REVIEW AND PREVIEW
OUTLINE--CHAPTER XX
The need of review in our Church teaching.--Review a real help to
learning in that it makes for: repetition, proper connection,
proper evaluation of truth.
An intelligent review is the result only of thorough preparation on
the part of the teacher.--Assignment and preparation.--Ability to
make assignments a test of good teaching.
Characteristics of a good assignment: It is definite.--It raises a
problem.--It connects with the experience of pupils.--It stimulates
to action.
General and specific assignments.--When to make assignments.
Each organization within the Church follows regularly its own course of
study. At the beginning of the year it sets out upon a prescribed
subject subdivided according to the number of meetings scheduled for the
year's work. As a result, no one lesson stands out independent of all
others, but rather fits in naturally in a sequence of chapters each of
which develops some aspects of one big subject. Because of such a plan
the matters of review and preview take on vital significance. Each
lesson should be made to link up naturally with what has already been
presented and should point out by way of anticipation what is to follow.
Many educators maintain that the ability to conduct a good review and to
make an effective assignment are two of the surest tests of a good
teacher.
The problem of review is really one of the most fundamental processes in
education. It is the great key to learning. Anyone who has enjoyed the
fun of teaching young children how to read has been impressed with the
fact that the child has to be led to see and repeat the simplest words
over and over again before they are really mastered. It is really
astonishing how many times as simple a word as "ran" has to be repeated
before the beginner in reading gets it fully into his consciousness.
This very difficulty of teaching mere words or letters has led to the
abandonment of the old "A-B-C" drill as the first step in reading, and
the substitution for it of an indirect method wherein, through the laws
of association, groups of words and sentences are mastered as the
symbols which express concrete and objectified ideas. But by way of
experiment, one of the most impressive experiences open to teachers is
to take a child of four or five that has not been taught to read and
attempt to drill into its consciousness a group of half a dozen words as
simple as these: cat, fan, hat, get, man, jam. To the teacher who has
attempted such an experiment no argument is necessary to prove the
significance of review and repetition.
Review, then, first of all, is vitally essential because it makes
possible impression through repetition which insures the fixing of
ideas. Literally, review means to view again. Psychologically it is to
repeat the processes of mind which were called into operation the first
time the stimulus in question started a mental reaction. The nervous
system of man is so constituted that in the acquirement of knowledge,
each time the nerve centers react to the same stimulus, the tendency so
to react becomes stronger, under the mere presence of the stimulus,
starts up an automatic sort of reaction, and we say that the child knows
the meaning of the object constituting the stimulus.
Not only is review thus essential in the beginning of the learning
process with children, but it remains a vital factor as long as men and
women undertake to learn. Review guarantees recall, and recall
re-establishes "nerve connections" to the permanent fixing of
impressions. Very little of our knowledge remains ours to a purpose
unless it is gone over and over until it is thoroughly established. A
truth that is taught in a Mutual lesson on a particular Tuesday night,
but which is never referred to again, and therefore never recalled, very
likely will soon be gone out of consciousness and usefulness. Those
truths and facts which are of greatest functioning value to us are those
which we continue to run over in our minds and ponder. The reinforcement
of review is what establishes our permanent working stock of truth.
Not only is review valuable as a matter of recall, but it makes for an
enrichment of mental content which is altogether desirable. The real art
of review lies in calling up an old truth in a new setting. Upon second
perusal it is seen in skilful review from a slightly different angle so
that each recall adds a reinforcement that makes for a clinching of
thought which makes it permanent. It very often happens that the first
time an idea is called to our attention it means but little, because our
mental reaction is limited in the particular field of the presentation;
the same idea in a new setting more in keeping with our experience may
take on an entirely different significance. That teaching is best,
therefore, which presents truth from the greatest number of angles
possible, thereby guaranteeing the richest kind of associations in the
minds of pupils.
Another value that attaches to the review lies in the fact that it makes
possible proper connection between new material and old. It is axiomatic
in teaching that pupils learn new truths and take on new experiences, in
terms of the old. Teaching that unfolds--that develops new ideas that
are built upon those already understood--is the kind of teaching
attended by best results. In our organizations, meeting as we do only
once a week, we must appreciate the fact that in the intervening time,
between meetings, hundreds of ideas have crowded into the mind and have
displaced those that may have been there as a result of our teaching. By
calling to mind those ideas of a week ago, we not only reinforce them,
but we start a chain of thought to which it will be very much easier to
add the link of today's work than to proceed as if forging an entirely
new chain.
No farmer goes out and plants grain on the unplowed field. He plows and
harrows that the soil may be prepared not only to receive the seed, but
to make generation possible.
A review simply turns over the stubble field of the preceding week's
work, making ready for the planting of new seeds that they may generate
and develop.
Still a further value in the matter of review lies in the fact that the
review makes more easily possible the proper evaluation of the facts
taught. In every lesson there are major facts and truths presented and
also those minor or subordinate ones that serve to amplify and
illustrate. All too frequently a class becomes so involved in the minor
details that it may fail to grasp fully the big, underlying truth. By
careful review, the teacher can make the essentials stand out in relief.
These are the things that need to be pondered. If they are properly
grasped, thanks to the laws of association, most of the minor facts will
naturally attach themselves, so that truths can be retained in all of
their richness of detail.
It is surprising to find how frequently pupils who have spent a year on
the Book of Mormon have very little notion of the big, outstanding
features of the book. They apparently have run over each week's lesson
as so many independent facts, never coming back to single out the
essential things in that early American civilization. Surely no class
ought to complete the course without clearly comprehending such major
items as:
The contribution each of the three colonies made to Book of Mormon
civilization.
The general geographical location of each colony.
The outstanding characters in the book.
The coming forth of the book.
Why it is essential.
How our faith depends largely upon it.
The ministry of the Savior on this continent.
Gospel teachings of the Book of Mormon.
What is true of the study of the Book of Mormon is equally true of all
other subjects. It is so easy to get lost in a maze of facts, in a
course in the principles of the Gospel, and yet if a teacher will hold
to such basic considerations as the articles of faith, coming back to
them regularly and linking facts presented under the appropriate
article, it is equally easy to complete the course with a clearly
defined, skeletonized basis for all future study. Two conclusions seem
obvious: as teachers we ought to conduct reviews regularly and
frequently; we ought to prepare for them as one of the most vital
factors in teaching.
Important as is the review, the preview or assignment is equally vital.
To quote from Colgrove's _The Teacher and the School_:
"_Importance and Value of Good Lesson Assignment._ From the foregoing
consideration it is clear that no other part of the teacher's work
exceeds in value and importance the proper planning and assignment of
the daily lessons. It is supplying the class and the school with a
definite plan of work. It is preparing the mind of each individual
pupil for the reception of new truths and whetting his intellectual
appetite for a feast of good things. It inspires confidence by
pointing out to the pupil just how he can use his past lessons and
acquisitions to make new conquests. It prevents pupils from
misunderstanding the lesson or approaching it with indifference or
positive aversion. It enables the pupil to approach the new lesson in
a perceiving mood, and helps pupils to form the habit of being
successful in their work and of making a daily application of their
old knowledge. It prevents the teacher from degenerating into a mere
talker, and, where textbooks are used, should be the most vital part
of the recitation."
The assignment is the great guarantee of a good recitation. It sets up
objectives--it points the way--it starts the thought process that is to
produce a discussion worth while at the subsequent meeting of the class.
Much has been said recently against the practice on the part of the
teacher of saying, "Take chapter three for next time." There are
superintendents of schools who refuse to keep such teachers in their
service. To make such an assignment, particularly in classes that meet
only once a week, and especially if the assignment is made, as is too
usually the case, after the signal for class dismissal has been given,
is to promise the pupils a week in advance that their next lesson will
be very much of a failure.
A good assignment is characterized by several very definite features. In
the first place it is perfectly clear. Given at a time when pupils are
following it, it gives specific direction as to the work to be done
ahead in preparation. It indicates the direction of intellectual travel,
points out sources of material, and indicates what is to be looked for.
Reference or textbooks are so pointedly referred to that pupils not only
remember their names, they want to turn to them to enjoy their
contributions.
In the second place, a good assignment raises a problem which is a
challenge to the mental powers of pupils. It should carry a force of
anticipation that capitalizes on that great mover to action--curiosity.
For instance, if the lesson to be assigned is one on baptism, instead of
simply naming certain pages in a text to be read, the skilful teacher
may well challenge his class by bringing in a clipping from a periodical
or from some other source attempting to prove that sprinkling is the
correct method of baptism, or that baptism is not essential to a man's
obtaining salvation? How can members of the class meet such an argument?
One of their first thoughts will likely be a query as to where available
material may be turned to. How easy, then, to give references, etc. Some
such problem can be raised relative to every lesson taught, and it is a
wonderful force as an intellectual appetizer. It should both prompt to
action and point to the path to be followed.
The question is often raised as to whether the assignment should be
general or specific. Perhaps the best answer involves both kinds. There
ought ordinarily to be a general assignment that affects all of the
members of a class. The class is made up of all the individuals in the
group--its discussing ought therefore to be so made up. But in addition
to this general assignment, specific topics given to particular members
add an enrichment to the recitation of very great value. The services of
the specialist are always of inestimable value. That class is best
wherein each member in turn becomes a specialist in looking up and
bringing in vital observations on life.
As to the best time for making assignments, it is rather hard to give a
ruling that best fits all cases. Preferably the assignment should grow
out of the discussion of the lesson in hand, and therefore logically
comes at the end of the recitation rather than at the beginning. There
are teachers, however, who, fearing interruption at the end of the hour,
map out their work so carefully that they can make the assignment at the
outset, merely calling attention to it at the close of the hour. All
other things being equal, if the teacher will make himself hold sacred
the time necessary at the end of the hour for this all important matter
of assignment, it is likely that best results will follow having the
assignment of the next lesson grow naturally out of the work of today.
The important thing, however, is that at some point in the recitation,
the teacher shall take plenty of time to make a carefully planned and
challenging announcement of the work ahead.
* * * * *
QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS--CHAPTER XX
1. Why is it essential to good teaching that regular reviews be
conducted?
2. Why are reviews more necessary in our religious work than in regular
school work?
3. What are the chief purposes of a review?
4. By taking a current lesson of one of the auxiliary organizations,
illustrate the work done in a good review.
5. Why it is of vital importance that a teacher give special preparation
to a review?
6. Show how good class preparation is conditional upon the proper kind
of assignment.
7. What are the characteristics of a good assignment?
8. What is the best time for making the assignment?
9. Show how to make a good assignment of a current lesson from one of
the organizations.
HELPFUL REFERENCES
Betts, _The Recitation_; Betts, _How to Teach Religion_; Colvin, _The
Learning Process_; Colgrove, _The Teacher and the School_; Strayer and
Norsworthy, _How to Teach_.