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SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLII. No. 1091 



ber of courses in each subject in this partic- 

 ular group; in three and four are the number 

 of half and full courses offered (column two is 

 the sum of both) ; column five contains the 

 total nimiber of hours devoted to lecturing or 

 instruction, and in six and seven are the aver- 

 age number of hours per course and average 

 ntimber of students per course. 



TABLE I 



Group la (Association Standard) — 113 Schools 



In the total number of coiu-ses offered in the 

 113 schools, two subjects stand out more promi- 

 nently than all others — mathematics and chem- 

 istry. The explanation of this condition is to 

 be found by a study of the catalogues of 

 courses themselves and of the answers to ques- 

 tionnaires sent out. The subjects reveal two 

 differing points of view, though both are, ap- 

 parently, desired by students. 



In the case of mathematics, the large num- 

 ber of courses offered is due to the fact that 

 the teaching methods (especially those for the 

 elementary teacher) are taught in combination 

 with the history of the subject. The largest 

 class enrollment in the history of mathematics 

 is found to be at Teachers' College, Columbia 

 University; it is given by Dr. David Eugene 

 -Smith. The average for four years (1910-14) 



10 Courses in Evolution included. 



11 Almost 15 per cent, of these are given in alter- 

 nate years. 



12 Five of this number are Harvard Exchange 

 lectures. 



was 54 students. In consideration of the 

 average large class attendance (14 — the range 

 being 2 to 54) it is to be inferred that the 

 course is primarily adapted for teachers or 

 those preparing to teach. 



In the case of chemistry the conditions differ 

 decidedly. The total niunber of courses is 38, 

 and from the general expression of opinion re- 

 garding its place in the curriculum, the his- 

 tory of chemistry is given solely for its in- 

 trinsic value. This value is expressed in edu- 

 cational terms as culture, breadth of chemical 

 learning; it is also given with a great deal of 

 philosophic interest by the instructors con- 

 cerned. And in only one case is it offered and 

 not given. Here again the class enrollment is 

 high, 13 being the average attendance, and the 

 range, from 1 to 85. This largest class in the 

 history of chemistry for the five years, 1910-15, 

 was composed of 85 students under Dr. Theo- 

 dore W. Richards, at Harvard. The value and 

 interest of such a course tend also to increase, 

 judging from the answers received to the ques- 

 tionnaire, the larger class attendance, and the 

 fact that a number of half-year and alternate- 

 year courses are breaking down to a regular 

 full-year course. These give credit for two 

 hours each semester, which seems to be the 

 average time for a lecture course. 



There are probably only two reasons to be 

 advanced for this state of affairs in chemistry. 

 In the history of chemistry, beside its broad 

 philosophic interest, the subject itself involves 

 more of the fundamentals of other sciences, 

 and consequently approaches the realm of the 

 more general history of science, thereby ap- 

 pealing to the interest of the scientific stu- 

 dents. Before passing, it might be well to 

 mention a one-hour course given in the Uni- 

 versity of Pennsylvania on the history of 

 chemistry in America, by Provost Smith. This 

 course was instituted in 1908; it is primarily 

 for graduates. A course in the general history 

 of chemistry is also given; it had its begin- 

 ning in 1896. 



Taking up our next largest subject from the 

 point of view of numbers, we find physics 

 offered in 19 schools in this group. Here the 

 study reveals a decided and strong reversal of 



