shepherd] abstracts OF DISCUSSIONS 189 



to me to be the first essentials in the training of teachers of nature- 



studv. 



V 



By J. W. SHEPHERD, 

 Chicago Normal School 



It has been suggested a number of times this afternoon that 

 there should be at least a general nature-study course outlined, 

 and on this point I should like to say that in such event there 

 should be at least two, one for rural schools and another for the 

 schools of cities. Nearly all our efforts in nature-study have been 

 with things common to the environment of the country boys and 

 "iris and in an effort to teach nature-studv along these lines the 

 city teacher lias felt obliged to furnish the material for the 

 children, often at tremendous expenditure of time and energy, or 

 else allow the work to drift into a mere talk-fest. The experiences 

 of country children are different from those of city children, but I 

 do not see that within themselves these experiences are neces- 

 sarily better from an educational standpoint. Therefore, I think 

 that if city children should work with the environment of country 

 children it would be equally well for the country boy and girl to be 

 furnished with the experiences of the city. My point is that 

 country children should work with the actual and possible things 

 of their environment, and that city children should work with 

 different things, in conformity with their environment. 



Another point I wish to make is that nature-study has fallen 

 heir to a term that is unfortunate. I mean the word "observa- 

 tion," which it seems has become too narrow to comprehend the 

 spirit of nature-study. It is not sufficiently dynamic, and per- 

 mits of too little initiative on the part of the children. T would 

 suggest the substitution of the word experience, which compre- 

 hends observation, and more. An incident that happened in my 

 nature-study special method class this spring will make the point 

 clear. One student-teacher said she wished to take her nature- 

 study class out to observe the difference between the leafing of 

 two trees in the school neighborhood. Another student-teacher 

 suggested that a much better plan would be to have the children 

 find out which of the two trees furnished the more shade, and why. 

 There is a vast difference in educational value between these two 

 plans. The initiative in the first is at least very largely with the 

 teacher and the class might be quietly receptive, but in the second 



