Miss Simpson's Address 163 



to become an observer? How can the book-learner 

 be converted into a Nature-student? Happily this is 

 not really a difficult problem. The only trouble is 

 that it needs time and money. The practical courses 

 in Nature-study which are being carried on in some 

 districts ought to become much more general, — classes 

 where the knowledge gained by the teacher is the re- 

 sult of direct observation. At the end of such a series 

 of lessons the teacher will have learned the value of 

 knowledge acquired first-hand, and the interest of 

 original discovery. I know there are difficulties con- 

 nected with the arranging of such classes; so many 

 teachers live at a distance from any college or tech- 

 nical school where perhaps work of this sort is 

 carried on. But if it is inconvenient for teachers to 

 come in to the centres of learning, cannot the learning 

 be taken out to the teachers.-* 



In some of the rural districts in the North Riding 

 of Yorkshire we have found it possible to have classes 

 for practical vi^ork in an ordinary school-room. In- 

 deed it is interesting to find out how many subjects 

 can be treated, and how much work can be done, with 

 the simplest apparatus, — a few dissecting-instruments 

 for each student, drawing-books, note-books, and now 

 and then some simple home-made model to make 

 clear a difficult point of structure, that is all. In 

 taking such lessons, I have tried to avoid dealing 

 with any point which cannot be actually seen by 

 the student or demonstrated by simple experiment. 

 Week after week we have met for our work. Each 

 teacher has had his or her own specimen. We have 

 no lecture at all, simply two hours' observation, draw- 

 ing, and making notes of the things observed. So I 



