ABSTRACT
Many English teachers are far too ready to use the teaching of the native language either as an opportunity to discuss social problems in a vague and unscientific way, or as an activity whose sole end is 'creative expression' such as, say, the art lesson may offer. The European teacher realizes these things, and so his approach is different: from the outset he will demand a greater degree of formality and exactness than is generally expected in England. Consequently, the reading material offered to the pupil is often third-rate or worse, but because it deals with some popular obsession such as the colour-problem, conservation or drugs. The school is a place where one goes to work and all that happens there is a facet of that work. This is fair enough, of course; if the extra-curricular activities can be provided elsewhere, there is no absolute need for a school to provide them.
