Chapter XVII.
The Moral Scope.
The object of education is the harmonious development of the whole man. So far we have spoken of the development of the intellect. Yet the will needs training even more than the intellect, and the higher schools ought not to neglect this most important part of the work of education. It cannot be gainsaid that the emphasis laid upon moral training forms the most marked distinction between the true educator and the mere instructor, of whatever creed he may be. At the same time it is one of the most disquieting features of our age that so many teachers in the higher schools have lost sight of this fundamental principle of education. "I hold," writes Dr. McCosh, "that in every college the faculty should look after, not only the intellectual improvement, but also the morals of those committed to their care by parents and guardians. I am afraid that both in Europe and America all idea of looking after the character of the students has been given up by many of our younger professors."[1]
The inevitable consequence of this method must be a decline of morality among the rising generation, or to put it more mildly, and to use the expression of some writers, a lamentable disproportion between the intellectual and moral progress. The existence of this disproportion is attested to by men who have hitherto
- ↑ Life of James McCosh, p. 224, A See
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