1932: John Aitkenhead’s University Lecture Notes
William Boyd: Glasgow University
John Aitkenhead’s Education course notes based on lectures
given by Dr William Boyd, were written on well over a hundred pages torn from
several different small notebooks often filling both sides of the page and always
written by hand.
Too many to fit in a blog, but they have all been transcribed by me. Both the
transcript and the original notes are available as source material for anyone
who might want to see them
Example pages from Lecture Notes
The sketch shown in the example pages above is the only one in the entire set of notes. John was no doodler.
Example from Transcript
13th October Dr Boyd
The application of scientific method to Education.
Resume
Education is a practical thing – because children have to be brought up. From empirical approach we have difficulties. Problems are:
a) Curriculum i.e. what to teach class or child?b) Method i.e. how to teach class or child?c) Who is to control teaching?Fro these problems we have theories. And once we start asking what is to be taught we are in the philosophy of the thing. But there is as well as the philosophy the SCIENCE of it. So we have the application of scientific method to education. Science being the apposite of empiracy. Two branches of Educational Science – that concerned with child, that with teacher, instructor, parent.
Child study sidetouched investigation for some time but intelligence test option has proved more accurate and helpful. This is one aspect of the science – that of the child. The other aspect is the efficiency of the methods.
As to medicine and agriculture, in education these are two main subjects calling for exact knowledge. The First concerns nature of learning child – both generic child and individual child. This branch is illustrated by ‘Child Study’ and ‘intelligence testing’. The Second concerns the efficiency of methods of learning and teaching, including methods of testing results of learning and teaching.
Value of Pedagogy
a) For everybody.
Dr Boyd’s contention is that Educ. Or pedagogy is everybody’s concern.
Educ is in a very real sense a universal interest. It is obviously involved in good parenthood, and in good citizenship but even more personally in adjustment which we all have to make to the circumstances of our lives. All of us in some sense are constantly engaged in education and being educated. Hence except technical questions relating to school work, which are special concern of teacher educational questions are everybody’s questions. The whole universe is involved in education. It holds all cultures in summary form. Nothing human is alien to education.
b) For Teacher
While Pedagogy is everybody’s business it is especially the teacher’s. The teachers province is essential because we know that certain things are best learnt under direction.
The teacher needs a knowledge of Pedagogy (1) to give him an intelligent comprehension of what is involved in his work and to keep him human. (2) to give him a distinctive technique and with it a proper professional status.
c) An ideal scheme of Educational Studies
d) Education not a single subject but a Faculty by itself.
Please click on the picture below to search the Archive Articles Index page
