270 REPORTS ON THE STATE OP SCIENCE. — 1920. 



Botany, 35; Painting and Engraving, 30; Engineering, Geography, Commerce, 

 Chemistry, Physiology, Physics, and Astronomy are slightly represented in 

 existing collections. 



It may also be pointed out that many towns of considerable size are not 

 provided with Museums. Possibly recent legislation may find its best fruits 

 in the fillLng up of these gaps. 



B. Museums and Schools. — The Committee's inquiries show that Museums 

 collectively have, on their own initiative, anticipated in a striking way many 

 of the requirements considered necessary for the needs of schools, a fact which 

 illustrates their readiness to co-operate with the educational developments fore- 

 shadowed by the Education Act of 1918. It shows also that educational work 

 on the side of Museums is possible without injury to their other functions. 

 Given an adequate staff and an increased maintenance income. Museum curators, 

 in conjunction with the teachers, will be able to work out suitable methods for 

 the educational use of their collections. The experience so far gained goes 

 far to show that the training and opportunities of teachers do not enable 

 them to realise for themselves the possibilities of Museum collections as aids 

 to education. 



Many British Museums have for years encouraged visits from schools and 

 classes, either under the leadership of their teachers or the guidance of a 

 member of the Museum staff. In some cases these visits have been systematised 

 by arrangement with the educational authorities, and the Museum collections 

 have been studied according to a pre-arranged plan. A great development of 

 this system was tried with success in Saltord and Manchester under special 

 conditions arising in connection with the late war. (See page 279 ct seq.) 



Other Museums have established systematic courses of lessons to school 

 classes upon a plan jointly agreed upon by the Education and Museum 

 authorities. 



SheflSeld has for years maintained circulating collections of special groups 

 of objects for schools. 



Replies to the Committee's questionnaire showed that for many years similar 

 work of a less systematic kind had been carried on in many centres. They 

 showed that : — 



1. Instruction was given by the teachers alone in twenty-eight Museums. 



2. Instruction was given mainly by teachers, the curators sometimes assisting, 

 in twenty-four Museums. 



3. Instruction was given by the Museum staff in sixteen Museums. 



4. Sketching parties, classes, and individual students from Schools of Art 

 were regular visitors in most Museums. 



The experience gained by the use of Museums in education in the United 

 States is so extensive, and has been so thoroughly tested, that it is desirable 

 in any educational plans for the use of British Museums that this experience, 

 the methods adopted, and the nature and extent of the work, should be carefully 

 considered. (See page 277 et seq.) 



C. Museum Guides. — From returns supplied to the Committee, only two 

 Museums, other than National, had established official guides; one was a rate- 

 supported Museum, the other owned by a Society. 



That the need was recognised, and met as far as possible, is shown by the 

 fact that seventy-four Museums stated that arrangements exist whereby the 

 curator and his staff give demonstrations to special parties. 



Financial stringency and inadequate staffs alone had prevented this work 

 from becoming a well-developed branch of Museum work. It is eminently 

 desirable that means should be available either for the employment of special 

 officers for this duty, or for enlarged staffs, if the time of curators is not to 

 be unduly taken up by work which is not the most important of their duties. 



Museums in Relation to the General Public. 



The special work of this Committee concerns the Museum as a factor in 

 education. The words ' General Public ' are used in the widest sense. We 

 propose, therefore, to consider first the educational work the Museum may do 

 for the general public. The term covers a wide range of needs. It represents 

 the vast majority of visitors to the public Museums ; we may safely regard them 



