148 



OF INTEREST TO TEACHERS 



Secondary School Agriculture 



The March number of School Science and Mathematics has an 

 article by D. O. Barto on problems in secondary school agricul- 

 ture which is interesting to teachers of nature study in the grades 

 and to teachers in the high school. The lack of success in the 

 grades is explained as follows : 



" It must not be forgotten that agriculture is largely a science 

 study. It requires some knowledge of the principles of many 

 sciences, and the ability and interest to apply them intelligently. 

 These conditions of scholarship can be expected only in pupils 

 of a certain breadth and maturity of development and compre- 

 hension seldom found in the elementary grades. 



" A pupil can make little headway in the study of agriculture 

 unless he knows something of physiography, geology, botany, 

 zoology, physics and chemistry. It is not a question of whether 

 he has studied these sciences before he takes up agriculture 

 whether he pursues them as separate subjects or learns them as 

 he studies agriculture. The important thing is that some knowl- 

 edge of these other subjects is indispensable to any serious and 

 effective work in the study of agriculture, and this is a qualifica- 

 tion that can hardly be expected to be attained in the elementary 

 grades. 



" There is much valuable work that is scientific and agricul- 

 tural that may be done — should be done — in the elementary 

 grades when we have teachers prepared for it. But agriculture 

 is an applied science. It has won its way only by demonstrat- 

 ing to the farmer that it could be made of practical service to 

 him. As a school study its value and usefulness will largely 

 depend upon the results that can be obtained from the applica- 

 tion of principles of science, and this work will demand a sus- 

 tained interest that young children cannot furnish." 



With regard to the conditions in the secondary schools much 

 of the above is true, especially where the work is placed in the 

 lower high school years. Mr. Barto, however, gives in this article 

 some encouraging" results of work being- done in Illinois. 



