A CRITICAL EXAMINATION O? SELECTED
INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES

Thad: Ear the Doom cf Ed. D.
MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
Eouglas M. GiImore
1953

 

, flu”. _._A

This is to certifg that the

thesis entitled

A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF SELECTED INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES

presented .‘bg

Douglas M. Gilmore

has been accepted towards fulfillment
of the requirements for

m degree in Malian

 

Date M81 61 1963

0-169

LIBRARY

Michigan State
University

 

 
  
 
     

  

LIBRARY

Michigan State
University

A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF

SELECTED INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES

BY

Douglas M: Gilmore

A THESIS

Submitted to
Michigan State University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of

DOCTOR OF EDUCATION
College of Education

1963

ABSTRACT

A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF
SELECTED INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES

by Douglas M. Gilmore

The purposes of this study were to collect a base
of the best information available on human learning, growth
and development and the social foundations of education, and
to suggest what this base means in practice; to ascertain
the prevalence and extent of selected instructional prac—
tices of teachers selected from the Michigan Education Asso—
ciation; to compare the practices reported with what the
teachers said they believed to be desirable; and to examine
the teachers' questionnaire responses in relation to the
principles described in the base.

To ascertain the status of selected instructional
practices a questionnaire was sent to a five per cent random
sample of Michigan Education Association members who were
classroom teachers at the time of the survey, May, 1961.
Response was over half (1,417) of the 2,830 teachers con-
tacted. They were asked to indicate the extent of certain
instructional practices and to state their opinion about
the desirability of the practices. In effect, they said,
"This is what I do, and this is what I believe would be

the best practice."

Douglas M. Gilmore

The effect of: years of college education; years
of teaching eXperience; and level of teaching, elementary or
secondary, on (a) the stated practices and (b) the beliefs
of the teachers about the desirability of the practices was
analyzed. Basic data for the study were derived from
questionnaire responses and from educational literature.

Major conclusions were:

(1) There was a difference between the instructional
practices reported by the teachers and their ratings of the
desirability of the practices. In most instances, the teach-
ers seemed to recognize that the "good" practices (as defined
by the study's base) should occur more frequently. Converse-
ly, they desired less frequency for the practices defined as
"not good."

(2) Exception to the above conclusion was found in
the items classified as "goals <1f teaching." The base
described such goals of teaching as "wise use of time,"
"ethical behavior," and "ability to think and evaluate" in
a very favorable way. Although the responses of the teachers
indicated these goals were dominant in their actual teaching,
they eXpressed the desire they be of lesser importance, or,
ideally, occupy less of their teaching.

(3) There was a difference between what the teachers
said they do and what the base suggested they do. In general,
their practices fell short of the ideals proposed in the base.

(4) With the exception of items in "goals of teach—

ing," there was practically no difference between what the

Ii {II Ii IIIII.III,iIl’.|IVI‘ ll’lIllllilII‘rlI‘flllfilIll.t[ l[i\/}L{{’li..lll\.lri\rl.

teachers thought they should do and what the study's base
suggests; thus, they do know what is "good," but do not
always practice these ideals.

(5) Elementary teachers showed better practices

"Ill

than secondary teachers, and they desired more of the "goou
practices than secondary teachers.

(6) Teachers with more years of college education
generally favored the "poorer" practices. The more years
of college preparation, the poorer were the practices.

(7) Teachers with more years of teaching experience
generally favored the "better” practices. The more years of
teaching experience, the better were the practices.

(3) The teachers were "free to choose the method of
teaching” over four-fifths of the time, and the most import-
ant source for "establishing goals for education" was the
teacher.

(9) The influence on "goals for education” by
"representatives of the community" or "the school adminis-
tration" was very slight.

(10) The single most important factor in control or
change of the teaching-learning process is the classroom
teacher.

(11) Another powerful factor in the teaching-
learning process seemed to be the textbook.

(12) Thus, any efforts to improve instructional

practices must focus on the individual teachers and their

Douglas M. Gilmore

perceptions, coupled with careful analysis of the role
textbooks play in the climate for learning of the individual

classrooms.

Ilillllrllli‘i lilill‘Illll‘ll‘ {ill llil‘llrlfifil .IIII" i.1|ii|'

AC KN OY'TLEDGME D1 TS

This study would not have reached its final stages
without the assistance and guidance of many, many persons,
most of whom must necessarily go unnamed, but not
unremembered.

Special credit and gratefulness are due Dr. Calhoun
Collier, chairman of the guidance committee and thesis
director. This writer aspires to be the kind of teacher
exemplified by him.

In addition, I would like to thank the members of
the guidance committee, Dr. Abram Barch, Dr. John Mason,
and Dr. Floyd Parker, for their encouragement, understand-
ing, and assistance. Their help was extended in unstinted
amounts, not only on the writing, but from the beginning
of my graduate program at Michigan State University.

Dr. Roy Edelfelt was responsible in large part for
the grant from the Michigan Education Association which

helped finance the initial stages of the study.

H]

To all of the many fine members of the College 0
Education credit must be given for stimulating and enrich-
ing my understanding of Education.

The generous COOperation of Dr. Martin Palmer,

Director, and Mrs. Mary Palmer, his good wife and colleague,

ii

made my completion of this paper possible while employed
by the Institute of Logopedics.

Finally, recognition was earned by those who, per-
haps more than any others, realize the sacrifices and great
patience required to complete even such a modest work as
this. Heartfelt gratitude is due my wife, Norma, and our

children, George, Glenn, Jim, and Anne.

iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii
LIST OF TABLES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi
INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
PART I. SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS OF THE
TEACHING-LEARNING PROCESS
Chapter

I. THE SOCIAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION . . . . . 10
II. THE PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION . . 21
III. THE RELATIONSHIP OF TEACHER AND LEARNER . . . 37
IV. THE ORGANIZATION FOR INSTRUCTION . . . . . . . 45
V. THE MATERIALS OF LEARNING . . . . . . . . . . 50
VI. THE EVALUATION OF LEARNING . . . . . . . . . . 56

PART II. ANALYSIS OF QUESTIONNAIRE RESPONSES
VII. THE SOCIAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION . . . . . 65
VIII. THE PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION . . 77
IX. THE RELATIONSHIP OF TEACHER AND LEARNER . . . 87
X. THE ORGANIZATION FOR INSTRUCTION . . . . . . . 97
XI. THE MATERIALS OF LEARNING . . . . . . . . . . 107
XII. THE EVALUATION OF LEARNING . . . . . . . . . . 114

XIII. COMPARISON OF SELECTED QUESTIONNAIRE RESPONSES
WITH THE BASE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

iv

Page

PART III. CONCLUSIONS AND OBSERVATIONS

Chapter

(IV. CONCLUSIONS AND OBSERVATIONS . . . . . . . . . 136
APPENDIX A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
APPENDIX B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

. I {fill-I II‘ II!
III: l ‘l" ‘E I [ {ll-Ill
I] .i[{lllfllnl~ [III [III‘

Table
l.

10.

11.

12.

13.

LIST OF TABLES

Page
Weighting of Responses . . . . . . . . . . . 65
THE SOCIAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION
Weighted Means of Total Population Responses 67
Weighted Means of Total Elementary and
Secondary Responses . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
College Education . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
Teaching Experience . . . . . . . . . . . 74
THE PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION
Weighted Means of Total Population Responses 77
Weighted Means of Total Elementary and
Secondary Responses . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
College Education . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
Teaching Experience . . . . . . . . . . . 84
THE RELATIONSHIP OF LEARNER AND TEACHER
Weighted Means of Total Population Responses 83
Weighted Means of Total Elementary and
Secondary Responses . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
College Education . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
Teaching Experience . . . . . . . . . . . 94

vi

I.i{|’\l}‘lliillllillll[lllil

Table

14.

15.

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

THE ORGANIZATION FOR INSTRUCTION
Weighted Means of Total Population Responses

Weighted Means of Total Elementary and
Secondary Responses . . . . . . . . . . .

Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
College Education . . . . . . . . . . . .

Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
Teaching EXperience . . . . . . . . . . .
THE MATERIALS OF LEARNING
Weighted Means of Total Population ReSponses

Weighted Means of Total Elementary and
Secondary Responses . . . . . . . . . . .

Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
COlleC.e Education. 0 o o o o o o o o o o

Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
Teaching EXperience . . . . . . . . . . .
THE EVALUATION OF LEARNING
Weighted Means of Total Population Responses

Weighted Means of Total Elementary and
Secondary Responses . . . . . . . . . . .

Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
College Education . . . . . . . . . . . .

Weighted Means of Responses by Years of
Teaching Experience . . . . . . . . . . .

vii

105

109

113

114

116

118

120

INTRODUCTION

The enigma which so often confronts those who
attempt to improve educational practices is the wide diver-
gence between good educational theories and practice.
Cronbach says, regarding textbooks, "In one secluded corner
we find some writers planning an ideal school for an ideal
world. In another we hear quite a different conversation,
about size of type, state adoption, . . . and other tangible
details. The gap is something like that from Plato's
Republic to ward politics in a midwestern stockyards neigh-
borhood."l Speaking specifically of teaching, Jamieson and
Hicks point up this problem when they quote the neophyte
teacher, "How can I apply the theories and principles dis-
cussed here to my day-by-day teaching?"2 And one often
hears the school administrator or teacher—educator claim
that classroom teachers seldom use the findings of research
which are available to them. These examples illustrate the

gap between theory and practice.

 

1L. J. Cronbach (ed.), Text Materials in Modern Edu-

 

cation (Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois Press,
1955). p. 188.
2

M. C. Jamieson and W. V. Hicks, Elementary School
Curriculum (New York: American Book Company, 1960), p. 88.

 

2

Assuming that this problem is crucial in the improve-
ment of education, what can be done to help teachers imple-
ment the wealth of knowledge about social forces, as well as
human learning, growth, and develOpment in their classrooms?

To what extent is there a difference between what
the theorists say and what teachers do? Do the teachers
know what is best and yet not practice this ideal, due to
various other circumstances, or are they unaware of the prin-
ciples of educational psychology, human growth and develOp-
ment, and the social foundations of education?

Is there any difference in instructional practices
from one teacher to another, or by teachers with different
teaching assignments? Do teachers with more years of
college, for instance, or more years of teaching eXperience,
perhaps, teach in a different manner than those with less of
either factor? Is there any difference in the teaching in
the elementary grades, compared with the teaching in the
secondary grades? These are some of the questions which
this study puraorts to examine.

Purposes

The purposes of this study, then, were:

1) to develop a base from the best information
available on human learning, growth, and devel-
opment as well as the social foundations of
education, and to suggest what this base means
in practice,

2) to ascertain the prevalence and extent of

3
selected instructional practices, as perceived
by a random sample of teachers selected from the
roster of the Michigan Education Association,
3) to compare the practices reported with what the
teachers said they believed to be desirable, and
4) to examine the teachers' questionnaire responses
for selected instructional practices in relation
to the principles described in the study's base.
Definitions
Instructional practice: The term was used herein to
mean the acts of teaching or beliefs of teachers concerning
their day-by-day classroom acts as they actually occur.
Base: The base was this writer's synthesis of the
writings of contemporary leaders in the field of education.
It included both references to child growth and development
as well as social forces, since these two factors are
believed to form the foundation for instructional practices.
Assumptions
The major assumption was that the stated incidence
of instructional practices as given by the teachers was, in
fact, a true picture of their teaching activities; and, that
their statements as to the desirability of these practices
represent their true beliefs concerning the "ideal"
practices.
A second assumption was that the sample of the total
population (all teaching members of the Michigan Education

Association) which responded to the questionnaire was

4
representative of the classroom teachers who were members
of the Michigan Education Association, at the time of this
survey.

It was assumed, further, that to the extent the
sample was not typical of the "average" teacher in Michigan
(as defined by statistics giving the educational level of
all Michigan teachers obtained from the Department of Public
Instruction), it tended to represent the better educated and
more professionally committed teachers. Thus, the instruc-
tional activities cited might be considered to represent the
practices of the more enlightened teachers. This assumption
was based on the finding that the number of years of college
education for the sample was somewhat higher than that shown
by the figures from the Department of Public Instruction for
all teachers in Michigan.

Hypotheses

1) There will be a difference between the selected

instructional practices as reported by the

teachers and their ratings of the desirability

 

of these practices.

2) There will be a difference between what the
teachers say they do and what this study's base
suggests they do.

3) There will be pg difference between what the
teachers think they should do and what the
study's base suggests.

4) Instructional practices will more nearly

5
correspond to this study's base for the follow-
ing:
a. elementary teachers,
b. teachers with more years of college
education,
c. teachers with more years of teaching
experience.
Method

This study attempted to ascertain the status of
selected instructional practices as perceived by a five per
cent random sample of Michigan Education Association members,
who were classroom teachers at the time of the survey.
These teachers responded to a questionnaire concerning the
extent to which certain instructional practices occurred in
their teaching. They also were asked to indicate their
opinion about the desirability of the practice. In effect,
they were saying, "This is what I do, and this is what I
believe would be the best practice."

The base, which was compared with the teachers'
stated practices, was developed from writings in the field
of education.

The teachers' reported practices were compared with
their expression of the desirability of these practices.
Also, selected teachers' responses were examined in relation
to the principles described in the study's base.

The effect of the number of years of college educa-

tion; years of teaching experience; and level of teaching,

6
either elementary or secondary, on (a) the stated instruc—
tional practices and (b) the beliefs of the teachers about
the desirability of the practices was analyzed.
Basic data for the study were derived from responses
to the questionnaire shown in the appendix and from educa-

tional literature.

PART I

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS OF THE TEACHING-LEARNING PROCESS

What are the primary characteristics of a good
teaching-learning situation? The following is an attempt
to answer this question. It is derived from a selection of
the writings in human development and learning, as well as
the social factors influencing education.

Although it is accepted that there is no one "best"
teaching method, it is suggested that there are certain
basic tenets which should serve as the base of any good
teaching-learning situation. When a skillful teacher and
a group of children interact in the classroom with learning
as their common goal, it is very difficult to describe such
a complex and dynamic situation in a succinct, yet compre-
hensive manner. One way to describe the process is by
separating it into several aspects and analyzing each in
some detail. Although this separation will be helpful for
the purpose of analysis, one should not forget that the most
effective teaching occurs as a well-integrated whole, rather
than in the somewhat disjointed fashion in which it appears
when divided into descriptive subtopics. With this in mind,
various aspects of the teaching-learning process will be
discussed in the following chapters:

I. The Social Foundations of Education

II. The Psychological Foundations of Education

8

III.

IV.

V.

VI.

9
The Relationship of Learner and Teacher
The Organization for Instruction
The Materials of Learning

The Evaluation of Learning

CHAPTER I

THE SOCIAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION

Education in a democracy should be influenced by
society and the society should feel the impact of its schools.
Any discussion of teaching-learning should recognize the
function and purpose of education in the democratic scene.

The success of a democracy is predicated on the
functioning of an educated citizenry in terms of self-
government. But it is equally important in our modern
society that education serve the needs of industry and com-
merce. The insatiable demand for more highly skilled work-
ers in our country is interestingly coupled with the occur-
rence of more leisure hours for these same workers. The
resultant expectation of education is for more knowledge and
skill in working and for more knowledge and skill in using
an increasing amount of time when not working.

If the needs of society could be ignored, the job
of educators would be comparatively simple. The courses of
study could be standardized, and the amount of learning
could be quantified, thus defining the job of teaching as
that of imparting a certain specified amount of knowledge

in a given amount of time to all of the learners.

10

11

On the other hand, when the needs of society form
the basis for education, complexities and difficulties chal-
lenge the educator from all sides. The influence of society
on education can be understood better by examining some of
the values held by our society.

The following five values, or democratic ideals, are
listed by Everett:

1. Self-reliance, a conviction that people can

accomplish whatever they seek to accomplish,
has long been a value highly esteemed by
Americans.
2. In American society the people are sovereign.
3. Freedom of every individual to develop to his
optimum potential is an accepted American
ideal.

4. Responsibility of the individual for the com-

mon good is an accepted democratic ideal.

5. A pragmatic approach tI solving problems is

espoused by Americans.

The reflection of these values in our educational
system requires a high degree of social awareness on the
part of the educators and a complex system with many vari-
ables operating in unison. There is yet much room for
innovation and improvement in our schools, if they are to
meet the challenge of implementing these basic values of
society.

If self-reliance is to be developed, the schools

must, from the beginning, provide eXperiences which help

 

lSamuel Everett, "Values in Curriculum Decision
Making," Balance in the Curriculum, 1960 Yearbook of the
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development
(Washington 6, D.C.: 1201 Sixteenth St., N.W., National
Education Association, 1961), pp. 34-44.

12
each learner to acquire a healthy self-respect. The psycho-
logical principle that "success begets success" is an impor-
tant facet of developing self-confidence. The curriculum
must be structured so that the chances for expression of
self—reliance can be fostered. The autocratic teacher who
imposes a predetermined, organized subject on the learner
leaves little or no Opportunity for the expression of self,
in an acceptable way, by the learner. Our automated, mass-
producing society is damaging to the concept of self-reliant
individuals and the schools should lead the way in counter-
ing this force in our society.

POpular sovereignty as a value of our society gives
the public school, with education guaranteed to all who can
profit by it, an irrevocable function. Local control of the
schools represents the will of the people, which at the same
time assures the people's rights and establishes the schools'
responsibility to the public. This unique relationship be-
tween free people and their schools requires a deep sense of
responsibility on both sides. The people must be concerned
and involved with their schools while the educators must
never forget the needs of the people.

If each individual is to develop to his optimum, the
schools must provide a broad, flexible, individualized cur-
riculum. Herein lies one of the most important mandates of
society for the schools. There must be a type of education
available which is suitable for all Americans. This is the

basic difference between the European and American systems

13
of education. Once again, if the goal of the schools were
only to prepare persons for college, there would be little
need for a broad, comprehensive curriculum. Since there are
more people who will not go to college than there are those
who will, there must be provision made for a type of
"terminal education" which will help the non-college persons
develop to their maximum potential. Another facet of this
societal value is the extension of public school programs
to those physically and mentally handicapped who need
special consideration.

Any attempt to meet the needs of every individual in
our society will necessitate education appropriate to the
needs of the retarded, the workers and homemakers, the col-
lege—bound, and the gifted. A program which meets the needs
of all these different kinds of individuals must necessarily
be complex and flexible.

If this value of optimum growth for each individual
is to be truly operative, then our schools must provide more
than academic growth for each individual. Personality ad-
justment, as well as emotional and mental health, are just
as important to optimum growth for each person as is aca-
demic achievement. Everett summarizes this idea well when
he says:

An accepted purpose of the public school, as stated

or implied in innumerable publications of local boards
of education and state educational authorities, is that

14
of full personality development. This includes the
intellectual, moral, esthetic, social, emotional and
physical growth of all children and youth.1

Responsibility of each individual for the common
good is an interesting and important difference between the
American and European educational systems. The schools must
help promulgate this basic value of democracy in two ways.
First, it should be one of the goals of education to help
each person accept his responsibility for the common good.
It is one of the most important concepts of democracy that
each individual pays taxes, votes, and participates in other
social responsibilities, both local and national. Every
enterprise should be judged in the light of its effect on
the people as a whole, rather than its effect on a favored
few. Secondly, the schools should operate upon this prin-
ciple, from the individual classroom up through a whole
educational system. The individual learners should have
the opportunity to practice democracy with the concommitant
learning of the value of the common good over individual
rights.

Americans, as a whole, favor the pragmatic approach
to solving problems. Essentially, this means to use the so-
called "scientific method" of solving problems, rather than
relying on higher authority, traditions, influence, govern-
ment, etc., for solutions. Our society favors getting the

facts, and making judicious decisions based on the facts,

 

lEverett, p. 46.

15
rather than precedence. Thus, our schools are expected to
abide by decisions based on research, knowledge, and facts
in the same manner that our industries and other social in-
stitutions are expected to function. Our American heritage
is witness to the ideal that man must think, and think for
himself. The right to question the value of any of the
social institutions, and to judge them in comparison to
scientific knowledge, is basic to our society. This results
in an obligation by society to examine closely the activities
of its schools, expecting change to conform to new cultural
needs as they arise. At the same time it obligates educa-
tors to provide factual and knowledgeable bases for the
activities of the schools. The field of education must draw
from such fields as sociology, psychology and philosophy, as
well as from itself, in a scientific manner, in order to
justify its actions. To the extent that education can do
this will be the extent that it will be recognized as a
legitimate profession in our society.

All of the foregoing helps to explain why educa-
tional practices are open to public criticism and why
educators must recognize the social foundations of our
educational system. In considering a few of the contem-
porary criticisms and recommendations made by members of
our society, it would behoove educators and critics alike
to remember Everett's admonition:

It is in the American tradition in education, as in

other asPects of our life, that new knowledge shall
be sought and evaluated. American social values have

l6
themselves been tested by 250 years of experience.
Proposals for educational change which are at variance
with known facts, or which seek to modify established
values, need especially thoughtful examination. Such
proposals must be subjected to the same type of care-
ful inquiry which has in other fields made America one
of the most advanced countries of the world. Using
the method of intelligence, educators have a respon-
sibility always to seek new knowledge and new insights
appropriate to the educational task.

Following are a few examples of the contemporary
attempts to change the educational system of the United
States.

James B. Conant has achieved much respect from both
inside and outside the field of education for his recommen-
dations. They were well founded in fact, so it seemed, and
carried the weight of prestige associated with both Dr.
Conant and the foundation which sponsored his research.
Although he commends the comprehensive high school, his
emphasis seems to be on the "upper track" of the several
tracks which he proposes for learners to follow. In a book
of readings on curriculum development by Alcorn and Linley,
Dr. Conant says, "The point I wish to make is that I believe
it is possible for our schools to do far more for children
with special gifts and talents than at present, without
jeopardizing our basic educational philosophy. . . . I am
convinced the comprehensive high school is an excellent

American invention."2

 

lEverett, p. 46.

2Marvin D. Alcorn and James M. Linley (eds.), Issues
in Curriculum DevelOpment (Yonkers-on-Hudson, N.Y.: World

17

It is interesting to note that most of the public
acclaimed Dr. Conant's report, while most thoughtful educa-
tors criticized his recommendations for their academic
leanings and tendency to standardize the educational pattern
too rigidly. There was one educator, however, who read
excessive vocationalism into the Conant Report. Dr. Koerner
calls it a tragedy that our schools allow eighty-five per
cent of their population to follow the tracks to homemaking
and vocations.

Thus one sees the type of conflicting statements
which are often made and the need for a knowledgeable and
sound analysis of these pressures.

Admiral Hymen Rickover has become a very vocal self-
appointed critic of American education. He demands more
academic emphasis with the elimination of the "frills" such
as driver education and home economics.

Other pressures can be seen in the analysis, by
DiVesta, of the demands for more use of educational tele-
vision and teaching machines in the classrooms, apparently
3

Sin an effort to match the automatizing of industries.

Still other pressures can be found for longer school

 

1James D. Koerner, "The Tragedy of the Conant Report,"
Phi Delta Kappan, XLII (December, 1960), pp. 121-124.

2 . . .

Admiral H. G. Rickover, "A Comparison: European vs.
American Secondary Schools, Phi Delta Kappan, XXXX (November,
1958). pp. 60-64.

3Francis J. DiVesta, Balance in the Curriculum, 1960
A.S.C.D. Yearbook, p. 78.

 

18
days; extended school year; reorganized time schedules; team
teaching; variation in class size from 300 for lectures to
as few as ten for discussion, or even for individual study-
ing; and the dissemination of knowledge by airborne
television.

These demands for sweeping changes are supplemented
by others which emphasize a particular segment of the total
school program, such as science, or reading, or even the
phonics method of teaching reading, proposed (but not
invented) by Rudolph Flesch. Arthur Gates, noted specialist
in the teaching of reading, quotes this deceptively simple
solution to our educational problems from Mr. Flesch's book
Whnyohnnie Can't Read, on pages 2 and 3, "It's very simple.
Reading means getting meaning from certain combinations of
letters. Teach the child what each letter stands for and
he can read."1

So the pressures are building, from many corners of
our society, all attempting to improve the educational sys-
tem in one way or another. The demands of our society for
ever better educated individuals is evident. The question
which needs answering is, "What constitutes an educated
person?" The tremendous increase in factual knowledge which
is occurring daily (so great some call it the "explosion" of
knowledge) underlines the futility of our schools attempting

to teach more and more of certain factual subjects. What

 

lAlcorn and Linley, p. 232.

19

needs to be done is to develop learners, that is, persons

 

with well-established patterns of knowing how to learn in
the area of their particular interest. This ability to
continue learning throughout life, coupled with a well-
balanced command of the tool subjects, will help an indi-
vidual to function better in our complex society than an
even fully mastered accumulation of specific subject matter
details.

Balance in the Curriculum, the title of the 1960

 

Yearbook of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum
Development, is indicative of this emphasis. Halverson
states that

anOther aspect of balance relates to the nature of the
individual learner and how he learns. . . . There is a
unity in the learning activities of students which stems
from the inter-relationships of intellectual interests
and activity, physical growth and activity, emotional
characteristics and the socialization needs of learners.

He concludes that what is needed is

an appropriate distribution of attention to the cogni-
tive and affective components of teaching-learning
experiences. . . . Adding all these elements together,
it is clear that, important as societal needs and de-
mands are in determining the curriculum of the school,
there remains for the professional educator the respon-
sibility of injecting the psychological foundations of
curriculum making, so that a balance may be secured
between the societal and individual needs served by

the school.

In summary, then, the resolution of the dilemma pre-
sented by the social forces affecting our schools lies not

in "more of this and less of that,“ or "better standards,"

 

1Paul M. Halverson, "The Meaning of Balance," Bal-

ance in the Curriculum, 1960 A.S.C.D. Yearbook, pp. 9-10.

20
or "academic excellence," but rather in providing learning
experiences in each and every area of the schools, whether
physical education or nuclear physics, which help the learner
better learn how to learn. For the mark of the truly edu-
cated man is not to be found in how much he knows, since the
amount of knowledge is comparatively relative and limitless,
but rather in how well he knows how to learn.

The school can contribute to this end by helping
children in their day-by-day activities to decide when
to subordinate individual desires to social goals; by
helping them to see the true worth of each individual;
by teaching them to appraise their work with honesty
and integrity; by showing them the satisfaction that
can come with unselfish living. The school must be a
place where children and youth can learn how to bring
scientific methods to bear in adjusting to change and
where they can develop the flexibility of mind impera-
tive to successful living in the twentieth century.

The direction, then, of educational activities in

relation to societal forces demanding change, should be

toward creating better learners, who have developed the need

to learn more, and the ability to know how to learn.

 

lFlorence B. Stratemeyer and Others, Developing a
Curriculum for Modern Living (2nd ed.; New York: Bureau of
Publications, Teachers College, Columbia University, 1957),
p. 49.

 

CHAPTER II
THE PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION

The knowledge of how children grow and develop
points to four clearly defined areas of growth: physical,
intellectual, social, and emotional.1 Each of these areas
of development is closely related in the maturing human and
the teacher must be aware of, and plan in accord with, these
relationships. For the purposes of this discussion, the
physical growth of the learner will be treated rather
briefly. Intellectual growth will be discussed separately,
while the social and emotional growth of the learner will be
considered as "personality growth," following the design of

Combs and Snygg.2
Physical Growth

There are two important conclusions which come from
the studies of physical growth and development:
1) Physical growth proceeds through certain definite

stages or patterns as the body matures.

 

lWillard C. Olson, Child Development (Boston: D. C.
Heath and Co., 1949), pp. 67-68.

2Arthur W. Combs and Donald Snygg, Individual
Behavior (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1959).

 

 

21

 

A ‘1' I‘cl. ‘ up). [I‘ll I:|f..|.ll-II-| [It‘ll-III! 1"} )1. I I'll

22

2) Among individuals there is a great variability
in growth rates through these stages.

Thus we find that if a teacher ignores the fact that
the learning of gross motor movements normally precedes the
learning of fine motor movements, then attempts to teach
cursive writing before the child has developed good gross
motor control may be fruitless.

The fact of stages of growth and individual differ-
ences in growth rate require that teachers plan activities
which meet the needs of the variety of stages present in a
given classroom. As an example, there probably are some
third—grade children who can sit quite still for prolonged
periods of time. Most eight-year-old children, however, are
faced with the developmental task of controlling a restless
body which demands much gross muscular action. The teacher
should plan learning activities, therefore, which meet the
needs of those children who have not matured enough for pro-
longed, quiet sitting by alternating physical and nonphysical
activities. If this is not done, most of the children will
be faced with the nearly impossible task of conforming to
the urgent physical needs of their bodies and the conflict-
ing requirements of the teacher-imposed environment. The
resultant lack of harmony will hinder the learning of the
child.

Carmichael observes that even disregarding differ-

ences in attitude about learning, the neuromuscular ability

23
of young children is less mature than that of older persons,
thereby affecting ability to learn.

It should be clear that younger learners will pre-
sent different problems to the teacher than older learners.
When a teacher intends to teach some specific subject matter,
but disregards the maturity and characteristics of the
learner, then the best learning cannot result.

If one adopts the view that children have intrinsic
needs and individual worth as they are at present, not later,
when they get through a "stage," or when they "grow up,"
then the way a teacher relates to them will be altered con-
siderably. The teacher will think of the learner as someone
who, at this very moment, has vital personal needs and valid
interests with certain particular abilities and characteris-
tics which may provide a unique contribution to the learning
situation. This is in sharp contrast to the concept of the
learner "hearing a lesson," which will do him good "when he

is grown."

Mental Growth

What is mental growth, or learning? There are many
definitions, but this writer has chosen one by Burton which
seems particularly appropriate, "Change in the individual,
due to the interaction of that individual and his environ-

ment, which fills a need and makes him more capable of

 

lLeonard Carmichael (ed.), Manual of Child Psychol-
ogy (New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1946), p. 439.

 

24
dealing adequately with his environment.”1 Burton follows
this definition with the conclusion that there are two main,
overall types of learning theories: the "stimulus-response"
and the "cognitive." Burton suggests this definition fills
the need for "setting up a reasonably consistent statement
of principles" useful to teachers.
The suggested two main categories of learning

theories are: the stimulus-response, which is the older

 

of the two and would include the behaviorists; and the

cognitive, or the organismic theory.

 

The stimulus-response school of thought was in part
responsible for the recent increased production of "teaching
machines and programed learning materials. Some of these
materials are limited to the known efficiency of stimulus-
response type repetitions, with immediate reinforcement.
Hilgard thinks this is an acceptable method of teaching, if
the learning goal is memorization of unrelated facts that
are to be automatized.

However, there is an increasing effort on the part

of both stimulus-response and cognitive psychologists to

 

1William H. Burton, "Basic Principles in a Good
Teaching-Learning Situation," Phi Delta Kappan, XXX X

 

2Burton, p. 242.

3E. R. Hilgard, Theories of Learning (2nd ed.; New
York: Appleton-Century—Crofts, Inc., 1955), p. 487.

 

25
adapt materials of programed instruction so they emphasize
problem solving, thinking, and questioning.

Anderson and Gates, in 1950, said that cognitive
learning "implies awareness or knowing, discovery or
insight, as opposed to blind, mechanistic reacting.“l The
modern educator or psychologist would not reject the stimu-
lus-response theory thusly, but recognizes its value in
teaching, and has developed a broader and more comprehen-
sive interpretation of the process of learning.

Burton says that the public schools of our demo-
cratic society are dedicated to the fulfillment of the

. . . . . . 2 . . -
complete capabilities of each indiVidual, and it is sub-
mitted that the cognitive theory of learning will most
nearly help teachers develop the potential of each learner.
This is due to the fact that much more "transfer" of learn-
ing takes place when the learning is meaningful and under-
stood. Stratemeyer shows that there is little or no research
evidence to support the value of taking certain subjects for
"mental discipline," but rather that it is Egg any subject
is taught which makes the difference. Thus, ”whether or

not the study of geometry leads to better problem-solving

 

lLester B. Anderson and Arthur I. Gates, "The
General Nature of Learning," Learning_and Instruction,
Forty-Ninth Yearbook of the National Society for the Study
of Education, Part I (Chicago: The University of Chicago
Press, 1950), p. 15.

 

2Burton, p. 243.

26

ability seems to depend upon whether geometry is taught with
problem-solving skills in mind."1

Advocates of the stimulus—response type of learning
would support the mental discipline idea, stating that
memorizing long lists of things will help strengthen the
mind. Those who support the cognitive theory would suggest
that memorizing is helpful for memorizing purposes only.

What is needed to develop the most meaningful learn-
ing with a maximum of carry-over into the learner's life
outside the school is at least two conditions. First, there
needs to be similarities in the learning situation and life
itself. Second, there needs to be the opportunity to form
generalizations about the original learning. This poses a
much more difficult teaching problem than merely having
children learn a great amount of unrelated facts. It is
difficult, and sometimes impossible, to unite learnings in
all instances with actual applications to life. Neverthe-
less, it must be attempted in order to help learning become
more useful and permanent. The development of generaliza-
tions can result from the teacher's efforts to encourage the
children's use of the problem-solving approach with emphasis
on discussion, experimenting, and reaching conclusions.

Only when a learner can achieve the integrity,

strength, and pleasure which accompanies a more nearly

 

lStratemeyer, p. 73.

2Stratemeyer, pp. 74-75.

27
complete understanding and integration of meaningful
cnowledge, will he be able to develop towards his maximum
potential. The cognitive approach to learning will help
to accomplish this end.

There is an added dividend which comes from attempt-
ing to relate the learning activities of the school to the
life of the learner. If the relation is direct, then there
will be many chances for the learner to practice what he has
learned in his daily life. Thorndike has shown that repeated
use of knowledge, in a meaningful context, will enhance the
retention of learning. Thus, greater retention of what is
learned will follow teaching which emphasizes the relation-
ship of the learning to the lives of the children.

In summary of the cognitive theory of learning, the
following must be emphasized:

1) Learning will most nearly meet the needs of
individuals in our society if it is related to the life
experiences of the learners so that there will be a maximum
of retention through use.

2) The learning process must involve activities
which encourage critical thinking, problem solving, ques-
tioning, and concluding so that there will be a maximum of
generalization possible.

The variability of learners must be recognized and
met if learning is to be appropriate to the individual.

One of the basic attributes of our democratic system of

education is the recognition which is given to the integrity

28
and value of each individual.1 This attribute is derived
from the Judeo-Christian heritage which dominates our
society.2 The practical result of this philosophy for our
system of education is two-fold. Our schools are open to
all persons, regardless of race, creed, ability, or socio-
economic background, and each individual is encouraged and
expected to develop to the maximum limit of his unique
capabilities.3

Consequently, one of the pervading characteristics
of the learner in our public schools is his great variabil-
ity, and this variability tends to increase with age. He
may be brilliant or retarded, physically strong or handi-
capped, emotionally adjusted or maladjusted, and so on,
through the many aspects of human personality.

But what does this heterogeneity of learners mean to
the teacher? Does it mean that all learners can proceed at
the same rate toward the same learning? Does it mean that
all learners can learn in the same way? Does it mean that
there are "minimums” which each learner must attain before
he can pass to the next grade, or be considered "educated"?
Does it mean that a class of forty children can learn as

well as a class of twenty? It would seem that the answer

 

1Ephraim V. Sayers and ward Madden, Education and
the Democratic Faith (New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts,
Inc., 1959), p. 429.

 

2Burton, p. 243.

3Sayers and Madden, p. 430.

29
to all of these questions will be “No," if the philosophy of
individual worth and the reality of individual variance are
recognized and accepted as truly basic to our democratic
society.

A school program designed for the best learning must
have many things to offer and be as flexible as possible in
order to meet the needs of each individual. The learning
eXperiences must be geared to the fact that each child is
different from the others, but it also must be recognized
that each child has different levels of ability within him-
self. Jersild asserts that one child may excel another in
arithmetic, and the second child excel in reading, while
both may have a similar I. Q.1 What implications do these
differences hold for the "lock-step" method of having all
children in a given class working on the same page of the
same textbook, at the same time? Certainly some will be
bored, others frustrated, and learning will tend to
deteriorate.

All of the preceding requirements for meaningful
learning eXperience will be to no avail if there is a lack
of desire or motivation on the part of the learner. Return-
ing to the quoted definition of learning cited at the
beginning of this section, attention is called to the words,

"which fills a need." The needs of an individual are of

 

lArthur T. Jersild, Child Development and the Cur-
riculum (New York: Bureau of Publications, Teachers College,
Columbia University, 1946), p. 28.

30
extreme importance in the process of learning. Some have
called these needs of the learner "central factors in
learning."1 It is felt that the kind of learning herein
described as desirable cannot occur unless the learner has
a desire for that learning and sees it fitting into his own
purposes. Carmichael says, "After the relatively passive
stage of infancy is passed, therefore, the psychology of
incentives becomes increasingly important."2

A more complete description of the needs of learners
will be found in the next section on Personality Growth,
where the perceptual theory of individual behavior proposed
by Combs and Snygg will be discussed.

The importance of motivation in this discussion is
found in the type of motivation. There are two kinds of
motivation described by Stratemeyer, who says:

When there is a close relationship between the task
to be learned--the teacher's goal--and the goal of the
learner, the motivation is called intrinsic. . . . The
learning is likely to be thorough, meaningful, and
effective. [On the other hand, if] the task to be ,
learned bears no close relationship to the learner's
goal--in such situations the motivation is extrinsic.
It is admitted that intrinsic motivation is an ideal which

cannot be expected to exist at all times in a classroom.

Some learners tend to be less likely to accept the learning

 

1Ernest R. Hilgard and David H. Russell, "Motivation
in School Learning,” Learning_and Instruction, N.S.S.E.
Forty-Ninth Yearbook, p. 36.

2Carmichael, p. 440.

3Stratemeyer, p. 70.

31
goals of the teacher as their own. Still, it is the respon-
sibility of the teacher to help make learning goals intrinsic
for children whenever possible by consciously studying the
needs of children and implementing them in the classroom.
The teacher who attempts to motivate his class by manipula-
tion will not succeed as well as the teacher who sincerely
attempts to relate learning to the purposes of the children
and to help children set purposes that relate to learning.
One of the most common and abused forms of extrinsic
motivation is that of assigning letter grades to work of
pupils. This practice will be discussed further in the
chapter on Evaluation.
In summary of mental growth, it seems appropriate to

quote Lee and Lee:

The real problem before the teachers is to adjust their

own ideas and educate their own emotions to the point

where they can see the child in their classroom, not

only as a student who must learn so much and not be a

disturbance, but as a growing individual who reacts in

certain ways, largely according to his past and present

experience; one whose behavior may be modified, not by

condemnation but change in that environment and by
arousing a sincere desire to change.1

Personality Growth

The social and emotional needs of a child are just
as real and demanding as the physical needs of a growing
body. In describing the Ego and Integrative Needs Lee and

Lee discuss the need for "increasing self-direction; a fair

 

1Murray L. Lee and Doris M. Lee, The Child and His

Curriculum (New York: D. Appleton-Century Co., 1940), p. 80.

 

32
balance between success and failure; and attaining selfhood
or individuality."l These needs affect learning. They can
inhibit learning if they are ignored or thwarted, because
the learner then functions less effectively, or they can
enhance learning when they are recognized and satisfied.
The learner will seek to satisfy these needs, and if the
learning process can be so structured as to help meet these
needs while learning is occurring, then learning will be
welcomed, valued, and lasting.

The social nature of the learner can help produce
very pleasant learning activities. While it is true that
solitude and reflection form a necessary part of education,
it is of relatively less importance for the young learner
than the mature scholar. What each normal young person
needs is the chance to learn with others in a cooperative
and mutually beneficial atmosphere where more than pure
academic learning will result. The need to relate well
with other persons is basic.

A very searching and important analysis of human
needs is found in Combs and Snygg, where the Perceptual
Theory of Human Behavior is explored. In answering the
basic question, "What do people need?," they summarize
thusly:

We can define man's needi_then, as a need for

adequacy. It represents in man the expression of a
universal tendency of all things. It is expressed

 

1Lee and Lee, p. 72. 2Burton, p. 248.

33

in man's behavior at every instant of his existence.
Asleep or awake, each of us is engaged in an insatiable
quest for personal adequacy. This quest may find its
expression in a wide variety of behavior aimed, in one
form or another, at the maintenance or enhancement of
our perceptions of personal worth and value. Other
authors have spoken of this need as a need for self-
actualization, or self-realization. . . . In this book,
whenever we refer to man's basic need, we mean that
ggeat driving, striving force in each of us by which
we are continually seeking to make ourselves ever more
adequate to cope with life:L

 

The effect of this characteristic for all persons to
be essentially self-centered must be recognized in the process
of learning. Any teaching which can be organized so as to
help the learner see the importance of the learning to the
maintenance of his self-concept of adequateness will be
successful. Content, or a body of knowledge, then, can be
seen in its proper relationship to the total teaching-
learning process. If the learner accepts the learning as
vital to the maintenance of his self—concept, then he will
use all of his capabilities to learn. Combs and Snygg
emphasize this tenet thusly:

Indeed, it is in this principle that we find the great-
est single problem of education. Education has been
highly successful in gathering information and making
information available to people, but has been far less
successful in helping people to make information so
much a part of themselves that they would behave dif-
ferently as a result.

If we accept a change in behavior as evidence of

learning, then what conditions are required for a person to

change his self-concept, and thus his behavior?

 

lCombs and Snygg, p. 46.

2Combs and Snygg, p. 149.

34

Combs and Snygg list three essentials for changing
a person's self-concept. First, the relation of the change
to the person's self—value is pertinent. In general, the
less important concepts of self will be most easily changed.
Second, change occurs more easily in a non-threatening
situation; and third, the more vivid the experience, the
more likely change will occur. "What happens to us directly
is much more vivid and clear than the words that people
speak to us."1 How often do teachers rely on their words
alone to do the teaching?

Negative response will result when a person inter-
prets the actions of another as threatening to his self-
concept. How often do teachers violate this precept? Combs
and Snygg make the following observations:

Most of our educational methods are directed at the
provision of perceptions for the student. He is lec-

tured, required, shown, exhorted, and coerced to
perceive what someone thinks he should.

What would happen if we were consciously and care—
fully to set about the task of providing experiences
that would lead people to perceive themselves as ade-
quate, worthy, self-respecting peOple? The child who
perceives himself as unwanted, unacceptable, unable,
or unlikgd perceives and behaves in rigid, defensive
fashion.

'In answer to those critics of education who claim
that our children need to have competitive grading and other
such forms of preparing for the "cruel, real world," consid-

eration should be given to the following:

 

lCombs and Snygg, p. 164.

2Combs and Snygg, p. 225.

35
The possession of a large reservoir of positive
experience of self provides the individual with a
vast security to be used as a base for adventure
and a firm foundation for meeting even the more
difficult aspects of life with courage.1

A teaching-learning situation which provides
deliberately for increasing the self-respect and value of
the learner will more nearly recognize the fundamental
concept herein presented and succinctly summed by Lee and
Lee's conclusion, "Pupils are humans first and learners
second."2

These ideas of Combs and Snygg seemed important
to the writer because of the wealth of value this theory
holds for improving the effectiveness of the teaching-
learning process.

In summary, the following factors seem to be of
great importance in the psychological foundations of
education.

Child growth and development processes are special
factors for teachers to remember when planning learning
experiences. Children have innate characteristics, both
physical and emotional, which should be recognized and
respected, rather than inhibited for the purpose of
"hearing a lesson which will do him good when he is

grown."

 

lCombs and Snygg, p. 242.

2Lee and Lee, p. 79.

36

Learning seems to involve more than fact accumulat-
ing, and implies behavior change related to thinking,
questioning, exploring, and generalizing to broader
situations.

Variability of ability and interest among learners
and within any one learner is a prime reason for flexible
teaching materials and methods.

Motivation is a key factor and can enhance learning.
Iotivation is high when the learner sees a strong relation
between the learning task and his need for maintaining an
adequate self-image.

An adequate and positive self-perception is best
formed in a non-threatening situation.

The consideration of psychological aspects of
learning logically leads to the discussion of teacher and

learner relationships found in the following chapter.

CHAPTER III

THE RELATIONSHIP OF TEACHER AND LEARNER

The personal qualities of the good teacher can be
listed, according to Barr, as "resourcefulness, intelligence,
emotional stability, considerateness, buoyancy, objectivity,
drive, dominance, attractiveness, refinement, cooperative-

1 But all of the above characteris-

ness, and reliability."
tics can be found in a person who still might not be a
successful teacher. Gilbert Highet describes the good
teacher in a way which begins to emphasize the heart of the
matter. He says a good teacher must know his subject matter
well; understand and like his pupils; have a good memory,
strong will—power, and be kind.

The important difference between Barr's list and
Highet's description may be noted in the latter's words,
"understand and like pupils" and "be kind." Jersild inter-
jects another important emphasis when he states, “The

teacher's understanding and acceptance of himself is the

most important requirement in any effort he makes to help

 

1A. S. Barr, "Characteristics of Successful Teachers,"

Phi Delta Kappan, XXXIX (March, 1958), pp. 282-283.

2Gilbert Highet, The Art of Teaching (New York:
Alfred A. Knopf, 1952), pp. 12-73.

 

37

38
students to know themselves and to gain healthy self-
acceptance."l
This writer believes that no matter how a teacher is

described, the one essential which cannot be eliminated is
how the teachergperceives the learner. And the teacher's
self-perception affects the perception he has of the learner.
All of the teacher characteristics, good or bad, are brought
into sharp focus only when that teacher relates with the
learner; and the relationship between teacher and learner
is primarily determined by the teacher's attitude about,
understanding of, and interest in, the learner. This does
not relegate all of the personal and academic qualities
previously mentioned to the area of non—essentials. Rather
it is an attempt to add the catalyst to the ingredients
which helps distinguish the excellent teacher from the
average teacher. The "discovery of personal meaning of
ideas, values, experiences, or the accumulated culture of
the race is the very essence of learning and the art of
teaching is in helping people to make this discovery."2
Combs and Snygg continue to describe good teachers by saying
that

good teaching can occur though teachers be sweet or

tough, lenient or strict, reserved or outgoing. What

makes an effective teacher, it seems clear, is not the
possession of some particular list of traits. . . .

 

1A. J. Jersild, When Teachers Face Themselves (New
York: Bureau of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia
University, 1955), p. 3.

2Combs and Snygg, p. 385.

39
There is no kind of personality that all teachers
should have. Good teaching seems, rather, to be a
matter of effective use of the teacher's unique
perspnality. There will be as many methpds of
teacning as there are kinds of teacners.

The mental health of the teacher is closely related
to this area of the teacher's perception of the learner.
Baller and Charles state "that teachers must understand
themselves if they are to gain sound understanding of chil-
dren and a psychologically healthy relationship with them."2
To "know thyself" and "accept thyself" are most important.

Regardless of all the characteristics of a person,
he will be a good teacher only when he adjusts his percep-
tion of the learner to much more than a person who is to
”be taught," or who is "an immature adult," or who is a
"receptor of knowledge."

The teacher-learner relationship ”focuses attention

3 The

upon the very heart of the educational enterprise."
writer feels that in a desirable teacher-learner relation-
ship all the efforts to improve the curriculum, to improve
teaching, to administer an educational enterprise, or to

define the philosophy of American education, are brought to

fruition. Lest this approach be criticized as too etheral

 

lCombs and Snygg, pp. 398-399.

2Warren R. Baller and Don C. Charles, The Psychology
of Human Growth and Development (New York: Holt, Rinehart
and Winston, 1961), p. 399.

 

Robert N. Bush, "Principles of Successful Teacher-
Pupil Relationship," Phi Delta Kappan, XXXIX (March, 1958),
p. 271.

40
or emotional, let it be understood, as Bush states it, that
"the personal, . . . or rapport and feeling tone is one, and
only one, aspect of the total“ picture. The object is to
describe the total climate for learning, not just how well
the teacher and learner like each other. There is a growing
number of studies concerning the teacher in a classroom with
the learners, and the need is for more detailed and clinical
study of how successful teacher-learner relationships occur.
Bush cites two factors which seem to be paramount in
determining a successful teacher-learner relationship.
First is the matter of divergence between the goals of the
teacher and the learner. Second is the knowledge of the
learner by the teacher. He makes the observation that plati-
tudes about the "good teacher" tend to ignore the facts of
the variable traits of each teacher and the infinitely more
variable personalities of the learners. He further states
that the
feelings of pupils toward teachers and learning situa—
tions appear to have far-reaching consequences. Since
it seems that the most pervasive, longlasting lessons
are learned under emotionally charged conditions, and
since large numbers of the relations between teachers
and pupils are relatively lifeless, until at times the
classroom appears almost to become an "affectional
desert," the direction for reform suggests itself.
Bush concludes that "since emotion is so prominent in all

learning it would appear that the arousal and direction of

students' feelings, both in relationship to the teacher and

 

lBush, Phi Delta Kappan, XXXIX, p. 271.

2Bush, Phi Delta Kappan, XXXIX, pp. 272-273.

41
to that which is being learned, should receive greater atten—
tion by the teacher."1 One must add that students' feelings
toward life and society must also be considered and devel-
oped in a positive manner.

Another important factor in teacher-learner relations
is the so-called "mental hygiene" point of View. Baller and
Charles cite several studies Which compared the relative rank-
ing of children's classroom behavior by both classroom teach-
ers and mental hygienists. The first of the studies was
conducted in 1926 and the latest in 1957. It was interesting
to note that although there has been considerable convergence
between the opinions of teachers and mental hygienists about
what is "serious misbehavior" over the period of thirty-one
years, there still is considerable divergence in their opin-
ions. The teachers remain more concerned with conformity to
classroom orderliness and routine than with eXpressions of
withdrawal and unhappiness. An encouraging trend, however,
is the teacher's increasing awareness of the relation between
good mental health and such behavior as resentfulness,

2 The direc-

cruelty, sensitiveness, sullenness, and shyness.
tion of this trend can be seen in Tyron's statement that the

function of our schools is not only to foster thinking, but

 

 

lBush, Phi Delta Kappan, XXXIX, pp. 272-273.

2Baller and Charles, pp. 409-414.

42
in addition, to create the atmosphere which will encourage
a learner to know how to g9: and fggl.

This leads one to consider the question of discipline
as part of the teacher-learner relationship. In a 1949 study
by Stendler cited by Baller and Charles, the methods most
favored by elementary teachers for coping with discipline
problems were "talking to" the child and "adjusting the work"
of the child. Next most pOpular methods were studying the
"cause of behavior" and "taking punitive measures." Mental
hygienists, on the other hand, tend to prefer studying the
cause of behavior over all other methods.

The implication is that a tension-free atmosphere,
coupled with serious teacher efforts bent toward helping the
learner understand the reasons for his behavior, will lead
toward the goal of positive self—control, which is the basis
of all good discipline.

What other factors besides discipline, mental hygiene,
emotions, and goals are important in the teacher-learner
relationship? Certainly motivation cannot be ignored. Moti-
vation as used here means need-satisfying and goal-seeking
behavior which would include physiological drives, uncon-

scious needs, ideals, clearly formed purposes, and interests?

 

lBaller and Charles, pp. 415—416.

2Baller and Charles, pp. 416-418.

3Ernest R. Hilgard and David H. Russell, "Motivation
in School Learning," Learning and Instruction, Forty-Ninth
Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education,
Part I (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, l950),p.38.

43

The teacher-learner relationship will deteriorate or
grow healthily, depending on the extent to which the teacher
can understand and guide the motives or needs of the learner:

The genius of good teaching lies in the ability to
challenge students without threatening them. To do
this effectively means that teachers must be sensitive
to the impact upon their charges of what they do and
say, for the distinction between threat and challenge
lies not in what the teacher thinks he is doin , but
in what the students perceive him to be doing.

An example may help clarify this statement. If the
teacher recognizes and satisfies the learner's need for self-
respect, then learning will be positively affected. If, on
the other hand, the teacher debases a learner, heaping
criticism and sarcasm upon failure, then learning will
decrease considerably, due to the learner failing in this
situation to find the satisfaction which his need for self-
respect demands.

Another strong motive for learning is the learner's
interest. If his interest is aroused, either by himself or
through external factors in the learning situation, then his
learning will be strengthened. For instance, the person who
is strongly interested in such a thing as fishing (or mathe-
matics) will spend much extra effort, time, and even money
on learning more and more about the subject of his interest.
This is in sharp contrast to the effort and time spent on

the same topics by one who has little or no interest in

them. What, then, is the task of the teacher? As a minimum,

 

lCombs and Snygg, pp. 389-390.

4 4.
it will be to learn of each ciild's interests and likes, so
that they may be tsed advantageously in as many areas of
learning as possible. Even better, it challcnces the
teacher to create learning situations which help the
learners to have an aroused interest. Children can learn
to develop interest, as well as other things, so a lively,
enthusiastic teacher can help them develOp new interests.
Hilgard and Russell summarize the position of motivation
in the teacher-learner relationship thusly:
The proper motivation of learning is one of the basic
essentials of any set of educational experiences.
Learning seems to be more complete and more efficient
when it is energized and directed by strong motiva-
tional factors. Accordingly, a large part of the
teacher's task is to understand the motives of chil-
dren and to use them in stimulating desirable
learning.

Underlying all of the previous description of the
various aspects of the teacher-learner relationship is the
central theme so often xpressed by Dr. Ernest O. Melby in
his teaching at Michigan State University. He urged that
the basic human relations inherent in the teacher-learner
relationship should emphasize the personal value and worth
of each individual, both learner and teacner, and that each

must attach great importance to the other when working

together in a learning situation.

 

l

W

Hilgard and Russell, N.S.S.E. Forty-Ninth Yearbook,

O
O
Ox
0

CHAPTER IV
THE ORGANIZATION FOR INSTRUCTION

The pamphlets, What Research Says to the Teacher,

are an objective, readable, and authoritative source which

educators can consult.1

Wrightstone gives an excellent summary of research
on the problems of organizing a class for the most effective
learning.2 Burton, however, emphasizes that

the personality and ability of the teacher is a factor
which conditions any and all statements which may be
made concerning the organization of instructional and
classroom procedures. An able teacher of lively person-
ality, possessed of creative insight into the learning
process will vitalize the most formal organizational
structure for learning. A dull, unenthusiastic person-
ality will cut the life out of methods which would
ordinarily make for vivid, dynamic classroom situations.
Burton tends to support the general findings of Wrightstone
that "an instructional scheme which gives careful attention

to the total experience of the learner seems on the evidence

so far developed, to be superior to one which is primarily

 

lWhat Research Says to the Teacher (washington 6,

D.C.: National Education Association, 1201 Sixteenth St.,
N.W.), 1954 to 1960.

2J. Wayne Wrightstone, "Class Organization for In-
struction," What Research Says to the Teacher, pp. l-33.

 

 

3William H. Burton, "Implications for Organization
of Instruction and Instructional Adjuncts," N.S.S.E. Forty-
Ninth Yearbook, p. 225.

45

46
concerned with the mastery of subject matter."1

One principle which seems clear is that the main
purpose of any organizational scheme must be that of meeting
the needs of different individuals in a class.

Nonpromotion has been suggested as a means to meet
the needs of some individuals. Wrightstone shows it has
been well substantiated that nonpromotion is not an effective
means of meeting the needs of slow learners. The desired
homogeneity of abilities is just as absent from classes in
schools where nonpromotion has been practiced as in schools
where all children are promoted each year. In fact, con-
comitant results add to the problem by emphasizing a child's
"failure" and creating emotional disturbances which com-
pound the child's learning problems.2

Other attempts to increase homogeneity of a class
are such things as grouping by ability, departmentalization,
and differentiated curriculums. These plans lend little to
increasing homogeneity, but do aid administratively in
handling schedules of children.

The approaches which tend to emphasize individual
needs best are grouping within a class by interest, personal
choice, or ability: ungraded primary plans; core curriculum;
and individualized assignments. Since no one plan can meet

all the diverse needs inherent in an effective learning

situation, Wrightstone gives three criteria for any

 

1Wrightstone, p. 31. 2Wrightstone, pp. 4-5.

47
organizational plan for instruction. He requires flexibil-
ity, based on individual needs; independence, developed by
the learner; and control, both by the individual and the
group.1

Stratemeyer points up the futility of attempts to
group learners so they will all be able to study and learn
at the same rate, in the same material, at the same time:

While research data regarding individual differences
exist, there is little conclusive evidence to elevate
one way of grouping learners above any other. . . .

It is possible to reduce the range of abilities and
group learners for specific teaching purposes, but
such groupings should be recognized for what they are
--a reduction in range of differences in some particu-
lar abilities. No matter what criteria are used for
grouping the class will still include individuals with
a wide variety of interests and aptitudes, abilities
and motivations. In this sense, there is no really
homogeneous group but merely a group which has been
selected on the basis of certain similarities.2

Individual and small-group experiences must occupy
more of the classroom time, then, if grouping is to meet the
needs of individuals.

Grouping which breaks the lock-step of chronological
age would seem to be desirable, since so much variance
exists among a group of eleven-year-olds, for example. Per-
haps more promise of effective organization in secondary
schools will be found in those practices which consider the
maturity, interest, special aptitudes, and achievement of

the learners. The ability to progress (or regress) from

one level of a subject to another before a school year ends

 

lWrightstone, p. 25. 2Stratemeyer, p. 433.

48
also is important. Music classes have been organized along
these lines for quite some time, and the freedom of talented
individuals to grow continuously is evident in many high
school bands or orchestras. At the same time, those with
limited or average ability, but high interest, still could
fit into the structure characteristic of such music programs.

In the elementary school, the non-graded plan, with
freedom to advance at the rate appropriate to the ability
and effort of each individual, seems to be a most promising
way of organizing for instruction.

Another important aspect of flexible grouping, some-
times overlooked by educational planners, is the fact that
increased flexibility requires more pupil-teacher planning
to be most effective. Stratemeyer emphasizes that "pupil—
teacher planning is essential for effective use of the
varied means of meeting individual needs."1

In conclusion, effective organization for learning
must recognize the following key ideas.

Any grouping should remain flexible and adaptable
to the changing needs of individuals, for variance exists
within an individual as well as among individuals for the
abilities, aptitudes and interests related to learning.
Since these abilities and interests change, the typical lock-
step of annual grouping becomes cumbersome and unrealistic.

Nonpromotion seems to hold little promise as‘a

 

lStratemeyer, pp. 445-446.

49

generalized practice to meet the needs of individuals. A
teacher with the ability to help each child progress from
where he presently functions in each area of knowledge will
better meet the needs of slow learners.

Finally, any form of grouping should hold as its
ultimate purpose the facilitating of pupil—teacher relation-
ships, which generally occur more easily in some sort of

small group experiences.

CHAPTER V
THE MATERIALS OF LEARNING

Materials of learning are defined here as all the
objects and things which can be used as tools to implement
the learning process. Such things as the textbook, workbook,
films and projectors, models, tape recorders, record players,
science apparatus, arts and crafts supplies, maps, flannel
boards, magazines, newspapers, teaching machines and many
other similar items are the "materials of learning." For
simplification, this study divides these materials into two
general categories, the textbook-workbook group, and all the
other materials mentioned above.

Murray Thomas concludes that research on use of
learning materials has supported the generalization that the
use of a wider variety of materials will lead to greater
learning and will by their very nature increase student
participation, thus enhancing learning.1

In this study, the use of textbooks will be con-
sidered separately from the other materials of learning,
since they are so preponderantly used by teachers in com-

parison to the other materials. Alcorn and Linley quote

 

1Murray R. Thomas, "Research Dealing with the
Materials of Learning," Phi Delta Kappan, XXXIX (March,l958),
p. 265.
50

51

an article from Better Schools, supporting the emphasis on

 

textbooks. "The textbook has been called the child's 'other
teacher.”1 Textbooks are one of the most pervading and
potent influences on the teaching-learning process:

The textbook was the resource listed by both elementary
and secondary principals as the one recently most useful
for a teaching program (1960-61). What the publishers
printed for school use was indicated as a strong deter-
minant of what the students had studied.2

According to the above N.E.A. survey, "Textbooks are con-
sidered to continue as the most useful resource through the
1961-1966 period."3

This has been true for some time, as McNally and
Passow show in their brief, historical sketch of early
curriculum improvement efforts:

The conception of the curriculum as a collection of
subjects guided the approaches used to improve programs
generally. There were a few individual reformers who
saw the educational program whole, but the textbook
writers preparing publications in a single subject area
had the last word. It was the textbook writers who, by
their selection and arrangement of content, both influ-
enced and created the curriculum of the schools from
the time of graded classes in the 1840's. Where the
lawmakers fixed the subjects to be taught, the textbook

 

lMarvin D. Alcorn and James M. Linley (eds.), Issues
in Curriculum Development (New York: World Book Co., Yonkers-

2The Principals Look at the Schools, A Working Paper
Prepared for the Project on the Instructional Program of the
Public Schools (Washington 6, D.C.: National Education Asso-
ciation, 1201 Sixteenth St. N.W., 1962), p. 23.

3The Principals Look at the Schools, N.E.A., p. 42.

52
writers prescribed the lessons in these subjects. . . .
One obvious means of curriculum improvement was the
production of better textbooks.l

If the previous descriptions in this study of the
many sides of learning are accepted as valid, then the cur—
rent emphasis in public schools on the textbook as the
center of the curriculum represents a rather limited
approach to learning.

The preceding chapters have emphasized that learning
is change in behavior; that the learner with his social and
psychological characteristics must be considered; that the
teacher-learner relationship is of vital importance; that
integrative understanding is the main legitimate goal of
education, emphasizing learning how to learn; that the
teacher must be a constantly growing learner; that the needs
of our democratic society demand more than merely the learn-
ing of facts; and that learning is a continuous, lifetime
process.

Where, then, does the textbook fit into this descrip-
tion of learning? Highet says, "Many textbooks . . . do not
tell the reader clearly what he is going to learn. They do
not, while he is learning it, show him the relation of each
part to the whole. And they usually finish not with a

reasonable conclusion and a glance backwards, but abruptly

 

1Harold J. McNally and A. Harry Passow, Improving
the Quality of Public School Programs (New York: Bureau of
Publications, Teachers College, Columbia University, 1960),
pp. 29-300

 

53
and even rudely."l Nila B. Smith reiterates, "More chal—
lenging materials are needed. Children of today are sophis-
ticated; much of the material they are supposed to read in
school is below their level of intelligence and under—
- "2
standing.
So clearly, one of the educators' important tasks is
to press for the ever-improving writing of textbooks. This
writer has observed few textbooks written with the coopera-
tion of the subject matter specialist and the child develop-
ment specialist. This might be one way to combine the
logical, sequential presentation of content in a learner-
centered format which emphasizes the learning skills and
process equally with content. Educators should consider
this as an important criterion when selecting textbooks.
The description of curriculum improvement by Lloyd
B. Jones emphasizes:
Since classroom textbooks to some extent determine, as
well as limit, the teaching and learning in the class,
they are selected with great care in the Denver Public
Schools. . . . The scrutiny of textbooks is a con-
tinuous process. . . . In some cities, textbook selec-
tion is considered a part of curriculum making. In
the Denver Public Schools, however, there is a strong
tradition of first determining what the curriculum
shall be and then seeking the instructional materials
which are best adapted to the curriculum. When no

commercially published materials are available "home-
grown" publications have been prepared.

 

lHighet, p. 80.
. 2Nila B. Smith, "Reading for Today's Children," The
National Elementary Principal, Thirty-fourth Yearbook of the

Department of Elementary School Principals (Washington 6,
D.C.: The National Education Association, 1955), p. 8.

3McNally and Passow, pp. 203-204.

54

Not only should texts be chosen with care, but
several series should be available, at several grade levels,
so the teacher may choose from a variety of approaches, as
the needs of the class dictate. This idea is supported by
J. Bernard Everett and Wilson C. Colvin of the Newton,
Massachusetts, public schools, who say that in their system
"multiple, rather than single, adoptions is the accepted
practice in all subject fields at the elementary level and
in most subjects at the secondary level."1

Even if good textbooks are written, and then chosen,
with variety enough available to serve as real resources,
there still remains the job of their skillful and careful
use. The role of the teacher should remain dominant,
utilizing the principles of learning and human development
as the base upon which to build learning from the texts.
Alcorn and Linley decry the dominance of the textbook when
they say, "Certain traditional practices have resisted the
developmental point of View described. . . . None is more
resistant than the subservience of teacher and pupil to the
dullness and dogma of textbooks. The result is poor communi-
cation and inadequate learning."2 The teacher, then, has
both the right and responsibility of making the textbooks

serve, in prOper perspective along with all the other

 

1McNally and Passow, p. 231.

2Alcorn and Linley, p. 402.

55
instructional materials, to achieve the richest of teaching-
1earning experience.

No one type of material can be shown to be best for
most learning situations, but instead the ideal seems to be
found in some system which puts as many different kinds of
materials as is possible at the command of the teacher.
These materials should be used by the effective teacher,
then, especially in conjunction with the skilled advice of
an experienced consultant, in a creative and balanced manner
so as to achieve harmony and integrity in the teaching-
learning process.1 Unfortunately, this harmony of various
materials can be upset by the dominance of the textbook as
a material of learning.

In conclusion, then, it would seem that it is the
teacher who must, in the final analysis, strike a balance

in the use of the materials of learning.

lAlcorn and Linley, p. 201.

CHAPTER VI

THE EVALUATION OF LEARNING

The process of evaluation helps give meaning,
direction, and understanding to knowledge. If the teacher
thinks of evaluation in the typical, narrow sense of "test-
ing," then he has a very limited understanding of the place
evaluation has in the teaching-learning process. If he
thinks of evaluation as a continuous, integral part of
learning, then the importance of evaluation becomes evident.

What is good evaluation? Is it testing alone?
There are at least seven factors in evaluation.

(1) Clarify and define the objectives.

(2) Relate these objectives to the types of pupil
behavior which give evidence of learning the
objectives.

(3) Use appropriate instruments and techniques.

(4) Record the results of evaluating.

(5) In addition to collecting data, make judgments
concerning the learning by the pupil. Recorded

data are not enough.

(6) Consider each pupil as an individual human, rec-
ognizing his characteristics and personality.

(7) Evaluation should lead the teacher and learner
to diagnosis and remedial steps, if necessary.

 

lBurton, N.S.S.E. Forty-Ninth Yearbook, pp. 249-250.

56

57

Swenson emphasizes the same ideas in the following
quote:

Learning can be properly appraised only in terms of
learning goals, those held by the learner and those
held by the teacher. . . . Next, evaluation of learning
can proceed properly only in terms of the learners' aims
and their individual and group characteristics. This
requirement can be met only to the extent that the
teacher knows the pupils and they know themselves. . . .
Finally, evaluation should proceed in terms of what is
known about developmental sequence of learning tasks.
That is one of the reasons that evaluation must be con-
tinuous. The children and the teacher must know where
they were yesterday in order to plan well what to do
today and must observe where they are today in order

to proceed to best next steps for tomorrow.

What Swenson says about the primary-grade teacher
developing desirable levels of aspiration is equally appli-
cable to teachers at all levels. This is part of the chal-
lenge of learning: aspirational levels rise as new learning
occurs.

Rothney emphasizes the fluid status of the process
of evaluation of learning and encourages the professional
teacher to accept the challenge which arises from the poten-
tial value of good evaluation. He sees new tools and
techniques as well as better validated older methods of

evaluation becoming an increasingly important part of teach-

ing and learning.2

 

1Esther J. Swenson, "Applications of Learning Prin-
ciples to the Improvement of Teaching in the Early Elementary
Grades," Learningpand Instruction, Forty-Ninth Yearbook of
the National Society for the Study of Education, Part I (Chi-
cago: The University of Chicago Press, 1950), pp. 277-278.

2John W. M. Rothney, "Evaluating and Reporting Pupil
Progress," What Research Says to the Teacher (Washington 6,
D.C.: National Education Association, 1201 Sixteenth St.,
N.W., 1960). p. 31.

58

It would seem that these authors and others like
them are emphasizing the idea that learning and evaluation
are part of each other. The best learning will occur only
when the learner knows, accepts and desires certain goals,
and then assesses his progress toward these goals periodi-
cally. Very basic questions each teacher and learner should
answer are "What and why do we want to learn?," and "What is
important for us to learn?"

One of the most limiting answers to these questions
is to hold letter grades as the prime purpose for evaluation.
Use of letter grades alone as an expression of amount of
learning completely warps the whole framework of meaningful
learning. It not only compartmentalizes learning into
minute, sterile cubicles of facts, but also ignores and
degrades the concept of the uniqueness and worth of each
human. There should not be evaluation for the sake of evalu-
ation, but evaluation as a process in learning. Stratemeyer
describes the changing role of report cards with letter
grades in the total evaluation process:

Increasingly, as the purpose of evaluation becomes
that of promoting growth rather than passing judgment,
earlier forms of report cards are becoming inadequate.
New ways of sharing wider and more varied information
with pupils and parents are necessary. The problem of
developing adequate methods of reporting is one that
must be faced regardless of curriculum design.

A more nearly adequate system of evaluation and

reporting pupil progress will involve all of the following

 

lStratemeyer, p. 499.

59
activities. The learner is actively involved at all stages,
from setting goals to reporting to parents. The best evalu-
ation becomes self-evaluation with the guidance of others.
True maturity comes only when a learner can realistically
appraise his own actions.

Parents and other non-school persons can contribute
much to the process if given the opportunity. Parents and
educators should form the two sides of the "evaluation coin."
When the public can be involved in the process, both actively
and receptively, they will respond by providing knowledge
and support for the system involved as well as becoming more
understanding of the processes of education.

When evaluation emphasizes change in behavior as
well as change in letter grades, then it becomes a part of
the learning process rather than a judgment injected from
outside the area of learning. An interesting example of the
difference is found in the problem of teaching spelling. If
the letter grade, or "100% on today's spelling list," domi—
nates the goals of a learner, then there will likely be
little transfer to daily writing eXperiences. So often
teachers (and parents) complain about the child who gets
all the words correct on the weekly test, but who persists
in misspelled words in daily writing. It appears that both
teacher and learner have made the spelling test score the
main objective, rather than a change of behavior in daily
writing. The learner does not see the relation between the

spelling test and daily writing. Better writing performance

60
could be achieved if spelling test scores were reduced in
importance by the learner while writing skills became more
important and meaningful for the learner.

Goals and standards of behavior must change with the
maturity and capacity of the learner. This means that within
each class there will be different goals and objectives for
each different learner. Comparison with a national stand-
ardized norm must not be the only means used to describe
behavior, if evaluation is to become part of each indi-
vidual rather than an outside standard imposed upon him.
Some claim that this eliminates the ability to compete and
meet the rigorous world of adult life, but Stratemeyer
asserts:

Proposals that growth be evaluated in terms of each
individual's ability, maturity, and balanced develop-
ment should not mean that any degree of proficiency
which satisfies a learner himself will be acceptable.
. . . When evaluation is an integral part of the
teaching—learning process, pupils are continually
encouraged to take realistic looks at both their
strengths and their weaknesses and to participate

in planning next steps. Learners are not protected
from failure, and they must face the reality of not
being chosen for a job because of inadequate skills.
. . . Perhaps more basic, however, is the psychologi-
cal assumption that any individual engaged in an
activity which he sees as purposeful, worthwhile,

and important will not do a haphazard job of it.

. . . Further, there is an underlying assumption that
those individuals most likely to make effective con-
tributions as adults are those who have faced up to
realistic appraisals of their own strengths and weak-
nesses as children and youth. The problems of today's
world demand adults who will "hitch their wagons to
stars"--but in terms of goals that have some basis

in reality.

 

lStratemeyer, pp. 483-484.

61

Tests and examinations form but one part of evalu-
ation when it is a process rather than an end. Other means
of observing and recording behavior and growth should be
used. Regular notes on daily activities both outside and
inside the classroom; chronological samples of the learner's
class work; and reports on frequent formal and informal
pupil-teacher conferences should be part of the teacher's
records. These form a broader basis upon which the learner,
teacher and parents can evaluate progress.

When the time comes to communicate the evaluation of
learning to the parents, the learner already should be well
aware of his performance, and one of the most effective means
of reporting and sharing this knowledge is in conferences
with parents, pupil, and teacher participating. According
to Stratemeyer:

For pupil and parent the conference should contribute
further to understanding the goals of the school, the
ways in which the learner and his teachers have been
working toward these goals, and the obstacles met. In
the give-and-take of a conference it is often easier
to help parents, or parents and pupil together, think
through realistic expectancies. Standardized test
records can be interpreted and samples of work exam—
ined at such conferences. The conference can also
include planning next steps for each participant, all
directed toward further growth of the learner. For
the teacher there may be new insights regarding the
parent and the home situation, parent relations with
the learner, ways in which the home does and can con-
tribute to pupil progress, and ways in which home and
school can work together.1

Between conferences, short notes written by the

teacher or pupil (or both) can form an effective means of

 

lStratemeyer, pp. 500-501.

62

helping parents understand the continuity and persistance
of evaluation activities occurring daily in the school.

Thus, greater growth by the learner and greater
understanding of that growth by the parents comes through
the methods of evaluating and reporting described above.
Systems that rely strictly on letter grades alone do not
accomplish these ends. When thus used, evaluation assumes
its proper role as part of the learning process, rather than
an entity alone, and helps make learning more complete and

meaningful.

63

Summary

In establishing this base from which to view the
educational practices listed in this study's questionnaire,
the teaching—learning process has been discussed in the
light of the social foundations of education; the psycho—
logical foundations of learning; the relationship of teacher
and learner; the organization of classes; the materials of
learning; and finally, the function of evaluation in the
process.

Through all of these tOpics has run the theme that
true learning involves much more than accumulating facts,
that the learner is more important than the learning, and
that "beyond the basic tools, learning how to learn may
prove to be a greater asset for continued education than
is the content through which these intellectual habits are
learned."1

Upon this base, then, better educational practices
can be founded, leading to an ever-increasing improvement
of the teaching and learning process in the schools of the

United States.

 

lGuy T. Buswell, "Helping Children Learn How to
Learn," Learning and the Teacher, 1959 Yearbook of the
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development
(Washington 6, D.C.: National Education Association,
1201 Sixteenth St., N.W., 1959), p. 155.

PART II

ANALYSIS OF QUESTIONNAIRE RESPONSES

CHAPTER VII

THE SOCIAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION

In this study classroom teachers were asked to
respond to certain descriptions of instructional practice
in terms of the frequency of the practice as it occurred in
their teaching. In addition, they were asked to indicate
their opinion as to how much each practice should occur in
their classrooms. See Appendix for the complete question-
naire.

In order to clarify and analyze the responses, the

following method of weighting was used (Table 1).

TABLE l.-—Weighting of responses
Type of Questionnaire Response Response Weight

R-Rarely - never or hardly ever . . . . . . . . .
S-Sometimes - occasionally, but not often . . . .
F-Frequently - about half of the time . . . . . .
G-Generally - usually or much of the time . . . .
A-Almost Always - nearly 100% of the time . . . .

.0 (Mean)

pump-Io

If the teacher's response was "rarely never or
hardly ever" the weight of 0 was assigned. Weights of l, 2,
3, and 4 were assigned to the responses "sometimes,"
"frequently," "generally," and "almost always," respectively.

Thus a weighted response of 0 would indicate that

the practice listed was never or hardly ever done. If the

65

66
weighted response was 2.0, then the practice could be assumed
to have occurred about half of the time, while a weighted
response of 4 would mean that the practice occurred nearly
100 per cent of the time.

A further generalization might be that for responses
from 0 to 2.0 the practice was occurring less than half of
the time, or relatively seldom, and conversely, if the
responses were from 2.1 to 4, the practice was occurring
more than half of the time, or relatively often. This is
due to the fact that the mean of the response weights is
2.0 on the scale from O to 4.

Therefore, by referring to the column headed "Means
of Responses" in Tables 2—25, the reader can see the relative
frequency of the selected practices for the several classifi-
cations of teachers described.

Table 2 shows the weighted means of the total pOpu-
lation responses for questions which relate to the Social
Foundations of Education described in Chapter I.

In statements 1, 2, and 3, the teachers report that
more than half of the time to much of the time (2.5 to 2.8)
their students "learn to work together; develop initiative,
responsibility, and independence; and participate in demo-
cratic action."

The items listed in statements 4-10 are the goals of
the teachers generally, or much of the time. However, these
goals are hardly ever established by "a lay committee and

faculty; the school board; or the community."

TABLE 2.--Weighted means of total population responses

 

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Items
Actual Desirable
Practice Practice

 

 

In my teaching:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. students learn to work together. 2.8 3.2
2. students develop initiative,

responsibility, and independence. 2.7 3.4
3. pupils participate in democratic

action. 2.5 2.9

A goal of my teaching is to develop:

4. appreciation for democratic heritage. 2.9 2.2
5. civic rights and responsibilities. 3.0 2.4
6. respect and appreciation for human

values. 3.3 2.6
7. social competency. 2.9 2.4
8. ethical behavior. 3.2 2.6
9. aesthetic appreciation. 2.8 2.4
10. awareness of our relationship with

the world community. 3.0 2.5

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:
11. a lay committee and faculty. .5 .9
12. the school board. .9 .9
13. the community. .9 1.1

 

 

 

67

68

The above statements of the teachers represented
their practices as they actually were, while referral to the
column entitled "Desirable Practice" will show what the
teachers thought about these practices.

For questions 1, 2, and 3, apparently the teachers
felt that the items listed should occur even more often
(2.9-3.4) than they actually occurred.

But goals for teaching, items 4-10, were rated as
less desirable, or requiring less emphasis in the teaching,
although the teachers still desired that they occur more
than half of the time.

The same tendency, but much lower frequency, is
desired by the teachers for the sources of goals listed in
items 11-13. The teachers felt that these representatives
of the community should have more, but still relatively
little (.9-l.l) influence on goals for education.

In comparing the responses of all the elementary
teachers with those of all the secondary teachers listed in
Table 3, the elementary teachers practiced each of the 13
items more often than the secondary teachers.

Also as shown in the "Desirable" column, a greater
frequency of these practices was desired by elementary
teachers, when compared to what the secondary teachers
seemed to consider desirable.

In items 1, 2, and 3, both secondary and elementary
teachers would desire that these items occur more often than

they do in actuality. In item 3 there is a large difference

69

between the frequency of the actual practice of "students

participate in democratic action" and the desired frequency.

Just the opposite is true of items 4-10, however.

Both elementary and secondary teachers seem to desire less

TABLE 3.--Weighted means of total elementary and secondary
responses

 

 

Means of Responses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Selected Questionnaire Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
Items
Elemen- Second— Elemen- Second-
tary ary tary ary
In my teaching:

1. students learn to work

together. 3.1 2.5 3.2 2.7
2. students develop initia-

tive, responsibility,

and independence. 2.9 2.5 3.1 2.7
3. students participate

in democratic action. 2.7 2.3 3.7 3.3

A goal of my teaching is to develop::

4. appreciation for our

democratic heritage. 3.1 2.6 2.4 1.9
5. civic rights and

responsibilities. 3.1 2.8 2.6 2.1
6. respect and appreciation

for human values. 3.5 3.2 2.8 2.3
7. social competency. 3.1 2.6 2.6 2.0

 

 

 

 

70

TABLE 3.--Continued

 

 

 

Means of Responses

 

 

 

Selected Questionnaire Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
Items
Elemen- Second- Elemen- Second-
tary ary tary ary
8. ethical behavior. 3.3 3.1 2.7 2.5
9. aesthetic appreciation. 3.0 2.5 2.4 2.0
10. awareness of our rela-
tionship with world. 3.1 2.7 2.4 2.2

 

 

 

 

 

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:

 

11. a lay committee and

faculty. .5 .4 1.0 .8
12. the school board. .9 .8 1.1 .6
13. the community. .9 .8 1.1 1.1

 

 

 

 

 

emphasis on such goals as "civic rights and responsibilities,"
"ethical behavior," or "awareness of our relationship with
the world."

In items 11, 12, and l3, the elementary teachers
would desire more goals established by "a lay committee and
faculty," "the school board," and "the community," whereas
the secondary teachers would desire more goals set by "a lay
committee and faculty" and "the community" but less goals

set by "the school board." In all cases the frequency of

71
goals set by these agencies is relatively low and the
teachers seem to want this to continue.
Table 4 shows the responses of all the teachers in
each of three groups according to number of years of college
completed.

TABLE 4.--Weighted means of responses by years of college
education

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Col-
Items lege Actual Desirable

Practice Practice

 

 

 

In my teaching:

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. students learn to work 0-3.9 3.1 3.4
together. 4-4.9 2.9 3.2
5-up 2.7 3.1

2. students develop initiative, 0-3.9 2.9 3.6
responsibility, and 4-4.9 2.8 3.4
independence. 5-up 2.7 3.3

3. students participate in 0-3.9 2.9 3.3
democratic action. 4-4.9 2.5 2.9
5-up 2.5 2.9

A goal of my teaching is to develop:.

4. appreciation for our 0-3.9 3.4 2.4
democratic heritage. 4-4.9 2.9 2.2
5-up 2.8 2.2

5. civic rights and respon- 0-3.9 3.4 2.4
' sibilities. 4-4.9 3.0 2.3
5-up 2.9 2.4

6. respect and appreciation 0—3.9 3.6 2.6
for human values. 4-4.9 3.4 2.6
S-up 3.3 2.6

 

 

 

72

TABLE 4.—-Continued

 

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Col-
Items lege Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
7. social competency. 0-3.9 3.4 2.7
4-4.9 3.0 2.5
5-up 2.7 2.3
8. ethical behavior. 0-3.9 3.5 2.7
4-4.9 3.2 2.5
5-up 3.2 2.5
A goal of my teaching is to develop:
9. aesthetic appreciation. 0-3.9 3.2 2.8
L4-4.9 » 2.8 2.5
5-up 2.7 2.3
10. awareness of our relation- 0-3.9 3.3 2.9
ship with the world 4-4.9 2.9 2.5
community. 5—up 2.9 2.5

 

 

 

 

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:

 

11. a lay committee and O-3.9 .3 .9
faculty. 4-4.9 .5 1.0
5-up .5 .9

12. the school board. 0-3.9 .7 .8
4-4.9 .8 .8

5-up .9 1.0

13. the community. 0-3.9 .7 1.1
4—4.9 .8 1.1

S-up .9 1.2

 

 

 

 

The first group had under 3.9 years of college edu-

cation, while the second group had from 4 to 4.9 years of

73
college, and finally, the third group had over 5 years of
formal education.

The same relationship as found for all the teachers
(Table 2) between the "Actual" and "Desirable" columns
persists in Table 4.

An important generalization to be drawn from these
data is that as teachers gain more education, the items
listed receive less emphasis. For example in item 1,
"students learn to work together," the teachers claim this
is happening in their teaching less frequently as they
increase the amount of their college education. The same
tendency is evident in the "Desirable" column.

Only in items 11, 12, and 13 is this reversed. Here
the teachers report more influence on their goals from out-
side agencies as they increased the length of their college
education. The same general direction was considered
desirable.

Responses to items in Table 5 are categorized accord-
ing to the length of teaching experience of the teachers.

The first category includes teachers in their first
year of teaching; the second those who have taught more than
one but less than four years; group three contains teachers
with five to fourteen years of experience; and the last
group has over fifteen years of teaching completed.

Examination of items 1-10 will show a marked tendency,

in both the "Actual" and "Desirable" columns, for the teachers

74

TABLE 5.--Weighted means of responses by years of teaching

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

experience
Years Means of Responses
Selected Questionnaire of
Exper-
Items ience Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
In my teaching:
1. students learn to work 0-1 2.5 3.1
together. 1-4 2.6 3.2
5-14 2.8 3.2
15-up 3.0 3.3
2. students develop initia- 0-1 2.2 3.2
tive, responsibility, and 1-4 2.5 3.4
independence. 5-14 2.7 3.4
15-up 2.9 3.4
3. students participate in 0-1 2.1 2.5
democratic action. 1-4 2.4 2.9
5-14 2.5 2.9
lS-up 2.7 3.0
A goal of my teaching is to develop:
4. appreciation for our 0-1 2.2 1.5
democratic heritage. l-4 2.6 1.7
5-14 2.9 2.3
15-up 3.2 2.5
5. civic rights and respon- 0-1 2.4 - 1.7
sibilities. 1-4 2.6 1.9
5-14 3.0 2.4
15-up 3.2 2.7
6. respect and appreciation 0-1 3.0 1.9
for human values. 1-4 3.2 2.2
5-14 3.3 2.6
lS-up 3.5 2.9

 

 

 

75

TABLE 5.--Continued

 

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Exper-
Items ience Actual Desirable

Practice Practice

 

 

 

A goal of my teaching is to develop:

 

7. social competency. 0-1 2.5 1.5
1-4 2.9 2.2

5-14 2.9 2.4

lS-up 3.0 2.6

8. ethical behavior. 0-1 2.9 1.7
1-4 3.1 2.3

5-14 3.2 2.5

lS—up 3.3 2.8

9. aesthetic appreciation. 0-1 2.6 1.7
1-4 2.6 2.1

5-14 2.7 2.5

lS-up 3.0 2.7

10. awareness of our relation- 0-1 2.3 1.7
ship with the world 1-4 2.8 2.1
community. 5-14 3.0 2.6
15-up 3.1 2.9

 

 

 

 

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:

 

11. a lay committee and 0-1 .3 .6
faculty. 1-4 .4 1 1.0
5—14 .4 1.0

lS-up .5 .9

12. the school board. 0-1 .5 .6
1-4 .9 .9

5-14 .9 .9

lS—up .8 .9

13. the community. 0-1 1.0 1.3
1-4 .9 1.2

5-14 .9 1.1

l5-up .8 1.1

 

 

 

 

76

with more years of experience to increase the emphasis on
the items listed, while those with fewer years of experience
practice the items less often.

The relationship between the "Actual" and "Desirable"
items remain the same as in previous tables.

Item 13 is the sole exception to the above observa-
tions. Here the teachers seem to feel, as they gain more
years of experience, that "the community" sets the goals

for education less, and they rate this as desirable, as

well.

CHAPTER VIII

THE PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION

The items listed in Table 6 were chosen as having
relevance to the psychological aspects of the teaching-
learning process. The responses listed are for all the

teachers who responded to the questionnaire.

TABLE 6.--Weighted means of total population responses

 

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Items
Actual Desirable
Practice Practice

 

 

In my teaching, I:

 

1. use a consultant in special areas. 1.1 1.9

2. am involved in a research program
on instruction. .9 1.6

 

 

 

In my teaching:

 

3. individual differences are
provided for. 2.6 3.4

4. there is a body of knowledge to
be taught. 3.1 3.3

 

 

77

78

TABLE 6.--Continued

 

 

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Items
Actual Desirable
Practice Practice

 

 

A goal of my teaching is to develop:

 

5. fundamental skills of communication. 3.1 2.5
6. fundamental skills of mathematics. 2.6 2.3
7. ability to think and evaluate. 3.4 2.7
8. work habits and self discipline. 3.5 2.9
9. intellectual curiosity. 3.3 2.8
10. physical health. 2.5 2.4
11. mental health. 3.0 2.6

 

 

 

In items l—4, the teachers felt these practices
should occur even more often than they do; however, in items
5-11, they felt it would be desirable to have less time than
actually was being devoted to the goals described.

The teachers indicated they “use a consultant in
special areas" occasionally, but not often (1.1) and they
were seldom (.9) "involved in a research program on instruc-
tion." Although they felt more time should be used this way,
still less than half of the time was listed as ideal (1.6-
1.9). "Individual differences are provided for" about
63 per cent (2.6) of the time and the teachers would desire

this to occur about 85 per cent (3.4) of the time.

79

The teachers felt "there is a body of knowledge to
be taught" over 75 per cent (3.1) of the time and there
should be "a body of knowledge to be taught" about 83-1/2
per cent (3.3) of the time. Of the goals listed, those of
"physical health" and "fundamental skills of mathematics"
were considered least important, while "work habits" and
"self discipline" were rated highest in both the "Actual"
and "Desirable" columns.

Note that such goals as "ability to think and
evaluate," "intellectual curiosity," and "mental health"
were listed as goals for which the teachers desire less
time expended.

The responses of elementary teachers are compared
with those of secondary teachers in Table 7.

TABLE 7.--Weighted means of total elementary and secondary
responses

 

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Actual Desirable

Practice Practice
Items

 

Elemen- Second- Elemen- Second-
tary ary tary ary

 

 

 

In my teaching, I:

 

1. use a consultant in
special areas. 1.4 .6 2.2 1.6

2. am involved in a
research program on 1.0 .8 1.7 1.6

 

 

 

 

80

TABLE 7.--Continued

 

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
Items

 

Elemen- Second- Elemen- Second-
tary ary tary ary

 

 

 

In my teaching:

 

3. individual differences
are provided for. 2.9 2.3 3.8 2.7

4. there is a body of knowl-
edge to be taught. 3.0 3.3 3.3 3.4

 

 

 

 

 

A goal of my teaching is to develop:

 

5. fundamental skills of 3.3 2.8 2.8 2.1
communication.

6. fundamental skills of 3.2 1.7 2.8 1.5
mathematics.

7. ability to think and 3.5 3.4 2.8 2.5
evaluate.

8. work habits and self 3.6 3.4 3.1 2.7
discipline.

9. intellectual curiosity. 3.4 3.1 2.8 2.7

10. physical health. 3.0 1.8 2.5 1.5

11. mental health. 3.3 2.5 2.6 2.1

 

 

 

 

 

The elementary teachers desired and in actuality did

"use a consultant in special areas" and were "involved in a

81
research program on instruction" more than the secondary
teachers.

"Individual differences are provided for" more often
in elementary than secondary schools. The secondary teachers
felt "there is a body of knowledge to be taught" more often
than the elementary teachers, and the secondary teachers
felt this should be true even more of the time.

Elementary teachers thought less time should be
spent on all the goals listed in items 5-11 than they were
actually spending. Still they used more time than secondary
people on these goals and desired more time to be used than
the secondary teachers considered desirable.

"Fundamental skills in mathematics" was the lowest
rated goal of those listed by both elementary and secondary
teachers, whereas "ability to think and evaluate" and "work
habits and self discipline" were rated as the most desirable
goals by both groups of teachers.

Table 8 shows the responses of all teachers grouped
according to years of college.

In every item except item 2, the teachers with more
years of college education performed the practices listed
less often than those with less years of college. Item 2
indicates that teachers with more years of college were more
often "involved in a research program on instruction."

In the "Desirable" column, the same relationship as

above prevails. The more college education the teachers

82
possessed, the less time they felt would be desirable for

the items listed.

TABLE 8.--Weighted means of responses by years of college
education

 

Years Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Col-
Items lege Actual Desirable

Practice Practice

 

 

 

 

In my teaching, I:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. use a consultant in 0-3.9 1.3 2.4
special areas. 4-4.9 1.1 1.9
5-up 1.0 1.8

2. am involved in a O-3.9 .8 1.6
research program on 4-4.9 .8 1.6
instruction. 5-up 1.0 1.7

In my teaching:

3. individual differences 0-3.9 2.8 3.5
are provided for. 4—4.9 2.6 3.4
5-up 2.6 3.3

4. there is a body of 0-3.9 3.4 3.4
knowledge to be taught. 4—4.9 3.3 3.3
5-up 3.2 3.2

A goal of my teaching is to develop:

5. fundamental skills of 0-3.9 3.4 2.9
communication. 4-4.9 3.1 2.5
5-up 3.0 2.5

6. fundamental skills of 0-3.9 3.3 2.8
mathematics. 4-4.9 2.6 2.3
5-up 2.4 2.3

83

TABLE 8.--Continued

 

 

 

 

 

Years Means of Responses
Selected Questionnaire of
Col-
Items lege Actual Desirable

Practice Practice
7. ability to think and O-3.9 3.5 2.8
evaluate. 4-4.9 3.4 2.7
5—up 3.4 2.7
8. work habits and self 0-3.9 3.6 3.1
discipline. 4-4.9 3.5 2.9
5-up 3.4 2.9
9. intellectual curiosity. 0-3.9 3.4 2.9
4-4.9 3.2 2.8
5-up 3.3 2.8
10. physical health. 0-3.9 3.2 3.0
4-4.9 2.7 2.5
5-up 2.2 2.1
11. mental health. 0-3.9 3.4 2.9
4-4.9 3.0 2.7
5-up 2.8 2.6

 

 

 

 

Table 9 lists the responses of the teachers for each
of four categories of teaching experience.

There was hardly any difference in the amount of
time teachers "use a consultant in special areas" for the
different lengths of experience listed. The teachers with
more years of experience desired a consultant be used less
than those with fewer years of experience.

For item 2, the teachers with fewer years of

experience thought more time should be spent "in a research

84

TABLE 9.——Weighted means of responses by years of teaching

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

experience
Years Means of Responses
Selected Questionnaire of
Exper-
Items ience Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
In my teaching, I:
1. use a consultant in 0-1 1.0 2.2
special areas. 1-4 1.1 2.0
5-14 1.0 1.9
lS-up 1.1 1.9
2. am involved in a 0-1 .8 1.8
research program on 1-4 .7 1.7
instruction. 5-14 1.0 1.6
15-up .9 1.4
In my teaching:
3. individual differences 0-1 2.5 3.4
are provided for. 1-4 2.4 3.4
5-14 2.6 3.4
15-up 2.8 3.3
4. there is a body of 0-1 3.0 3.1
knowledge to be taught. 1-4 3.2 3.2
5-14 3.2 3.3
15-up 3.3 3.4

 

 

 

 

A goal of my teaching is to develop:

 

fundamental skills of
communication.

fundamental skills of
mathematics.

 

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85

TABLE 9.--Continued

 

 

 

 

 

Years Means of Response
Selected Questionnaire of
Exper-
Items ience Actual Desirable
Practice Practice

7. ability to think and 0-1 3.2 2.1
evaluate. 1-4 3.3 2.4
5-14 3.4 2.7

lS-up 3.5 3.0

8. work habits and self 0-1 3.3 1.9
discipline. 1-4 3.4 2.7
5-14 3.5 2.9

lS-up 3.6 3.1

9. intellectual curiosity. 0-1 3.0 2.1
1-4 3.2 2.4

5-14 3.2 2.8

lS-up 3.4 3.0

10. physical health. 0-1 2.1 1.6
1-4 2.2 2.0

5-14 2.4 2.4

lS-up 2.8 2.7

11. mental health. 0-1 2.5 1.7
1-4 2.8 2.3

5-14 2.9 2.7

lS-up 3.2 2.9

 

 

 

 

program on instruction," but actually the teachers with more

years of eXperience were more often involved in research.

On all the other items (3-11)

there was an increase

in time spent on the items listed with each increase in

years of experience.

The same relationship held true for the "Desirable"

column:

teachers with more years experience felt the items

86
listed were more desirable than the teachers with less years
of experience.
It still seems evident, however, that all the teach-
ers felt less time should be used than they actually were

devoting to those goals listed in items 5-11.

CHAPTER IX
THE RELATIONSHIP OF LEARNER AND TEACHER

Table 10 contains questions which seemed relevant to
the teacher-pupil relationship and represents the responses
of all the teachers in this study.

Two items seem to occur relatively seldom in this
group of practices. Item 1, "teacher-pupil planning,"
occurred less than half the time and item 6, "students work
in small groups," occurred with about the same frequency.
All of the other practices occurred more than 2.0, or
relatively often, with the practices "eXplain, demonstrate,
or lecture to the total class" and "consider the environ-
mental background of pupils" occurring most frequently of
all.

At the midpoint of 2.0 are found the practices
"encourage the class to make plans and decisions about what
is studied" and "goals for education are established by my
students and me."

Teachers who usually teach the entire class as a
group (2.5) also use about the same proportion of their time
to "help guide students in personal-social problems" (2.4)

and "to consider pupil and parent aspirations" (2.6).

87

88

TABLE 10.-—Weighted means of total population responses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Means of Responses
Selected questionnaire Items
Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
In my teaching, I:
1. use teacher—pupil planning. 1.6 2.2
2. help guide students in personal-
social problems. 2.4 2.7
3. explain, demonstrate, or lecture
to the total class. 2.8 2.6
4. teach the entire class as a group. 2.5 2.2
5. encourage the class to make plans
and decisions about what is studied. 2.0 2.4
In my teaching:
6. students work in small groups. 1.7 2.1
7. pupil and parent aspirations are
considered. 2.6 3.0
8. the environmental background of
pupils is considered. 2.9 3.4

 

 

 

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:

 

10.

me.

my students and me.

 

2.3

2.0

2.2

2.4

 

 

frequent source of

In item 9, the teacher rates "himself"

"goals for education."

as the most

89

When asked what they considered desirable, the
teachers felt all of the practices of this group should be
occurring more frequently except for items 3, 4, and 9.
They felt they should less often be the ones who set goals
for education, although very little less (from 2.3 to 2.2).
Also they felt slightly less time should be spent with the
entire group in one activity.

Table 11 compares the responses of elementary
teachers with those of the secondary teachers for the
practices related to teacher-pupil relationships.

TABLE ll.--Weighted means of total elementary and secondary
responses

 

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
Items

 

Elemen- Second- Elemen- Second-
tary ary tary ary

 

 

 

In my teaching, I:

 

1. use teacher-pupil

planning. 1.9 1.3 2.4 1.8
2. help guide students in

personal-social

problems. 2.7 2.0 3.0 2.4

3. explain, demonstrate,
.or lecture to the
total class. 2.6 3.0 2.5 2.8

 

 

 

 

90

TABLE ll.—-Continued

 

 

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
Items

 

Elemen- Second- Elemen- Second-
tary ary tary ary

 

 

 

In my teaching, I:

 

4. teach the entire class
as a group. 2.1 3.0 1.9 2.6

5. encourage the class to
make plans and decisions
about what is studied. 2.2 1.7 2.7 2.1

 

 

 

 

 

In my teaching:

 

6. students work in small
groups. 1.9 1.3 2.1 1.7

7. pupil and parent aspira-
tions are considered. 2.8 2.4 3.2 2.7

8. the environmental
background of pupils
is considered. 3.3 2.5 3.6 3.1

 

 

 

 

 

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:

 

9. me. 2.1 2.5 2.1 2.4

10. my students and me. 1.8 1.8 2.1 2.2

 

 

 

 

 

Actual practices reported indicate that elementary

teachers practice each of the chosen items more often than

91
secondary teachers with the exception of items 3, 4, and 9.
Here the secondary teachers spent more time "teaching the
entire class as a group" by the methods of "explaining,
demonstrating, or lecturing."

Secondary teachers cited themselves as the source
for goals of education more frequently than did elementary
teachers.

There was no difference in the proportion of time
used by elementary and secondary teachers when "they and the
students" cooperatively "established goals for education."

In suggesting what would be desirable, both ele-
mentary and secondary teachers felt less time should be
consumed in activities by "the total class as a group" and
both desired more time occupied in such activities as
"teacher-pupil planning," "guiding students in personal-
social problems," "encouraging the class to make plans and
decisions," "working in small groups," and recognizing
"pupil and parent aspirations and backgrounds."

In each of the above named practices where more time
was desired, however, the elementary teachers indicated they
would like to use a larger proportion of their time for the
practice than the secondary teachers.

Another interesting comparison is found in the
amount of difference between the "Actual” and the "Desirable"
columns. In nearly every item, the secondary teachers showed
a larger difference between the actual and desirable prac—

tices, whereas the elementary teachers had less spread in

92
points between their reported practices and what they
desired.

Table 12 contains comparisons between the responses
of teachers with different years of college education for
items concerning pupil—teacher relationships.

The most marked trend found in Table 12 is similar
to that found in previous comparisons of teachers with

different lengths of college preparation (Tables 4 and 8).

TABLE 12.--Weighted means of responses by years of college

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

education
Years Means of Responses
Selected Questionnaire of
Col-
Items lege Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
In my teaching, I:
1. use teacher-pupil planning. 0-3.9 1.9 2.6
4-4.9 1.7 2.2
5-up 1.5 2.0
2. help guide students in 0-3.9 2.9 3.2
personal-social problems. 4-4.9 2.5 2.8
S-up 2.3 2.6
3. explain, demonstrate, O-3.9 2.8 2.7
or lecture to the total 4-4.9 2.8 2.7
class. 5-up 2.7 2.5
4. teach the entire class 0-3.9 2.2 2.0
as a group. 4-4.9 2.4 2.1
S-up 2.6 2.0
5. encourage the class to 0-3.9 2.5 2.9
make plans and decisions 4-4.9 2.1 2.5
about what is studied. 5-up 1.9 1.9

 

 

 

93

TABLE 12.--Continued

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Col-
Items lege Actual Desirable

Practice Practice

 

 

 

In my teaching:

 

6. students work in small 0—3.9 2.0 2.4
groups. 4-4.9 1.7 2.1
5-up 1.6 2.0

7. pupil and parent aspira- 0-3.9 2.8 3.2
tions are considered. 4-4.9 2.6 2.9
5-up 2.7 3.0

8. the environmental back- 0-3.9 3.2 3.5
ground of pupils is 4-4.9 3.0 3.4
considered. 5-up 2.8 3.3

 

 

 

 

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:

 

9. me. 0-3.9 2.0 2.1
4-4.9 2.2 2.1

5-up 2.5 2.7

10. my students and me. 0-3.9 2.2 2.6
4-4.9 2.0 2.4

5-up 1.9 2.3

 

 

 

 

In all items except 3, 4, and 9, the teachers with
the most years of college education spent the least amount
of time on the selected practices of this group, and in
addition, they felt this emphasis was desirable.

Teachers with more years of college preparation said

they spent a larger proportion of their time "setting goals

 
 

94

for education by themselves" and “teaching the entire class

as a group."

There is practically no change in the proportion of

time spent on "explaining, demonstrating, or lecturing to

the total class" by teachers within the different categories

of college education.

Table 13 contains a comparison of the responses of

teachers with varying lengths of experience.

TABLE l3.-—Weighted means of responses by years of teaching

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

experience
Years Means of Responses
Selected Questionnaire of
EXper-
Items ience Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
In my teaching, I:
1. use teacher-pupil 0-1 1.3 2.0
planning. 1-4 1.5 2.1
5-14 1.7 2.2
lS-up 1.7 2.2
2. help guide students in 0-1 2.2 2.5
personal-social 1-4 2.2 2.6
problems. 5-14 2.4 2.8
lS-up 2.6 2.8
3. explain, demonstrate, 0-1 2.9 2.9
or lecture to the total 1—4 2.9 2.7
class. 5-14 2.5 2.3
lS—up 2.4 2.6
4. teach the entire class 0-1 2.9 2.6
as a group. 1-4 2.6 2.2
5-14 2.4 2.2
lS-up 2.4 2.1

 

 

 

95

TABLE l3.--Continued

 

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Exper-
Items ience Actual Desirable

Practice Practice

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. encourage the class to 0-1 1.7 2.5
make plans and decisions 1-4 1.8 2.3
about what is studied. 5-14 2.0 2.4

lS-up 2.2 2.5
In my teaching:

6. students work in small 0-1 1.5 1.9

groups. 1-4 1.5 2.0
5-14 1.7 2.1
lS-up 1.8 2.1

7. pupil and parent aspira- 0-1 2.5 2.9

tions are considered. 1-4 2.4 2.9
5-14 2.6 3.0
15-up 2.8 3.0

8. the environmental 0-1 2.8 3.1
background of pupils 1-4 2.8 3.2
is considered. 5-14 2.9 3.4

lS—up 3.1 3.4

 

 

 

 

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:

 

9. me. 0-1 2.7 2.5
1-4 2.4 2.4

5—14 2.4 2.3

15-up 2.1 2.0

10. my students and me. 0-1 1.9 2.3
l-4 1.8 2.3

5-14 2.0 2.4

lS-up 2.1 2.4

 

 

 

 

96

Almost the opposite trend can be observed in
Table 13 as compared to Table 12. Table 13 shows that the
teachers with more years of teaching experience spend more
time on the practices listed than those with less years of
eXperience. The converse was true for teachers with more
years of college education, since they spent less time on
the practices as their years of college education increased.

In Table 13, items 3, 4, and 9 are the exceptions to
the trend cited above. In those items, the teachers with
the most years of experience spent the least amount of time
on "setting goals for education by themselves," "teaching
the entire class as a group," and "explaining, demonstrating
or lecturing." In the "Desirable" column, the same relation-
ships observed above are found to persist with the only
difference being the teachers desired more time be expended
on all the items than actually was occurring, excepting

items 3, 4, and 9.

CHAPTER X
THE ORGANIZATION FOR INSTRUCTION

In this chapter Tables 14 through 17 contain ques-
tionnaire items considered related to the organization for
instruction.

Item 2 in Table 14 presents a very interesting point.
All of the teachers who responded to the questionnaire
indicated a relatively large amount of the time (87-1/2 per
cent) they were "free to choose the method of teaching."
They desire that this be the case even more (90 per cent)
of the time.

For all of the items appearing in Table 14, the
amount of time involved is relatively great, that is over
half of the time, except for items 8 and 9.

The teachers indicated that less time should be
spent, ideally, than is actually the case on items 1, 7,
and 9. These items concern having "each student use the
same textbook," developing "wise use of time," and goals
being set by "the administration."

For items 3, 4, 5, 6, and 8, the teachers desire
more time be devoted to "units," "independent study," and
"problem-solving." Also they felt the "teachers in our
school" should establish education goals more often.

97

98

TABLE l4.--Weighted means of total population responses

 

 

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Items
Actual Desirable
Practice Practice

 

 

In my teaching, I:

 

have each student use the same

textbook. 2.8 2.3
am free to choose the method of
teaching. 3.5 3.6

 

 

 

In my teaching:

 

the problem-solving approach is used

to organize learning experiences. 2.1 2.6
students learn problem-solving
techniques. 2.3 2.8

students participate in independent

study. 2.2 2.8
learning experiences are organized
in units. 2.7 2.9

 

 

 

A goal of my teaching is to develop:

 

wise use of time. I 3.4 [ 3.0

 

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:

 

the teachers in our school. 1.3 1.6

the administration. 1.7 1.4

 

 

 

99

The responses of elementary teachers are compared

with those of secondary teachers in Table 15 for items

relating to the organization for instruction.

TABLE 15.--Weighted means of total elementary and secondary

responses

 

 

Selected Questionnaire

Items

Means of Responses

 

Actual Desirable
Practice Practice

 

 

Elemen- Second- Elemen- Second-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

tary ary tary ary
In my teaching, I:
l. have each student use
the same textbook. 2.5 3.2 2.0 2.8
2. am free to choose the
method of teaching. 3.4 3.8 3.5 3.8
In my teaching:
3. the problem-solving
approach is used to
organize learning
experiences. 2.2 2.0 2.4 2.4
4. students learn problem-
solving techniques. 2.3 2.2 2.4 2.7
5. students participate in
independent study. 2.3 2.0 3.4 2.4
6. learning experiences
are organized in units. 2.5 2.9 2.9 2.9

 

 

 

 

100

TABLE 15.--Continued

 

 

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
Items

 

Elemen— Second- Elemen- Second-
tary ary tary ary

 

 

A goal of my teaching is to develop:

3.2 I 2.9 [ 2.8

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:

 

7. wise use of time. 3.5

 

 

 

8. the teachers in our
school. 1.3 1.2 1.4 1.8

9. the administration. 2.0 1.3 1.3 1.5

 

 

 

 

 

Items 1 and 2 indicate secondary teachers are "free
to choose the method of teaching" more often (95 per cent)
than elementary teachers. Also, they "have each student use
the same textbook" more often than elementary teachers. The
secondary teachers seem to indicate these two items should
occur more often than the elementary teachers would desire.

The secondary teachers indicate that they less
frequently use the "problem-solving approach" to help
"students learn problem-solving techniques," and also they
have their students "participate in independent study" less

frequently than elementary teachers.

101

The elementary and secondary teachers desire that
the same amount of time be consumed in using "the problem-
solving approach to organize learning experiences." However,
the secondary teachers indicate a desire that "students
learn problem-solving techniques" 67-1/2 per cent of the time
while elementary teachers would desire that 60 per cent of
the time be thusly used. There is a marked difference in
the desires of the two groups of teachers concerning inde-
pendent study. While secondary teachers indicate ideally,
that 60 per cent of the time "students participate in inde-
pendent study," the elementary teachers want this to occur
85 per cent of the time.

Item 6, "learning experiences are organized in units,"
occurs 67-1/2 per cent of the time for secondary teachers
and 62-1/2 per cent of the time for elementary teachers.
Secondary teachers do not desire any increase here, but
elementary teachers do want to increase (from 2.5 to 2.9)
the use of units.

"Wise use of time" as a goal of education occurs
more often for elementary teachers and they express the
desire that this is a goal of education in their teaching
more often than the secondary teachers. Again, in both
cases, elementary and secondary, the teachers desire that
they spend less time on this teaching goal than they use at
present.

Both elementary and secondary teachers “establish

goals for education” in their school relatively seldom (1.3

102
and 1.2). The elementary teachers feel this is about as it
should be, but the secondary teachers desire to be involved
considerably more of the time.

Elementary teachers seemed to desire less "goals for
education" established by “the administration," while second—
ary teachers indicated they desire more administration-set
goals.

Responses to items relating to the organization for
instruction are shown for teachers with differing number of
years of college education in Table 16.

TABLE l6.--Weighted means of responses by years of college
education

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Col-
Items lege Actual Desirable

Practice Practice

 

 

 

In my teaching, I:

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. have each student use 0-3.9 3.2 2.3
the same textbook. 4-4.9 2.7 2.2
5-up 2.9 2.3

2. am free to choose the 0-3.9 3.28 3.5
method of teaching. 4-4.9 3.5 3.6
5-up 3.6 3.7

In my teaching:

3. the problem-solving ap- 0-3.9 2.3 2.8
proach is used to organize 4-4.9 2.1 2.6
learning experiences. 5-up 2.1 2.6

103

TABLE l6.--Continued

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Col—
Items lege Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
4. students learn problem- 0-3.9 2.4 3.0
solving techniques. 4-4.9 2.2 2.8
5-up 2.3 2.8
5. students participate in 0-3.9 2.6 3.2
independent study. 4-4.9 2.2 2.8
5-up 2.1 2.8
6. learning experiences are 0-3.9 2.1 2.8
organized in units. 4-4.9 2.6 2.9
5-up 2.8 3.0
A goal of my teaching is to develop:
7. wise use of time. 0-3.9 3.6 3.2
4-4.9 3.4 3.0
5-up 3.3 2.9

 

 

 

 

 

8. the teachers in our school. 0-3.9 1.3 1.6
4—4.9 1.2 1.5
5-up 1.4 1.6
9. the administration. 0-3.9 2.1 1.9
4-4.9 1.7 1.7
5-up 1.5 1.6

 

 

 

 

For items 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, and 9, the teachers with
more years of education spent less time on the practices
indicated. In each case they would desire less time be

used for these practices as they acquired more education.

104

The exceptions to the above trend are items 2, 6,
and 8. Apparently teachers “are free to choose the method
of teaching” more often as they acquire more years of col-
lege education, and they feel this is desirable. ”Units"
are used more often to organize learning experiences by
those teachers with more years of college and they "set
goals for education" in their school more often as they
gain education. This also is the way they would desire
these practices to occur.

Responses are categorized according to the years of
eXperience of the teachers in Table 17. The items relate to
the organization for instruction.

The teachers with more experience ”have each student
use the same textbook" and are "free to choose the method of
teaching" less often than those with less eXperience. They
indicated this trend as desirable. In all of the other
items (3-9) in this area, the teachers practiced the items
more often as they gained more years of eXperience, and they
desired that this trend occur in this manner. They desire
that more time be used than they presently devote for each
of the items except 1 and 7. Here they felt "each student
should use the same textbook" less often, and “wise use of
time“ less often should be a goal of their teaching, regard-

less of the number of years of eXperience.

105

TABLE l7.--Weighted means of responses by years of teaching

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

eXperience
Years Means of Responses
Selected Questionnaire of
EXper-
Items ience Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
In my teaching, I:

1. have each student use 0-1 3.2 2.8

the same textbook. 1-4 2.8 2.3
5-14 1.8 2.2
lS-up 2.8 2.4

2. am free to choose the 0-1 3.7 3.9

method of teaching. 1-4 3.6 3.7
5-14 3.6 3.6
lS-up 3.5 3.5

In my teaching:

3. the problem—solving 0-1 2.0 2.6
approach is used to 1-4 1.9 2.6
organize learning 5-14 2.1 2.6
experiences. lS-up 2.3 2.6

4. students learn problem- 0-1 2.1 2.6
solving techniques. 1-4 2.0 2.8

5-14 2.2 2.8
lS-up 2.5 2.9

5. students participate in 0-1 1.8 2.6

independent study. 1-4 2.0 2.8
5-14 2.2 2.8
15-up 2.4 2.9

6. learning experiences 0-1 2.5 2.9

are organized in units. 1-4 2.6 3.0
5-14 2.8 3.0
lS-up 2.6 2.9

 

 

 

106

TABLE 17.-—Continued

 

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Exper-
Items ience Actual Desirable

Practice Practice

 

 

 

A goal of my teaching is to develop:

 

7. wise use of time.

 

 

 

 

In my teaching, goals for education are established by:

 

8. the teachers in our 0-1 .9 1.2
school. 1-4 1.2 1.5
5-14 1.3 1.6

15-up 1.4 1.6

9. the administration. 0-1 1.1 1.3
1-4 1.5 1.6

5-14 1.7 1.7

lS-up 1.8 1.8

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER XI
THE MATERIALS OF LEARNING

The items in Tables 18-21 were chosen as related to
the materials of learning.

For every item listed in Table 18, the teachers
desire more time be consumed on the practices than they
were spending. Item 4, the exception, showed they felt "the
content of the textbook" should be covered the same amount
of time as it is at present.

Teachers reported they "use field trips" and "people
from the community as resources" relatively seldom. Another
seldom occurring practice seems to be the use of the "text-
book as a supplementary resource.“

Items 3, 4, 6, and 7 occurred relatively often.

Although the teachers indicated they ”use supple-
mentary materials other than the textbook" about 72-1/2 per
cent of the time, they felt that ”library facilities," as
well as "instructional and learning materials" were adequate
"to meet the needs and interests of the students" only about

55-60 per cent of the time.

107

108

TABLE 18.-—Weighted means of total population responses

 

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Items
Actual Desirable
Practice Practice

 

 

In my teaching, I:

 

1. use field trips. 1.0 1.8

2. use people from the community as
resources. .9 1.8

3. use supplementary materials other
than the textbook. 2.9 3.1

 

 

 

In my teaching:

 

4. the content of the textbook is
covered. 2.7 2.7

5. the textbook is used as a
supplementary resource. 1.1 1.5

6. library facilities are sufficient
to meet the needs and interests
of the students. 2.2 3.6

7. instructional and learning
materials are adequate. 2.4 3.7

 

 

 

In Table 19 the responses of elementary teachers are
shown with those of the secondary teachers for items relating
to the materials of learning.

The secondary teachers "use field trips" and "people
from the community as resources" much less than the elemen-

tary teachers. However, they agree with elementary teachers

109

on the desirable amount of time which should be used on

these items.

TABLE l9.--Weighted means of total elementary and secondary

responses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Means of Responses
Selected Questionnaire Actual Desirable
Practice Practice
Items
Elemen- Second- Elemen- Second-
tary ary tary ary
In my teaching, I:

1. use field trips. 1.3 .7 1.8 1.8
2. use people from the

community as resources. 1.0 .8 1.4 1.6
3. use supplementary

materials other than

the textbook. 3.0 2.8 3.2 3.0

In.my teaching:

4. the content of the

textbook is covered. 2.9 2.4 2.8 2.6
5. the textbook is used

as a supplementary

resource. 1.0 1.2 1.5 1.4
6. library facilities are

sufficient to meet the

needs and interests of

the students. 2.2 2.2 3.6 3.6
7. instructional and

learning materials

are adequate. 2.4 2.4 3.6 3.7

 

 

 

 

 

110

Secondary teachers “use supplementary materials
other than the textbook" and "cover the content of the text-
book" less than the elementary teachers. The secondary
teachers indicate this is the way they would desire to
continue.

There is little or no difference in the amount of
"library facilities" and "instructional materials" available
to elementary or secondary teachers. Also, both groups
would desire about the same amount of these resources
available.

For item 5, the secondary teachers show more often
"the textbook is used as a supplementary resource" when
compared to elementary teachers.

In Table 20 the responses of teachers by number of
years of college education are shown for items relating to
the materials of learning.

The use of "field trips" and "peOple from the com-
munity as resources" occurred less often for teachers with
more years of college education. Also, the teachers with
more years of college "cover the content of the textbook"
less often than those with fewer years of college.

Items 3, 5, 6, and 7 all occur more often for
teachers with more college preparation.

For all items the teachers indicated that the
practices would be desirable more than actually occurred,

regardless of years of college.

111

TABLE 20.--Weighted means of responses by years of college
education

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Col-
Items lege Actual Desirable

Practice Practice

 

 

 

In my teaching, I:

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. use field trips. O-3.9 1.2 2.0

4—4.9 1.0 1.8

5-up 1.0 1.7

2. use people from the 0-3.9 1.1 2.0

community as resources. 4-4.9 .9 1.4

5-up .9 1.4

3. use supplementary 0-3.9 2.8 3.1

materials other than 4-4.9 2.8 3.1

the textbook. 5-up 3.0 3.1

In my teaching:

4. the content of the 0-3.9 3.1 3.0

textbook is covered. 4-4.9 2.7 2.7

5-up 2.5 2.6

. 5. the textbook is used as 0-3.9 1.0 1.6

supplementary resource. 4-4.9 1.0 1.4

5-up 1.2 1.4

6. library facilities are O-3.9 2.2 3.7

sufficient to meet the 4-4.9 2.1 3.6

needs and interests of S—up 2.3 3.6
the students.

7. instructional and 0-3.9 2.3 3.6

learning materials are 4-4.9 2.4 3.7

adequate. S-up 2.5 3.6

 

 

 

 

112

The figures in Table 21 show the responses of teach-
ers with varying years of experience for the items relating
to the materials of instruction.

For every item in this table, the frequency of the
practice increased for the teachers with more years of
teaching experience.

There is not such a clear tendency for the responses
in the "Desirable" column, however. Although the teachers
desired that each practice occur more often than in actu-
ality, there was no clear change in preference for teachers

with more years of experience.

113

TABLE 21.--Weighted means of responses by years of teaching
experience

 

 

A n;
r —__—‘

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Exper-
Items ience Actual Desirable

Practice Practice

 

 

 

In my teaching, I:

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. use field trips. 0-1 .6 1.7
1-4 .9 1.8

5-14 1.1 1.8

lS—up 1.1 1.7

2. use people from the 0-1 .6 1.7
community as resources. 1-4 .7 1.8
5-14 .9 1.8

15-up 1.0 1.8

3. use supplementary 0-1 2.7 3.1
materials other than 1-4 2.6 3.0
the textbook. 5-14 2.9 3.2
15-up 3.0 3.1

In my teaching:

4. the content of the 0-1 2.6 2.6
textbook is covered. 1-4 2.6 2.6
5-14 2.7 2.7

lS-up 2.7 2.8

5. the textbook is used as 0-1 1.0 1.4
supplementary resource. 1-4 1.0 1.5
5-14 1.1 1.5

lS-up 1.1 1.4

6. library facilities are 0-1 1.8 3.6
sufficient to meet the 1-4 1.9 3.7
needs and interests of 5-14 2.1 3.6
the students. 15-up 2.4 3.5

7. instructional and 0-1 2.3 3.7
learning materials 1-4 2.2 3.7
are adequate. 5-14 2.3 3.7
lS-up 2.6 3.6

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER XII

THE EVALUATION OF LEARNING

The evaluation of learning is considered in Tables
22—25. Table 22 contains the responses of all the teachers

in this study.

TABLE 22.--Weighted means of total population responses

 

Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire Items
Actual Desirable
Practice Practice

 

 

In my teaching, evaluation of student achievement
is based on:

 

l. mastery of content and skills. 2.8 2.8
2. behavioral change (growth) of
the student. 2.5 2.8
3. standardized achievement tests. 1.0 1.2
4. performance level of the student. 2.6 2.8
5. ability level of the student. 2.6 2.8
6. conduct of the student. 1.5 1.6
7. teacher observation. 2.4 2.5
8. paper and pencil tests. 1.8 1.8
9. effort of the student. 2.6 2.7
10. interview or conference with
the student. 1.3 1.9
11. performance in basic skills. 2.7 2.7

 

 

 

114

115

Three of the items show no difference between the
"Actual" and "Desirable" columns. The teachers indicated
they desire no change in the evaluation of student achieve-
ment based on "mastery of content and skills," "paper and
pencil tests," and "performance in basic skills."

They desire an increase in the use of all other
items in the table.

Apparently the most important items for evaluation
of student achievement are "mastery of content and skills”
and "performance level of the student."

Next in importance are "ability level" and "effort
of the student" which equalled the "performance level of
the student."

"Behavioral growth" and "teacher observation" were
rated 2.4.

Those items which seemed to be less important were
"paper and pencil tests," “conduct of the student,"
"conference with the student," and least important were
"standardized achievement tests."

The items where the teachers would desire the most
change, that is, greater emphasis as a basis for evaluation,
were "conference with the student" and "behavioral change
(growth) of the student."

Table 23 shows the responses of elementary and
secondary teachers for items relating to evaluation of

learning.

116

TABLE 23.--Weighted means of total elementary and secondary

responses

 

 

Selected Questionnaire

Items

Means of Responses

 

Actual
Practic

e

Desirable
Practice

 

tary

 

Elemen- Second-

ary

 

Elemen- Second-
tary ary

 

In my teaching, evaluation of student achievement

is

based on:

 

mastery of content
and skills.

behavioral change
(growth) of student.

standardized achieve-
ment tests.

performance level of
the student.

ability level of the
student.

conduct of student.
teacher observation.
paper and pencil tests.
effort of the student.

interview or conference
with the student.

performance in basic
skills.

1.5

2.8

 

 

2.5

 

2.8 2.9
3.0 2.4
1.3 1.2
2.8 2.7
3.0 2.6
1.7 1.6
2.7 2.3
1.5 2.2
2.8 2.6
2.0 1.7
2.7 2.6

 

 

117

The secondary teachers more often used as a basis
for evaluation the ”mastery of content and skills" and
"paper and pencil tests," but ”conduct of the student" was
used equally by both elementary and secondary teachers.

All other items in this table were used less often
as bases for evaluation of student achievement by secondary
teachers than by elementary teachers.

Items 1 and 8 indicate that secondary teachers
desire more emphasis than elementary teachers on "mastery
of content and skills" and "paper and pencil tests.“

For secondary teachers, the most popular items for
evaluation were "mastery of content and skills," and "per-
formance level of the student" while the least popular were
"conduct of the student,” "interview with the student," and
"standardized achievement tests."

Table 24 shows the responses of teachers with vary-
ing years of college education for the items which relate
to the evaluation of learning.

When comparing the columns for fActual Practices"
with "Desirable Practices" it seems that the teachers de-
scribed above would desire the same emphasis, or an increase
in emphasis, on all items listed in Table 24 as part of
evaluation.

With the exception of "conduct of the student" and
“paper and pencil tests,” there is a decrease in emphasis
provided each item in the table as the years of education

of the teachers rises.

118

TABLE 24.--Weighted means of responses by years of college

 

 

education
Years Means of Responses
Selected Questionnaire of
Col-
Items lege Actual Desirable
Practice Practice

 

 

 

 

In my teaching,

is based on:

evaluation of student achievement

 

mastery of content
and skills.

behavioral change
(growth) of student.

standardized achievement
tests.

performance level of
the student.

ability level of the
student.

conduct of student.
teacher observation.

paper and pencil tests.

effort of the student.

 

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119

TABLE 24.-—Continued

 

 

 

Years Means of Responses

 

Selected Questionnaire of
Col-
Items lege Actual Desirable

Practice Practice

 

10. interview or conference 0-3.9 1.7 2.1
with the student. 4—4.9 1.3 1.8
5-up 1.4 1.9

11. performance in basic 0-3.9 2.9 2.9
skills. 4-4.9 2.6 2.7
5—up 2.5 2.6

 

 

 

 

The only obvious increase in importance as a basis
for evaluation, with an increase in years of education, is
in the item "paper and pencil tests.“ The most marked
differences in practices, which might be attributed to more
years of college, are for the items "paper and pencil tests"
(more emphasis for teachers with more years of college),
"interview or conference with the student" (less use by
teachers with more years of college), and the practice of
basing evaluation on "performance in basic skills" (less
important for teachers with more years of college prepara-
tion).

In Table 25 are found the responses of teachers with
varying lengths of teaching experience for the items which
were considered relevant to the evaluation of learning.

Contrasted to the responses in Table 24 for teachers

with differing years of education, the teachers practiced

120

all the items listed more often with each increase in years

of eXperience.

with more years of college.

The opposite tendency was noted for teachers

TABLE 25.-~Weighted means of responses by years of teaching

 

 

 

experience
Years Means of Responses
Selected Questionnaire of
EXper-
Items ience Actual Desirable
Practice Practice

 

 

 

In my teaching,

is based on:

evaluation of student achievement

 

mastery of content and
skills.

behavioral change
(growth) of student.

standardized achievement
tests.

performance level of
the student.

ability level of the
student.

conduct of the student.

 

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121

TABLE 25.--Continued

 

 

 

 

 

1%!“ —==T=—.——=___-——__-—————————-
Years Means of Responses
Selected Questionnaire of
Exper-
Items ience Actual Desirable

Practice Practice
7. teacher observation. 0-1 2.1 2.3
1-4 2.4 2.5
5-14 2.5 2.6
15-up 2.5 2.6
8. paper and pencil tests. 0-1 1.6 1.8
1-4 2.0 1.9
5-14 1.8 1.8
lS-up 1.6 1.7
9. effort of the student. 0-1 2.5 2.7
1-4 2.5 2.7
5—14 2.6 2.7
lS-up 2.6 2.8
10. interview or conference 0-1 .8 1.7
with the student. 1-4 1.1 1.8
5-14 1.3 1.8
15-up 1.5 1.9
11. performance in basic 0-1 2.4 2.5
skills. 1—4 2.5 2.5
5-14 2.6 2.6
lS-up 2.8 2.8

 

 

 

 

For the "Desirable" column, with the exception of
"paper and pencil tests" (desired less with more years of
experience), the teachers show a desire for an increase in
use of all the items with an increase in years of experience.

One other exception is item 6, "conduct of the
student," which shows the teachers have no definite desire

for a change in emphasis with varying lengths of experience.

CHAPTER XIII

COMPARISON OF SELECTED QUESTIONFAIRE

RESPONSES WITH THE BASE

The comparisons made in this chapter were based on
the assumption that the description of various instructional
practices found in the base of this study represent good
activities, as derived from writings in the field of
education.

Since a statistical comparison between the question-
naire responses and the base was not feasible, the compari-
sons necessarily became judgmental in nature. The judgment
of the writer is reflected in the comparisons, particularly
where the frequency of a practice is considered in the light
of the base. Thus, if the frequency of practice was high
on an item considered important in the base, the writer
judged the particular practice to be ”good." Similarly, if
the frequence of practice was low on an item of the base
considered important, the writer judged the practice “poor"
or needing to be changed or improved.

With the above eXplanation of approach in mind,

comparison of the reported instructional practices, in terms

PI]

of the hypotheses concerning the base listed on page 5, 0:
this study follows.

122

123
Hypothesis 2

"There will be a difference between what the teachers
say they do and what this study's base suggests they do.”

By referring to Table 2, page 67, it can be seen that
the practices listed in items 1-10 occurred quite frequently.
In light of the base, such practices as helping "students
develop initiative, responsibility, and independence," or
developing I'civic rights and responsibilities” and "ethical
behavior," represent very commendable actions.

In the case of the above items, there was little or
no difference between the ideals of the base and the actual
practices of the teachers.

Items 11-13 of Table 2 present a different picture,
however. Evidently the teachers responding to this study
recognized a very small amount of influence on "goals for
education" by the described representatives of the local
community. The base suggests, in the section on Social
Foundations, an increase in the amount of involvement of
representatives of the community in the process of estab-
lishing goals for education. It has been claimed by commun—
ity members that teachers too often remain "within the four
walls of their classrooms." The responses to items 11—13
would tend to support this assertion by the public.

In Table 6, pages 77-78, the frequency that items
5-11 serve as goals of teaching is comparatively high. he
base suggests these items should receive heavy emphasis.

Teachers who attempt to develOp "fundamental skills of

124
communication and mathematics,” ”ability to think and evalu-
ate," and good "work habits and self discipline" are empha-
sizing basic 1earnings required for all persons, regardless
of their future occupations. Such goals as "intellectual
curiosity," as well as "physical and mental health,” must
not be ignored, regardless of the age and capability of the
learners or of the subject being learned. The teachers'
strong emphasis on these goals in their actual teaching is
excellent.

On the other hand, items 1 and 2, according to the
base, should receive more emphasis. If education is to
follow the scientific method described in the section on
Social Foundations, there should be much more involvement
of the teachers "in a research program on instruction." A
clearer understanding of ways and means of conducting
"action research" seems indicated.

Item 3, Table 6, "providing for individual differ—
ences,“ is repeatedly emphasized in the base. Although the
teachers reported a relatively high incidence for this prac-
tice, it seems mandatory that "individual differences be
provided for" almost continuously in a good teaching-learn-
ing situation. The principles found in the base lead to the
conclusion that this is one of the most important factors in
creating a good climate for learning. The teacher must hold
the individual needs of each student above all other factors.

It is suggested that the teachers were not doing his enough.

125

Item 4 presents an interesting enigma. The base
reiterates the subservience of subject matter, or "a body
of knowledge to be taught," to the psychological, emotional,
and social needs of the learner. Yet the teachers' responses
herein would tend to be the Opposite, with the needs of the
learner subject to the ”body of knowledge" which must be
taught. A very basic question raised by this item is "What
is subject matter, and what is its relationship to the needs
and interests of learners?"

A further question follows from considering the
responses to items 4 and 7. Can the heavy emphasis on " he
body of knowledge to be taught” be harmonized with the "goal
of teaching ability to think and evaluate"?

It would seem that there is a body of knowledge to
learn in almost every case, but the heavy emphasis shown by
the teachers' responses leads to the suggestion that they
are overstressing the "facts" and therefore do not give
pupils the chance to develop the "ability to think and
evaluate" which the base describes as so important.

Table 10, page 88, contains several items which
would be considered good practices in the base. They are
items 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 10. Of hese items, numbers 1
and 6, the use of “teacher-pupil planning" and "students
working in small groups,” should occur much more frequently
than the teachers reported. In the section of the base on
Organization for Instruction the two activities named above

are extremely important factors in providing for the individual

125
needs of the learners. The frequency of the other “good"
practices seems to be adequate. The base outlines the impor-
tance of ”helping guide students in personal—social problems“;

including the class ideas on 'decisions about what is studied";
and considering the ”aspirations and background of pupils
and parents.”

The frequency of practice for items 3, 4, and 9 is
questionable. If the teacher uses nuch more than half of the
time "explaining, iemonstrating, or lecturing to the entire
class as a group" and decides the goals for education by him-
self nuch of the time, then the role of the learner will be
too passive. The emphasis indicated here is upon the teacher
"telling a lesson” to the learner who must "be quiet and

listen,‘ rather than encouraging him to think, question,
evaluate, and generalize.

If individualizing instruction is to occur, he
strong emphasis reported on items 3, 4, and 9 should be
reversed. These teachers need to re-examine their activities.

In Table 14, page 98, the teachers indicated they
were "free to choose the method of teaching" approximately
87-1/2 per cent of the time. If this is true, it gives great
import to the statement found in the base that the heart of
the educational enterprise is in the teacher-learner rela-
tionship. Efforts to improve the teaching—learning process
must directly affect the individual teacher, since apparently
he is the one who makes the final decisions regarding in-

structional practices. The importance of the teacher in the

127
total educational climate cannot be overlooked, and their
freedom to make critical choices is underlined by item 2.
Therefore, to the extent the teachers are involved in
curriculum decisions will be the extent of curriculum
change.

Item 1 of Table 14 represents an activity which the
writings in the base would change. Having "each student use
the same textbook" is a practice which greatly limits the
ability of the teacher to individualize the instruction.

Emphasis on Items 3-9 is quite commendable, although
it is doubtful that "learning eXperiences organized in units”
could occur the same amount of time that “each student uses
the same textbook." It is suggested that one of the impor-
tant facets of ”units“ is the use of several different
textbooks by students at the same time. It is possible that
the teachers responding to this study did not define "unit“
in this manner.

The recommendation from the base calls for more "use
of field trips and people from the community as resources"
and less emphasis on "covering the content of the textbook"
than is indicated in Table 18, page 108.

Another improvement would be to "use the textbook as
a supplementary resource” more often. Certainly a more
"adequate supply of library, instructional and learning
materials" is needed. Perhaps the emphasis on textbooks
found in previous tables is due in part to the comparative

lack of other teaching materials.

123

The teachers "cover the content of the textbook”
much more than would seem desirable. The predetermined
content and sequence of textbooks might not always meet the
needs of individual classes or students.

Table 22, page 114, is devoted entirely to the sub-
ject of evaluation of learning. On the whole, it would
appear that the practices reported by the teachers in evalu-
ation are in accord with the principles outlined in the base.

Suggested changes would be in the direction of less
emphasis on "mastery of content and skills” coupled with
more emphasis on ”interview or conference with the student."
Evaluation must become more of a process, rather than an end,
and the involvement of the student in the process is vital.

A refreshing note is the relatively small emphasis on "paper
and pencil tests."

The following summary of observations seems warranted
in comparing the ideas of the base with the actual practices
of the teachers.

1) In general, the practice of the selected instruc—
tional activities falls short of the ideals proposed in the
base, thus supporting hypothesis two.

2) Practices most in need of improvement are classi-
fied as those relating to the individualizing of instruction
and balancing the emphasis on subject matter with mental
health, personality development, and learning how to learn.

3) The great extent that teachers are free to

choose the method of teaching emphasizes the key position

129
which the teacher holds in the area of curriculim
improvement.
4) Evaluation practices as reported were quite
favorable, with the exception that the learner ought to be

involved more in the total evaluation process.

Hypothesis 3
"There will be p2 difference between what the
teachers think they should do and what the study's base
suggests."
Table 2, page 67, supports this hypothesis for all

he items except the "goals of teaching." In the case of

.‘

these items, the teachers expressed a strong desire to have
such things as "respect and appreciation for human values,"
"ethical behavior," and "awareness of our relationship with
the world community" occupy less of their teaching time.

The base writings suggest just as strongly that these kinds

’2

or goals for teaching are much more apprOpriate than the
usual emphasis on "a body of knowledge."

In Table 6, pages 77-78, the same generalization
seems warranted. The teachers express the desire to have
their teaching improve toward the base ideals, xcept for
“goals of teaching" such as "fundamental skills of communi-
cation and mathexatics," "work habits and self discipline,"
or "mental health.” Instead of desiring more of these goals,

they want less effort and time to he given to teaching these

things. Coupled with the reduction in time spent on

130
developing "intellectual curiosity,” for example, is the
desire to increase the emphasis on the "body of knowledge
to be taught.“ his is in direct opposition to the prin-
ciples set forth in the base.

Every item in Table 10, page 83, supports hypothesis
three. All of the practices which concur with the base were
rated as more desirable by the teachers, while the three
items which should be emphasized less, according to the base,
Jere rated as less desirable. These less desirable items
were ”setting goals by me" and "explain, demonstrate, or
lecture to the total class as a group.”

Table 14, page 98, follows the pattern of Table 10.
That is, the precepts or the base are the same as those
expressed as more desirable by the teachers.

The exception is item 7, "wise Lse of time as a

"goal of teaching." The teachers want this goal to be less
important.

Table 13, page 108, once again shows the teachers
eXpressing the desire for rore of the practices acceptable
to the guidelines of the base.

Table 22, page 114, seems to support hypothesis
three, since the teachers show a desire for nore of the prac-
tices which were considered better in the section of the base
concerned with Evaluation of Learning. In addition they
eXpressed no desire to increase the less valuable parts of

evaluation such as "mastery of content and skills," ”paper

and pencil tests,” or "performance in basic skills."

131
In summary of the hypothesis concerned with compar-

the base and the teachers' desired practices, the follow-

C)

in;
ing statements seem to be justified.

1) In general, the practices whicd were more desired
by the teachers tended to support hypothesis three. The
teachers recognized that they should be doing better teach-
ing, and the "desirable" practices more nearly conformed to
those of the base.

2) he interesting exception is in the area of
"goals of teaching." The only goals which the teachers
seemed to want increased were of the "subject-matter" type.

Personality characteristics and "learning how to learn" were

not so desirable as goals of teaching.

Hypothesis 4

"Instructional practices will more nearly correspond
to this study's base for the following:

a) elementary teachers,

b) teachers with more years of college education,

c) teachers with more years of teaching experience."

Examination of data in Tables 3, 7, ll, 15, 19, and
23 will Show that elementary teachers' practices much more
nearly corresponded to the base when compared with the prac-
tices of secondary teachers. This seems to corroborate
hypothesis 4, a).

A few examples will serve to illustrate. In Table 3,

item 1 shows that "students learn to work together" 3.1 for

 

 

132
elementary and only 2.5 for secondary teachers. Item 3 of
Table 7 indicates elementary teachers "provide for individual
differences" 2.9 as compared to 2.3 for secondary teachers.
Elementary teachers listed "mental health" as a goal of their
teaching 3.3 while secondary teachers listed the same as a
goal 2.5.

For items which the base would suggest less time, the
elementary teachers actually used less time than secondary.
Table 11, item 3, has 2.6 for elementary teachers who
"explain, demonstrate, or lecture to the total class" while
secondary teachers do this 3.0, or more of the time.

Finally, "evaluation of student achievement was based
on behavioral change (growth) of the student" 2.8 by elemen-
tary and only 2.2 by secondary teachers, as found in item 2
of Table 23.

Teachers with more years of college education were
found to emphasize practices which were opposed to the ideals
of the base. Tables 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, and 24 showed the more
college education the teachers acquired, the less desirable
became their practices. This tends to refute hypothesis
4, b). The reader is referred to the tables listed for
details, but the following examples will demonstrate the
point.

In Table 4, item 1, the "students learn to work
together" 3.1 for teachers who have less than 4 years of
college; 2.9 for those with 4 to 9 years of college educa-

tion; and only 2.7 for teachers who have the master's

133
degree or higher.

"Individual differences are provided for" in item 3,
Table 8, by teachers who have under 4 years of college 2.8;
and 2.6 for teachers with more than 4 years of college
education. The same type of response is found in almost all
items in the tables. Teachers seem to become less effective
as they achieve more years of academic preparation.

On the other hand, teachers with more years of
teaching experience tended more nearly to follow the base.
Tables 5, 9, l3, 17, 21, and 25 showed that practices
improved, in terms of the base, for teachers who had more
years of experience, thus lending support to hypothesis 4, c).

For purposes of contrast, the same items which were
used to illustrate hypothesis 4, b) will be used for hypothe—
sis 4, c).

Table 5 shows in item 1 that "students learn to work
together" 2.5 for teachers in their first year of teaching;
2.6 for those with l to 4 years of experience: 2.8 for the
teachers who had taught from 5 to 14 years; and 3.0 for the
teachers with more than 15 years of teaching experience.

In Table 9, "individual differences are provided
for," item 3, by teachers in their first year of teaching
2.5; by teachers who have taught from 1 to 4 years 2.4; by
teachers with 5 to 14 years teaching 2.6; and 2.8 for teach—
ers with more than 15 years teaching experience.

It seems clear that the practices improved for

teachers who had more years of teaching experience.

134

Regarding what seems to be conflicting results, in
that the teachers with more years of college showed different
practices than the teachers with more years of experience, a
recent issue of the National Education Association Journal
has some interesting figures. From a study by their research
division reported therein, it was found that teachers who
had the most years of college but less experience were male,
and conversely, he teachers who had the most years of
experience but less formal college were female.1 This leads
to the suggestion (not considered in the data of this study)
that perhaps the teachers who had the most experience and
best practices were women, and those who had the most years
of college but poorer practices were men. As mentioned
parenthetically above, this study did not tabulate the
responses by sex differences.

In conclusion of this chapter, it was found that,
when compared to the base, the practices as reported by all
the teachers were in need of improvement; there was little
or no difference between the teachers' "ideal" practices and
the base--they seemed to know what was considered ”good."
Elementary teachers were better than secondary teachers in
light of the base; and the teachers with more years of col-
lege education showed poorer practices than those with more

years of experience.

 

1"American Public School Teachers, 1960-61," N.E.A.
Journal, Vol. 52, No. 4 (April, 1963), pp. 50-51.

PART III

CONCLUSIONS AND OBSERVATIONS

 

 

ti

\
1pm.

CHAPTER XIV

CONCLUSIONS AND OBSERVATIONS

Conclusions

Based on the analysis of data from the questionnaire

responses the following conclusions would seem warranted.

1)

2)

There was a difference between the selected
instructional practices reported by the teachers

and their ratings of the desirability of the

 

practices. In most instances, the teachers seemed
to recognize that the “good" practices (as defined
by the study's base) should occur more frequently.
Conversely, they desired less frequency for the
practices defined by the base as "not good."
Exception to the above conclusion was found in the
items classified as "goals of teaching." The base
described such goals of teaching as "wise use of
time," "ethical behavior," "ability to think and
evaluate," and "aesthetic appreciation" in a very
favorable way. Although the responses of the
teachers indicated these goals were dominant in
their actual teaching, they expressed the desire

that these goals be of lesser importance.

136

 

3)

4)

5)

6)

7)

8)

137
There was a difference between what the teachers
said they do and what the base suggested they do.
In general, the practice of the selected instruc-
tional activities fell short of the ideals proposed
in the base.
With the exception of items in "goals of teaching,"
there was practically no difference between what the
teachers thought they should do and what the study's
base suggests.
Elementary teachers had better practices than
secondary teachers, and they desired more of the
“good" practices than secondary teachers.
Teachers with more years of college education
generally favored the "poorer" practices. The
more years of college preparation, the poorer
were the practices.
Teachers with more years of teaching experience
generally favored the "better" practices. The
more years of teaching experience, the better were
the practices.
The teachers were "free to choose the method of
teaching" a mean of 87-1/2 per cent of the time,
and the most important source for "establishing
goals for education" was ”me" (the teacher).
The influence on "goals for education" by
"representatives of the community" or "the school

administration" was very slight.

138

10) The single most important factor in control or
change of the teaching—learning process is the
classroom teacher.

11) Another powerful factor in the teaching-learning
process seemed to be the textbook.

12) Thus, any efforts to improve instructional practices
must focus on the individual teachers and their
perceptions, coupled with careful analysis of the
role textbooks play in the climate for learning

of individual classrooms.
Observations

The following observations were considered worthy of
consideration, although they may not be as clearly derived
from the data as were the conclusions in the previous
section.

It seemed to the writer the practices as described
by the teachers represented a rather accurate picture of the
status of instructional activities in many of our contem-
porary public schools.

In light of the writings in the field of education
and the data from the questionnaire responses, there seemed
to be room for improvement and need for a strong change in
emphasis in the selected educational practices described in
this study. 3

In spite of the obvious impossibility of acquiring

all the facts in "the body of knowledge to be taught," as

 

 

 

139
has been emphasized by most leaders in the educational field
for over half a century, most of the teachers indicate this
as their major teaching goal. This emphasis by teachers on
subject matter seems to belie the fears of contemporary
critics of American education concerning a softening of the
schools' modern curriculum.

In fact, the desires of the teachers seem to follow
the same pattern as the critics when they indicate goals
such as "mental health," "social competency," "wise use of
time,“ or “work habits and self discipline" should occupy
less of their teaching efforts. In addition, the most import-
ant basis for evaluation of student achievement cited by the
teachers was ”mastery of content and skills." It is sug-
gested that this is what the critics of education have been
demanding.

The task of professional educators today must be more
comprehensive than teaching facts. The success of our demo—
cratic society depends upon human relations as much as it
does upon mastery of "the body of knowledge to be taught."
After mastery of the basic skills of communication, it seems
that ability to think and evaluate and learning how to learn
are more legitimate and enduring goals for education in our
dynamic and rapidly eXpanding society of today. It has been
confirmed many times that the children being educated today
will be occupied in jobs and skills which are not even in
existence at present. If the needs of our society are to be

met, the schools must produce learners capable of continuing

140
learning long after the finish of their formal education.

Although the conclusions in the previous chapter
suggested a difference in practices for the several kinds
of teachers described, it seemed that another way to con-
sider these results was possible. There appeared to be only
a small difference in the practices between any of the groups
concerned. That is, there was not much difference in the
practices of teachers of elementary or secondary levels; nor
much difference between teachers with few or many years of
college; nor between teachers with a short or long length
of experience. It is suggested that there was a fairly
standard type of teaching occurring in each of the classi-
fications considered. It is possible that the questionnaire
designed for this study was not able to measure the primary
factors which determine the difference between mediocre and
outstanding teaching.

The primary observation of the writer after con-
ducting this study was as follows.

There are many differing, but legitimate, kinds of
teaching occurring in the public schools_today.l There are
many variables which can be altered, such as grouping
procedures, grading systems, scheduling time, varying
content, enriching course offerings, supplying extra instruc-
tional materials;*providing consultant help, improving work-
ing conditions, consolidating districts, and so on, down a

long list of possibilities. Much of the effort of educators

141
today is concerned with ideas like those presented above,
and these things must be considered.

However, there is a key factor which transcends all
such efforts to improve educational systems. It is the
climate for learning which exists every time a teacher and
a learner meet. This "climate for learning" is the product
of human relations which develop between the teacher and the
learner as they work together.

The heart of teaching is found in the effort of one
human to help another become a better person. The most
challenging and rewarding experiences of teaching arise from
the human relations which occur between the teacher and the
learner as they work together toward higher goals. It is
felt that this relationship can occur in an amazing variety
of educational situations. The systems which help engender
continuous teacher-pupil relations of the kind described are
best, naturally. But good teacher-learner relations can
occur in spite of the various kinds of educational patterns
which exist. The teacher, and how he perceives other people,
in the final analysis, will be the determining factor in
establishing a good or poor climate for learning.

f} An educational system wherein people are most im-
portant, and a non—threatening atmosphere exists, will help
human relations develop to their fullest, and will make it
possible for both teachers and learners to perceive and to
become better humans as they work together toward this

ultimate goal of education.

 

IIIE

m

142
It is suggested that a most fruitful area for
further research lies in analyzing and developing the best
human relations inherent in the teacher-pupil relationship.
Further studies might attempt to develop ways and means of
implementing the knowledge gained concerning human relations

in teacher education programs.

APPENDIX A

144

iICHIGAN EDUCATION
ASSOCIATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
935 N. Washington Ave.
Box 5007, Lansing 5, Michigan

Dear Fellow Educator,

This is the second and last questionnaire being distrib-
uted by the newly organized Research Division of the Michigan
Education Association, in c00peration with the Detroit Educa-
tion Association during the 1960-61 school year. Research in
education is a much needed activity - it requires the time
and participation of many professional people. It is hOped
you will contribute once again.

The response to the first study - "moonlighting or hold-
ing of a second job" — was very gratifying. Approximately
seventy per cent of the persons receiving the questionnaire
responded — a remarkable return in view of no "follow—up”
letter. We sincerely hOpe the replies to this second study
will be at least as good or better. Results of both studies
will be reported in the ”Journal" next fall.

The present study (enclosed questionnaire) is an attempt
to discover the present status of classroom practices. It is
not intended as an evaluation of your individual practices.
Your answers and opinions will be machine punched and ana-
lyzed without reference to individual names. However, a
small percentage of respondents will be interviewed later,
so we are asking for your name and school district. This is
a research project and we wish to assure you it will be com-
pletely objective. Please answer all questions as frankly as
you can, since only then can the results be meaningful.

Time and financial limitations again make any complete
follow-up impossible. We trust your interest will enable us
to complete a successful study. We again want to thank you
for your cooperation. This type of study will be continued
next year, but an entirely new sample of membership will be
made, so in all probability this will be our last communica—
tion of this nature to you.

Sincerely,

Stanley Hecker (signed) Alfred Jones (signed)
Director of Research President

Michigan Education Association Detroit Education Association

Please return questionnaire by May 19th.

Ill Jill.
.I, rkhycflw | v I I.

r... ...

 

APPENDIX B

I-l

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(A

BIBLIOGRAPHY

BOOKS

Alcorn, Marvin D., and Linley, James M. (eds.) Issues in
Curriculum Develgpment. Yonkers-on-Hudson, New York:
World Book Company, 1959.

 

Baller, Warren R., and Charles, Don C. The Psychology of
Human Growth and Development. New York: Holt, Rine-
hart and Winston, 1961.

 

Carmichael, Leonard (ed.). Manual of Child Psyphology.
New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1946.

 

Combs, Arthur W., and Snygg, Donald. Individual Behavior.
New York: Harper and Brothers, 1959.

 

Cronbach, L. J. (ed.) Text Materials in Modern Education.
Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois Press, 1955.

Highet, Gilbert. The Art of Teaching. New York: Alfred A.
Knopf, 1952.

 

Hilgard, E. R. Theories of Learning. 2d ed. New York:
Appleton-Century-Crofts, Inc., 1956.

 

Jamieson, M. C., and Hicks, W. V. Elementary School Cur-
riculum. New York: American Book Company, 1960.

 

Jersild, Arthur T. Child Development and the Curriculum.
New York: Bureau of Publications, Teachers College,
Columbia University, 1946.

Jersild, A. J. When Teachers Face Themselves. New York:
Bureau of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia
University, 1955.

Lee, Murray L., and Lee, Doris M. The Child and His Curricu-
lum. New York: D. Appleton-Century Company, 1940.

 

McNally, Harold J., and Passow, Harry A. Improving the
Quality of Public School Programs. New York: Bureau

of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia University,
1960.

 

Olson, Willard C. Child Develgpment. Boston: D. C. Heath
and Co., 1949.

148

149

Sayers, Ephraim V., and Madden, Ward. Education and the
Democratic Faith. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts,
Inc., 1959.

 

 

Stratemeyer, Florence B., and Others. Develgping a Curricu-
lum for Modern Living. 2d ed. New York: Bureau of
Publications, Teachers College, Columbia University, 1957.

 

 

YEARBOOKS

Anderson, Lester B., and Gates, Arthur I. ”The General
Nature of Learning," Learning and Instruction. (Forty-
Ninth Yearbook of the National Society for the Study
of Education, Part I.) Chicago, Illinois: The Univer-
sity of Chicago Press, 1950.

 

Balance in the Curriculum. (1960 Yearbook of the Associa-
tion for Supervision and Curriculum Development.)
Washington 6, D.C.: 1201 Sixteenth St., N.W., National
Education Association, 1961.

 

Burton, William H. "Implications for Organization of In-
struction and Instructional Adjuncts," Learning and
Instruction. (Forty-Ninth Yearbook of the National
Society for the Study of Education, Part I.) Chicago,
Illinois: The University of Chicago Press, 1950.

 

 

Buswell, Guy T. “Helping Children Learn How to Learn,"
Learning and the Teacher. (1959 Yearbook of the Asso-
ciation for Supervision and Curriculum Development.)
Washington 6, D.C.: National Education Association,
1201 Sixteenth St., N.W., 1959.

Hilgard, Ernest R., and Russell, David H. "Motivation in
School Learning," Learning and Instruction. (Forty-
Ninth Yearbook of the National Society for the Study
of Education, Part I.) Chicago, Illinois: The Uni—
versity of Chicago Press, 1950.

 

Smith, Nila B. "Reading for Today's Children," The National
Elementary Principal. (Thirty-Fourth Yearbook of the
Department of Elementary School Principals.) Washing—
ton 6, D.C.: National Education Association, 1201
Sixteenth St., N.W., 1955.

 

Swenson, Esther J. "Applications of Learning Principles
to the Improvement of Teaching in the Early Elementary
Grades," Learningpand Instruction. (Forty-Ninth Year-
book of the National Society for the Study of Education,
Part I.) Chicago, Illinois: The University of Chicago
Press, 1950.

150

ARTICLES AND PERIODICP S

“American Public School Teachers, 1960—61," N.E.A. Journal,
52, No. 4 (April, 1963), 50-51.

 

Barr, A. S. "Characteristics of Successful Teachers,"
Phi Delta Kappan, XXXIX (March, 1958), 232-283.

Burton, William H. "Basic Principles in a Good Teaching—
Learning Situation,“ Phi Delta Kappan, XXX X (March,
1958), 242.

Bush, Robert N. ”Principles of Successful Teacher—Pupil
Relationship," Phi Delta Kappan, XXXIX (March, 1958),
271.

Koerner, James D. "The Tragedy of the Conant Report,"

Phi Delta Kappan, XLII (December, 1960), 121-124.

Rickover, H. G. “A Comparison: European vs. American
Secondary Schools," Phi Delta Kappan, XXXX (November,
1958), 60-64.

Thomas, Murray R. "Research Dealing with the Materials of
Learning," Phi Delta Kappan, XXXIX (March, 1958), 265.

PAMPHLETS

The Principals Look at the Schools. (A Working Paper Pre-
pared for the Project on the Instructional Program of
the Public Schools.) Washington 6, D.C.: National
Education Association, 1201 Sixteenth St., N.W., 1962.

Rothney, John W.M. "Evaluating and Reporting Pupil Progress,"
What Research Says to the Teacher. (Series of Pamphlets
Sponsored by the Department of Classroom Teachers and
the American Educational Research Association.) Wash-
ington 6, D.C.: National Education Association, 1201
Sixteenth St., N.W., 31.

wrightstone, J. Wayne. "Class Organization for Instruction,"
What Research Says to the Teacher. (Series of Pamphlets
Sponsored by the Department of Classroom Teachers and
the American Educational Research Association.) Wash—
ington 6, D.C.: National Education Association, 1201
Sixteenth St., N.W., 1-33.

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