Page:The Great Didactic of John Amos Comenius (1896).pdf/458

 sheets, and neither more nor less, is printed; since otherwise some copies of the book would be imperfect. In the same way, our didactic method lays it down as an essential condition that the whole school be given over at one and the same time to the teaching of one master, that from beginning to end all the scholars be subjected to a graduated course of instruction, and that none be allowed to enter after the session has once begun, or to leave before it is finished. In this way it will be possible for one master to teach a large number of pupils, and for all the pupils to learn every branch of knowledge thoroughly. It will therefore be necessary for all the public schools to open and to close at the same time (it suits our method best if the schools open in autumn rather than in spring), in order that the task allotted to each class may be completed each year, and that all (except those wanting in intellect) may be brought up to a certain standard at the same time, and may enter the next class together. This is an exact analogy of the method used in printing when all the copies of the first page are printed first, then those of the second page, and so on.

20. The better class of books are divided into chapters, columns, and paragraphs, and have spaces on their margins and between their lines. Similarly, our didactic method must have its periods of toil and of rest, with definite spaces of time set apart for honest recreation. The tasks are mapped out for each year, month, day, and hour, and if these divisions are duly observed no class can fail to reach the necessary standard at the end of the session. There are excellent reasons why the hours of public instruction should not exceed four daily, of which two should be before, and two after mid-day. On Saturday the two afternoon hours may be remitted, and the whole of Sunday should be devoted to divine service, so that we have thus twenty-two hours weekly and making allowance for the holidays) about a thousand hours yearly. How much might be taught and learned in this time, were it only methodically employed!