Spens (1938)

Notes on the text
Preliminary pages Membership, Analysis, Preface, Introduction
Chapter 1 Development of the secondary curriculum
Chapter 2 The present position
Chapter 3 Physical and mental development of 11-16 year olds
Chapter 4 The curriculum of the grammar school
Chapter 5 Scripture
Chapter 6 English, classics, mathematics, general science
Chapter 7 The School Certificate Examination
Chapter 8 Technical schools
Chapter 9 Administrative problems
Chapter 10 Welsh problems
Chapter 11 Conclusions and recommendations
Appendix I List of witnesses
Appendix II Liberal education (Young)
Appendix III Secondary curriculum (Kandel)
Appendix IV Faculty psychology (Burt)
Appendix V Transfer of training (Hamley)
Appendix VI Curricula in the Dominions (Clarke)
Index

London: HM Stationery Office

Chapter 6 Certain other subjects in which the Committee have recommended substantial changes, namely English, classics, mathematics, general science
[pages 218 - 253]

We have already stated that the curriculum should be developed round an attitude to life and one main core of learning, and that we find this core in what are commonly called the English subjects; and of these subjects it is probably that which is in the narrower sense called 'English' which is most capable of giving a meaning and a unity to the whole course between 11½ and 16. The reading, discussion and reflection which this study provides and stimulates are capable of exercising a wide influence upon the life and outlook of the adolescent, more general and lasting in its effects than that normally exercised by any other subject in the curriculum.

This view is of course already widely held, particularly since the Report of the Departmental Committee on The Teaching of English in England (1921); it has found frequent expression both in the words and writings of responsible educationists, and in the rapid progress made in the methods and general attitude of teachers of English in the past 20 years. But, though it would be absurd to claim that English can take the place which French or Latin or mathematics or science should have in a balanced curriculum, and still more absurd to decry the necessity for history and geography, yet we are convinced that English, in the narrower sense, does not yet hold that position in the studies of secondary schools to which it is entitled. For a subject which is in our view of such central importance there seems to be still too much indecision as to the main objective to be achieved; and the Report of the Investigators of the School Certificate examination, 1931 (1), indicates that the teaching of the subject in grammar schools does not at present realise to the extent it should some of its essential aims.

We propose therefore to outline what should in our view be the main purposes of this study and some of the general means by which these purposes can be effected, without any detailed discussion of method or syllabus. It is hoped that our reasons for attaching such value to the subject will appear in the course of the following pages.

The first aim of all English teaching should be to enable a child to express clearly, in speech or writing, his own thoughts, and to understand the clearly expressed thoughts of others. (2) This whole process has been summed up in the Report on The Teaching of English in England in the word 'communication'. It is perhaps misleading to divide this single process into its two aspects, 'comprehension' and 'expression', since such a division suggests that these two processes can be studied and trained independently, and ignores their incessant and valuable interaction upon each other. Though we must in our brief discussion of this main objective treat of these two aspects of communication separately, we wish to make it clear that this is a convenient and artificial distinction rather than a natural one.

The second objective, which can only be attempted after the first is more or less successfully attained, is the development of the power thus acquired to benefit the child as a social being, and to help him to take his place as a thinking individual and a wise citizen. Ability to communicate with clarity and intelligence has a vocational value which is too evident to need emphasis, particularly for those whose work will be in the world of books and papers, documents and files. But it should also lead to an ease in social relationships, a desire to know facts, and an ability to think clearly, which are essential elements in the education of the citizen of a democracy.

The third and last objective is the training in appreciation of literature. How far this can be taught at all is still a matter for argument. But there is a general agreement that no course in English is complete which does not introduce pupils to the richness and beauty of the literature which is our proudest heritage. Love of reading, joy in the discovery of literary beauty, enlargement of imaginative experience, these are among the most treasured fruits of a sound English education.

It must be assumed that the elements of the art of communication have been learnt in the primary stage; but it would be idle to pretend that more than a small minority of children have, at the age of 11½ learnt to express themselves clearly or to understand clearly and quickly the straightforward expression of thought by others. The fact that English (of a sort) is the means of communication regularly employed out of school is as much a hindrance as a help. The English of common usage at this stage is slovenly, ungrammatical, and often incomprehensible to a stranger; yet it serves its purpose on all normal occasions, and so makes the child self-satisfied and impatient of attempts to implant a higher standard. It is therefore impossible in grammar schools to dispense with the elementary technical instruction in such matters as grammar, spelling and punctuation. Experts are still at variance, and often in direct opposition, as to the part formal teaching of grammar and syntax should play at this stage. We do not propose to discuss this matter in detail; it is probably one of those where each teacher will teach best on his own lines. Bad spelling is now recognised as a disease which submits reluctantly to slow treatment; it is only necessary to draw attention to the value of prepared dictation, since more is learnt from learning first and then writing correctly, than from writing a wrong form and then trying to learn the correct one. All that need be said about punctuation is that it should not be treated as a separate science; stops ought not to be 'put in' after a passage is written, but recognised as integral parts of the structure of every sentence, linking and dividing thoughts on paper as spoken thoughts are connected and separated as the voice pauses or runs on. In this connection it is well to emphasise the importance of the arrangement of words and clauses within a sentence so as best to secure clarity. The same is true of the arrangement of sentences in the paragraph.

Methods of training and testing the power of expression and comprehension in the early years of the secondary course are too many and too varied to be discussed in any detail. Sir Philip Hartog and other investigators have sufficiently discredited the abstract 'essay' at this stage for it to need further discussion here. There should of course be opportunities given for the free exercise of imagination in writing, and the class magazine is the place for the best of such adventures. But for the purpose immediately in view what are needed, in addition to an adequate vocabulary, are clarity, directness, and simplicity of expression, and accuracy and rapidity of comprehension; power of invention, facility, attempts at style, ornament, these are for the moment irrelevant.

It follows that certain rules can be laid down for the teaching of the subject commonly called 'composition' at this stage. In the first place composition should be both oral and written, the former preponderating during the first year or two of the secondary course. Opportunities for oral work can be given in the form of brief prepared lectures, debates, reproduction, discussions and descriptions. All written compositions should be restricted in length, concrete in subject, and, in general, objective in treatment, written with a definite reader in mind (apart from the teacher). Once this discipline has had its effect some attempt should be made at more ambitious forms of expression. Instruction can now be given in planning and executing longer compositions, with an emphasis on the necessity for a clear and logical arrangement of thoughts before these overflow into an essay. These 'schemes' (on the French model (3)) should be more frequently employed and written out with greater care than they are in most cases at present. There should be practice in expanding or 'writing up' a subject from notes or paragraph headings, as well as in the still more valuable work of précis or compression, and in the study of the structure of chosen examples of English prose. At the same time oral composition will be given greater freedom, until it issues in the speaking of impromptu plays or charades.

Several of the methods suggested above are of use in teaching comprehension as well as expression, since the two cannot (as we have said) be ultimately considered apart. For instance, two of the best ways of teaching comprehension are reproduction, which demands ability to grasp the essence of a story at first hearing, and précis work, which tests the power to extract the essential 'bones' out of a story or correspondence; and since both these forms of instruction can be graded in difficulty they should be freely used throughout the course. But there are other ways too in which comprehension can be trained. The use of anthologies containing passages of good thought or narrative well expressed, both in prose and verse, should be habitual throughout the secondary schools. If the passages are graded in difficulty and sufficiently numerous it should be possible to pass, even within the covers of a single book, from the simplest training in the comprehension of thought to advanced exercises in appreciation. At the early stage the aim should be simply to induce real understanding of the thought expressed, clear of all misconceptions and preconceptions, objective, simple and exact. It is astonishing both how far astray children will at first go with the simplest material and also how rapidly they can improve. It is not always realised how many of our errors in life are due to our assuming that someone else has said what we wanted or expected him to say and not something quite different. It is as important to receive a clear impression as to give one.

It has been possible to give only the briefest summary of the more familiar methods of instruction in communication; any experienced teacher will realise how much has of necessity been omitted. But it should at least be evident that we believe the main objectives at this stage to be clearness of expression and accuracy of comprehension; it is on these foundations alone that any superstructure can be built. And this is true of other subjects as well as that which we are considering, so much so that it has been said that every teacher should be a teacher of English. Indeed, the work of English teachers would be much lightened if their colleagues were stricter in criticising lack of clarity in argument or verbosity in description.

The Report on The Teaching of English in England lays stress (pp. 21-23) on the social value of English studies. The Report points out that, just as the common study of this subject is a unifying element in a school which contains specialists in different arts and sciences, so it should be possible for the spread of a common habit of English teaching to soften the distinctions which separate men and classes in later life. More will be said of this later, in discussing appreciation; it is sufficient at present to point out how the simple ability to express and understand does in itself remove most of the misconceptions which separate one man from another. The Report also lays emphasis on the part that speech training should play in the abolition of class barriers. Certainly it would be an advantage if all our children could learn the same English speech, though we agree with that Report in recommending the preservation of true dialect, as distinct from affected or debased forms which have no roots in history. Teachers are everywhere tackling this problem, though they are not to be envied their struggle against the natural conservatism of childhood allied to the popularisation of the infectious accents of Hollywood. The pervading influences of the hoarding, the cinema, and a large section of the public press, are (in this respect as in others) subtly corrupting the taste and habits of the rising generation.

Probably the greatest social value of a good English training is the feeling of self-confidence which follows it, just as its greatest vocational value is the ability to write a clear memorandum and extract the gist of a lengthy document. These two objectives are hardly ever consciously present in the mind of the teacher, but they are steadily more fully attained as the child passes from the simple to the more complex forms both of expression and comprehension. A still more important end is being achieved if clearness of thought is growing at the same rate as clearness of expression, and if practice in comprehension is leading to a ready distinction between the essential and the otiose, the sincere and the affected, the true and the false. Here the wise teacher will be aware of his responsibility and opportunity, and will train his pupils to recognise and allow for their own prejudices and those of others; to speak and write dispassionately when a matter is sub judice; to make sure of their facts before they launch out on their crusade; to despise specious or selfish argument; to distinguish between principles and slogans; to understand, if they can, the mind behind the written word, the man behind the book; and so, in the end, to understand their own emotions and reactions as well as experiencing them.

This is all going on wherever more advanced instruction in communication is being faithfully given. At times the method will be informal, and discussion and argument will be suffered to range where they will. At others there will be set lectures, or it may be a class debate, in which the 15 year old has to summon all his resources to hold his own and forgets altogether that he is being educated. Forced to verify his own (or his newspaper's) dogmatic assertions, he will be driven to one of the two right uses of books, to ascertain the facts; faced with damaging assertions by his opponents, he will set his wits to work to find flaws in the argument; and all the time the teacher, in the background, guides and controls the discussion, intervening only to rob the argumentative bully of his false and wordy triumph. What better training could we wish for the future citizen of a democratic state, and what better defence against the assaults and seductions of the popular press?

We have said that the third main objective of the English course is the appreciation of English literature. The deliberate attempt to educate the powers of appreciation and criticism should probably be deferred to the last year or two of the course, though naturally there is from the beginning education of this kind going on. Just as it is impossible to insist on the clear expression of thought without encouraging clear thinking, so no good teacher can handle even the simplest piece of genuine literature without his pupils learning to enjoy as well as to understand it. What we may perhaps call the 'anthology lesson' will be a dull affair if some advance is not made, even from the start, in seeing beauty as well as in comprehending meaning. But at the later stage there should be a more direct attempt made to encourage the desire to read, not now for information merely, still less as a way of passing the time, but to widen the limits of imaginative experience, and to increase the ability to enjoy literary power and beauty. And while attempting, in ways which will be suggested below, to widen the range of his pupils' reading the teacher should also be training their power to go below the surface of the written page, to appreciate, to criticise, to analyse thought and style, to distinguish gold from tinsel. (4) In short the course at this stage must be both extensive and intensive.

The question of the external examination of English literature will be discussed below; we have already suggested that it is undesirable. (5) But we have no doubt about the value of detailed study, in the right hands, of an English 'classic', whether prose or verse. By 'detailed study' we mean first and foremost a real knowledge of the text, considerable parts of which (especially in the case of plays and poems) should be learnt by heart; but we also think that there is much value in the right kind of discussion and commentary. If the external examination disappears, the teacher will be free to comment and elucidate with only one purpose in view, and that not the ultimate satisfying of examiners. Such a training in careful interpretation and insight will stand a child in good stead in his own reading, both at the time and later. But if he is to profit to the full from the English course it is of course not enough for him to have studied, as a whole and in detail, certain select masterpieces. We may not be convinced of the danger of 'tasting the Pierian spring' but certainly it is our aim that all English men and women should of their own will 'drink deep' of it.

This brings us to the question of reading, which lies at the root of the whole matter. Here the teacher can assist but not compel. It goes without saying that every school should have a library, and small class libraries are often an additional help. The library should not merely contain books; there should be comfortable chairs, lists of books recommended, and someone available to help and advise. There is often more real education going on in a good schools library than in any of its classrooms. Here boys and girls can make their own voyages of discovery and dig up their own treasures. Any knowledge or beauty which we have found by our own efforts is worth more than all the riches handed out to us by our teachers; and there are few of us who are not still grateful to the wise man or woman who first gave us the taste for such adventures. The reading habit can also be induced by 'silent reading' periods in school hours, where books of the child's own choice can be read, with at first no censorship by the teacher, only a subtle forcing up of the standard by comment and encouragement. To impose preferences or dictate judgements is dangerous; but children are imitative by nature, and if the teacher reveals his own delight in a book they will often be impelled to try and share it. And much can be done by occasional reading aloud, without comment, of a short poem or prose passage which the reader obviously enjoys. In short a good teacher can do almost anything to induce a love of reading except teach it.

The last year's work in appreciation should include two additional exercises. First there should be much encouragement of, and some insistence on, the writing of original verse; this not in the hope to create poets, nor so much as a training in expression, but to give that appreciation of the art of poetry which can only be felt (in any art, or skill) by one who has tried and failed to do as well himself. Secondly there should be opportunities for unguided full-length critiques of poems or prose passages by unspecified authors, to be followed not only by individual comments on the criticisms made, but by a joint class discussion of the passages selected. There are few exercises so valuable, and few so humiliating to intellectual pride. It has been said that a man who has learnt to love either a poem or a person he at first disliked has gone far on the road to salvation.

It is worth adding a note on the value of dramatic performances as an aid to appreciation. The drama has now a sure footing in all schools, and its usefulness in cultivating self-confidence and good speech and developing initiative need not be stressed here. But it also has its place as one of the best means of revealing the strength and beauty of great literature. This is of course primarily true of the actual performers; it must be difficult to play a part in one of the great plays of Shakespeare without abiding profit. But it is also, for the school audience, one of the surest ways of communicating the secret of great literature.

The value to the individual in later life of an appreciation and love of literature is generally recognised, and is becoming more marked as the amount of available leisure time increases. But an added argument in its favour is the bond it can create between all who speak the same language, whatever their circumstances may be; it is part of the common inheritance which helps to build up a national consciousness and to forge invisible links of union between those who at first meeting may think they have little in common. Moreover, in days when literary standards are threatened on every side, there are few safeguards stronger than a widespread devotion to those great writers who 'spoil our taste for twitterings'.

How far will external examination of English help or hinder the teacher at this stage? It seems clear that a fundamental distinction can be made between the English teaching which is examinable and that which is not. 'Examinations are necessary to test efficiency, and a great many of them do not test it at the present moment; but I have long believed that when examinations attempt to test culture, which is sensitive and individual, they tend to kill the plant which they wish to grow.' (6) Any teacher of English literature will have his own methods of ensuring that his pupils are active and not merely passive participators in their joint enterprise; and there may be no valid objection to internal examination of this or any other subject. But we believe that external examination of set books at this stage is undesirable, and has in the past done little good and much harm. However, the same objections do not hold good when we are considering the other, and more immediate, aim of English teaching. We can and should 'test efficiency', and we probably should test it more thoroughly than any examining body does at present. This is not the place for detailed suggestions; but we think that the compulsory test in English should include exercises in writing clear and accurate English with definite objects in view (eg a letter, a report, a description, the elaboration of a set of notes, the interpretation of a series of pictures); a précis, well selected and not too long; and questions designed to test the comprehension of given passages of prose and verse.

We are well aware that none of our suggestions, whether as to ultimate aims or general methods, is original, and that many teachers have for years been practising and in some cases gone beyond all that is here put forward. But we feel that, even where the importance of English teaching is fully recognised, practice still lags behind precept. This is largely due to the inadequate supply of well-qualified teachers. There are few subjects which depend so directly upon the personality of the teachers concerned. A poor method will serve if a good teacher uses it; but the best possible methods of English teaching will fail in unqualified hands. The qualifications required are not only those that are evidenced by the possession of a good university degree in English, though this is a sound foundation.

It is important to secure such teachers on the staff of a school, for they can render great service, not only by their own example, but by putting their knowledge and experience at the disposal of their colleagues. But culture, by which we mean width of sympathies and a receptiveness to beauty, is also important, and this is often possessed to a marked extent by teachers who have taken their degree in classics or in other literary subjects. It should be more clearly realised that these may often make excellent teachers of English. Knowledge and culture, however, by themselves may easily prove ineffective unless they are accompanied by skill in teaching, and much can be done for the right teaching of English language in the earlier years of the course by well-informed and more definite instruction in university training departments and teachers' training colleges.

But for the right teaching of literature something more is required, which no training can supply. This quality is sincerity; a belief in the value of English literature for its own sake, and a real love of its finest manifestations. This belief and this love can, like religion, be 'caught but not taught'. They are revealed not by easy raptures or didactic exhortation or fervent and extravagant expression, but by a kind of inward glow which warms all those who come in contact with it. Such teachers were once rare, but they are multiplying by a natural process of infection. If they can be given the encouragement of a suitable technical training, and freedom from the shackles of external examination, they may yet succeed in making the normal citizen of this country conscious and proud of his unequalled literary heritage.

A: Latin

We have recommended above that all pupils in grammar schools who show linguistic taste or aptitude should have the opportunity of learning two languages other than their own, and that one of these languages should be Latin, unless the special circumstances of the school make it desirable to choose another language. We have also recommended that the second of these languages should be begun about a year later than the first. This means that in grammar schools pupils will begin Latin at latest between the ages of 12 and 13, and will have at least about four years before they sit for the School Certificate examination, and at least six years before competing for university scholarships in Latin.

In the past it has generally been assumed that a longer period is necessary if pupils are to reach a high standard of performance in Latin studies, and it is still usual in the preparatory schools from which the public schools draw the majority of their pupils to begin Latin about the age of eight or nine. (7) This assumption is now challenged, and not least by a growing number of teachers of Latin themselves. It is claimed, and in our opinion rightly claimed, that the traditional methods of teaching Latin are mistaken, and that by the adoption of a different method of approach and a clearer perception of the aims of linguistic study, it is not only possible to reach a high standard of performance, but also to give the pupils an earlier belief in the value of what they are learning.

The traditional methods of teaching Latin (and indeed any language) have concentrated on the formal study of grammar, and have attempted to carry simultaneously the powers of reading and of writing Latin to an equal level for all pupils. The preliminary stages are frequently given up to formal and abstract grammar, and the content of the grammar is overloaded with variations of such rare occurrence that it may be years before the pupil meets with them in his reading. The amount of Latin actually read in the earlier stages is very small, and the vocabulary acquired very limited, while the words and phrases read convey very little to the pupil because he has only faint ideas of what they represent. The conversion of English into Latin begins as soon as, and sometimes before, the conversion of Latin into English, and the sentences to be put into Latin are often of the same difficulty as those to be translated into English. In order to secure proficiency in turning English into Latin, great stress is placed on syntactical rules, with the result that the whole process becomes rather like an exercise in algebra.

We have no intention of depreciating the value of linguistic study, but we believe that the traditional methods of this study are fundamentally wrong. In the emphasis which its exponents lay on formal and abstract grammar, they are apt to lose sight of the fact that language is not a series of formulae, but a living function of the mind whereby it expresses living ideas; and hence they are apt to destroy the pupil's interest both in the ideas, and in the method of expressing them.

More serious still from an educational point of view, the traditional method of linguistic study tends to develop a habit of mind which asks, not 'How can I best express this idea?', but 'What formula am I expected to use here?': in other words, not an independent exercise of the intelligence and judgement, but a submission of these to an authority imposed wholly from without. What is needed in educational method today is a reconciliation between two methods and aims. The first requires pupils to master laws and rules dogmatically stated, and then to apply or watch their application to phenomena or examples; its aim is the sureness that comes from obedience to system or authority. The second invites pupils to collect and observe phenomena, to study relations and to formulate laws; its aim is the independence which comes from personal search and reasoning.

Both methods and aims must find a place in education; by their reconciliation unthinking obedience to authority or law gives place to the self-discipline which comes from understanding of the authority or the law. To this reconciliation linguistic study, properly conceived, holds an ideal key, for language provides material for inference and the formulation of laws which is comparable with that produced in other fields, eg the field of scientific phenomena, and, in comparison with science, it has the added merit that its material is not inanimate nature, but the workings of the human mind itself. And so, while in any study there must be correct observance of usage and obedience to rule, rule becomes less arbitrary if it has been observed and studied by the pupil before it is imposed upon him. To meet, in the course of reading, several instances of a usage, to note and compare them in their contexts, is half way to understanding and accepting and employing that usage; after the instances comes the formulation of the law as the culmination of the whole process. Not that the pupils can 'induce' the whole syntax of a language: but they can go some short distance in such a method, and in meeting authority part way, they view it more intelligently and instead of accepting it as imposed upon them, they help to impose it upon themselves, and blind discipline becomes intelligent self-discipline.

Latin, like every other language, has two aspects. On the one hand it is used to convey a meaning, on the other it conveys that meaning in a particular way, and the study of Latin in schools is concerned with both aspects. Through the ideas that are expressed we learn much about the Roman people, their problems, their interests, their ideals, their actions. Through the manner in which the ideas are expressed we learn the peculiar texture of the Roman mind, how emphasis was secured by word order, and how a practical concrete-minded people achieved clarity of statement. Both aspects are also important in relation to English studies. The contrast between Latin with its inflective grammar, its synthetic structure and explicit idiom, and English with its non-inflective grammar, its loose structure and allusive idiom, is at least as suggestive and valuable as the contrast between the social and political circumstances of Rome and modern Britain. It is by constant comparison between Roman and British ideas, and between Latin and English methods of expression, that boys and girls will learn best to appreciate Latin as a language.

This involves a much wider reading of Latin all through the course than has been usual with the traditional methods. We believe that the teaching should be based on the reading of Latin and the close and intelligent study of the live word functioning in a live context, that the grammar taught should be simplified and rare irregularities left until they occur in the course of reading, and that the conversion of English into Latin should not be attempted too soon. And in all this, there must be no less a demand for effort and certainty of knowledge than has been made heretofore.

It is common experience that boys and girls work better when they have some idea of the bearing of their studies and can link them on to their growing experience. We believe that long before they are to begin Latin, and even if they are never going to learn it, they should be given experience of some of the ways in which Rome and its language have affected their environment. Many of the legends of early Rome (and Greece), and the stories of many of its heroes, are in fact part of our national cultural tradition to which all children should be introduced. Through early familiarity with these, through pictures and antiquities, through the surviving traces of the Roman occupation of Britain - the Wall, the town, the villa and the road - and through the Latin element in English as seen in such common words as street, camp, cheese, butter, pepper, rose, minster, candle, mile and inch, children can be made aware of ancient Rome, its language, and its contribution to civilisation, and can be given an experience which later studies will enrich, illuminate and extend. And we believe that the evidence of these homely contacts with Rome and Latin will be far more fruitful in giving this experience than any early and self-conscious treatment of the 'legacy of Rome'.

We have said above that the teaching of Latin should be based on the reading of Latin, and that linguistic training should be founded on the close and intelligent study of the live word functioning in a live context. It remains for us to show how this can be carried out in practice.

In the early stages (which may be taken as roughly covering the first two years of Latin), the reading of Latin should occupy the chief place, the reading matter being 'made up' Latin in the very earliest stages which will be replaced as early as possible by suitably simplified passages from Latin authors, chosen primarily as illustrative of Roman life and custom. The pupils should get on to this reading at once, and read as much as possible so as to get the 'feel' of the language. This means that a minimum of grammar should be taught at first, but the grammar as seen at work in the passages read should be thoroughly known. Matters of syntax should be taken as they occur without first being formalised into an ordered system. Every effort should be made to ensure a steady increase in vocabulary throughout the whole course, and in this connection it is important that pupils should have passages read aloud to them, should themselves read aloud passages which they understand, and should be trained to carry in the head and to repeat short phrases in Latin without wishing to see them first written on paper. Writing of Latin should not be attempted too soon, it should always be based on the matter read, dealing with the ideas, vocabulary and constructions occurring in that matter, it should be continuous rather than the writing of isolated sentences, and it should always consist of less difficult matter than the Latin which has been read. Throughout there should be continual comparison with English methods of expression: as we have said already, if pupils are to appreciate Latin as a language, they should be constantly contrasting it with English. Probably something like half the time spent at present in translating English into Latin can be saved by this procedure, and the time thus saved will be most profitably filled by increasing the time spent in reading Latin.

If the language is to mean anything to the pupils, they must know something of the things for which the words stand; for instance the word domus should call up the image of a Roman house, not a modern home. This means that pupils need some study of antiquities, especially through pictures, and some knowledge of Roman life. We believe that this knowledge will be most vital if it is gained incidentally and naturally in connection with their reading, and that the use of a manual of Roman life or history at this stage is not only unnecessary but likely to become over-elaborated, formalised and dissociated from the books read. If the matter of the books read at this stage is carefully chosen to illustrate Roman life and thought, we believe that it will provide sufficient matter for the moment, and that the pupils will make the first steps towards a vivid understanding of the social, political and historical significance of Latin literature. If the reading material is suitable, very few words from the teacher will give unity to the incidental treatment of the subject matter.

The work of the next two years (in grammar schools up to the School Certificate examination) should, we think, continue on similar lines, but a wider selection of Latin authors of increasing difficulty of vocabulary or of ideas will be read. This does not necessarily mean the reading of a complete book of an author, a single book of Caesar or a single oration of Cicero. It may often be more useful for a realisation of the achievement of an author or of his contribution to Latin literature, to select fairly lengthy passages from his different works. Thus in reading Caesar, his description of his first expedition to Britain might well be supplemented by his account of the events leading up to the siege of Alesia and including the siege itself. Due attention should be paid to the rendering of Latin into idiomatic English, by no means an easy task. We look to these years also for a wider reading of authors and works chosen for their value in illustration of Roman life, thought, method and achievement. (8) In this way the knowledge of Roman life and thought obtained in outline in the earlier stages will be filled in and consolidated again through a first-hand contact with what the Romans themselves wrote. Some teachers may prefer to devote a few lessons in succession to Roman history as a whole, or to particular aspects of Roman life, and we have been told of successful teaching in this way; we believe that it will be possible to find time for this, though we think that such a course will gain in value the more it is related to the concurrent reading of original authorities.

In all that we have said above, we have primarily had in mind the needs of the ordinary pupil who is not likely to pursue Latin studies after he leaves school. But, as we have said in a previous section of this Report (9), we are confident that what is right for the ordinary pupil up to the age of 16, is also right, and indeed the best preparation, for the pupil who is going on to higher studies in a university. We believe also that it is equally right for pupils in preparatory schools.

We realise that our suggestions will necessarily involve changes in the School Certificate examination, eg that grammatical questions and exercises in composition should be strictly related to the passages set in translation, or to the authors read for the examination, but we refrain from making definite suggestions as our main concern is with the methods of the schools. But there is one thing we must say. In our suggestions we have endeavoured to make it possible for pupils to secure a better knowledge of Roman life and history in close connection with a first-hand acquaintance with a wider range of Latin literature. We do not think that that knowledge should be examined otherwise than under the conditions through which it was gained. Questions on the historical or social bearing of passages in the reading of the pupil seem to us admissible; questions about Roman history, institutions or manners which are unrelated to his actual reading, will inevitably distort and injure the aims which we have tried to expound.

B: Greek

We would welcome any measure which might encourage the study of Greek by pupils in the third and following years of the grammar school course, and we regret that the number of those who are actually studying Greek at present is not larger. (10) We hope that many pupils of linguistic aptitude who are capable of studying a third foreign language (for whom we have made provision in our specimen timetable in Chapter 4, Table 17, under the heading Z) will choose Greek as that language; and all those who hope to go on to an advanced course in classics after the School Certificate examination will naturally choose Greek.

But it is not necessary to elaborate here views upon the teaching of Greek. The need for change is not so great as in Latin; for, though the teaching of grammar and composition unrelated to reading is undoubtedly to be found in schools, on the whole the approach to reading is more rapid than in Latin, and, apart from a general recommendation that pupils should read Greek authors at a very early stage in their Greek studies, we would not wish to make any special application of our observations on Latin to the teaching of Greek. We think that changes in the teaching of Latin are likely to affect indirectly the teaching of Greek, and teachers, whether of English or Latin or Greek, will no doubt take whatever opportunity they can to make sure that Greek myths are not neglected at some stage of the pupil's education, and to impart as much of the genius of the Greek spirit as they may. For, though knowledge and understanding of Greek art, literature and thought are more likely to come after the age of 16 than before, something can be done by incidental treatment in Greek or other lessons to give pupils some idea of the Greek view of life.

We have said above that we believe that mathematics should be taught as art and music and physical science are taught because it is one of the main lines which the creative spirit of man has followed in its development, and that if mathematics is taught in this way it will no longer be necessary to give the number of hours to the subject that are generally assumed to be necessary. (11) It remains for us to explain and justify these conclusions.

The broad principle which in our opinion should determine the lines of the mathematical teaching in schools has been admirably stated as follows:

'Mathematical truths always have two sides or aspects. With the one they face and have contact with the world of outer realities lying in time and space. With the other they face and have relations with one another. Thus the fact that equiangular triangles have proportional sides enables me to determine by drawing or calculation the height of an unscalable mountain peak 20 miles away. This is the first or outer aspect of that particular mathematical truth. On the other hand, I can deduce the truth itself with complete certainty from the assumed properties of congruent triangles. This is its second or inner aspect. The history of mathematics is a tale of ever-widening development on both these sides. From its dim beginnings by the Euphrates and the Nile mathematics has been on the one hand a means by which man has constantly increased his understanding of his environment and his power of manipulating it, and on the other hand a body of pure ideas, slowly growing and consolidating into a noble rational structure. Progress has brought about, and, indeed, has required, division of labour. A Lagrange or a Clerk Maxwell is chiefly concerned to enlarge the outer dominion of mathematics over matter; a Gauss or a Cantor seeks rather to perfect and extend the inner realm of order among mathematical ideas themselves. But these different currents of progress must not be thought of as independent streams. One has never existed and probably never will exist apart from the other. The view that they represent wholly distinct forms of intellectual activity is partial, unhistorical, and unphilosophical. A more serious charge against it is that it has produced an infinite amount of harm in the teaching of mathematics.

'Our purpose in teaching mathematics in school should be to enable the pupil to realise, at least in an elementary way, this two-fold significance of mathematical progress. A person, to be really "educated", should have been taught the importance of mathematics as an instrument of material conquests and of social organisation, and should be able to appreciate the value and significance of an ordered system of mathematical ideas. There is no need to add that mathematical instruction should also aim at "disciplining his mind" or giving him "mental training". So far as the ideals intended by these phrases are sound they are comprehended in the wider purpose already stated. Nor should we add a clause to safeguard the interests of those who are to enter the mathematical professions. The treatment of the subject prescribed by our principle is precisely the one which best supplies their special needs.' (12)

One result of this tendency in teaching is that subdivision of mathematics into different branches or subjects of study which has often been criticised, but still remains implicit both in the teaching and in the examinations for which pupils are prepared. We have already (13) deplored this separation of branches as distorting the characteristic architecture of mathematics. That the professional mathematician, more interested in the growth of his subject and the improvement of its technique, should find it most effective to develop a special group of allied topics by themselves, is only natural, but to present a branch of mathematics to the beginner with all its consequent formal elaboration of technique and divorced from other branches, is surely a mistake. It means on the one hand that important mathematical ideas are presented piecemeal and in so narrow a field that the pupil's conception of them lacks clarity. Thus, to take a simple example, the important ideas of ratio and proportion are usually first developed in arithmetic where their application is most limited, next developed in algebra where the treatment is almost entirely abstract, and only at long last in geometry where their utility first becomes really evident. How great would be the pupil's gain in clarity if these ideas were developed in all these fields at one time! On the other hand, it obscures the vital relationships of different branches, and postpones the beginnings of branches of great practical power so late that many pupils leave school before they reach them. Recognition of the utility of expressions for the tangent, sine and cosine of an angle emerges from very early applications of arithmetic to interesting geometrical problems, and as soon as the symbols for the trigonometrical ratios are found capable of use in a formula, they should be added to the vocabulary of algebra, and their subsequent development treated as a feature of algebra on the same footing as n [pi] or xⁿ. In the same way we hold that the ideas of the calculus, both differential and integral, should be reached through the graph and through the course in algebraical methods before the majority of pupils leave school, and that the mathematical ideas or topics which are included in the school course of study should be deliberately selected to make this possible.

We believe accordingly that the right way to introduce young pupils to mathematics is not to teach arithmetic, algebra, geometry, trigonometry etc as separate branches or facets, each with its own technical apparatus and methods, but to treat mathematics as a science in which the topics are chosen so as to develop a grasp of mathematical ideas, and that these topics should be suggested and introduced by the examination of practical questions which in their day have been of urgent interest and utility to man in his affairs. If these ideas are developed in their historical sequence and setting, we believe that they will be given a human value and meaning for pupils, and that pupils will acquire that sense of the purposefulness of mathematics without which it may so easily become little more than a dead language to many boys and girls. As we have said above (14) the 'problem method' should be the standard method of procedure in all early mathematical teaching.

Every mathematical idea develops its own appropriate tools, and every tool possesses its own technique. The expert in mathematics is necessarily a technician with a mastery of his tools. It is an essential part of the teaching in schools to equip its pupils with mathematical tools, and to give them sufficient practice with each so that they may handle them easily. Some of these tools are designed for use with a particular material - arithmetic, geometry etc - and it is obvious that pupils must for a time specialise in the use of a particular tool. Tools, however, become obsolete and better ones take their place; it has been well said that every advance in mathematics has been accompanied by the invention of new tools and by the liquidation of clumsier ones which have served their purpose. (15) There is little profit in spending much time in perfecting the command of a tool which will be rarely used in later years, and it is a mistake to delay the introduction of the newer and better tool which has replaced it. It is still usual to require a high standard of expertness in simple multiplication and division before the use of logarithm tables or the slide-rule is permitted in the mathematical lesson, though no craftsman would insist on proficiency in the use of the mediaeval bow-string lathe before allowing the use of the modern foot or power driven lathe that has taken its place. The assumption would seem to be that pupils must understand the underlying principle of the new tool before they use it. Few people would buy wireless sets if it were a condition of sale that they understood the scientific principles of their working. Confidence in the use and value of a tool comes, not from a knowledge of the principles of its construction, but from the ease and success with which it does the work which it is called upon to do. There is no need to postpone the use of logarithm and other mathematical tables until the principles of their construction have been taught, and we believe that the regular use of these tables, the slide-rule and the graph in the solution of real problems should begin earlier in schools than has been usual, and that they should be more systematically used.

Preoccupation with the mastery of particular tools, rather than mastery of the ideas for which they were devised, is responsible for another practice which we regard as mistaken. There are still examinations which set papers in particular branches of mathematics in which the conditions are limited to the use of tools peculiar to that branch. It is the mark of the technician that he knows the capabilities of all his tools. Pupils, almost from the start, should have complete liberty to choose the tool they prefer for a particular purpose, whether it be an algebraical or geometrical tool for a problem in number, or an arithmetical or algebraical tool for a problem in geometry.

In our Report on The Primary School (16) we outlined the topics which we recommended should be taught in these schools. In general, the grammar school may reasonably expect that boys and girls on admission at the age of 11 are able to deal competently with the addition, subtraction, multiplication and division of whole numbers, money, lengths, times, weights, and capacities and with the process of simple reduction, provided the quantities involved are not unduly large or complex; with vulgar fractions, provided the denominators are small; with the mensuration of rectangles and cuboids; with simple problems involving any of the foregoing processes. They will also have been introduced to the decimal notation, be able to add and subtract decimal fractions, and know the meaning of a percentage. (17)

The first objective of the grammar school will be the consolidation of this knowledge and its extension to decimals. For a short time this may occupy all the available time, but quite early the teaching should proceed to the introduction of new mathematical ideas or topics and spend some time in the development of each in turn. There are three ideas which claim precedence, not only because they arise naturally out of attempts to apply mathematical ideas to practical problems, but also because they are the necessary preliminary to other ideas that will be developed later. These are:

(a) The use of algebra as a symbolic language specially adapted for making statements of a numerical kind about matters with which the pupils are already more or less familiar, or, in other words, the use of the formula and the manipulation of the formula. (18) In the course of this manipulation, the arithmetical processes employed by the pupils for non-directed number will be extended to algebra.

(b) The clarification of spacial ideas which is the theme of geometry, through problems involving the determination of position and direction (19), and through questions of shape and size suggested by observation, handling and measurement of objects of regular shape, by the dimensioned sketch, the plan to scale and the construction of models, in the course of which the pupil will learn the use of the ordinary geometrical tools. The study of the cube, cylinder and sphere will make clear what mathematicians mean by surface, ruled surface and plane. Constructive work with strip-wood will establish the importance of the triangle in giving rigidity of shape, and suggest the importance of further study of triangles. Two other ideas should also be developed early, that of symmetry of form and of sameness of shape or similarity.

(c) The use of the graph as possessing something of the nature of a pictorial formula and as an important instrument of analysis and generalisation of which much use will be made later.

We do not propose to deal in detail with the further content of the course up to about the age of 16, since we have already indicated sufficiently the nature of the course which we should like to see adopted. The course will not aim at completeness in a limited sphere, it will not pursue the mastery of technique beyond what is required for use, but will endeavour in its choice of topics and ideas to show how man has faced and solved problems the solution of which was vital to his progress, and will take care to introduce the pupil to the tools which are most useful for the problems of today. It will ignore many topics which are still included in textbooks but have little value for any except the professional mathematician, and not always for him. But trigonometry and the calculus will no longer be sealed books for the majority of pupils in the schools.

We recognise that our proposals mean that much greater attention will be given to that side of mathematics which faces and has contact with the world of outer realities in time and space than is usually given in schools. This we regard as a vital necessity for the well-being of the subject. But we are also confident that our proposals will conduce to a much better understanding of mathematics as an ordered system of ideas than is possible under the present procedure. Except in geometry, few textbooks, and probably few teachers, explain or attempt to justify the order in which they introduce different topics, and there is no evident principle behind an order of algebraical topics in which 'ratio and proportion' follows 'the solution of quadratic equations' and is followed by 'the progressions'. When ideas are introduced in their historical setting it is possible to see how one idea grows out of other ideas in response to a realised want, and how ideas are fitted together and contribute to the gradual growth of a living structure. In one direction alone do we contemplate a lower standard than what is normal today, and that is in the ability to manipulate long and complicated algebraical and trigonometrical expressions and elaborate exercises in geometry. But this we contemplate with equanimity, recognising that there is already a consensus of opinion among teachers that this facility is only appropriate to the professional mathematician. The pupil with natural gifts for mathematics will have time and opportunity to acquire a greater measure of this skill than his less gifted fellows, while following a common course.

A few remarks on the traditional branches of mathematics may be added.

In the early stages of arithmetic, the main aim is to secure exactness when working with exact numbers. In later arithmetic where the data are often only approximate, the aim should be to secure the utmost reliable information from approximate data. Textbooks often stress the inverse of this: given exact data, find an approximate answer. Many of the commercial rules in the books are opposed to modern commercial practice; if included in the general course, the commercial methods should be adopted. Some simple treatment of statistics is desirable towards the end of the course.

In algebra far too much attention is given to the solution of equations; if equations are treated as examples in the change of subject in a formula, they will lose much of their triviality, and considerable time can be saved for more fruitful work. Pupils too often are introduced to graphs by examples which they can do more easily in other ways instead of by examples which they cannot work, and so fail to realise the value of the graph as a tool. Both algebra and trigonometry are clogged with exercises in pure technique of little practical interest or value.

Geometry is still dominated by the notion that it should be a deductive science, and by the use of a form of argument which is different from that employed in the sciences or in actual life. Only very few of the 'propositions' usually learnt have any importance except for the development of a logical sequence, and a drastic reduction in the number taught would leave time for more attention to solid geometry with a consequent improvement in the power of visualising a third dimension.

We think that we have said sufficient to show how the amount of time now given to mathematics may be reduced without loss to the value of the subject. We realise that there are serious difficulties in carrying our proposals to effect, both in finding teachers who are willing to abandon the traditional methods in which they have been brought up, and in the requirements of existing examinations. But we are convinced that a reform in mathematical teaching is long overdue. We look to university training departments and training colleges to do their best to make reform possible by training a generation of men and women who will be equipped and ready to lead the way.

Although we shall refer later to the education of those pupils who remain longer at school, we are here mainly concerned with pupils who leave about the age of 16, and with the kind of science which they ought to be taught. Physics and chemistry have been traditional. Science was introduced into the curriculum at a time when scientific inventions had focused public attention on man's physical and chemical environment, and had created a demand for instruction in physics and chemistry. Pupils who proceeded to the university automatically continued there the subjects they had begun at school, and on leaving the university taught the physics and chemistry which they had studied. But since that time the horizon has widened very considerably. Biology has attracted more and more attention, and is now recognised as being of fundamental importance to man in relation to medicine, nutrition, public health and the social services.

If science is to be a living subject, it must deal with the pupil's own experience and, on the basis of that experience, extend through interest his horizon. But courses in science have not corresponded with the extending interests of the pupils. The teaching of science has lost close touch with life itself and, for this reason, has often failed either to give the knowledge required or to stimulate the pupil's interest.

In the Report of the Elementary Science Sub-Committee of the Science Masters' Association, published in 1934, the subject is defined as 'a method of presenting the fundamental principles of science based on the interpretation to youth of the world in which he lives, involving not only an understanding of the fundamental principles, but also of the attitude and method of science generally. Science is here regarded as a living whole, comprehending all the sectional sciences necessary to give youth an intelligent understanding of his biological, chemical and physical surroundings.' As recently as 1937 the Interim Report of the Sub-Committee of the same association appointed to enquire into the teaching of general science defined it as 'a course of scientific study and investigation which has its roots in the common experience of children and does not exclude any of the fundamental special sciences. It seeks to elucidate the general principles observable in nature, without emphasising the traditional division into specialised subjects until such time as this is warranted by the developing unity of the separate parts of that field, and by the intellectual progress of the pupils.'

We believe that there is a general body of knowledge, not confined to either of the physical or biological fields of science, which ought to be known by the average citizen and also by those who may ultimately specialise in a particular part of one of these fields and that we should aim, in general, at giving to each boy and girl this minimum knowledge of both the physical and biological worlds. Nothing but the broadest outlines requires to be included, nor is the issue affected by the fact that some of these pupils may ultimately become specialists in any one field.

Science has been established too short a time in the curriculum for an enduring tradition to have grown up. A generation ago the methods employed may have been criticised on the grounds that there was too little practical work in the schools and that as a result the knowledge imparted fell a good deal short of reality. This may have been, in part, due to a shortage of well-qualified teachers, but a more important factor is to be found in the insufficient laboratory accommodation and equipment at that time. This condition has almost passed away, and all governing bodies now realise the necessity for ample provision of room and material for work in science, even if they have not always provided it. Today critics of existing science courses complain that the content is too small, and the range covered is too narrow to be regarded as satisfactory; too often the boy or girl is, in effect, restricted to a single-subject course, mainly in physics or chemistry or botany. In more recent years a wider course in biology has replaced botany and some little chemistry may even be added, but in many schools, especially boys' schools, there is still little beyond physical science, and this is too often restricted to chemistry together with some sections of physics. The investigators of the School Certificate examination criticised the scope of the examination syllabus very freely in 1931, and these criticisms have in general been endorsed by the teaching profession. The Science Masters' Association, after very full discussion, have adopted the view that, for children up to the age of 16, science should be taught on a much broader basis, and the committee of the association has produced a report to give further precision to the ideas connoted by the term 'general science'. (20) This section of our Report is intended as a contribution to the solution of that problem.

Among the chief aims to be sought in the teaching of science in schools, we suggest the following:

(i) It should give pupils some knowledge of the natural laws which operate in the universe and of their application. This is an appeal to wonder and to interest, as well as to utility.

(ii) As a complement to historical studies, it should reveal the influence of scientific thought and achievement in the evolution of our present day civilisation and perhaps even more important, it should indicate its possibilities, for good and evil alike, in the future of the human race. The appeal here is to social interest and social utility.

(iii) It should give children an introduction to scientific methods of thought and investigation. This appeal is essentially one to the intellect and, in so far as it is achieved. science takes the place of the mediaeval study of logic.

If this be accepted the science syllabus should be drawn very widely indeed, and the acquisition of a body of knowledge on a number of topics becomes at least as important as an appreciation of the methods of science. The great difficulty facing teachers is that of selecting from the multitude of topics available. We suggest that for a syllabus to be effective it must succeed at every stage in stimulating the interest and imagination of the pupils. This, we suggest, is best achieved when it is linked with something within the experience of the child. It is, therefore, most desirable to adapt the syllabus to the local environment. The syllabus should aim at imparting a knowledge of both the physical and biological worlds in which the children live.

Under the heading of physical science, astronomy, physics (including mechanics), chemistry and possibly geology, have claims for a place in the syllabus. No course of science can be taken to be satisfactory unless it includes some idea of the nature of the earth, its place in the universe, and its relation to other bodies therein; in other words a little astronomy. Ordinary day school conditions impose certain limits on night observations, and practical work may have to be confined to day observations (which frequently form part of the geography course), work with an orrery, and possibly to the use of stellar maps. We have, however, primarily only in mind such an outline of knowledge as can be given with the assistance of good popular works on astronomy well illustrated with plates. (21)

We consider geology next, partly because it can be dealt with in small compass, and partly because the consideration of it falls most naturally after discussion of astronomy.

We think that children, by the age of 16, should have become familiar with the main geological features of their neighbourhood and should have acquired a reasonable knowledge of the relation of geological formation to scenery. The extent to which geology and astronomy are taken in the geography or the science course is a matter of internal school organisation. It is important that they should be taken seriously in one or other.

Physics

(a) Properties of matter One of the first things necessary for any work in science is an acquaintance with the different forms of matter. This topic, therefore, which is almost invariably placed first in any syllabus, must come quite early in any science course. Under this heading a generous treatment of the different and differentiating properties of solids, liquids, and gases should be given. By the time children have reached the age of 16 they should know the essential differences between these three states of matter, not excluding (as is so often the case) a first-hand knowledge of the phenomena of surface tension. We would like to emphasise the importance of a much wider scope than the conventional work, which is so often limited to rather dull mensuration culminating in equally dull work on the subject of 'density.' Once a knowledge of the various properties of the three different states of matter has been obtained, their passage from one to another bringing in the phenomena of fusion, solidification, vaporisation, condensation, and sublimation, should be dealt with together with applications of these phenomena in human life. (22)

(b) The laws of motion By the time the pupil has reached the age of 16 he should have a first-hand knowledge of the fundamental laws of motion. This does not mean a rigorous treatment of traditional 'mechanics'; that subject is more suited to the mathematician, and for those who pursue a more formal course in addition to 'general science'. It does not seem unreasonable to expect pupils to have such a knowledge of mechanics as will give them clear ideas of the technical meanings of the terms pressure, force, energy and friction; and of actual machines by which man is able to use natural forces for his own purposes. Further, a boy or girl should come to know that no machine exists which produces even as much energy as is put into it.

(c) Other forms of energy - heat, light, sound, electricity - have all a strong claim for qualitative or roughly quantitative treatment. The syllabus, however, should be relieved of much unnecessary lumber which has accumulated largely through the influence of examinations, and of textbooks which have not kept pace with the resources and outlook of the schools. For example, while it is important that pupils should understand what is meant by a quantity of heat and should have a fairly clear idea of latent and specific heats and of vapour pressures, they might give much less attention than has become conventional to laboratory experiments on expansion and on calorimetry. Whilst the transference of heat by conduction, convection and radiation is important, more stress should be given to radiation, upon which a number of fundamental experiments can be shown. It will not be possible to deal with the mechanical equivalent of heat at this stage, but it is possible to show - qualitatively - the conversion of heat into other forms of energy and vice versa. At all stages the subject should be dealt with in relation to everyday applications, and in this connection it may be suggested that the production of cold and the use of refrigerators have so far received less attention than they deserve.

(d) Sound Sound has so far not been a popular subject in the schools. It demands for its proper exposition apparatus which is rather bulky, and which does not lend itself to individual practical work. Nevertheless it is possible to introduce children to the conception of wave motion and vibration by means of simple experiments.

(e) Light Two things in connection with light might be demonstrated at the outset (i) that it appears to travel in straight lines and (ii) that closer investigation shows that it does not. A dramatic introduction on these lines to the subject of interference prepares a child for considering light as a wave motion. This is one of the great points to be achieved when dealing with light, and the other common phenomena of refraction, reflection, dispersion and the phenomena of colour can all be dealt with fairly quickly in an experimental fashion. We suggest that it is not important up to the age of 16 that boys and girls should work equations involving u, v, and f, and even [symbol for the Greek letter m - beyond my ability to render in HTML!], but it is important that they should know how a lens works, and in what circumstances they would use a long, and in what a short focus lens. We might even expect them to know by the time they come to use a camera what is meant by mystic figures like f/11. This is very rarely known today by pupils who can solve quite difficult problems involving u, v, and f. The velocity of light is a story which might be shortly told.

(f) Electricity In electricity pupils should have a qualitative knowledge of the thermal, chemical and electromagnetic effects of a current and of their applications in modern life. Such phenomena in electrostatics and magnetism as are relevant to these ends might be included, and, at any rate in schools or courses giving more than the minimum time to science, qualitative work should be undertaken so far as to give precision to the commoner units used in ordinary life, volt, ampere, ohm and watt. More advanced topics, such as the essential differences between direct current and alternating current and the principles of wireless communication, should receive where possible a popular treatment by means of lecture demonstrations.

Chemistry

The present practice in the schools is to take pupils through a course of non-metallic inorganic chemistry with little regard to the applications of the subject to ordinary human life.

We think therefore that schools should experiment with courses designed to show how man has made use of the products of the earth and we see no objection to the statement of the atomic theory as a postulate - which will be investigated at the 16-18 stage by those who pursue science at that stage. The experimental study of water, of air, of combustion (and fuels of various kinds) must all claim a place, whilst the various minerals or other substances obtained from the earth and their more important compounds should also be studied.

We should like to see experiments in teaching the properties of the simpler and commoner organic substances and processes on the lines already followed in some American schools, eg the processes of fermentation and saponification should find a place in the course.

Biology

However well physics and chemistry may be taught, a child should get something more out of the teaching of science than these two subjects can bring. That something more can be obtained by a study of biology. Considerable progress has been made, especially in girls' schools, but there is still a long way to go before we can say that its possibilities have been fully apprehended, let alone fully utilised. In the earlier years of the course we suggest that the approach should be through natural history. While they are yet young, children should be taught to recognise quickly and to know the names of as many of the plant inhabitants of their area as possible. We think that this should be done much more systematically than is generally the case, and this kind of knowledge and recognition need not be limited to the flowering types. The animal creation should be similarly known, but probably to a smaller extent.

In later years the centre of interest will shift to a study of the general characteristics of living organisms, and the various life processes - metabolism, respiration, sensitivity, movement, reproduction - and to the interrelation between different groups of organisms. In dealing with these the instances studied should be drawn both from plant and from animal life, and often from the human organism, where this is suitable.

The foregoing bare outline of suggestions is clearly not a syllabus, still less does it suggest the order in which the many various topics might be taken. Teaching syllabuses, in which the various topics are arranged according to the maturity of the class, are needed in each school, and probably in no two schools are they, or should they be, quite the same. In making our selection of topics we have covered a very wide range and we risk the criticism that the range is too wide. What we wish to secure in all courses of science is that the full and rich potentiality of natural science in the whole world of phenomena should be realised. We must emphasise the justice of the current revolt from the conventional practice of beginning the study of science by means of elementary courses in one or two subjects, eg physics or chemistry or botany, which are often in no way related.

Science will, we believe, make its best contribution if early specialisation in any one branch is avoided. The course should be 'general', beginning as 'nature study' in name, and remaining so in fact at least for the first two or three years, and for many up to the age of 16, the term 'nature' being interpreted in the widest possible sense to include the whole range of natural phenomena. On the other hand we recognise that with boys or girls who show scientific ability, elementary formal courses in one or two sciences might advantageously be begun at about the age of 14.

We foresee, and try to meet in advance, two criticisms. The first is that such a course may prejudice the future careers of those who will later become specialists in some branch of science. We do not believe that more specialisation than we have indicated is either necessary or desirable before the age of 16, and we believe that it is desirable before children settle down to the formal study of certain branches of science that they should first be given a bird's-eye view of the wider field.

The second criticism is that there is insufficient time to cover the field. This, we believe, depends more largely than is generally realised upon making better use of the time allotted to science, as was indeed suggested in the Report on Natural Science in Education, commonly known as the Report of Sir JJ Thomson's Committee. (23) Much of the time, we believe, now spent in 'experimental work' could be better employed. The term is commonly used to denote practical work in a laboratory, done by the pupils themselves. Much of this might with advantage be done by the teacher as demonstration. In this way a larger variety of experimental work, covering more ground and carried out more accurately and skilfully, will provide more data over a wider variety of topics than is possible where the only, or the main, experimental work is done by the pupils. By a greater use of good demonstration we believe that science teachers will more commonly stimulate wonder and imagination.

We realise that such a change in methods of teaching makes even more imperative than ever the necessity for the provision of adequate skilled laboratory assistance. We understand from our witnesses that many schools are not so provided, and we endorse the view that, if we are to do more than lip service to science teaching, this assistance must be provided universally.

We have referred to the Report of Sir JJ Thomson's Committee (1918). Though more than 20 years have elapsed since that report was written there is no reason to dissent from its general doctrine. In one particular indeed we feel it necessary to emphasise the views then expressed by the Committee. In Section 56 the Committee says:

'There is a tendency at present in some cases to discourage boys from reading anything about their science work except the notes which they take in class and in the laboratory. We consider that this policy is most pernicious. If a boy is interested in his subject he will naturally wish to read about it and should be encouraged to do so. A part of the time given to preparation, which is now often devoted to the mere transcription of laboratory notes, might be spent in this way, and boys should have access to good scientific books suitable to the stage of knowledge reached. The practice of discouraging private reading is responsible for the tendency, which has become more noticeable in recent years, for students of science at the universities to rely entirely on the instruction they get in lectures. Some of them seem to have lost any desire to read for themselves and for want of practice lack the ability to use books to any advantage. Boys who have acquired the habit of reading books of science when at school are more likely to keep alive in after-life their knowledge and interest in the subject.'

Probably many schools which would like to adopt syllabuses on a broader basis than that of the existing specialised work in the single subjects may find it difficult to do so because of the lack of teachers with sufficiently wide previous training. In the future it is to be hoped, perhaps expected, that intending teachers of science will be able to select at their universities courses which are wide, in place of the single subject courses which so many have hitherto followed. The present university requirements in the way of an advanced knowledge of mathematical and experimental physics or of chemistry are now becoming so highly specialised for those who intend to use these subjects in the research and design departments of modern industrial concerns, that it is very doubtful whether such courses can be made suitable at the same time for the intending science teacher unless he contemplates only sixth form work.

We are, therefore, of opinion that degree-giving courses which involve the knowledge of at least three sciences, such as already exist at certain universities, ought to exist more widely, since it is likely that there will be an effective demand for such courses if our recommendations are adopted.

The younger generation of existing teachers should, it may be suggested, find it possible and advantageous to broaden their science interests. The conferment of a degree finishes no man's education, and the younger generation of teachers may be expected to add to their knowledge and interests by attending courses which are already available, or can be made available, in most parts of the country, either as extramural students at universities or at technical colleges and institutes. In general the need will be for men teachers to add biology to their qualifications in physical science, and for women to add physical science to their existing qualifications in a biological subject. Older teachers, often with other claims on their time, may find it more difficult to extend their horizon in this way, but instances are not rare where, by means of special courses conducted by the Board of Education or by other bodies, a teacher has been stimulated to make a start in a new subject, and subsequent unhurried study by a mature mind has resulted in this, rather than the subject of the degree, becoming the dominant interest in his life.

We believe that, in the main, the science teachers of the country may be relied upon to adapt themselves, by one or other of these means or by a combination of them, to new courses of work, if they are convinced of the desirability of the change.

We recognise that in many cases our recommendations must involve teachers being seconded for courses of training and we feel sure that local education authorities and governing bodies will cooperate readily.

Finally we would urge that, both in the wider courses in the universities and in the special short supplementary courses, there should be a greater emphasis on experimental demonstration of natural phenomena in addition to laboratory experiments. This is vital to our conception of science teaching in schools, and we feel that in many cases the emphasis has been inadequate.

In some cases teachers have not been given the opportunity of seeing many demonstrations during their training, and in some cases the actual teaching hours are so great that they have not the time necessary for the proper preparation of experiments. We feel that the latter important point in particular demands recognition, and that in all such cases provision should be made for laboratory and lecture-table assistance. The presence or absence of adequate help of this kind may often make all the difference between the success or failure of science teaching.

Footnotes

(1) The School Certificate examination (1932). HM Stationery Office. pp. 72-3.

(2) The achievement of this aim is much rarer and much more difficult than is commonly realised, and there is a real necessity both for the careful training of teachers and further research into methods.

(3) For a full discussion of the French methods of teaching composition see especially Ch. Ill of Sir Philip Hartog's book The Writing of English (1907).

(4) The technique of 'appreciation', which is a fascinating one, cannot be discussed here. In general, criticism and appreciation should go hand in hand (or there will be no firm foundation for the latter), and a reasoned appraisement of the merits of an author is more valuable than unbalanced adulation or petty fault finding. A good approach to this objective is the comparison of two or more closely similar or strongly contrasted passages.

(5) See Chapter 4, Section 32.

(6) Sir Philip Hartog Secondary School Examinations and the Curricula of Secondary Schools (1937).

(7) There are signs that the practice of the preparatory schools may be modified in a not too distant future.

(8) Some passages of mediaeval and renascence prose, and some Latin hymns, might well be shown to pupils to give them an idea of the part which Latin has played in history.

(9) See Chapter 4, Section 24.

(10) In the years 1933-35, less than 3.5 per cent of the candidates taking the School Certificate examination offered Greek, as compared with 41.5 per cent offering Latin and 95.5 per cent offering French.

(11) An examination of a large number of school timetables shows that mathematics stands easily first in the amount of time allotted to it, and that it is usual to give from five to seven periods per week to mathematics, while some schools give as many as nine periods.

(12) Nunn The Teaching of Algebra (1914), pp. 16-17.

(13) See Chapter 4, Section 16.

(14) See Chapter 4, Section 18.

(15) cf. L Hogben Mathematics for the Million (1936), p. 26.

(16) The Primary School (1931), Chapter 12.

(17) See Board of Education: Educational Pamphlet No. 101 Senior School Mathematics (1934), pp. 10-11.

(18) It is of fundamental importance that from the start pupils should be trained always to associate the formula and the result of any manipulation of the formula with the realities for which it stands, and the teaching should constantly refer back to these realities.

(19) These problems will naturally lead to a description, and possibly to the use, of the tools employed by craftsmen in their work, eg the spirit level and plumb-line.

(20) The Teaching of General Science London, John Murray (1936).

(21) Lantern slides and the use of the epidiascope assist in giving further information about the sun, the planets, fixed stars, nebulae; and towards the end of the science course, the use of the spectrum in astronomical research.

(22) This too would be a very convenient stage to deal with the nature of crystals, and to show some of their beauty.

(23) Natural Science in Education HM Stationery Office (1918).