Teachers' Outlines for Studies in English. Gilbert Sykes Blakely

The following plans of study for the English texts commonly used in secondary schools are presented in the hope that they may be suggestive to teachers of English who are struggling with the various problems which confront them. Each teacher, of course, must work out his own plan in accordance with the needs of his pupils and the conditions under which he works; but, as it is helpful to observe the class-room work of other teachers, so it may be helpful to see a fellow teacher's plans of work. I wish to disclaim any desire to dogmatize about the methods or the details of teaching. If I have anywhere assumed a tone of authority, it has been merely for the sake of brevity in stating my opinions.

Three books on the teaching of English have recently appeared: The Teaching of English by Percival Chubb, The Teaching of English by Professors Carpenter, Baker, and Scott, and Talks on Teaching Literature by Arlo Bates. All of these are full of inspiration and suggestion for me as they doubtless are for hundreds of others; they ought to be within reach of every progressive teacher of English. The present volume is essentially different from these in purpose. It aims, not at a discussion of the principles of teaching, but at the application of certain principles to the teaching of some of the books required for admission to college.

References by page or line to the book under discussion are to the texts of the Gateway Series.

For suggestions concerning the plan of the book and certain of its details, I am under obligations to Dr. Henry van Dyke. I desire also to express my thanks for helpful criticism to several of my fellow teachers in the Morris High School, especially to Mr. Harold E. Foster who has kindly read most of the manuscript.

G. S. BLAKELY.

The Morris High School.

STUDIES IN ENGLISH

Table of Contents

I. THE TEACHING OF THE NOVEL

Table of Contents

All will agree that the novel is one of the most important forms of literature for high school study. The fact that almost every boy and girl who is at all interested in reading likes the novel, gives the teacher an excellent opportunity to stimulate the pupil's love for literature and to help him to discriminate between what is true and what is false; between what is cheap and what is worth while. Moreover, the study of the novel is the study of life and character. It is of great human interest, and it may be made an important factor in developing the pupil's ambition, judgment, ideals, and character. Good stories grow in meaning with the growth of mental power. The Iliad and The Odyssey are full of delightful stories for boys and girls, but these same stories, securely fixed in the youthful mind, gain a deeper meaning from experience as the child develops into the man or the woman. Furthermore, interest in a good story leads to other interests. It may encourage a love of nature, stimulating to closer observation. It may awaken a love of history, or of travel, or of some of the innumerable interests of human activity.

Unfortunately, young people's delight in the reading of the novel is a source of danger. The drama and the essay appear so full of difficulties that the student regards their study seriously, as a task, and finds it necessary to apply himself vigorously in order to master them. On the other hand, the novel is so delightful, so easy, that he looks upon it as a pastime. A superficial reading often gives him knowledge of many of the main facts, and a mistaken idea that he knows the story. It is the task of the teacher to get him to read with careful attention and with imagination keenly alive. When a fair mastery of the facts of the story has been gained, and clear mental images of the scenes portrayed and suggested have been formed, studies of plot, character, interpretation,

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