Individual psychology and the child / Leonhard Seif [and others].

Date:
1933
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Individual psychology and the child / Leonhard Seif [and others]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    undergone the same operation himself. But he who wants to be an educator cannot become one without looking sincerely into himself, without realizing how and what he is; apart from his tendency to identify what he would like to be with what he really is. In other words, the attempt to know oneself covers up the conflict between two traits of character: Pride and truthfulness. Which is stronger? The decision is a question of courage and of the experience that some- thing is wrong with himself that he would like to know, in order to alter it. This is the indispensable condition of self-education and adjustment to social reality and of understanding of the fellow-man. What was said before about under- standing the child, holds equally good for under- standing the educator. He must learn to harmonize the personal and social interests, to see a fellow-man in his pupil, independent of his personal subjective interest. This is the way of I.P. towards understanding of failures: neither accusing, nor excusing or defending them: but regarding them as comprehensible though not justified and therewith leading to a new start for co-operation. One must begin with the beginning. The new world, a new structure of mankind will be built up by the school masters and leaders of kindergarten, the first representatives of mental hygiene. rahe The school is really the prolonged arm of the family (Alfred Adler). A wonderful new task, a new responsi- bility begins for us! It is not that we have to do nothing | but thrust booklearning into the heads of the poor children, to enforce mechanical work, it is that we have to help them to become human beings, equipped to solve the tasks of life. The realities of life are social realities. We have to help children to ripen, to become self-dependent and social together; 7.e. to learn some- thing more satisfactory than to play a spoilt centre, to stand on their own feet courageously. For instance, if