著者

松本 賢治

出版者

横浜国立大学

雑誌

横浜国立大学教育紀要 (ISSN:05135656)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.8, pp.1-23, 1968-12-20

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By reading in the original we mean a lesson that uses texts written in any of European languages, the most current being the English. An essential reason of this practice is naturally in the universal character of learning, but we wish to add one more. That is the isolative one of our mother tongue. The latter means a formidable barrier to communication and a handicap for our culture and learning. This is why a reading in the original becomes an indispensable course to our colleges. Here is an example of such a lesson. The author gives it to sophomores majoring education, using a text (Moore's Modern Education in America), once a week through the year. At the outset of the new year, he explains his plan as follows-we will read 4 pages in substantial at a time; all participants will quite at random be asked to read and interprete several lines one by one; each and all should prepare the lesson, otherwise he will be wise (?) not to attend; a report of summary is requested for all to hand in two days after the lesson; and so on. So the lesson goes on. Immediately before the summer vacation, just at tenth lesson, the author asks all to write freely how they think and feel about this lesson. Answers are naturally miscellaneous but he discovers that students are all honest and have will to study. They say, this is severe, painful, burdensom and is their first experience, etc., but at the same time, they have a good luck to reflect on themselves about insufficiency of basic knowledge and of skill of foreign languages. They say, all depends upon how they do their best for the lesson, We firmly believe that the central job of college education is to cultivate thinking ability of students. All lectures should do so, and reading in the original can never be exceptional. According to Dewey, thinking develops step by step: thrown into difficulties or perplexities; collecting data; making assumptions; testing them; and conclusion. This is of course a pragmatic explanation and very instructing. Can this rule be applied to our lesson? We tried and found it valid. Anyhow, in the case of reading in the original, students' preparation is the secret of success, and reporting summary after lesson will make it secure. Why such a truism? An old saying tells us: easy to speak, not easy to do. Concerning texts, classics or standard works should be selected. The educational value of classics is beyond doubt. Standard works are of authoritative content and good style, written by reliable authors. We think also that a desirable text should be one which teacher have read and have a passion to read it again with students. Some professors change texts year by year, but we doubt whether it be wise or not.