I. Inner Evolution and Outer Possibilities for Development

While between the ages of seven and fourteen particular attention should be paid to developing memory, the focus is on teaching arithmetic. Whereas in the past children were taught 2 × 2 = 4 and similar facts before they had understood the concepts, today we say that children should not be taught anything that they merely learn by rote; they should only be taught things about which they can form an opinion. They work with red and white balls. Instead of accustoming the child to authority, which should be the source of truth for the child between the ages of 7 and 14, they teach the child to become precocious in judgment. While the child of this age should feel: “I must believe what the revered authority says,” the child is made to feel – the fact that the child needs to have parents and teachers whom it looks up to with heartfelt reverence and from whom it accepts truth out of a sense of self-evident authority is neglected.