ijjiiPi f 1 PrPil 111 j|| i |)j{ l| rj ^ THE HISPANIC SERIES UNDER THE EDITORSHIP OF John D. Fitz-Gerald, Ph.D. PROFESSOR OF SPANISH, UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS MEMBER OF THE HISPANIC SOCIETY OF AMERICA CORRESPONDIENTE DB LAS REALES ACADEMIAS ESPANOLA, DE LA HISTORIA DE MADRID, Y DE BUENAS LETRAS DE BARCELONA SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS A HANDBOOK OF METHODS SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS A HANDBOOK OF METHODS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS BY LAWRENCE A. WILKINS, A.M. HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT OF SPANISH DeWITT CLINTON HIGH SCHOOL, NEW YORK CITY IN CHARGE OF MODERN LANGUAGES IN THE NEW YORK CITY HIGH SCHOOLS CORRESPONDING MEMBER OF THE HISPANIC SOCIETY OF AMERICA ov iroW dXXa ttoXv BENJ. H. SANBORN & CO. CHICAGO NEW YORK BOSTON 1918 • Copyright, 1918, BY BENJ. H. SANBORN & CO. So MY WIFE 5545»9 PREFACE While this volume bears the title Spanish in the High Schools, With Special Reference to the Junior High Schools, I believe that most of the problems and the methods here delineated for the teaching of Spanish apply equally well to the Junior High School, to the present four-year High School, and to the new Senior High School. To general bibliography on the teaching of modern lan- guages little reference has been made, for it is presumed that the reader is fairly well acquainted with the standard books on the subject. Of bibliography concerned espe- cially with methods of teaching Spanish none has been given, as none exists. To the friends who have contributed in various ways to the preparation of this book I here express my sincere thanks. To Professor John D. Fitz-Gerald I am indebted for assistance much exceeding that usually rendered by a general editor to an author. Without his previous knowledge, I here record my keen appreciation of his suggestions and of his aid in obtaining several items of importance which I have used. Lawrence A. Wilkins. New York City, April, 1918. CONTENTS PAGE Dedication v Preface vii CHAPTER I Introduction i CHAPTER II Why Teach Spanish ? 7 CHAPTER III The Present Progress of Spanish in the Schools . 35 CHAPTER IV The Preparation of the Secondary School Teacher of Spanish 47 CHAPTER V The Aim in Teaching Spanish 64 CHAPTER VI The Method to be Used in Teaching Spanish . . 66 CHAPTER VII The Course of Study in Spanish for ti e Junior High School and Methods of Teaching It . . • 73 ix X CONTENTS CHAPTER VIII page The Relation of This Course of Study to That of the Four-year High School and to That of the New Senior High School 96 CHAPTER IX The Organization of Classes 113 CHAPTER X The Recitation 129 CHAPTER XI Methods and Devices 134 CHAPTER XII A Miscellany of Suggestions 157 CHAPTER XIII Club Work in the Department of Spanish . . 190 CHAPTER XIV The Modern Language Teacher of " Superior Merit" 198 CHAPTER XV Handicaps to the Teaching of Spanish in the United States 206 CHAPTER XVI Spanish as a Foundation for Latin .... 225 CHAPTER XVII Bibliography and Other Aids for the Teacher of Spanish 24.Q SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS A HANDBOOK OF METHODS With Special Reference to the Junior High Schools CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION In the year 191 3 there began in the schools of the United States a remarkable increase of interest in the study of Spanish. That interest has been sus- tained and, in fact, heightened many-fold since then in institutions ranging from the elementary school to graduate courses in the university. One of the largest high schools of New York City * had in February, 1914, 198 students in all the classes in Spanish ; in September, 1914, 377 ; in February, 191 5, 640; in September, 191 5, 774; in February, 1916, 994; in September, 1916, 1240; in February, 1917, 1528; and in September, 1917, 1604. The steadily mounting number of students electing Span- ish in this school has had its parallel in other schools throughout the land. Spanish has come to stay in the 1 DeWitt Clinton High School, which had a total enrollment October 31, 191 7, of 5228 students. 2 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS curricula of our schools. The desire to study that lan- guage is no mere passing whim, but is founded on the soundest educational basis, as will be shown, it is hoped, in the later discussions of this book. Almost exactly coincident with this renascence of Spanish has been the movement to reorganize our school system so as to provide for the Junior High School, known also as the Intermediate School. In general, as is well known, this reorganization provides for six years of the elementary school course, three years of Junior High School work (seventh, eighth, and ninth years), and, finally, three years in the Senior High School. There are, of course, many variations of this scheme advocated and practiced, but in any case, the claims made for the Junior High School are, " first, that it provides better for indi- vidual differences ; second, that it makes easier the transition to the high school ; third, that it decreases the number of pupils eliminated from the school system ; and, fourth, that it furnishes an opportunity for various reforms in instruction." This statement is made by Professor Thomas H. Briggs of Teachers College, Columbia University. 1 The validity of any one of these claims (all of which have been made valid in the opinion of those who have had most experience with this new type of school) would justify this innovation in our edu- cational system. In the fourth claim made above, the teachers of modern languages are particularly 1 In Chapter VI of the Report of the Commissioner of Educa- tion for the Year ending June 30, 1914 ; Washington, Govern- ment Printing Office, 191 5. INTRODUCTION 3 interested, for they see here an opportunity for one of the "various reforms in instruction" which they have long desired, namely, an earlier beginning, than has been possible heretofore, of modern foreign language work, under proper conditions. The intro- duction of instruction in foreign languages in the seventh, eighth, and ninth years of the school work is justified in this manner: A foreign language is chiefly a habit-forming subject rather than a fact subject. The plastic mind of the child of twelve, thirteen and fourteen years of age is most easily and lastingly molded and shaped in the thought habits of the foreign tongue. It seems to follow, then, that if a foreign language is begun in the Junior High School under properly adapted instruction, that language may much more certainly be made a part of the pupil's mental habit and mental life. And Spanish teachers are most especially interested in this opportunity for reforms in instruction because they regard their claim that Spanish be granted in all types of schools a place equal to that now occupied by French or German as a reform movement and therefore most fittingly connected with the new Junior High School. So then, if the acquisition of Spanish, so much sought by North Americans young and old, is to be accomplished in the most effective and successful manner, its study should be begun in the Junior High School. Thus are seen to be most happily linked together two of the most noteworthy and most vital movements within recent years in the educa- tional circles of this country — the study of Spanish 4 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS and the Junior High School. Therefore, in discussing Spanish in the High Schools it has seemed to the writer both suitable and necessary to approach this subject from the standpoint of the Junior High School, the school that probably offers most oppor- tunities for putting into practice new and progressive ideas. Hence, the sub-title With Special Reference to the Junior High School. And with the desire to make the discussion as practical and helpful as pos- sible, the author has thought it pertinent to make it bear directly upon methods of teaching Spanish. Hence, the second title, A Handbook of Methods. But the question may at once arise, Why present a book devoted especially to methods of teaching Spanish ? Some might consider it at least partially justifiable to answer, Because no one has before written upon this particular theme, which daily is growing in importance. And previous paragraphs are surely suggestive of other reasons that might be advanced for this venture. But more specifically the answer to the query is : The problems of the Spanish teacher differ sufficiently from those of the teacher of French and German to warrant a con- sideration apart and to make of probable value an attempt to delineate and solve them. To elucidate : The recent very marked increase in the number of people demanding opportunities to study Spanish equal to those offered for the study of French and German has been accompanied by a lack of trained teachers of Spanish. The result has been lack of orientation, direction, and organization. A hit-or- miss state of affairs in Spanish instruction has pre- INTRODUCTION S vailed in high school and even in college work. This condition has been aggravated until recently by a scarcity of proper textbooks, especially for beginners. This scarcity is, however, being rapidly remedied by the various publishers of modern language books. The teacher of Spanish, fortunately or unfortu- nately, has no traditions to follow, so new is his field of £ labor. Almost no courses in material for, and methods of, teaching Spanish are offered by the col- leges and universities of this country or any other. 1 On the other hand, those who teach French or German have for their work numerous aids provided for them. Courses in methods of teaching those languages are offered in many institutions. Like- wise, opportunities for teaching French or German are given in the practice schools connected with the best normal schools and teachers' colleges. Books on methods, modern language associations with their journals and bulletins, realia and illustrative material, charts and maps — all devoted to French and Ger- man — are available in plenteous supply and va- riety for apprentice teacher and expert instructor. Aside from these more general considerations it should be pointed out that in the Spanish language itself inhere difficulties and peculiarities that justify a separate survey and exposition of methods of pre- 1 The author knows of only the following courses in methods in Spanish : Those given by Professor Charles Philip Wagner, University of Michigan, Professor W. S. Hendrix, University of Texas, and Mr. Max A. Luria, Hunter Evening College, New York City. The authorities of Teachers College, Columbia University, are contemplating the establishment of a course in methods in Spanish. See Addenda. 6 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS senting the language to the learner. One need but mention, for instance, the remarkably frequent and unusually intricate idioms or locutions that occur in Spanish or the great wealth of the Spanish vocabulary. To help shake off the apologetic role too long played by Spanish teachers, to take stock of those compelling reasons that lie at the basis of the claim for an equal place for Spanish, to sum up the present situation in regard to Spanish, to define the aim of the teacher of that language, to crystallize and ex- press a few of the ideas Spanish teachers long have held but seldom have expressed in print, to suggest to the enthusiasm of the Spanish teacher (the specialist in that language is uniformly enthusiastic) modes of effectiveness, to encourage him in a field of endeavor where he has been able to find few rallying-points or few finger-boards pointing the way, to give him practical help as well as encourage- ment, is the fond and perhaps too ambitious hope of the writer. Probably the chief warrant the author has for undertaking, as best he may, to do these things is his own great enthusiasm for things Spanish and his experience of the past twelve years as a teacher solely of Spanish in high school and in university extension courses and as a director of modern language instruction. Actual observation of the teaching of Spanish in a few Intermediate Schools has been of help. CHAPTER II WHY TEACH SPANISH ?» A knowledge of Spanish has for the North Amer- ican youth three distinct values — the commercial (of which we hear so much), the cultural (of which we hear so little), and, most important of all, the politico-social or international value. Commercial Value of Spanish. No one would be inclined, probably, to dispute the usefulness of Spanish to those engaged in commerce in the United States, especially to residents of cities in which manufacturing or exporting predominates. But the belief that Spanish should be taught only for practical purposes represents a point of view that is either uninformed or lacking in perspective. But it doubt- less is pertinent to sum up here what can be said in favor of Spanish for practical and commercial purposes. From 1900 to 191 3 the total of all South American imports for all the world increased from 318 million dollars to 1042 millions. This increase was at the rate of 227 per cent as compared with an increase of 107 per cent in our own imports and of 100 per cent in the trade of the whole world in the same period. And in that time the population of 1 Adapted from the author's address on " The Case for Spanish " before the New Jersey Modern Language Associa- tion, May 5, 1917. 7 8 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS Spanish America grew from 38 millions to nearly 60 millions, an increase of about 58 per cent as compared with an increase of 28 per cent in the United States. The imports of South America in the most recent normal year, 1913, averaged $18.68 per capita, comparing with £17.94 P er capita importations into the United States. The average income of the population of Argentina is well up to Sir George Paish's estimate of the average income of the citizens of our own land. It is worthy of note that there are in Argentina alone three banking institutions with larger paid-up capitals than those of any bank of the United States and that Argentina has a gold coin reserve of $53 per capita as compared with about $23 in the United States. 1 These facts speak elo- quently of the purchasing power of Hispanic 2 America before the Great War began. Of the possibilities in the way of the future development of South American countries the following items are suggestive 3 : Peru is the size of Spain, France, Italy, and Germany combined. Sixty Belgiums could be contained in Bolivia and yet the latter has only one-third of Belgium's population. Chile is as long as from New York to San Francisco and as narrow as Lake Erie. All of the United States except Alaska could be contained in Brazil and there would still be a remainder of J The Americas, a monthly magazine published by the National City Bank, from the numbers of which for June and September, 191 6, the above facts are taken. 2 Hispanic is used to include Portuguese and Spanish. 3 Adapted from " The Geography Class " by Dan Ward, in the World Outlook for February, 191 5. WHY TEACH SPANISH? 9 200,000 square miles of Brazilian territory. There is more unexplored country in Brazil than in all the rest of the world put together. Argentina has progressed more rapidly in the past ten years than Iowa or Illinois in the last fifty years - : Buenos Aires (with 1,560,163 people), at the present rate of in- crease, will pass Chicago in 1930 and be the second city in size in the Western Hemisphere. On the bor- der land between Brazil and Argentina are the falls of Iguassu, higher and wider than Niagara. Four-fifths of the world's cofTee comes from Brazil, of which country the capital, Rio de Janeiro, has a population of 1,128,637 people. Two other Hispanic-American cities have approached the half-million mark : Mexico City (with 471,066) and Sao Paulo (with 400,000) ; whereas six others have reached or passed the quarter- million mark : Santiago de Chile (378,000), Montevi- deo (377,994), Havana (319,884), Bahia (300,000), Recife, Brazil (250,000), and Rosario, Argentina (250,000). Some of these cities are very beautiful. Of the necessity of a knowledge of Spanish for practical purposes among our own countrymen, the Pan American Union of Washington has this to say : The merchant and the manufacturer will each need it to thoroughly understand the wants of his customers and cater to them accordingly; the mechanical, civil or electrical engineer will need it to facilitate and expedite his work by his ability to come in closer contact with the men under him ; the teacher will need it in order to take up work in Spanish-American schools where American educational methods are admired and copied ; the trained agriculturist will need it in order to meet the great want IO SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS for scientific farming, so eagerly fostered by many South American governments ; the lawyer will need it to familiar- ize himself with Spanish-American legislation and social conditions, which will give him an invaluable advantage over his less fortunate colleague. But what has happened in Spanish America since the war has been in progress ? Despite the fact that the war caused an almost complete paralysis of foreign trade in South America for nearly a year, our business with that continent alone, not including the West Indies or Central America, showed at the end of June, 1917, imports from there in the sum of 542 millions as compared with 391 millions in June, 1916, 261 millions in June, 191 5, 222 millions in June, 1914, and 217 millions in June, 1913. Exports from the United States to South America totaled 259 millions for the year ending June, 1917, as compared with 180 millions in 1916, 99 millions in 1915, 124 millions in 1914, and 146 millions in 1913. From June, 1914, to June, 1917, the gain in imports from South America into this country is rated at 144 per cent while the exports from the United States to South America in the same period show a gain of 109 per cent. Imports from the world into the United States in the same time increased 106 per cent and exports to the world increased 191 per cent. From June, 191 5, to June, 1917, imports from Central America increased from 21 to 35 millions, or 6j per cent, and exports rose from 35 to 52 millions, or 49 per cent. From June, 1915, to June, 1917, imports from the West Indies increased from 211 to 291 millions, or 38 per cent, and exports from 100 WHY TEACH SPANISH? II to 230 millions, or 130 per cent. 1 And yet there are those who say that we have done nothing to " capture the commerce " of South America except talk about doing it. As a nation almost totally unversed in the ways of foreign commerce, we have not done badly. It is true that the nations that have been our competitors for the trade of Hispanic America have been in some cases totally removed from the field and in others badly hampered by the war. But it is also true that our trade with Spanish America has been badly hampered by the lack of boats of cargo. And as an indication of the serious- ness with which we are attacking the work of securing at least a fair portion of the trade of the other Americas, one is compelled to note, for instance, that the National City Bank of New York now has nine branches in Hispanic America at these places : Rio de Janeiro, Bahia, Sao Paulo, Santos, Monte- video, Buenos Aires, Valparaiso, Havana, and San- tiago de Cuba. The International Banking Cor- poration has six offices in Caribbean cities. Mention must also be made of the superb work accomplished by the recent international conferences such as the Pan American Financial Conference of 191 5, the Pan American Scientific Conference of 1915-1916, and the meetings of the International High Commission, an organization whose great work has just begun. It is more than evident that there is in operation a gradual tightening of the commer- cial and economic bonds between the Spanish- and 1 Taken from the reports of the Bureau of Commerce for June, 1917. 12 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS Portuguese-speaking lands of the New World and our own land. One of the visible results of this closer approxima- tion has been that in the city of New York, the chief center of commerce between this country and His- panic America, business people, men, women, boys and girls, have by hundreds set about it in some way to study Spanish. It has been the fashion of the hour for three or four years to have " a try at Spanish". A longing to " get knowledge quick " has resulted in plenty of get rich quick" schemes among some of the so-called professors of Spanish, who, for an insignificant sum profess (therefore are they professors) to teach the Spanish language in thirty lessons ! And yet the victims flock to the " classes" without ceasing. There must indeed be something very virile in the desire to study Spanish when that desire has thus persisted and increased despite this continued preying upon it. In the duly accredited educational institutions of New York City Spanish has taken an increasingly prominent place. The largest registration in the courses in the various languages offered in Extension Teaching in Columbia University is in Spanish. 1 The largest and most faithfully attended classes in languages in the public evening High Schools — where chiefly business people attend — are the Spanish classes. And these people in afternoon and evening courses are not spending dollars and weary hours after a busy day simply as a way of passing 1 In the Spring Session, 1917, 314 were enrolled in Spanish courses, 277 in French, and 165 in German. WHY TEACH SPANISH? 13 their time. Their business demands of them a knowledge of Spanish and they must get it as best they may, despite long hours of work in the office or factory. In the public commercial high schools of New York City Spanish so far outstrips the other languages in numbers of students that those other languages have practically no significance in those schools. This growth has been going on in too steadily increasing proportions to be explained on the ground that it is merely the fancy of the moment. It is true that the war has operated in obvious ways to stimulate the study of Spanish. And there are those who believe that when the war is over Spanish will drop out of our schools and German will be more than ever the predominating modern foreign language studied. This belief is parallel to that one which holds that after the war we shall drop out of the competition for the South American trade and that Germany will again hold first place in the trade of many of the Hispanic republics. There may be 3. slight cessation in the present rush to Spanish, but who knows ? May not the new relations already pretty firmly established with South America — relations of commerce, general amity and unity of interest in world politics — may not these relations work rather to increase the interest of North Amer- icans in South America and of South Americans in North America? A prophecy expressing the latter point of view surely is as valuable as its opposite. There are many, too, who believe that never again will German have the strong hold in the program of study in our institutions that it has enjoyed in the past. 14 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS But the present writer does not believe that the popularity of Spanish depends now or in the future upon the popularity or unpopularity of German. One may say, then, with reason, that the study of Spanish for commercial and practical purposes is most solidly based upon business needs. A knowl- edge of Spanish is coming to be as necessary to the North American exporter and importer, banker and merchant, as a knowledge of jobbing or of stocks and bonds. And whether it suits us or not, we must confess that this is, after all, a very sound foundation for the study of a foreign tongue. Like " dollar diplomacy " it has its eminent usefulness and its laud- able side. But the study of Spanish, to be of greatest value, ought to mean more than merely a way of increasing one's business efficiency or earning power. Fortunately, the acquisition of Spanish most happily combines with this practical value a great cultural value and probably in such proportion and to such extent as does no other foreign language that a North American may seek to master. And amid all this marked and growing inclination to study Spanish for business purposes, it is worth while to remark, de paso, that Spanish is not in itself a language adapted to business purposes. It has few of the modern technical terms and ready business expressions that English has so readily available. This sonorous " language of men", as it has been called, seems in its structure and genius almost to scorn the vulgar things of trade. It has not the paraphernalia or equipment devised for up-to-date business methods. WHY TEACH SPANISH? 1 5 Cultural Value of Spanish. The cultural value of a study of Spanish has sometimes been called in question — always by those ill qualified to pass judgment in the matter. Using the word cultural also to include disciplinary (though the theory of the relative disciplinary value of different studies is generally now discarded), the cultural value of a knowledge of Spanish is not inferior to that offered by mastery of any other modern foreign language. Why is this so ? First, the study of Spanish effects the same lin- guistic training as does the study, say, of French. It is not an "easy" language, contrary to the somewhat commonly held opinion. (No language can really be said to be easy of acquisition.) This opinion is based on two facts : Spanish has usually been studied in colleges as a second, third, or even fourth foreign language, when previous experience in language study makes its acquisition much easier than when it is studied as the first foreign language; second, one who examines only the " surface indications " of the Spanish language is apt to be deceived by the apparent simplicity of its phenomena. It is true that for the beginner it is more easily pronounced than French, but it is, when spoken by a native Spaniard, an elusive language to catch with the ear — due to the slighting of consonants so characteristic of Spanish speech. As one's study progresses he finds an intricacy of idiomatic construction to an extent in excess of that found in French, a great wealth of vocabulary, peculiarities of sentence structure, neo-Latin in nature, a remarkably 16 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS developed inclination to the subjunctive far exceed- ing that in French, numerous elliptical expressions, qualifying suffixes of nouns and adjectives, and great irregularity of verb forms. All these characteristics work together to make Spanish worthy of the best mental effort. The study of Spanish will develop as many brain loops as will the study of Russian or Sanskrit. It all depends upon the teaching and upon the effort put forth by the student. Second, in the Spanish language is expressed one of the great literatures of the world. Spanish literature has most profoundly affected that of England and that of France. In England Ben Jonson, Thomas Middleton, Cyril Tourneur, Nathaniel Field, and many others of Elizabethan days drew upon Spanish authors of their time for material and inspiration. 1 And in France from Rotrou to Victor Hugo and Cyrano de Bergerac, the indebtedness has been great on the part of French- men to Spanish men of letters. The great Corneille and the greater Moliere hesitated not to borrow, and freely, too, from Lope, Alarcon, and Guillen de Castro. Who produced the greatest tale the world has ever read? Was it not that one-armed soldier, hero of the battle of Lepanto, Miguel de Cervantes Saave- dra ? That creature of his brain, that sad-eyed Knight of La Mancha, stands forth as vividly in the 1 See Fitzmaurice-Kelly's Relations of the English and Spanish Literatures. Also Professor F. E. Schilling's chapter on this subject in his Elizabethan Drama and in Vol. VIII of the Cambridge History of English Literature. WHY TEACH SPANISH? 17 pages of fiction as does Hamlet amid all the dramas of all the world. Each character in its own way, though in different guise and different speech, pictures to us the sum total of the comedy and the tragedy of man here below. Who, so far in the history of the human race, has been the most prolific writer of clever dramas? A Spaniard, Lope Felix de Vega Carpio, " the prodigy of nature", as he" was called, who endowed his country once for all with a national drama. It is well known that he turned out about 1800 dramas, besides 400 autos sacramentales and many entremeses^^rv tJRl t-mg more work than all the other Writers combined of the Elizabethan period, and to this marvelous facility was joined wonderful perfection of construction and unsurpassed ingenuity of plot. Knowing Spanish, one could have at his disposal different plays by this man to read in leisure hours for many years to come, as 470 of Lope's plays have survived. The Spanish drama is rightly called one of the three great national dramas of the world. The modern drama of Spain is well represented by Tamayo y Baus and Echegaray (winner of half of the Nobel prize for literature in 1904) and at the present day by Jacinto Benavente, who is fondly called, and with reason, the modern Shakespeare. Some of Benavente's works are al- ready available in English, and they are hailed every- where as the product of a mighty genius. What did Spain produce of epic poetry ? The Poem a del Cid, one of the three great epics of the world. In unity of plan, force, simplicity, and high idealization of its hero, this old poem is second to 1 8 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS none. This first great monument of the literature of Spain gives just cause for the highest esteem for the early literatos of the Peninsula. And four hundred years later Alonso de Ercilla y Zufiiga proved him- self a worthy continuator of Spanish epic verse when he produced the first and only epic poem dealing with the life of the New World. This was the Araucana, which he composed while campaigning against the Araucanian Indians of Chile and which relates eloquently the heroism of the old Indian chieftain Colocolo. Even Voltaire admitted in his introduc- tion to the Henriade, that the Araucana was an excellent poem of its kind. In what literature is found " the richest mine of poetic ballads in the world"? In that of Spain. The romances and cantares of the fifteenth and six- teenth centuries, found in numerous cancioneros and romanceros (for example, the Cancionero de Baena, the Romancer o general, and the Romancer o del Cid), were written principally by court poets in imitation of the old popular romances of tradition (few examples of which were ever preserved in printed form) ; and they afford some of the finest examples of pure lyric beauty (coupled at times with a heroic but simple grandeur) that can be found in the literature of any tongue. This great fund of ballad poetry has been an inexhaustible source of inspiration to poets in and out of Spain. 1 1 For a full discussion of the Spanish ballad see Ticknor's History of Spanish Literature, Vol. I, pp. 113 to 165, particularly his summary on pp. 164 and 165. As many discoveries have been made since Ticknor wrote his monumental work, teachers WHY TEACH SPANISH? 19 What nation laid the foundation of the novel and later brought it to its fullest perfection ? Spain. The picaresque tale of early Spanish literature was the beginning of the genre. The Lazarillo de Tormes, Guzman de Alfarache, Picara Justina, and Marcos de Obregon set the standard for all nations in the novel of adventure and intrigue. Spain has been called the home of the novel and at the present day- she still holds her high place as a producer of short stories and novels. Palacio Valdes, Alarcon, Pereda, Valera, Fernan Caballero, Pardo Bazan, Alas, Azorin, Pio Baroja, and Blasco Ibanez have produced some of the best fiction of the world during the past seventy-five years. Our own beloved author and foremost critic, William Dean Howells, says of modern Spanish fiction : Take the instance of another solidified nationality [having mentioned the Germans previously], take the Spanish, and you have first-class modern fiction, easily surpassing the fiction of any other people of our time, now that the Russians have ceased to lead. 1 It is true that even the names of many of the writers above given are usually unknown to the North American, though he may be a well-educated man, so closely have our schools adhered to the literary traditions of England, France, and Germany. Spanish literature contains riches long neglected in should, wherever possible, secure access to Ramon Menendez PidaPs El Romancero Espanol, published, New York, 1910, by The Hispanic Society. 1 Harper's Magazine, Vol. CXXXI (November, 1915), p. 957. 20 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS this the most northern of the Americas, but fully appreciated and ardently cherished in the Americas to the south. And the idea that Spanish countries of the Western Hemisphere have many of them a literature of distinctive merit and rich variety seems never to have crossed the mental horizon of most people of our land. Colombia, Chile, Argentina, and Mexico, to name no others, have done some very good work in the novel, short story, and political and historical writings. Third, a knowledge of Spanish is the key to under- standing a great race, in Spain and Spanish America, a race that has much to contribute of help to us and to the world at large. The qualities of this people, as evinced in their history, traditions, literature, art, and customs are (i) genuine courtesy. This courtesy springs from the heart and is manifest, even among the most lowly, by the most considerate attention to the needs of fellow creatures, especially when these fellow creatures are foreigners and in need of advice or information. Real consideration of the rights of others is at the base of this courtesy. As a corollary of and coexistent with this courtesy one notes (2) a marked love of democracy. The Spanish are one of the most democratic of peoples, contrary, possibly, to the preconceived notions of many North Amer- icans. A feeling of equality with all human kind lies deep in the Spaniard's heart. " All men are born free and equal " seems to be legible in the attitude of quiet dignity and self-respect that the Castilian always maintains. His general disregard WHY TEACH SPANISH? 21 of the petty regulations of government, local or national, makes one think : How like the people of our own United States ! " And one must likewise take into consideration (3) the sobriety, industry, and long patience of the Spaniards. They have had much to endure in the last 450 years in the way of misgovernment, but through it all they have plodded along, each bearing his burden philosophically and each " doing his bit". The Spanish dance, the click of the castanets, love scenes at the barred window, the bull fight, general indolence and the music of guitars — these are the things that in the minds of most people typify Spain. But the sturdy, steady workers of sun-baked Spain, who painfully till a soil that frequently lacks water to a sad degree, the economi- cal, shrewd small merchant, the skillful sheep raiser, the miner employed in the mines of mercury, copper, sulphur, antimony, tin, and cobalt, as yet but scantily worked though rich, the orange and the olive grower, the energetic business man of Barcelona, the iron- worker of Bilbao, the sea-going Asturian, and the patient Galicfan (who was the best laborer that Col- onel Goethals had in the construction of the Panama Canal), — these represent the real Spain, the Spain that is to-day going up the incline down which she slid so painfully for many long generations. The Spain of history, Imperial Spain, who undertook too much even* for her great strength and thus met ruin, the Spain of the days when the sun scarcely set upon her wide dominions, that Spain has gone and a new Spain is here under the leadership of a most democratic and able king, and we, and all the world, 22 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS will have to take this new Spain into reckoning in the pregnant years of the coming decades. A people that possesses the qualities mentioned cannot be kept forever in obscurity. But much more shall we have to take into account the daughters of Mother Spain, those Spanish- speaking sister republics to the south of us, with whose fate our own is inextricably interwoven, come what may out of the present world crisis. If there were ever any doubt of the truth of such a statement prior to August, 1914, that doubt has now forever vanished. These republics are the incarna- tion of the best of Hispanic thought and civilization and in addition they have deeply drunk of the New World freedom. The fourth distinct value for the North American, and the greatest value of all, of a knowledge of Spanish is the politico-social or international value making for a spiritual ideal of Pan Americanism and international amity in the New World. This ideal was admirably formulated by President Wilson in his message to Congress in December, 191 5, when he said : That the States of America are not hostile rivals but co- operating friends, and that their growing sense of com- munity of interest, alike in matters political and in matters economic, is likely to give them a new significance as factors in international affairs and in the^psHtical history of the world. It presents them as in a very deep and true sense a unit in world affairs, spiritual partners, standing together because thinking together, quick with common sympathies and common ideals. Separated WHY TEACH SPANISH? 23 they are subject to all the cross currents of the con- fused politics of a world of hostile rivalries; united in spirit and purpose they cannot be disappointed of their peaceful destiny. This is Pan Americanism. It has none of the spirit of empire in it. It is the embodiment, the effectual embodi- ment, of the spirit of law and independence and liberty and mutual service. President Butler of Columbia University, in his annual v report for November, 1914, had reference to this great advantage of a knowledge of Spanish when he said : It will not be possible for the people of the United States to enter into close relation with the peoples of the other American republics until the Spanish language is more generally spoken and written by educated persons here, and until there is a fuller appreciation of the mean- ing and significance of the history and civilization of those American peoples which have developed out of Spain. It will not be enough to teach Spanish literature and to teach students to read Spanish. They must also be taught to speak it in order that in business and in social intercourse they may be able to use it with freedom as a medium of expression. Geography since time immemorial and the World War from 1914 to 1917 set South, Central and North America apart from the rest of the world. The Monroe Doctrine, the need of North American capital in South and Central American enterprise, the need of South and Central American raw products in North American factories, and, recently, a com- 24 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS munity of interest in matters of world-wide import — all these factors and others have served and are serving with a constantly increasing force to draw all the twenty-one cis-Atlantic republics more and more closely together. Our ideals are the same, our hopes are identical, our lines of progress are parallel if not convergent. There are but three tongues used as national languages in the important nations of this hemi- sphere — English, Spanish, and Portuguese. Is it not, then, passing strange that far more German is taught in our schools than Spanish, when among the languages of the Americas Spanish is second only to English ? And practically no Portuguese is taught in the schools of the United States. Why do these conditions exist ? Because old traditions still prevail. For generations Latin and Greek were considered the only languages deserving of a place in the curricula of our schools and colleges. It was only about two generations ago that the advocates of French and German dared raise their voices and claim a place for those languages in preparatory school and college. Tradition was against them. But after much and often bitter discussion, argument, and contention, French and German were given a place in the program of study. Three of the greatest figures in American letters and scholarship, Long- fellow, Lowell, and Ticknor, were pioneers in the teaching of modern languages in the United States, holding successively the chair of modern languages in Harvard University. Incidentally, all three were specialists in Spanish. Longfellow's poems on WHY TEACH SPANISH? 25 Spanish subjects and his translations of Spanish poetry, Lowell's letters from Spain, and Ticknor's history of Spanish literature, still the most com- pendious and painstaking that has been composed in the English language, speak beautifully and forcibly of their appreciation of things Spanish and connect these writers for all time with Spanish studies in the United States. The years pass and times change. America comes to mean more than the land north of the Gulf of Mexico; it dawns upon our conception that south of that body of water — the symbol heretofore of a greater gulf of thought and customs — there lie many republics, one of them as large as our own, where people call themselves Americans with as much pride as we do. To deal with them, to appreciate them, to grasp their viewpoint, to win their fellowship, we have at last begun to realize that first of all we must know their languages — Spanish and Portuguese. Otherwise the barrier of prejudice on our part still stands, and the gulf of suspicion on the part of South Americans still yawns. In all those lands much provision is made in iheir educa- tional institutions for instruction in English. 1 They are meeting us more than halfway. We should 1 See Report on a Trip to South America made to the Board of Education of New York by William T. Morrey, in the Bulletin of the High School Teachers' Association of New York City, December, 1914. Page 360 contains a " comparison of general courses of study in high schools of Latin America and New York City". Page 361 gives a " comparison of courses of study in commercial schools of South America and New York City ". 26 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS go our half of the way in spreading the two pre- dominant languages of the Americas. The greatest stride of progress in Pan American political relations since the days of President Monroe was made when President Wilson enlarged the Mon- roe Doctrine, which guaranteed to Hispanic America freedom from European aggression, by informing all the governments of South and Central America that the United States stood unselfishly ready and willing to make treaties with them that would insure to each American republic integrity of territory and freedom from aggression of any kind, not only on the part of the United States, but from any other American gov- ernment. The next step should be " the promotion of a better understanding between the peoples them- selves of the several American States", as Secretary McAdoo has expressed it. 1 He continues : Education a Paramount Factor Transportation, communication, and trade relations are invaluable and indispensable agencies, but educa- tion is a paramount factor. The Treasury Department, with its varied and important activities, is in itself a kind of university extension system, and as Secretary of the Treasury I am obliged to be something of a 1 Some International Aspects of Public Education, an address delivered at the annual convention of the National Education Association held in Madison Square Garden, New York City, on July 6, 1916, by Hon. William G. McAdoo, Secretary of the Treasury; Senate Document No. 498, Government Print- ing Office, Washington, 1916. WHY TEACH SPANISH? 27 schoolmaster myself. So I have a sympathetic compre- hension of the problems with which you have to deal and of the profound importance of the work you are doing in shaping and training the materiel on which the useful- ness and permanency of democratic institutions must rest not only in the United States but throughout the Americas. The public-school system is the very foun- dation of an intelligent and enlightened democracy. » There is probably no school system in the world which is subjected to such constant and searching analysis and criticism as that of the United States. This is due not so much to the defects of the system as to the fact that under our plan of school administra- tion it is the public opinion of the community which finally determines the organization, the purposes, and the trend of the educational system. While this has been the source of some weakness, it has had the great advantage of keeping the standards of public instruc- tion in relatively close touch with national needs. In order that our educational system may perform its high mission, it is necessary that it should reflect every change in our national life, meeting every new need as soon as it arises. We are at the present moment going through one of those evolutionary changes which fundamentally affect our international relations and involve a heavy obliga- tion on the common-school system of our country. Neglect of Latin America in the Curriculum of Our Schools What I learned in South America x impressed me deeply with the grave disadvantages accruing to our 1 Mr. McAdoo speaks of the trip made to various South American countries by himself and the other members of the 28 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS national life and to our international relations because of our widespread ignorance not only of the history but of the significance of the profound changes that have been taking place in the countries of South and Central America during the last 50 years and of the importance of the civilization that is developing in that section of the American continent. I do not mean to criticize, but simply to record a fact, when I say that the public schools of the United States have not contributed their full share toward inculcating in ,the youth of the country a proper understanding of the political, economic, and social development of our sister Republics. It is this lack of understanding that has prevented the growth of a sufficiently enlightened public opinion in the United States with reference to Latin-American affairs. It is this absence of sympa- thetic comprehension that makes it so easy to mislead public opinion in the United States and so often to cause unwitting injury to our Latin- American rela- tions. American history is taught as if it begins and ends with the history of the United States; American geography is interpreted as if it were the geography of the United States. In the study of commerce and industry the provincial view is too frequently taken that Latin America is merely a sort of supply of raw material for the United States. It is no wonder that the average boy and girl are inclined to look upon the vast territories to the south of us as a wilderness, the seat of a backward civilization and peopled by a back- ward race. United States section of the International High Commission on board the cruiser Tennessee in the spring of 191 6. der- f WHY TEACH SPANISH? 29 Inspiring Development of Independent Nations I am sure that it is not necessary for me to burden you with arguments emphasizing the desirability of acquainting the youth of the country with the economic,* political, and social conditions of the continent on which they live; but I do wish to point out the great national service that can be performed in making our young men and women better acquainted with the history, the literature, and the important cultural elements* that enter into the great civilization that is develop- ing in Latin America. Our present lack of under^ standing is a source of national weakness because it, " a real obstacle to the development of that spirit international cooperation without which we can, hope to develop that genuine Pan Americanism which we are all laboring and toward which we are making real progress. The history of the Spanish-American struggle for independence is a most inspiring record. The ob- stacles that the North American colonies had to over- come were not so formidable as those which confronted the revolted Spanish colonies. The decades immedi- ately succeeding the first movement for independence present, in the face of almost overwhelming discourage- ments, a record of devotion, self-sacrifice, and unswerv- ing faith in the ultimate triumph of free institutions which compel the deepest respect and admiration. The story of this struggle, if properly presented and inter- preted, would mean much to the youth of our country. It would make them appreciate the similarity of ideals which dominated the founders of the political system of the United States and the leaders of Latin-American independence, and would serve to develop a sympathetic understanding of the political life and institutions of 30 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS these countries. We are apt to think of Central and South America as a whole, without any appreciation of the fact that each country has passed through a different process, and that the history of the nineteenth century is a history of adaptation of political institu- tions to the economic, racial, and social environment peculiar to each, resulting in great diversity in form of government and in diversity no less striking in the operation of political institutions. During the last century the American Continent has been the great laboratory of political evolution, fur- nishing a body of material to the teacher of history and civics which we have hardly begun to utilize. Compulsory Teaching of Spanish The development of that true spirit of continental solidarity with the peoples of Central and South America for which we are striving would be set forward im- measurably if we would give more attention to their language and literature. The teaching of Spanish should be made compulsory in our public schools; in fact, a resolution was unanimously adopted by the International High Commission at Buenos Aires recom- mending to each Government that in all schools sup- ported by public funds or aided in any way by public funds the study of English, Spanish, and Portuguese should be obligatory. It is astonishing that so few people in our country, relatively speaking, understand that in the most populous Republic in South America — Brazil — the language is Portuguese and not Spanish. We do not pay enough attention to the study of Spanish in our schools, while, on the other hand, English is taught to a very large extent in the schools of South America. WHY TEACH SPANISH? 31 At the present time we rarely think of citing Latin- American publicists and scientists. Practically no refer- ence is ever made to Latin-American literature. We pay little attention to the currents of thought of Central or South America ; unmindful of the fact that important contributions have been made and are constantly being made in every department of literary and scientific effort. I would not for a moment disparage the study of French or German, nor belittle the treasures which a knowledge of these languages unfolds, but I do wish to submit to you the desirability of acquainting our youth with the intellectual effort and the intellectual achievement of the American Continent. The Opportunity of the Public School I have welcomed the opportunity to lay these matters before you because their importance was constantly impressed upon me in connection with the work of the International High Commission. That great body was created by the twenty-one American Republics for the express purpose of removing the obstacles to closer financial and commerc ial coop eration and larger inter- ^ course between the Republics of America. Every thoughtful person must recognize the fact that the public schools can contribute effectively toward the ac- complishment of this desirable end. It is largely a matter of education. Upon you, men and women of the National Education Association, rests the ultimate responsibility of making effective the policy of Pan Americanism formulated by our President in a series of addresses which have re- sounded throughout the entire Western Hemisphere; 32 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS upon you rests the task of developing in the youth of the country a broader understanding of the forces that have shaped American history, a keener apprecia- tion of the significance of the development of free in- stitutions on the American Continent, and a deeper sympathy with the aspirations of sister nations who, like ourselves, are endeavoring to translate into realities the ideals of American democracy. United States Commissioner of Education P. P. Claxton wrote in a circular sent, October i, 1914, to the principals of the high schools of the land : I desire to call the attention of teachers and school officers to the importance of teaching in our schools and colleges more of the geography, history, literature, and life of the Latin-American countries than is now taught, and of offering instruction in the Spanish and Por- tuguese languages to a much larger extent than is now done. It is not the fault of the students of our schools that more Spanish is not taught in our country. As Professor Frederick Bliss Luquiens says : x As far as our students are concerned, they are ready and willing. Some of them feel the new curiosity in regard to South America. Their eagerness for Spanish, whether their own or a reflection of the wishes of their parents, is one form of that undeveloped public opinion which is hungering for nourishment. The rest are moved by a consideration which has nothing to do with 1 In The National Need of Spanish, Yale Review for July, 1915- WHY TEACH^ SPANISH? 33 South America — they have inherited from former gen- erations of students a traditional distrust of the value of French and a traditional terror of the difficulties of German. A substitute seems a good risk. However unjustifiable the attitude may be, it at least acquits them of blame from our present viewpoint. In practically none of the High Schools of the United States, and in extraordinarily few of the colleges and universities, are offered courses in the history, the institutions, the geography, and the economic x- and financial conditions of Hispanic America, and this, too, in spite of the fact that Hispanic America is our nearest and richest field of foreign commerce. We may at length awaken to the need of such instruc- tion ; we have begun to awaken to the need of the study of Spanish and, to some slight extent, to the need of Portuguese. Ten million people who claim the protection of the Stars and Stripes speak Spanish as their mother tongue. Eighteen of the New World republics use Spanish as their official and common language, the only means of intercourse among themselves. Realizing these things, we strive to arise to the opportunity and the responsibility placed upon us. But, lo, there stands, blocking the way of progress, tradition, which proclaims that the disciplinary and cultural value of French and German so far excels that of Spanish that we need not trouble ourselves to learn Spanish. It is a condition, however, a fact, that confronts us, not a theory, — a geographical fact, an international fact, a political fact, and that fact is that the highest interests of our own 34 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS people and of all the peoples of all the Americas demand that the youth of our land become acquainted at the earliest possible moment with Hispanic civilization, peoples, and languages. The question then is, after all, Shall tradition prevail over such a fact ? CHAPTER III THE PRESENT PROGRESS OF SPANISH IN THE SCHOOLS In view of the facts previously recited, it should be possible for the pupils of the public schools to begin the study of Spanish in the seventh school year (the first of the Junior High School). Once begun it should be continued through the twelfth year. The cumulative benefit of six years of study of a foreign language, throughout the period of twelve to eighteen years of age, would be great. Then we could hope to get results approximating those obtained in Europe, where languages are begun early (often at ten years of age) and continued systematically for many years. A second language should not be attempted until the beginning of the Senior High School course. Throughout the six-year course in Spanish in the Junior and Senior High Schools much attention should be given to the related facts of the customs, history, and geography of Spanish lands, and in the twelfth year at least three periods a week should be devoted to a systematic study of these related facts. In the college or university for at least two years Spanish and Spanish-American literature should be widely read and studied, and speaking and writing ability should then be more nearly 35 36 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS perfected. Early in the college course or late in the High School, Portuguese should be offered as an elective and provision made for continuing this language, by those who elect it, for at least three years. We are, of course, far from this ideal pro- gram for the young American. Some day we may hope to reach it. At present we are making a good beginning. It may be of advantage to take stock of what is being accomplished along the path above marked out. Spanish is accepted on a par with French and Ger- man, year for year, in the requirements for entrance to one or more of the various courses leading to degrees in practically all the Middle Western and Far Western colleges and universities. Many of the Eastern institutions are falling into line, among them some of the most conservative. One may cite, for instance, Harvard University, Cornell University, University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University, Syracuse University, Hamilton College, Colgate University, Washington Square College of New York University, The College of the City of New York, Brown University, Dartmouth College, Amherst College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Stevens Institute of Technology. By means of the " comprehensive " examinations of the College En- trance Examinations Board, a student may at present offer three years of Spanish for admission to these and other institutions in lieu of three years of French or German. Unfortunately, some of these institu- tions make but little or no provision for the contin- THE PRESENT PROGRESS OF SPANISH 37 uation of the language by the student who presents Spanish for entrance. The University of the State of New York accepts Spanish on a par with French or German for the College Entrance Diplomas in Arts, Science, or Engineering. A regulation to this effect was estab- lished for the diplomas in Science and Engineering by the Regents of the University in the spring of 191 5 in response to an urgent petition presented by a group of New York City teachers, whose request was reinforced by the signatures of a hundred prominent educators and public men of the State of New York and of a few such men outside that state. Not until the spring of 1916 was the regulation extended to include the diploma in Arts. Students may now, since the fall of 1916, present Spanish for the Cornell University Undergraduate Scholarships. Of the language courses offered by the various universities in their extension and summer session departments, notably in Columbia University, those offered in Spanish invariably are attended by larger numbers of students than are the courses in any other modern language. Probably 20 per cent of these students in the extension work are teachers, while in the summer courses in Spanish easily 50 per cent are teachers or prospective teachers who have seen the need of equipping themselves to teach the language. The need, however, in both of the departments mentioned has been and is of more advanced courses in Spanish and Spanish-American 38 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS literature, and most particularly are needed courses in the methods and materials in Spanish. In Indiana University there are more students enrolled in Spanish than in any other one subject of study. In the United States Naval Academy Spanish has recently been made the foreign language of greatest importance in the curriculum, and our future naval officers must now pursue the study of that language for four years instead of two as formerly. As an instance of the spread of Spanish to the normal schools may be cited the fact that in the New York State College for Teachers at Albany two large classes in the language were inaugurated in the fall of 1916 and the study of Spanish in that institution is now well established. The growing realization that " the high school is the college of the common people " is doubtless indicated in the fact that there is a greater and more immediate responsiveness in high school administra- tion to the demands of the community than is perceptible in the administration of the college proper with its entrenched traditions and more conservative aims. The people at large seem more deeply aroused to the need of Spanish than are the professional educators, at least those engaged in the college field. Thus may be explained in large measure the fact that the study of Spanish is making more rapid growth in the High Schools than in the institutions of higher rank. It is difficult to collate exact statistics from the country at large to show the increase in high school THE PRESENT PROGRESS OF SPANISH 39 classes in Spanish. Perhaps the author may be allowed to state that his personal experience includes the receipt during the past three or four years of numerous requests from principals and modern language teachers in various parts of the United States for a suggested syllabus in Spanish or an indication of suitable books for the beginning of a high school course in that language. And as the one in charge of the modern language instruction in the High Schools of the City of New York, he has been able to gather the following figures as to registration of students in the various foreign languages of those schools. On March 15, 1917, the following was the condition that prevailed in the 24 High Schools of the greater city, 20 of which had classes in Spanish : Terms 1 i ii iii iv V vi vii viii Total French 3751 2854 3003 2315 2206 1094 273 218 I4>714 German 5859 S309 4I03 3383 2282 1993 485 484 23,898 Italian 17 18 17 22 22 7 — — I03 Latin 4161 3624 3042 2466 1649 i486 432 549 17,409 Spanish 6952 3223 1495 915 404 199 82 92 13^62 It will be noted that the registration in the first term of this table pictures the conditions of March 15, 191 7, while the figures given for the second term would show the relative standing of the lan- guages in the previous half year, say of October 15, 1916, and those of the fourth term represent 1 Term is used as synonymous with half year or semester. 40 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS the status of October 15, 1914, and so forth. Thus is evident a steady and marked drift to Spanish. It should be remarked that in a few of these schools Spanish (and likewise French) could be chosen only as a second foreign language, it being compulsory, because of long custom, to complete successfully first at least a year of Latin or German, after which a choice might be made between a second foreign language or a science : chemistry or physics. Spanish had also suffered the additional handicap of being elective in some schools only in commer- cial courses. But in January, 191 7, Acting City Superintendent Straubenmiiller, at the request of Associate Superintendent Tildsley, in charge of high schools, had the following circular notice sent to all the principals of elementary schools : Principals of elementary schools will please notify the pupils in their graduating classes that they are allowed to select on the blank that is sent to the high schools either Spanish, French, German or Latin (in other than the commercial or technical courses). If a sufficient number of applicants for a given high school choose Spanish and a teacher is available, Spanish will be given February 5, 191 7, even though it has not been offered in that school heretofore. This direction, which did much to create an equal opportunity for the study of Spanish in the High Schools, doubtless contributed largely to the number, 6952, who on March 15, 1917, were registered in Spanish classes. In May, 1917, Associate Superin- tendent Tildsley further clarified the situation in re- THE PRESENT PROGRESS OF SPANISH 41 gard to instruction in Spanish in the High Schools by giving as a specific direction to the principals of those schools that an entering student should be in- formed that he may choose, as his first language, either Spanish, French, German, or Latin on an equal basis and that in commercial and technical schools the entering student should be offered Spanish, French, and German on a par. As a result, Spanish is now being taught for the first time in the history of Greater New York in all the High Schools — 24 in number. The following table, compiled as of October 5, 1917, represents the relative status of the several languages at that date. Terms i I iii iv V vi vii viii Total French German Italian Latin Spanish 5075 3151 4118 7776 2525 3862 3"3 4577 2644 3523 33 2731 1990 2036 2846 10 20IO 937 1214 1874 1599 615 IO24 1568 17 1271 315 271 375 493 119 I8l 312 330 46 14,970 17,511 74 15,665 16,375 In any interpretation that may be put upon these statistics, one must observe that the registration in the High Schools was 68,465 on February 28, 1917, and 66,955 on September 30, 1917. 1 The above somewhat detailed recital of events in the language situation in the New York City High Schools has been given because it is believed that these events have had their approximate counter- part in the High Schools of most of the large cities. 1 See Addenda for the figures of February, 191 8. 42 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS Of course, in the Southwest and in the Far West Spanish has for several years been studied by a greater proportion of the high school and college students than was the case in most of the other sections of the land. The local conditions, created by the presence there of a considerable body of Spanish- speaking people, have been responsible for this fact. However, the recent renascence of interest in Spanish has made itself strongly felt in those regions as well as in other places. And it is of note that the High School of Dallas, Texas, apparently has the distinction of being the first High School of the land to offer Portuguese to its students. Courses in that language were instituted there in the fall of 1916 under the direction of Mr. M. A. De Vitis. The Middle West has shown in the past two years a commendable interest in Spanish, as has also the Northwest. The South was probably the first section of the country, after the East, to respond in its school system to the desire of the people for Spanish. In fact, had the advocates of Spanish carried on even a small proportion of the propaganda that the German specialists have waged so un- ceasingly for many years, a much greater trend to Spanish than now exists would be in evidence. But this trend has manifested itself absolutely without any organized efforts at propaganda, except that which has already been noted as made in 1914-1916 in the State of New York. One should also make mention here of the fact that the private preparatory schools have been very quick to meet the wishes of their patrons to have THE PRESENT PROGRESS OF SPANISH 43 instruction in Spanish offered in the modern lan- guage departments. Several could be mentioned ; one will suffice as an illustration. In the fall of 191 3 there were in Culver Military Academy, Culver, Indiana, under the instruction of Captain Charles P. Harrington, three classes in Spanish ; in 1914, five classes; in 191 5, six classes; in 1916, nine classes; in 1917 Captain Harrington and two assistants had in Spanish twelve classes as compared with ten classes in the French Department and six in the German. The private business schools have, of course, been teaching Spanish, chiefly from the commercial standpoint, for a number of years, and these classes have recently been very appreciably augmented in numbers of students. It seems quite probable that the conditions just described as existing in the language departments of the various kinds of secondary schools may have eventually an interesting effect upon the higher institutions. Will not the colleges and universities be compelled by these conditions to provide a greater number of advanced courses in Spanish to meet the demands of students coming to them from the schools of lower grade ? Time alone will tell. Finally, in considering the progress that Spanish has made as a subject of study in the schools, it remains to mention briefly the Intermediate School or the Junior High School. To the author it seems questionable whether in the school system of the United States it is advisable or desirable to begin the study of a foreign language at all in the present eight- 44 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS year elementary school, even at a point as advanced as the seventh or eighth year of that course. The teaching of foreign languages in the grades, as at present conducted, has made not for Americanism but for the isms of the country whose language has been studied. Also, the program in those schools should be devoted to the more essential things — to the three R's, if you will. Moreover, careful observation, without, however, the reinforcement of statistical tables, leads to the belief that time devoted to modern languages in the grades, under present conditions, is mostly time wasted. Few pupils who have studied French and German in the grades have been able to secure advanced standing in those languages on entering High School, and fewer yet have been able to maintain advanced standing if granted. This may be due in varying degree to lack of capable teachers of foreign languages in the grade schools, to lack of proper supervision and direction, lack of proper methods, properly planned syllabi or properly adapted text books, or lack of proper articulation between the high and elementary school, — or it may be due to all of these weaknesses. And yet, beyond question, it is with pupils of the age of those in the last two years of the present grade schools that the study of languages should be begun for reasons previously stated. What, then, is the solution of the difficulty ? The well organized Junior High School will solve the problem presented. Such a school comprising, let us say, the seventh, eighth, and ninth years of school work will provide (i) departmental teaching, THE PRESENT PROGRESS OF SPANISH 45 whereby the modern languages will be taught by specialists, (2) teachers having the same standard of training and ability (and receiving the same, or ap- proximately the same, salaries) as those who teach in the present four-year High School, (3) a modified system of electives, whereby a pupil, with the help and advice of teacners and parents, may choose the language he prefers, (4) the segregation of pupils by courses, (5) instruction and training of the young student, under supervision, as to how to study, and (6) close articulation with and preparation for the Senior High School. It will be presumed that the Junior High School referred to in this book will have assumed at least the above mentioned characteristics distinguishing it from the old type of elementary school, in which this new type of school is frequently first established. A Junior High School organized in the manner above described will not, can not, be conducted as a money-saving proposition. The greatest obstacle to the proper development of the Junior High School has been the fact that boards of education have seen in this new type of school a way, first of all, to have the usual high school courses of the lower terms taught by elementary school teachers whose salaries are generally much less than those paid to teachers in the four-year High School ; moreover, they have placed these schools under the supervision of ele- mentary school principals who are likewise less highly paid than are high school principals. In many cases the result has been what might well have been expected — inferior work because of 46 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS inadequately paid and insufficiently trained teachers supervised by principals similarly handicapped for this particular kind of work. Spanish is taught at present in four of the sixteen Intermediate Schools in New York City. These schools have lacked a common standard of instruction in thelanguage. Conditions have probably been more "hit-or-miss ' in regard to the Spanish syllabus than those that have prevailed in the Junior High Schools of other cities. These conditions have come about natu- rally enough because no one in authority over these schools (they are not as yet classified under the High School department) has shown any particular interest in the direction of the work in Spanish. The course of study in Spanish in Los Angeles Intermediate Schools has, however, been carefully worked out and the results are said to be quite satisfactory. But if Spanish (or any other foreign language) is to be taught successfully in the Junior High Schools of the United States, as successfully as the opportunity thus provided warrants and the needs of the nation require, there must be in these schools (i) well pre- pared, well paid teachers who are specialists in the language, (2) especially adapted methods of teaching, (3) suitable texts, and (4) carefully planned courses of study. CHAPTER IV THE PREPARATION OF THE SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHER OF SPANISH The lack, previously mentioned, of well trained teachers of Spanish has been a serious handicap in many cases to the growth of that language in the schools, lower and higher. Many schools would have instituted instruction in Spanish had it been possible to secure competent instructors. Heads of modern language departments have had to take either North Americans with a limited knowledge of Spanish — sometimes lamentably limited — but with an understanding of methods and of pupils, or, on the other hand, teachers who were of Spanish or Spanish-American origin with usually no under- standing of our methods of teaching and lacking al- most entirely in comprehension of that, to them, peculiar creature, the American child, and likewise in- capable, naturally, of appreciating the difficulties of Spanish for the English-speaking person. This is not said to belittle in any way the teachers who are of Spanish or Spanish-American birth. They are badly needed in the Spanish classes of our schools to-day, if and when they have succeeded in acquiring (i) the point of view of North American students in general and of those who study Spanish in particular, 47 48 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS (2) a good knowledge of English, and (3) methods and educational ideals that are followed in our school system. Such teachers can be of great help and inspiration to their colleagues, the Yankee teachers of Spanish, and a far greater number of them, equipped in this way, are desired than can probably be found. Teachers who are bilingual in English and Spanish are very few in number as compared with those who are bilingual in English and, say, German. Out of the two classes of Span- ish teachers mentioned the head of department has struggled to make good teachers, with what mediocre success in many cases can well be imagined. In cities having a local system of licensing teachers upon examination, an insufficient number of candi- dates present themselves, and the Spanish work has therefore been placed necessarily in the hands of substitute teachers, many of whom have been in- capable of qualifying as regularly licensed teachers. Recently, however, in some cities, in the midst of this need an unexpected source of supply has become available — excess teachers of German. This is not said slightingly. The teachers of French and German have blazed the way for the teacher of Spanish. They were in the field first. They have struggled long with the general problems of modern language instruction and have secured for modern languages in general their due place in the program of study. Students of beginning Spanish, if in the hands of experienced teachers of French or German, already trained and successful in the use of a modified form of the direct method, would surely stand a PREPARATION OF THE TEACHER 49 better chance of successfully acquiring the rudi- ments of Spanish than if they were taught by Spanish-speaking teachers unacquainted with our methods and ways of dealing with our children. However, the above statement is made only with the strong proviso, that these skilled teachers of German or French already know the elements of Spanish, have a reasonably good pronunciation of that lan- guage, continue studying, in some of the ways mentioned later, the phonetics, the language, and the literature, and make every effort to become as expert in presentation, drill, and conversation in Spanish as in the other language in which they are /already specialists. And in the larger cities having a local system of licensing teachers, such teachers should, it seems, secure in the accustomed way the special license to teach Spanish. That would be a further earnest of their intention to put forth their best efforts in the new field. Spanish must not become a kind of limbo for excess teachers of any subject. Neither should Spanish be a last resort for weak students, as has, alas ! been the case in some schools in the past. It is quite true, of course, that outside of the large cities most high school language teachers still have to teach two or even three foreign languages. But, for them, requirements for permission to teach classes in Spanish should be made as rigid as they are made for permission to teach any other of the languages. In this connection it is pertinent to take note here of a certain attitude of dilettanteism toward Spanish that is still rather noticeably evident. This has been true of the view- $0 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS point of principals, teachers, and students. Recently many a teacher of French, of Latin, or even of German, who has at some time in the indefinite past toyed a bit with Spanish, has volunteered to take charge of the newly established Spanish class or classes. This affords a novel experience, a breaking up of the monotony of teaching some other subject which the teacher is better qualified to teach. "Spanish", they said, "is easy. Any one who knows French or Latin can teach Spanish. Let me have a fling at it, if these pupils want Spanish ". And the principal, thus easily settling a perplexing problem, said, "Have your fling". And thus was the Spanish language disseminated — literally — in that and many another school. Shades of Quintilian and Cervantes ! Better had Spanish never been offered at all than offered in this way. The would-be Spanish teacher has no mean task ahead of him if he would be a worthy occupant of his post. As was related in the Introduction of this book, he will have fewer aids at hand than will the prospective teacher of French and German. And so his preparation, if conscientiously made, and his later work, if properly performed, will probably be more arduous than that of his French or German colleague. What, then, shall the prospective teacher of Spanish do to prepare himself well for his life task ? Suppose we consider here what his ideal preparation would be. Some day it will be feasible. We shall assume that this person is a North American (for experience has shown that the North American, other things being equal, when trained thoroughly PREPARATION OF THE TEACHER 5 1 in Spanish, makes the best teacher of that language in the schools of the United States), that he possesses the necessary qualities of good health, good humor, sympathy with young folks, ambition, and a liking for school work. Academic Training The first and most obvious requirement of a teacher is that he know his subject. Let us say that our future teacher of Spanish has had three years of Spanish in the High School (and in addition, three years of Latin) in which study emphasis has been placed upon the acquisition of the language by training in hearing, speaking, reading, and writing it. Coincident therewith he will have had a minimum of three periods a week for one year of the study of the history and geography of Hispanic lands. He will also have the advantage of membership for three years in a Spanish club conducted under the super- vision of an enthusiastic teacher. When he enters the college or university he will find there courses which continue his high school work, chiefly by affording instruction in the literature of Spain and Spanish America. Romance languages will be his " major " work and Spanish his principal Romance language. The novela, the drama, the ballad, the short story, will be studied in courses covering the various centuries of the long history of Spanish literature. Special attention will be given to the Siglo de Oro and to the Spanish prose of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. A careful study will be 52 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS made of the interrelation of the literary movements of Spain and those of England, France, and Italy. His ability to converse in correct Spanish will be heightened by membership in the Spanish club of the college and by association with students from Spanish lands. He will acquire a good reading knowledge of German that he may read later the works of the German scholars on Romance philology, on Spanish literature and phonetics. Later in his college course he will devote himself, if time permits, to Romance philology in general and Spanish philology in partic- ular. He will, of course, give a due portion of his time to studies in education, in which he will pay particular heed to high school problems and, by in- dependent reading, to the principles of psychology that lie at the basis of language study and teaching. His history courses will comprise at least a year of work devoted to the history, institutions, art, and education of Spain and particularly of the Spanish- American republics. His graduate work will be done partly in America and partly abroad. His study of Spanish literature will be intensified and broadened. Philology, pho- netics, and pedagogy with attention to the problems of the modern language teacher will also receive con- siderable attention from our teacher-in-the-making. In America, part of his graduate work will consist of courses on Spanish in secondary schools and on the organization of materials to be used in the high school. He should, if possible, obtain experience in teaching in the practice school of the School of Education of the university where he studies. The PREPARATION OF THE TEACHER 53 technique of teaching will be a matter to him of great interest and investigation. When abroad, where he should study consecutively for two years, if at all possible, in accredited schools or universities, he will, of course, get his intimate, first-hand knowledge of the customs, institutions, educational ideals, mode of life, manners, art and architecture remote and modern, of Hispanic peoples. Needless to say, his mastery of spoken Spanish will be made as nearly perfect as possible by living that same daily life that Spanish people do. Fortunately, in Spain at least, he will have little temptation to use English, as English is, indeed, Greek to practically all Spaniards in town or country. He will study 1 at theUniversidad Central of Madrid under such professors as R. Menendez Pidal, Romance philology ; Americo Castro, history of the Spanish language ; Elias Tormo, history of art ; Manuel B. Cossio, pedagogy; Rafael Altamira, institutions of America ; Eduardo de Hinojosa, history of America; A. Bonilla y San Martin, history of philosophy; M. Gomez Moreno, history of Arabic art in Spain ; Julian Ribera, history of the Arabs in Spain ; Miguel Asin, Arabic ; Abraham S. Yahuda, history of the Jews in Spain. The Centro de Estudios (of the Junta para Amplia- tion de Estudios), situated in the building of the Biblioteca Nacional, has a very good library and collection of important reviews. Of much interest 1 Much of the following information has been supplied by Professor Federico de Onis of Columbia University, who is also catedrdtico of the University of Salamanca, 54 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS and usefulness to the foreign student is the laboratory in phonetics conducted by Tomas Navarro Tomas, the leading phonetician of Spain. There are seminars in various subjects and regular courses, all conducted by professors of the greatest ability, such as Alta- mira, Tormo, Gomez Moreno, Hinojosa, and Ortega y Gasset. The director is Professor Menendez Pidal and the secretary T. Navarro Tomas. Besides sum- mer courses for foreigners during July and August there are offered cur so s trimestrales, October to De- cember, January to March, and April to June. The Ateneo of Madrid provides probably the finest opportunities to the foreign student for getting thoroughly in touch with the best in modern Spanish civilization and culture. He may receive all the benefits of the Ateneo for the very reasonable fee of 1 5 pesetas a month. The library of modern books is the best in Madrid. Newspapers and reviews of all kinds from all countries are available. Lectures are given almost every day, often by the best writers, scientists, and specialists in art and literature. Even- ing concerts are frequent. In short, the Ateneo is the best center in which to follow the literary move- ment of modern Spain. The Residencia de Estudiantes> conducted by the Junta para Ampliation de Estudios (Ministerio de In- struction Publica)> has separate quarters for men and for women and is equipped in the most modern style. It is designed primarily for Spanish students, but a certain proportion of foreign students can be accom- modated. Rates are moderate, 5 to 7 pesetas a day, including room, excellent meals, heating, baths, etc. PREPARATION OF THE TEACHER 55 Outside of Madrid our student will find in Sala- manca very desirable courses in the ancient univer- sity of that city. Here the famous scholar, Miguel Unamuno, gives courses in the history of the Spanish language and in the Greek language and literature. Angel Apraiz conducts the work in the history of art. There is in this city an Ateneo where lectures are frequently given. Salamanca offers the advan- tages of a very old institution with opportunities for forming close friendships and for getting thoroughly acquainted with traditional Spanish life. One may live there for from 8 to 10 pesetas a day in the best hotels. Excepting those of Madrid and Salamanca, the universities of Spain offer little of value to the Amer- ican student. With the additional exception of the university at Valladolid, the higher institutions are located in dialectal regions — Andalusia, Catalonia, Galicia, etc. — and while our student should visit these regions in order to see all types of Spanish life, he should not waste time in those places if he desires particularly to know well the Spanish language and literature. Living in Spain may in general be esti- mated at the rate of 10 pesetas a day, though it is possible to live comfortably for less. Outside of Spain the American student will also find considerable profit in the courses of Professors Martinenche at the Sorbonne in Paris, Cirot at Bordeaux, the two Merimees, one at Toulouse and the other at Montpellier, and Fitzmaurice-Kelly at the University of London. But Spain he must know well, for from Spain 56 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS emanate the race ideals, viewpoints, philosophy of life, art, religion, and even to a great extent, the polit- ical ideals, of the republics which in the New World developed out of the civilization of Spain — a fact that some seem to disregard when they advocate the study of Spanish in the United States almost entirely from the Spanish-American point of view. In other words, for a broad and deep comprehension of Span- ish America, the first essential is an understanding of the ideals and history of the mother country. For instance, Spanish-American literature without its background of Spanish literature, and our own literature without that of England for its background, both stand stark and tenuous in the searching light of criticism. One cannot perceive, one cannot ap- preciate the finer shades of beauty inherent in the literatures of the New World without the contrasting, enriching, and softening effects imparted by the background of the mother literature of the Old World nation. But our teacher of Spanish will not neglect His- panic America. The marvelous republics that lie but partly developed under southern constellations, forming that America " que aun reza a Jesucristo y aun habla en espanol", are dormant giants that one day will rise in their might and claim the atten- tion of all the world. In their cities exist universities and schools of ancient founding, some of them with student bodies of more than 2000 in number. Not Harvard but San Marcos in Peru is the oldest uni- versity of the New World. And in the halls, libra- ries, and laboratories of these institutions learned PREPARATION OF THE TEACHER 57 men, of origins as diverse as those of North American savants, are ceaselessly at work to increase the fund of human knowledge. So our teacher could profitably spend a year living amid the various types of Hispanic civilization of South America — as diverse as the countries in which they flourish — and studying in their universities, especially in those of Argentina, Uruguay, or Chile, the literature and history of those lands. Most especially would he thus come to appreciate the differing national characteristics and problems of these various nations and thus be able to advise intelligently his future students who might be partic- ularly interested in Hispanic America. And, not least of all, he would have a chance to study the various kinds of Spanish spoken there. In Brazil he would study the Western World Portuguese as dis- tinguished from that of Portugal. He would, be- cause of his standing as a scholar, be admitted to the society of educators, writers, artists, and public men. Finally, he will return to the United States and receive his Doctorate of Philosophy in some uni- versity, on the basis of original investigations he will have been able to make along some line in his studies and travels in Spanish lands. All this, it will be said, is too ideal. The answer to that objection is : First, Woe to him who sets too low an ideal. Second, there are at present teachers of Spanish who have been able to encompass practi- cally all that is here outlined, though possibly not in the exact sequence suggested and not as easily as these paragraphs may seem to indicate. Third, 58 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS the schools and universities of our country will no doubt in time be equipped to supply a larger portion of this training than they do at present. Fourth, there will doubtless be worked out in the course of time a successful plan for the interchange of North and South American teachers, in both the high school and the university fields. Such powerful organiza- tions as the Pan American Union, the Pan American Conferences and the American Association for International Conciliation, the universities, and other societies that could be mentioned, cannot fail eventually to make provision for this interchange of teachers. This should be begun first in the secondary schools of the two continents, for these institutions are more closely in touch with the life of the peoples of the several nations. A corollary of this plan would be an arrangement for the interchange of university students. The sequence of the steps in the later stages of this program will, of course, often be necessarily varied by many practical considerations. Few who would teach are able to continue in graduate work after obtaining the bachelor's degree. A period of teach- ing and economizing is usually necessary in prepara- tion for foreign study or for graduate study at home. But if the aspirant is so fortunate as to secure a teaching position in a university town, a large part of his graduate work may be done coincidentally with his teaching. Lacking this, there are summer school courses in which some of the phases of the work suggested may be done, or, in the near future, such studies will be possible in summer session. PREPARATION OF THE TEACHER 59 There are, since 191 2, courses for foreigners conducted in Madrid by the Junta para Ampliation de Estudios, which organization may be addressed at Moreto, 1, of that city. Many of these courses, described above, are planned particularly to aid North Amer- icans who wish to teach Spanish. The Spanish gov- ernment, through the Minister io de Instruction Publica y Bellas Artes, is taking an increasingly active part in fostering this instruction to foreigners. 1 The courses offered grow richer and more varied every year. Other " Means of Grace" And when the above program has been accom- plished, mayhap after many years of endeavor, even then the teacher's efficiency and enthusiasm must be kept aglow, the tools of his trade must be kept sharp, by association in organized societies with other teachers of Spanish, by reading modern language journals and by writing for them, and by observing the work of other teachers of languages in his own and other schools. The Spanish teacher, to keep abreast of the times, should be a member of modern language associations and particularly of The American Association of Teachers of Spanish and a reader of HISPANIA, the organ of that Association. Occasional visits to Spanish countries, possibly to those he has not seen before, will stimulate and keep alert his zeal and enthusiasm. The lover of things Spanish is peculiarly fortunate in that he has 1 See Chapter XVII for further information in this respect. do SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS not one but nineteen separate and distinct nations of Spanish speech which he can visit and where he can enjoy countless and varying manifestations of Spanish society, art, language, and letters. The Sabbatical Year For the full enjoyment and benefit of residence and travel abroad, a continuous stay of at least six months seems an irreducible minimum. Otherwise the returns are hardly commensurate with the invest- ment necessary of time and money. What, then, can the Spanish teacher, with his two or, at most, three months of vacation, do that he may avail himself of the inestimable benefit of study in a Spanish land for the minimum time stated ? So far as his own action in the matter is concerned, his only course seems to be to absent himself from his post a half or whole school year for this purpose. But this is easier said than done. A limited ipurse and un- consenting school authorities are usually insuperable barriers. And yet if he is doing his duty as an up-to- date language teacher, he is expected to have a marked fluency in Spanish in order to handle effec- tively the newer methods of teaching, to have a thorough knowledge of the life, customs, geography, history, and institutions of Spanish lands, to be an interpreter of Spanish civilization. But when he has not been so fortunate as to complete a program of training similar to that above described, or when he feels again the call of sunny Spain and longs again to hear Castilian speech from Castilian lips and to steep PREPARATION OF THE TEACHER 6l himself again in the traditions of age-old Spain, or when he realizes his great need of a first-hand ac- quaintance with Spanish-American countries, he cannot repress a feeling of envy of his colleague in the college world who, no matter whether a foreign language teacher or not, has his sabbatical year or leave of absence on half or full pay. The secondary school teacher's work is surely as worthy and im- portant as, more exacting, more nerve-racking, more voluminous, and more closely supervised than is that of the college teacher, and yet the former has not the long vacation and the sabbatical year that the latter enjoys. Boards of education in control of High Schools seem exceedingly slow in realizing that in granting to modern language teachers in High Schools, Junior or Senior, a sabbatical year on half pay or a half year on full pay, for the purpose of study in the country or countries whose languages they teach, they would be doing probably the one most helpful tthing they could do to improve the teaching of modern languages in the United States, and that, in so doing, they would be only following the policy long ago adopted by many boards of trustees of universities (usually held to be most conservative bodies) not only with regard to teachers of modern languages but for teachers of all subjects. In the larger cities, at least, this failure to grant a sabbatical period cannot be justified on the ground of expense. For instance, a teacher receiving an annual salary of #2050 (the ninth year salary in New York City), if allowed a year of absence on half pay, would receive $1025 from the city. To take his 62 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS place, a substitute teacher could be secured for the 192 school days of the year at #4.00 per day, or #768, which, added to the $1025 of half salary for the regular teacher, would make $1793 instead of the #2050 that would otherwise be paid the regular teacher. Of course, the higher up in the salary schedule a teacher were, the more the city would save. Few teachers would be eligible for a sabbatical year whose annual salary would not be greater than their half salary plus the substitute's pay. It is true that there would probably be less efficient teaching of the teacher's classes while they were in the hands of the substitute, but any loss thus occasioned would be far outweighed by the gain in the efficiency and zeal of the absent teacher when he returned to duty. The granting of the sabbati- cal period would make more easily possible the ideal preparation of the Spanish teacher advocated in this chapter. War times are clearly inopportune times in which to seek the sabbatical year for teachers for study abroad, but one of the first educational movements to follow the close of the war should be a great con- certed effort of modern language teachers in the High Schools of the United States to secure the sabbatical year for this purpose. Our boasted " splendid isolation " as a nation is gone ; our rela- tions with non-English-speaking nations are, and hereafter always will be, very close. Upon the ter- mination of the Great War, the increased commercial competition between European nations and our coun- try as well as closer bonds, friendly and commercial, PREPARATION OF THE TEACHER 63 between some of those nations and our own will give to the study of foreign languages in the United States, and especially to Spanish, a new meaning and impetus, and one of the best innovations in educa- tional policy that we as a nation could make would be to provide, in the manner suggested, for the im- provement of modern language instruction. The ideals we have set in the foregoing paragraphs for the preparation and continued improvement of the teacher of Spanish hold equally well for any one of the three types of High School mentioned — the present four-year High School, the Senior High * School, or the Junior High School. The pupil in the seventh, eighth, or ninth school year needs a teacher of Spanish fully as competent and well prepared as does the senior in college; rather, he needs a more competent one. Gongorism, the me- tathesis of consonants and •liquids, the structure of Spanish verse, the wars of Alphonso the Wise, or Comenius' theories of modern language teaching may not be fit matters for instruction in the Junior High School class in Spanish, but a knowledge of these and many other similar things, on the part of the teacher of Spanish, should give him a better perspective of his task, make his own mental life richer and keener, and thereby make more inspiring and helpful his teaching of Spanish to pupils of whatever class. CHAPTER V THE AIM IN TEACHING SPANISH Any consideration of methods in teaching Spanish proves to be more or less useless until the aim or object in teaching the language is determined. What, then, is our aim ? Is it to equip pupils so that they may act successfully as interpreters on the troubled Mexican border or at Ellis Island, or as waiters in a Spanish boarding-house in the Spanish section of the city, or as correspondents in inter- national trading-houses, or as translators of Nick Carter stories into Spanish, or as conductors of North American tourist parties through the, to many, undiscovered delights of somnolent, sun- baked Spain, prepared glibly to cry as they lead the way, " Aqui se ve a la izquierda una pintura de Murillo, la mas famosa de todas las que pinto ese gran maestro; tiene mucho merito," or shall we train our students to be dreamy followers of the sad- visaged Knight of La Mancha, que en gloria este y given over to chivalrous deeds of doubtful merit though prompted by high ideals, or shall we prepare them only to enjoy the rich literature of Spain and Spanish America, or shall we school them especially to be learned delvers in the more or less virgin field of Spanish philology ? 6 4 THE AIM IN TEACHING SPANISH 65 To answer Yes to only one, no matterwhich, of these questions would be Quixotic indeed. To say Yes to the entire group of questions would more nearly hit the mark, for the training we should give a pupil in Spanish, from the Junior High School up, ought to equip him so that he could, if need be, or if the desire arose, exercise in any one of these lines in a creditable manner, though to a limited extent, the Spanish he has learned from us. The aim of the teacher of Spanish in the United States should be to effect that thorough mental discipline which is imparted by a study of grammar, idiom, and syntax ; and so to develop that ready and accurate facility of ear, tongue, and eye that, all combined, will make the present and future use of the language, and progress therein, both possible and certain. We cannot in two or three years, nay even in six, assure a student a complete mastery of Spanish. But we can and should so have trained him that he may apply his knowledge of Spanish to any one end or to several ends with the self- confidence (conscious or unconscious) that he can easily grow up to the demands that may be made upon his knowledge of the language. CHAPTER VI THE METHOD TO BE USED IN TEACHING SPANISH If such is the aim posited in teaching Spanish, how are we to attain this consummation so devoutly to be wished ? The answer is : by appealing con- stantly to all the senses involved in learning a language, by variety of method of procedure in teaching. We will train the pupil's eye in reading and writing Spanish ; his ear in hearing others read and speak Spanish : his tongue and other vocal organs by practical phonetics and by causing him to speak Spanish ; his motor nerves and muscles by causing him to give instant response to commands in Spanish that require immediate action and to write sentence and paragraph units in Spanish. Only through the reports of the different sensory nerves to the brain is material provided for the mind to react upon. Without these sense reports the mind would perish of starvation. The stimuli for the sensory nerves of sight and hearing (the printed or t/he spoken word) may, as we well know, be couched in Czech, Chinese, Russian, or Spanish as well as in English. But we also know that it takes years to train the mind to react promptly to these stimuli, even in the case of the mother 66 METHOD TO BE USED IN TEACHING SPANISH 67 tongue. But eventually the mind can be trained to react to Spanish stimuli — if you will — and to send out over the motor nerves those commands and reflex actions that will result in expression in Spanish, in writing or in speech. Then is the Spanish mind created ; thus is the feeling for Spanish aroused. This is "la posesion efectiva de la lengua". We can and must appeal to all sides of that complex and impressionable thing known as a young person's mind. And once a pupil is trained to use the lan- guage in these various modes it will become a part of his mental life and he will have acquired a basis for any future use of it. But let no one say that the training thus sought is a short or easy process. The stimuli must be presented again and again unwearyingly ; reactions must be directed, checked up, and repeated unceasingly. What does the practice of this principle of varied sense appeal exact of the teacher of Spanish? It demands originality, resourcefulness, ability to improvise. Doing things in the same old way is the line of least resistance but not the line of greatest effectiveness. Ruts must be abandoned and new highways laid out. But meandering, blind trails are no better than ruts. Design, preparation, and careful thought are necessary in making a path of progress. That is, good judgment is the next requisite of the teacher in appealing to the different senses and in getting the different reactions. But originality (or resourcefulness) and good judgment will still come short of effectiveness unless enthusiasm and forcefulness are ever compelling the teacher of 68 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS Spanish onward. Forcefulness, good judgment, and resourcefulness will win the day. What shall we call the method that would train, as outlined, the various senses involved in learning a language ? Would it not be the eclectic method, if name it we must, the method that takes good things wherever they are found, be they heralded by the direct method advocates, or cherished by grammar enthusiasts, or promulgated by those who would make ability to read the Ultima Thule of language study ? But this eclectic method should not be allowed to run riot. Every step of procedure should have a definite, thought-out purpose in view. We should realize that the so-called direct method in its insistence upon much oral work has a strong claim for a large place in the classes of young be- ginners, and in Junior High School classes the ear and the tongue should doubtless be trained more than the eye. But let us not at any point in the High Schools, Junior or Senior, exaggerate the importance of oral practice. An American teacher who cannot use the direct method and a native who can use no other are alike hopeless. Again, inductive proc- esses in teaching grammar are, it is true, usually the most effective and make the best impression on the young mind. If the child by inductive processes discovers the truth, partly at least, for himself, his acceptance of that truth will be more complete and vital. But we should bear in mind that he often accepts facts as he finds them and that for him the statement of fact made by an older person is often sufficient. He does not usually reason from the METHOD TO BE USED IN TEACHING SPANISH 6o particular to the general. So it is conceivable that there are times when a deductive presentation of grammar is preferable. A clear-cut, concise deduc- tive process is often more effective than a round- about inductive method. Likewise formal or set translation, so totally rejected by some, has its due place, though beyond doubt a minor place, in our scheme of things, and then only late in the course in Spanish. The eclectic method, while making much of oral practice in the form of question and answer in Spanish, oral reproduction of anecdotes, oral repeti- tion of passages memorized, and so forth, will not neglect other types of sense appeal at any stage of progress. It is true beyond peradventure that for 90 per cent of the students of foreign languages (except Spanish) in the United States, the summum bonum is the ability to read and write the language studied. And one might safely hazard the guess that for at least 70 per cent of the students of Spanish — a language the speaking knowledge of which is doubtless of more practical value to North Americans than that of any other foreign tongue — the same is true. Why, then, give oral drill at all to such stu- dents as will have no need to speak Spanish ? For this reason : experience has shown that oral practice (not mere rambling attempts at conversation) with its coincident aural training gives ability to read aloud or silently, but usually understandingly, with- out translation into English. To go back to our previous discussion, the stimuli presented to the brain and the reactions thereupon that are involved 70 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS in much reading aloud and in much hearing of others' reading aloud create in time such quickened reaction to Spanish that the pupil really begins to think in Spanish. Of oral practice it must also be said that it greatly enlivens interest. The eclectic method is, in a fashion, a misnomer, a self-contradictory term, for it is built on the hypoth- esis that there is no one best method. As President G. Stanley Hall says : The ideal for the teacher to strive toward is to know all methods enough to use the best elements of them all by turns, but to resist extremists who insist that there is only one best way and who would tie them down to any inexorable and exclusive method, although an enthusiast in any does often accomplish marvels. Professor Bagster-Collins writes : Some of us are too prone to believe that we have at last struck upon tie right way of teaching modern languages, but another generation may think differently. 1 From Melanch- thon to Vietor, from Comenius to Gouin, the wheel of methods has revolved, .its revolutions bringing into prevalence at the top of the wheel now this and now that theory as to the best way of teaching foreign languages. There seems to be very little that can now really be called new in methods of instruction in languages. And for progress in this field in the future shall we not have to look to the laboratory of the experimental psychologist where may be investigated and checked up scientifically our multitudinous theories and our empiric practices ? 1 Bulletin of the New England Modern Language Associa- tion, May, 191 6; p. 42. METHOD TO BE USED IN TEACHING SPANISH 71 The three elements of most importance that determine the methods to be used in teaching a language seem to be : (1) the ideals, national and local, that prevail, marking the general trend of education ; (2) the characteristics of the individual teacher; and (3) the type of pupil. When a nation has a great foreign commerce and close intercourse with several nations of different tongues, a national point of view in regard to learn- ing and teaching languages will prevail which will be entirely different from the viewpoint in another na- tion that economically is largely self-sufficient and but slightly interested in international affairs. A teacher of dominant personality may be extraordina- rily successful with some certain method whereas an unassertive, mild-mannered teacher may make a hopeless failure of that same method. The person- ality, training, physique, and philosophy of life of the teacher are elements inevitably affecting the success of the method used. Then the type of pupil : lan- guage teachers seem invariably to complain, for in- stance, of the inferior ability in languages of students in commercial schools and commercial courses as compared with those in the academic or college pre- paratory courses. And there seems to be just reason for this complaint. It is needless to multiply exam- ples to show the variation in ability of various groups of students due to differences in age, previous preparation, temperament, life plans, and so forth. 72 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS In view of the countless combinations made possible by at least the three factors mentioned, each one of which is itself a variable, it would indeed seem bold to proclaim that any one method yet devised is the best method to be followed in all cases. In the last analysis, then, the successful teacher of Spanish will be the one who has received training similar to that above described, who realizes that a language is a habit-forming and not a fact subject, who perceives that appeal must be made to all the senses and faculties involved in learning a language, and who, because he knows that varying conditions require appropriately varying treatment, studies national and local needs as regards Spanish, analyzes his own strong and weak points and those of his pupils, collectively and individually, and then evolves his own method, which he applies with enthusiasm, resourcefulness, and good judgment. In other words, his is the eclectic or selective method applied to accomplish the aim we have previously set in the teaching of Spanish. CHAPTER Vn THE COURSE OF STUDY IN SPANISH FOR THE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL AND METHODS OF TEACHING IT The aim in teaching Spanish in the Junior High School should be that stated in Chapter V. But the accomplishment of that aim will be sought in a manner somewhat different from that employed in the Senior High School or in the ordinary four-year High School. At least two of the chief characteristics of the Junior High School that determine some modifica- tion of the methods that would be used in the ordi- nary High School are: (i) Younger children — twelve to fourteen years of age. This means that minds more impressionable and plastic are to be dealt with. More memory work, less appeal to the reasoning powers, shorter recitation periods, shorter lessons, less home work, more oral work, are all in place. (2) An earlier presentation than was offered in the old system of opportunities to study new subjects. This means greater interest of pupils in the work of their seventh, eighth, and ninth years of school life. Under the old plan, a pupil often tired of studying arithmetic and geography, spelling, history, and 73 74 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS grammar, for the better part of eight years. He may not realize that in taking up bookkeeping in the Junior High School he is continuing his arithmetic, nor that general science is his old friend nature study in disguise, that English is another name for reading, composition, and grammar. At any rate, new studies (or old studies under new names), new kinds of books, new sets of teachers who are all specialists, in short, the Junior High School organized as we have previously indicated, awakens in the pupil a new interest in school work. And when he is given an opportunity to learn Spanish his interest is most keen. Life is offering him new and, perhaps, unexpected advantages which he longs to seize. Now he may learn to " talk with Spaniards and Mexicans", as he will naively put it. Great, then, is the opportunity of the teacher of Spanish in the presence of this attitude of the young pupil. These two factors must be considered, of course, in fashioning the course of study for the Junior High School. Bearing them in mind, let us proceed to mark out here a three-year general syllabus for such a school with suggestions for teaching it. It will be assumed that the student elects Spanish, that it is the first foreign language he has studied, that the course is planned for academic and com- mercial students alike, and that these three years of Spanish are to be followed by three years more in the ordinary High School or in the Senior High School. COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS 75 First Year Pronunciation That of Castile will be taught and for the follow- ing reasons : (1) Western World pronunciation of Spanish has no single standard or norm — that of Cuba differs from that of Argentina or that of Mexico, and so on. No one can say definitely what South American pronunciation of Spanish is. (2) The Castilian pronunciation is recognized even in Spanish America as providing a clear, satisfactory standard. One who uses this pronun- ciation, the mark of an educated speaker of Spanish, is immediately understood and respected therefor. (3) Castilian is more nearly phonetic than South American Spanish. This is a point of great impor- tance in the acquirement of correct spelling ability, as, for instance, in the mastery of the orthographical- changing verbs — for example, rezar, veneer, etc. Possible confusion of meanings is avoided in the case of words of different meanings which in South Amer- ica are pronounced alike but differently in Castile (cf. cazar, casar; cocer, coser). (4) One speaking Castilian, the standard, can, by very little practice, adopt the mode of speech of that South American country in which he may happen to be, should he desire to do so. Likewise, a very little experience in hearing the language there will put him in a condition to understand perfectly what he hears. One accustomed to speak and understand Spanish gives no more than passing notice to any peculiarities 76 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS in the manner of speaking of the person with whom he is conversing. Much care and more drill are necessary in teaching pronunciation. " Go slowly " is here a good motto. A correct and ready pronunciation of Spanish is not easily acquired. It is true that Spanish has not so many sounds radically differing from those in English as has French. But there are several that will need careful attention, such as inter-vocalic and final d, the b and the v, the // and the n, the final j, the jota, the semi-consonant i, open and close e and o. These especially will need careful explana- tion as to the manner of production by the vocal organs and plenty of drill should be given on them. Emphasis should be placed on the Spanish sounds that differ from those in English rather than upon the sounds similar in the two languages. The three simple rules for the stressing of Spanish words should be taught by induction. Drill in pronunciation will necessarily involve drill in syllabic accentuation. A given sound should be taught first in a word or phrase, taken preferably from the vocabulary of the class room, and then, if need be, singled out for careful practice. A word or phrase should be pro- nounced distinctly several times by the teacher before the class sees it on the board or in print. Individuals and then the class should repeat. Thus will be formed first the auditory image of the expression. In these days of education based more and more on appeals to the eye, the necessity of building up auditory images, especially in teaching living lan- guages, must be insisted upon. One prominent COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS 77 phase of the all-round training in the foreign language which we have previously set as our ideal is the development of ability to understand by hearing. Presentation of a word or phrase first through the ear will, if steadily practiced, strengthen greatly the power of aural perception. The visual image of the word should be secondary, especially with young children in the early stages of the study of a language. The child's imitative powers are at their height in the Junior High School period and his organs of speech may now be trained in enduring habits of correct articulation and enunciation. Hence the necessity of much correct repetition of sounds in words, short phrases, and breath groups. But blind imitation of the teacher by the pupil will usually not be sufficient, even with young children. Careful, lucid explanations by the teacher of how the vocal organs are placed in forming a given sound, the use of a mirror in the hands of the pupil to help him see how to place his vocal organs in imitation of the teacher, sketches of the positions of the vocal organs, the use of a vowel chart — in short, practical phonetics to aid in every possible way the production of correct Spanish sounds should be constantly brought into use. Of course the terminology of the phonetician is utterly out of place in the class, as are also, in Spanish, the symbols of phonetic tran- scription. The next step is automatization of pronunciation. This is accomplished by drill, and the basis of drill is repetition. Individual and concert repetition of 78 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS sound groups should be practiced at regular intervals. The first five minutes of each period for the first half year can profitably be spent in lively repetition in concert of a set of sentences read at the previous recitation. The steps in teaching pronunciation are, then, (i) careful model enunciation by the teacher, (2) re- production by the pupils of the sound or sounds heard, (3) the visual presentation of the word in writing, and (4) drill, regular and unceasing, upon words and breath groups. In this early teaching of pronunciation and, in fact, throughout the course, the endeavor should be made constantly to associate with the sound of words and phrases their sense. Pizarra not only affords good practice for the rr but the whole vocable should be directly connected in thought with black- board. Puerta, silla, mesa, tiza, libro, should be presented not only as material for pronunciation but the pronunciation of the words should evoke in the child's mind pictures of the objects designated. Vocabulary by the Series Method The first vocabularies taught should be the names of the objects of the class room, the material closest at hand. Objective material, direct method of approach, oral practice, frequent repetition, the introduction of verbs (present tense only) in simple series a la Gouin, should be used. The series method will be most helpful. There should be developed two kinds of these series, the unit of connected facts COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS 79 and the unit of connected actions. As examples of what is meant, the following will possibly serve : Series Unit of Connected Facts (Noun Unit) La sala de clase Esto es una sala de clase. La sala es grande y comoda. Tiene seis ventanas y dos puertas. Hay en la sala treinta asientos. Las pizarras son negras y las paredes son blancas. El techo es muy alto. El suelo es de madera. Hay un mapa contra la pared. Es un mapa de Espafia. Sobre la mesa del maestro hay libros, papeles, plumas y un tintero. Series Unit of Connected Actions (Verbal Unit) Escribiendo una carta Deseo escribir una carta. Tomo pluma, tinta, papel y papel secante. Me siento a la mesa. Meto la pluma en la tinta. Escribo el nombre del lugar, Miramontes. Afiado la f echa, a 26 de julio de 1917, Luego pongo : Mi querido amigo Juan. A Juan le digo muchas cosas. Firmo la carta. La meto en un sobre. Pongo en el la direction de mi amigo. Echo la carta en el buzon. Series units similar to those given above may be planned on such topics as the Spanish class, the home, the family, the seasons, the time of day, the state of health, meals, going to bed and getting up, the city, shopping, calling on a friend, place of residence, receiving a letter, the country, animals, vegetables, and so forth. Where, the inexperienced 80 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS teacher of Spanish may ask, shall I get the material for this kind of work ? What text book provides it? None, that the author knows of, has as yet been published that gives such material in kind and amount especially adapted for the Junior High School. But there are at least two books that the teacher can himself adapt to this kind of work — Hall's Poco a Poco (World Book Company) and Roberts' First Book in Spanish (E. P. Dutton and Company). Reading About the reading should be centered the greater part of the work of the first yeaf. Difficult literary material should be taboo. A reader of constructed text but written in the best, though simple, Spanish should be used. The reading lesson is probably the best test of a teacher's ingenuity in methods and devices. These are some of the ways in which a simple beginning reader in Spanish should be used : The teacher reads aloud a short passage while the glass listens with books closed, then again with books open. The individual pupil reads aloud the same passage. Then the entire class reads the passage aloud while the teacher listens closely for incorrect pronunciation as the conductor of an orchestra listens for false notes. No translation should be practiced, except possibly by the teacher of a word or phrase here and there whose meaning is most quickly clarified by recourse to English. Question and answer in Spanish between teacher COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS 8 1 and pupil or pupil and pupil about the paragraph read are in place. Questions should always be answered in complete sentences. Special attention should be paid to the correct verb form in both question and answer. It is sometimes well to require the pupil to repeat the question before answering it in Spanish. The questioning may at times be gradually transferred from the incident or situation in the passage read to situations and incidents in the pupil's daily life or experience. The passage read may be manipulated by having it reread or rewritten with changes in person and number (and later in the tense) of the verbs. A passage read on a previous day may be used for dictation and later a paragraph not yet read may be used for that purpose. Oral summaries of a paragraph or short page may be made in Spanish by the pupils after the teacher has shown by example how to do this. Occa- sionally the summary may be made in English with books closed. Or it may be given in writing in English or Spanish, these written summaries being prepared in class or at home with books closed or open. This summarizing may be developed, when first practiced, by skillful questioning by the teacher. A paragraph may be memorized after being read aloud first by the teacher and then by the class, and this memory work may be reproduced later both orally and in writing. Oral translation from oral reading may be occasionally practiced. The teacher reads to the class, whose books are closed, the Spanish text, one sentence at a time, selecting after each sentence a member of the class to give 82 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS the thought in English. Care is taken that this should not be a word-for-word translation. This work is done first only with matter already studied ; later, new matter may be used, preferably that of the next lesson which has not yet been prepared. Explanations of grammatical points that may come up in the reading should be as clear and simple as possible. But better than much explanation is much practice on these points, if the time has arrived for thus emphasizing the point in question. Anecdotes and incidents of the reading may be dramatized. It will be found that the children will take great delight in preparing little plays based on their read- ing for presentation before the class. Committees may be appointed to " put on " a play at a future date based on such and such a story or incident. When a pupil reads aloud attention will be centered upon his pronunciation and his whole recitation by having hini stand before the class. Incidentally this will afford the teacher a good opportunity to inspect the reading book for possible interlinear literary efforts. Grammar No attempt should be made in the first year to teach formal grammar. No text book in grammar should be given the pupil. And yet " there is a kind and degree of organization that will be helpful." 1 Attention should be centered upon the simpler 1 A statement by Dr. Walter L. Hervey of the Board of Ex- aminers, Department of Education, New York City, in Premier Secours, First Aid in Learning French, Suggestions to teachers, page 14; Association Press, New York, 191 7. COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS 83 phenomena of the inflection of articles, nouns, adjectives, and personal subject pronouns and object pronouns. Special drill should be given upon the verb, which is the backbone of the language. The series work and the reading will offer opportunity for this, thus making the presentation of points of grammar inductive. Irregular vedbs can be taught as easily as regular verbs. In fact, no mention need be made of the distinctions between regular and irregular verbs. In the first year the following tenses of the indicative should be well taught : present, preterite, imperfect. The subjunctive used as imperative is so necessary from the start that practice (but little theory) should be given in the formation of the present subjunctive for use in commands. The con- jugation of verbs should be taught only in a phrase, as : voy a la casa, vas a la casa, el> ella o Vd. va a la casa, etc. Questions may be dictated or put orally for reply in such a way that the answers will bring into play certain principles of inflection and syntax. Based on the reading, incomplete sentences may be given to be completed (with missing prepositions, verbs, pronouns, possessives, and so forth). Short sentences may be given to be made plural throughout. In other words, grammar may be taught without once using the word "grammar". Grammar may be learned by * * doing tricks with the language?, by " ma- nipulation ". Dictation One of the most useful exercises for the young beginner is to write connected Spanish prose at ^s 84 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS dictation. This should be % of the simplest character and taken at first from matter already studied. Later the teacher may reshape for dictation pur- poses a paragraph or anecdote previously read. It should i^borne in mind that the two chief objects of dictation are (1) to train and test for correct hearing of the passage read and (2) to train in spelling ability. Though Spanish is more nearly a " phonetic -language " than any other modern tongue (and therefore phonetic transcription of it is absolutely unnecessary), dictation in Spanish nevertheless proyides that training first mentioned — correct hearing. And, as we have already remarked, Spanish is a difficult language to " catch with the ear ". Dictation should have an ample place in the work set for the beginner. Gradually the teacher may introduce into the dic- tation material before unseen. By the end of the second year the pupil should be able to write correctly, though he may not always understand, almost any paragraph of simple prose. As a device to aid in correcting dictation, one pupil may be sent to the board in the rear of the room. When the para- graph has been written, pupils may exchange papers, the teacher will correct the passage on the board and the class will turn and compare with the board work the papers they then have in hand. In giving dictation, especially of entirely new or reshaped material, the teacher should, of course, read through the entire paragraph first, the pupils listening but not writing. At the second reading the pupils will write and the teacher will divide the sentences into COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS 85 the connected thought groups found in the com- ponent phrases and clauses. No phrase should be reread at this time. One final rereading should be given by the teacher after the last sentence has been taken down. Correction by the pupils, after the ex- change of papers, may consist merely in underscoring a word containing an error of any kind. Dictation papers may be rewritten correctly and filed with the teacher, who may use them for redictation. Pronunciation, vocabulary presented in series units, reading, informal grammar, and dictation may all have their basis in a reader or first book similar to the Hall or Roberts books mentioned or in a reader of the type of Harrison's Elementary Spanish Reader (Ginn and Company), Espinosa's Elementary Spanish Reader (Benj. H. Sanborn and Co.), or Roessler and Remy's First Spanish Reader (American Book Company). For the series units, possibly the first two mentioned supply the most satisfactory kind of matter for the teacher to use (the books need not be given to the pupils), while any one of the last three books named may be used as the basis for all the other work suggested and should be in the hands of the pupils. Some, how- ever, will wish to use the Hall or Roberts book and have the pupils supplied with it as the only book used by the class. The amount read in the first year will not be large, probably not over 75 pages, for much working over of the material in the several ways mentioned will be necessary — dictation, disguised grammar lessons, and so forth. 86 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS Additional Helps Under this heading we may mention illustrative material, such as : wall maps of Spain and Spanish- American lands, wall pictures of scenes from every- day life and with a Spanish atmosphere, wall charts showing verb endings, positions and forms of the subject and object pronouns, placards with proverbs for memorizing ; realia of Spain and Spanish America ; a Spanish club or clubs. These aids will be discussed in detail later. Second Year Pronunciation Drill in pronunciation should be continued with the short sentence as the unit of practice. This will provide opportunity for the development of the proper intonation of Spanish sentences — a phase of work to which too little attention is given and which is acquired best in childhood when the imitative powers are most active. A sentence may be pronounced correctly as regards the sounds of its component syllables and yet be unintelligible to the native speaker of Spanish. A certain delicacy of enunciation and intonation exists in Spanish which is very difficult for the English-speaking person to acquire. Rapid-fire concert repetition of model sentences, in imitation of the teacher, should be practiced during the first five or ten minutes of each period. The use of practical phonetics should be continued as necessary. COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS 87 Vocabulary The series method of vocabulary development may be laid aside. The reading will provide the teacher with opportunities for grouping words according to the simpler associations (1) of similarity of meaning (contestar, responder, replicar), (2) of contrast in meaning (cerca, lejos; rico, pobre ; preguntar, con- testar), and (3) of parts of the whole (casa, ventana, puerta, tirador). A device to strengthen these associations consists in having a passage reread with substitutions made of synonyms or antonyms. Even with young children this is possible to a certain extent after a few short exercises of this kind have been worked out by the teacher with the class, illustrating the ways in which words may be asso- ciated. Reading Again must we say that the reading matter should not be of difficult literary character. Simple stories, anecdotes, traditions, bits of folk-lore, well-told recitals in simple Spanish of life and travel in Spanish lands, are in place. Needless to say, all the reading matter from this point on should be distinctly tinged with the local color of Spain, Argentina, Cuba, Mexico, and so forth. Memory passages taken from the reading should be learned. Most of these should consist of prose, for no doubt a greater appreciation of and feeling for the language can be developed by the use of such material than by the use of poems. However, occasional memoriz- 88 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS ing of poetry (such as El Burro Flautista) is pertinent. The methods and devices suggested in the outline for the first year for treating the reading material are, of course, still applicable. The reading will be the basis of the second year's work as it was in the first year's. The amount read should be about the same as that for the first year if the reading is graduated in difficulty. Grammar The grammar work should still be informal, incidental, and disguised though nevertheless organ- ized and systematic in an increasing degree. No formal grammar text should yet be placed in the hands of the pupils. The method of accomplishing the grammar work suggested is that which consists chiefly in substitutions, transpositions, the filling of blanks, the writing of original sentences, that is, manipulations and reshapings. Stress upon verbs should be continued. The future and conditional, the perfect and the pluperfect tense of the indicative should be introduced and practiced. The gerund and the past participle should be mastered. The progressive forms of the tenses should be drilled upon. The commoner irregular verbs, ser, estar, tener, haber y decir, dar, querer, hacer, ir, and poder, should be made familiar in the five simple tenses of the indica- tive. Reflexive and radical-changing verbs should be practiced in the present tense. Drill on the sub- junctive as imperative should be continued. Rela- tive pronouns and demonstrative and possessive adjectives and pronouns should be worked out by COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS 89 induction and practiced in exercises devised by the teacher. Dictation Material for dictation should still be taken chiefly from the reading, but toward the end of the second year more and more material not before studied should be worked into these exercises, until the pupil can write readily any simple Spanish that is read to him. A variation may now be brought into play, namely, the reproduction in writing of short anecdotes or paragraphs that were given in dictation the preceding day. Brief, snappy dicta- tions should be given two or three times a week. Oral Practice Oral work must be not merely frequent, it should be constant. Spanish should become more and more the language of the classroom as the vocabulary of the pupils grows. But this oral work should never be allowed to degenerate into mere talk for the sake of talking. There should be a reason, an aim, in the teacher's mind, for every step in this as well as in other kinds of work done in class. Oral practice is directed conversation in Spanish, the controlling purposes of which are, first, to "train the ear" in hearing aright ; second, to give practice — practice in noun inflection, in verb conjugation, in the agree- ment of adjectives, the use of prepositions, and so forth; third, to test understanding of what is said or written ; fourth, to develop correct pronunciation and power of expression in Spanish. The third 90 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS purpose could, of course, be done as well in English ; but if so done it would contribute nothing to the accomplishment of the fourth purpose. Incidentally, but none the less importantly, oral practice is an excellent quickener of attention and interest. Third Year Pronunciation Drill in pronunciation should be chiefly incidental to other work in the third year of the course. But the unremitting attention of the teacher should make certain a correct pronunciation at sight of ordinary prose by every member of the class. The proper accentuation of words, a comparatively simple matter in Spanish, should now be nearly automatic with the pupil. Phrase and sentence intonation will still need considerable attention. Vocabulary A steady broadening of the pupil's vocabulary should be sought by recourse to the association of meanings of words, as previously described, by studies of cognates (valle, valley; azul, azure; desear, desire, etc.), and by competitions such as vocabulary matches in which two leaders " choose sides " as in the old-fashioned spelling bee. In- ability to give the Spanish equivalent for the COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS QI English word eliminates a contestant. The reading or the grammar text may be the basis for this. Grammar For the first time technical grammar is begun, the text for this being the simplest available and one that incorporates the latest methods in present- ing the facts of the Spanish language. The pupil's usual horror of aught that bears the label " grammar " by now will have been largely banished by the previous training he has received more or less unwittingly in Spanish grammar. The exercises of the text used should be mostly of the kinds previously suggested in the outlines of the work of the first and second years. There should be little attempt at formal translation from English into Spanish. Such work belongs more properly to the work of the Senior High School or college. Inductive methods, memorizing of examples of rules rather than of rules themselves, should be observed. This grammar work will serve at least three pur- poses : (1) It will systemize and summarize grammatical points already studied in the first two years in connection with the series and reading work. (2) It will afford a sort of transition from the unreflective, imitative period of language study in the Junior High School to the reflective and rationalized study of the Senior High School. The child, now at least fourteen years of age, is beginning to seek the " why " of things, to " think things out ", as we say. (3) It will lay the foundation for a 92 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS thorough knowledge of grammar : " that bony struc- ture of language which prevents the whole body from slumping into invertebrate flabbiness. ,, l Among the matters of grammar now studied should be : A review and intensification of the previous two years of informal grammar, including the inflection of adjectives, nouns, and articles, pronouns personal and relative, possessive and demonstrative adjectives and pronouns, numerals cardinal and ordinal, regular verbs in all the tenses simple and compound of the indicative, reflexive and radical-changing verbs in the present tense, the irregular verbs already cited in all the tenses of the indicative, and the additional irregular verbs ver, venir, salir, saber, poner, oir, and traer in the same forms ; likewise the orthographical-changing verbs. Much drill and practice, oral and written, upon these essentials should be the watchword. The grammar, from this time forward, should occupy a place of importance equal to that held by reading. Reading About one hundred pages of easy prose should be read in the third year. Previously suggested methods of handling reading matter still apply. But at this period should begin a careful and systematic study of idiomatic expressions or locu- tions. These should be memorized and recast in 1 A Revised Course Syllabus for a Three- Year High School Course in German, by Professor James Taft Hatfield in School Review, September, 191 5. COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS 93 original sentences. Notebooks should be kept for this purpose and frequent reviews of these idioms should be made and short tests given upon them. The reading should, as in previous years, be rep- resentative of Spanish or Spanish-American life and customs. Or world-old tales and traditions, some of which are already known to the pupils in English versions, will be suitable material. Reading a tale of this sort is like meeting an old friend after a long absence or in a new dress. Anticipation of the meaning of a passage aids greatly in the " sens- ing " of the meaning of new words. Selections relating in simple language great historical events of Spanish lands would supply desirable text. General informational articles about Hispanic Amer- ica or Spain will provide excellent matter for this stage of the reading work. Dictation This form of aural testing should be continued, several minutes being devoted about three times a week to this exercise. Easy prose not previously seen or heard by the class should be used. Self-drill The pupil's training and age are now such that he may be made to see the importance of self-drill in learning Spanish. He may be told, for instance, that of the 168 hours in the week in not more than 94 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS six or seven of them at the most is he learning to think in Spanish. In the remaining time he is reading, speaking, thinking, or dreaming in English (or Yiddish or Italian or what not). Now if he would master Spanish he must practice outside the schoolroom as much as or more than he does in class, where his teacher probably has 35 or 40 pupils to drill in as many minutes. Unless he lives in New York City or in the Southwest or the Far West, he will have very little opportunity to practice Spanish w th Spanish-speaking people out- side of school. He must, then, drill himself. It takes years of practice to learn to play the violin even passably well. Likewise, to speak Spanish well a great amount of practice is necessary. To encourage self-drill, the teacher should show his pupils how to accomplish it, telling them that it is not a difficult matter to do so. The chief requisite is " stick-to-it-iveness ". They should read aloud to themselves (after they have acquired a good pro- nunciation), say the numbers in Spanish which they see here and there — on street cars, automobiles, street signs, and advertisements, count in Spanish their steps as they walk along the street or climb stairs, carry on conversations with themselves in Spanish about such matters as the weather, the time of day, and so forth, say in Spanish phrases they see in advertisements, talk Spanish to their fellow-students of the language, in fact, try to use Spanish in as many ways and as often as possible. Little stress, so far as the author knows, seems ever to have been placed upon the necessity of self- COURSE OF STUDY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS 95 drill in learning a language, and few teachers give to their students instructions as to how to drill themselves. The sooner a student is taught to do this, the sooner and the more certainly will he begin to think in Spanish. CHAPTER VIII THE RELATION OF THIS COURSE OF STUDY TO THAT OF THE FOUR-YEAR HIGH SCHOOL AND TO THAT OF THE SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL Let us consider now the status of the student who will have completed our syllabus for Junior High Schools, as given in Chapter VII, with relation, first, to the present four-year High School and, second, to the three-year Senior High School, which is the complement of the three-year Junior High School in the reorganized system as ordinarily planned. For this purpose let us take what may possibly be considered a fairly well planned syllabus of minima for the present-day High School. This was prepared for the high schools of New York City and was first printed in the spring of I9I7. X It does not comprise books that were not presented for adoption April 15, 1 91 7, when additions were made to the New 1 In the Bulletin of High Points in the Teaching of Modern Language in the High Schools of New York City, issue of May, 191 7. The committee that prepared the syllabus consisted of: L. A. Wilkins, Chairman; E. S. Harrison, Commercial High School; Miss Anita Thomas, High School of Commerce; Miss Herlinda G. Smithers, Bay Ridge High School; and Leon Sinagnan, Stuyvesant High School. 96 RELATION OF THIS COURSE TO OTHERS 97 York City list nor, of course, does it comprise books that have appeared since that date. From this point to the end of the syllabus on page 108 of this book the matter is quoted. Syllabus of Minima in Spanish It is expected that the various departments of Spanish will follow these minima as here set in both grammar and reading. It will be noted that there is nothing in these outlines to prevent a school from doing more than that which is here suggested. What has been given is con- sidered by the Committee as the barest essentials in each term of work. It is presumed in these minima that Spanish is being studied as a first foreign language by the high school student. No particular texts are recommended in grammar. A number of different ones are available. The reading lists given have been made after very careful consideration and are the result, in most cases, of experience with these books in the classroom in the term indicated. In the reading outlined it may seem desirable in some cases to use in the work of some one term a book that has been mentioned for use in an immediately previous term. All books are arranged in order of their list numbers as they appear in the catalogue of textbooks authorized for use in the High Schools of New York City. THE AIM IN TEACHING SPANISH (This is stated in the same manner as on page 65 of this book.) 98 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS PRELIMINARY POINTS It is expected that considerable attention will be given in the first term to : (i) Pronunciation — that used in Castile. Blind imitation of a teacher's pronunciation is often unsatisfactory. The use of practical phonetics is strongly advised, such as the use of a mirror in the hands of the pupil in helping him to place correctly the vocal organs. Much drill should be given, especially on sounds differing from English, as, for example, the jota. (2) The three rules for accentuation of Spanish words. Drill on same. (3) Classroom expressions, such as those provided in several of the grammars and readers or in the pamphlet, " Classroom Spanish ", Solano, D. C. Heath and Company. FIRST TERM GRAMMAR ARTICLES. Forms of definite and undefinite. NOUNS. Gender and formation of the plural. ADJECTIVES. Agreement, formation of plural, position. POSSESSIVES. Adjectives and pronouns. DEMONSTRATIVES. Adjectives and pronouns. PERSONAL PRONOUNS. Subject, indirect object, direct object, prepositional forms. The use of only one object pro- noun with the verb. VERBS. Regular. Past participle; present, imperfect, preterite of the simple tenses; the perfect only among the compound tenses. All in the indicative mood. Irregular. Past participle ; present, imperfect and preterite of the simple tenses and the perfect of the following verbs : ser, estar, tener, haber, decir, and dar. The present tense of the verbs: querer, hacer, poder, ir, ver. All these in the indicative only. IDIOMS. Tener que; tener hambre, sed, calor, frio, miedo. RELATION OF THIS COURSE TO OTHERS 99 MISCELLANEOUS. Days of the week; months and seasons of the year; cardinal numerals 1 to 100. MEMORY WORK Ten lines of prose or poetry. DICTATION Frequent dictation of reading matter previously studied. READING Suggested : 25 pages selected from the following texts : 4181 — Harrison: Elementary Spanish Reader, Ginn & Co. 9147 — Roessler & Remy : First Spanish Reader, American Book Co. 1 1256 — Espmosa: Elementary Spanish Reader, Sanborn & Co. ^"^ SECOND TERM GRAMMAR PERSONAL PRONOUNS. The use of two object pronouns with the verb. Much drill on all possibilities. RELATIVE PRONOUNS. Forms and uses. VERBS. All verbs of the first term to be mastered in all the simple and compound tenses of the indicative which have not already been mentioned. In addition, orthographical-changing, radical-changing, inceptive ending and reflexive verbs'; also the irregular verbs, venir, salir, saber, poner, oir, traer — all these verbs to be studied in the tenses already indicated in the work of the first and second terms. The present participle, and the progressive tenses of regular verbs and all irregular verbs thus far mentioned to be learned. Simpler uses of the present sub- junctive. IOO SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS MISCELLANEOUS. Cardinal numerals ioo to iooo. MEMORY WORK Twenty lines of prose or poetry. DICTATION Frequent dictation of material previously read. READING Suggested : 40 pages selected from the following texts : 4164 — Bransby: A Progressive Spanish Reader, D. C. Heath & Co. 4181 — Harrison: Elementary Spanish Reader. 9147 — Roessler & Remy : First Spanish Reader, American Book Co. 1 1254 — Berge-Soler & Hathaway: Elementary Spanish- American Reader, Sanborn & Co. 1 1 256 — Espinosa: Elementary Spanish Reader, Sanborn & Co. 1 1 259 — Harrison : Intermediate Spanish Reader, Ginn & Co. THIRD TERM GRAMMAR VERBS. The subjunctive mood; present, imperfect (two forms), perfect and pluperfect (two forms) of all verbs in items in terms 1 and 2. The use of the subjunctive in main clauses and in subordinate clauses. Conditional sentences contrary to fact in present and past time. The imperative mood; the subjunctive used as imperative and the real imperative. All irregular verbs in indicative and subjunctive, simple and compound tenses. MISCELLANEOUS. Cardinal numerals to 1,000,000; ordi- nals to 1 2th. RELATION OF THIS COURSE TO 'OTHERS JOI MEMORY WORK Thirty to forty lines of prose or poetry. DICTATION Dictation at least twice a week of material previously studied and, later in the term, of simple material not seen before. COMPOSITION It may be desired in some schools to begin here the compo- sition work outlined in the fourth term. READING Suggested : 75 pages selected from the following texts : 4170 — DeHaan & Morrison: Cuentos Modernos, D. C. Heath & Co. 4178 — Giese & Cool: Spanish Anecdotes, D. C. Heath & Co. 4184 — Hills: Spanish Tales for Beginners, Henrv Holt & Co. 4188 — Johnson : Cuentos Modernos, American Book Co. 9139 — Escrich : Fortuna, Ginn & Co. 9148 — Taboada: Cuentos Alegres, D. C. Heath & Co. 1 1254 — Berge-Soler & Hathaway: Elementary Spanish- American Reader, Sanborn & Co. 11260 — Luquiens: Elementary Spanish- American Reader, The Macmillan Co. 1 1 273 — Wilkins & Luria : Lecturas Faciles, Silver, Burdett & Co. .102 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS FOURTH TERM GRAMMAR Review of the essentials of Spanish grammar with particular attention to radical-changing, orthographical-changing and irreg- ular verbs. Much drill on the subjunctive and upon personal pronouns. MEMORY WORK Parts of plays and entire short poems. DICTATION Frequent dictation of material not previously studied. COMPOSITION Suggested : About twelve or fifteen lessons from one of the following texts : 4201 — Umphrey : Spanish Prose Composition, American Book Co. 8220 — Crawford : Spanish Composition, Henry Holt & Co. 1 1 272 — Wilkins: Elementary Spanish Prose Book, Sanborn & Co. READING Suggested : 80 pages from the following texts : 4161 — Alarcon : El Capitan Veneno, D. C. Heath & Co. 4162 — Alarcon: Novelas Cortas Escogidas, D. C. Heath & Co. 4165 — Caballero: La Familia de Alvareda, Henry Holt & Co. 4200 — Turrell : A Spanish Reader for Beginners, American Book Co. 8218 — Alarcon : El Capitan Veneno, American Book Co. RELATION OF THIS COURSE TO OTHERS 103 8225 — Morrison : Tres Comedias Modernas, Henry Holt &Co. 8231 — Selgas: La Mariposa Blanca (except chapter I), Henry Holt & Co. 9136 — Alarcon: Novelas Cortas, Ginn & Co. 9137 — Asensi: Victoria y Otros Cuentos, D. C. Heath & Co. 9143 — Downer & Ellas: Lecturas Modernas, D. C. Heath & Co. 11258 — Isla: Gil Bias, D. C. Heath & Co. 11260 — Luquiens: Elementary Spanish-American Reader, Macmillan Company. 1 1 273 — Wilkins & Luria: Lecturas Faciles, Silver, Burdett &Co. FIFTH TERM It is suggested that no differentiation allowing for commercial work in Spanish be made until in the fifth term. From this point on the reading and the composition have been divided into (a) literary and (b) commercial and practical. GRAMMAR Review of material covered in previous terms. A text to be given out for reference work. MEMORY WORK Parts of the drama read or poems of moderate length from standard poets. DICTATION Letters, social and commercial, material that is new to the class. This work may most profitably be done in connection with composition. 104 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS COMPOSITION A. Literary. Continuation of the book already studied in fourth term work. Amount to be about one-third more than that covered in the fourth term. B. Commercial and practical. Careful study of some twenty or twenty-five letters taken from the following texts, with exer- cises based thereon. 4179 — Graham & Oliver: Spanish Commercial Practice, Part I, The Macmillan Company. 4182 — Harrison: Spanish Correspondence, Henry Holt & Co. 11271 — Whittem & Andrade : Spanish Commercial Corre- spondence, D. C. Heath & Co. READING Suggested : 1 00 pages from the following texts : A. Literary. 4167 — Carrion- Aza: Zaragiieta, Silver, Burdett & Co. 4180 — Gutierrez: El Trovador, D. C. Heath & Co. 4183 — Hills & Morley: Modern Spanish Lyrics, Henry Holt & Co. (ten poems). 4186 — Hills & Reinhardt: Spanish Short Stories, D. C. Heath & Co. 4195 — Mesonero Romanos : Selections, Henry Holt & Co. 4202 — Valdes : Jose, D. C. Heath & Co. 4203 — Valdes : La Hermana San Sulpicio, Henry Holt & Co. 1 1 25 5 — Alarcon : El Sombrero de Tres Picos, D. C. Heath & Co. B. Commercial and Practical. 4163 — Bonilla: Spanish Daily Life, Newson & Co. 8224 — Harrison : A Spanish Commercial Reader, Ginn & Co. Magazines and newspapers in Spanish. Spanish Edition of the Bulletin of the Pan American Union. RELATION OF THIS COURSE TO OTHERS 105 SIXTH TERM GRAMMAR A review as needed, especially of syntax. Text to be in the hands of students as a reference book. COMPOSITION A. Literary. The continuation of the book begun in the fourth term or the study of a second one of those books there suggested. Amount to be about the same as that of the fifth term. B. Commercial and Practical. The continuation of the book begun in the fifth term. Amount to be covered to be about one-third more than that of the fifth term. Or 9152 — Waxman : A Trip to South America, D. C. Heath & Co. 1 1 270 — Warshaw: Spanish- American Composition Book, Henr^ Holt and Co. READING Suggested : about 1 50 pages from the following texts : A. Literary. 4183 — Hills & Morley: Modern Spanish Lyrics, Henry Holt & Co. (ten poems). 4189 — Blasco Ibanez: La Barraca, Henry Holt & Co. 4194 — Moratin : El Si de las Ninas, American Book Co. 9142 — Galdos: Marianela, D. C. Heath & Co. 1 1 261 — Valdes : La Alegria del Capitan Ribot, D. C. Heath &Co. B. Commercial and Practical. 4163 — Bonilla: Spanish Daily Life, Newson & Co. 8224 — Harrison : A Spanish Commercial Reader, Ginn & Co. 1 1 269 — Supple : Spanish Reader of South American History, The Macmillan Company. Spanish magazines and newspapers. 106 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS SEVENTH TERM GRAMMAR Text to be given out as reference and for review. COMPOSITION A. Literary. Frequent summaries in Spanish of novels read in class ; original compositions on assigned topics. B. Commercial and Practical. Amount covered to be about the same as that in the sixth term. 4179 — Graham & Oliver: Spanish Commercial Practice, Part II, The Macmillan Co. 8229 — Pitman : Spanish Commercial Correspondence, Isaac Pitman & Co. Original answers in Spanish by students to Spanish letters dictated by the teacher. READING Suggested : * 100 pages in class with outside required reading of from 80 to 100 pages, taken from the following texts: A. Literary. 41 71 — Galdos: Dona Perfecta, American Book Co. 8228 — Pardo Bazan : Pascual Lopez, Ginn & Co. 9146 — Quintero: Dona Clarines, D. C. Heath & Co. 1 1 253 — Becquer: Legends, Tales and Poems, Ginn & Co. 1 1 264 — Pereda: Pedro Sanchez, Ginn & Co. 1 1 275 — Gil y Zarate: Guzman el Bueno, Ginn & Co. 1 Of the books named, those not selected for class reading may be used for outside reading. Better still, books suggested for use in the term immediately previous will afford excellent material for outside reading. RELATION OF THIS COURSE TO OTHERS 107 B. Commercial and Practical. 1 1262 — Morse: Spanish- American Life, Scott, Foresman & Co. 1 1263 — Nelson: Spanish-American Reader, D. C. Heath & Co. EIGHTH TERM GRAMMAR Text to be given:out for reference and review. COMPOSITION A. Literary. Summaries and reports, all in Spanish, of outside reading; original compositions on assigned topics. B. Commercial and Practical. 4179 — Graham & Oliver: Spanish Commercial Practice, Part II, The Macmillan Co. 8229 — Pitman : Spanish Commercial Correspondence, Isaac Pitman & Co. 1 1265 — Macdonald : Manual of Spanish Commercial Cor- respondence, Isaac Pitman & Co. Original Spanish letters by students in answer to letters and advertisements dictated by the instruc- tor. READING Suggested: 1 125 pages in class with outside required reading of 100 pages taken from the following texts : A. Literary. 4166 — Calderon : La Vida es Suefio, American Book Co. 4204 — Valera : El Comendador Mendoza, American Book Co. 8219 — Cervantes : Don Quijote (Selections), D. C. Heath &Co. 1 See note concerning reading for the seventh term. 108 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS B. Commercial and Practical. 4198 — Quintana: Vasco Nunez de Balboa, Ginn & Co. 914S — Pitman : Spanish Commercial Reader, Isaac Pit- man & Sons. 1 1 262 — Morse: Spanish- American Life, Scott, Foresman & Co. 1 1 263 — Nelson: Spanish-American Reader, D. C. Heath & Co. NOTES Dictionaries recommended : 4206 — Cuyas : Spanish Dictionary, D. Appleton & Co. Direct method books available : 8222 — Hall : All Spanish Method, First Book, World Book Co. 8223 — Hall : All Spanish Method, Second Book, World Book Co. 8230 — Roberts : First Spanish Book, E. P. Dutton & Co. 9144 — Marion and Des Garennes : Introduccion a la Lengua Castellana, D. C. Heath & Co. Grammars and beginning books available and recommended : • 4161 — Coester: Spanish Grammar, Ginn & Co. 4171 — Dowling: Reading, Writing and Speaking Spanish, American Book Co. 4185 — Hills and Ford : Spanish Grammar, D. C. Heath & Co. 8226 — Olmsted and Gordon : Abridged Spanish Grammar, Henry Holt & Co. 9138 — DeVitis: A Spanish Grammar for Beginners, Allyn & Bacon. . 9140 — Espinosa and Allen : Elementary Spanish Grammar, American Book Co. 91 5 1 — Wagner : Spanish Grammar, Geo. Wahr & Co., Ann Arbor, Mich. 1 1257 — Fuentes and Francois: A Practical Spanish Grammar, The Macmillan Co. 1 1266-7-8 — Sinagnan : Foundation Course in Spanish, Parts I, II, and III, The Macmillan Co. RELATION OF THIS COURSE TO OTHERS 109 It will be seen by comparing the work we have suggested for the pupil of the Junior High School with the syllabus above given that our Junior High School pupil will have completed in his three years practically the same amount of grammar as that set for the first three terms — one year and a half — in the above quoted syllabus. But the Junior High School student will have read approximately 100 more pages of Spanish in his three years of study than the student of the ordinary High School will have read in his three terms of work. It will not be desirable or possible, however, to assign the Junior High School pupil to a class more advanced than that of the fourth term (second half of the second year) in the ordinary High School. The reading work and the grammar drill of this term will provide the most satisfactory articulation with and continuation of his present knowledge of Spanish. It may seem that insufficient credit is thus allowed for the lower school work, but it must be remembered (1) that the pupil began the language at an age when progress had to be slower than in beginning classes in the ordinary High School, and (2) that, as com- pared with the progress made by the student in the first three terms of the ordinary high school course in Spanish, this slower progress has been compen- sated for by a more thoroughly assimilated knowl- edge of the language, a better developed ability to understand the spoken language, a more facile oral ability, and, presumably, a greater liking for lan- guage study, for one of the tenets of the Junior High School is the adaptation of the course to the HO SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS needs and likings of the pupil, and, moreover, the kind of training given him will have fostered and promoted a liking for Spanish. From this point on, the superior orientation, receptivity, and drill given the Junior High School student will enable him to gather greater momentum than can his fellow student of this fourth term class who began Spanish in the first term of the ordinary High School. In the three years which he will pass in the higher school, there will be left for him but five terms, two and a half years, of the four- year course in Spanish. It is more than likely that before those two and a half years have passed he will secure advanced standing for a half year of work and thus be able to complete, one year before finish- ing the upper school, four years of Spanish as out- lined, for example, in the syllabus above given. This will leave him time for more work in other modern languages or Latin, one of which languages he will have begun as his second foreign language on entering the upper school. But we must bear in mind that the above-described awkward articulation of the Junior High School and the present four-year school is not the one con- templated in the reorganization of our secondary school system. The logical, psychological, and ped- agogical complement of the three-year Junior High School is the three-year Senior High School, between which two schools articulation is close and perfect. The Senior High School course in Spanish should, according to the standard adopted in our preceding discussion, begin approximately with the work RELATION OF THIS COURSE TO OTHERS III outlined for the fourth term of the syllabus quoted. That is, to the five terms of work remaining in the ordinary High School above the first three terms, which are eliminated as suitable for the Junior High School, must be added one term of work to provide for six years of Spanish — our hypothesis — in the secondary school period of six years. This may be effected by merely adding a syllabus for a final half year, but the better continuity, harmony, and articulation of the six-year curriculum will doubtless require enrichment of the four-and-a-half year course (according to present standards) thus formed. Wider reading, especially outside reading for reports, more free composition, and, in the final year, an intensive review and study of Spanish grammar from the standpoint of such a text as Ramsey's Spanish Grammar, are advisable. It will be noted that in the above syllabus the recommendation is made that no differentiation of course allowing for commercial Spanish be made until the fifth term (or the beginning of the third year). It would seem advisable in the Senior High School course to allow for this differentiation not until the fourth term (end of the second half of the second year of the Senior High School course) which would be the seventh term in the above syl- labus. An elective may then be offered of com- mercial Spanish for those desiring such training, and they should be placed in classes separate from those who continue the ordinary academic course in the language. Further than to make the above suggestions, it 112 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS is not intended to discuss in this book the syllabus for the Senior High School. But it will be noted that we have available in this volume a syllabus for the Junior High School with suggestions as to methods of teaching it, a syllabus for the ordinary High School prepared by a committee of experienced high school teachers, and, finally, suggestions for the syllabus in the Senior High School, which school is, as yet, even less completely organized (as a sep- arate school) than is the Junior High School. It is believed that the methods that have already been suggested for the Junior High School, and those that are given in subsequent chapters will be found almost, if not quite, as pertinent and useful for the four-year High School or for the Senior High School. CHAPTER IX THE ORGANIZATION OF CLASSES A. The classroom The classroom or rooms (properly equipped, lighted, and ventilated) in which Spanish is taught should, if the organization of the school can be so managed, be set aside for this one purpose. The Spanish room should have a Spanish " atmosphere ". The walls, the blackboards, the teacher's desk should speak of Spain and Spanish lands. Maps, charts, calendars, framed pictures, colored plates (such as those that can be taken from Blanco y Negro), and posters for wall decoration will provide the fitting medio ambiente. Maps, drawings, Spanish proverbs and poems may occupy at times the unused black- board space. On the teacher's desk will be found Spanish magazines and newspapers which pupils may use out of class and even take home. Possibly the teacher may also wish to have thus available a few books on Spanish countries, or sets of post card or other reproductions of Spanish paintings. 1 Sets of coins of Spain, Argentina, and other lands will be kept at hand for teaching the coinage system of Spanish nations. The doors may be marked entrada and salida. 1 For suggestions as to pictures and post cards see Chapter XVII. 113 114 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS B. The size of classes The dictates of abundant experience, common sense, and good pedagogy, the needs of the child, consideration for the teacher, the conditions requisite for instruction in foreign languages according to the most recent ideas (which require much drill, oral practice, and attention to the individual pupil) all demand smaller classes in Spanish than prevail at present. 1 Year after year, resolutions and peti- tions of modern language associations in the United States have prayed for relief in the matter of large classes in the public high schools. Slight has been the relief granted, but constantly greater (and rightly) have been the demands of school authorities for better results in foreign language instruction. The teachers themselves have been progressive and alert, and it is for that reason that in the past ten years the level of modern language instruction in this country has been constantly raised. And yet school boards and superintendents throughout the country, while demanding better teaching of modern lan- 1 From 35 to 45 pupils are often assigned to beginning classes in Spanish in some of the high schools of New York City. In Manhattan, teachers are required to carry an average of 720 " pupil periods " per week per teacher in a department of modern languages (and in other subjects except in English). The number of " pupil periods " is obtained by multiplying the number of students by the number of times per week the class recites; in languages this would mean 144 pupils reciting 5 times per week, which could be distributed in 5 classes of 29 each or 4 classes of 36 each. The teacher sometimes finds he has assigned him 5 classes averaging 36 to 38 each. THE ORGANIZATION OF CLASSES II 5 guages, fail to take the two steps that would most profoundly influence the betterment of that instruc- tion and at the same time contribute the just share of the authorities to that improvement, namely, (1) sanction the sabbatical year, with half pay, for language teachers for the purpose of travel and study in the lands whose languages they teach, and (2) limit the number of pupils in modern lan- guage classes to a maximum of 25, particularly for beginning classes, where it is most vital that proper conditions prevail in every respect. Of the first need we have already spoken. It seems furthest from accomplishment. The latter need is more easily met, is fully as urgent as the first mentioned and should probably be the first to be satisfied. Some modern language authorities set 20 as the maximum number that should be assigned to a language class. 1 Few, if any, language teachers can secure the best results of which they are capable with more than 25 pupils. Imagine what a Spanish teacher can accomplish with a class of 40 — a problem often given him for solving. In a period of 40 minutes each pupil can be given just one minute each day or say 200 minutes a year, that is 3-5- hours of individual recitation, 1 A questionnaire on supervised language study which was sent out by the Modern Language Section of the High School Conference of Illinois contained this question : Do you approve of limiting all language classes to a registration of not more than 20? In response to this question 249 principals and teachers in high schools voted Yes, 49 said No, and 17 were silent. — University of Illinois School of Education Bulletin No. 15, January 24, 1916. Il6 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS practice, and drill, provided that there are no inter- ruptions of the class in that year and the teacher takes up no minute of that time in correcting board work or attending to matters of class management or discipline. The usual excuses given for large language classes are (i) administration difficulties and (2) coincident increased cost of instruction. But the administra- tion difficulties are by no means insurmountable and should be surmounted. Any added expense occasioned by increase in teaching staff is immeasur- ably outweighed by the benefits that accrue to the pupil, to the school, and to the community, when the size of classes is reduced to a maximum number of 2 S- Conditions in this respect have been peculiarly unfortunate in the Spanish Departments of many schools, due, in part, to difficulty in securing teachers of Spanish and, in part, to the belief that Spanish is a fad and that classes in that language will in a short time return to their former reduced numbers. As offsetting these two conditions, we should re- member that the difficulty in obtaining Spanish teachers will before long be much lessened, as very many teachers are at present seeking to equip themselves to teach this language, and that the very steady growth in the numbers of students of Spanish is indicative of a continuity of the desire to study the language. The next few years should see an overwhelming, united movement on the part of all modern language teachers to secure from boards of education recog- THE ORGANIZATION OF CLASSES 1 17 nition and establishment of the principle of a maxi- mum of 25 in foreign language classes. C. The length of the period In the Junior High School it seems questionable whether a period longer than 35 minutes at most is desirable. The interest of these younger pupils can hardly be sustained profitably for a longer time, no matter how resourceful the teacher may be. In the ordinary High School or the Senior High School periods of 40 to 45 minutes of actual work have been found to be most suitable for classes in lan- guages as well as in other subjects. 1 D. Supervised or directed study and the number of teaching periods Closely connected with the question of the length of the class period are the questions of supervised study and the number of periods that should be allotted to the teacher. What seems to be now considered as the proper arrangement, especially for modern languages, where theory and practice must be closely correlated, consists of a double period, that is, a recitation period of 45 minutes followed immediately by a study period of 45 minutes ' e ' 1 It should be noted, however, that the Perse School (Cam- bridge, England) gives to pupils of this age 36 periods a week of 45 minutes each. Foreign language periods are of the same length as the others, and each language is taught six periods per week. Il8 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS under the direct supervision of the recitation teacher, with an intermission of from three to five minutes between the two periods. The practice, based on sound pedagogy, which has long been followed in European and some American schools, of devoting part of each class period to preparation for the work of the next, is thus amplified into greater effectiveness. In brief, during the first period the teacher obtains from each pupil his reactions on the problems of the lesson, drills individually and in concert the members of the class on the principles studied, works up to a high point the interest, participation, and enthusiasm of all, and thus gets group power as well as individual power. He does not merely hear the lesson ; he actively obtains the active coopera- tion of all in the mastery of the lesson. The period ends. A definite piece of work has been accom- plished and along the lines for which the pupils had been prepared in the study period of the previous day. An intermission follows. Next comes the study period. Now teacher and pupils together attack something new for the first time, possibly, of that day. The teacher develops the new material (using Spanish judiciously in so doing) by skillful questioning, by inductive processes, by clear explanations, by relating the new to the old, thus leading to an understanding of the new material — in short, he teaches the new lesson. Possibly, too, he gives at this time some drill on the new matter, although this is work more fitted to the recitation period proper. In this way would a grammar or composition lesson be prepared for. THE ORGANIZATION OF CLASSES 119 With a reading lesson the teacher or the pupils read the advance lesson aloud for the sake of pronuncia- tion and aural comprehension, the teacher helps in working out the meaning of difficult passages, and so forth. Part, possibly half, of the study period is then used by the pupils in doing any written exercises assigned, such as summaries, recastings and paraphrases, in memorizing or in further study necessary for the next recitation period. The teacher, during this time, will be free to give individual aid to those needing it. This is directed study. It saves time for the stu- dent in the processes of learning, obviates the fixation of erroneous ideas so frequently and easily caused by undirected or misdirected study at home, gives expert help at the point where help is most needed, takes full advantage of the state of mind or atmosphere created in the preceding recitation period, creates closer intellectual and social ties between teacher and pupil, and, as a result of these benefits, the " mortality " of the high school is dimin- ished. Obviously, in a school having six recitation periods per day, a teacher could be charged with but three classes under the double-period system. This would require a larger teaching staff than most cities would be willing to provide. In that case, it would be better for a teacher to have, say, 20 teaching periods a week (four recitation classes per day) and the remaining 10 periods could be apportioned in such a way as to give, say, two double periods per week to two of the four classes and three double periods 120 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS to the other two, preferably to the beginning classes. But in any case it would mean that all of the 30 periods per week of the teacher's time would be devoted to classroom work — a heavy schedule, with no intervening periods for rest or for attending to the many clerical tasks a teacher must perforce discharge. It must be remembered that the up-to-date Spanish teacher must use his voice and exert his energies most actively during the greater part of a recitation period, and he is busy in many ways during every minute of the study period. The advocacy of a school day of eight periods of 40 minutes each (not including a lunch period) is making progress in various parts of the United States. This plan has as its basis, in communities desiring supervised study, the fact that ordinarily the high school student carries four " prepared " or major subjects. To provide the double period in these four subjects necessitates eight periods a day in which he is to be continuously in touch with his teachers. But it could not be expected of the modern language teacher that he should teach four classes a day, each having an eighty-minute double period. But he could doubtless handle four recitation classes a day (20 a week) and supervise 10 periods of study (3 per week for two classes and 2 per week for the other two), a total of 30 periods out of a possible 40 for the week. This would allow the teacher 10 periods per week for rest and clerical work. (The clerical work should, however, be reduced by the school administration to the lowest possible mini- mum.) These periods should be distributed so THE ORGANIZATION OF CLASSES 121 as to prevent as much as possible continuous teach- ing of more than two periods in succession. The pupil would not, of course, have double periods every day in his four major subjects. He would have 4 X 8 (5 recitation + 3 study) periods or 32 pe- riods for his major subjects, during his early work in the high school. Later he would have probably 4 X 7 (5 recitation + 2 study) periods or 28 periods for major subjects. Into the remaining periods of the week would be fitted his unprepared subjects — music, drawing, physical training, and laboratory work. 1 This would seem a fair adjustment of the interrelated problems of supervised study and num- ber of periods in the teacher's assignment. Of course, the supervision of the study period, when properly done, demands much of the teacher, but for a good part of that period his voice is not taxed nor his nerves under tension to the same extent as in the recitation period. Under the system prevailing in many schools the teacher of Spanish has had to teach five and even six consecutive periods of forty-five minutes each 1 At the Joliet Township High School, Joliet, 111., Principal J. Stanley Brown (after experimenting with an eighty-minute double period, and after consulting with another educator who had experimented with a sixty-minute double period) has adopted a school-day consisting of twelve thirty-five-minute periods, divided up as six double periods. Both the teacher and the pupil have a recitation-day of four double periods. The re- maining four single periods are used as follows : one for lunch, and three for odds and ends. In the case of the teacher these odds and ends are clerical and administrative tasks ; and in the case of the pupils, they are the classes in music, gymnastics, etc. 122 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS per day. Using the most recent methods and work- ing under tension at top speed, though mayhap calmly enough outwardly, the teacher, no matter how strong he or she may be, who works for six consecutive periods per day finishes the day in a state of voicelessness and nervous exhaustion. Six consecutive periods are preposterous and usually spell for the teacher shattered health in a very few years. Five consecutive periods are also a heavy strain in modern language teaching if such a schedule is maintained for more than a year at a time. The author has watched closely in the high schools of New York City the effect upon language teachers of the number of teaching periods, and wishes to register here his firm conviction that four forty-five- minute recitation periods a day are all that should be asked of a modern language teacher if a high grade of work is to be expected at all times of that teacher. Four recitation periods and two additional periods of supervised study per day will not, however, overtax the teacher in an eight-period-per-day school if the free periods are arranged so as to allow the teacher a respite when most needed, say, if possible, in this way: Period I, recitation; 2, supervised study; 3, free ; 4, recitation ; (lunch) ; 5, recitation ; 6, super- vised study ; 7, free ; 8, recitation. E. Retardation The author's experience and observation of the teaching of Spanish have taken cognizance of a phenomenon that it may be interesting to discuss ^. THE ORGANIZATION OF CLASSES 123 here, as it affects to a marked degree the organiza- tion of classes, in that provision must be made in the program every half year or year for those who are left back ". This phenomenon is a period of retardation in the progress of high school students of Spanish at the end of the first term or, in some schools, at the end of the second term (or first year). This seems to be more marked in Spanish than it is, say, in French. Corroboration of this observation made in New York schools has been received in let- ters from at least three high school and college teachers in widely separated parts of the country, all of whom unsolicited make mention of the exist- ence of this condition in institutions with which they are connected. It may be worth while to attempt here to ascertain the causes of this slowing-up and to suggest possible remedies. Failure to progress beyond the first term of Span- ish in the four-year High School has been due to many causes. First, it is evident that the first half year is the " sifting out " period. The linguistically unfit, especially in a class the majority of whom are begin- ning foreign language study with Spanish, find out their limitations in fifteen or twenty weeks of study. On failing at this first trial they either " repeat " or their course is changed to include some other language. Second, as previously remarked, beginning Span- ish classes have often been far too large for the accomplishment of good work by either teacher or pupil. These first two reasons apply, of course, 124 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS to a greater or less extent to beginning classes in all foreign languages. Third, the widely heralded but greatly mistaken idea that Spanish is easy to acquire leads many to elect it, especially poor students who are recom- mended or influenced (sometimes by the graduat- ing-class teacher of the elementary school) to do so. Fourth, because of this same erroneous idea, students who fail in a half year or year of the study of French or Latin or German are often advised to "try Spanish". Experience has shown that not more than one student in nine succeeds in Spanish after having been dropped from classes in the other languages mentioned. 1 If such students cannot learn French or Latin or German they cannot learn Spanish. The result usually is only a sad jumble in the student's mind of a few Spanish words which he pronounces in French or Latin fashion or which he strings together with German words which he murders as impartially in pronunciation as he does the Spanish ones. Fifth, there is often too great an acceleration in the work of the first (and second) term. The pace set is often too rapid (i) in grammar, for some schools attempt to " cover " an elementary Spanish grammar text in one year, and (2) in reading matter. In the second half of the first year, when more and more 1 For three years the author kept account of the varying fortunes of boys who in DeWitt Clinton High School " tried Spanish " after failing in other languages. There were 10.2 per cent of them who passed one year of Spanish and 4.5 per cent who passed two years. THE ORGANIZATION OF CLASSES 1 25 emphasis is placed on reading, a lack of properly graded material for this purpose has led to the use of highly literary selections, too difficult by far in vocabulary and style. Teacher and pupils using such reading texts despair at length and relapse into much pseudo-translation and little use of Spanish in the classroom, and thus the work becomes dull and hopeless. This use of unsuitable reading matter is, it is true, often due to ill-advised selection of texts, since the rather numerous inexperienced but well-meaning teachers of Spanish often make poor choices for their classes. 1 Several remedies have been suggested. First, the elimination from all Spanish classes of those who, after two full half years of endeavor, fail to obtain credit for any given term (half year) of Spanish. " Repeaters " should not be allowed a third trial in any given unit into which the program in Spanish is divided. In public schools a student who is per- mitted more than two trials wastes the city's money, his own time, and the teacher's time and energy. His forte may be wood-turning or bookkeeping, but it surely is not Spanish. If he is a square peg he should not be forced into a round hole. Second, the organization of classes with a maxi- mum of 25 student members. Third, the insistence by teachers of Spanish upon the fact that Spanish is not an easy language to 1 In one high school the author found a well-intentioned and energetic young teacher trying to use in a second-term class El Capitan Veneno as a reading text and wondering at the same time why the pupils had difficulty in understanding it ! / 126 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS acquire. Much missionary work is necessary to correct the common misconception concerning the ease of Spanish. Facts that combat the idea that Spanish is easy have already been given. No foreign language is easy to master, and Spanish is no ex- ception, especially when it is the first foreign lan- guage studied. If the truth in this matter be properly disseminated, fewer students generally weak in academic work and fewer of those who pre- viously have failed in other languages will choose Spanish. This language should not be made, either by popular misconception or the misconception of administrative officers of the school, the last hope and final resort of poor students. Such students cannot at the eleventh hour be inoculated with Spanish and thus saved from a linguistic death. A diminution in the numbers of such students of Spanish will be welcome, not unwelcome, to those who advocate the wider study of the language. Fourth, less speed in the work of the first year. Three or even four terms in the four-year High School should be devoted to the mastery of the usual be- ginning grammar. And much the same criticism may rightly be made of attempts to hurry the de- velopment of reading ability. The reading selec- tions in first, second, and third term, even in the four-year High School, should be chosen not for literary values but for practical, everyday ideas and vocabulary. Literary style, even in English, is usually little appreciated or understood by the high school Freshman. And the same is true of the vocabulary of literary selections. Why inflict THE ORGANIZATION OF CLASSES 127 these things upon him in the study of a foreign lan- guage before he has acquired some mastery of the ordinary, everyday language ? Once the ordinary language is mastered to a good extent, let the stu- dent be gradually initiated into the riches of Spanish literature. But let us not coax him to run before he can walk. Let us put the horse before the cart. The practice, rather common in college work, of racing through a beginning grammar and two or three short novels, all in one year, has absolutely no place in any type of High School. Quien mas corre menos vuela applies with no greater exactness and force in any situation in life than it does in the learning and the teaching of modern languages in the High School. It is con- ceivable that in college, where Spanish is usually taken up after several years of Latin and French and where an eye-reading knowledge of Spanish is the aim in view, such a plan may be feasible, if not entirely commendable (from the standpoint of the high school teacher). But the author has a faint suspicion that the good Spanish proverb just cited might be observed with profit even in college classes. But he desists from that line of specula- tion lest an equally valuable proverb be stormed at him, which says : Zapatero, a tus zapatos. Fifth, more thoroughly trained teachers of Spanish and teachers of better judgment, who will not pre- sume upon the slight knowledge possessed by the student at the end of an early term (or year) of study. As a sixth remedy for retardation must be cited 128 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS a greater variation of the work, both as to methods and as to material — more oral practice, more " manipulations", more drill, in short, more of the methods suggested for use, in teaching the course outlined for the Junior High School. As a varia- tion of material, it is suggested that at the beginning of the third term, or second year, an elementary composition book be begun, thus getting away from grammar and reading, per se. Often a change to a new type of book will do wonders to revive enthu- siasm and interest. CHAPTER X THE RECITATION A. Preparation for the recitation It is trite but pertinent to say that every lesson must have a definite, clear goal. The teacher, knowing what that goal should be, will direct every step of the class period to that one end. This re- quires the formation of a concise plan of action and the careful organization of material. The tools for the hour's work must be in condition and ready for use. Paper, if needed, will be placed at hand ; chalk, erasers, charts, objective material, pictures, and maps will be provided. Monitors in each class will have been appointed to give out paper, clean the boards before and after the period, open and close windows and doors, collect exercises, etc. It will be most convenient to have a seating plan prepared, and a secretary named to take the roll from this plan as soon as the class is assembled and to record names of absentees on the back of the plan under an appropriate date line. These little devices will aid in saving time and in maintaining order and will make the machinery of the recita- tion move silently, swiftly, and with little attention 129 130 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS from the teacher. All these preliminaries having been attended to, the recitation should start with vim on the stroke of the bell. B. Assignment of the Lesson Unless the Spanish classes are organized on the basis of the double period — recitation and super- vised study directed by the recitation teacher — usually the first act of the teacher should be the as- signment of the work preliminary to the next reci- tation. This may be dictated in Spanish, one pupil writing the assignment on the board, or the teacher may himself write it. Of course, this assignment should be definite and clear. But definiteness and clearness are not sufficient. The teacher must foresee the difficulties the class will face in the new lesson, analyze them and show the class how to attack them, show what to stress, suggest devices for aid in mastering this or that, in short, show how to study the new lesson. In lower classes particu- larly, the teacher should anticipate the phonetic and grammar difficulties that lurk in " the next lesson". How to learn a vocabulary, to prepare a reading lesson, to do composition work, to prepare summaries, to learn verbs, to master a principle of grammar, are all practical and vital problems, the solution of which can be successfully attained only under the guidance of a teacher who has him- self solved these problems and who has worked out ways of teaching his students how to attack their work. THE RECITATION 131 C. The Recitation Proper After the class has been prepared for its next session, the work of the day follows. In this the teacher will, of course, test the preparation of the pupils for thoroughness and correctness and test their reactions upon the principles of the lesson ; but the chief function of the teacher of Spanish in this part of the period is that of the drill master. Drill must be given in various forms upon the same principles or upon various principles in the same form. Action and reaction must be obtained from the pupils upon the problems of the day's work. Participa- tion and ready cooperation should be continuous. Attention and interest must not flag. The activity of the pupil should, at least to the casual observer, be greater than that of the teacher. How are these conditions obtained ? The skill and the technique of the teacher will create these conditions. In the exercise of his skill he will (1) use Spanish in all the ordinary situations that arise in the classroom, and he will require the students to use Spanish likewise; (2) use problem-putting, thought-provoking ques- tions, whether expressed in English or Spanish ; (3) put his questions to the class as a whole and then select the individual to answer ; (4) insist upon, if necessary, but habitually get answers in complete sentences and in a clear voice ; (5) permit no interruption of the pupil who is 132 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS reciting by others who may be eager to make sugges- tions ; (6) give much practice in oral Spanish, remem- bering that in training the ear he is creating a "feel- ing " for the language that will be of the greatest aid in all the other phases of mastering Spanish ; (7) call upon every pupil at least once during each recitation, if at all possible to do so ; in any case his plan for calling on pupils will be systematic but not easily divined by them (for instance, they may be selected according to the order in which they sit in the diagonal rows) ; (8) assign board work, for review, testing, or drill, by means of giving out cards on which the task is set in written directions; (9) have papers given out or collected by monitors according to a definite system; (10) give a pupil time in which to answer but allow no guessing or unnecessary delay ; (11) give a word of public approval for good work ; (12) make use of the more able pupils in correct- ing board and paper work; (13) have much concert work (if he is successful in conducting this kind of activity), consisting of drill in forms, memory work, reading aloud, and so forth ; (14) refer to maps, charts, and objects to reenforce points of the lesson ; (15) be the sole judge of when aid is to be given to a pupil and by whom it shall be given. From start to finish the recitation will progress steadily and according to the teacher's prearranged THE RECITATION 1 33 schedule. But the period .will not close without a clear-cut summary, preferably in Spanish, of the work just accomplished. This summary will be the climax of the hour and may be developed through questions to a member of the class or it may be stated succinctly by the teacher and may then be repeated by various pupils. A variation of this is to set aside the last five minutes, in which each pupil will write a summary of the day's recitation. CHAPTER XI METHODS AND DEVICES The ear, the eye, the tongue, the imitative powers, the motor nerves, the memory, and the reasoning processes must all be trained by the teacher of Spanish if the aim we have set in teaching that language is to be accomplished. What are the various media at hand through which this training may be given ? They are the reading text, the grammar exercise, dictation, oral practice, composition work, and memory work. Of course, any one of these media may be and often is connected, in teaching processes, with any one or several of the others. Thus reading may be used as the basis of all the other media. Memory passages may be taken from the reading, from composition sections, from the grammar text, or from the material dictated. Composition may be oral or written and may have its foundation in various types of work. Let us make such sugges- tions for the use of these media as will bring into play the various senses and faculties mentioned. Reading In addition to the methods and devices suggested on pages 80-82 for handling the reading lesson, we may 134 METHODS AND DEVICES 135 enumerate the following: A sentence is read in a class of younger pupils: Los ladrones robaron el dinero al muchacho. To center attention on the sentence, a pupil writes it on the board. The pupils are asked each to formulate a question based on the statement and to write the question on a slip of paper. The slips are collected and given to a pupil to copy on the board near the statement. While this is being done, the class continues with other work and later examines the questions. Sug- gestions are made for improvement or variation. Or this may all be done orally. Or the important words of the sentence may be placed in new and original Spanish sentences. Or the teacher may read two or three short sentences (books closed) and ask to have them repeated by members of the class. Or he may ask to have the sense given in English, orally or in writing. Or, occasionally, a paragraph may be chosen for written translation into English. When these translations are corrected, pupils may be sent to the board to turn the English back into Spanish. This could, of course, be done with profit chiefly in the case of the more advanced classes. Or questions upon the form of the Spanish text may be given as well as upon the content, thus : De Vd. el infinitivo de dijeron. I Cual es el singular de ladrones ? £ C6mo se escribe el plural de reloj? (In answering, the pupil will, of course, use the Spanish names of the letters.) Ponga Vd. en plural to da la oracion. Or questions on either the form or content may 136 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS be written on cards and these questions handed out for either oral or written answers. These cards are a particularly good time-saving device. Or the teacher may assign for intensive oral work certain lines of the reading. Upon the indicated section the teacher's questioning of the next day will be concentrated. For example, in more advanced classes the pupils will be expected to know all the verb forms of the passage, the various idioms therein (which they will be required to use in original sen- tences in tenses, persons, and numbers differing from those in which the idioms occur in the text), and they will be asked to summarize in the foreign language the incidents related in the selection. Or in the higher classes outside reading may be required. This may be begun on a small scale as early as the fourth term. The text should be easier than that used for the class work. A report on this reading should be required in the form of a summary of the amount read at the end of every two weeks. A record of these reports should be kept. The teacher may supplement these reports by oral quizzes or may set brief written tests thereon. Credit should be given for this reading in some way, as, for instance, by adding to the daily class mark for the month or term a certain number of points. Every effort should be made by the teacher to en- courage outside reading, and it should be made as attractive as possible to the pupils by the interest- ing nature of the stories suggested and the com- parative ease of the language in which they are told. The teacher will always show an interest in the METHODS AND DEVICES 137 pupil's opinion of the story read and it will be dis- cussed by them in informal fashion. Or for rapid reading in higher classes, a number of pages may be assigned to the whole class for preparation. These pages may be divided up among different sections of the class, each section preparing a summary in Spanish of a certain number of pages. These summaries, which should be real summaries and not paraphrases, and therefore short, may then be placed on the board in proper sequence, thus pro- viding a " boiled down " version of the whole section assigned for the day. Any difficulties that may be found in the Spanish should, of course, be cleared Or paraphrases and definitions, written or oral, all in Spanish, may be required. Practice should be given in reading a short passage, closing the book and telling in one's own Spanish words what was read. Or a passage may be rewritten, each noun being replaced by a pronoun, adverbs by adverbial phrases, simple sentences being made into complex and compound sentences or vice versa. Or after the reading lesson of the day is finished, the class may read on at sight, the teacher giving variants, synonyms, or definitions, in Spanish, of unknown words or involved expressions. Or attention may be centered on reading by having one pupil stand before the class and read a portion of the day's lesson while the others listen with books closed and make notes of errors in pronuncia- tion. The listeners then place on the board the words that were mispronounced and the teacher 138 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS drills the reader, then the class, in the correct pronunciation of these words. These are probably sufficient hints as to how variety of method and of appeal may be introduced into the reading lesson. Needless to say, no teacher will attempt all these plans with the same class in the same week. Skill in using each device mentioned comes only with practice. But by following these and similar schemes, real reading, not mere eye- reading, may be attained. Grammar Grammar is but the systemized classification of the facts of a language as they are observed in usage. It seems worth while for the teacher to make clear to his pupils, probably at the beginning of a formal study of Spanish grammar, that the Spanish lan- guage is not the offspring of some textbook of Spanish grammar (notwithstanding the veneration in which the grammar of the Real Academia is held by many), but that the grammar has been derived from the language. The practical corollary of such a statement is, of course, that the grammar should be taught induc- tively, that is, from observing the language as used by well-educated writers and speakers. The reading text and the grammar book may be considered the field in which the phenomena of the language are to be observed ; also the speech of the teacher if he be a native speaker of the language or if he possess a good acquired command of it. Example should METHODS AND DEVICES 139 precede the rule. Ordinarily the rule need not be remembered, but the example must be memorized. Type sentences to illustrate a principle of inflection or syntax should be made the basis of instruction in grammar, whether conducted according to induc- tive or deductive processes. It is generally agreed that the chief difficulties in Spanish grammar are (1) verb forms, (2) the use of the subjunctive, and (3) personal object pronouns. Let us consider here ways of teaching each of these difficult matters. (1) Verb forms. The great difficulty here, for the English-speaking student accustomed to a minimum of verb inflection, is to feel the force of verb endings. He more quickly feels, it seems, the past meaning of interior vowel changes, as in tuve, than he does that of hable or vendia, etc., which depend entirely upon variation of exterior vowels to express past time. Probably this is because he is accustomed to very similar interior vowel changes for the past tense of so many English verbs of frequent use. Oral practice is a good way to develop a perception of the mean- ings of verb endings. For example : after causing to be conjugated by individuals and in concert the present tense of tener un libro, the process is this : £ Que, tiene Vd. ? Tengo un libro. iQue tiene el? El tiene un libro. I Tenemos libros? Si, sefior, tenemos libros, and so forth, rapidly, energeti- cally, and enthusiastically, even though the subject be most prosy in itself. The same process is appli- cable to all tenses, especially in connection with the appropriate adverb of time, ayer, manana, and so 140 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS forth. This method is, of course, especially appli- cable to beginning classes. The oral work should be reinforced by abundant blackboard work in the writing of verb forms. It may be remarked here that the author believes, judging from his own experience, that it is well to eliminate subject pro- nouns (except in third person forms) from early work and to concentrate attention and practice upon the endings of the verbs. Likewise, he believes that no particular advantage results from the omis- sion of the familiar forms, singular and plural, of verbs. The pupil learns six forms as readily as he does four. Practice will, quite naturally, center upon the use of Vd. and Vds. with the third persons in- stead of t& and vosotros with the second persons. We have already mentioned the desirability in beginning classes of conjugating verbs in entire phrases. Later, perhaps, — say after the first year — it is sufficient to give the verb alone in con- jugating. But never must verb drill be relaxed throughout the secondary school study of Spanish. Unremitting review drill is the price of verb mastery. Ear, tongue, eye, memory, and reasoning powers must be so trained that the correct form in mood, tense, person, and number come readily to the tongue or to the pen. In review work in verbs, one irregular (or regular) verb a day may be assigned for thorough rehearsal. A rapid oral repetition of forms by individuals begins the review. At the same time several may be writing synopses (in different persons or numbers) METHODS AND DEVICES 141 on the rear board. Or the verb in all its forms, or in a synopsis, may be repeated in concert. Or while the rest of the class is engaged in other work, several members may be sent to the board to write out full conjugations or synopses. The teacher can quickly glance over this work between periods and tell whether those students know the verb of the day. If not, he will make note of the failures, and the next day will require them to rewrite on paper the same verb. In a week the whole class can thus have had their turn at verb work at the board. Then may follow such drills as these : The teacher rapidly composes brief questions containing the verb and calls on different students for answers in which they must use the verb of the day (which usually is the one that the teacher will use in the question). Suppose it is the verb decir. Teacher : I Que digo ahora? Pupil : Vd. dice una frase. i Que dira Vd. de eso ? No dire nada. I Se lo dijo Vd. a el ? No se lo dije, and so forth. Or the teacher may use the verb in short sentences and ask for the English equivalents, as : Me lo esta diciendo . Digaselo a ella . Ya se lo hemos dicho . No lo digamos ahora, and so forth. Or the teacher may give short English sentences and ask for their translation into Spanish, as : " We were saying so." " They had not said it to us." " Let us say it to them," and so forth. Incidentally, good drill on object pronouns may, as has been seen, be combined with the verb drill. This kind of work should be lively. No hesitation should be allowed. Or with young students one may use time tests, 142 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS oral or written, to help automatize knowledge of verb forms. Johnny finds it great fun to beat Jimmy a half second in saying or writing, digo la palabra, dices la palabra, etc., and at the same time both Johnny and Jimmy acquire an automatic control of the forms, and to a certain extent, of the meanings of those forms. Or with pupils, younger or older, flash cards may be used for verb drill in a great variety of ways. Sentences having blanks to be filled with the different tenses (affording a synoptical review) are good practice. The card reads: iQne el? Dice, decia, dijo, dirii, diria, ha dicho, habia dicho, habr& dicho, and habria dicho will be supplied in turn if decir is in question. Or cards may be pre- pared providing the drills suggested in above para- graphs of this section. Or instead of blanks, an infinitive may be used which is to be changed for tense, and so forth. Or short sentences containing forms of the verb may be written out and the pupils directed to make the sentences plural throughout, thus : El nifio lo dijo. Pupil : " Los niflos lo dijeron." It will be noted that most of the suggested verb drill is in the form of short but complete sentences. (2) The use of the subjunctive. For inflection of forms, the subjunctive may be drilled upon by oral and written repetition as suggested above for the indicative. But the chief problem in teaching the subjunctive is its use, its syntax. Type sentences are most helpful. Deseo que venga. Temo que lo venda. Quise que lo hiciese. Desearia que me METHODS AND DEVICES I43 hablase. With younger students a list of a few such sentences should be committed thoroughly to memory and often repeated. This will do much to create a feeling for the subjunctive. Of course the meaning should be held in mind during the memoriz- ing and the repetition. The teacher's ingenuity will suggest schemes for drilling on the uses of the sub- junctive. Here are a few that may be employed : The teacher gives instructions that each partial sentence he utters must be completed with a que clause containing, in the subjunctive, the verb in question (for example, dar). He begins : Yo pido — Pupil: que Vd. me de el libro. El rog6 — que le diesemos la pluma. Busco un amigo — que me de dinero. Me alegre de — que no se lo diera a Vd., and so forth. Or after several verbs have been reviewed once, a combined review of the subjunctive of all of them may be accomplished in a similar manner. Siento — que el vaya, explique, haga, quiera, sea, tenga. Senti — que el fuese, explicase, hiciese, quisiera, fuera, tuviera. These drills may, of course, be done as written exercises, as may the following, also. " Substitute for the underlined infinitive of each of the following sentences the correct finite form : Se hundi6 el sol en el mar sin que yo verlo. Enseneme un camino que Uevarm e a Toledo. " Or this type will be useful : " Express in complete Spanish sentences : Let us {or let him) ir, explicar, hacer, querer, ser, tener." And to drill on the subjunctive used as imperative this type of exercise will be useful : " Express in the negative {or affirma- tive) imperative, polite form, singular, the following 144 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS phrases : dejarlo hasta otra vez ; tenerlo presente ; hacerlo ahora." (3) Personal object pronouns. Probably the forms and positions of object pronouns provide the most striking instance in the study of Spanish of the need of drill to acquire assimilation, mastery, and facility in use. Se lo doy, even with its ambiguities, is easily understood in theory by all grades of stu- dents. But ready and automatic formulation in Spanish of the thought, " I give it to him," etc., ya es otro cantar. The proper introduction to this difficulty is, of course, inductive explanation and drill on the position and use of one object pronoun (direct or indirect) with the verb, as : Lo doy a Juan or Le doy un libro. Type sentences will help at this point very greatly. Abundant practice should first be given upon this matter of form and position of one object pronoun. Thus : " Replace each noun in the following sentences with a pronoun ? Voy a tomar el desayuno. Mi hermano ya tom6 el desayuno. Tomamos las comidas muy regular- mente. Mozo, traiga el cafe. No ponga alii la taza." And so forth. Then may follow explanation and drill on position and uses of two object pronouns. Lo doy a Juan and Le doy un libro are combined into Se lo doy (a el). Type sentences illustrating two object pronouns should be committed to memory. Drill units similar to those given above should be given by the teacher. Practice on pronouns may, as we have seen, be mos$ conveniently combined with that on verbs ; but this combined drill should be used only with METHODS AND DEVICES 145 advanced classes or older pupils. The reading will provide plenty of opportunities for replacing nouns with pronouns. Prepositional forms of pronouns, possessive adjec- tives and pronouns, relative pronouns, etc., may all be presented and drilled upon in similar ways. And in teaching Spanish grammar, shall we use Spanish or English? An answer must be given after first considering such points as the following : (1) Grammatical terminology in any language is more or less technical and of little use outside the classroom. (2) Time is precious in the language class ; none should be wasted in "stunts" or tricks 'V just for the sake of doing them. (3) The terminology that is necessary to describe inflection is probably more easily acquired than that which deals with syntax. (4) Spanish should be as much as possible the language of the classroom. (5) The student likes to believe as he progresses that he can use Spanish in any situation that arises, once the vocabulary therefor is supplied him. He takes a certain delight in trying out his knowledge in new situations that arise. From a consideration of these points, it seems safe to say that if (3), (4), and (5) are true, it is worth while for the teacher and pupil to discuss in Spanish the simpler situations that occur in the study of Spanish grammar, but that because of (1) and (2) it is not desirable to stress this kind of work nor to make it a rule always to use Spanish instead of 146 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS English for the presentation (by induction or deduc- tion) of a topic of grammar. Both languages should be used when time permits, possibly Spanish first and then, if necessary for the sake of absolute clear- ness, English. Spanish may and should be used in increasing degree as the instruction becomes more advanced. And in drill work, if not in presentation, Spanish should be the language used by far the more. It is in place to cite here the instruction given by a Minister of Public Instruction of Austria-Hungary to the foreign-language teachers of the dual empire, where so many tongues and dialects are spoken : The teacher of modern foreign languages should use as much as possible the language which is the subject of study : he should use as much as is necessary the language of the pupil; but he should never forget that he must at all times be intelligible to all the pupils. This is excellent advice. But this whole question is not nearly so important a one as is that concerned with the amount, thoroughness, kind, frequency, and variety of drill. Other things being equal, that grammar text should be used in which the Spanish passages consist of connected prose describing in an interest- ing way the events and situations of everyday life (in a Spanish country) or relating short stories or anec- dotes and always exemplifying as closely as possible the principles of grammar explained and illustrated in the lesson of which it is a part. This means, of course, that a " grammar book " prepared in this way, with readings and exercises, is not a grammar in the more strictly interpreted meaning of the term, METHODS AND DEVICES • 1 47 but is, rather, a combination reader, grammar, and exercise book. Fortunately, most of the Spanish " grammars " available provide this combination of material in a manner well adapted for college and older high school students. And some of them are particularly felicitous in the way in which the reading text is made continuous throughout the first and greater part of the book. But it is the belief of the author that few, if any, of these books are well suited, without considerable adaptation by the teacher, to the use of the Junior High School pupil of twelve, thirteen, or fourteen years of age. One feature of the grammar books now commonly in use is the exercise for translation from English into Spanish. Often these sentences consist of unrelated, disconnected, and stilted sentences. These sentences, perhaps, are useful in teaching older students, those of the upper grades of the four-year High School and college students, in whom the reasoning powers are developed and who must know the reason for steps to be taken and who center their attention upon the form rather than upon the content of sentences to be translated. But in the instruction in Spanish in the Junior High School, and in the first year of the four-year High School, which instruction is based largely on imitation and practice, detached sentences for translation from English into Spanish should be avoided. Not until the third year of the Junior High School should English-Spanish translation be attempted and, even then, only sentences connected closely in thought and content should be used. Certainly the first kind 148 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS of grammar exercises done by the young student should not consist in translation of isolated English sentences into Spanish. Manipulations, questions to be answered, recastings, filling of blanks, oral and written repetitions — all skillfully devised — are pertinent forms of exercises. Dictation To the suggestions already given for dictation in Chapter VII, it may be added that excellent material for this type of work is a short summary, prepared by the teacher, of a story previously studied. The following device is also suggested : send the entire class to the board and from a central point of the room give the dictation. Have pupils change places and correct each other's work. As a check, a rapid examination of each board by the teacher may be made after the class is seated. These dictations at the board should be short. Composition Composition may be oral or written. It may be begun, though possibly not under that name, in the early weeks of the course, even in Junior High School. Answers elicited in response to skillful questioning to develop a topic, when put together in consecutive form by the pupils, will form a continuous recital that is in fact composition work. Retellings and descriptions of objects and situations are in place from the start and may be classified as composition METHODS AND DEVICES 149 work. Free reproduction may gradually but steadily be introduced. Later, say as early as the third term of the ordinary High School or the first term of the Senior High School, a formal composition or prose book may be begun. This should, in a measure, be a continuation of the plan of " doing tricks with the language " ; but a large part of this work should consist of translation from English into Spanish of connected (and continuous) prose, models for which are provided in a preceding Span- ish text, likewise connected and continuous, and which is to be carefully studied before the English- Spanish is to be attempted. A suitable book of this kind should also provide with this work direc- tions for an accompanying review of grammatical points, all of which are illustrated in the Spanish text with the study of which this grammar review is connected. The English-Spanish text will follow pretty closely the immediately preceding Spanish text, differing from it scarcely at all in vocabulary and chiefly in the tense, mood, person, or number of verbs used, numbers of nouns (especially of noun subjects), and so forth. In fact, this type of com- position book is a continuation, in another guise, of the manipulations to which the pupil will have already been habituated. Emphasis will thus be placed on expression of the thought in Spanish rather than upon word-for-word translation. Ac- companying Spanish-English and English-Spanish vocabularies are suitable ; but the latter will not be much needed if the book is carefully planned and correctly handled by the teacher, who must give 150 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS considerable practice upon the Spanish model text before letting the class write the English- Spanish sections. In the third year of the Senior High School or of the ordinary High School, the composition work may consist of short passages for translation into Spanish based on simple topics, the vocabulary of which should be approximately that of the prose book previously finished. Or free composition on assigned topics may be practiced. One way to handle this free composition work is to assign to only one member of the class a topic on which to write two or three paragraphs the following day. Preferably, he will not write this out, but will think on his subject and the vocabulary necessary therefor and in the first minutes of the period, or before the class begins, he will step to the board and write out his composition. When the class has finished other work the teacher will make corrections and suggestions. This centers attention upon one piece of work, and in the criti- cisms evoked from the class almost as much benefit results to the group and to the individuals there- of as if the whole class had written upon the topic assigned. Incidental but important is the fact that much labor in correcting papers is thus saved the teacher. This plan might be extended to include three or four students a day, each writing on different topics. In any case, all members of the class should have as much practice as the leader in this kind of activity. METHODS AND DEVICES 1 51 Correspondence A phase of composition work to which considerable attention is given in teaching Spanish is the writing of commercial letters in that language. In the opinion of the author, this work should not begin until after one year of ordinary composition work of the kind described in the above paragraphs. The important thing for a student of Spanish is that he know Span- ish ; the more or less technical language of business is easily superimposed, as a layer, if you will, upon a basis of a well-acquired knowledge of the essentials of Spanish. To attempt to learn so-called commer- cial Spanish first, is putting the cart before the horse ". The book used as a basis for this correspondence work should consist not only of model letters for study, but it should also place emphasis on business terms and phrases by means of careful selection and plenty of drill. Short model letters should be given for memorizing. Letters in English for translation should follow Spanish models previously given and should differ from those models principally in the manner and order in which technical terms, tenses of verbs, and so forth, are used. The vocabulary necessary for writing these English into Spanish letters should be practically identical with that used in the preceding model letters. Some of these model letters should be so framed that one type of the exercises of the book may consist of writing answers to these letters. Answers in Spanish should be written to advertisements in Spanish given in the 152 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS correspondence book or taken from Spanish papers. Later on, the teacher may vary this work by giving such general directions as these for free composition in letter writing : " Write a letter to a business house in Buenos Aires, offering them the agency for a line of goods you manufacture. Quote terms and offer inducements. Be specific and courteous. " Or, " In- corporate the following ideas in a Spanish letter to Serafin Mentecato, Aldeahuela, Cuba," etc., etc. Memory Work Someone has said that the great art of life is for- getting ; that in forgetting the useless lies liberation. In a similar way one might say that the great art of language acquisition is remembering. There are even some who assert that the only faculty of the mind that is involved and that is trained in the process of mastering a foreign language is the mem- ory. But experienced modern language teachers realize that the study of a language also brings into play and develops the reasoning powers (as in the study of syntax), by training the mind in synthesis, analysis, and classification, that is, in habits of logical thought. Likewise, the emotions and the will may be, and usually are, trained in language study. If only memory were involved, learning a language would be purely an art. But since ideation and logical thought are at the same time involved, ac- quiring a foreign language becomes in part, at least, a science. And yet learning a language is, at least for the METHODS AND DEVICES 1 53 high school pupil, largely an art, for it necessitates chiefly a training of the memory, both of the mental and the physical memory. Sensory and motor nerves, ear and eye for perception, and tongue and other muscles for expression — all these modalities must be trained in a manner quite similar to that in which the pianist, the vocalist, or the violinist finds it necessary to drill himself day after day and year after year. And the neural habit thus in- stituted is at least one factor, the physiological factor, of memory; the other factor, the psychical factor, is a specialized form of association of ideas. Memory is both retention and re-expression. It is the power to retain an impression and to repro- duce it when required. Retention is conditioned upon : (1) The stability of the nervous system; (2) The intensity of the stimulus ; (3) The breadth and strength of the association of ideas awakened ; (4) Repetition of the stimulus with the proviso that this repetition be made under proper conditions and that the time element be present, that is, an interval of time must exist between the repetitions (this is often called the " memory span ") ; (5) Interest; (6) The number of modalities or senses employed in the perception of the original stimulus and in the repetition of the stimulus. Recollection and re-expression are conditioned upon at least the following elements : (1) Permanency of the original impression; 154 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS (2) Vividness of the impression ; (3) Organization of the concepts resulting from the percepts, and the building up of appercepts ; (4) A habit of recalling. It is pertinent to examine into the procedure to be used in teaching memory passages in foreign languages, keeping in mind the underlying prin- ciples of memory as outlined above. The passage to be memorized should be, first, interesting. This means that it must express ideas within the comprehension of the pupil and in lan- guage fitted to his stage of progress. It means that these ideas should be such as the pupil's mind will center upon chiefly with involuntary attention. It means that, if necessary, apperceptive masses, a milieu, should previously be built up so that these ideas must be interesting. Second, the ideas of the passage should be vivid. The method of presentation and use should in- clude : (1) Appeal to as many modalities as possible. The pupil should hear the selection, should write it at dictation, should read it individually and in con- cert with the other members of the class ; (2) Analysis of the selection for difficulties and for organization of the material therein, with particular reference to the principles of apperception ; (3) Repetition of the passage — orally, in writing, in chorus. These repe- titions should be at expected and at unexpected times. Without frequent repetition the time first spent in learning is wasted. Only one or two re- callings will not fix a passage in the memory. Re- tention is predicated upon recalling. (4) Observance METHODS AND DEVICES 155 of the time element, of the "memory span". The interval of time between repetitions should be gradually lengthened. The purposes of teaching memory passages are at least two: (1) To give the student for life-long retention thoughts of exceptional worth, beauty, or power, clothed in terms of the foreign language that are simple yet forceful. If the passages selected arouse the higher emotions — such as patriotism, compassion, filial affection, and love of the beautiful — tanto mejor. Many persons whose occupations have not necessitated a continuation of the use of a language have retained out of several years of the study of that language little concrete evidence of that study other than the passages they committed to memory. It is difficult or impossible, of course, to estimate the training of the reasoning powers that they obtained from that study. (2) To create a " feeling " for the foreign language. To that end prose passages representative of the normal usages and vocabulary are preferable material. Next to abundant daily use of a foreign language, memory selections will do most to create this much-to-be- desired " feeling " for a language. Proverbs, in which the Spanish language is so exceedingly rich and which so concisely express the age-long wisdom of Spanish peoples, should be memorized from the early stages onward. Idioms, of which it sometimes seems the Spanish language entirely consists, are, por excelencia, a staple for memory work. Colloquial phrases are likewise fit material. The type sentences of the grammar book 156 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS should be unfailingly memorized. A summary, prepared by the pupil, may be memorized after it has been corrected by the teacher. The content of the story as well as connected Spanish prose is thus mastered and ready for refashioning to suit future uses. Oral Practice Sufficient has been said in a previous chapter concerning oral practice. It is pertinent, however, to point out again that properly conducted oral practice makes for aural comprehension of Spanish, and for training of the sensory nerves to stimuli in Spanish and of the motor nerves in carrying out the reactions of the brain to those stimuli ; affords a means of awakening and holding interest; and eventually leads to real reading, that is, instant mental comprehension of the presentations of the ocular nerves plus those of the auditory nerves — for, as we know, even in silent reading (especially of a foreign language) we seem to hear as well as see the printed words. CHAPTER Xn A MISCELLANY OF SUGGESTIONS Labels in Spanish for objects in the classroom. It is helpful, especially in classes of younger pupils, to affix to the desk, map, wall, blackboard, chalk box, eraser, and so forth, a neatly lettered label, el mapa, la pared, el borrador. This gives a means, especially to beginning students, of associating with the object its name in Spanish and of making a " direct " appeal to the eye. Entrada, salida, haga el favor de cerrar la puerta, and so forth, will afford material for placards to be affixed to the doors. Proverbs. Clearly printed Spanish proverbs may be posted up about the room. Thus placed, they make a surprisingly deep impression upon the in- quisitive minds of children. It is best to have these memorized before they are thus posted. An able instructor in science was recently heard to say that the only things that had remained with him from all his study of a certain language were the proverbs he had learned in the early part of his high school study of that language. On sending a pupil to the board. It is a good plan in assigning sentence work at the board to accustom the pupils to this procedure : When a pupil's name is called, he says, Tomo la primera oraci6n, Voy a J 57 158 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS escribir la quinta frase, and so forth. This gives practical drill in ordinal numerals and contributes to the fulfillment of the desirable practice of using as much Spanish as possible in the classroom. A letter to teacher. Vd. no estuvo en la clase ayer, sefior Jones. Vaya Vd. al pizarron a escribirme una carta en que me diga la causa de su ausencia, says a teacher to a pupil of advanced grade. Jones thus does not escape work by absence and, inciden- tally, will probably find considerable interest in telling in Spanish about what he did when absent. Spelling in Spanish. When teacher says to Mary, Deletree Vd. la palabra, it sounds odd, to say the least, to hear Mary reply in English. It is an easy matter, even for the youngest beginners, to learn to give Spanish names to the letters in spelling. It is not necessary for them to start by memorizing the alphabet consecutively. If the teacher begins by spelling words in Spanish and has the class repeat them, in a very short time the pupils will learn to name the letters properly and quickly and be able to spell as readily in Spanish as in English. They find fascination in doing so. From the first term to the last, teachers should expect and obtain the spelling of words according to Spanish custom. Suitable questions. Question-and-answer in Span- ish, as a form of oral practice, is excellent pro- cedure and a plan widely used. Much care, how- ever, should be taken with young pupils as to the form of the questions the teacher asks. With them it is well first to employ principally that form of question the answer to which will consist of the same A MISCELLANY OF SUGGESTIONS 159 words with necessary variations of word order for the declarative sentence of the answer or, possibly, with a change in person or number of the verb. iSe fue el muchacho en seguida? Si, seiior, el muchacho se fue en seguida. I Ir& Vd. a verle? Si, sefiorita, ire a verle. Then probably next in order should be practiced interrogations with £ Que? I Quien ? i (A or en) donde ? I Como ? i Cuando ? iCual(es)? etc. ^Por que? may properly be con- sidered the most difficult type of question, since it requires investigation and, sometimes, close reason- ing. The next step after questions of this sort is the use of directions (commands) such as : Describa Vd. la casa de Miguel. Diga algo de la madre de Josef a. De un resumen de lo que aqui se dice. Flash cards. Have you ever used flash cards ? They add great interest to the recitation, quicken and automatize reaction, deepen impressions, in short, afford an excellent means of drill. You can make them yourself or have a pupil make them. Use thin, tough cardboard, and have the lettering large enough to be read easily from any part of the room. On the back of each, for the teacher's convenience, should be written the same material that is on the front of the card. Ingenuity will suggest countless ways of preparing material for this purpose. Several series will be found necessary in order to get the greatest benefits from this scheme. Blanks to be filled (with interrogatives, demonstratives, relatives, prepositions, verbs, adjectives, etc.), numbers to be read, added, subtracted, or multiplied, nouns, ad- jectives, or sentences to be pluralized or singularized, 160 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS short sentences to be translated or changed as to tense, and so forth, are a few of the devices possible. The teacher holds the cards in a pack before the class, quickly transfers to the front of the pack the one in the back, selects (in seating order or otherwise) an individual to answer, allows no hesitation, interrup- tions, or prompting in the answering, and calls on each member of the class at least twice. This rapid work should, of course, be followed for only a part of a period, as it is highly fatiguing to both pupils and teacher. Cardinal numerals. In teaching cardinal nu- merals, let the pupil walk across the room and have him count aloud in Spanish his steps. Or have the class count in concert. The wall calendar is not only useful in teaching the date, the days, and the months, but affords a good basis for " number work " in Spanish. The figures of the calendar may be used as the multiplicands in giving orally say the multiplication table of 2's or 3's. Or the numbers may be added by vertical columns. Or in a class of young children ten may be chosen and named with the first ten cardinal numbers. They stand before the class in order and repeat their " names " for- ward and backward. Then the class repeats them. Then they are written on the board. Children should be led to read numbers in Spanish wher- ever they see them, for example, on room doors, car transfers, automobile licenses. They should be told to count their steps as they walk along the street, or as they go up stairways. Girls who knit might count in Spanish their stitches. A MISCELLANY OF SUGGESTIONS l6l Variants and synonyms. With upper term classes it is excellent practice to give considerable attention to variants and synonyms. One method is to have a passage reread and synonyms substituted for pre- viously indicated expressions. This may be done in both reading and composition work. Another way to handle the matter is to assign to each student a paragraph, or a portion of one, with directions to make substitutions (oral or written) for as many verbs as he can, or adjectives or adverbs. Or the same paragraph may be assigned to three or four in- dividuals, one changing one part of speech and the others changing other parts. All this work should, of course, be done without materially changing the sense of the original. Such work leads the student away from the idea, so often held, that there is but one way to express a given thought in the foreign language. Of course the more advanced a class is, the more successfully and profitably can such work be done. But even in some of the lower terms a beginning can be made at this helpful kind of activity. A related plan is to substitute antonyms instead of synonyms for indicated expressions. Concert work. Group activity, group power, and, ,to a good extent, individual power — especially for the timid pupil — is developed by concert work that is done in complete unison and under strict control. Not every teacher can successfully conduct concert recitation. But for the teacher who can do so, many ways are open for effecting concert drill; for example, in the repetition by the class of verbs conjugated in phrases, in counting aloud, and in 162 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS giving in unison type sentences of the grammar lesson. Concert answers are unwise unless they be the repe- tition of answers or statements first made correctly by some one individual. Concert reading of prose is successful with some classes but a waste of time with others. If it takes considerable time to develop unison in reading prose, the attempt would better be abandoned. Foolish questions. If you know that you hold your class in the hollow of your hand, try asking them foolish questions in Spanish based on sentence or paragraph units of the lesson. Thus, a pupil reads : Los caballos comen heno y las gallinas comen avena. Ask the pupil: £Come Vd. heno? £ Come Vd. gallinas? £ Comen los caballos a las gallinas? This plan, if not used too frequently, makes interest keen and tests in a very certain manner under- standing of oral questions. When such questions are asked with apparent seriousness, first will be noticed amazement or puzzled expressions. Then as the light breaks, a smile comes and the pupil has a feeling of satisfaction in knowing that he did under- stand rightly after all, though at first he " could not believe his ears ". Secretary's reports. A variation of the usual method of conducting a class is that afforded by a semi-parliamentary procedure in which the teacher acts as chairman and a secretary is appointed to take down in Spanish the incidents of the session of the class. These minutes are read at the next meeting and corrections are made. The several members of the class may do this in turn. A MISCELLANY OF SUGGESTIONS 163 Perceiving the pupil's difficulty. It is sometimes hard to ascertain the root cause of a pupil's error, even when he takes the pains to try to explain what is troubling his soul. Patience, sympathy, searching questions, forceful and concise explanations are needed to clear up a pupil's incomprehension or miscomprehension of a point. Be it remarked, de paso, that language teachers born and trained abroad are apt, naturally, to be weaker in this respect than are teachers born and educated in this country. It is in fact at this point that we find most of the failures of those of our language teachers who were born and trained in other countries, especially among those who have not mastered English. Sentence work. Suppose the lesson of the day consists of the translation of English sentences into Spanish. (Let us hope that they are connected in thought and based on preceding Spanish models.) The sentences will have been prepared beforehand by the pupils, either by study, without writing, of what the Spanish version should be, or by writing them out in full. The class appears. The teacher directs that the papers, if there are any, be turned face downwards in the book and the book closed. The teacher gives orally the English sentence. The pupil called on gives orally the Spanish for it. If incorrect, others are called on until the correct form is given. The pupil giving it correctly steps to the board and writes the sentence. This work is done in a lively manner until all the sentences have been written in this way. The teacher stands in the rear of the room and reads the sentences silently, with- 164 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS out comment, except in case of errors. Variants may be suggested by pupils. Then the paper work is exchanged and compared with that on the board. Is not this obviously a better plan of action than it is to have the pupils go to the board and write the sentences by translating direct from their books or copying from their papers ? Incidentally, it pre- vents unfair copying of sentences done as " home work". Another method of doing sentence work in such a way as to apply the grammatical principles of the day's lesson is to collect prepared written work and send the entire class to the board. The teacher then dictates slowly in English short, impromptu sentences incorporating the principles of grammar, and the pupils write at once the Spanish for each English sentence. Pupils exchange places and cor- rect each other's work. The teacher quickly re- views the work and the corrections. The use of pause. Let not the strenuous teacher of Spanish who believes in great activity in the class- room on the part of the class and himself, fail to take into account the value of frequent pauses in his onward-rushing recitation. The teacher, no less than the actor, becomes several degrees more effective when he checks his rush of words and thus breaks the monotony of his utterance. A pause for a statement to " sink in " ; a pause to give the student a chance to think before replying; a pause to give himself sufficient time to organize his procedure and to recall what his particular aim is in the lesson at which he is working so hard; a pause to see A MISCELLANY OF SUGGESTIONS 165 whether the pupils are doing as much as he himself is. A " change of speed " is as desirable and as helpful to the language teacher as to the baseball pitcher. Diaries kept in Spanish. The members of the class may be required to keep a diary in Spanish of their activities in and out of school for say a week, and one session per week may be devoted to the reading, discussion, and correction of the entries made. This scheme creates interest and gives a practical turn to the work. Realia and illustrative material. We should never lose sight of the fact that great advantage is derived from the use of realia, " the real things " of the foreign country. It is sometimes difficult to obtain Spanish realia and illustrative material without a visit to Spain. Some find it easier^however, to secure from friends in Souths ^f^Central America such objects. 1 Some of those things that can be secured with a little effort are calendars, posters and post- card views, postcard and other reproductions of Spanish paintings (of which Spain has produced so many for the delectation of the world), sets of coins and postage stamps of Spanish lands, samples of the natural products (especially of Spanish America), samples of the smaller, but characteristic, manu- factured products of Spain (such as pottery, silver filigree work, the Damascene jewelry of Toledo and Eibar), and magazines and newspapers of Spain and South America. He who has visited Spain will save for classroom use such things as street 1 See Chapter XVII for further suggestions in this respect. 166 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS car and bus tickets (given as receipts on payment of fare), tickets of admission to galleries and museums (where one is permitted often to retain a portion of the pasteboard), and trifles like match boxes, theat- rical programs, and bull-fight tickets, and, mayhap, a magnolia or pomegranate blossom plucked within the sacred precincts of the Alhambra or the Genera- life and pressed and preserved. These " real things " arouse tremendous interest and help the student to visualize the life and customs of Spain or Chile or Mexico, as the case may be. 1 Visiting. Do you get about your own building and see what your fellow teachers of Spanish and related departments are doing? Or are you going on from day to day and from year to year without the help and inspiration that come from seeing how some one else meets the same problems and performs the same tasks that you have? Why not make it a point to visit other teachers at least twice a week, sometimes within the Spanish De- partment, sometimes in the Latin, French, or English Department ? In any of these classes, whether taught by tyros or experts, you will doubtless find more to approve and to profit from than to condemn. Few, if any, teachers object to being visited ; rather, the effect is usually equally good, and pleasantly so, upon the visitor and the teacher visited. It is surprising how it takes us out of our ruts to visit 1 See report of the Committee on Aims and Scope of Realien (geography, history, and institutions) of the New York State Modern Language Association, published in the Bulletin of that association, November, 1917; Spanish section, pp. 14-17* A MISCELLANY OF SUGGESTIONS 1 67 some other instructor. The principal, or the chair- man of department, whose chief function it is to visit, criticize, and suggest, knows that he himself gets a great deal of personal help from his daily visits in the rooms of his teachers. Idioms. Idiomatic expressions, so numerous and often so complex in Spanish, should have special attention throughout the course. They should be memorized, manipulated, and practiced constantly. One method consists of the selection by the teacher of verbal idioms from the reading text. These are then recorded by the pupils, in the infinitive forms, in an idiom book. In groups of ten or so they are memorized and worked over and over. At a later recitation period, a ten-minute written test is given on these idioms. The test may be, for instance, of this nature : The expression is dic- tated in the infinitive form in Spanish and the stu- dents are required to compose original sentences containing the idioms in a specified tense or mood. Or the teacher may compose and dictate in English short sentences to be translated into Spanish, each of which will require the use of one of the idioms in question. Word-grouping and cognates to English. In assigning reading, pupils may be required to find a certain number of words that have the same stem as a word selected by the teacher. Or they will make a list of Spanish words that have English cognates. Or they will prepare a list of words — say nouns — which are concerned with some activity to which allusion is made in the reading, such as : 1 68 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS going hunting, renting a house, or taking a street- car ride. At the window. Send a pupil to the window to tell the class in Spanish what he sees outside. He names a few objects readily enough and then stops. Then comes a mental search for Spanish names of other objects. The teacher gives help judiciously or sends another pupil to continue the list. Finally, all the members are sent to the win- dow to compete with each other in writing on slips of paper as many Spanish names of things they see as possible. The one having the largest list wins. To test quickly the entire class. Si Vd. puede contestar bien a la pregunta, p6ngase de pie, says the teacher when he desires to know what members of the class are or are not following the work with attention and profit. If not used overmuch, this device has the advantage of making more acute the pupil's realization either of his success or failure in doing the class work. Correction of prose work. When translation from English into Spanish is placed on the board, little attention need be paid to the English of the book, much to the Spanish on the board. The student may read aloud the Spanish he has written. Suggestions are then made by the other pupils and the teacher. The one who wrote the work is then sent back to make the corrections agreed upon. The teacher should make a second rapid examina- tion to see that all corrections have been made. Use of the Bible in Spanish classes. Most of our pupils are familiar with some portions of the Bible. A MISCELLANY OF SUGGESTIONS 169 Some of them have had extensive training in it. The Old Testament may be used without objection from any of the parents of these pupils. In classes whose members are all Gentiles, the New Testament, as well as the Old, may be used. And in this way. A Spanish edition of the Bible is easily obtained (from the American Bible Society, if from no other source). Select passages which are widely familiar because of their beauty or philosophy. After read- ing the English version of the 23d rsalm, the Ser- mon on the Mount, St. Paul's chapter to the Co- rinthians on charity, or a similar passage, read the Spanish version of the same selection. Then dic- tate it and have it committed to memory. Urge those who are students of the Bible to make use of the Spanish version constantly in the preparation of their Sunday School lessons and in private study. It is remarkable how much Spanish may be ac- quired in this way. Familiar thoughts expressed in Spanish help greatly to an understanding and ac- quirement of that tongue. Repetition of corrections. In no branch of high school study is it so necessary to adhere to the good old proverb repetitio mater est studiorum as in teach- ing and learning a modern language. When a student gives an incorrect sentence in the foreign language and is corrected by his fellow-student or by the teacher, the first student should always be required to repeat correctly the sentence, usually several times. Then the entire class should repeat it in concert. Careless pronunciations should like- wise be corrected by much repetition of the correct 170 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS pronunciation. There is this great value in repe- tition : it forms correct speech habits and makes them automatic, if and when the thing repeated is given in its proper form. Oral translation from hearing. The students close their books. The teacher or, in more ad- vanced classes, a student who reads Spanish well, stands before the class and reads a paragraph of the reading lesson which has already been prepared. (In higher classes material from the advance lesson, not yet prepared, or passages from a text that the pupils are not familiar with, may be used.) The paragraph is reread, one sentence or clause at a time, and pupils are called upon to give the mean- ing thereof in English. The aim should be to give the thought, not a literal translation. This device trains the ear and develops comprehension of a thought expressed as a whole in Spanish. This is a particularly good scheme as a preliminary step to writing at dictation. The same passage may be used the following day for dictation purposes. Questioning in Spanish extended to include the pupil's experiences. In the treatment of the read- ing lesson it is quite customary for the teacher to ask and the pupil to answer questions put in Spanish concerning the form or content of the paragraph read. This is a good form of oral practice and, if properly handled, the lesson may be developed without much recourse to English. This question- ing may, and frequently should, be amplified in such a way as to lead the pupil to discuss in the vocabulary of the lesson his own experiences. Thus : A MISCELLANY OF SUGGESTIONS 171 Suppose the paragraph relates how Jorge became acquainted with Juan. After asking questions bring- ing out the chief circumstances and thus testing the pupil's comprehension of what he has read, ask him such questions as : 1 Conoce Vd. a Juan ? not to mention verdadera- mente; with hablo not to mention hablo; with ejercicio, 212 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS not to mention ejercito. And teachers there are who mispronounce capitulo, necesita, division and estudidis. And when it comes to the nice distinctions of inter-vocalic d> final d, and initial d, or of open and closed e or o, or the pronunciation of final s> few students (shall we say few teachers ?) acquire cor- rectness in those matters. And as for sentence intonation, how little attention is paid to it ! One may pronounce correctly each individual word of a Spanish sentence and yet the sentence as a whole may be absolutely unintelligible to a Spanish person. The swing, the balance, the placing of emphasis, the rhythm — in short, the intonation of the Spanish sentence is utterly different from that of the English sentence. Only very close observation, a quick ear, and good imitative powers will enable the English- speaking person to speak Spanish so that it " rings true ". Closely related to the art of pronouncing Spanish correctly is the art of hearing it correctly. The lightness of touch on the consonants, the predomi- nance of the vowel sounds, the distinctive way of intoning the Spanish sentence, all make Spanish a difficult language to catch with the ear. Speaking from his own experience, the author may be allowed to say that Spanish speech was more puzzling, more elusive to his ear, than was French, and it took him longer to acquire the ability to hear and understand Spanish than it did French. Others there are who have had the same experience. Take the matter of grammar. The superficial phenomena of Spanish grammar may seem easy, but HANDICAPS TO THE TEACHING OF SPANISH 213 that apparent or superficial ease, like the outward show of many things, is deceptive. The more one knows about Spanish, the more difficult does one realize it to be. The great stumblingblocks in the mastery of the language are, in the field of inflection, (1) irregularity of verb forms, including especially the radical-changing verbs, (2) the object pronouns, forms and positions, especially two object pronouns in the third person. In the matter of syntax, one must mention (1) the extraordinarily frequent use of the subjunctive and (2) the freedom and the niceties of word order, almost Latin, certainly neo- Latin, in nature. Let us discuss just one of these points more fully, namely, the use of the subjunctive. Let us compare it with the use of the subjunctive in, say, French. Besides using the subjunctive in every place that French does, Spanish usage requires it in the following cases where French would not. First, in main clauses. (1) In all polite commands, negative or affirmative. French uses the imperative. (2) In all negative commands, polite or familiar. French employs the imperative. (3) In all horta- tory or " let us " expressions. French uses the imperative, first person plural. (4) In the conclu- sion of a conditional sentence contrary to fact the imperfect subjunctive, r-form, is used as much as the conditional itself. In these sentences the French employs only the conditional in the conclusion. Second, in subordinate clauses. (1) After the adverbial conjunction when, the time being indefinite or future. The French requires the future indica- tive. (2) After verbs of supplication or entreaty. 214 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS French uses the infinitive. (3) After verbs of com- mand. French usually employs the infinitive. (4) After expressions of causation (era la causa de que lo hiciera). The French usually employs the indicative. (5) In the if-clause of a conditional sentence contrary to fact, where one or the other of the imperfect subjunctives is obligatory. An important matter to bear in mind in this com- parison is that in Spanish the present subjunctive always differs from the present indicative as to form. In French this is not the case in the first or most common conjugation, in which the two moods are identical in all the singular and in the third person plural of the present tense. Also we must remem- ber that there are two imperfect subjunctives in Spanish, and a future subjunctive, which last is,, however, very seldom used. One could cite other marked difficulties of Spanish grammar, both in inflection and syntax, but probably enough points have been mentioned to refute suc- cessfully any statement that Spanish grammar is easy. Take the matter of idioms. An idiom is defined as : " An expression peculiar to itself in grammatical construction; an expression the meaning of which as a whole cannot be derived from the conjoined meanings of its elements. " Of such expressions the Spanish language sometimes seems to be almost entirely composed. Hardly ever does one who has had painfully to acquire his Spanish take up a Spanish novel without finding in an hour's reading a dozen idioms new to him. In a list of fifty idioms chosen HANDICAPS TO THE TEACHING OF SPANISH 215 at random in the work of a modern writer of Spain or Spanish America, twenty of them will be beyond the comprehension of one not born and reared in a Spanish land. One despairs of mastering all those locutions that are found in highly literary works. These idioms are most perplexing; they defy all analysis ; they are elliptical to a marked degree ; they have teasing turns and queer quirks in them that are Oriental, intricate, even mystical. Into some of them is condensed the experience of a whole epoch of Spanish history. And many of these idioms, especially those containing verbs, are as common in the use of Spanish as are trees in a tropical forest. Suppose we cite a few of them : tener una cosa tres perendengues ; un puro de a tercia ; lo de telon adentro; no tener atadero; jdigo si sera pajaro de cuenta ! ; por lo profunda y cosquillosa ; estar bien por su casa ; meter la baza en la porfia ; como la capa del otro ; a buen recaudo ; tomar el punto de soslayo ; gente de rompe y rasga ; J . . . ni que nino muerto!; hablar mucho de lo de tejas arriba ; sobar los bigotes a contrapelo ; alia se van en ideas ; regalar fincas en Valencia ; con el moco lacio; pagar a tocateja, and so forth. All these locutions are taken at random from Pereda's Pedro Sanchez. 1 Of course the meanings of these expres- sions are, in some cases, partly decipherable when taken in connection with their context. Take the matter of vocabulary. For variety of 1 For a discussion of the difficult characteristics of Castilian prose see Professor R. E. Basset's edition of this novel ; Explana- tions, pp. 239-241. 2l6 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS terms, for wealth of synonyms, for depth and range, for an ever-changing growth and flexibility (except, possibly, in the field of scientific terminology), the Spanish vocabulary seems to rank second only to English. It takes years for a foreigner to encompass the literary vocabulary, though, of course, the prac- tical, everyday vocabulary is limited as it is in any language. Take the matter of sentence structure. This seems to be more nearly that of the parent Latin than is that of any other Romance language. The freedom of word order is striking and, to the beginner, particularly perplexing. This includes : the subject after the verb in declarative sentences ; the frequency of the use of the " ablative absolute " ; the frequency of present participle clauses ; and the common occurrence of infinitive phrases introduced by al or for and having a noun or pronoun subject, where the English requires a clause with a finite verb. Take Spanish literature. In Chapter II of this book was presented a brief explanation of the value of a knowledge of Spanish literature. To fathom the wealth and variety of that literature is an immense task. For the vast majority of North Americans of literary or scholastic proclivities there lie yet before them many " new worlds to conquer", new worlds of the Spanish drama, ballad, novel, short stories, folklore, and philology. He who believes that all there is to Spanish may be garnered in two or three years of study is more to be pitied than scorned", for he is probably one of those misguided or, rather, unguided souls who would exclaim, HANDICAPS TO THE TEACHING OF SPANISH 217 "Spanish literature! Has Spain a literature?" as was once asked by a teacher attending a course in elementary Spanish in Extension Teaching in Co- lumbia University. With the foregoing have been suggested at least some of the things that prove fallacious the idea that Spanish is easy. Spanish at a gulp leads either to starvation or indigestion. So it behooves us to give the warning constantly : " Beware of Spanish in a week ! Beware of Spanish in twenty lessons ! " The second handicap that is more serious than is commonly realized is the prevalent idea that Spanish should be taught only for commercial purposes. It is inspiring to know that in teaching Spanish to our youth we are teaching the language of nineteen inde- pendent nations — one constitutional monarchy of the Old World and eighteen of our sister republics in the New World ; that we are, therefore, teaching a language of great practical and commercial value. But this idea is overemphasized when it is not taken in connection with the probably greater values of Spanish described in Chapter II. That educators frequently have misplaced the study of Spanish in the curriculum may be instanced by the fact that in the fall of 1917 in all those evening High Schools of New York City in which classes are given in most subjects five nights a week, Spanish was offered only three times a week, as were bookkeeping, stenography, and penmanship, on the theory that as commercial subjects are offered but three nights a week, therefore Spanish, being a commercial subject, should have but three recitations. However, those students who 2l8 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS asserted that they expected to take the State exami- nations in Spanish were permitted to study the language five nights a week in classes formed espe- cially for them. An interesting theory and practice, indeed, especially when all French and German classes in those schools have five sessions a week ! In port cities and in manufacturing centers where articles are made for export to Spanish lands, Spanish will continue to be beyond any shadow of doubt of more importance in the conduct of business affairs of the Western World than any other modern lan- guage except English. Let us recapitulate tersely some interesting figures. Our imports from the South American continent jumped from 217 millions in 191 3 to 542 millions in 1917, and our exports to that continent in the same time increased from 146 mil- lions to 259 millions. Of course the circumstances have been peculiarly favorable for this wonderful increase of trade. And we cannot hold it easily after the war. To hold it, to increase it, we must adopt the methods of some of our competitors, especially the Germans. Our traveling salesmen must be men fluent in Spanish, acquainted with the customs, the ways of business, the peculiarities of the peoples, their likes and dislikes, etc., for all of which the very first requisite is a knowledge of the Spanish language. We must train our young men to be travelling salesmen of the sort that Germany has sent to do business with South American countries. We must train our young men and our young women in Spanish correspondence and in South American economic and political history. HANDICAPS TO THE TEACHING OF SPANISH 219 But the study of Spanish means more than this. In Chapter II it was shown that the study of the language has a disciplinary side, if by that is meant that it presents plenty of difficulties, to conquer which will make brain loops. And the cultural value of Spanish is as great as is that offered by any other modern language if the people and if the educators of the country but once realize what the literature of Spain offers. And most important of all, as was pointed out in previous discussions, the study of Spanish is the very first foundation stone for real Pan Americanism and New World international amity. One almost insensibly comes to have a strong sympathy for the nation whose language one studies. A study of Spanish throughout the length and breadth of the United States is the surest and the most efficacious way to create a sympathetic under- standing of Spanish America. This will lead to a mutual understanding in all the Americas. With this mutual understanding the future of the Americas is bright. Without it, it is at best but hazy and uncertain. After all, Spanish is Spanish, whether studied for commercial or any other purposes; but we should tirelessly labor to show that Spanish is particularly rich in opportunities for the North American student, in that it offers more than any other foreign tongue commercial, cultural, and international values in almost equal proportions. Third, the use of literary texts in the first year of the study of Spanish has been a greater hindrance in the teaching of this language than is generally 220 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS realized. In no foreign language is it true to such an extent as in Spanish that literary writings are pecul- iarly and unusually difficult for the English-speaking student. We have already discussed the difficulties presented by pronunciation, grammar, idioms, vo- cabulary, and sentence structure. It remains to mention the fact that the differences that exist between literary Spanish and the Spanish of everyday use are, beyond peradventure, much greater than in the case of any other European language. 1 Side by side with the foregoing statements of this para- graph let us place another statement, namely, that Spanish, of all modern foreign languages taught to-day in the United States, is usually and rightly regarded as possessing the most practical significance of them all. Then the inference that must be drawn is that our beginning reading should indubita- bly be " practical " in nature. And yet the reading material for use in the first year or year and a half of the study of Spanish has been chiefly literary, comprising selections from Valera, Taboada, Pardo Bazan, Fernan Caballero, Alarcon, Valdes, Trueba, Becquer, Selgas, and others of their type. As an example of what this condition has led to, the writer may state that he recently found a teacher who was energetic but inexperienced (in Spanish) at work in one of our budding high school Spanish departments trying to put a class of second term children of 1 See the very interesting discussion of this matter in Spanish Texts and the Spanish Language by Dr. John Van Home, of the University of Illinois, in The Modern Language Journal for January, 191 8. HANDICAPS TO THE TEACHING OF SPANISH 221 fourteen or fifteen years of age through the mazes of El Capitdn Veneno and then wondering why they seemed stupid at it. She was asked why she did not give them Don Quijote in second term instead of such a text, and in round-eyed seriousness she said she feared that that would be still more difficult. She was told that it would not be much more absurd than El Capitdn Veneno, and the head of department (he was a specialist in — some other language) was asked to omit all further attempts to read Spanish in second term work until the classes had obtained some copies of Fulano and Mengano's First Spanish Reader, or to return to the Zutano Elementary Spanish Reader, only the first half of which had the classes studied in first term work. Since then the writer has often asked himself how much of this same kind of unwise selection of reading material is being done in other cities and towns of the country. To read, or rather to attempt to read, these delight- ful but difficult writings of the authors mentioned, in the first year or year and a half of high school (and shall we say also in the first year of college ?), has been most discouraging to both pupils and instructor. Such efforts have often proved to be mere tours de force and have resulted neither in the acquirement of a practical vocabulary nor in a proper appreciation of these literary masterpieces. Such efforts account, in large part, do they not, for the large " mortality " in the classes in Spanish which we have often observed and tried to explain. One might also add that these authors, most of them at least, do not use the lan- guage of present-day Spain. Azorin not Alarcon, 222 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS Alas not Valdes, Unamuno not Valera, write the language that Spaniards use to-day. Our thesis is, then, that reading selections in the first year or year and a half of the study of Spanish should be selected, not for literary values, but for practical, everyday ideas and vocabulary. Literary style, even in English, is certainly little understood or appreciated by the high school Freshman, or, for that matter, by the high school Senior. (Query: Is literary style in English appreciated by even college Freshmen or Sophomores ?) And the same statement is true of the vocabulary of literary selec- tions. Why inflict literary style and vocabulary of a foreign language upon the young student before he has acquired some mastery of the ordinary, every- day language ? The practice, rather common in college work, of racing through a beginning grammar and two or three novels, all in the first year of study, has absolutely no place in the high school, nor, for that matter, in any college class where is entertained the hope of a real mastery of the language. The reasons why literary material has been used so much in the early study of Spanish are possibly these : (i) Failure to realize that a great gulf exists between literary and everyday Spanish; (2) the persistence of the tradition that the first thing to read in a foreign language is something written by a great writer; and (3), as a result of this failure and of this tradition, the fact that until very recently little else than literary material of the kind here cited has been available in editions made for class use. What is meant when we say that our early reading HANDICAPS TO THE TEACHING OF "SPANISH 223 should be of a more practical nature than it usually is ? Just this : It should be " constructed " or " adapted " Spanish, simply and correctly written, and should deal with some or all of the following topics : Descriptions of daily life connected with Spain or Spanish-American lands ; discussions of the school, the family, the city, the country, customs and traditions ; paraphrases of great national ballads, plays, novels, or even bits of folk-lore ; world-old tales already known to the student in their English version (these the student will welcome as an old friend in a new garb and the sense of familiarity will help him to follow the story and anticipate the mean- ings of new words) ; informative articles concerning the government, history, national heroes, and geog- raphy of Spanish-speaking nations. Many begin- ning books containing material of this nature are available in the study of French and German ; few are to be had at present in Spanish. But we are going to have them. Those long-headed business men, the publishers of modern language books, have seen the desirability of supplying this kind of readers. We are not without hope. Books of this type are appear- ing ; more will follow. The point is, let us use them. Let us begin by putting the horse before the cart and by reading practical material in the first steps of teaching Spanish, the practical foreign language. Later let us give our students plenty of Spanish literary masterpieces to read. There are great expanses of the field of Spanish literature which North Americans greatly need to explore. But let us give our students this material at the proper time. 224 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS Let us teach, at least in the first year of Spanish in college and in the first year and a half of high school, the Spanish language of everyday life, of present- day Spain and of present-day Spanish America. Let us not attempt to teach our students to run before they have learned to walk. The teaching of Spanish in this country needs reorientation at the several points here discussed. Time will be necessary to accomplish this. But first of all is necessary a clear visualization of the handi- caps that exist. Then the intelligent, concerted determination of teachers of Spanish in all types of educational institutions may be relied upon to bring about, in time, the abolition of the handicaps which at present hinder country-wide excellence in Spanish instruction. CHAPTER XVI SPANISH AS A FOUNDATION FOR THE STUDY OF LATIN Recently, as is well known, the Latinists have been making a determined and aggressive campaign in the attempt to obtain for Latin a place in our educational scheme still larger than the rather ample one already occupied. The Latin scholars, in so doing, have come out of their cloistered cells and made strenuous and, let us hope, successful efforts to relate Latin to practical life. This move- ment has been beneficial in many ways, not least of all to the teachers and the teaching of Latin. When any man is called forth to justify before the world his life work, he finds himself so stimulated and put upon his mettle that the result cannot but be beneficial to himself, at least, if not also to his cause. Incidentally, the Latinists have, in this process of self-examination and of creation of propaganda in favor of their subject, taken several pages from the book of modern language teaching. Among the more notable claims that are advanced for Latin are the following: (i) that it provides excellent mental discipline for students; (2) that it affords a medium for insight into and under- standing of the English language; (3) that it is a language of great usefulness to the physician, the 225 226 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS lawyer, the pharmacist, and the scientist of what- ever kind ; (4) that Latin literature presents models of prose, of poetry, and of drama that are of im- perishable worth and that have influenced all modern literatures in a very helpful way ; and (5) that Latin is the best foundation for the study of Romance languages, particularly French and Spanish, which are now studied so widely. The first four claims here cited are, in the opinion of the present writer, well founded. He subscribes heartily to all four, but halts short at accepting the fifth claim, although it has been advanced very positively, not only by Latin partisans, but also by no inconsiderable number of modern language specialists. There is another side to the story, the reverse of the shield that, in his judgment, merits preference and, at the same time, elucidation. This view or thesis is expressed thus : Spanish should be studied as a foundation for Latin. And in advocacy of this doctrine, pure heresy, of course, in the eyes of the Latinists, there is nothing in- consonant with a whole-hearted acceptance of the first four claims for Latin here mentioned. And for this reason : A study of Spanish for one year, or, if possible, for two years, before Latin is at- tempted will enable the student to encompass in a more thorough and lasting manner whatever cul- tural, disciplinary, and utilitarian benefits inhere in a study of Latin. 1 1 It is not a new idea on the part of the author to have some modern Romance language studied previous to taking up Latin. In the Austrian Reform-Realgymnasien it has been the practice A FOUNDATION FOR THE STUDY OF LATIN 227 Teachers of Spanish would, so far as the lighten- ing of their own burdens is concerned, joyfully welcome an inalterable regulation that no student be allowed to approach the study of Spanish with- out a previous successful completion of a year or two years of Latin. What a sigh of relief we should then give ! Our task would then be astonishingly easy and delightful; the road of progress for our since 1909 to carry the study of French for four years before undertaking Latin. During the last four years of the course both languages are carried. The hour scheme is as follows: French 6 5 4 43333=31 Latin — — — — 77 8 8 = 30 ******* The Perse School, Cambridge, England, has for years been working under a curriculum wherein French is begun three years before Latin is attempted. It is of interest to know that the Director of that school, Dr. W. H. D. Rouse, is a Latinist, and that the curriculum in its present form (putting French in at an earlier stage than Latin) is his own plan. He is convinced that at the end of five years of French and two years of Latin (both having been taught by a modified direct method) the pupils know as much Latin as they do French. To quote from a statement in a brief curriculum issued by the school: "The general result is that the Sixth Form attains the usual scholar- ship standard, but at a comparatively small cost of time and with unimpaired freshness of interest. Thus, a boy at sixteen under this system attains better results in Latin after 540 school hours, than he does under the current system after 2160 school hours.'* All the arguments that may be advanced for French previous to Latin in Austria and in England hold equally well for either French or Spanish in the United States; but there are also some very important reasons why Spanish should be given, among us, the preference over French, and these reasons will be set forth in the course of this chapter. 228 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS pupils smooth and straight. Into the Latin hopper would be fed all beginners of foreign language study. The students incapable linguistically would be sifted out and be borne off in a side-chute. Those who survived the Latin mill would be conveyed into the two or three Romance language machines, ready for a new stamping and finishing. Fine ! The Latinists would do the drudgery. We latter-day Romans would do the higher work and rejoice in the superior grade of material that would come to us. No more despairing hours spent in trying to teach youngsters the difference between an adjective and a noun or the significance of verb terminations ! Of course Spanish is easier for the student who has a year or two of Latin. But what is to be said about the greater ease of Latin for the student who has had a year or two of Spanish ? Fortunately for the children, or unfortunately for us Hispanists, we cannot dodge duty so easily. We cannot shift the burden that way. We are compelled to face the issue and to press the counter- claim for Spanish as a basis for Latin. And the things that compel us to this stand are inherent in (i) The times in which we live, (2) The children we have to teach, and, (3) The underlying principles of pedagogy and psychology. The times in which we live. The education of to- day is unmistakably tending toward the practical plus the cultural. It is hard for us who were brought up in the old Latin school to accept the fact that no longer does the cultural come first and after- wards the practical. Our people are demanding A FOUNDATION FOR THE STUDY OF LATIN 229 in no uncertain terms that education prepare for the living present and the pregnant future. The Spencerian theory is gaining the upper hand. Power to grapple with social, political, and international problems must be developed. Never in the history of our nation was this ability so much needed as now. We have become a world power. The chil- dren of to-day must be the broad-minded citizens of to-morrow. They must understand foreign na- tions. They must, therefore, know modern lan- guages. We are pledged as a nation to upbuild ravaged France. We shall have, who knows how many, millions of American youths fighting on the soil of France the battles of democracy. When those whose lives are spared return to their homes, they will demand that French be studied by their children, for they will know the great need that our nation will have for French in order to sustain the spiritual and commercial ties already formed with that great republic of liberty. And as for Spanish, each day that passes sees a tightening of the bonds that draw together the United States and Spain and the eighteen Spanish-speaking re- publics of the New World, some of which are already lined up in active support of the United States and of France in the wars of Europe. Our statesmen and our business men unitedly and emphatically urge the obligatory study of Spanish in all our High Schools as the first basis for real Pan Amer- icanism. Call all this an uncurbed tendency to the utilitarian, if you will, but that does not lessen the fact that this tendency in language study is vital 230 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS and unescapable, one that cannot be denied or neglected. In order that their real significance may be comprehended, however, the foregoing statements must be taken in conjunction with a consideration of The children we have to teach in our High Schools. It is common knowledge that relatively few who enter High School are, or can be, graduated therefrom and that still fewer enter college. Under these circum- stances many children and their parents, while not unappreciative of the purely cultural and disciplinary, ask, often because of economic pressure, that sub- jects be taught the children that will put them in direct contact with actual life and that will help them in solving its problems. For many or most of the students in High School, the first great problem is how to make a living. In other words, things that are practical, and that are at the same time disciplinary and cultural, are earnestly sought. Spanish, as has been demonstrated in previous chapters, offers just that combination of qualities as a study, namely, a great utilitarian value plus literary and cultural training. The average boy remains in High School, let us say, two years. If he then leaves to take his place in the world, an equipment of two years of successful study of Spanish will be of more value than two years of Latin. He will have developed as many brain loops studying Spanish as he would have developed in studying Latin. He will have acquired as good a basis for future linguistic study (which would, of course, be in modern languages) as if he had studied A FOUNDATION FOR THE STUDY OF LATIN 231 Latin or Greek, French or German. In addition, he will be able to make practical use of his Spanish, especially if he is employed in a large exporting or manufacturing center. The underlying principles of pedagogy indicate a study of Spanish as a preliminary to a study of Latin. Let us see how some of these principles operate when applied to the question at hand. First : interest and apperception. Educators are unanimous in their belief that the first requisite for acquisition, assimilation, and progress in any study is that the student have a keen interest therein. If the interest does not already exist when the subject is first approached, it is the first duty of the teacher to create interest, to build up an " apper- ceptive mass " in the student's mind so that he will instinctively feel that the subject before him is of value to him. Thus habitual interest in the subject is created. Concentrated attention and mental self-activity then easily follow. But it is in the matter of interest that Latin is weakest, and here the Latinists are able usually to make little appeal especially to the younger student, who studies Latin because he wants to go to college and must have it for college entrance". This is the usual reason, the only interest, he has in choosing Latin as his first foreign language. And when this slight interest begins to fade, when the pall of declensions, conjugations, involved syntax, and word order be- gins to weigh heavily upon him, he despairs. He sees no one in his daily life, not even his teacher of Latin, who pretends to speak the language he 232 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS is laboring at. His chum, who has begun Span- ish on entering High School with him, hears Spanish in the streets, in business houses, sees Spanish signs in the windows, tries to read Spanish news- papers and magazines. Our Latin neophyte begins to be a bit uneasy and dubious about the wisdom of having chosen Latin. Nor does it encourage him to be told by his teacher that he will under- stand English better if he perseveres in his Latin or that he must know Latin to get into college. His chum is going to present Spanish for college entrance. English, the boy argues, he studies in classes made for that purpose, — English classes. And when his chum begins to study Latin a year or so later and eventually catches up with him in that subject, he feels indeed that he made a mis- take. In other words, he has had hard work to keep alive his interest, which had so little to feed upon in the first place and which had so many doubts to contend with. The boy who begins his foreign language with Spanish, who has opportunities to speak Spanish with his teacher in class and out, with people outside the school and in the Spanish club of the school, finds his interest growing rather than diminishing. He is also building up, uncon- sciously, the finest kind of an apperceptive mass for the study of Latin when he is ready for a second foreign language. Second: procedure from the immediate to the remote, from environment outward, from the con- crete to the abstract, from the modern to the ancient. From the very first day in the Spanish class, the A FOUNDATION FOR THE STUDY OF LATIN 233 pupil begins to use Spanish. He is taught to talk and write of objects and activities of the classroom, of his home, of his work and his play. It is only with much greater difficulty that this can be done successfully in Latin. The process is too involved and uncertain in that language. Spanish is con- crete. Latin must always seem abstract and far- fetched to the young beginner. The Spanish-born or Spanish-speaking teacher is a living example of Spanish speech. Even where direct-method teach- ing of Latin is tried, it must needs seem to the pupil a tour de force, for he knows, young though he may be, that no native user of the Latin language lives to-day. He is skeptical, for he knows the attempt to speak Latin is artificial, unreal. When history or social science is taught, the starting point is not the history of Egypt or Greece or Rome. It is the history of the city, of the state, or of the United States, that is first offered. The organization of the school district, of the town, the county, the state, the Federal Government, and then of foreign governments, is the sequence followed in the teach- ing of civics. One does not learn to read Chaucer before making a study of modern English. The study of the philology of a language is not begun before the modern forms of that language are known. It seems, then, but the soundest common sense and the very basis of pedagogy to build up a student's foreign language sense till it may reach to Latin. Taking the more remote, the more abstract, and the ancient first seems surely like beginning at the wrong end of the scale. 234 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS Third: procedure from the less difficult to the more difficult. This is a sound principle of educa- tion. Who could deny it successfully ? And yet the very acceptance of this principle demands irre- futably the teaching of Spanish (or French or Italian or Portuguese) as a preliminary to Latin. This is true from the standpoints of pronunciation, of inflection, and of syntax. Take pronunciation first. The syllabic stress of Spanish words is an easy matter, much more so than in Latin. The first glance at a word in Span- ish determines the stress. Any exception to two simple rules is indicated by a written accent mark showing the position of the stress. The quantity of syllables in Latin is a puzzling matter to beginners and even to advanced students, as those know who have taught Latin poetry. But a Spanish word derived from Latin (from which language most Spanish words take their origin) usually conserves the same stress it had in the original Latin. (In nouns the stress is, of course, that found in the Latin accusative singular.) Hence a student who knows Spanish will nearly always stress properly the Latin word. Let us take a few words as ex- amples of this fact. Aman, amant ; facil, facilis ; dificil, difficilis ; dnimo, animum ; imagen, ima- ginem ; poetico, poeticus ; verdad, veritatem ; pro- posito, propositum ; tragedia, tragoedia ; cuadru- pedo, quadrupedum ; diligencia, diligentia ; ejercito, exercitum ; dormir, dormire, and so with nearly all infinitives. Every letter is pronounced in Spanish (except A FOUNDATION FOR THE STUDY OF LATIN 235 h) ; therefore the Spanish student finds it easy to observe this same principle in Latin. The Spanish open and close e and have their approximate counterparts in Latin. Take inflection. Declension of Latin nouns has, of course, no parallel in Spanish. But the inflection in Spanish of the adjective and noun for agreement in gender and number provides an excellent introduc- tion to the same topic in Latin, where there is but one more, the more difficult, element to add, that is, inflection for case. Here is a good place to note also that Spanish, more than French, conforms to the Latin in distinction of verb endings for each of the six persons of a given tense. The Spanish tenses are simpler than the Latin in formation and in uses. The present, imperfect, and preterite in Spanish correspond closely in forms to the present, imperfect, and perfect in Latin. The future and conditional in Spanish are, of course, not derived from the classical Latin and are more simply formed in all conjugations than the Latin future and imperfect subjunctive, the nearest equivalent in meaning to the Spanish conditional. The present subjunctive of regular and many irregular verbs is very close to the Latin present subjunctive in forms ; compare ame, amet ; pida, petat ; de, del ; venga, veniat, etc. The Spanish imperfect subjunctive, r-form, is derived from the Latin pluperfect indica- tive : amara, amaverat. The Spanish imperfect sub- junctive, j-form, is derived directly from the Latin pluperfect subjunctive : amase, amavisset ; diese, dedisset. The point is, that these similarities of the 236 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS Spanish to the Latin, while the Spanish is always the simpler form, constitute a fine introduction to the mastery of the more highly inflected Latin forms. Take syntax. The ablative absolute is probably more perfectly preserved in Spanish than in any other Romance language. Compare, patre inter- ecto, muerto el padre ; consumpto frumento, agotado el alimento, etc. This construction is exceedingly common in Spanish and, as in Latin, it is used to define the attendant circumstances, to replace tem- poral, conditional, causal, and other clauses. The Spanish gerund is a real gerund similar to that in Latin, though the Latin present participle is not continued in Spanish except in the form of a noun or an adjective, as amante (" a lover " and " affec- tionate ") from amans, amantem. Spanish, like Latin, has conditional sentences expressing simple condition, future condition, and condition contrary to fact, and, as in Latin, the future conditions are " more vivid " and " less vivid", the latter requiring the imperfect subjunc- tive, either form, and the conclusion requiring the /•-form of the imperfect subjunctive or the condi- tional. The same arrangement of tenses is used in conditional sentences contrary to fact in present time, while past time requires either the first or second imperfect subjunctive in the ^-clause and the pluperfect subjunctive (r-form) or the condi- tional perfect in the conclusion. The condition is often disguised in various ways (present participle, de or a with the infinitive, etc.) or omitted entirely, thus keeping a close parallel to the Latin. A FOUNDATION FOR THE STUDY OF LATIN 237 Spanish adheres pretty closely to the Latin in the use of the subjunctive in subordinate clauses, es- pecially in those expressing time, concession, pro- viso, purpose, and relative characteristic, provided the time or fact in question is uncertain or indefinite. A few examples will suffice : priusquam telum abici posset, antes de que se pudiera lanzar un arma; licet omnia pericula impendeant, aunque todos los peligros amenacen; tantum ut sciant, con tal que sepan ; ne sit impune, para que no sea impune (sin castigo) ; quis est qui id non maximis efferat laudibus ? I quien hay que no lo alabe sobremanera ? The laws of the sequence of tenses prevalent in Latin usage have come down in Spanish in almost unchanged force, a thing that is more noticeable in Spanish than in other Romance languages. One must also mention the rather remarkable preservation of the Latin pluperfect indicative with full pluperfect indicative force in subordinate clauses in modern literary Spanish : e.g. No tuvo Magallanes motivo para arrepentirse de la buena accion que ejecutara (Ramsey, Spanish Grammar, p. 401) ; El pendon de Castilla ondeo luego en una de las torres [de la Alhambra] donde tantos siglos tre- molara el estandarte del Profeta (Lafuente, His- toria de Espana) ; Espiraba en este dia el hom- bre funesto, sin amigos, divorciado del partido en cuyas aras lo sacrificara todo, . . . abominado de la teocracia a quien sirviera (Castelar, Fernando Septimo). As a part of syntax one may briefly consider word order. The freedom in the placement of the subject 238 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS in the Latin sentence is reflected in Spanish more than in other Romance languages. It is very fre- quent indeed to find the subject subsequent to the verb. Examples may be found in any half page of Spanish prose. An examination of the above detailed instances of similarities between Latin and Spanish in the matters of pronunciation, inflection, and syntax reveals two things : first, that similarities are very marked be- cause Spanish has preserved in modified form a great many of the characteristics of the mother tongue, and second, that the phenomena observed are less complicated in Spanish than in Latin. Thus a study of Spanish as a preliminary to Latin means proceeding from the less difficult to the more difficult and in a field which is Latin from the first steps in Spanish to the closing page of Vergil or Horace. It is a well-known fact that the Spaniard finds Latin soon within his grasp and that he acquires a reading ability in that language that the English-speaking person rarely, if ever, attains. Even though they insist upon the existence of a greater disciplinary value in Latin, those who are still devotees to the great god Discipline must admit nevertheless that the greater discipline should be entered upon through the lesser disci- pline, — if they so interpret that training provided in a study of Spanish. The author is not, how- ever, of the belief that there is any greater disci- plinary value inherent in the one study than in the other. And in this connection the words of so distin- A FOUNDATION FOR THE STUDY OF LATIN 239 guished a scholar as Dr. Charles W. Eliot must be given great weight. He has said : 1 It is often asserted that the study of Latin gives a boy or girl a mental discipline not otherwise to be obtained, a discipline peculiarly useful to those who have no taste or gift for the study. As a matter of fact, it has doubtless often happened that pupils in secondary schools got through Latin the best training they actually received; because their teachers of Latin were the best equipped and the most scholarly. The classical schools have been the best schools, and the classical teachers the best teachers. Gradually, within the past forty years, teachers of modern languages, English, the sciences, and history have been trained in the colleges and universities, who are as scholarly and skillful in their respective fields as any classical teachers. They can teach boys and girls to observe, to think, and to remember in the new subjects quite as well as the teachers of Greek and Latin can in those traditional subjects. At least, they think they can ; and many parents and educa- tional administrators think that the new subjects and teachers ought to have a free opportunity to prove this contention. That is all the proposal to abolish the requirement of Latin for the degree of Bachelor of Arts really means. The times in which we live, the children we have in our classes in High School, and the principles of pedagogy and psychology that we all accept point clearly to the advisability of making Spanish a foundation for Latin rather than Latin a foundation for Spanish. 1 In Latin and the A. B. Degree; published, 1917, by the General Education Board, 61 Broadway, New York City. CHAPTER XVH BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS FOR THE TEACHER OF SPANISH In the preparation of the following lists of helps for the teacher of Spanish, the author has 'drawn freely upon the paragraphs referring to Spanish in two Bulletins of the University of Illinois. They are: (i) Bulletin No. 33, April 16, 1917, " On High School Libraries, Based on Recommendations made to the High School Conference; issued from the office of the High School Visitor", Professor H. A. Hollister of the University of Illinois ; (2) Bulletin No. 43, June 25, 1917, which is Bulletin No. 18 of the School of Education of that University, entitled " Suggestions and References for Modern Language Teachers, Second Edition, Revised and Enlarged, edited by Thomas Edward Oliver, Ph. D., Professor of Romance Languages". Of these two bulletins the latter is probably the most complete, practical, and carefully considered compilation of up-to-date books and other aids for modern language teachers that is available at the present time, and the only one that gives equal attention to Spanish, French, and German. Matter printed in italics in the following lists has been added by the author of this book. The 240 BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 241 rest is quoted from the sections devoted to Spanish of the bulletins above described. Minimum High School Library for Teachers of ', Spanish 1 The New Velazquez Spanish and English Dictionary. Appleton. $6.00. Diccionario de la Lengua Castellana, Real Academia Espanola de la Lengua. Stechert. #8.50. Hume, M. A. S. The Spanish People. Appleton. 1901. £1.50. Burke, U. R. History of Spain to the Death of Ferdinand the Catholic. 2 vols. Longmans, Green & Co. 1900. $5.00. Hume. Spain ; Its Greatness and Decay. Cambridge History Series. Putnam. $1.50. Hume. Modern Spain. Story of the Nations. Putnam. 1900. $1.50. Altamira y Crevea, Rafael. Historia de Espana y de la Civilizacion Espanola. 4 vols. Gil . $5.00. Ticknor, George. History of Spanish Literature. 3 vols. Houghton Mifflin Co. $10.00. Blanco Garcia, Francisco. Literatura Espanola en el Siglo XIX. 3 vols. Murillo. $3.00. Wygram, E. T. A. Northern Spain. A. & C. Black. The Macmillan Co. $6.00. Calvert, A. F. Southern Spain. A. & C. Black. The Mac- millan Co. $6.00. Bensusan, S. L. Home Life in Spain. The Macmillan Co. igio. $1.75. Ellis, Havelock. The Soul of Spain. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1915. $2.00. 1 Bulletin 33, above described. Pages 94 and 95. Prepared by Dr. John D. Fitz-Gerald, Professor of Spanish, University of Illinois. 242 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS Minimum High School Library for the Pupils of Spanish 1 Cuyas. Spanish-English and English-Spanish Dictionary. Appleton. #2.50. Pequeno Larousse Ilustrado. Larousse. £2.00. Fitzmaurice-Kelly. Spanish Literature. Appleton. 1898. gi.50. Clarke, H. B. Spanish Literature. Macmillan. $1.60. Bates, Katharine Lee. Spanish Highways and Byways. Macmillan. 1907. #2.00. Fitz-Gerald, J. D. Rambles in Spain. Crowell. 1910. £3.00. Rodriguez Marin. Cantos Populares Espanoles. £2.00. Bates, Katharine Lee. In Sunny Spain. Dutton. 191 3. #1.00. Set of 100 Stereoscopic Views of Spain. Underwood & Underwood. $18.30. Stereoscope, $1.30. Don Quixote. Illustrated by Van Dyke. Motteux's transla- tion. 4 vols, de luxe. Clarkson, David B., 624-30 S. Wabash Avenue, Chicago. $3.95. Catalogue. (It will be seen that both the teachers 9 and the pupils' lists may be purchased for approximately $97.00.) Opportunities for Travel and Study 2 1. Holiday Course for Foreigners in Madrid. The 191 7 course was the sixth year and was from July 17 to August 26. The fee was fifty pesetas. There are also Courses of Three Months in the Spanish Language and Literature for For- eigners ". 1 Idem. 2 From this point on the lists given are from the second bulletin above mentioned, that is, Suggestions and References for Modern Language Teachers, passim. BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 243 The academic year consists of three terms of three months each. The registration fee is forty pesetas a month. For information regarding both the regular courses and the holiday course write to the Sr. Secretario de la Junta para Ampliacion de Estudios, Moreto, 1, Madrid, or to Professor John D. Fitz- Gerald, University of Illinois, or to Professor Federico de Onis, Columbia University. Excursions to other parts of Spain are organized in connection with these courses. 2. " The International Institute for Girls in Spain", Calle Fortuny, 21, Madrid, Spain, has a " Department for American Students." Address the Directora, Miss Susan D. Huntington. This department is designed for young women who are able, preferably, to spend at least a year in Spain. The charge for " Home and Tuition, including Spanish, French, German, history of art and literature of Spain " is #500, and per month #75. For day pupils these charges are respectively #200 and #30. Descriptive circulars and further information may be ob- tained of Prof. J. D. Fitz-Gerald, University of Illinois, who is a member of the advisory council. 3. In Spanish-American/ lands there will be increasing oppor- tunity for travel and study when the Panama trade routes are adjusted. On the table-lands of Mexico the summer climate is preferable to that in Spain or other Central American coun- tries. It is to be hoped that peace may soon come to Mexico, so as to permit the resumption of travel and sojourn there. The best places are reputed to be Mexico City, Oaxaca, and Guadalajara, all of which are over 5000 feet above the sea. ' In Havana, if care be taken to secure a room facing the sea breeze, the climate is said to be as good as in Madrid. In the United States certain localities of Arizona, notably Nogales, and of Texas, notably El Paso, are not unendurable in the summer for a northerner. The Illinois Central Railroad offers certain special induce- ments for travelers to Cuba. 4. Under the leadership of Ralph E. Towle, the Bureau of University Travel (Trinity Place, Boston, Mass.) planned a 244 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS trip sailing from New York January 20, 191 5, via Jamaica and Panama to Peru, Chile, across the Andes through Argentina to Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Santos, Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and points in the West Indies on the return journey. The trip ended in New York in the first week in April, and the total cost was about $1275. This is evidence of similar trips that will undoubtedly be organized later. 5. Well recommended is the Springfield, Massachusetts, Summer School of French and Spanish, which held its second session in 1917. The main emphasis is given to pronunciation and diction. The announcement declares that * the courses will be similar to those formerly given, but not now available, in the vacation schools of Paris and other European cities." Address Charles F. Warner, Secretary, Room 16, Board of Trade Rooms, Springfield, Mass. To these may be added the Romance Language Schools held at Middlebury College, Middlebury, Ft., during the summer vaca- tion. The separate School of Spanish, with native instructors, is under the able direction of Senor Moreno- Lacalle of the United States Naval Academy. Books of Travel Spain — Castilian Days, by John Hay. Boston (Houghton Mifflin Co.). 1907. — Spanish Highways and Byways, by Katharine Lee Bates. Illustrated. New York (Macmillan). 1900. #1.50. — The Bible in Spain, by George Borrow. New York (Put- nam's). 1907. — The Zincali ; or an Account of the Gypsies in Spain, by George Borrow. 2 vols. London (J. Murray). 1902. — Rambles in Spain, by John D. Fitz-Gerald. Numerous illustrations. #3. New York (T. Y. Crowell). 1910. — Old Court Life in Spain, by Frances M. Elliot. 2 vols. 56 illustrations. #5. New York (Putnam's). — The Soul of Spain, by Havelock Ellis. Boston (Houghton Mifflin Co.). 1908. $2. BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 245 — Spanish Life in Town and Country, by L. Higgin. New York (Putnam's). — A Tramp in Spain from Andalusia to Andorra, by Bart Kennedy. New York (Fred Warne). 1904. #2.50. — Spain and the Spaniards, by Edmondo de Amicis. New York (Putnam's). $2. The same in a two- volume edi- tion, translated by S. R. Yarnell. Philadelphia (Winston). — The Cities of Spain, by E. Hutton. London (Methuen). $2. — Quiet Days in Spain, by Carl Bogue Luffmann. New York (E. P. Dutton). 1910. $2. — Familiar Spanish Travels, by William Dean Howells. New York (Harpers). 1913. $2. — Cathedral Cities of Spain, by W. W. Collins. Illustrated. New York (Dodd, Mead & Co.). 1909. £3. 50. — VlSIONES DE ESPANA : APUNTES DE UN VlAJERO ARGENTINO, by Manuel Ugarte. Valencia (F. Sempere). 1903. 1 peseta. — Other interesting books on Spain have been written by A. M. Huntington, Theophile Gautier, Leonard Williams, and C. W. Wood. — The Handbook for Travellers in Spain, by Richard Ford. London (John Murray). 8th edition, 18Q2. — Four Months Afoot in Spain, by Harry A. Franck. New York {Century Co.). 191 3. $2. — The Spaniard at Home, by Mary F. Nixon-Roulet. Chicago {A. C. McClurg & Co.). 1910. $1.75. — At the Court of His Catholic Maiesty, by William Miller Collier, late American minister to Spain. Chicago (A. C. McClurg fcf Co.). 1912. $2. — The Cathedrals of Southern and Eastern Spain, by C. Gasquoine Hartley. New York (J. Pott & Co.). — Home Life in Spain, by S. L. Bensusan. The Macmillan Co. 1910. $1.75. — The Magic of Spain, by Aubrey F. G. Bell. John Lane Co. 1912. About $1.50. — Impressions of Spain, by James Russell Lowell. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1899. 246 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS — Spanish Vistas, by G. P. Lathrop. Harpers. 188$. — On the Trail of Don Quijote, by A. F. Jaccaci. Scribner's Sons. 1806. — Heroic Spain, by E. Boyle O'Reilly. Duffield. ion. $2.$o. Hispanic America One of the recent marked features in the development of our modern language departments is the extraordinary increase in the demand for Spanish and also for knowledge of those southern countries of the American continent where this language or Portuguese is spoken. Several publishing houses, notably Macmillan and Benj. H. Sanborn, are preparing extensive series of books dealing with the history, the language, and the literature of our neighbors to the south. It is therefore increasingly essen- tial for the teacher of Spanish to become acquainted with the history and the culture of Hispanic America. The following books are accordingly listed with this purpose in mind : — Across South America, by Hiram Bingham. New York (Houghton Mifflin Co.). 191 1. $3.50. — South America : a Geography Reader, by Isaiah Bowman. New York (Rand, McNally & Co.). 191 5. 75 cts. — Elementary Spanish-American Reader, by Eduardo Berge- Soler and Joel Hatheway. The Hispanic Series. Benj. H. Sanborn & Co. 1917. #1.24. Contains much material of political and cultural interest. — Through South American Southland, by M. A. Zahm. New York (Appleton). 1916. £2.50. — Mexico, the Wonderland of the South, by W. E. Carson. Macmillan. 1914. $2.50. — Mexico ; Handbook for Travellers, by Thomas Philip Terry. With 2 maps and 25 plans. Boston (Houghton Mifflin Co.). 1909. #2.50. — The Panama Gateway, by J. B. Bishop. Fully illustrated. New York (Scribner's). #2.50. — Latin America : its Rise and Progress, by Francisco Garcia Calderon, with a preface by Raymond Poincare. New York (Scribner's). 191 3. £3. BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 247 — The South American Tour, by Annie S. Peck. Fully illus- trated, mainly from photographs by the author. New York (George H. Doran). $2.50. — A Search for the Apex of America, by Annie S. Peck. New York (Dodd, Mead & Co.). $3-5©. — La America del Sud, por James Bryce, traducido ai castellano por Guillermo Rivera. New York (Macmillan). 1914. £2.50. This book has been successfully used by some teachers as an auxiliary reading text. When ordered thus for classes the price is $2. The English original costs $2.50 also. — Peru, by Reginald Enock. London (Fisher Unwin). — Baedeker of the Argentine Republic, etc., by Alberto B. Martinez. (D. Appleton & Co.). 191 5. £3. (Also Bar- celona. 1914.) — Brazil in 1913, by J. C. Oakenfull. 604 pages. Printed by Butler & Tanner of Frome, England. 1914. 7 sh. 6 p. The Brazilian Government distributed some 11,500 copies of this thorough description of Brazil's history and resources. In the United States the distribution took place through the Pan American Union of Washington, D. C. Appendix III of this book is a very complete bibliography of Brazil. — Charles Scribner's Sons have made quite a specialty of books descriptive of Latin-American countries. The list is too long for quotation here, and may be found in the catalogue of that firm. — A book of value in this connection is A Brief Bibliography of Books in English, Spanish and Portuguese Relat- ing to the Republics Commonly Called Latin Ameri- can, with Comments, by Peter H. Goldsmith. New York (The Macmillan Co.). 1915. xix, 107. The critical comments will help in the choice of reading matter. — Somewhat less extensive is the book South America : Study Suggestions. Brief Outline with Bibliography, by H. E. Bard. D. C. Heath. 1916. — The Pan American Union, Washington, D. C, issues a monthly bulletin splendidly illustrated and devoted to the progress and development of the twenty-one republics of the two Americas. The bulletin is published in a French 248 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS edition for 75 cts. yearly ; in a Spanish edition for #1.50 ; in a Portuguese edition for $1, and in an English edition for $2. There are also bi-lingual editions as follows : French and Spanish for $2 ; French and Portuguese for #1.75 ; French and English for $2.50. An edition in four languages — English, French, Portuguese and Spanish — is also issued for #4. This magazine aims to create friendly relations throughout the two continents, and deserves wide circulation. No better means of acquiring knowledge of our sister republics could be found. — Among other periodicals treating of Pan American affairs are : Pan American Progress, Los Angeles, California (304 Wilcox Bldg.), and Latin America (in English and Spanish), New Orleans (502 Board of Trade Bldg.). Semi- monthly. — Zone Policeman 88, by Harry A. Franck. {Century Company). — Va GA BONDING DOWN THE Andes, by Harry A. Franck. {Cen- tury Company) 1917. $4. — A Diplomat's Wife in Mexico, by E. C. O'Shaughnessy. {Scribners) 1916. $2.$o. — The Pan American Union, by John Barrett. {Pan American Union, Washington, D. C.) 1911. 50 cents. — The Two Americas, by Rafael Reyes. Translated from the Spanish by Leopold Grahame. New York {Frederick A. Stokes Co.) 1914. $2.50. See list of 25 books on Latin America prepared by the Pan American Union. It is called in a sub-title " suitable for use as supplementary reading and reference books in high schools, normal schools and colleges ". — How Latin America Affects our Daily Life, by W. J. Dangaix. Institute for Public Service, 5/ Chambers St., New York. December, 1917. 25 cts.; special prices for class use. Very practical and helpful information about the products and economic conditions of Hispanic America. BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 249 General Series that Touch upon Spain — A remarkably beautiful series of books (with profuse illus- trations colored from paintings made on the spot) is pub- lished by A. & C. Black of London. These volumes are in three series and were originally sold at from $1.50 to £5, according to size. They may now be obtained for half price of McDevitt-Wilson, Hudson-Terminal Building, New York City. Those on Spain are entitled Northern Spain and Southern Spain. — The National Geographic Magazine, published by the National Geographical Society, Hubbard Memorial Hall, Washington, D. C, often contains beautifully illustrated articles on European countries. Membership and sub- scription $2 a year. Vol. XXVIII was 1916-1917. — A book of value is John Scherer's Europe Illustrated. Its Picturesque Scenes and Places of Note. London (no date). 2 vols. — The Baedeker Guide Books contain a vast amount of valu- able information, especially in their introductory pages. — The Mediaeval Town Series, by various authors. Lon- don (J. M. Dent). New York (E. P. Dutton). 1898-1912. These dainty volumes are copiously illustrated, and contain valuable descriptive and historical matter. The following volumes are of interest to students of Spanish : Seville, Toledo. The prices are from 3 s. 6 d. in cloth to 5 s. 6 d. in leather. — Not without value are such popular collections as the John L. Stoddard lectures on travel. — The Land und Leute. Monographien zur Erdkunde, published at Bielefeld and Leipzig, Germany, by Velhagen and Klasing, should also be listed here. They are well illustrated, cover every European country, and sell at $1.20 each. Political Histories Spain — Altamira y Crevea, Rafael, Historia de Espana y de la Ci- VILIZACi6n Espanola. Barcelona. 1909. 4 vols. 24 pesetas. 250 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS — Clarke, Henry Butler, Modern Spain. 1815-1898. Cam- bridge (England) University Press. 1906. $2. — Hume, Martin A. S., The Spanish People. Appleton. $1.50. — Hume's edition of Burke's History of Spain. 2 volumes. In sequence to Hume's edition of Burke's History OF Spain, Hume has written several other volumes treating of special periods. These are Philip II of Spain ; Queens of Old Spain ; The Court of Philip IV; Spain, Its Greatness and Decay 1479-1788; and Modern Spain. — Latimer, Elizabeth W., Spain in the Nineteenth Century. (McClurg). 1898. £2.50. — Salcedo Ruiz, Angel, Historia de Espana. Resumen CRfTico, e Historia Grafica de la Civilizacion Es- PANOLA, por Manuel Angel y Alvarez. Copiously illus- trated. Madrid (Calleja) 191 6. £3. — Lane-Poole, Stanley, The Moors in Spain. New York (G. P. Putnam's Sons), igu. $1.50. — Watts , Henry Edward, The Christian Recovery of Spain. New York (G. P. Putnam's Sons), igoi. $1.50. Hispanic America — Mitre, Bartolome, The Emancipation of South America, being a condensed translation by William Pilling of the History of San Martin by General Don Bartolome Mitre. London (Chapman & Hall). 1893. — Akers, Charles E., A History of South America. 1854- 1904. New York (E. P. Dutton). 1904. $4. — Shepherd, William R., Latin America. New York (Holt). 1914. (Home University Library.) 50 cts. (Presents the historian's point of view.) — Supple, Edward Watson, Spanish Reader of South Amer- ican History. New York (Macmillan). 1917. — Garcia Calderon, Francisco. Latin America ; Its Rise and Progress, with a preface by Raymond Poincare. New York (Scribner's). 191 3. #3. \ BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 251 ■ Dawson, Thomas C, The South American Republics. 2 vols. New York {Putnam* s Sons). (The Story of the Nations series.) 1903. $2.95 for both vols. ■ Bancroft, Hubert Howe, History of Mexico. New York (The Bancroft Co.). 1914. $2. ■ Lummis, Charles F., The Spanish Pioneers. Chicago (A. C. McClurg). 191 4. An ardent defense of the conquistadores. ■ Garcia Calderon, F., Les Democraties Latin es de l'Ame- RIQUE. Preface de M. Raymond Poincare. Paris (Ernest Flammarion). 191 2. Frs. 3. 50. Spanish Phonetics Josselyn, F. M., Etudes de Phonetique Espagnole. Paris (H. Welter). 1907. With diagrams based upon actual experiments. Araujo, F., Fonetica Kastelana. Santiago de Chile. 1894. Araujo, F., Estudios de Fonetica Castellana. Toledo. 1894. Colton, Molton Avery, La Phonetique Castillane. Sold by Geo. W. Jones, 194 Main Street, Annapolis, Md. Paris. 1909. $1.20, postpaid. Bassett, Ralph E., Spanish Pronunciation. Abingdon Press. I9H- See also articles by Tomds Navarro Tomds which will appear from time to time in HISPANIA. Histories of Literature Fitzmaurice-Kelly, James, Spanish Literature. New York (D. Appleton & Co.). $1.50. The same author has written a similar history in French (Paris, A. Colin, 1913), five francs, with a bibliography in separate volume for which the price is two francs. Also a like work in Spanish (Madrid 1913, second edition, 1916), eight pesetas, the bibliography forming part of the volume. Both these works differ from the English work, the whole subject having been reworked, rewritten, and brought down to date. 252 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS — Clarke, H. Butler, Spanish Literature. Macmillan. 1893. — Ticknor, George, History of Spanish Literature. Three volumes. Houghton Mifflin Co. — Salcedo Ruiz, Angel, La Literatura Espanola. Resumen DE HiSTORiA Cri'tica. Profusely illustrated. In process of publication. Vol. Ill, El Clasicismo, appeared 1916. Vol. IV is being prepared. Madrid (Calleja). — Blanco Garcia, Francisco, Literatura Espanola EN EL SlGLO XIX. 3 vols. Madrid (Murillo). $3. — Fitzmaurice-Kelly, James, Lecciones de Literatura Es- panola. A translation into Spanish by Diego Mendoza of lectures delivered by the author in 1907 in several universities of the United States. Preface by Rufino Jose Cuervo. Madrid {Victoriano Suarez). Ptas 6. — Cejador y Frauca, Julio, HiSTORiA de la Lengua y Litera- tura Castellan a. 7 vols. Madrid {Revista de Archivos, Bibliotecas y Museos). 1915-17. {Vol. VII: Comprendi- dos los autores hispano-americanos. Epoca Romdntica, 1830-1849.) Hispanic America — Coester, Alfred, The Literary History of Spanish America. $2.50. Macmillan. 1916. Description of Spanish Art — Dieulafoy, Marcel, Art in Spain andP ortuga l. Illustrated, New York. {Charles Scribners Sons). 191 3. $1.50. See also introduction to Baedeker s Spain. — Angel de Apraiz ; La Casa y La Vida en la Antigua Salamanca. * Salamanca {Calatravd). 1917. — Arthur Byne and Mildred Stapley ; Rejeria OF THE SPANISH RENAISSANCE; a collection of photographs and measured drawings, with descriptive text. The Hispanic Society of America. 1914. $5. — Arthur Byne and Mildred Stapley; Spanish Ironwork; with 158 illustrations. The Hispanic Society of America. I9I5- BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 253 Edwin Atlee Barber; Hispano-M ores QUE Pottery in the Collection of The Hispanic Society of America. Published by that Society. 1915. $1. Edwin Atlee Barber; Spanish Porcelains and Terra Cottas in the Collection of The Hispanic Society of America. Published by that Society. 191 5. 25 cts. Edwin Atlee Barber; Spanish Maiolica, with a catalogue of the collections of The Hispanic Society of America. Pub- lished by that Society. 50 cts. Rafael Domenech; Sorolla, su Vida y su Arte. 116 illus- trations. Madrid (Leoncio Miguel). S. L. Bensusan; Velazquez. Illustrated with eight repro- ductions in color. Also, MURILLO by the same author. "Masterpieces in Colour" Series. Frederick A. Stokes Co. Handbooks of Spanish Art. A series of ten 16 books, paper covers. The Hispanic Society of America. 50 cts. each. Eight Essays on Joaquin Sorolla y Bastida. By eight art critics. 2 vols. Illustrated. The Hispanic Society of America. $7. SO. ■Five Essays on the Art of Ignacio Zuloaga. By five art critics. The Hispanic Society of America. 50 cts. The Hispanic Society also publishes a Sorolla Catalogue and a Zuloaga Catalogue, 50 cts. each. Journals for the Teacher of Spanish Hispania, a new quarterly pedagogical journal, began publication February, 191 8. The Organization Number appeared in November, 1917. The $2 subscription includes membership in the recently-formed American Association of Teachers of Spanish. Address the Secretary-Treas- urer, Dr. Alfred Coester, 1081 Park Place, Brooklyn, N.Y. Re vista de Archivos, Bibliotecas y Museos. First Series (eight volumes) 1 871-1878 ; Second Series (one volume) 1883 ; Third Series 1897 to date. Published in Madrid. Revue Hispanique. Since 1894. £4. Published in Paris and New York. 1905 to 1913 inclusive, two volumes annu- ally ; since 191 4 three volumes annually. #4. 254 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS — RevistadeFilolog!a Espanola. A quarterly. Since 1914. Occasionally contains articles on Spanish phonetics. Ma- drid. 17 ptas. Its bibliographies are especially valuable. They may be had separately for 4 ptas a year. — La Lectura. A monthly. Since 1901. Madrid. Very helpful to the teacher. — Bulletin Hispanique. Since 1899. £2.40 a year. Pub- lished in Bordeaux. — BoLETm de la Real Academia Espanola. Since 1914. . Madrid, 12 pesetas. — Revista de Filosofia. Cultura — Ciencias — Educa- CION. Since 191 5. Buenos Aires. £5. Dictionaries — Arturo Cuyas' edition of Appleton's smaller New Spanish Dictionary. £2.50 in one volume. D. Appleton & Co. 1904. — Angeli-McLaughlin, New Spanish-English, English- Spanish Dictionary, gi.50. W. R. Jenkins, New York, Sixth Ave. at 48th St. — Salva, Vicente, Nuevo Diccionario de la Lengua Castellana por la Academia Espanola. One vol., nth edition, 1894. Paris (Gamier Freres). — Velazquez de la Cadena, Mariano, A New Pronouncing Dictionary of the Spanish and English Languages. Revised and enlarged by Gray and Iribas. Two volumes, purchasable separately. New York (D. Appleton & Co.). 1902. — -Calleja, S., Nuevo Diccionario Manual, Ilustrado, de la Lengua Castellana. Madrid (Calle de Valencia, 28). Edicion economica, 1600 pp.; edicion corriente, 1900 pp. (about #2.75) ; edicion lujo, 2000 pp. 1914. An excellent work. — Pequeno Larousse Ilustrado. Paris (Larousse). 9 francs in cloth ; 12 francs in flexible leather. — D. Jose Alemany y Bolufer, DICCIONARIO DE LA Lengua Espanola. Barcelona (Ramon Sopena). 1917. 10 pesetas. Very complete. BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 255 — DlCCIONARIO DE LA LENGUA CASTELLANA, REAL ACADEMIA DE LA LENGUA. Stechert. $8.30. — DlCCIONARIO DE LA LENGUA CASTELLANA, CON LA CORRESPON- dencia Catalana, by Del/in Donadiu y Puignau. Bar- celona (Espasa y Cia) . Encyclopedias — Diccionario Salvat Enciclopedico Popular Ilustrado. The title page reads: Comprende ademds de todos los vocablos que se kalian en la ultima edicion del DlCCIONARIO DE LA Real Academia Espanola, las voces tecnicas de Ciencias, Artes y Oficios ; las mas corrientes en los paises de America y las extranjeras adoptadas por el uso ; f rases, modismos y refranes mas conocidos ; articulos y notas geogrdficas, historic as, de ciencias fisicas y naturales ; literatura, bellas artes, deportes, etc., etc. Nine volumes have appeared and one supplementary volume, called Apendice I, which lists not a single word found in the dictionary of the Academy. Unbound and delivered in signatures, it costs about $3.50 per vol., but can be had in substantial boards for fifty or seventy- five cents more. Barcelona {Salvat y Cia, S. en C., editores). — Elias Zerolo, DlCCIONARIO ENCICLOPEDICO DE LA LENGUA Castellana. Paris (Gamier Hermanos). 2 vols. $13. — Enciclopedia Universal Ilustrada. Vols. 1-20 inch and 20-34 i nc l- have appeared. Barcelona. (Jose Espasa e Hijos, Editores). — Diccionario Enciclopedico Hisp an 0- Americano de Literatura, Ciencias y Artes. 25 vols. Barcelona, (Montaner y Simon, editores). Grammars — Ramsey, M. M., A Text Book of Modern Spanish. Henry Holt & Co. 1894. (An admirable reference grammar.) — Isaza, Emiliano, Diccionario de la Conjugacion Cas- tellana. 2d edition. Paris. 1900. — Salva, Don Vicente, Gramatica de la Lengua Castellana 256 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS segun ahora SE habla. 1 2th edition. Paris (Gamier Freres). 1897. f— Bello, D. Andres, and Cuervo, R. J., Gramatica de la Lengua Castellana Destinada al Uso de los Ameri- canos. Paris (Roger and Chernoviz). 1902. %— Gramatica de la Lengua Castellana por la Real Academia Espanola. Nueva edicion, Madrid, 1900. — Cuervo, Rufino Jose, Apuntaciones Critic as sobre el Lenguaje Bogotano con Frecuente Referencia al de los Paises de Hispano-America. Quinta Edicion. Paris (Roger y Chernoviz). 1907. — Menendez Pidal, Ramon, Manual Elemental de Grama- tica Espanola. Tercera Edicion. Madrid (Suarez). 1914. — Becker, Sarah Cary, and Mora, Federico, Spanish Idioms with THEm English Equivalents, Embracing nearly Ten Thousand Phrases. Boston (Ginn & Co.). 1887. £1.80. Miscellaneous — Benot, Eduardo, Diccionario de Ideas Afines, etc. Similar to Rogers THESAURUS OF ENGLISH WORDS. Madrid (Mariano Nunez Samper). — Caballero, Ramon, DICCIONARIO DE MODISMOS (FRASES Y Metaforas). Madrid (Antonino Romero). — Benot, Eduardo, Prosodia Castellana i Versificacion. 3 vols. Madrid (Juan Munoz Sanchez). — Hanssler, William, A Handy Bibliographical Guide to the Study of the Spanish Language and Literature. 63 pages. St. Louis, Mo. (C. Witter). 1915. Course of Study in Spanish for High Schools — A four years* course in French and Spanish for secondary schools. (Revised.) Berkeley, University of California Press. April, J 9 l6 ' 1 — Report of the Committee of Five on a Course of Study in Spanish. Presented December 27, igiy in the meeting of the Modern BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 257 Language Association of America. Professor J. D. M. Ford, chairman. I — Report of the Committee on a Standard Course of First Year College Spanish. Presented December 28, 1917 before the Central Division of the Modern Language Association of America. Professor J. D. Fitz-Gerald y chairman. Newspapers and Periodicals for Classroom Use, or for Outside Reading . Note : For periodicals published abroad address The Inter- national News Co., 83 Doane St., New York City ; G. E. Stechert & Co., 155 W. 25th St., New York City ; Lemcke and Buechner, 30-32 W. 27th St., New York City ; or W. R. Jenkins, Sixth Avenue at 48th St., New York City, of whom either single copies or full subscriptions may be obtained. ' — Alrededor del Mundo, an illustrated weekly. $3 a year. Madrid. — El Nuevo Mundo, an illustrated weekly. $3 a year. Madrid. i — Blanco y Negro, an illustrated weekly. About £5 a year. Madrid. — Mercurio, an illustrated monthly. #1.50 a year. New Orleans, La. (Association of Commerce Building). — Latin America, English and Spanish. Semi-monthly. 502 Board of Trade Bldg., New Orleans, La. — Las Novedades, an illustrated weekly. #5 per year; gi.30 for three months. 225 West 39th St., New York City. Considered by many the best Spanish newspaper published in the United States. It has been used success- fully in Spanish classes, in which cases special subscription prices obtain. \ — Las Americas, illustrated monthly. Official organ of the Pan American States Association. Hotel McAlpin, New York City. $3 yearly. — Reference may well be made again to the Spanish editions of the bulletins published by the Pan American Union, Washington, D. C. 258 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS — La Prensa. Eight-page weekly. New York, 24 Stone St. 3 cts. $2.50 per year. Special price for use in schools. y — El Heraldo. Four-page weekly. New York, 432 East 71st St. 2 cts. $1 per year. Special price for use in schools. — El Grafico. An illustrated monthly. New York, 1400 Broad- way. 25 cts. $2.30 per year. — Caras y Caretas. An illustrated weekly. Buenos Aires. About $7. Is considered the best weekly of Argentina. — Revista Universal. An illustrated monthly. New York, 832 Park Row Bldg. $1.50 per year. Special rates to teachers and students. — La Revista del Mundo. $i per year. Quarterly; the Spanish edition of the " World's Work", but does not contain the same articles as the English magazine. Doubleday, Page & Com- pany, Garden City, L. I. — Inter America. $1.50 per year. Monthly. New York {Double- day, Page y Company). Half of its issues are English translations of the leading articles in Spanish- American magazines and half are Spanish translations of the best articles that appear in the various magazines of North America. The English and Spanish issues alternate. — The Pictorial Review. Spanish edition. An illustrated monthly. New York, 214 West 39th St. 25 cts. $2.50 per year. * — La Esfera. An illustrated weekly. Madrid. $6. — Hojas Selectas. An illustrated monthly. Barcelona. — Zig-Zag. An illustrated weekly. Santiago de Chile. — El Mundo Grafico. An illustrated weekly. Madrid. — The Philippine Review. An illustrated monthly. Manila, P. I. $4. Printed in English and Spanish. — Puerto Rico Ilustrado. An illustrated weekly. San Juan {Real Hermanos). $3. — El Figaro. An illustrated weekly. Havana, Cuba. — Cuba Contemporanea. An illustrated weekly. Havana. — Pegaso. An illustrated weekly. Mexico, D. F. {Calle Cinco de Mayo). $8. — Espana. A weekly. Madrid {Calle del Prado). Ptas 12. A good review of political and literary matters. BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 259 \ — La Ilustracion Espanola e Hispano-Americana. An illustrated weekly. Madrid (Sagasta if). Ptas 50. Very conservative. — Nuestro Tiempo. Madrid (Marques de Riscal). Ptas 30. A very solid review, much favored by the well educated people of Spain. — I B erica. Weekly. Tortosa, Spain. Ptas 30. The lead- ing scientific journal of Spain. — The South American and El Norteamericano, both pub- lished by the same company, at 165 Broadway, New York. $1.50 each. The first is published in English and gives articles descriptive of Latin America. The second is printed in Spanish and contains informational articles about English- speaking America. Both are well illustrated. Illustrated Albums, Richly Illustrated Books, Etc. S — Huntington, A. M., A Note-Book of Northern Spain. New York (Putnam's). 1898. $3.50. Delightfully written and beautifully illustrated, with a remarkable chapter on a Spanish bull-fight. • — Wood, C. W., The Romance of Spain. London (Mac- millan). 1900. #3.50. ( — Wood, C. W., The Glories of Spain. London (Macmillan). 1901. £3.50. — Williams, Leonard, The Land of the Dons. London (Cassell). 1903. #4. — Williams, Leonard, Toledo and Madrid. London (Cassell). 1903. 12 sh. 6 d. / — The following books by A. F. Calvert, known as the SPANISH Series, are extremely useful. Each volume consists of about half text and the remainder of excellent half-tones, numbering several hundred. The price per volume, ex- cept the last, is gi.25. The list follows : Alhambra of Granada ; Cordova ; El Greco ; Goya ; Le6n, Burgos and Salamanca ; Madrid ; Murillo ; Royal Palaces in Spain ; The Escorial ; The Prado ; Toledo ; Ve- lasquez ; Valladolid, Oviedo, Segovia, Zamora, Avila, and Saragossa. The Moorish Remains in Spain is £15. 260 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS The publishers are the John Lane Co. of New York and London. — Sanpere y Miguel, Salvador, Historia del Lujo. Two volumes. Barcelona, 1886. Vol. I treats of all civilized countries ; Vol. II of Europe, especially Spain. Pictures, Photographs, and Post Cards Spain — Hauser y Menet, Ballesta 30, Madrid. Send for catalogue. I — Ralph P. Stineman, 801 Timken Buildings San Diego, Cat., has some excellent photographic plates of buildings and bridges of Spain and can print these off in any size desired for framing. Argentina — Marcelino Bordoi 9 Venezuela 1554., Buenos Aires, Posters I — Julian Palaciosy Calle del Arenal 2J> Madrid. Can supply posters of fairs and bull fights. Pictures for Conversational Drill ■ — The Pictorial Spanish Course by R. Torres, published by Little, Brown & Co. of Boston, Mass. (65 cents), has proved its worth because of its use of pictures for conver- sational drill. Songs There is a great lack of available collections of Spanish songs suited to clubs of American students. With the growing de- mand for Spanish, some one should fill this need soon. The only titles that are available are : — Modern Spanish Lyrics, by E. C. Hills and S. J. Morley. £1.25. Henry Holt. 1913. This has the music often songs. BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS 261 — Elementary Spanish Reader, by A. M. Espinosa. 90 cts. Benj. H. Sanborn. 1916. With music of four folk songs. — Rodriguez Marin, Cantos Populares Espanoles. $2.00. — Canciones Populares. Books I and II. Silvery Burden 13 Company. About 40 cts. each. — First Spanish Reader, by Roessler 13 Remy. 68 cents. American Book Company. 1916. This has the words and music of five songs. I — Espana PlNTORESCA, by Carolina Marcial Dorado. Ginn t$ Co. 191 7. ^Contains the words and music of nine Spanish songs. Books for Children I — CUENTOS DE Calleja, en color es. Two series; one, 5 pesetas each; the other 2 pesetas. Beautifully illustrated. Madrid (Casa Editorial Calleja). Games — A resourceful teacher can readily adapt English or American games to the atmosphere of the language desired. An excellent book full of valuable suggestions is Jessie Hubbell Bancroft's Games for the Playground, Home, School and Gymnasium. Illustrated, New York (Macmillan). $1.50. / — Of smaller compass is Mari Ruef Hofer's Popular Folk Games and Dances, for Playground, Vacation and Schoolroom Use. 56 pages. Chicago (A. Flanagan). — Divided proverbs. (English proverbs and their equivalents in German, French and Spanish.) 50 cts. William R. Jenkins Co., Sixth Ave. at 48th St., New York City. I — See Hints on Spanish Club Work and Games in Easy Spanish Plays, by Ruth Henry. Allyn 13 Bacon. 1917. A crying need for our Spanish clubs is a variety of card games. It is hoped that some publishing house may before long issue a few Spanish card games, such as Spanish authors and history and geography games. 262 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS School Theatricals The list of available Spanish plays is not long, as yet, but there will doubtless soon be an increased publication of such material, to meet the growing demand. The following have been given with success : — Despues de la Lluvia el Sol. i act. R. D. Cortina Co. (12 East 46 St., New York). 1914. — Tres Comedias Modernas. 1 act each. Edited by F. W. Morrison. Henry Holt & Co. 1909. These are : La Muela del Juicio by M. R. Carrion ; Las Solteronas by Luis Cocat y Heliodoro Criado ; Los Pantalones by Mariano Barranco. — Zaragueta by Miguel Ramos Carrion y Vital Aza. 2 acts. Edited by G. C. Howland. Silver, Burdett & Co. 1901. — Other plays that have been given at the University of Kansas are : El Sueno Dorado by Carrion and Aza ; El Senor Cura by Vital Aza. The W. R. Jenkins Company (Sixth Avenue at 48th St., New York) published under the title Teatro Espanol the following : — La Independence, by Don Manuel Breton de los Herreros. 4 acts. A bright, lively comedy. — El Desden con el Desd£n, by Don Agustin Moreto y Cabana. 3 acts. Charming but difficult. — Un Drama Nuevo, by Don Joaquin Estebanez. 3 acts. A powerful tragedy requiring marked histrionic talent. — SAbado sin Sol, by Alvarez Quintero, in Espinosa's Ele- mentary Spanish Reader. Benj. H. Sanborn & Co. This is a playlet. The same firm announces Dos Comedias Contemporaneas, to be edited by Caroline B. Bourland. — Dona Clarines, comedia en dos ados, by Serafin y Joaquin Alvarez Quintero, edited by S. G. Morley. D. C. Heath y Co. 1015. 50 cts. In the same volume is the delightful paso de comedia Man ana de Sol by the same authors and prepared by the same editor. — Easy Spanish Plays, by Ruth Henry. Eight short plays pre- pared especially for presentation by students of Spanish. BIBLIOGRAPHY AND OTHER AIDS - 263 Well adapted for high school Spanish clubs. Allyn & Bacon, 1917. About 60 cts. El Trovador, by Gutierrez, edited by H. H. Vaughan. D. C. Heath & Co. 1908. This play, the original of Verdi* s famous opera, II Trovatore, was presented in the spring of 191J by the Spanish club of the Westport High School of Kansas City, Mo. Espana Pintoresca, by Carolina Marcial Dorado. Ginn & Co. 1917. Contains a comedy suitable for presentation in school: fs Castillos de Torresnobles" , written by Miss Marcial. Phonograph Records The Columbia Graphophone Company, Woolworth Building, New York City, publishes a very large catalogue of the records of Spanish music which are sold by it. The Victor Talking Machine Company, Camden, N. J., pub' lishes three catalogues of Spanish music, one containing records of the music of Spain, another listing Cuban selec- tions, and the third giving Mexican selections. The Cortinaphone language records and the records and method sold by the Language Phone school are of aid to the inexperienced teacher of Spanish and can also be used as an aid or accessory to class work. Send for catalogues to the New York City offices of these companies. The Cortina Academy of Languages is at 12 East 4.6th Street, and The Language Phone Method may be addressed at 2 West 4.5th Street. The International Corre- spondence Schools of Scranton, Pa., also have for sale a good set of records and method for instruction in Spanish by means of the phonograph. Maps D. Appleton & Company publish maps of South and Central America with names given in Spanish, and supply a catalogue of these maps. The Phillips Wall Atlas sold by C. S. Hammond fef Co., New York City, is an excellent set of 8 maps showing political, 264 SPANISH IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS physical, climatic, and other features of South America. Price $14. — It is suggested that students draw their own maps of Spain and Spanish- American countries, writing in the names of places, rivers and mountains, etc., in Spanish. — ■ Many of the latest readers are provided with good maps of these countries, and these may be used as the basis for a geography lesson conducted in Spanish. Bibliography on the Junior High School \ — The Fifteenth Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education. Part III, The Junior High School, by Aubrey Augustus Douglass, Bloomington, III. {The Public School Publishing Co.). IQ16. J 5 cts. An authoritative and detailed discussion of the Junior High School as established in various cities. Contains abundant bibliog- raphy on all phases of the question. Pages 60, 70, and 71 contain a discussion of the place of foreign languages in this type of school. ADDENDUM On February 15, 1918, the registration in the various languages was as follows : Terms i ii iii iv V vi vii viii TOTAl French 6539 3981 2458 2332 956 851 102 124 17,343 German 1097 2389 2935 27CK I6l6 1636 281; 293 12,956 Italian — 23 — 26 — 7 — <6 Latin 3706 3270 2851 2365 1823 165S 382 424 16,478 Spanish 10,309 5875 2958 1567 533 376 77 76 21,771 The total enrollment of pupils in the High Schools on February 28, 191 8, was 68,028. 265 FOURTEEN DAY USE RETURN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED This book is due on the last date stamped below, or on the date to which renewed. Renewed books are subject to immediate recall. 17Jan'5CuL "7 X MAY291956LU 22luV58J N[ uu m 2 Milt l6Jan'59WWY t a ^r^n tx i m n m i LIBRARY USE FED 2 1960 LD 21-100m-2,'55 (B139s22)476 : ■ , . ■ C Vv- ,- ■ General Library University of California Berkeley r &<* & VERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY V fc