First stage, the causing of the perception: (That is red, that is blue);
Second stage, the perfection of recognition: (What is red or blue?);
Third stage, the provocation of expression: (What about this or that?).
Thus, the child who succeeds in expressing, even in an imperfect way, what he has understood of the passage he has read, is in a more advanced state of development than other children who are unable to tell the story. However, these children who are not able to relate what they have heard said may very well be in the preceding stage in which they are capable of "recognition." These latter are the relentless critics, the constant "hecklers" of those who are trying to relate—"No, no,—that's not so," "You have forgotten this, or that." Let one of us teachers try to tell the story in the most perfect and complete manner, and these tiny impetuous hecklers listen to us in ecstasy, showing their approval in every form of approbation of which they are capable. By studying such manifestations in the children, we can get sufficient psychological data for determining what reading is adapted to children of different ages, the best ways of reading aloud, and the line of development followed by each child in that hidden mental world of his which is cut off from our gaze. But to derive these benefits from reading, it is perfectly clear that the children must be left absolutely free in the expression of what goes on in their minds.
According to the method used in ordinary schools a child is called upon to read aloud, and the teacher herself continually interrupts, either to correct the pronunciation, or to assist by explanations and suggestions in the interpretation of the meaning. This is all useless for experimental purposes. We have no certain means of determining whether the pupil has understood either what he has read or the explanations of the teacher. Furthermore the corrections of pronunciation have centered the child's attention on this detail which is entirely without relation to the meaning of the text he is interpreting. Another situation not infrequently arises. A child is selected at random to tell in his own words what he has been read. Often the selection is not made at random, but some pupil is called on because he has shown himself the most inattentive, the least interested in what is being done—the recitation thus becoming correctional in character! While the child is telling his story, there is a constant suppression of interruptions: "Hush, I did not call on you," "Wait till you are called on," "It is not polite to interrupt some one who is talking," etc. It is clear that the teacher will never learn anything about her pupils in this way.
This explains why, from the psychological point of view, our present-day schools have not been able to contribute anything new to a reformed scientific pedagogy of reading.
Experimental Section: Reading Aloud
Although we lay all possible stress on interpretative reading, we nevertheless put into the hands of the child a little reading book which he can go over by himself first in a low voice, and then, when he has grasped the meaning, aloud, provided he can express himself clearly and easily.
The simplicity of these texts occasions surprise when one observes how completely and enthusiastically absorbed in them the children become. They find them so delightful that the books get literally worn out with the reading and rereading to which they are subjected. Sometimes a book is read from beginning to end. Again the child opens it by chance and reads the page he happens on. Some children like to read the whole book over and over. Others prefer to read some particular page a great many times. One frequently sees these tiny things suddenly rise with great decision and read aloud one of the pages which has been so seriously examined.
The little book was composed very carefully on the basis of rigid experimentation. As the book is opened only one page of print appears, the tergo of the right hand page being always blank. Nor does the text always cover the entire page. The spaces above and below the print are decorated with designs.