Before facing the problem of preparation for the teaching of
biological sciences in the secondary schools, there must be a clear
conception of the aims and legitimate purposes of these sciences in
the high school. We are fortunate in having the aims of biology
clearly and concisely stated by the Commission on the Reorganization
of Secondary Education of the N.E.A. ("Reorganization of Science in
Secondary Schools", U.S. Dep't. Interior, Bureau of Education,
Bulletin 26, 1920). These aims will not be considered in their
entirety but only in so far as they bear directly on the problems
that follow. Before proceeding further, for simplification we will
assume that the teacher is assigned to teach biological sciences only.
Even then the field is quite comprehensive, for besides instruction in
general biology, there will be courses of a more advanced type, in
Zoology, Botany, Physiology, and often Bacteriology, Sanitation, or
Agriculture. However, with preparation in the fundamentals necessary
for biology a teacher should be able to conduct such courses without
difficulty. Thus the problem is sufficiently inclusive if it concerns
preparation for biology alone.
The brief literal translation of the word _biology_, science of life,
is full explanation of its scope. A course in the subject is not
Zoology, nor Botany, nor Bacteriology, nor Physiology--but rather all
of these in one. Biology should logically follow the nature study of
the elementary grades. The course must be so planned that it will give
the pupils the maximum of serviceable fundamentals and at the same
time be a basis for further study in advanced courses, if he desires
to continue; but such that he will miss none of the essentials if he
does not. Since science is the product of mature minds, the
culmination of knowledge, then in this course for adolescents, the
"ology" must not be too greatly stressed lest the essential part, the
"bios" be obscured. The goal then is a course in which a study of
plant life, a study of bacteria in relation to human welfare, a study
of animal life, and the biology of the human, are all incorporated
with well balanced emphasis. This is the type of course recommended by
the Commission on Reorganization for the ninth or tenth year pupils,
so is the end toward which preparation should be made.
The next question concerns what constitutes adequate preparation for
the direction of studies of animate nature. First and foremost is a
realization of the aims, or better, the values, and relations of
biology. It is a socializing subject and must be so taught--man is
social. Biology affects man vitally, directly his behavior follows
natural laws, and indirectly by illustration and comparison brings him
to a better understanding biologic laws underlying the organization of
society. By way of illustration we need only to cite the struggle for
existence and the division of labor with their far reaching influence
in determining the course of evolution. It would be impossible, I
believe, to teach biology so poorly that it did not have some
socializing value; but it comes very near to being done in some cases,
there is little doubt.
A paramount aim is the improvement of living conditions, both as it
concerns measures for group sanitation and factors in the health of
the individual. This should be the almost exclusive aim in those parts
of the course dealing with bacteria and disease, and the biology of
man, or physiology and eugenics. Biology has many applications in our
economic life. It is the very foundation of agriculture. The lumber
industry is beginning to find that there are biologic laws. The
Government of the United States some time ago established a Bureau of
Fisheries for the purpose of studying the biological problems involved
in the continuance and furtherance of our extensive fisheries
industry.
So far as the individual is concerned, biology should train him to
observe life phenomena accurately and to form logical conclusions,
through the use of problems. This ability is a valuable asset whatever
his life work may be. Also, if it is the right kind of a course, and
well taught, it will enrich the life of the boy or girl through the
aesthetic appeal of plants and animals, and so make possible a sincere
appreciation and enjoyment of nature. In addition, the study of
biology should make clear to the pupil the important part that the
intensive study of the various biological sciences has played in the
whole marvelous scientific progress of the past centuries.
Along with these values certain relations of biology must be well
understood if it is to be well taught. These relations may be
conveniently segregated into five groups, 1) relations to world
problems, 2) to problems of the state, 3) to the community, 4) to the
school curriculum, and 5) to individual pupils. To world problems
biology bears many relations, for example, it is fundamental in the
analysis of immigration problems, especially those phases concerning
health, over-population, and the probable hereditary effects of
assimilation through hybridization. State problems of health
protection, conservation of game and forests, control of rodents and
other crop pests, and others can only be solved after gaining a
thorough knowledge of the underlying natural laws, and acting in
accordance with them. How inadequate a game conservation law of closed
season, without regard to the breeding habits of the animal concerned!
Again, State regulations regarding the care of mentally deficient,
especially in the prevention of intermarriage, must be given
consideration from the biological as well as the ethical point of
view.
As we consider the smaller group unit so the relations of biology to
that group become more special. A biology course may be readily
standardized for national problems, but for any given community the
course must be somewhat unique. A course planned for a rural
population would not be fitted for a school in an overcrowded section
of a city. Where there are differences in social and biological
problems there also must be fitting adaptive changes in the course in
biology. In addition to these community relations, the teacher must
keep in mind the relations between the biology course and the other
courses in the curriculum of the school. Such a question as this
should arise in the mind of the teacher; how may my work be made to
correlate with that of Domestic Science? The possibilities are many,
there is the field of dietetics, scientific determination of the best
methods of sweeping methods by bacterial culture methods, and the role
of bacteria, yeasts and molds in the culinary arts constitute a few of
them. How about cooperation with the English Department? Certainly
every bit of written work, every oral recitation, should measure up to
standards of ability in expression as well as to standards of
attainment in the mastery of certain scientific information. This
cooperation has been carried out to great mutual benefit in some
schools. These illustrations are sufficient to illustrate, though the
teacher should not overlook any department of the school.
Relations to class and to individual will be considered in conjunction
with teaching methods.
The values and interrelations of biology have been discussed at some
length because they must serve as criteria in deciding what
constitutes adequate preparation.
The comprehensiveness and vital nature of the subject, biology,
present at once an inspiration and an element of fear to the
conscientious teacher. They cause him to regard in utter amazement,
the applicant for a position who in answer to question replies "No, I
have never taken any courses in biological Science, but I can easily
prepare myself to teach it, if need be." The impossibility of such
impromptu development of skill in the teaching of biology will become
more apparent as we proceed.
Besides a full appreciation of the aims and relations of the subject,
the teacher must be able to construct a course especially adapted in
content to the peculiar needs of the particular community. This
follows from what was said of relations in a previous paragraph. The
development of such a course demands sufficient knowledge of economics
and sociology to make possible a correct analysis of local conditions
and so find what is required. The course to fulfill the requirements
will necessarily be to some extent new, and just to such extent may
the teacher feel something of the inspiration of the pioneer. Relative
values must be established; emphasis must be properly placed--life of
distant regions should not be taught except as local material may not
be available to illustrate some very essential point, yet too often a
carefully pickled grasshopper is transported from Florida to
California, there to be dissected by some unfortunate high school lad.
Not only must the larger divisions of the course be carefully balanced
and tested for value, but each lesson must justify its induction into
it. It is at this point that the relation to the individual is the
chief criterion.
Each lesson of the series that makes up the course must justify its
place by having some rather direct bearing upon the life of the
individual pupil. The core of the lesson must be either the pupils
problem or one in which his interest can be readily stimulated. Herein
is the value of the project method of science teaching, the problem is
sure to be of interest to the pupil since he himself chooses it. Other
questions to which the lesson must give satisfactory answer are; Why
this particular lesson, at all? What relation does it bear to the
preceding and following lessons? Is it of real value to the pupil in
his living? What biological phenomenon does it teach? Is it the best
problem to illustrate that particular phenomenon? What generalizations
and practical applications can the _pupil_ make?
The organization of a course in biology which is fitted to the needs
of a certain community, the conditions of a particular class of
pupils, and to the needs of the individual pupils so far as possible,
requires that the teacher have an extensive knowledge of the subject
matter as a background freeing him from the necessity of dependence on
a textbook. Anyway, a biology teacher conducting the right sort of a
course, will see that the textbook is only an incidental, if used at
all. A continuation of set assignments in most textbooks would dampen
the ardor of pupils generally. Besides, few localities have textbooks
fitted to their specific needs. One that does have is New York City.
In fact it has two, "Elementary Biology" by Peabody & Hunt, and "Civic
Biology" by Hunter. These both have a large sale throughout the United
States, But, of course, in most localities they can be used only to
furnish supplementary reading, since _portions_ only will be adapted
to the conditions of the restricted locality. The fundamental life
processes are the same the world over, but varying environmental
conditions necessitates a variation in emphasis, in application, and
in the choice of problems which make up the course. If the teacher is
well prepared in subject matter, there is little use for a laboratory
manual except as it may suggest new methods and new experimental
materials. Students of the high school age should never be compelled
to follow a set laboratory outline with detailed instructions for
procedure; it will kill every whit of initiative. The teacher must be
so prepared, then, that he is able to steer a free course, employing
books for reference and supplementary reading almost exclusively. He
will cause the student to realize that the books are the result of
_human_ effort and therefor not infallible, and that they must always
take second place to first hand observation and experiment. The study
of animate nature, with endless opportunity for observation and
experiment on every hand, permits little excuse for such method as is
illustrated by "Be prepared to recite on the next three pages in the
book, tomorrow, and read experiment 37 so that you wont have to waste
any time in getting started with the laboratory work".
Somewhere in the course of preparation the teacher must have obtained
a thorough knowledge of laboratory apparatus and supplies. The
selection of types of apparatus best fitted to the course, and the
knowledge of where to buy are both necessary. Also judgement must be
exercised in purchase for few are the places where funds are adequate
for the ideal equipment of a laboratory. The money value of every
piece of apparatus must be balanced against its relative usefulness in
the successful culmination of the course. Besides this there must be a
knowledge of the various uses to which the available apparatus may be
put. A great deal depends on the ingenuity of the teacher in the
adaptation of even comparatively simple apparatus. In connection with
the laboratory part (and this should be the major part) of the course,
there arises the question of field work and excursions. Laboratory is
at best merely a substitute for the great out-of-doors, so the more
work that can be done in the field the better. Aside from exploration
to discover what parts of the particular locality will yield the
largest fund of valuable biological information, the problem here is
mainly one of method.
The teacher to be at his best must be somewhat of a naturalist. Upon
his fund of interesting stories about the animals and plants that the
children all know, will depend very largely the appeal of the work to
the pupil. Something of the spirit that distinguished John Muir as the
great naturalist is an inestimable asset to the teacher. If it is not
among his natal blessings, he need not be completely discouraged for
it can be acquired to some degree at least. Besides the advantage just
mentioned, the fauna and flora must be sufficiently well known so that
_choice_ is possible for laboratory experiment and illustrative
purposes.
In order to present any subject well, its historical aspect enters
into consideration. The influence of individuals, of governments, of
religion, and of the social ideals have all had their share in
determining the present status of the subject. Science as it now is,
is the result of growth, it has undergone evolution, and is at
present evolving. This will be thoroughly understood by the teacher of
science, and this understanding will determine in part the method of
presentation. In the history of the development of science there are
many men well worthy of hero worship. It is hard to find more
inspirational characters than those of Pasteur, and Lazear; men who
devoted (in latter instance, sacrificed life) their lives to service
for humanity. In the life and work of Charles Darwin we find a
splendid example of painstaking search for the truth. The records of
the rocks, (Paleontology, the nature-written history of biology) will
often come to the rescue of the teacher in clearing up the
presentation of the difficult problems of evolution. The historic
attitude must be "put over" to the pupil too, for _he_ must know his
world as the result of the evolutionary process, and as still in the
process of evolution.
Even at the risk of adverse criticism I desire to include among the
qualifications of a good teacher the spirit of research. This spirit
can be acquired by specialization in one of the fields of biological
science, followed by some actual research work.
Research in science is fundamental. It has three aims or ends, 1)
discovery of facts thus increasing the sum total of knowledge. This is
science for science sake. 2) Individual development. And, 3) Social
service. These last two aims are most important to the teacher. So,
his problem for investigation should have some practical bearing, and
should be of his own choosing, not pointedly suggested by the
professor in charge as is too often the case. If the research student
is given a problem which is some minor part of a larger problem being
investigated by his professor it will preclude the very thing the
prospective teacher needs, namely practice in recognizing, analyzing,
and solving a problem in its entirety and solely on his own resources.
Being a mere helper is probably not the best way to secure such
ability. Investigation may be broadening and developing to the
individual or it may prove to be quite the reverse, but that lies
within the control of the individual. Research for the teacher must
emphasize equally actual additions to knowledge and personal attitude.
It must not be an end in itself but a means to an end. The attitude of
the investigator is essential to the understanding of children for the
child is first of all an investigator. His questions, "what? why? how?
when?" prove this beyond doubt. What is this but a search for truth,
causal factors, and interrelations? Education uses this wholesome
curiosity as a foundation principle, so the teacher must exhibit a
sympathetic understanding of this universal attribute of children. No
better summary of a discussion of the values of research can be found
for our purposes than that by G. W. A. Luckey. It follows.
"In order that teaching may be intelligent and in harmony
with the laws of nature there must be a deeper and clearer
knowledge of human growth and development. The teacher must
know the nature of the individual to be taught and the ends
to be reached in proper nurture. This can not be gained
through the study of books alone, but may come through
properly directed research in the workshop of life."
One of the aims of present day education is "to develop a
man, the best man possible under the conditions; to assist
nature through nurture; to enable the individual to find
himself and to evolve naturally and rapidly to the highest
levels and even to rise above them. According to this
conception ... the initiative must come from within. The aim
of the teacher should be to develop a self-sustaining,
self-directing, altruistic individual keenly alive to the
interests of humanity. Such an ideal is progressive,
scientific, and fits one through studies of yesterday and
today to live the best and truest life tomorrow. To see and
appreciate this ideal, research is necessary."
The last requirement to be considered in this discussion, is a good
foundation in Physics and Chemistry. Biological science is not
entirely separable from physical science, for a majority of life
phenomena, in final analysis can be explained only in terms of
physical science. Physiology has for its very foundation Physics and
Chemistry. Among the newest of the sciences is Biochemistry, the
chemistry of life; and within its limits are some of the most
promising fields of research. No argument is necessary, a knowledge of
physical science is indispensable in the interpretation of life
phenomena, and the understanding of biological processes.