The Young Idea; Or, Common School Culture (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: cheerily than ever after the accomplishment of such desirable destruction ! And to reach the conclusion of the whole matter in the words of Thomas Carlyle: " If we think of it, all that the university or final highest school can do for us is still but what the first School began doing?teach us to Read," while we say a hearty amen to those other words of Ernest Legouve, "In the name of physical and mental well-being, I demand that the art of reading aloud shall be ranked among the principal branches of public education." CHAPTER III. "the Sins Of Numbers." The child who wrote " Arithmetic is the sins of numbers," told more truth than he intended. In many schools the teaching of arithmetic is carried not only to an unprofitable, but loan iniquitous extent, and might well lead one to exclaim with sore and sorrowful heart, " O Education ! What crimes are committed in thy name ! " " Mathematics is that branch of science which the results are accomplished by brain work and is letters and figures and signs. These signs are Arabs and Romans and were first found in Europe." Letters, Figures, and Signs. Add these to Words and the pupil's outfit is complete. Just one year ago there was a tremendous rattling among the educational dry bones, caused by Gen. Francis A. Walker's bold attack upon the "figure fiend," by which name this mathematical monster has come to be known. As President of the Boston Institute of Technology, he is supposed to know, and to care, something about educational matters. His words can not be ignored or criticised as the wild, irresponsible, incendiary utterances of a fanatic determined upon educational arson, ?and what are these words ? " It is one of the gravest accusations brought against our public schools as at present administered, that th...