8o8 
The  Professor. 
!Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
November,  1920. 
and  it  will  be  decreed  that  a  professor  shall  possess  certain  scholastic 
qualifications.  That  such  standards  are  both  feasible  and  useful 
is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that  requirements  as  to  degrees  attained 
have  for  years  formed  a  part  of  the  policy  of  many  educational  insti- 
tutions in  the  matter  of  selecting  new  members  for  their  faculties. 
But  it  must  be  remembered  that  while  the  basic  principle  under- 
lying such  a  policy  is  sound  enough,  scholastic  standards  by  them- 
selves cannot  ensure  an  efficient  faculty,  for  the  proud  possessor  of  a 
doctorate,  notwithstanding  the  etymology  of  the  word,  is  not  neces- 
sarily a  teacher  and  may  in  fact  never,  because  of  certain  unfavorable 
character  traits,  develop  into  a  good  teacher.  Nor  can  we  be  sure 
that  the  promising  young  post-graduate  who  has  planned  and  has 
executed  a  creditable  piece  of  research  has  thereby  proven  his  ability 
to  teach  classes.  Indeed,  research  ability  precious  as  it  is  and 
necessary  for  the  advancement  of  science,  may  be  possessed  by  a 
person  wholly  unfitted  temperamentally  to  deal  successfully  with 
students.  Sometimes,  to  be  sure,  we  find  high  research  ability  and 
the  essential  qualifications  of  a  teacher  in  the  same  person.  But  it 
is  but  seldom  that  nature  so  lavishly  endows  one  of  its  children. 
Having  disposed  of  the  relatively  simple  matter  of  academic 
standards  for  the  professor,  the  Conference  may  next  investigate 
his  ability  as  a  teacher.  Has  he  the  power  of  clear  exposition — ^the 
ability  to  develop  his  subject  in  a  logical  manner?  Has  he  mastered 
the  technique  of  lecture  demonstrations?  Does  he  know — and 
does  he  proceed  on  the  basis  of  such  knowledge — that  if  experiments 
are  not  properly  timed,  or  if  the  point  to  be  demonstrated  is  obscured 
by  over-emphasis  of  certain  details,  the  student  is  confused  rather 
than  helped  by  this  accessory  to  the  lecture?  Does  he  perpetrate 
that  most  serious  yet  common  fault  of  using  technical  terms  un- 
familiar to  the  student  or  does  he  avoid  such  terms  until  they  can 
be  explained  with  proper  connections  so  that  the  student's  mastery 
of  the  nomenclature  may  develop  with  his  progress  in  the  science? 
Alas,  who  has  not  heard  a  biology  lecture  which  seemed  to  be  in  a 
foreign  language,  and  wondered  how  there  can  be  so  much  verbiage 
about  so  little  foliage.  Can  he  capitalize  his  sense  of  humor  and 
give  human  interest  to  his  subject  without  falling  into  a  hopeless 
condition  of  anecdotage  which  renders  him  ludicrous  rather  than 
humorous.  We  learn  to  teach  by  constant  trial  and  by  observing 
the  methods  of  our  elders — in  this  way  rather  than  by  following  rules 
and  precepts.    But  does  our  young  professor  know  that  the  success- 
