Such a statement of the case would seem to dictate a double type of instruction which will recognize more than does the present rigid class system the need of individual freedom and the value of class solidarity.
Many experiments have been tried in the effort to solve this problem. The Batavia system, so called, puts two teachers into a room, one to supervise individual work and one to teach groups. There are various systems of individual promotion which advance a pupil whenever he is ready.
Recently Principal Allen[40] of the high school of Springfield, Illinois, has developed a system of supervised study in which the students put themselves through certain prepared exercises and in this part of their work receive individual help and are allowed to progress at their own individual rate. Later the class meets for recitation as a group. The recitation group is made to depend for its composition on the rate at which students complete the individual exercises. The class is accordingly readjusted frequently, and in order to provide time for individual work the length of its meetings is somewhat less than the conventional high-school period.
The instructional plan thus arranged requires certain readjustments of the program and certain divisions of labor among the teachers which differ from the ordinary. But, above all, it calls for the separation of those aspects of the subjects of instruction which are suitable for individual work from those aspects which are suited to class exercises.
Arrangement of the Materials of Instruction
We are constantly brought back by our discussions of the organization of classes to a consideration of the curriculum. The materials of instruction are capable of advantageous and economical use only when they are adapted to pupils. Our next problem, therefore, is to consider some of the general principles which underlie the organization of the general curriculum and of particular subjects.
EXERCISES AND READINGS
What are some of the limitations in the training of a child who gets his education from a private tutor rather than as a member of a class? Show that the most satisfactory size for a class depends in large measure on the subject of instruction. In certain subjects, such as typewriting and bookkeeping, instruction often becomes almost purely individual instruction. Observe such a class and describe the method of instruction.
If terminology is employed in a strict way, a “course” refers to a series of lessons in a single subject, a “curriculum” to a coherent group of courses. What devices are adopted in high schools to compel students to think of curricula rather than courses? What are the advantages and what are the evils of the elective system?
What is the highest percentage of failures which ought to be tolerated in a class? What conditions affect your answer to the foregoing question? Is a “stiff” course the best course? What class in high school has the “stiffest” requirements?