A stick of candy may induce a child to go to bed agreeably
each night, but the candy may spoil other things than the bedspread.
Moral fibre is built up by developing the habit of doing a thing because
it is right--because it ought to be done. There are teachers and
preachers who hold the interest of those taught by tickling their ears
with material, either funny or nonsensical. There is a question whether
it is not a dangerous practice in an effort to win them to what should
be an attitude of religious devotion.
Then there is the doctrine that children should be good to please their
parents and teachers. This doctrine is akin to that of rewards. It sets
up something of a false ideal, though of course it is a splendid thing
to teach appreciation of those who help us. Much can be defended which
seeks to inculcate in the minds of children reverence for their elders.
The chief difficulty lies in the fact that this doctrine may not
continue to appeal as fundamentally sound.
A third method for securing discipline is to compel it. This is to
resort to the law of things. A certain amount of law should characterize
both the home and the classroom. Obedience and order are the first laws
of heaven and are essential to good social environment. But the law
should be so administered that the obedience exacted rests upon an
intelligent understanding of the purpose behind the law.
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