Literature in the Elementary Schools

Abstract

The recognition of literature as an elementary-school subject, as a matter that shall be named in the course of study and provided for in the time schedule, is rather recent; and therefore we can hardly wonder that in some schools it has made no headway and that in others the conception of its purpose and scope should be most inadequate. We find every variety of attitude toward literature in the schools, from that of the conservative who regards it as a useless frill, a dangerous indulgence at war with the practical training that should prevail, to that of the sentimental enthusiast who looks upon the study of literature, with its inspiring ideals, as a panacea for all unrighteousness. And we find equally great extremes of policy on the part of our program makers, ranging from the course of study that gives no basis of selection and no word of advice as to the material to be studied, to the detailed program that provides for every month in the year if not for every day in the month. Somewhere between these extremes there must be safe middle ground; and the first step toward gaining a foothold on it lies in the consideration of what our aim should be in the so-called literature work of the