GENERAL PREFACE 



Never before in this country has there been so insistent a de- 

 mand for a more thorough and more comprehensive system of 

 instruction in practical science. Forced by recent events to com- 

 pare our education with that of other nations, we have suddenly 

 become aware of our negligence in this matter. Industrial and 

 educational experts and commissions are united in demanding a 

 change. 



While on the whole there has been a steady increase in the 

 amount of time given to science work in the secondary and ele- 

 mentary schools, the attention paid to it, especially in the ele- 

 mentary schools, has been somewhat spasmodic, and its admini- 

 stration has been more or less chaotic. This is not due to lack of 

 interest on the part of school officials but to their dissatisfaction 

 with the methods of instruction employed. There is no doubt that 

 superintendents would gladly introduce more science if they felt 

 sure that the educational results would be commensurate with the 

 time expended. This is indicated by a recent survey of about one 

 hundred and fifty cities in seven states of the Central West. The 

 survey shows that two-thirds of them have nature-study in the 

 elementary schools and that all are requiring some science for 

 graduation from the high school. The average high school is 

 offering three years of science. Since 1890 there has been a greater 

 increase in the percentage of students enrolled in science in the 

 high schools than in any other subject, and the present enrolment 

 in science is greater than in any other subject. Moreover, greater 

 attention is now being paid to the training of teachers in methods 

 of presentation of science. 



The chief needs in science instruction today are a more effi- 

 cient organization of the course of study with a view to its sociali- 

 zation and practical application, and a clear-cut realization on the 



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