Question

from my larger education booker t. washington
booker t. washington was a prominent african - american educator, leader, and orator in the period after the civil war. in 1891, he founded the tuskegee institute (now known as tuskegee university), which focused on training african - americans in agricultural pursuits. this autobiographical excerpt is from his account of the creation, development, and promotion of the tuskegee institute.

1. i shall long remember the time when the folly and uselessness of much of the old - time method of teaching first dawned upon me. i was teaching a country school near my old home in west virginia. this school was located near a piece of land that was wet and marshy. the children were not interested in the lessons, and it was almost impossible to get outside of the close and stuffy school room into the open air. that day i prolonged the play - time to more than twice the usual period.
2. the hour previous to recess had been rather stupid by my trying to get a class of my interested in what proved to be a ragged geography lesson. i had been asking my pupils a lot of dull and tiresome questions, getting them to define and name lakes, capes, peninsulas, islands, and so forth.
3. as soon as the children were out of doors at playtime, however, they all, as if by common instinct, scampered off into the marshes. in a few seconds they were wading in the cool water, jumping about in the fragrant grass, and enjoying themselves in a way that was a striking contrast to the dull labor of the geography lesson. i soon became interested in the general movement of the children, and i forgot all about the geography lesson. in the text, the author notes that students ran into the marshes \as if by common instinct\ and took up the lessons \quite unconsciously.\ what do these phrases suggest about washingtons view of learning?

a. it suggests that students are happier if they do not think they are learning.
b. it suggests that when students learn outdoors, they learn in the same way that animals do.
c. it suggests that when students are outdoors, they often remember their school lessons.
d. it suggests that students learn more effectively if it comes naturally.

Explanation:

The phrases "as if by common instinct" and "quite unconsciously" imply that students learn effectively when the learning occurs in a natural - like, instinctive way. It's not about not thinking they are learning (A), learning like animals (B), or specifically remembering school lessons (C). It emphasizes natural - occurring effective learning.

Answer:

D. It suggests that students learn more effectively if it comes naturally.