PARAGRAPHS FOR THE TEACHER Vll 



Now and then a pupil develops a love of science 

 for science's sake. He would be an investigator. He 

 would add to the sum of human knowledge. He should 

 be encouraged. There are colleges and universities in 

 which he may continue his studies. 



In the secondary schools botany should be taught 

 for the purpose of bringing the pupil closer to the 

 things with which he lives, of widening his horizon, 

 of intensifying his hold on life. It should begin 

 with familiar plant forms and phenomena. It should 

 be related to the experiences of the daily life. It 

 should not be taught for the purpose of making the 

 pupil a specialist: that effort should be retained for the 

 few who develop a taste for special knowledge. It is 

 often said that the high -school pupil should begin the 

 study of botany with the lowest and simplest forms ol 

 life. This is wrong. The microscope is not an intro- 

 duction to nature. It is said that the physiology of 

 plants can be best understood by beginning with the 

 lower forms. This may be true: but technical plant 

 physiology is not a subject for the beginner. Other 

 subjects are more important. 



The youth is by nature a generalist. He should 

 not be forced to be a specialist. 



A great difficulty in the teaching of botany is to 

 determine what are the most profitable topics for con- 

 sideration. The trouble with much of the teaching is 



