind of picture. The trouble is usually avoided by the help of a couple of pieces of heavy cardboard or box board, and a few knitting needles with which to represent lines in s.p.a.ce. If these are judiciously used in cla.s.s for a few days, until the figures are understood, the second crisis is easily pa.s.sed. The continued use of such material, however, or the daily use of either models or photographs, weakens the pupil, even as a child is weakened by being kept too long in a perambulator. Such devices have their place; they are useful when needed, but they are pernicious when unnecessary. Just as the mechanic must be able to make and to visualize his working drawings, so the student of solid geometry must be able to get on with pencil and paper, representing his solid figures in the flat.

But the introduction to plane geometry is not so easily disposed of. The pupil at that time is entering a field that is entirely unfamiliar. He is only fourteen or fifteen years of age, and his thoughts are distinctly not on geometry. Of logic he knows little and cares less. He is not interested in a subject of which he knows nothing, not even the meaning of its name. He asks, naturally and properly, what it all signifies, what possible use there is for studying geometry, and why he should have to prove what seems to him evident without proof. To pa.s.s him successfully through this stage has taxed the ingenuity of every real teacher from the time of Euclid to the present; and just as Euclid remarked to King Ptolemy, his patron, that there is no royal road to geometry, so we may affirm that there is no royal road to the teaching of geometry.

Nevertheless the experience of teachers counts for a great deal, and this experience has shown that, aside from the matter of technic in handling the cla.s.s, certain suggestions are of value, and a few of these will now be set forth.

First, as to why geometry is studied, it is manifestly impossible successfully to explain to a boy of fourteen or fifteen the larger reasons for studying anything whatever. When we confess ourselves honestly we find that these reasons, whether in mathematics, the natural sciences, handwork, letters, the vocations, or the fine arts, are none too clear in our own minds, in spite of any pretentious language that we may use. It is therefore most satisfactory to antic.i.p.ate the question at once, and to set the pupils, for a few days, at using the compa.s.ses and ruler in the drawing of geometric designs and of the most common figures that they will use. This serves several purposes: it excites their interest, it guards against the slovenly figures that so often lead them to erroneous conclusions, it has a genuine value for the future artisan, and it shows that geometry is something besides mere theory. Whether the textbook provides for it or not, the teacher will find a few days of such work well spent, it being a simple matter to supplement the book in this respect. There was a time when some form of mechanical drawing was generally taught in the schools, but this has given place to more genuine art work, leaving it to the teacher of geometry to impart such knowledge of drawing as is a necessary preliminary to the regular study of the subject.

Such work in drawing should go so far, and only so far, as to arouse an interest in geometric form without becoming wearisome, and to familiarize the pupil with the use of the instruments. He should be counseled about making fine lines, about being careful in setting the point of his compa.s.ses on the exact center that he wishes to use, and about representing a point by a very fine dot, or, preferably at first, by two crossed lines. Unless these details are carefully considered, the pupil will soon find that the lines of his drawings do not fit together, and that the result is not pleasing to the eye. The figures here given are good ones upon which to begin, the dotted construction lines being erased after the work is completed. They may be constructed with the compa.s.ses and ruler alone, or the draftsman's T-square, triangle, and protractor may be used, although these latter instruments are not necessary. We should constantly remember that there is a danger in the slavish use of instruments and of such helps as squared paper.

Just as Euclid rode roughshod over the growing intellects of boys and girls, so may instruments ride roughshod over their growing perceptions by interfering with natural and healthy intuitions, and making them the subject of laborious measurement.[40]

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The pupil who cannot see the equality of vertical angles intuitively better than by the use of the protractor is abnormal. Nevertheless it is the pupil's interest that is at stake, together with his ability to use the instruments of daily life. If, therefore, he can readily be supplied with draftsmen's materials, and is not compelled to use them in a foolish manner, so much the better. They will not hurt his geometry if the teacher does not interfere, and they will help his practical drawing; but for obvious reasons we cannot demand that the pupil purchase what is not really essential to his study of the subject. The most valuable single instrument of the three just mentioned is the protractor, and since a paper one costs only a few cents and is often helpful in the drawing of figures, it should be recommended to pupils.

There is also another line of work that often arouses a good deal of interest, namely, the simple field measures that can easily be made about the school grounds. Guarding against the ever-present danger of doing too much of such work, of doing work that has no interest for the pupil, of requiring it done in a way that seems unreal to a cla.s.s, and of neglecting the essence of geometry by a line of work that involves no new principles,--such outdoor exercises in measurement have a positive value, and a plentiful supply of suggestions in this line is given in the subsequent chapters. The object is chiefly to furnish a motive for geometry, and for many pupils this is quite unnecessary. For some, however, and particularly for the energetic, restless boy, such work has been successfully offered by various teachers as an alternative to some of the book work. Because of this value a considerable amount of such work will be suggested for teachers who may care to use it, the textbook being manifestly not the place for occasional topics of this nature.

For the purposes of an introduction only a tape line need be purchased.

Wooden pins and a plumb line can easily be made. Even before he comes to the propositions in mensuration in geometry the pupil knows, from his arithmetic, how to find ordinary areas and volumes, and he may therefore be set at work to find the area of the school ground, or of a field, or of a city block. The following are among the simple exercises for a beginner:

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1. Drive stakes at two corners, _A_ and _B_, of the school grounds, putting a cross on top of each; or make the crosses on the sidewalk, so as to get two points between which to measure. Measure from _A_ to _B_ by holding the tape taut and level, dropping perpendiculars when necessary by means of the plumb line, as shown in the figure. Check the work by measuring from _B_ back to _A_ in the same way. Pupils will find that their work should always be checked, and they will be surprised to see how the results will vary in such a simple measurement as this, unless very great care is taken. If they learn the lesson of accuracy thus early, they will have gained much.

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2. Take two stakes, _X_, _Y_, in a field, preferably two or three hundred feet apart, always marked on top with crosses so as to have exact points from which to work. Let it then be required to stake out or "range" the line from _X_ to _Y_ by placing stakes at specified distances. One boy stands at _Y_ and another at _X_, each with a plumb line. A third one takes a plumb line and stands at _P_, the observer at _X_ motioning to him to move his plumb line to the right or the left until it is exactly in line with _X_ and _Y_. A stake is then driven at _P_, and the pupil at _X_ moves on to the stake _P_. Then _Q_ is located in the same way, and then _R_, and so on. The work is checked by ranging back from _Y_ to _X_. In some of the simple exercises suggested later it is necessary to range a line so that this work is useful in making measurements. The geometric principle involved is that two points determine a straight line.

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3. To test a perpendicular or to draw one line perpendicular to another in a field, we may take a stout cord twelve feet long, having a knot at the end of every foot. If this is laid along four feet, the ends of this part being fixed, and it is stretched as here shown, so that the next vertex is five feet from one of these ends and three feet from the other end, a right angle will be formed. A right angle can also be run by making a simple instrument, such as is described in Chapter XV. Still another plan of drawing a line perpendicular to another line _AB_, from a point _P_, consists in swinging a tape from _P_, cutting _AB_ at _X_ and _Y_, and then bisecting _XY_ by doubling the tape. This fixes the foot of the perpendicular.

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4. It is now possible to find the area of a field of irregular shape by dividing it into triangles and trapezoids, as shown in the figure.

Pupils know from their work in arithmetic how to find the area of a triangle or a trapezoid, so that the area of the field is easily found.

The work may be checked by comparing the results of different groups of pupils, or by drawing another diagonal and dividing the field into other triangles and trapezoids.

These are about as many types of field work as there is any advantage in undertaking for the purpose of securing the interest of pupils as a preliminary to the work in geometry. Whether any of it is necessary, and for what pupils it is necessary, and how much it should trespa.s.s upon the time of scientific geometry are matters that can be decided only by the teacher of a particular cla.s.s.

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A second difficulty of the pupil is seen in his att.i.tude of mind towards proofs in general. He does not see why vertical angles should be proved equal when he knows that they are so by looking at the figure. This difficulty should also be antic.i.p.ated by giving him some opportunity to know the weakness of his judgment, and for this purpose figures like the following should be placed before him. He should be asked which of these lines is longer, _AB_ or _XY_. Two equal lines should then be arranged in the form of a letter T, as here shown, and he should be asked which is the longer, _AB_ or _CD_. A figure that is very deceptive, particularly if drawn larger and with heavy cross lines, is this one in which _AB_ and _CD_ are really parallel, but do not seem to be so. Other interesting deceptions have to do with producing lines, as in these figures, where it is quite difficult in advance to tell whether _AB_ and _CD_ are in the same line, and similarly for _WX_ and _YZ_. Equally deceptive is this figure, in which it is difficult to tell which line _AB_ will lie along when produced. In the next figure _AB_ appears to be curved when in reality it is straight, and _CD_ appears straight when in reality it is curved. The first of the following circles seems to be slightly flattened at the points _P_, _Q_, _R_, _S_, and in the second one the distance _BD_ seems greater than the distance _AC_. There are many equally deceptive figures, and a few of them will convince the beginner that the proofs are necessary features of geometry.

It is interesting, in connection with the tendency to feel that a statement is apparent without proof, to recall an anecdote related by the French mathematician, Biot, concerning the great scientist, Laplace:

Once Laplace, having been asked about a certain point in his "Celestial Mechanics," spent nearly an hour in trying to recall the chain of reasoning which he had carelessly concealed by the words "It is easy to see."

A third difficulty lies in the necessity for putting a considerable number of definitions at the beginning of geometry, in order to get a working vocabulary. Although practically all writers scatter the definitions as much as possible, there must necessarily be some vocabulary at the beginning. In order to minimize the difficulty of remembering so many new terms, it is helpful to mingle with them a considerable number of exercises in which these terms are employed, so that they may become fixed in mind through actual use. Thus it is of value to have a cla.s.s find the complements of 27, 32 20', 41 32' 48", 26.75, 33 1/3, and 0. It is true that into the pure geometry of Euclid the measuring of angles in degrees does not enter, but it has place in the practical applications, and it serves at this juncture to fix the meaning of a new term like "complement."

The teacher who thus antic.i.p.ates the question as to the reason for studying geometry, the mental opposition to proving statements, and the forgetfulness of the meaning of common terms will find that much of the initial difficulty is avoided. If, now, great care is given to the first half dozen propositions, the pupil will be well on his way in geometry.

As to these propositions, two plans of selection are employed. The first takes a few preliminary propositions, easily demonstrated, and seeks thus to introduce the pupil to the nature of a proof. This has the advantage of inspiring confidence and the disadvantage of appearing to prove the obvious. The second plan discards all such apparently obvious propositions as those about the equality of right angles, and the sum of two adjacent angles formed by one line meeting another, and begins at once on things that seem to the pupil as worth the proving. In this latter plan the introduction is usually made with the proposition concerning vertical angles, and the two simplest cases of congruent triangles.

Whichever plan of selection is taken, it is important to introduce a considerable number of one-step exercises immediately, that is, exercises that require only one significant step in the proof. In this way the pupil acquires confidence in his own powers, he finds that geometry is not mere memorizing, and he sees that each proposition makes him the master of a large field. To delay the exercises to the end of each book, or even to delay them for several lessons, is to sow seeds that will result in the attempt to master geometry by the sheer process of memorizing.

As to the nature of these exercises, however, the mistake must not be made of feeling that only those have any value that relate to football or the laying out of a tennis court. Such exercises are valuable, but such exercises alone are one-sided. Moreover, any one who examines the hundreds of suggested exercises that are constantly appearing in various journals, or who, in the preparation of teachers, looks through the thousands of exercises that come to him in the papers of his students, comes very soon to see how hollow is the pretense of most of them. As has already been said, there are relatively few propositions in geometry that have any practical applications, applications that are even honest in their pretense. The principle that the writer has so often laid down in other works, that whatever pretends to be practical should really be so, applies with much force to these exercises. When we can find the genuine application, if it is within reasonable grasp of the pupil, by all means let us use it. But to put before a cla.s.s of girls some technicality of the steam engine that only a skilled mechanic would be expected to know is not education,--it is mere sham. There is a n.o.ble dignity to geometry, a dignity that a large majority of any cla.s.s comes to appreciate when guided by an earnest teacher; but the best way to destroy this dignity, to take away the appreciation of pure mathematics, and to furnish weaker candidates than now for advance in this field is to deceive our pupils and ourselves into believing that the ultimate purpose of mathematics is to measure things in a way in which no one else measures them or has ever measured them.

In the proof of the early propositions of plane geometry, and again at the beginning of solid geometry, there is a little advantage in using colored crayon to bring out more distinctly the equal parts of two figures, or the lines outside the plane, or to differentiate one plane from another. This device, however, like that of models in solid geometry, can easily be abused, and hence should be used sparingly, and only until the purpose is accomplished. The student of mathematics must learn to grasp the meaning of a figure drawn in black on white paper, or, more rarely, in white on a blackboard, and the sooner he is able to do this the better for him. The same thing may be said of the constructing of models for any considerable number of figures in solid geometry; enough work of this kind to enable a pupil clearly to visualize the solids is valuable, but thereafter the value is usually more than offset by the time consumed and the weakened power to grasp the meaning of a geometric drawing.

There is often a tendency on the part of teachers in their first years of work to overestimate the logical powers of their pupils and to introduce forms of reasoning and technical terms that experience has proved to be unsuited to one who is beginning geometry. Usually but little harm is done, because the enthusiasm of any teacher who would use this work would carry the pupils over the difficulties without much waste of energy on their part. In the long run, however, the attempt is usually abandoned as not worth the effort. Such a term as "contrapositive," such distinctions as that between the logical and the geometric converse, or between perfect and partial geometric conversion, and such p.r.o.nounced formalism as the "syllogistic method,"--all these are happily unknown to most teachers and might profitably be unknown to all pupils. The modern American textbook in geometry does not begin to be as good a piece of logic as Euclid's "Elements," and yet it is to be observed that none of these terms is found in this cla.s.sic work, so that they cannot be thought to be necessary to a logical treatment of the subject. We need the word "converse," and some reference to the law of converse is therefore permissible; the meaning of the _reductio ad absurdum_, of a necessary and sufficient condition, and of the terms "synthesis" and "a.n.a.lysis" may properly form part of the pupil's equipment because of their universal use; but any extended incursion into the domain of logic will be found unprofitable, and it is liable to be positively harmful to a beginner in geometry.

A word should be said as to the lettering of the figures in the early stages of geometry. In general, it is a great aid to the eye if this is carried out with some system, and the following suggestions are given as in accord with the best authors who have given any attention to the subject:

1. In general, letter a figure counterclockwise, for the reason that we read angles in this way in higher mathematics, and it is as easy to form this habit now as to form one that may have to be changed. Where two triangles are congruent, however, but have their sides arranged in opposite order, it is better to letter them so that their corresponding parts appear in the same order, although this makes one read clockwise.

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2. For the same reason, read angles counterclockwise. Thus [L]_A_ is read "_BAC_," the reflex angle on the outside of the triangle being read "_CAB_." Of course this is not vital, and many authors pay no attention to it; but it is convenient, and if the teacher habitually does it, the pupils will also tend to do it. It is helpful in trigonometry, and it saves confusion in the case of a reflex angle in a polygon. Designate an angle by a single letter if this can conveniently be done.

3. Designate the sides opposite angles _A_, _B_, _C_, in a triangle, by _a_, _b_, _c_, and use these letters in writing proofs.

4. In the case of two congruent triangles use the letters _A_, _B_, _C_ and _A'_, _B'_, _C'_, or _X_, _Y_, _Z_, instead of letters chosen at random, like _D_, _K_, _L_. It is easier to follow a proof where some system is shown in lettering the figures. Some teachers insist that a pupil at the blackboard should not use the letters given in the textbook, hoping thereby to avoid memorizing. While the danger is probably exaggerated, it is easy to change with some system, using _P_, _Q_, _R_ and _P'_, _Q'_, _R'_, for example.

5. Use small letters for lines, as above stated, and also place them within angles, it being easier to speak of and to see [L]_m_ than [L]_DEF_. The Germans have a convenient system that some American teachers follow to advantage, but that a textbook has no right to require. They use, as in the following figure, _A_ for the point, _a_ for the opposite side, and the Greek letter [alpha] (alpha) for the angle. The learning of the first three Greek letters, alpha ([alpha]), beta ([beta]), and gamma ([gamma]), is not a hardship, and they are worth using, although Greek is so little known in this country to-day that the alphabet cannot be demanded of teachers who do not care to use it.

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6. Also use small letters to represent numerical values. For example, write _c_ = 2[pi]_r_ instead of _C_ = 2[pi]_R_. This is in accord with the usage in algebra to which the pupil is accustomed.

7. Use initial letters whenever convenient, as in the case of _a_ for area, _b_ for base, _c_ for circ.u.mference, _d_ for diameter, _h_ for height (alt.i.tude), and so on.

Many of these suggestions seem of slight importance in themselves, and some teachers will be disposed to object to any attempt at lettering a figure with any regard to system. If, however, they will notice how a cla.s.s struggles to follow a demonstration given with reference to a figure on the blackboard, they will see how helpful it is to have some simple standards of lettering. It is hardly necessary to add that in demonstrating from a figure on a blackboard it is usually better to say "this line," or "the red line," than to say, without pointing to it, "the line _AB_." It is by such simplicity of statement and by such efforts to help the cla.s.s to follow demonstrations that pupils are led through many of the initial discouragements of the subject.