THE TEACHING OF PLANT PATHOLOGY 
83 
German school method whereby enough literature on one parasite 
is cited to keep a student reading all day. The student whose 
reading discretion is not developed at this stage is bewildered by 
the multitude of apparently impractical and meaningless terms. 
It behooves every teacher of plant pathology to place the inter- 
esting and vital facts of the subject matter before the students 
and farmers in the most attractive and practical way possible. 
Those now teaching it will some day be considered as pioneers 
and a great deal depends upon them whether or not this economic 
science succeeds. 
No extensive treatise of laboratory work can be given here 
but there ought to be some improvement in the method used. In 
the first place, the object of the task or experiment is not definitely 
and concisely stated. For example, “To study mold” is not suffic- 
ient as an object, because the student can take his text and study 
mold. This is not an experiment. 
There should be a definite distinction between a laboratory per- 
iod, a study period, a recitation period and a lecture period. 
Each is a separate kind of clear cut work and ought not to be 
confused with the others. If the instructor were teaching the 
different kinds of molds he might have as an object “How may 
I tell some different kinds of molds?”, “How do their spores vary 
in size, shape, color and formation?”, together with other definite 
questions which cannot be answered by yes or no. Of course, 
drawings and descriptions should be asked for. The object may 
be summed up in a conclusion. The instructions for laboratory 
outlines in plant pathology are generally good. This seems to be 
the best developed portion of the subject. Probably a little time 
should be given at the first of the term to teaching methods in 
scientific drawing and lettering, together with the care and use 
of the microscope. The questions arise: how many drawings 
should be copied from reprints and texts? How much of the 
laboratory should be given to reading text materials ? This is for 
the instructor to decide. The poorer his collection of diseased 
types, the poorer his equipment and the poorer the instructor, 
the more time is spent in reading and copying during the labora- 
tory period. Of course, the poorer will be his class, for the power 
of interpretation and analysis of symptomology will be lost. This 
will weaken the student’s ability of classification which is so nec- 
essary before he may know the necessary control for the para- 
sites. 
