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“The initial step in teaching for mastery is that of the presentation of the matter to be learned. This presentation should involve activity on the part of the student and should as far as possible build – dynamically and intelligibly – on what the student already knows. For example, a student knows servus and other -us and -um words of the second declension. When ager is introduced in Lesson 16. it is presented by means of a development made by the student himself from his knowledge of servus. Merely assigning for memorisation the full declension of ager is not enough. The student should be told that ager and other words like it have the same endings as servus except in the nominative, and he should then be required to complete the declension without referring to the GRAMMAR. Activity on the part of the student is a necessary part of the presentation of new matter. As far as possible, he should himself work out the new developments. Memory unaided by thought is not likely to produce lasting knowledge.
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