The History Teacher's Magazine, Vol. I, No. 4, December, 1909Various
History
The History Teacher's Magazine, Vol. I, No. 4, December, 1909
Various
History -- Study and teaching -- Periodicals; Social sciences -- Study and teaching -- Periodicals
“3. The appointment by this organization of a committee to prepare an
outline for the study of American civil government in secondary schools
shows that this association favors the separation of the study of
American history and of American civil government, and this committee,
therefore, submits to the national committee the printed pamphlet
containing sample chapters of this outline, as evidence of the endeavor
it is making to improve the instruction in this subject.
“4. The college entrance examinations seem to render the work of the
secondary schools burdensome and to force two years’ work in ancient
history upon college preparatory classes, the second year being given
in the third or fourth year of the high school as a review or more
intensified study of the subject, thus precluding the opportunity
for work in any other field of history. But this hindrance should
not be credited to the system of college entrance examinations. This
association suggests that the difficulty is rather in the diversity
of college entrance examination questions than in the fact that such
an institution exists, and seems to favor uniform examinations and to
approve a type of question which shall occupy middle ground between the
character of the present Harvard entrance examinations and those of the
College Entrance Examination Board.
“5. In general, the critics of the recommendations of the Committee of
Seven complain of the length of the field covered, and to it attribute
the apparent present failure of the teacher of history to impress
upon the student a knowledge of fact, and do not feel that such a
weakness is due to the emphasis placed by that report upon the value of
generalized knowledge, but rather believe it has been of especial value
in leading our teachers of history to develop power in our pupils.
“Two suggestions are made by this committee which may be considered
constructive rather than critical. It is proposed that a modification
of the work given in the second and third years of the high school
might be made along the following lines: that the entire treatment of
medieval and modern history to the close of the eighteenth century
should be based on English history, at the same time developing such
important medieval institutions as feudalism and the Church, but with
English history in the foreground rather than, as heretofore, with
continental history in the foreground; and that the third year should
be devoted to a study of nineteenth century history with continental
history in the foreground, English history being treated incidentally.
Such a suggestion is made not as having the unanimous approval of the
Association, nor of the majority of the members of the association,
for such a ballot has been impossible, but is presented to the
National Committee by a vote of the October meeting as worthy of its
consideration.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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