coulter] THE FIELD TRIP IN NA 71 'A'E-S Tl '/>)' 231 



ties vanish and the field trip becomes a stimulus of the highest value. 



The purpose of the trip must be easily within the comprehension of 

 the child. Many field trips lose all of their helpfulness because the 

 purpose assigned is beyond the mental grasp of the children. In the 

 earlier years the purpose should be very simple, as a rule, single. A 

 field trip in which children of the first, second or even third year are 

 expected to see the adaptations of foliage leaves to secure the light 

 relation or protective devices in plants or animals is an absurdity. 

 The idea of a struggle for existence has not entered the mind of the 

 average child of these grades and even the most parfect and evident 

 adaptations make no appeal to his interest or understanding. Nothing 

 is more disheartening to a child than to be assigned a problem beyond 

 his powers, and nothing on the part of the teacher is more inexcusable 

 than to assign such a problem. In the more advanced grades the 

 purpose may of course be more complex, in some cases indeed, diff- 

 erent purposes may be assigned to different groups of pupils. It is 

 safe to say, however, that, as a rule, the error in the field trip has 

 been that its purpose was beyond the grasp of the child. This attempt 

 to compel pupils to do work beyond their powers is all too common. 

 The attempt to transfer college work to the high school and high-school 

 work to the grades may perhaps arise from a laudable ambition, but 

 it is an ambition not tempered by judgment and is one of the most 

 dangerous phases of the educational methods of today. The attempt 

 to treat nature-study as elementary science falls in this category and 

 explains its failure in many cases. 



The materials of nature-study are those next at hand and in a large 

 majority of cases no extended trip is required in order to reach a 

 suitable area for the special purpose in view. Apart from the loss of 

 time involved in a long trip, the weariness of the children preventing 

 them from entering upon the real work of the trip with enthusiasm and 

 vigor, and the added responsibility to the teacher, there is a greater 

 loss in losing sight of the fact that the aaear at hand, even the common 

 things, are worthy of study and full of interest. One of the most valuable 

 features of the true nature-study is that it dignifies the common place 

 and clothes with interest the child's immediate surroundings. It is in 

 this respect more than in any other that the teacher in the densely 

 populated districts of great cities works at disadvantage. The manner 

 in which this disadvantage may be. overcome, in part at least, I hope to 

 discuss in a later article. 



As disheartening as a purpose too complex is an area too great. 



