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HOW TO KEEP FORTY BUSY* BY HENRY P. HARLEY Fairmont Junior High School, Cleveland, Ohio Educational literature abounds in suggestions for making the work of the classroom effective and inspiring. A science teacher of all others ought to be ready and willing to experiment with some of the theories that seem worthy of trial. The most discouraging factor perhaps is the reprehensible load that has been placed on the shoulders of the teacher during the last several years. But the teacher for the sake of his own profes- sional growth cannot afford to become an automaton following schedules, bulletins, and syllabi like the vibrations of a rubber stamp, and make no effort to do some creative work that will bring an alluring freshness to materials and methods in the dynamic subject of science. The alert science teacher, therefore, as he surveys the field of educational literature becomes most eager to put some of the new ideas into practice even though he is working in a conventional school system. He recognizes with embarrassment the serious limitations of mass instruction. He would like to take his place by the side of the individual student and there encourage him in his successes, guide him around pitfalls, and assist him in remaking and extending his experience. Another idea that is persisting in the thinking of educators is integration of subject fields and the processes making for in- tegrity in children. The science teacher also hears much con- cerning progress toward accepted goals of education. Some of these goals are utilitarian, others are related to factors that are designed to function as enrichment toward a broader under- standing, appreciation, and enjoyment of life. He is eager to have his subject take its place by the side of others in the cur- riculum in this onward march toward the fulfilment of noble ideals. With these high aspirations the alert science teacher launches out. The first jolt puzzles him considerably. Many beautiful theories work smoothly in university high schools, other private institutions, and wealthy suburbs where pupils are highly selected and highly privileged. When his own class comes before * Read before the General Science Section of the Central Association of Science and Mathematics Teachers, St. Louis, Mo., Nov. 27, 1936. 982

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HOW TO KEEP FORTY BUSY*BY HENRY P. HARLEY

Fairmont Junior High School, Cleveland, Ohio

Educational literature abounds in suggestions for makingthe work of the classroom effective and inspiring. A scienceteacher of all others ought to be ready and willing to experimentwith some of the theories that seem worthy of trial. The mostdiscouraging factor perhaps is the reprehensible load that hasbeen placed on the shoulders of the teacher during the lastseveral years. But the teacher for the sake of his own profes-sional growth cannot afford to become an automaton followingschedules, bulletins, and syllabi like the vibrations of a rubberstamp, and make no effort to do some creative work that willbring an alluring freshness to materials and methods in thedynamic subject of science.The alert science teacher, therefore, as he surveys the field

of educational literature becomes most eager to put some ofthe new ideas into practice even though he is working in aconventional school system. He recognizes with embarrassmentthe serious limitations of mass instruction. He would like totake his place by the side of the individual student and thereencourage him in his successes, guide him around pitfalls, andassist him in remaking and extending his experience.Another idea that is persisting in the thinking of educators is

integration of subject fields and the processes making for in-tegrity in children. The science teacher also hears much con-cerning progress toward accepted goals of education. Some ofthese goals are utilitarian, others are related to factors that aredesigned to function as enrichment toward a broader under-standing, appreciation, and enjoyment of life. He is eager tohave his subject take its place by the side of others in the cur-riculum in this onward march toward the fulfilment of nobleideals.With these high aspirations the alert science teacher launches

out. The first jolt puzzles him considerably. Many beautifultheories work smoothly in university high schools, other privateinstitutions, and wealthy suburbs where pupils are highlyselected and highly privileged. When his own class comes before

* Read before the General Science Section of the Central Association of Science and MathematicsTeachers, St. Louis, Mo., Nov. 27, 1936.

982

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him he stands for forty minutes "in loco parentis^ as the in-structor of forty or forty-five adolescent children. Some of themare handicapped by language difficulties; some are growing upin an atmosphere of domestic discord; some are stunted byother social limitations.The effective science teacher, however, will not permit these

discouraging factors to dim his vision of the goals of educationor dampen his enthusiasm to experiment with some of the newsuggestions that come from many sources. But how can he keepforty busy as he strays away from the use of the automatictools and methods of mass instruction?

Obviously any attempt at an oral question and answer methodpermits on the average, after time is taken out for announce-ments and adequate assignments a mere fraction of a minuteper pupil. Work books and printed guide sheets are effectivein keeping all pupils in some kind of activity. But unless watch-ful care is exercised these materials degenerate into "cold stor-age^ products and lack dynamic appeal in the solution of freshproblems that should arise from day to day out of the children^experience. Moreover the police duty of the teacher to preventstudents from copying answers may become as prodigious asthe effort required to assume the role of custodian of thesesupplies between class periods.

INDIVIDUAL INSTRUCTION

Perhaps the problem that the teacher will desire to solve firstin his new efforts will be to plan some methods to keep the restof the forty busy while he gives one of them some individualhelp without resorting to "cold storage^ materials. The follow-ing suggestion has been found feasible. A few thought-inspiringquestions or activity assignments are written on the black-board or projected on a screen. All pupils, after announcementsand general assignments have been made concerning work inthe future, begin to write their answers on paper or performthe activities indicated. As an example suppose the problemunder discussion was, "How do lighting fixtures assist in makinglife in the home more efficient and pleasant?^ The questionmight be asked something similar to the following:

1. How should illumination in the living room differ from that in thestudy, dining room, or kitchen?

2. What type of lighting do we have in this classroom?3. What type of lighting would you suggest for each room in your own

home?

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984 SCHOOL SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS

4. List and describe in the department of ^Facts and Principles" ofyour notebook the general types of lighting fixtures.

The pupils proceed to answer these questions. The teacherpasses around the room and gives assistance where needed,keeping in mind those who have language difficulties, poorworking habits, those who are underprivileged, and those whoneed help in how to study. The brighter pupils are given oppor-tunity to go more extensively and intensively into the problemat hand. If further study is desirable or necessary students referto good textbooks supplemented by books and pamphlets fromthe school or classroom library.

After this work has progressed for fifteen or twenty minutes,responses are called for from several pupils to each question oractivity. A class discussion may develop or a previously as-signed reference on a particular phase of the problem may bereported by a pupil or committee. At this time, too, attentionmay be called to certain pictures on the bulletin board or tophotographs relating to the problem; to a laboratory demon-stration illustrating intensity and shades of illumination orillustrating the three types of lighting fixtures. In some casesmotion pictures and slides may be available to illustrate andotherwise enrich the topic under study.

Should a problem involve activities too extensive for oneclass period, the unfinished questions and activity instructionscan be copied by the pupils in the department of "Assignments77of their notebook. This unfinished work could then be per-formed at some other study period either at the next session ofthe class or as outside preparation. For the succeeding meetingof the class it is frequently possible to weave into the leadingquestions to be answered some relation to the problem studiedin the previous meeting that will lay an excellent foundationfor a review.A carefully planned testing program that will reveal some-

thing of the progress of the students ability to organize factsand to see the relation of these facts to our daily life would be avaluable aid to the process of learning and instruction both tochildren and teacher. While we have in the past perhaps stressedunduly the learning of facts let us not go to the other extremeand ignore that phase of our work entirely. For children ofscience classes not to have at their command certain basicfacts and principles underlying our daily life, comes close tobeing an "unpardonable sin77 laid at the door of somebody.

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SOCIAL UNDERSTANDING AND PARTICIPATION

In addition to presenting situations for individual masteryof skills and opportunities to see some of the beauties of nature;one of the accepted goals of education today is to afford childrenexperiences in social understanding and effective participation.A class of forty or forty-five is of itself a fertile field for develop-ing among its members some of the fine social attributes ofcooperation, self-control, and harmonious exchange of ideas.But to afford experiences in social participation will stimulatethe alert science teacher to do some careful and definite plan-ning.However, the materials used by the science teacher can be

adapted very readily for purposes of experiences in social par-ticipation. Projects, round table conferences, socialized recita-tions, field trips, and clubs if really operated by the childrenunder the guidance of the teacher will furnish abundant situa-tions to develop leadership and harmonious efficient coopera-tion.

Leadership, however, is frequently mistaken to mean dicta-tion or arbitrary control. Teaching the principles of leadershipis a fine art and requires that the teacher himself be a leader.It is to be hoped that science teachers will consider it their pro-fessional duty as well as a matter of interest to study and applyin their work the underlying principles of leadership. In generala leader is successful in ^influencing people to cooperate towardsome goal which they come to find desirable.n

Therefore in planning a project or other activity designed forexperiences in social understanding and participation, theteacher will spend considerable time in directing attention ofhis aspiring leaders to the development of desirable goals in-herent in a given activity A call for volunteers may bring for-ward from the group a good percentage of natural born leaders.May we not make the mistake in thinking that the natural bornleader is necessarily a student who has on record a high intelli-gence quotient. Many leaders in our city and township govern-ments are obviously the other kind. The slate of candidates forstudent council officers chosen carefully by faculty influence inin a school well known to your speaker was badly cracked byan energetic movement led by children of much lower intelli-gence quotient. The forceful efforts of these natural born leadersnearly swept an entire independent ticket into office.

Let us consider the following as a possible project: To study

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how the electromagnet aids in making our daily life more effi-cient and pleasant. A group of potential leaders may be ap-pointed to serve as an executive board with the teacher as anex officio member to plan the project. Groups of children maybe assigned to carry out the details. One group of pupils havingmechanical interests can be assigned to the construction of anelectromagnet. Other groups may be designated to describeand demonstrate such devices as electric bells, buzzers, tele-graph, telephone, radio, etc. Certain committees may be ap-pointed to make library studies of the historical background ofsome of these devices, or of the biography of scientists and in-ventors who made notable contributions. Others may reportsome recent discoveries or inventions that would have a bearingon the project. The executive board would arrange a schedulefor demonstrations and reports, and help solve problems thatmight arise in the work of any of the groups. The teacher withclasses of forty or forty-five will need to exercise good judgmentin planning a project to determine the extent of detail that histime will permit.

In directing a project or socialized recitation the teacher, ashinted before, has an excellent field for training his young lead-ers in the fine art of leadership. Aspiring leaders also need to bewarned of certain pitfalls such as; love of power, emotional in-stability, and the tendency to rationalize doing what is desiredand later seek some reason for doing it.

Other members of the group not designated especially asleaders must not be overlooked. Good detail workers in dailylife will always be necessary and appreciated They should bewarned against such pitfalls as becoming "yesmen^ and ^rub-ber stamps77; against the obsessive fear of insecurity, a persecu-tion complex, or inferiority feelings.Any science teacher knows that a class of forty is not an ideal

situation. To give them the advantages of modern methods willin some cases require heroic spirit and efforts, but who would besatisfied when dealing with children to force them through amill of mass instruction with "cold storage77 materials when itis possible to do something in the way of individual help withmaterials kept fresh and meaningful, and to press toward thegoal of mastery of the skills, and appreciation of the beautifulin nature, and social understanding with effective participation.