Grades in per

Pupils may get lessons day after day and still fail to acquire such a mastery of the subject that will give them real power in it. For all but the best three or four students of the class, time spent outside of the recitation period in preparation of a textbook lesson was practically wasted. No better example of the ineffectiveness of home and outside study, for the average or poor high school student, has ever come under the observation of the writer.

In the face of such a situation we felt justified in taking a radical departure from the customary practice and in endeavoring to develop a more effective teaching technique. The most valuable helps in this development have come from a course, taken at Chicago University under Professor Henry C. Morrison, entitled "Principles of Technique of High School Instruction," and from a study of the system that has been in use at New Haven, Connecticut, during the last ten years.

In the first place, the requirement of the preparation of lessons in the descriptive text was discontinued. Two double

No. 3. COMPARISON OF MID-SEMESTER AVERAGES FOR FIRST

AND SECOND SEMESTER

periods, eighty minutes, were used every day and no work outside of class was required. The different chemistry texts and the books related to chemistry were withdrawn from the school library, and were placed upon a table in the chemistry

room.

A topical analysis was made of the material yet to be covered in the course and each topic was taught as a whole. Under each topic, the minimum essentials, which all must master, were determined. In general, each topic was taken up in the following

manner,

Each new topic was opened by a short lecture, by the teacher. The object of this introduction was: (1) to connect the new topic with what the pupil already knew about the subject; (2) to give necessary information so that the pupils would attack the topic properly and without the loss of valuable time; (3) to arouse interest by giving information concerning the practical applications of the principles involved and by making reference to things of historical interest in connection with the topic; (4) to agree upon an outline of the minimum essentials which every one must master.

If the teacher puts much study upon his part in the introduction, it can be made very effective. This is the teacher's opportunity and he must be prepared and alive to the situation. If this introduction is not well in hand, it will likely do more harm than good.

Next came an exhaustive study of the topic in laboratory work and in supervised study. No formal recitation work was at1 tempted during this time and this stage generally lasted severa

days. The course was really an exhaustive study of the laboratory work.

As a general thing, this assimilation period was started by beginning with the laboratory work. Some, however, preferred to read a little on the topic before starting the experiments. As the laboratory work proceeded, definite references were given to pages and sections of the various texts bearing upon. every phase of the topic under discussion. During the laboratory work and after its completion, exhaustive reference work

was done by each student, using the references as a guide. Such references often showed them the necessity of doing part, and sometimes all, of their laboratory work over. Reference was given to any theory that was necessary for a thorough understanding of the topic. Hessler and Smith's laboratory guide was used for laboratory work because each pupil had a copy of this text.

All experiments were written up under three heads: (1) what was done; (2) what happened; (3) an explanation of why it happened. Part one was a reference to directions given in the laboratory guide and included any alterations or additional directions given by the instructor. Part two was made up of very brief sentences giving just what was seen in the experiment. Part three was a lengthy discussion of the reactions that took place and included the equations for all reactions.

When the student had finished writing up the experiment it was generally gone over by the instructor immediately. Often the pupil and instructor went over the paper together. In this way mistakes that needed correcting were pointed out and corrected immediately.

A list of important questions and problems were made out for each topic, and these were worked through in supervised study. When the topic had been mastered, or nearly mastered, the students filled in the outline, formerly agreed upon, as a brief or syllabus. After the briefs had been completed, an examination, covering every phase of the topic, was given. The papers from this examination were immediately graded and the points upon which there was still haziness as shown by the test, were gone over again in class. Then the briefs were reviewed with the idea of getting ready for a real recitation.

By this time every one had something to recite about. In this phase of the work each pupil made an oral recitation upon some topic, or subtopic, requiring a rather lengthy discussion. At the end of each recitation, the other members of the class had the liberty to ask the pupil, who had just recited, questions, to correct him, or to make an additional contribution to the topic under discussion. Sometimes the skeletonized outline was placed on the board and the pupils recited from it. Fundamental problems, bearing upon the topic, were solved in full on the board by some members of the class and a detailed explanation given as their contribution to the recitation period. The number of mathematical problems, however, was reduced to the minimum.

This form of recitation affords one of the best opportunities to give training in good oral English expression.

By referring to graph No. 3 we see that by the middle of the second semester the grades were being improved. At this time the class had an average of 87% against an 80% average at the middle of the first semester. It is interesting to note that in only three cases were the averages at the middle of the second semester lower than the averages of the same students at the middle of the first semester. This can be satisfactorily explained by the fact that these three were not able to attend class for the regular double period of work but attended only one period at the regular class time and worked another period later in the day. This put them at a disadvantage and made it impossible for them to get the full benefit of the new technique.

Graph No. 2 shows that the results from the mid-semester examinations compare much more favorably with the class grades. All tests during the year were built with the idea of testing their understanding of fundamental principles and ability to use them. The results at the middle of the second semester tend to show that understanding and power were being gained much better than during the first semester.

The final grades for the two semesters, as shown in graph No. 4, indicate that much better results were obtained during the second semester. In only two cases, No. 5 and No. 12, were the averages lower for the second semester than for the first. It will be noted that these were two of the three who could not attend class for the regular two periods of work. The other pupil, No. 7, who was thus handicapped made the same average score for each semester. The total class average for the first semester was 81.7% and for the second semester 89.1%. As far as grades were concerned, we see that the change in technique was entirely worth while. Let us look briefly at some of the other advantages that came from the change.

One of the main benefits of the change was the fact that the teacher had control of the learning situation at all times. For the weaker students this meant a change from discouragement to a consciousness of the fact that they really could learn chemistry. This brought a new interest to the subject and the requests to work in the laboratory at vacant study periods and after school became frequent. While no outside work was required, much of it was done on special topics and several reports of results of outside study were voluntarily given to the class. Student No.

4, a very unpromising lad during the first semester, made requests at three different times during the second semester to report to the class the results of special work done. This work upon special topics was given to those who completed the work upon the assigned topic sooner than some others. Some qualitative analysis was taken up during the second semester and students had an unknown at hand upon which to work when they had completed the work, upon the regular assignment, earlier than some others in the class. This makes the course elastic enough that the weak and strong student will each get the proper amount of work. In this connection, it is interesting to note that students No. 1, 3, 4, and 11 who were low during the first semester, each completed as many unknowns as any member of the class.

The distinguishing features of our change in technique are: (1) the abolition of required home, or outside study; (2) the adoption of a longer period for class work; (3) the abolition of the assigned lesson from a text book to be prepared at home or in the study hall and hashed over in recitation; (4) the basing of the entire course upon an extensive laboratory and reference study of certain units of subject matter; (5) a topical analysis of the course, at the beginning, into teachable units and the mastery of each unit as a whole.

THE VALUE OF VALENCE AND WHEN TO TEACH IT.1

E. E. RADEMACHER,
Nokomis, Ill.

In chemistry as in other science there are, in the main, two things to be considered: Method and results. There is no doubt an enormous mass of facts from which we have to select the indispensable things for the beginner, and again there is the general procedure or method by which those facts have been ascertained.

First: The real value of valence to the student.

It is not my object to discuss this part of the question as fully and in such detail as the second part of the question. The writers of chemistry texts do in general agree as to the value of valence although some give to this subject more space than others. No text gives enough drill on this important subject.

Valence is not a fact. It is an attempt to arrange the facts of our science according to the idea of combining power, just as books are classified in a library to subjects. One of its chief values is to assist the student in becoming familiar with the Read at the University of Illinois Conference, November, 1921.