Edward Rutledge Robbins
New York ; Cincinnati : American Book Company | 1915
Geometry have been :(a) To present a book that has been written for the pupil. The object sought in the study of Geometry is not solely to train the mind to accept only those statements as truth for which convincing reasons can be provided, but to cultivate a foresight that will appreciate both the purpose in making a statement and the process of reasoning by which the ultimate truth is established. Thus, the study of this formal science should develop in the pupil the ability to pursue argument coherently, and to establish one truth by the aid of other known truths, in logical order. The more mature members of a class do not require that the reason for every declaration be given in full in the text; still, to omit it altogether, wrongs those pupils who do not know and cannot perceive the correct reason. But to ask for the reason and to print the paragraph reference meets the requirements of the various degrees of intellectual capacity and maturity in every class. The pupil who knows and knows that he knows need not consult the paragraph cited ;the pupil who does not know may learn for himself the correct reason by the reference. It is obvious that the greater progress an individual makes in assimilating the subject and in entering into its spirit, the less need there will be for the printed reference.
