---
title: Improvement Era
description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930.
authors:
  - Young, Levi Edgar
collections:
  - periodicals
tags:
  - magazine
  - improvement-era
periodical: Improvement Era
volume: 15
number: 5
published: 1912-03
publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations
publisher_place: Salt Lake City
language: en
type: magazine
reference: 'Young, Levi Edgar, "Priesthood Quorums’ Table," *Improvement Era* 15, no. 5 (March 1912): 479.'
source:
  url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1505unse
  transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers.
  identifier: improvementera1505unse
start_page: 479
end_page: 479
rights:
  status: public-domain
  basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1912-03)
  source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1505unse
  publication_year: 1912
  note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1912, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright.
---

# Priesthood Quorums’ Table

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Priesthood Quorums' Table

 — —
 How to Take Up a Lesson Part III. In this lesson v we will continue the subject of what constitutes a good teacher.
 While it is imperative that a teacher have a fund of information,
it must not be thought that he is simply to stand before the class to give out his information to his hearers. The knowledge of the teacher is only obtained through hard work, that is, by a great deal of careful reading combined with good, hard thinking. Therefore, the knowledge of the teacher cannot be given to those whom he teaches,
for ail must obtain knowledge in the same way. The intelligence of the teacher can only be used, after all, as a sort of directive force for those whom he teaches. A good teacher gets his class to thinking and studying, by questioning them, and after all he is only the director,and imparts to his hearers an enthusiasm which will inspire them to mental effort. The teachers of the various Quorums should by no means do ail the talking before a class, but the talking should be done by the members. This is a point that many of our class teachers fail to realize and, as a result, in many of the classes using the Year Book teachers take up the entire time in expounding a lesson and the members are required to do but little work. In fact, they only sit and listen with very little mental effort.
It must be kept in mind that all have the same privilege, to think and to express their thoughts, which should of course, be encouraged in every way. The class teachers should simply question the class and direct their statements, so that they may be properly correlated with the main thought of the subject under discussion. We say, then,
to the class teachers, "Do everything you can to get the members to talking on the lesson that has been assigned the week before."
This will encourage all the brethren and make them feel that their contributions to the lesson are important. It is these contributions of thought from all that constitute a good lesson.—Levi Edgar Young.

 It is reported that the Swedish government has appropriated some thirty thousand kroner to be spent in enlightening the general public of that nation on the "Mormon" question. It would be too much to expect, of course, that this amount be given to the "Mormon" missionaries now laboring in that kingdom. But really, they are more competent than any one else can be to give true light on the question,
and are now doing all they can on the subject free, and without purse or scrip. Their doctrines put into daily practice will make the people better. There need be no fear that those who join the Latter-day Saints, and live according to the gospel of Jesus Christ taught in its purity by them, will be anything but clean in their lives, noble in their demeanor, and loyal citizens and neighbors. The purpose of the tens of thousands of students in these priesthood quorums is to learn to live the righteous principles of the gospel of Christ.