382. Intuitive and Natural Instruction. ВЂ” a pupil of

the sensational school, a disciple of Locke and of Condillac,

La Chalotais is too much inclined to misconceive, in the

development of the individual, the \>\&y of natural activities

and innate dispositions. But, by way of compensation, his

predilection for sensationalism leads him to excellent thoughts

on the necessity of beginning with sensible objects before

advancing to intellectual studies, and first of all to secure an

education of the senses.

' ' I wish nothing to be taught children except facts which

ORIGIN OF LAY AND NATIONAL INSTRUCTION. 347

are attested by the eyes, at the age of seven as at the age of

thirty.

" The principles, for instructing children should be those

by which nature herself instructs them. Nature is the best

of teachers.

" Every method which begins with abstract ideas is not

made for children.

" Let children see many objects ; let there be a variety of

such, and let them be shown under many aspects and on

various occasions. The memory and the imagination of

children cannot be overcharged with useful facts and ideas

of which they can make use in the course of their lives."

Such are the principles according to which La Chalotais

organizes his plan of studies.

383. The New Spirit in Education. — The purpose,

then, is to replace that monastic and ultramontane education

(this is the term employed by La Chalotais), and also that

narrow education, and that repulsive and austere discipline,

" which seems made only to abase the spirit" ; that sterile

and insipid teaching, "the most usual effect of which is to

make study hated for life " ; those scholastic studies where

young men " contract the habit of disputing and caviling" ;

and those ascetic regulations " which set neatness and health

at defiance." The purpose is to initiate children into our

most common and most ordinary affairs, into what forms

the conduct of life and the basis of civil society.

"Most young men know neither the world which they

inhabit, the earth which nourishes them, the men who supply

their needs, the animals which serve them, nor the workmen

and citizens whom they employ. They have not even any

desire for this kind of knowledge. No advantage is taken

of their natural curiosity for the purpose of increasing it.

348 THE HISTORY OF PEDAGOGY.

They know how to admire neither the wonders of nature nor

the prodigies of the arts."

This is equivalent to saying that they should henceforth

learn all that up to this time they had been permitted to be

ignorant of.

384. Studies of the First Period. — Education, ac-

cording to La Chalotais, should be divided into two periods :

the first from five to ten, the second from ten to seventeen.

During the first period, we have to do with children who

have no experience because they have seen nothing, who

have no power of attention because they are incapable of any

sustained effort, and no judgment because they have not yet

any general ideas ; but who, by way of compensation, have

senses, memory, and some power of reflection. It is neces-

sary, then, to make a careful choice of the subjects of study

which shall be proposed to these tender intelligences ; and

La Chalotais decides in favor of history, geography, natural

history, physical and mathematical recreations.

"The exercises proposed for the first period," he says,

" are as follows : learning to read, write, and draw ; dancing

and music, which ought to enter into the education of persons

above the commonalty ; historical narratives and the lives of

illustrious men of every country, of every age, and of every

profession ; geography, mathematical and physical recrea-

tions ; the fables of La Fontaine, which, whatever may be

said of them, ought not to be removed from the hands of

children, but all of which they should be made to learn by

heart ; and besides this, walks, excursions, merriment, and

recreations ; I do not propose even the studies except as

amusements."

385. Criticism of Negative Education. — La Chalotais

is often right as against Rousseau. For example, he has

abundantly refuted the Utopia of a negative education in

ORIGIN OF LAY AND NATIONAL INSTRUCTION. 349

which nature is allowed to have her way, and which consid-

ers the toil of the centuries as of no account. It is good sense

itself which speaks in reflections like these : —

" If man is not taught what is good, he will necessarily

become preoccupied with what is bad. The mind and the

heart cannot remain unoccupied. . . . On the pretext of

affording children an experience which is their own, they are

deprived of the assistance of others' experience."

386. History avenged of the Disdain op Rousseau. —

The sophisms of Rousseau on history are brilliantly refuted.

History is within the comprehension of the youngest. The

child who can understand Tom Thumb and Blue Beard, can

understand the history of Romulus and of Clovis. More-

over, it is to the history of the most recent times that

La Chalotais attaches the greatest importance, and in this

respect he goes beyond his master Rollin : —

" I would have composed for the use of the child histories

of every nation, of every century, and particularly of the

later centuries, which should be written with greater detail,

and which should be read before those of the more remote

centuries. I would have written the lives of illustrious men

of all classes, conditions, and professions, of celebrated

heroes, scholars, women, and children."

387. Geography. — La Chalotais does not separate the

studj* of geography from that of history, and he requires

that, without entering into dry and tedious details, the pupil

be made to travel pleasantly through different countries, and

that stress be put " on what is of chief importance and inter-

est in each country, such as the most striking facts, the

native land of great men, celebrated battles, and whatever

is most notable, either as to manners and customs, to

natural productions, or to arts and commerce."

350 THE HISTORY OF PEDAGOGY.

388. Natural History. — Another study especially

adapted to children, says La Chalotais with reason, is

natural history : ' ' The principal thing is first to show the

different objects just as they appear to the eyes. A repre-

sentation of them, with a precise and exact description, is

sufficient."

" Too great detail must be avoided, and the objects chosen

must be such as are most directly related to us, which are

the most necessary and the most useful."

" Preference shall be given to domestic animals over those

that are wild, and to native animals over those of other

countries. In the case of plants, preference shall be given

to those that serve for food and for use in medicine."

As far as possible, the object itself should be shown, so

that the idea shall be the more exact and vivid, and the

impression the more durable.

389. Recreations in Physics. — La Chalotais explains

that he means by this phrase observations, experiments, and

the simplest facts of nature. Children should early be made

acquainted with thermometers, barometers, with the micro-

scope, etc.

390. Recreations in Mathematics. — All this is excellent,

and La Chalotais enters resolutely into the domain of modern

methods. What is more debatable is the idea of putting

geometry and mathematics into the programme of children's

studies, under this erroneous pretext, that " geometry pre-

sents nothing but the sensible and the palpable." Let us

grant, however, that it is easier to conceive " clear ideas of

bodies, lines, and angles that strike the eyes, than abstract

ideas of verbs, declensions, and conjugations, of an accusa-

tive, an ablative, a subjunctive, an infinitive, or of the

omitted that."

ORIGIN OF LAY AND NATIONAL INSTRUCTION. 351

391 . Studies of the Second Period. — La Chalotais post-

pones the study of the classical languages till the second

period, the tenth }'ear. The course of study for this second

period will comprise: 1. French and Latin literature, or the

humanities; 2. a continuation of history, geography, math-

ematics, and natural history ; 3. criticism, logic, and meta-

physics ; 4. the art of invention ; 5. ethics.

La Chalotais complains that his contemporaries neglect

French literature, as though we had not admirable models in

our national language. Out of one hundred pupils there are

not five who will find it useful to write in Latin ; while there

is not one of them who will have occasion to speak or write

in Greek, and to construct Latin verses. All, on the con-

trary, ought to know their native language. Consequently,

our author suggests the idea of devoting the morning session

to French, and that of the afternoon to Latin, so that the

pupils who have no need of the ancient languages may pur-

sue only the courses in French.

392. The Living Languages. — La Chalotais thinks the

knowledge of two living languages to be necessary, " the

English for science, and the German for war." German

literature had not yet produced its masterpieces, and it is

seen that at this period the utility of German appears espe-

cially with reference to military affairs. However it may be,

let us be grateful to him for having appreciated, as he has

done, the living languages. "It is wrong," he says, "to

treat them nearly as we treat our contemporaries, with a sort

of indifference. Without the Greek and Latin languages

there is no real and solid erudition ; and there is no complete

erudition without the others."

393. Other Studies. — How many judicious or just reflec-

tions we have still to gather from the Essay on National Educa-

352 THE HISTORY OF PEDAGOGY.

tion, as upon the teaching of the ancient languages, which La

Chalotais, however, is wrong in restricting to too small a

number of years ; upon the necessity of presenting to pupils

as subjects for composition, not puerile amplifications, or

dissertations on facts or matters of which they are ignorant,

but things which they know, which have happened to them,

"their occupations, their amusements, or their troubles";

upon logic or criticism, the study of which should not be

deferred till the end of the course, as is still done in our day ;

upon philosophy, which is, he says, " the characteristic of

the eighteenth century, as that of the sixteenth was erudition,

and that of the seventeenth was talent ! " La Chalotais

reserves the place of honor to ethics, " which is the most

important of all the sciences, and which is, as much as any

other, susceptible of demonstration."

394. The Question of Books. — In tracing his programme

of studies, so new in many particulars, La Chalotais took

into account the difficulties that would be encountered in

assuring, and, so to speak, iu improvising, the execution

of it, at a time when there existed neither competent teachers

nor properly constructed books. Teachers especially, he

said, are difficult to train. But, while waiting for the re-

cruiting of the teaching force, La Chalotais puts great de-

pendence on elementary books, which might, he thought, be

composed within two years, if the king would encourage the

publication of them, and if the Academies would put them

up for competition.

' ' These books would be the best instruction which the mas-

ters could give, and would take the place of every other

method. Whatever course we may take, we cannot dispense

with new books. These books, once made, would make

trained teachers unnecessary, and there would then be no

longer any occasion for discussion as to their qualities,

ORIGIN OF LAY AND NATIONAL INSTRUCTION. 353

whether they should be priests, or married, or single. All

would be good, provided they were religious, moral, and

knew how to read ; they would soon train themselves while

training their pupils."

There is much exaggeration in these words. The book, as

we know, cannot supply the place of teachers. But the lan-

guage of La Chalotais was adapted to circumstances as they

existed. He spoke in this way, because, in his impatience

to reach his end, he would try to remedy the educational

poverty of his time, and supply the lack of good teachers by

provisional expedients, by means which he found within his

reach.