Thirdly, it is important that each Park Naturalist develop a broad perspective of educational methods, and I greatly fear that many of us who received our training in science have had to learn by experience many of the principles which are clearly stated to students receiving their training in the field of academic education. An understanding of these principles of organized education is vital and I believe that each one of us should make it his duty to investigate this field, if he has not already done so. It is not only necessary for us to understand the principles of academic education but also vital that we understand principles of the new fields in which we are pioneering. One of the major objectives of this conference is to clearly define for ourselves the principles of each of our educational activities. It may be necessary to eliminate the discussion of certain details as they apply to individual parks, but the understanding of the principles involved is essential.
There is the fourth kind of perspective which each Park Naturalist should endeavor to develop personally, and that is a perspective of human nature, which will enable him to sympathetically understand each park visitor whom his organization serves. We might call this field “public psychology” but I believe that it is even broader and is more nearly expressed by the phrase “sympathetic human understanding” with all that this may imply.
Let us, then, plunge into the work before us with the idea that the coming month will be spent in developing a perspective of our work as a whole and in each individual field in which our endeavors lie.
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