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(c) It will be desirable that the Government of the 

 province should aid by giving prizes, or in some other way 

 encouraging competition between villages so that each village 

 will do its best. 



(d) Wherever possible make the village school a center 

 for promoting this program, both among the pupils of the 

 school and among the youth and adults out of school. 



D. The Province of Education 



It has already been stated that education, as well as organ- 

 ization, must be utilized in solving the problems of agriculture 

 and country life. Indeed, education underlies all other effort. 

 It is useless to organize unless adequate knowledge is at hand 

 and trained leaders are available. In this day applied science 

 is what we must have in every country the world around if 

 farmers are to progress. 



The main purposes of a system of education that meets the 

 needs of a farming people are at least these: 



1. To give a minimum schooling to the children of the 

 village, reasonably commensurate in quality with that given to 

 the children of the cities, and adapted to the special needs of 

 the rural groups. 



2. To train leaders of all ranks, competent and willing to 

 help in solving the problem of the farm folk. 



3. To gain by research and experiment that knowledge of 

 facts and principles that is necessary to an intelligent approach 

 to these problems. 



4. To educate adult farmers in modern farm practice, co- 

 operative association, betterment of living conditions, and use- 

 ful citizenship. 



We are now prepared to discuss in more detail the task of 

 agricultural education in China. 



VIII. The Task of Agricultural Education 



The task of a system of agricultural education in China is 

 to help solve the rural problem that has just been outlined all 

 parts of it and all of it. It must always be kept in mind (1) 

 that education is an absolute essential to any real amelioration 

 and improvement; and (2) that the scope of agricultural educa- 

 tion is as wide as the agricultural problem. It is true that 

 legislation and class organization must be invoked before the 



