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the boys and girls, in Morris High School at least, believe that 
biological subjects come closest to their everyday interests. 
GENERAL CONCLUSIONS RELATIVE To Frrst YEAR SCIENCE 
1. The unprejudiced judgments of a majority of our High 
School Principals declare that our present courses in first year 
biology have been and are making good. Dr. Low’s statement 
relative to the opinions of seniors in Erasmus Hall High School, 
and of teachers of all the subjects other than biology, confirms 
this judgment in a very striking manner. 
2. The anonymous opinions of nearly five thousand students 
who have taken the biological courses—opinions gathered from 
four questionnaires in 1915, 1918, and in 1919 in many different 
high schools—show that the boys and girls themselves believe 
that biology as taught at present is at least next to English the 
most popular and useful course of the first year. 
3. While it is probably true that some of the topics rather 
technical in nature (e. g., details of anatomy, physiology, and 
microscopical structure of living things), might well be displaced 
to rather a large extent in some schools by topics of a more gen- 
eral character (e. g., gas stoves, electric bells, phonographs, and 
other practical appliances in the home), the larger majority of 
the subjects discussed should still be those of a biological nature. 
4. Every questionnaire tabulated shows that boys and girls be- 
lieve that the human biology is the most important part of the 
course. Every topic, therefore, which is introduced into the first 
year science might well be challenged as to its relation to human 
welfare. This is especially true in view of the large number of 
rejections by draft boards due to physical disability. 
5. Since most of the topics that appeal to first year students 
listed in community civics are at present being taught in biology, 
the two subjects should be merged into one, and the resulting com- 
bination course in elementary science and civics should be taught 
at least in cooperation with biology teachers, and should be re- 
quired of every student in all courses. 
The Chairman: Principal Rainey expected at first to be present, 
but told me later, before the program was completed, that he 
would be unable to be here. He writes: “we intend to teach biol- 
ogy under the name of ‘general science.’ ” 
