altogether with either tasks or spelling-books, as these concentrate the attention and hasten the process of learning, which, in a primary school, are essentially necessary. But the system of spelling from dictation renders the requisite tasks easier and more permanently useful. In what tasks ought to consist. Every child should prepare at home two or three paragraphs of a reading-lesson, but he ought to do this by merely reading the words attentively over two or three times, or more frequently if found necessary; and he ought also to test himself by spelling them over, and writing them down. The spelling-book must be of a peculiar construction. The spelling-book which is allowable must be of peculiar construction, and it must be confined chiefly to the senior classes. It should contain all words liable, from whatever cause, to be misspelled, arranged either in columns, or in sentences for dictation -the best arrangement being in sentences-and it should be treated both as a task-book and as a book of reference for both teacher and children. Advantages of it. Such a book collects and arranges all words of irregular orthography, and thus affords the teacher an easy opportunity of including them in the dictation exercises, while the study of the book by the children is one means of making the eye familiar with their forms. TRANSCRIBING. Practice in writing also necessary. Attention to what I have already advanced will enable the children to spell orally with correctness and ease. This is a great deal, but it is not enough; for the true test of spelling is in writing, and it has been fully established by the experience of all educationists, that children will make blunders in writing down what they would spell orally with accuracy. It is strange that correctness in the one case does not produce correctness in the other; there seems, however, to be no doubt but that some special practice with the pen is essentially necessary to secure perfect accuracy. Fingers must be educated as well as lips. Moreover, it must be remembered that orthography is required for writing and not for speaking, and therefore the fingers and not the lips must be educated, so as to produce the words correctly, without premeditation. The eye, under the influence of correct impressions, must direct the hand, just as in acquiring sounds the ear directs the tongue.1 1 Marcel on Language. WRITING FROM DICTATION. 67 Value of copying. Hence the necessity of transcribing, or making a written copy of portions of a printed book. The eye is obliged to look carefully at the printed words, and thus cannot fail to notice effectually each letter, and its true position. Should copy passages of interest, &c. In carrying this out, the passages selected for the senior classes ought to be remarkable for some excellence either in style or thought, or they should be sufficiently interesting to attract the attention forcibly. They would thus not only improve the orthography, but they would also cultivate the taste, create a desire for literature, supply useful matter for thought, and improve the composition of the children. Should not merely glance at the words. The pupils also should not glance merely at each word and then transcribe it, for thus the impression is too casual and transient to be valuable; they should commit at least five or six words to memory, and then, without looking at the book, transfer them to the paper. They should insert the pauses as they occur in the passage before them. And finally, when this is faithfully done, they should compare the whole with the original, and note all errors. This induces carefulness, and, of course, produces ultimate correctness. May be made available in learning lessons at home, &c. This exercise may be made available in the learning of home lessons, for, by causing the children to copy out carefully whatever they are to repeat in school, the trouble of committal will be greatly lessened. WRITING FROM DICTATION. Remarks divide themselves into those that refer to teaching spelling, and those designed to test the teaching. In spelling, as in most of the other subjects, my observations have been divided into two heads-those which refer to the teaching of the subject, and those designed chiefly to test this teaching. I have just treated of the one class, and now it remains for me to refer to the other. All written exercises test. All forms of written exercises may be used to test spelling, and by suitable corrections, &c., to teach it also. The chief of these are, original composition, writing from memory, and writing from dictation. As I refer to the first two in other places, I need here refer only to the last, especially as the system of correction, which I am about to describe, and by which these exercises teach spelling, is equally applicable to all. Writing from dictation. Writing from dictation has been 1 Mr. Morrell, Min. of Council, 1861-2, p. 186, says of it: Writing from dictation is the only radical cure for bad spelling.' Mr. Wilkinson even says (1856-7, p. 677, and 1854-5, p. 728) that it ought to required for a very long time from the advanced classes, but it has not been carefully or skilfully taught, and therefore it has not done much good. On the contrary, indeed, owing to the system of teaching at present in force, it is scarcely too much to say that it has been pernicious instead of being advantageous. It is conducted as if its value was in the actual writing, instead of being, from its very nature as a test, in the detection of errors and their correction. Parts of a complete dictation exercise. A complete dictation exercise consists of the following parts : : (1) Selecting and reading out the passage; (2) Writing it down; (3) Detecting the errors; (4) Correcting them; and (5) Taking such steps as will prove that this correction has been successful in removing the false impressions permanently from the minds of the children. Of The last three most valuable but most neglected. these the last three are the most valuable, as it is upon them almost exclusively it depends whether the exercise will do good or evil, yet they are the most neglected, probably from being the most troublesome. I shall make a few remarks upon each of these parts in order. 1. The passage. Although the primary object of a dictation exercise is to test and thereby teach spelling, it can be made subservient to other purposes, without interfering with its true design. It may, for instance, be made the means of impressing more firmly what has been already communicated to the class, or of imparting valuable information, by selecting the passages for dictation, in the first case from a lesson already read and explained, and, in the next, from books of established reputation. Should interest and improve. The passages should be such as would interest and improve. In the junior classes, however, the master should be guided principally by the orthography of the words; as the pupils advance, he may place before them passages worthy of remembrance. In his own studies he should mark, from time to time, for dictation exercises, passages either illustrative of peculiarities of spelling, or containing some valuable or interesting information suitable to the comprehension of his children. Explanation of passage necessary before writing. The passage should always be selected, for the least advanced classes, from lessons which they already know, and to the higher classes supersede oral spelling altogether,' means of teaching than as a test, which it strictly is, and they make it include writing from a book, writing from memory, &c. &c. SAID TO INJURE THE HANDWRITING. 69 it should be read over and explained—the master giving a brief running commentary upon its general sense, before any child is permitted to write it down,-for, unless pupils fully understand what they are about to write, great confusion and loss of time result, together with their inseparable consequence—incorrectness. How to prevent noise in giving out the passage. This exercise is frequently very noisy; the children are continually asking the master or each other questions, which ought on no account to be permitted. To avoid the necessity which leads to this, the most inexpert should be placed nearest the master, so that he may from time to time glance at their exercises, and tell them what they need quietly and without interrupting the general business. If, however, they fall too far behind, they should be instructed to go on with the rest, leaving a blank space to be filled up when the sentence is being read over the second time to test its accuracy. The sentences should also be dictated in small portions at a time, just sufficient to be easily remembered, and in a firm tone of voice-not in a loud and noisy tone, but in one that is clear and distinct—and directed to the farthest desk. The quantity dictated should be the same for each day. Pupils should write the same amount each day. I have generally recommended that as much should be written as will fill about a page of a small copy-book, containing fifteen closely-ruled lines. (The Commissioners of National Education supply these to the schools in Ireland neatly bound in red paper covers.) Ordinary children write at the rate of about one line per minute, and thus the writing of the exercise, allowing for distributing the paper, &c., will occupy about twenty minutes, which I find quite sufficient. 2. The writing. Must be neat, &c. This must be performed very carefully, and neatly, and with the same attention to progress in penmanship as if the exercise were specially designed for that purpose. Objection against dictation, that it produces bad writing. One of the objections most frequently urged against a dictation exercise is, that it tends to injure the style of writing. Such an objection has obtained nearly all the weight it possesses from the many instances met with in which the writing is extremely bad, and carelessly executed; but as an argument against a really wellconducted dictation exercise, it is quite invalid. Answered. This will easily appear by considering what it is that does injure the handwriting. It may be injured by scribbling, by rapid and hasty execution, by slovenly and untidy habits, by using improper pens, by holding the pens badly, by sitting im properly, &c., but not one of all these causes forms a necessary part of the dictation exercise. If the pupils write carelessly, scribble, blot their books, use bad pens, &c., the blame rests with the master, and not with the exercise. Mr. Jenkins supports my views upon this point. He says, 'There is no reason to suppose that a proper system of inspection would not secure attention to writing being equally well executed in this case as in others.' Another cause for the objection. Another cause for the prevalence of this objection is that the writing in the dictation exercises, even when the utmost pains are taken by the master to make it good, appears always worse than what is contained in the ordinary copy books. The dictation exercise gets the blame of producing the difference which thus becomes apparent; but the fact is that in this case it merely lays bare the defects which it is accused of creating. The error committed is in estimating the true proficiency of the penmanship from the ordinary papers, but these form an unfair test, as children will, naturally, write better with a model line before them which they can imitate, than when they have no such help. It is similar to the error of judging of swimming by witnessing several performances by the aid of corks and floats. When the corks are thrown away, the results are generally less satisfactory, but we do not on that account accuse the corks of creating the difference; on the contrary, we see that it is necessary to take them away, in order to form just conclusions. Will actually improve the writing, by giving it boldness. My impression is, that though this exercise will not certainly teach writing, it will not, unless carelessly conducted, injure it; and when the hand is formed, it will even give it finish and boldness. What is called 'good penmanship' is merely 'showy penmanship,' every line according to rule like an engraver's piece, and requiring for its execution a large amount of time; but what ought to be aimed at in our schools, is a plain, bold, free, legible hand, and this the dictation, among other exercises, tends to produce. Teacher should see that the pupils have good pens, &C., and he must attend to blotting, scribbling, &c., when inspecting the books. It is the duty of the teacher who conducts this exercise to see that the children are provided with proper pens and holders, that they hold them correctly, and bear their bodies properly on the seats, and that while writing they avoid haste on the one hand, and slowness on the other. A glance of the eye is sufficient for all this. The other errors, such as blotting, scribbling, erasures, &c., can be noted during the examination of the copybooks, and specially dealt with afterwards. (I have mentioned erasures as a fault; by that I mean the habit of rubbing |