SECTION L.— EDUCATIONAL SCIENCE. 



THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE 



IN SCHOOLS— ITS MAGNITUDE, 



DIRECTION AND SENSE 



ADDRESS BY 



W. MAYHOWE HELLER, 



PRESIDENT OF THE SECTION. 



The Function of Section L. — Some doubt exists as to the proper function 

 of this Section of the Association. The group of men who, thirty-one 

 years ago, threw themselves earnestly into the work of the Section were 

 in the main interested in the teaching of science in schools of all grades. 

 For some years our activities centred round the place in education of school 

 science and its aims and methods. 



Strong committees of investigation were appointed, and in a few years 

 valuable reports were published which have influenced profoundly the 

 teaching of science in many English-speaking countries. Joint meetings 

 to discuss with specialists of other sections the school-handling of their 

 subjects were frequent. It is clear that in these early years the ' Old 

 Guard ' — many of whom are still working with us — viewed the work of 

 the Section as subject to these limitations and did not contemplate that still 

 far-off objective — a Science of Education. In this latter direction we have 

 made some progress : small-scale experiments under favourable conditions 

 have discovered some truths. The valuable results of such experiments 

 receive a narrow publicity, are seldom adequately or permanently recorded, 

 and in a few years are forgotten and no longer available for the serious 

 student of education. Too often these researches are interrupted by 

 changes in the school staff or terminated by the growing pressure of 

 external examination. As in other branches of science, we need a learned 

 Education Society in whose transactions will be recorded permanently 

 the results of original work and experiment in education. The annual 

 reports of this Section for the past thirty years contain a wonderful record 

 of investigation and thoughtful opinion which in its present form is 

 inaccessible to any but the most determined inquirer. The time is ripe 

 for the establishment of a clearing-house of educational effort such as 

 was suggested at last year's meeting by Prof. Clarke in his advocacy of 

 an Imperial Institute of Education. 



Need for Experiment. — Before we can cultivate a Science of Education 



