September 8, 1893.] 



SCIENCE. 



129 



SCIENCE: 



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HOW CHEinSTRY IS BEST TAUGHT.* 



BY CHABLES F. MABEEY, CASE SCHOOL OF SCIENCE, CLEVELAND, OHIO. 



The subject "How chemistry is best taught," which has 

 been proposed to us for discussion, has a serious interest 

 for all persons who are engaged in teaching chemistry, 

 and it is of especial importance to those of us who have 

 in charge the preparation of young men for professional 

 employment. In view of the prominence of scientific sub- 

 jects and methods in the present systems of education, it 

 is incumbent upon the adherents of these methods to 

 demonstrate by their results that they are not in error in 

 assuming that science should have an equivalent place 

 with other departments of knowledge. In the higher in- 

 stitutions this question has received a definite answer; in 

 the secondary schools evidently much has yet to be ac- 

 complished in the direction of general education as well 

 as in the preparation for higher study. 



That the importance of a knowledge of elementary 

 chemistry is apparent to all who are capable of appreciat- 

 ing its usefulness, is evident in the recent extension of 

 instruction in the secondary schools. In the larger por- 

 tion of our high schools, however, physical science still 

 occupies a subordinate place, or it is taught merely from 

 text-books with little, if any, laboratory training. Proba- 

 bly the chief hindrance to any radical change is a lack of 

 appreciation on the part of the public. If parents could 

 be brought to see that their sons and daughters would 

 receive a better education if physical science properly 

 taught formed an essential feature of the high school 

 course, the change would not be long delayed. That the 

 training of many teachers is scarcely more comprehensive 

 than they are called upon to impart is of less importance, 

 since at present those who are educated in the higher in- 

 stitutions have better opportunities, and those who are 

 deficient can improve their knowledge in special courses 

 for teachers. Doubtless the many popular movements of 

 the present day will exert a beneficial influence in extend- 

 ing an acquaintance with the application of scientific 

 principles. Such unique and instructive object lessons 

 as that which has been designed, under the direction of 

 Prof. Ellen H. Richards, for the Kumford kitchen, in the 

 Columbian Exposition, cannot fail to attract public atten- 

 tion. It requires no particular training in observa- 

 tion to recognize the difference in nutrition of foods 

 which have a widely different nutritive value; but 



*A paper read before the section of Didactic Chemistry in the World's 

 Congress Auxiliary of the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago, August 

 26, 1893. 



when an appetite whetted to the sharpest edge 

 in an endeavor to see all the exhibits in the Liberal Arts 

 building in one visit, and the unavailing efforts to extract 

 a crumb of comfort from the places so improperly named, 

 is brought in contact with the wholesome dishes prepared 

 in the Rumford kitchen, and their satisfying influence, 

 the numbers representing the food values will be in a 

 favorable connection to awaken a desire for further infor- 

 mation. The same principle is applied in a different 

 manner in the exhibits from the agricultural stations 

 which explain the composition of dairy products, of ani- 

 mal foods and the methods of chemical investigations. 

 These exhibits have a particular interest for persons en- 

 gaged in agricultural pursuits since they are a part of the 

 well-directed efforts of the stations in disseminating 

 knowledge. Probably in no department of education has 

 there been a more substantial growth during the last 

 twenty years than on the part of intelligent farmers in 

 applying the practical information coming to them from 

 the results of investigations carried on at the experiment 

 stations. These illustrations may seem somewhat re- 

 moved from the main question before us, but I am con- 

 vinced that the efficiency of higher instruction in chem- 

 istry will be greatly improved when students coming to 

 us from the secondary schools shall have had the advan- 

 tage of practical training in elementary physical science, 

 and I believe this will be the sooner accomplished through 

 a recognition of its benefits in the affairs of every-day life. 



I think we shall all agree that the best argument to be 

 urged in favor of a prominent place for chemistry in any 

 grade of instruction is the value of experimental methods 

 for the development of mental power. This feature 

 should naturally appear with especial prominence in 

 courses leading to the degree of Bachelor of Arts; and if 

 the schools of science are to be maintained on a higher 

 plane than the trade schools or shops, the courses of 

 study must be conducted with reference to the attain- 

 ment of mental discipline and scholarship. In the 

 courses in chemistry I am unable to see why this should 

 interfere with the acquisition of practical knowledge. 



The guiding star to successful teaching in chemistry is 

 the personality and enthusiasm of the instructor. With 

 the great increase in attendance in many institutions the 

 earlier relations between student and instructor, which 

 were frequently mingled with deep personal feeling, some- 

 what akin to veneration on the part of the student, are 

 well-nigh impossible. Nevertheless, an enthusiastic 

 teacher with tact and good judgment has little difficulty 

 in maintaining a profound interest even in large classes. 

 In successful teaching we all know how much depends 

 upon the attitude of the instructor toward his students. 

 Courteous relations, with a clear understanding that 

 teacher and students are mutually interested in the ac- 

 quisition of knowledge, readily secure the confidence 

 and esteem of a body of students, and the instruction 

 need seldom be interrupted by questions of conduct. A 

 faithful teacher does not limit his attention to the 

 brighter minds; students slow in comprehension but earn- 

 est in application secure a store of information which 

 will be used later to the best advantage. It was a wise 

 teacher who said: "I am faithful in my duty to duU stu- 

 dents; in my old age I may need favors of the men of 

 wealth." 



In assimilating their methods from European labora- 

 tories, the chemists of the United States, untrammelled by 

 traditions and unrestrained by the influence of any par- 

 ticular school, have been in favorable conditions to ap- 

 preciate the labors of the great masters of other coun- 

 tries. Unfortunately, it may be, in the wonderful devel- 

 opment of our natural resources, the temptation to enjoy 

 material benefits may have retarded the growth of orig- 



