The fear of psycho-analysis comes from the general belief that Freud
traces every neurosis to early sex experiences. Whether Freud is right
or not does not concern the teacher; he deals with normal children, and
to try to analyse a normal child appears to me to be unnecessary. The
teacher's job is to see that the children are free from fear and free
to create; if he does his task well he is preventing neurosis.
A neurosis is the outcome of repression; the neurotic is a person whose
libido or life force is bottled up; he can be cured only by letting his
pent up emotions free. The aim of education is to allow emotional
release, so that there will be no bottling up, and no future neurosis;
and this release comes through interest. The boy who hates algebra and
has to work examples is getting no release whatever, for his mind is
divided; his attention goes to his quadratic equations, but his
interest is elsewhere.
Hence I do not think analysis is necessary when children are being
freely educated. In an exceptional case a little analysis will do
good. If I see a child unhappy, moody, anti-social, a thief, a bully,
I consider it my job to make an attempt to find out what is at the back
of his mind. With a young boy it is not advisable to tell him the
whole truth about himself; the teacher discovers the truth by watching
the child at play, by studying his wishes as expressed in his writing,
by noting his attitude to his playmates. When he has made his
diagnosis the teacher can then make the necessary changes in the boy's
environment.
I recall the case of Tommy, aged ten. His class was constructing a
Play Town after the fashion set by Caldwell Cook in his delightful book
_The Play Way_. Tommy worked with enthusiasm, too much enthusiasm, for
he pinched the girls' sand for his railway track. The girls objected,
and a regular wordy battle took place. Tommy felt that he was beaten,
and he ceased work.
I was not very much surprised when the girls came and told me that
Tommy was shying bricks at the railway line he had been so keen on
constructing. Tommy was brought up before the assembled class, and
they voted unanimously that he be forbidden to approach within ten
yards of Play Town. Tommy grinned maliciously. That night the town
appeared to have been the victim of an earthquake.
I went to Tommy.
"Why don't you like the Play Town?" I asked.
"Because the girls are too bossy," he said. "It was my town; I began
it, and I don't see why they should be in it at all."
"And you want a Play Town all to yourself?" I asked.
"Yes."
"Right ho," I said easily. "Why not start to build one?"
His eyes lit up, and away he ran to lay his foundations. He worked
eagerly all day, but at night he seemed dissatisfied.
"I haven't got any railway or houses; Christo won't lend me a bit of
his railway, and Gerda has all the houses."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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