Syllabification.-Syllabification is the act or method

of dividing words into syllables. A syllable is an elementary sound, or combination of such sounds, uttered

with a single effort or impulse of the voice, and constituting a word or a part of a word.

Exercises in the proper syllabification are helpful in that they assist students in pronunciation, in placing the accent, and in correctly visualizing the word for spelling.

Accent.-Accent is a special articulative effort giving prominence to a syllable of a word.

Correct accent can be acquired by the students in the classroom, in two ways:

1. By imitating the accent of the teacher.

2. By reference to the dictionary.

The latter method can be employed only in classes of high intermediate or advanced grades. Occasionally it would be advisable to select words from the lesson content for drill on accent.

Characteristic Racial Errors.-Each language has its own peculiar phonic interpretations. A foreign-born individual who attempts to learn English will naturally carry over those interpretations to the English language. Difficulties in phonics will thus arise from the very beginning, but these difficulties will vary for the different national groups. The teacher should, therefore, acquire some knowledge of the phonics of the languages represented among her students in order that she may be constantly alert to the specific problems of pronunciation in her classroom. However, the teacher should not confuse the student by making comparisons in pronunciation between the new language and the mother tongue. A knowledge on the part of the teacher of the phonic difficulties of the mother tongue of students receiving instruction, enables her to understand better their phonic

difficulties with the new language, and directs effectively her efforts to overcome these difficulties. Let us suppose that in a certain group there are Italians, Hungarians, and Bohemians. To give real phonic aid to each type, it is necessary that the teacher know the basic phonic rules of the Italian, Hungarian, and Bohemian languages. It is of especial value to know the differences between the sound of identical letters or combinations of letters in English and in the foreign tongue.

It may, at first thought, appear a stupendous task to acquire such knowledge, but in reality it is not impossible. A teacher may call upon two or three of her most intelligent students for aid. She should follow a definite system for inquiry. At opportune moments when students come in early or when a class is doing busy work, she may glean the information gradually. Such investigation and comparison should, however, be avoided during regular class work.

The first step might consist in getting equivalent phonic values of vowels in English and in the language of the student. The second step could be to determine the voiced and voiceless consonants of the foreign language. This is especially important with Germans, Slavs, and Jews. Their habit of pronouncing d, b, and v without voicing, results in sounding those letters t, þ, and f. Thus the teacher, in the attempt, may discover many useful points which will give her a sympathetic understanding of specific phonic difficulties, and consequently she may be directed toward finding methods for overcoming them.

OF

CHAPTER XII

THE TEACHING OF HISTORY

If we suppose a sufficient righteousness and intelligence in men to produce presently, from the tremendous lessons of history, an effective will for a world peace-that is to say, an effective will for a world law under a world government, for in no other fashion is a secure world peace conceivable-in what manner may we expect things to move toward this end? . It is an educational lash, and its very essence is to bring to the minds of all men everywhere, as a necessary basis for world cooperation, a new telling and interpretation, a common interpretation, of history.-"Outline of History," H. G. Wells, ch. XLII., par. 2.

. . .

Significance of American History to the Adult Immigrant. One of the most important subjects in the school for the immigrant as well as for the American-born is history. It is of vital interest to the individual, for it can assist him to live through vicariously the struggles that Americans have made from the beginning to develop the American nation. To understand America, to sympathize with America, and finally to become a citizen at heart, he must have had the opportunity to live with America from its infancy. History can assist him to discover the ideals that America has striven to attain; history can help him to understand the fundamental movements that have caused the development of the American nationality. It is through history that he can get that panoramic view of American growth and development, that sweep of history which gives meaning to the present day. The adult student who comes from the historical traditions of Europe is in an especially splendid position to see the contrasts and similarities of our

MA

national development as compared with those of his native country, if they are presented to him from this panoramic viewpoint. How futile, indeed, in the past, has been our haphazard presentation to the foreign-born student of mere unrelated facts of American history!

The Aims in Teaching History. In this age of struggle for democracy, the student should see and feel the tendencies that are the outgrowth of a free government, its problems, and its advantages; that he may thus have the background for actual and intelligent participation in American life and institutions. To lay such a foundation for American citizenship requires a certain equipment of knowledge; but the absorption of a mere chronological series of facts falls far short of laying such a foundation. The student must come to understand the spirit that typifies American life.

The amount of time that can be devoted to the teaching of history to the immigrant student is necessarily brief. It is therefore essential that a definite outline covering the entire history up to the present time be carefully worked out. Only the most vital and salient points can be touched upon. If history lessons were worked out, keeping in mind certain definite questions that are or should be of vital importance to the foreign-born student, history instruction would assume a purposeful and virile position. Here are some of the questions that should be used as a basis for developing history instruction:

1. What has been the growth of the American nation ?

2. How have the people struggled to improve the standards of living?