158 THE TEACHING BOTANIST 



lower, or cryptogamic, plants receive their proper at- 

 tention, and here, too, is the proper place of classi- 

 fication. 



In using these outlines, it is by no means expected 

 that any teacher will try to follow them exactly ; 

 although at the same time, in view of the amount of 

 care, based upon much trial and experiment, which 

 has brought them into their present form, one should 

 have good reasons for the changes he makes. Of 

 course many practical considerations are likely to 

 make it impossible to provide the exact materials 

 called for, or to take up the topics in precisely this 

 order. Indeed, it is in general very hard to provide 

 the materials to fit any particular set of outlines, and 

 it is much easier and more logical to make outlines 

 to fit the materials. These outlines are rather a se- 

 ries of suggestions, based on considerable experience, 

 representing useful selection and treatment of top- 

 ics and expression of problems. They may serve 

 as a basis or as models for the teacher in the con- 

 struction of new outlines of his own, differing from 

 these little or much as he pleases. Certainly, I think, 

 a special outline should be drawn up by the teacher 

 each week to fit his particular mode of teaching, 

 the material available, the state of advancement of 

 his class, etc., and a copy of this should be placed 

 before each student who is to be held responsible 

 for the complete working out of all that is called for 



