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recommends a careful, defensible budget, and shows in detail what may best be included.

Mr. E. E. Lewis' treats the problem of the teaching staff in a more general way. As a superintendent of schools, he discusses the recruiting of teachers: their training before and during service, their certification and selection, their appointment and breaking in. He is concerned with the problems of handling home talent, of the married teacher, of adjusting the teaching load, of the measurement of efficiency, of salaries, tenure, teachers' councils, teachers' health and recreation, and the ethics of the profession. A clear and attractive style, large numbers of concrete cases, and reference material for further study, make this a valuable book.

D. L. Geyer.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

However lacking our times may be in moral tone, one of the hopeful signs is the obviously increasing interest in religious education. This interest is manifesting itself in an abundance of periodical and pamphlet literature on the subject, in books by both educators and religious leaders, in increased attendance at schools giving training courses in religious education, in experiments being carried on by public schools and churches, in an emphasis upon week-day religious training, and in frank discussions by statesmen, educators, religious leaders, and citizens in general.

Many of the educational journals during the year have had articles on the subject. There are in this field several periodicals devoted entirely or largely to religious education. The School of Religious Education of Boston University has an enrollment, according to the Journal of Education of April 16, 1924, of 474 students from thirty-eight states, twelve foreign countries, and eighteen religious denominations. Among the pamphlets. sent out by this school is a twenty-fourpage bibliography of books for elementary workers in religious education.

The

schools of southeastern Connecticut are carrying out an experiment by introducing the great hymns into the schools. The Board of Education of New York is trying an experiment in Public School 46 of dismissing the children one hour each week for instruction in a church of the pupil's choice. Similar experiments are being conducted in other parts of the country.

Of the books on the subject of religigious education the most scholarly that has come to my attention during the year is Latent Religious Resources in Public School Education, by C. A. Hauser, D. D., Ph. D.,' a doctor's thesis presented to the faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Hauser rightly takes the position that Americans are well grounded in the principle of separation of church and state. This principle, however, does not imply that the state does not recognize the function of the life and perpetuity of a democracy. Inchurch and of religious education in the deed, in the very separation the founders of our government had in mind an implied contract-namely, that the state would give secular and the church religious education. Probably the failure of the church fully to meet expectations has been due largely to the fact that the state can secure must depend upon voluntary gifts. But revenue by taxation, while the church pedagogically, also, the church has not kept pace with the state.

It was to make a contribution to the that Dr. Hauser made his study. Running pedagogical aspects of religious education through and underlying his work are the fundamental principles of modern educahis work upon the principle that new ideas tional psychology. Specifically he bases that the teacher in presenting new mamust be based upon past experience and old ideas and interests. Since the child terial should find contacts with the pupil's

3Personnel Problems of the Teaching Staff. By Ervin E. Lewis. New York: The Century Company, 1925. Pp. 460. $2.25.

Latent Religious Resources in Public School Education. By C. A. Hauser. Philadelphia: The Heidelberg Press, 1924. Pp. 319. $2.50.

spends a large part of the day in the public school, the most fertile field for the teacher of religious education to find contacts is in public school material,

The purpose of the book, then, is to point out to the church school teacher the wealth of material for religious education in public school courses. A broad foundation is laid by discussing through six chapters the theme as it relates to educational aims and objectives. This part of the work centers about the "Five Forms of Control" as developed by Dr. A. Duncan Yocum. These are impression, vocabulary, variation, habit and system, and transfer. Much of this discussion will probably be rather obscure to church school teachers who have not had considerable training. For leaders and course.

makers it will be of great value.

The second part of the book takes the Philadelphia Public School Courses of Study, as typical of courses in other cities. in literature, history, the natural sciences, the social sciences, art, and music, and points out definite material from the work of the various grades that may be used by the church school teacher for specific purposes in religious education. This work, too, is grouped about the five forms of control. This book should be read by every leader in religious education and by public school teachers who are active in church work. The two pages of twenty-one conclusions should provoke the serious thought of all who are concerned with our civilization and our democracy.

BOOK NOTICES

An Introduction to Teaching. By Ned Harland Dearborn. New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1925. Pp. 337.

"What shall be the nature and content of the beginning course in education in teacher training schools?" is a question neither fully nor satisfactorily answered at the present time. The historical view of education is common and has the sanction of long usage. However, beginning courses in some schools, at least, are planned with the idea of giving prospective teachers a view of education as at present organized and going, together with some treatment of its leading features and problems. Something of the guidance principle to aid students in making a selection of the type of educational work best suited to their tastes and capabilities is also a feature of such courses.

For the type of course just mentioned, An Introduction to Teaching will be a very helpful book. It may even be made the instructor's chief dependence in developing the course. The first part of the book, about one-half of it, will give students a view, although a rapid and general one, of the nature of the occupation of teaching, with some comparison with other professions. Qualifications of a teacher, both personal and educational, are pointed out. A chapter on the various kinds of schools in existence, both public and private, should be helpful in aiding students to make a selection of the kind of educational work they will enter.

The second part of the book deals with education from the professional point of view, its nature, importance, ideals that govern, and its scientific aspect. The last three chapters point out in a general way the work content of schools and modern methods in the classroom.

Mr. Dearborn's book is well written and readable. But its general treatment of rather difficult technical phases of the educative process will call for careful examination of those matters by instructors and students, if the latter are to obtain real comprehension of the aforesaid technical phases.

Turner C. Chandler.

The Materials of Reading. By Willis L. Uhl. Nes York: Silver, Burdett and Company, 1924. Pp. 386. Keen competition for school time and money is causing teachers, educational investigators, and schoc administrators as never before to demand an accounting for the time and money received. English teachers in particular have been and are being subjected to the closest scrutiny because of the large amount of time, relatively usually given to English and because of a feeling among many critics that the objectives of English teaching are rather vague. In keeping with the present vogu of the efficiency expert, there is a pressing demand for objective evaluations and measurements in the methods and materials in English courses. Dr. Uhl's book is really a compendium of all the more valuable investi gations that have been made of the teaching of reading and literature in the elementary and intermediate schools.

The fourteen chapters, fifty-six tables, and thirteen diagrams contain a wealth of information that is invaluable to the teacher of reading and to those making courses of study in reading. The book does not theor ize. The author states a problem, gives the results or statistics of investigations made in solution of the problems, and lets the facts speak for themselves Some of the investigations reported have to do w vocabularies of readers, relations between methods readers and their contents, the grade placement of reading material, physical conditions of reading, ch dren's interests in reading, the social worth of reading reading processes, classroom methods, diagnostic and remedial work, measurement of progress, and the formulation of standards.

One Hundred Ways of Teaching Silent Reading. By Nila Banton Smith. Yonkers-on-Hudson, New York: World Book Company, 1925. Pp. 149. $1.40.

The busy teacher, however conversant she may with the fundamental principles of teaching, often we comes the devices of others. In this book Miss Smith has collected one hundred exercises grouped under s abilities that should be developed by silent reading

namely, speed, comprehension, selection, organization, retention, and skimming. Under each of these headings here are exercises calling for oral, written, and action esponses. The exercises offer great variety; they will nterest the children; they will promote right reading habits; they offer concrete material for each of the different types of reading; they provide for individual differences; and they are workable, having already been ried out in classrooms. Underlying and running through all this concrete material are the pedagogical and psychological principles formulated by modern students of reading.

Hari, the Jungle Lad By Dhan Gopal Mukerji. New York: E. P. Dutton & Company, 1924. Pp. 220. $2.00. A universally felt need among teachers today is the greatest abundance of reading material, written at the child's own level so as to give him a rich and varied vicarious experience. Particularly strong is the demand for more appropriate material with accounts of other lands, other peoples, stories of adventure, of nature, and of animal life. In the account of Hari, the Jungle Lad, we have a very valuable addition to this type of writing. Vividly and interestingly the writer tells of the jungles of India and of the denizens of the region. He gives to the reader the thrill of the hunt, informs him of the ways of the elephant, the buffalo, the tiger, the stag, the monkey.

Each page of the story imparts new and exciting information. One reads of the stag's delicate hearing, of the bear's taste for honey and ants, of the peacock's skill in killing snakes, of the elephant's peculiar rubber heel. One learns particularly of the elephant-of his great intelligence, of his shrewd instinct, of his loyal devotion to a friend and his unrelenting hatred of an enemy. The peculiar nature of the Oriental is portrayed in a fascinating manner. Good sportsmanship fair play, love for animals, consideration for the weak characterize the book.

The story is told in the first person and is made very real in every respect. The adolescent youth is greatly pleased by the narrative, and comes from the story with an enriched background of experience. The style is clear, simple, and free from technical and unusual words. Other books by the same author along similar lines are Kari, the Elephant and Jungle Beasts and Man.

Burton Holmes Travel Stories. Edited by William H. Wheeler and Burton Holmes. Japan. By Eunice Tietjens. Egypt. By Susan Wilbur. Illustrated from photographs by Burton Holmes. Chicago: Wheeler Publishing Company, 1924. Pp. 404 each. $1.28 each. The first two of a series of highly illustrated, informational, silent readers, the first being for the fifth and sixth grades, and the second for the seventh and eighth grades. For each book there is a teacher's manual, prepared by Delia E. Kibbe. The books are attractive; the material is well selected and interestingly told. They may be used for classwork, for individual reading, or for project material. In whatever way they are used, they will help to enrich the child's experience and broaden and deepen his sympathies for and understanding of the peoples in other lands. The emphasis is placed upon the people, their thoughts, their motives, and their historical background. The editors are probably right in their hope that through such material a better understanding between nations may be brought about and thus a contribution may be made toward eventual world peace.

Children's Books for General Reading. By Effie L. Power. Chicago: American Library Association, 1924. Pp. 8. 20 cents each; 10 for $1.00; 100 for $4.00.

This is a restricted list of about 275 titles of chiliren's books. Publishers and prices, but no annotations,

are given. The first section is for children under ten years of age, and the second for children over ten. The wide range of the second section makes it rather difficult for parents or children who are not already somewhat familiar with the books to make a suitable selection for reading. Few mediocre and no cheap books are included.

The Horace Mann Readers: New Primer, Pp. 124. Teacher's Edition, Pp. 124 + ccvii. New First Reader, Pp. 136. Teacher's Edition, Pp. 136 + clii. New Second Reader, Pp. 188. Teacher's Edition, Pp. 188 + clii. By Walter L. Hervey and Melvin Hix. Chicago: Longmans, Green and Company, 1922, 1924.

The printer, the artist, the author, and the educator have joined resources in the making of this attractive and sane series of readers. There is an abundance of color illustrations. The print is large and clear. An unusually large amount of the material is new and original; most of the stories are of the cumulative type and are easily taught. Both the original material and the standard selections have literary merit. The Teacher's Edition for each year consists of the regular edition, after which is printed the manual. The latter consists of two parts: a general discussion of the Horace Mann method and daily lesson instructions for the material in the reader.

The Horace Mann method is based upon the idea that no one-method system of teaching reading is sufficient; all sound and practical methods should be used; such methods are not competitive, but supplementary. The authors, therefore, make use of the values and call attention to the dangers of all methods: the drill, the jingle method, the thought method, story telling, dramatization, the sight word method, the phonic method, and the problem method. Thinking, problem solving, and silent reading are particularly emphasized. The place of oral reading in the primary grades is rightly recognized. All the reading material is chosen for its intrinsic worth-interest to the children, literary value, or ethical

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Thought Test Readers, Grades First and Second. By Prout, Baumeister, Mischler, and Renner. Chicago: The University Publishing Company, 1924. Pp. 117 and 152, respectively.

As the title indicates, these readers are designed to develop and to test comprehension. The testing is done through action, oral, and written responses called for in the reading material. The oral responses correlate oral and silent reading. In the first grade the written responses are for the most part on the blackboard; in the second grade, on supplementary sheets prepared for the purpose. These responses are in the form of drawing lines under one of a series of pictures, adding some part to a picture, underlining words, filling blanks, etc. In each book there are brief but sufficient instructions to teachers. Most of the material is original, interesting, and within the children's experience. The vocabulary is adapted to the purpose in view. In make-up the books conform to modern standards. Teachers will find here valuable material for supplementary work.

In Storeland. Book I. By Margaret E. Wells and H. Mary Cushman. New York: Silver Burdett and

Company, 1924. Pp. 200.

This is an informational, industrial reader intended for supplementary work in the third and fourth grades. The child is taken in company with the Everybody family to the store, where at the various counters fairies, little girls, and other interesting persons tell the story of the goods sold there. Among the stories are cotton, linen, silk, wool, fur, lace, leather, and rubber. The illustrations are from photographs of industrial processes and products. The book itself is a project and may be used as a basis for many interesting and valuable class activities.

The Children's Poets. By Walter Barnes. Yonkerson-Hudson, New York: World Book Company, 1924.

Pp. 264. $1.80.

The author in a popular style and with an appreciative attitude sets up in his first chapter standards for eval uating poetry for children. In his later chapters he discusses Mother Goose and fourteen other significant poets who have written for children. In the selection of these poets some attention was given to securing representatives of various types of children's poetry. A appendix comments briefly on sixteen other poets. Poems are quoted abundantly to illustrate points made in the essays, and at the end of each chapter several pages of additional poems are given as typical of the auth under consideration. The book is an excellent intr duction to a study of children's poets and poetry.

BOOKS RECEIVED DURING THE MONTH

EDUCATION

The Adjustable Class Book. Arranged for Six-Week Periods. By Helen H. Cowing. Cleveland: The Adjustable School Register Company, 1925. 45 cents. Paper bound.

Experimental Practice in the City and Country School. Edited by Caroline Pratt. With a Record of Group Seven by Lula E. Wright. New York: E. P. Dutton and Company, 1924. Pp. 302. $2.50.

Giles Recitation Score Card and Manual of Directions. By J. T. Giles. Chicago: World Book Company, 1925. Specimen set 10 cents.

An Introduction to the Study of Education and to Teaching. By Ellwood P. Cubberley. Chicago: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1925. Pp. 476.

The Purpose of Education. By St. George Lane Fox Pitt. Fetter Lane, London: Cambridge University Press, 1924. Pp. 92.

School and Home. By Angelo Patri.

New York:

D. Appleton and Company, 1925. Pp. 221. $2.00. Visiting the Teacher at Work-Case Studies of Directed Teaching. By C. J. Anderson, A. S. Barr, and Maybell G. Bush. New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1925. Pp. 382.

PSYCHOLOGY

Studies of Mental Defects and Handicaps. By J. E. Wallace Wallin. Oxford, Ohio: Miami University, 1925. Pp. 177. 75 cents. Paper cover.

SOCIOLOGY

Social Problems of Today. By Grove Samuel Dow and Edgar B. Wesley. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1925. Pp. 337. $2.00.

ENGLISH

American Short Stories. Edited by James F. Royster. Lake English Classics Edition. Chicago: Scott, Foresman and Company, 1925. Pp. 342. 72 cents.

A Book of Modern Plays. Edited by George R. Coffman. The Lake Library Edition. Chicago: Scott, Foresman and Company, 1925. Pp. 490. $1.20.

The Elements of Composition. By Henry S. Canby and John B. Opdycke. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1925. Pp. 699.

Johnny Goes a-Hunting. By Cyrus Lauron Hooper. Chicago: Rand McNally and Company, 1925. Pp. 200. Old King Cole and Other Medieval Plays. By Josephine E. Krohn. New York: George H. Doran Company, 1925. Pp. 208. $1.50.

The Pathway to Reading. By B. B. Coleman, W. L. Uhl, and J. F. Hosic. Chicago: Silver, Burdett and Company, 1925. Second Reader, pp. 186. Third Reader, pp. 248. Teacher's Manual for Primer, pp. 97

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SPEAKING OF THIS AND THAT

W

FORMALISM

By WILLIAM McANDREW

E had, not long ago, a lively meeting of public-school principals discussing ways and means of getting classroom work to rise from the defects of formalism to real habit formation.

ACCURACY AND RELIABILITY

Every arithmetic class I have visited this year shows evidence that the principal has caused to be put into practice the requirement that results shall be proved by the child who does the figuring. But in all too many instances I found children, after performing an addition, merely copying the result and passing it off as proof. That is bad enough; but for a teacher to permit it is an encouragement of falsehood and cheating. negligence means teaching children to be inaccurate and unreliable. It turns the possibility of real habit-forming into wasteful formalism.

PROOF

Such

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old. It used to be required in schools. fifty years ago in New England.

FORCING THE PROOF

Unfortunately almost every class discovers some children who, after adding or subtracting or performing whatever the operation is, go through the motions of proving it and merely copy as proof the first result obtained, thus fooling teacher. To obviate this in addition, the themselves and sometimes deceiving the device of making two partial sums and adding them together is being used:

96,352 85,914

98,777

281,043

73,987

97,659

85,797

257,443

538,486 538,486

Another device is this:

36

35

41

34

50

538486

These requirements are to enable the teacher quickly to see that the actual proof has been worked out. They are clumsy; they should be discarded as soon

as the teacher has found out who the deceivers are and has brought them into the ranks of honest workers. Then the simple proof shown by drawing a line across the top of the column as well as across the bottom, adding up and adding down and comparing results, should be

used.

MOTIVATION

If a teacher takes pains to emphasize again and again the real pleasure of selfreliance, the real joy of being sure that

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