THE ORGANIZATION OF MATERIAL
The organization of material to adapt it to the learner's mind and
arrange it for the teacher's use in instruction is hardly less important
than choosing the subject matter itself. By organization is meant the
plan, order, or arrangement by which the different sections of material
are made ready for presentation to the child. The problems of
organization may apply either (1) to the _curriculum as a whole_, or (2)
to any particular section of it used for _a day's lesson_.
It is possible to distinguish four different types of organization
commonly used in preparing material for religious instruction:
1. The _haphazard_, in which there is no definite plan or order, no
thread of purpose or relationship uniting the parts, no guiding
principle determining the order and sequence.
2. The _logical_, in which the nature and relationships of the material
itself determine the plan and order, the question of ease and
effectiveness in learning being secondary or not considered.
3. The _chronological_, applicable especially to historical material, in
which the events, characters, and facts are taken up in the order of the
time of their appearance and their sequence in the entire situation or
account.
4. The _psychological_, in which the first and most important question
is the most natural and favorable mode of approach for the learner--how
the material shall be planned and arranged to suit his power and grasp,
appeal to his interest, and relate itself to his actual needs and
experience.
TYPES OF ORGANIZATION
Haphazard organization.--The _haphazard_ plan, which is really no plan
at all, is, of course, wholly indefensible. No teacher has a right to go
before his class with his material in so nebulous a state that it lacks
coordination and purpose. It is this that results in chance and
unrelated questions, irrelevant discussions, and fruitless wanderings
without definite purpose over the field of the lesson, such as may
sometimes be seen in church classes.
The outcome of such instruction hardly can be more than occasional,
disconnected scraps of information, or fragmentary impressions which are
never gathered up and bound together into completed ideals and
convictions. The haphazard type of organization may result from
incompetence, indifference, and failure to prepare, or from taking a
ready-made and poorly prepared plan from the "lesson helps" which is not
adapted to our class. Pity the child assigned to a class presided over
by a teacher who esteems his privilege so lightly as not to make ready
for his task by careful planning.
Logical organization.--In the _logical_ arrangement of material, the
first care is not given to planning it in the most favorable way for the
one who studies and learns it, but, rather, to fit together the
different parts of the subject matter in the way best suited to its
logical relationships. The child is pedagogically ignored; the material
receives primary consideration. The logical order of material fits the
mind of the adult, the scholar, the expert, the master in his field of
knowledge; it begins with the most general and abstract truths. But the
child naturally starts with the particular and the concrete. It gives
rules, principles, definitions, while the child asks for illustrations,
applications, real instances, and actual cases.
The logical method is adapted to the trained explorer in the fields of
learning, to one who has been over the ground and knows all of its
details, and not to the young novice just starting his discoveries in
regions that are strange to him. The logical plan will teach the young
child the general plan of salvation, man's fall and need of redemption,
the wonder and significance of the atonement, and gracious effects of
divine regeneration working in the heart--all of which he needs finally
to know--but _not as a child just beginning the study of religion_. The
child must arrive at the general plan of salvation through realizing the
saving power at work in his own life; he must come to understand the
fall of man and his need of redemption through meeting his own childhood
temptations and through seeing the effects of sin at work around him; he
must understand the atonement and regeneration through the present and
growing consciousness of a living Christ daily strengthening and
redeeming his life.
Chronological organization.--The _chronological_ order of material is
desirable at the later stages of the child's growth and development. But
in earlier years the time sequence is not the chief consideration. This
is because the child's historical sense is not yet ready for the concept
of cause and effect at work to produce certain inevitable results in the
lives of men or nations.
The sequence in which certain kings reigned, or the order in which
certain events took place, or in which certain books of the Bible were
written is not the important thing for early childhood. At this time
the great object is to seize upon the event, the character or the
incident, and make it real _and vital_; it is to bring the meaning of
the lesson out of its past setting and attach it to the child's
immediate present.
Psychological organization.--It is the _psychological_ organization of
material that should obtain both in the curriculum as a whole and in the
planning of the individual lessons. We must not think, however, that a
psychological order of material necessarily makes it illogical. On the
other hand, the arrangement of material that takes into account the
child's needs is certain to make it more logical _to him_ than any adult
scheme or plan could do. That is most logical to any person which most
completely fits into his particular system of thought and understanding.
If we succeed in making our plan of presenting material to the child
wholly psychological, therefore, we need not be concerned; all other
questions of organization will take care of themselves, and _the
psychological will constantly tend to become logical_.
What is meant by a psychological method of arranging material for
presentation has already been discussed (Chapter III). Suffice it to say
here that it is simply _planning the subject matter to fit the mind and
needs of the child_--arranging for the easiest and most natural mode of
approach, securing the most immediate points of contact for interest and
application, remembering all the time that the child speaks as a child,
thinks as a child, understands as a child.
Jesus' use of the psychological plan.--The teacher who seeks to master
the spirit of the psychological presentation of religious material
should study the teaching-method of Jesus. Always he came close to the
life and experience of those he would impress; always he proceeds from
the plane of the learner's experiences, understanding, and interests.
Did he want to teach a great lesson about the different ways in which
men receive truth into their lives?--"Behold a sower went forth to sow."
Did he seek to explain the stupendous meaning and significance of the
new kingdom of the spirit which he came to reveal?--"The kingdom of
heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed," or, "The kingdom of heaven
is like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of
meal," or, "The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good
seed in his field."
And with this simple, direct, psychological, homely mode of approach to
great themes Jesus made his hearers understand vital lessons, and at the
same time showed them how to apply the lessons to their own lives. So
throughout all his teaching and preaching; the lesson of the talents,
the prodigal son, the workers in the vineyard, the wedding feast,
placing a little child in the midst of them--all these and many other
concrete points of departure illustrate the highest degree of skill in
the psychological use of material.
ORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM AS A WHOLE
The material offered in the curriculum of our church schools is not,
taking it in all its parts, as well organized as that in our public day
schools. This is in part because the material of religion is somewhat
more difficult to grade and arrange for the child than the material of
arithmetic, geography, and other school subjects. But it is also because
the church school has not fully kept pace with the progress in education
of recent times.
A century or two ago the day-school texts were not well graded and
adapted to children; now, we have carefully graded systems of texts in
all school subjects. While the logical and the chronological method of
organization still holds a place in many of the public school texts, the
psychological point of view, which considers the needs of the child
first, is characteristic of all the better schoolbooks of the present.
Just because religion is more difficult to teach than grammar or history
or arithmetic, we should plan with all the insight and skill at our
command to prepare the religious material for our children so that its
arrangement will not suffer by comparison with day-school material.
Three types of lesson material.--Material representing three different
types of organization and content of curriculum material is now
available and being used in our church schools:
1. The _Uniform Lessons_, which are ungraded, and which give (with few
minor exceptions) the same topics and material to all ages of pupils
from the youngest children to adults.
2. The _Graded Lessons_, which seek to adapt the topics and subject
matter to the age and needs of the child, and which therefore present
different material for the various grades or divisions of the school.
These are usually printed in leaflet or pamphlet form.
3. Real _textbooks of religion_ which are based on the principles used
in making day-school texts. The material is divided into chapters, each
dealing with some theme or topic adapted to the age of the child, the
lessons not being dated nor arranged to cover a certain cycle of subject
matter as in the case of the regular lesson series. The books are
printed and bound much the same as day-school texts.
The uniform lessons.--Although many churches still employ the _Uniform
Lessons_, we shall not hesitate to say that no church school is
justified in this day of educational enlightenment in using a system of
ungraded lessons. Such lessons are planned for adults. They ignore the
needs of the child, and force upon him material for which he is in no
sense ready, while at the same time omitting matter that he needs and is
capable of understanding and using. For example, some of the topics
which primary children, juniors, and all alike find in their ungraded
lessons of current date are, _man's fall_, the _atonement_,
_regeneration_, the _city of God_, _faith_--splendid topics all, but too
strong meat for babes.
Why should we thus ignore the educational progress of the age, starve
our children spiritually, and hamper them in their religious development
by this obsolete system of education which has been long since outgrown
in the public schools? Why should we not ignore tradition, prejudice,
and personal preference, where these are in the way, and _let the needs
of the child decide_? Why should thousands of church schools to-day be
using the Uniform Lessons?
Some use them because they are cheaper; others because they always have
used them and do not like the trouble and disarrangement of a change;
others because of the doubtful theory of the inspiration that comes from
having all the members of the family studying the same lesson at the
same time (we do not expect all the family to read or study the same
material in other lines); and perhaps others because they have not been
accustomed to thinking of religious education following the same
principles and laws as other education. But whatever the explanation of
the use of the Uniform Lessons in our church schools in the past, let
us now see to it that they give way to better material. Let us not be
satisfied, even, when the ungraded uniform lessons are "improved"; they
should not be improved, but discarded.
Graded lessons.--A large and increasing number of our best church
schools are now using some form of graded lesson material based on the
topics supplied by the International Lesson Committee. Each great
denomination has its own lesson writers, who take these topics and
elaborate them into the graded lessons such as we know in the Berean
Series, the Keystone Series, the Pilgrim Series, the Westminster Series,
etc. All such lesson material, which seeks to adapt the material to the
needs of the child as he progresses year by year from infancy to
adulthood, is infinitely superior to any form of ungraded material. It
is easier and more interesting for the child to learn, less difficult
for the teacher to present; and its value in guiding spiritual
development immeasurably greater.
Some form of closely _graded lessons_ is the only kind of material which
should be used in our church schools; the children have the same need
and the same right to material graded and prepared to meet their
understanding in religion as in language or in science. But when we
employ graded lessons we must make sure that _the child, and not the
subject matter; is the basis of the grading_. We must make certain that
the writer of the lessons knows the mental grasp, the type of interests,
the characteristic attitudes, and the social activities of the child at
the different stages, and then arranges the material to meet these
needs. We must not simply aim to cover so much biblical material, even
if we select it as well as we may to come within the child's grasp; we
must have his real religious needs, his religious growth, and his
spiritual development in mind, and provide for these.
Adapting graded lessons to young children.--In the graded series of
lessons now most commonly used in the church schools the material is, on
the whole, fairly well selected to meet the needs of the _beginners_ and
the _primary section_. Interesting stories are told, and much nature
material presented. The work is, of course, all presented to the pupils
by the teacher, as the children cannot yet read. In some cases the
stories used are undoubtedly too difficult, and not a few of them lack
the elements of good story-telling.
Yet the instruction usually centers about the topics most needed by the
child at this time--the love and care of God both for our lives and in
the world of nature about us; the Christ-child and his care for
children; lessons of kindness, obedience and love in the home, etc.
Because of this directness of appeal the child responds to the material
and the teacher finds her task much easier and more fruitful than with
the difficult topics of the ungraded lessons.
Graded lessons not all well adapted to ages.--As the graded lessons
pass on into the _junior_ age, the adaptation of material is generally
less successful than for the primary grades. The topics are based less
on the interests and spiritual needs of the child, and more on the
material. The lessons for the greater part consist of biblical material
only, and are often too difficult for the child to be interested in them
or to understand them. No coordinating principle relates the topics to
each other, and the material consequently comes to the child in rather
disconnected scraps. Too frequently this material, because it belongs to
a later stage of development, is without any particular or direct
bearing on the learner's experience, and hence not assimilated into his
life.
The remedy here is to use a larger proportion of story material, of
biography, of lessons from nature, and of such gems of literature as
carry a spiritual message suited to the child. The caution is to avoid
over-intellectualizing the child's religious instruction, and to make
sure that we do not outrun his rate of development in the material we
give him. The same principles should carry over into the intermediate,
or preadolescence, age. The hero-worship stage is then, at hand, and the
lesson material should be arranged to meet the natural demand of the
child for action and adventure.
In planning a graded series of lessons it is not less important to meet
the needs of the _seniors_, or adolescents, than of the younger pupils.
This has not always been accomplished. Here again, as in the earlier
years, the immediate interests and needs of the learner are to be the
key to the planning of material. A series of unrelated topics dealing
with a distant time and civilization, with little or no application to
the problems and interests that are now thronging upon the youth, will
make small appeal to him. The youth's growing consciousness of social
problems, his interest in a vocation, his increasing feeling of personal
responsibility as a member of the family, the community, the church and
the brotherhood of men are suggestions of the nature of the topics that
should now form the foundation of religious study and instruction.
It is possible that the forgetting of this simple fact in the planning
of material for adolescent pupils is one chief reason for the tragic
loss of interest in the Sunday school which so often occurs at the
adolescent stage.
Text books of religious material.--The _text book_ type of religious
material differs more in the organization and arrangement of material
than in the subject matter itself. The lessons are not based on a set
cycle of biblical material, though, of course, such material is freely
used. Usually one topic or theme is followed throughout the text, the
number of lessons or chapters provided being intended for one year's
work. The following titles of texts now in use suggest the nature of the
subject matter: "God's Wonder World," "Heroes of Israel," "Heroic
Lives," "The Story of Jesus," "The Making of a Nation," "Our Part in the
World," "The Story of a Book," "The Manhood of the Master," "Problems of
Boyhood," "Social Duties," "The Testing of a Nation's Ideals."
Beyond question, the material we teach our children in religion should
be organized and published as real _books_ and not as paper-covered or
unbound serial pamphlets. There is really no more reason why we should
divide religious material up into lessons to be dated, and issued month
by month, than why we should thus divide and issue material in
geography, history, reading, or any other school subject. Children who
are accustomed in day schools to well-made, well-bound books, with good
paper and clear, readable print, cannot be expected to respond favorably
to the ordinary lesson pamphlet. The child should be encouraged and
helped in the building of his own library of religious books, but this
can hardly be done as long as his church-school material comes to him in
temporary form, much of it less attractive on the mechanical side than
the average advertising leaflet which so freely finds its unread way to
the waste basket.
Many of the Sunday school leaflets carry at the top (or the bottom) of
the page an advertisement of the denominational lesson series--matter in
which the child is not concerned, which injures the appearance of the
page, and which lowers the dignity and value of the publication. And
some lesson pamphlets are even disfigured with commercial
advertisements, sometimes of articles of doubtful value, and always with
the effect of lowering the tone of the subject matter to which it is
attached. Religious material printed in worthy book form escapes these
indignities. That textbooks in religion will cost more than the present
cheap form of material is possible. But what matter! We are willing to
supply our children with the texts needed in their day-school work;
shall we not supply them with the books required for their training in
religion? If the texts prove too much of a financial burden for the
children or their parents, there is no reason why the church should not
follow the example of the public school district and itself own the
books, lending them for free use to the pupils.
Guiding principles.--The principles for the organization of the
church-school curriculum, are, then, clear. Its lessons should start
with matter adapted to the youngest child. It should present a
continuous series of steps providing material of broadening scope
adapted to each age or stage from childhood to full maturity. Its order
and arrangement should at all times be decided by the needs and
development of the learner, and should make constant point of contact
with his life and experience. It should be printed in attractive
textbook form, the paper, type, illustrations, and binding being equal
to the best standards prevailing in public-school texts. In short, we
should apply the same scientific and educational knowledge, and the
same business ability in preparing and issuing our religious material
that we devote to this phase of general education.
ORGANIZING THE DAILY LESSON MATERIAL
The teacher's plan or organization of each lesson for presentation to
the class in the recitation is a matter of supreme importance. Even the
best and most experienced teachers never reach the point where they do
not need to prepare specifically for each recitation. No matter how
complete the knowledge of the subject, nor how often one has taught it,
there is always the necessity of fitting it directly to the needs and
interests of the particular class before us. This preparation should
result in a definitely worked out _lesson plan_ which, though it may
finally be modified to fit situations as they arise in the class
discussion, will nevertheless serve as an outline of procedure for the
recitation. Even the teachers' manual supplied with most of the lesson
series cannot take the place of this definite, individual plan prepared
by the teacher himself for his immediate class.
The lesson plan.--The first step in arranging a lesson plan is to
determine the range and amount of material which is to be presented to
accomplish the aim of the class hour. This will include the lesson or
story from the Bible, nature material, memory work, music, pictures or
any other subject matter to be considered. In determining this point the
age of the children, the time available, and the nature of the subject
must all be taken into account. It is a mistake to attempt more than can
be done well, or to try to do so many things that the recitation is too
much hurried to be interesting or profitable.
The lesson plan should provide for a few chief points or topics, with
the smaller points and the illustrations grouped under these. To have
many topics receiving the same amount of emphasis in a lesson indicates
poor organization. For example, in teaching the lesson of _obedience_
from the Garden of Eden story the material may well be grouped under the
following topics: 1. The many good and beautiful things God had given
Adam and Eve, 2. There was one thing only which they might not have. 3.
Their disobedience in desiring and taking this one thing, 4. Their
feeling of guilt and unhappiness which made them hide from God. Under
these four general heads will come all the stories, illustrations, and
applications necessary to make the lesson very real to children.
Small matters of large import.--Of course the particular questions to
be asked and the more immediate applications to be made must await the
unfolding of the lesson discussion with the class. Good planning
requires, however, that we have a set of pivotal questions thought out
and set down for our guidance; and also suggestions for illustrations
and applications under the various topics. If expression work is to be
used, this should be noted in its proper place, and provision made for
carrying it out. In planning for older classes, reference should be made
in the plan to special assignments to be made in books, magazines or any
other material.
Provision should be made in the plan for a summary at the end of the
lesson period, and for the making of the final impression which the
class are to carry away with them. Nor must the assignment of the next
lesson be forgotten. Probably no small proportion of the characteristic
failure of pupils to prepare their lessons comes from lack of definite
assignments showing the child just what he is expected to do, and how to
do it.
Details of a typical lesson plan.--Let us suppose that we are to teach
the lesson of obedience from the story of Adam and Eve to children of
early primary age. Our _Lesson Plan_ might be something as follows:
I. _The Aim or Purpose of the Lesson_--OBEDIENCE.
1. Knowledge or information to be given the class--
a. Of the Bible story itself.
b. Of the fact that God requires obedience.
c. That disobedience brings sorrow and punishment.
d. That children owe obedience to parents and teachers.
2. Attitudes, and feeling response to be sought.
a. Interest in and liking for the Bible story.
b. Appreciation of God's many gifts to his children.
c. Desire to please God with obedience.
d. Sorrow for acts of disobedience.
e. Respect for authority of home, school and law.
3. Applications to the child's life and conduct.
a. Acts of obedience to God in being kind, cheerful, and helpful to
others.
b. Cheerful obedience in home and school with no lagging nor ill
nature.
c. Prayer for forgiveness for any act of disobedience.
II. _Material or Subject Matter to be Presented._
1. The story of Adam and Eve in the Garden.
The version of the story is important. The original from the Bible
is too difficult. If the lesson material does not offer the story
in satisfactory form, go to one of the many books of Bible stories
and find a rendering suited to your class. Be able to tell the
story well.
2. Pictures of Adam and Eve in the Garden.
Be sure the picture is interesting, well executed, and that it
shows attractive and beautiful things.
3. Prayer on obedience.
The prayer to be brief and simple, asking God to help each one to
obey him and to obey father and mother, and to forgive us when we
do not obey.
4. Music.
If possible, the music may correlate with the thought of the
lesson. If not, let it be devotional and adapted to the children
in words and melody.
5. Handwork or other form of expression material.
Cutting and pasting pictures in notebooks; coloring, or other such
work, to be done either in the classroom or at home.
III. _Mode of Procedure--the Presentation, or Instruction._
1. Greetings to the class--opening prayer and
song.
2. Introduction of the lesson and telling of the
story.
3. Discussion, questions and illustrations to reveal:
a. The many beautiful gifts which God had given Adam and Eve, and
which he gives us.
b. How Adam and Eve were allowed to have everything except just
_one_ thing among many. Application of this thought to child's life
at home, etc.
c. How Adam and Eve yielded to temptation and disobeyed. Practical
application to child's life.
d. How Adam and Eve felt ashamed and guilty after they had disobeyed
God, and how they tried to hide from him. This can be made very real
to children.
e. How punishment follows disobedience.
f. Why we must ask for forgiveness when we have been disobedient.
4. Summary, or brief restatement of chief impressions to carry away,
and of applications to be made in the week ahead by the children
themselves.
5. Closing prayer and song.
Adapting the lesson plan to its uses.--It is, of course, evident that
lesson plans can be made of all degrees of complexity and completeness.
With a little practice the teacher can easily decide the kind of plan
that best suits himself and his particular grade of work. On the one
hand, the plan should not be so detailed as to become burdensome to
follow in the lesson hour. On the other hand, it should not be so brief
and sketchy as not to bring out the significant elements of the lesson.
Different grades of pupils and different subjects will require different
lesson plans. It is probable, however, that the three major heads of
"Aims," "Material," and "Mode of Procedure" will prove serviceable in
all plan making. While the teacher should have his _plan book_ at hand
in the recitation, he must not become its slave, nor allow its use to
kill spontaneity and responsiveness in his teaching. Both the subject
matter and the day's plan should be so well mastered that no more than
an occasional glance at the details in the plan book will be required.
Nothing must be allowed to come between the teacher's best personality
and his class.
1. Have you heard lectures, sermons, or lessons which were
constructed after the haphazard plan? Were they easy to follow and
to remember? Did they develop a line of thought in a successful
way? Do you think that the haphazard type of organization indicates
either lack of preparation or lack of ability?
2. Do you definitely try to organize your daily lesson material on
a psychological plan? How can you tell whether you have succeeded?
Are you close enough to the minds and hearts of your pupils so that
you are able to judge quite accurately the best mode of approach in
planning a lesson?
3. Do you study the lesson helps provided with your lesson
material? Do you find them helpful? If you find that they are not
well adapted to your particular class, have you the ability to make
the suggestions over to fit your class?
4. Do you make a reasonably complete and wholly definite lesson
plan for each lesson? Do you keep a plan book, so that you may be
able to look back at any time and see just what devices you have
used? If you have not done this, will you not start the practice
now?
5. What type of lesson material do you use, uniform, graded, or
textbook? Are you acquainted with other series or material for the
same grades? Would it not be worth your while to secure
supplemental material of such kinds?
6. Do you read a journal of Sunday school method dealing with
problems of your grade of teaching? If day-school teachers find it
worth while to read professional journals, do not church-school
teachers need their help as much? If you do not know what journals
to secure, your pastor can advise you.
FOR FURTHER READING
Strayer, A Brief Course in the Teaching Process, chapter XVI.
Betts, Class Room Method and Management, chapter VIII.
Earhart, Types of Teaching.