THE TEACHING PROCESS. 1. ITS NATURE. PRELIMINARY STATEMENT. PART I. The Teacher's Teaching Work. CHAPTER 1. Teaching ALL Sunday-school teachers ought to be teachers in the Sunday-school. Being teachers in the Sunday-school, they ought to teach in the Sundayschool. In order to teach in the Sunday-school, Nature of the they need to know what teaching is. An initial purpose of this volume is so to designate and define the nature and methods, and so to indicate the comparative rarity, of proper Sunday-school teaching, as will enable Sunday-school teachers to know whether or not they are, or ever have been, teachers in the Sunday-school. There is practical need of honest doubt at this point; especially on the part of those who have never supposed there was any cause of questioning just here. confusion. This may, indeed, seem to be a confusing and a Gain through discouraging way of approaching so important a subject; but there is sometimes a gain through one's being confused and discouraged. If one is in serious PART I. The Teacher's Teaching Work. CHAPTER 1. error, it is important to find it out. If one is on the wrong track, it is well for him to be discouraged in and from his purpose of continuing on that track. Nature of the And, in such a case, confusion of mind may be a necessary preliminary to a new clearness of apprehension. And first, in this instance, it is well to note, that not all teaching is teaching. Teaching Process. Vague Notions of Teaching. 5 I. NOT ALL TEACHING IS TEACHING. Teaching and Teaching; Vague Notions of Teaching; One Hindrance to Knowledge; Claiming is not Having; How Muny "Teachers" are Teachers? EVERYBODY will admit that not all teaching is what it ought to be. Everybody might fairly admit that not all teaching is what it is supposed to be. Whether it be generally admitted or not, it is certainly true, that a great deal that bears the name of "teaching" is by no means entitled to that name; that although it is "teaching," in name, it is not teaching, in fact. There are even those who call themselves "teachers" who do not know whether they are teachers or not. They actually cannot tell what teaching is. The very word "teaching" has a vague and undefined meaning in their minds; and they would be puzzled to give it any fair explanation. PART I. The Teacher's Teaching Work. CHAPTER 1. Nature of the Teaching Process. ance may hinder knowledge. It is, indeed, often the case, that our familiarity Acquaintwith a word stands in the way of our knowing that word's meaning. We are so accustomed to the word itself, and have freely used it so long, that we PART I. The Teacher's Teaching Work. CHAPTER 1. Teaching do not stop to consider its real scope and limitations, as we employ and apply it; nor would it always be easy for us to express our understanding of the idea Nature of the which it is designed to convey. In many cases, therefore, there is a decided gain in our putting ourselves directly at the task of settling the meaning of a word which is on our lips every day of our lives. We may find that we have had an entirely wrong conception of its signification and purport; or, again, we may find that we have had no specific conception of its signification and purport, but have merely taken it as the current designation of a fact, or a thing, with which we are in a general way familiar. Define teaching That "teaching" is a word of this sort, will be plain to almost any one who gives the matter a moment's reflection. What is "teaching"? You say that you are a teacher: what do you mean by that? You say that you are "ready to teach" your class: what do you mean by that? You say that you "have taught" your class: what do you mean by that? How many of those who call themselves, or who are called by others, " Sunday-school teachers," have a clear idea of what "teaching" is,Sunday-school teaching or any other kind of teaching,—or, can define their understanding of that term? Yet how can a person fairly be called a teacher, when he does not as yet know what teaching is? There would certainly seem to be very little hope of a man's success in any line of endeavor, so long as he is igno |