The Psychology of ArithmeticThorndike, Edward L. (Edward Lee)
Science
The Psychology of Arithmetic
Thorndike, Edward L. (Edward Lee)
Arithmetic -- Study and teaching
Lest the last few paragraphs be misunderstood, I hasten to add that the
psychologists of to-day do not wish to make the learning of arithmetic a
mere matter of acquiring thousands of disconnected habits, nor to
decrease by one jot the pupil's genuine comprehension of its general
truths. They wish him to reason not less than he has in the past, but
more. They find, however, that you do not secure reasoning in a pupil by
demanding it, and that his learning of a general truth without the
proper development of organized habits back of it is likely to be, not a
rational learning of that general truth, but only a mechanical
memorizing of a verbal statement of it. They have come to know that
reasoning is not a magic force working in independence of ordinary
habits of thought, but an organization and coöperation of those very
habits on a higher level.
The older pedagogy of arithmetic stated a general law or truth or
principle, ordered the pupil to learn it, and gave him tasks to do which
he could not do profitably unless he understood the principle. It left
him to build up himself the particular habits needed to give him
understanding and mastery of the principle. The newer pedagogy is
careful to help him build up these connections or bonds ahead of and
along with the general truth or principle, so that he can understand it
better. The older pedagogy commanded the pupil to reason and let him
suffer the penalty of small profit from the work if he did not. The
newer provides instructive experiences with numbers which will stimulate
the pupil to reason so far as he has the capacity, but will still be
profitable to him in concrete knowledge and skill, even if he lacks the
ability to develop the experiences into a general understanding of the
principles of numbers. The newer pedagogy secures more reasoning in
reality by not pretending to secure so much.
The newer pedagogy of arithmetic, then, scrutinizes every element of
knowledge, every connection made in the mind of the learner, so as to
choose those which provide the most instructive experiences, those which
will grow together into an orderly, rational system of thinking about
numbers and quantitative facts. It is not enough for a problem to be a
test of understanding of a principle; it must also be helpful in and of
itself. It is not enough for an example to be a case of some rule; it
must help review and consolidate habits already acquired or lead up to
and facilitate habits to be acquired. Every detail of the pupil's work
must do the maximum service in arithmetical learning.
DESIRABLE BONDS NOW OFTEN NEGLECTED
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