CARROL] ELEMENTARY SCIENCE COURSES 255 



the material to be used, and excellent methods have been tested in 

 leading training schools. The third point has partly been accorii- 

 plished, for some training schools for teachers have competent 

 instructors in charge, excellent courses have been arranged and it 

 is from such schools that the progressive movement is reaching 

 into the elementary schools. There is an opportunity for extend- 

 ing this spirit of investigation and demonstration into many more 

 training schools. The second point in the outline, however, 

 appears to be no nearer solution today than it was nearly five 

 years ago. Only a brief course is being offered to elementary 

 teachers and the same lack of adequate preparation for teaching 

 nature-study, is felt by teachers who take these courses. 



In this article we refer only to the two year courses offered at 

 most normals, this being the time usually required in preparation 

 for elementary grade teaching. 



Nature-study appears only as an elective in the course of study 

 in several state normals.^ Courses in nature-study, biological 

 science and agriculture in our leading normals have not been con- 

 sidered of greater importance than any one of the common subjects 

 in our schools and only in a limited number of schools does this 

 subject rank equally with these ten or twelve subjects. We have 

 referred to subjects as common which have been studied by pupils 

 throughout their school course, in all grades from the first grade to 

 the eighth, most of which are continued to the twelfth, (reading, 

 arithmetic, grammar, geography, music, drawing, history, litera- 

 ture, spelling, writing, physiology, manual training, etc.). 



In normals where nature-study ranks equally with other regular 

 school subjects a nature-study course is required consisting of one 

 unit of study. In some states where the normal school has become 

 an institution of college grade and where courses are offered in 

 advanced study we find that the two year courses for elementary 

 teachers has advanced farther in the appreciation of the real value 

 of nature-study in the course, i. e., (in Iowa Teachers' College the 

 student is allowed a wider choice of electives during the first two 

 years. At the Nebraska Teachers' College, Kearney, Neb., a five 

 hour course in biology is required and other similar courses may be 

 taken as elective during the first two years. Ohio State Normal 

 at Miami University requires six hours of biology; the Northern 

 Illinois State Normal at DcKalb requires twelve hours with oppor- 



^Michigan, Wisconsin and Indiana. 



