196 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. [Vol. 41 



high school are that pupils get some well presented information about agricul- 

 ture, with some inside laboi-atory and a little plat work. 



Course in agriculture for a four-year high school, F. T. Ullrich (School 

 -S'ci. and Math., 19 {1919), No. 3, pp. 2U-227).—In this study of a course in agri- 

 culture for a four-year high school, the results reported are essentially a colla- 

 tion of judgments of 50 leading educators of the country. 



Of these, 42 favor a combination of practical instruction with the general 

 training idea and 21 would require larger emphasis on the practical subjects 

 tlian is given at present. " Evidently, the agreement is practically luianimous 

 on the use of industi-ial materials for educational purposes in the high school. 

 The difference of opinion seems to lie in the question as to the degree that this 

 subject matter is to be used for general educational purposes, or for the de- 

 velopment of knowledge and skill for direct participation in the industrial life 

 of the nation." 



The median of recommendations of 28 of the 50 educators for required work 

 in English is 5.2 units (interpreting a unit to mean a subject pursued for one 

 semester or one-half year, with one recitation daily) in a four-year agri- 

 cultural course of 32 units, with mathematics 2.68 units, biological science 3.2 

 units, social science 3.9 units, and physical science 3 units. In addition, one 

 correspondent suggests that 2 units of rural economics and IJ units each of 

 manual training, drawing, and music be required ; another would require 1 unit 

 each of drawing and music. 



With reference to the apportionment of time between the general and the 

 agricultural subjects, the median for 33 correspondents is 34.9 of the time for 

 agricultural instruction, with a range of from 25 to 60 per cent. 



" It was a surprise to discover in some of the replies a lack of appreciation 

 of the difference between art and science of a subject." Twenty-four of the 

 educators give a numerical valuation v.-ith a median of 52 per cent of the time 

 for the art of agriculture and 54.8 per cent for the science. The range for the 

 art is from 10 to 6G3 per cent, and for the science from 33J to 90 per cent. 



Twenty-one of the replies showed convictions that the fundamentals of sci- 

 ence are best learned in the standard sciences, the special features of each 

 science that are applicable being again stressed in the agricultural courses. 

 Five would abandon the science courses and teach the principles of science 

 as the comprehension of the agricultural subject demands. Two subscribe to 

 both of the options, and four maintain that the principles of science should be 

 developed in connection with the agricultural subjects, but that in the last 

 year of the course the principles of each science should be unified and or- 

 ganized, so that at the time of graduation the student may have a body of 

 scientific generalizations. 



With reference to the best laboratory for training students in the skill of 

 agriculture, the present tendency, especially in Massachusetts, New York, 

 Minnesota, and Wisconsin, is to push the project idea. Out of 33 of the edu- 

 cators, 31 are favorable to projects, and of these 27 would require them. A 

 classification of 37 answers shows that 19 of the educators are of the opinion 

 that students should devote a portion of school time on a farm to gain pro- 

 ficiency in the practical affairs in agriculture, while 5 favor this idea unless the 

 students are farm born and trained. Three say that some time outside of 

 school should be spent on the farm, and 2 think that project work is better. 



The sequence of the agricultural courses with I'eference to each other, and 

 the semester and year of the academic course, particularly the standard science 

 courses, as well as the content of the agricultural subjects, are also discussed. 

 It is found that " the usual order of agricultural subjects in the course is plant 

 studies the first year, animal studies the second year, soils and fertilizers the 



