courses they are called upon to teach. It would appear that a wider range of teaching experience is desirable in the training programs of many land-grant institutions.

Conference with Student Teachers

The number of group conferences held per month with student teachers ranges from one to five; the typical practice is one per week. The number of group conferences is fewest in large city public high schools or in situations in which student teachers are widely dispersed among the public schools used for practice.

The number of individual conferences held per week with each student teacher ranges from one to five; the typical practice is one or two per week. Since in an individual conference the supervising teacher functions to best advantage in her work with student teachers, any situation is unfortunate that does not admit of such conferences at the time each unit of practice class work is presented. It is not always necessary that long conferences be held, but certainly any significant major activity on the part of the student teacher is worthy of the direction and attention of the supervising teacher.

In large institutions a great number of student teachers must be handled at times. It is difficult for the supervisor to visit student teachers often unless they are concentrated in one school. At times the training facilities are severely strained even of institutions ordinarily provided with excellent provisions for practice. Hence considerable flexibility in local arrangements are sometimes necessary. Permanent crowding of practice classes, however, is rarely if ever necessary.

Formal Written Lesson Plans

Of 38 institutions reporting on the type of lesson plans required, one-fourth require formal written plans in less than 10 per cent of the practice work. More than one-half require such lesson plans in 40 per cent or more of the practice work. The tendency during recent years has been to decrease the number of formal written lesson plans that cover the work in minute detail. While practically all class work in the training schools should be thoroughly prepared and planned, a teacher who is really familiar with her material usually finds that a few well-planned notes, questions, illustrations, and similar material serve her purpose, especially during the close of the student teaching courses. While the supervisor must know at all times whether the preparation of the teacher is thorough, there are better means to do this than by inspection of detailed written plans that may serve only to conceal lack of preparation.

The supervisory practice of using detailed rating scales for each practice class is rather infrequently reported. Self-rating by the

student occasionally is reported a helpful procedure. Perhaps half the institutions construct and use their own self-rating scales for student teachers, often adapting existing forms to their own purposes.

Training-School Pupils

The percentage of actual teaching of practice classes which is done by student teachers is, on the whole, too high in land-grant institutions. The welfare of the pupils in training schools must be safeguarded. It is recommended in the standards of the American Association of Teachers Colleges that at least two-fifths of the teaching in training schools should be done by regular teachers of the training school, or by regular members of the institutional faculty. This is desirable in order to provide for proper continuity of the work of training pupils, for their instruction by experienced teachers, and to insure confidence on the part of parents relative to the training school program. In the typical' land-grant institution, 70 per cent of actual teaching of practice classes is done by student teachers. It is recommended that provisions be made, whereby at least 40 per cent of the actual teaching of practice classes be done by experienced teachers. At present more than half of the land-grant institutions do not reach this standard in one or more of their training schools.

Conclusions

Numerous difficult and pressing problems await solution in the upbuilding of student teaching facilities and practices in land-grant institutions. Among many needs, three may be especially stressed. First, is the lack of properly trained demonstration and supervising teachers. Only by material salary increases, careful selection of staff, and professional recognition of such teachers by the institution can this need be met.

A second pressing need in a number of institutions is for a campus school, better public-school practice facilities, or increased provisions for both. Only in part is the meeting of this need beyond the power of the land-grant institutions. They can not establish more public schools but they can provide means either to take the student teachers to available schools, or to bring training pupils to the institution.

A third major need is for the coordination of the general control of observation and practice activities. Dispersed teacher-training units working apart from each other, lack of sympathy with or understanding of the training school' program by regular technical, academic, or even professional education instructors, the use of widely separated public schools for training, and a variety of other conditions render most desirable the establishment of some office or authority, such as that of director of training with power to coordinate and direct student teaching throughout the institution.

Chapter XII.-Improvement of Instruction

The procedure whereby teacher-training personnel and officials may be of service in the improvement of instruction within the institution as a whole is varied. Numerous local factors determine the success or failure of any programs undertaken. The activities which are most commonly undertaken, with some estimate of the results secured, are indicated in Table 44.

TABLE 44.-Activities undertaken by teacher-training units for the improvement of instruction within the institutions as a whole1

Offer regular courses in subjects in education, which are attended by faculty
members.

Advise with general faculty in meetings devoted to improvement of instruction..
Bring to the institution outside lecturers or experts in the field of education
Advise with or participate in activities of faculty committee(s) appointed to
formulate and conduct programs of improvement

Assist and advise in cooperative research on instructional problems.

Offer individual reports, by members of the teacher-training staff, on problems
of instruction.
Offer special courses in subjects in education primarily for faculty members..
Organize or lead discussion groups..

Assist in determining minimum qualifications of candidates for teaching posi-
tions within the institution.

Direct actual class visitation by qualified individuals.

1 Other means, all undertaken with excellent or worth-while results, are mentioned by one or more institutions. Typical among these are: Conducting psychological tests among students throughout the institution, informally creating respect for study of teaching problems, and furnishing of faculty members with reading material and advice relative to their teaching problems.

The improvement of instruction within the teacher-training units themselves should be a matter of constant concern both to teachertraining staff members and officers within such units. A constant check should be maintained upon the validity and practicality of materials, teaching skills, and attitudes presented and taught by teacher trainers. Neither the colleagues of the education staff nor prospective teachers have much faith in principles or theories that even teacher trainers themselves can not reduce to practice. A most important means of teacher training and improvement of instruction is by practical demonstration.

The means undertaken to improve instruction in the teacher-training units themselves and the results secured are shown in the following table:

TABLE 45.-Activities undertaken for the improvement of instruction within the teacher-training units1

Organize discussion groups within teacher-training division (s) ..
Provide for individual reports on problems of instruction, by members of
teacher-training staff..

7

Engage lecturers or outside speakers for service to the teacher-training staff. Provide for conferences and consultations with outside experts on teachertraining problems.

130

14

1

10

Offer regular courses in education which are attended by members of the teacher-training staff..

Plan cooperative research between teacher-training departments.
Provide for actual class-room visitation by qualified individuals.

Offer special courses in subjects in education for members of the teacher-training staff.

1 Other means undertaken with excellent or worth-while results, are mentioned by one or more institutions: Specialist in research provided staff members; provisions made for regular attendance at professional conferences and associations; college and departmental staff meetings; constant informal discussions of effective teaching held within the education faculty and with cooperating teachers; student questionnaires on faculty teaching utilized; and submission to dean of education of outlines of courses; these are informally discussed by faculty.

Apparently the most successful activities undertaken for the improvement of instruction in teacher-training units are the organization of discussion groups on professional problems, the provision for individual study and reports on problems of instruction, and tilization of outside authorities for service to the teacher-training staff, either for lectures or for conference and consultations. Local conditions determine, to a large extent, the success or failure of the activities undertaken. Usually when the administrative setting is favorable, and adequate professional leadership supplied, favorable results are reported.

Class Size

Typical among purely administrative means for the improvement of instruction is the regulation of the size of classes. The size of class sections in professional education courses is shown in Table 46. It will be noted that 235 class sections have enrollment of from one to four. This constitutes 8.3 per cent of all class sections for which reports were received. The teacher-training units in which the largest percentage of class sections with such enrollments are agricultural education, industrial education, and physical education for men, including athletic coaching, with percentages of 16.6, 14.8, 14.2, respectively. Limited numbers in classes are desirable when the

teacher must do much work with individual students. This fact, however, does not constitute sufficient reason for the large number of class sections reported with the very low enrollment indicated. In some institutions with small enrollments, it is difficult to see how the situation can be remedied if teacher training is to be undertaken at all in certain units; but in many institutions the number of small class sections could be cut down by the use of commonly known devices, such as alternation of courses, abandonment of relatively unnecessary courses, or abandonment of overly ambitious programs of expansion. Reference to Table 5 (p. 124) will show a surprisingly extensive list of objectives on the part of the land-grant institutions. Unjustified programs of expansion often lead to unduly small classes as well as to other troubles.

More than one-fourth of the general education and the publicschool music classes have enrollments of 40 or more. Thirty-six classes were reported in general education with enrollments of 100 or more. Next in order among teacher-training units with classes of 40 or more are commercial education, physical education for men, and physical education for women. The greatest extremes in class size occur in physical education for men.