no semblance of discrimination. In short, they achieve the democratic
attitude of spirit by means of the study of geography.

If the teacher holds democracy in mind, all the while, as the goal of
endeavor, she will find abundant opportunities to inculcate and develop
the democratic ideal. By tactful suggestion she directs the activities of
the children into channels that lead to unity of purpose. Where help is
needed, she arranges that help may be forthcoming. Where sympathy will
prove a solace, sympathy will be given, for sympathy grows spontaneously
in a democratic atmosphere. Books, pictures, and flowers come forth as if
by magic to bear their kindly messages and to render their appointed
service. By the subtle alchemy of her very presence, the teacher who is
deeply imbued with the spirit of democracy fuses the spirits of her pupils
and causes them to blend in the pursuit of truth. Thus she brings it to
pass that the spirit of democracy dominates the school and each pupil
comes to feel a sense of responsibility for the well-being of all the
others. So the school achieves the goal of democracy by means of the
studies pursued, and the pupils come to experience the altruism, the
impulse to serve, and the centrifugal urge of the democratic spirit.




CHAPTER THIRTEEN

SERENITY


Serenity does not mean either stolidity or lethargy; far otherwise. Nor
does it mean sluggishness, apathy or phlegmatism; quite the contrary. It