Under The Microscope

NEW ZEALAND BIOLOGY SKILLS SERIES by George Hook and Brent Ingram; illustrated by Geraldine Sloane; New House Publishers & User Friendly 1990; 48 pages each; $11.00

I taught biology once -- badly -- by keeping two pages ahead in the textbook. The pupils wrote lots of notes, but none of us would have recognised a quadrat, an objective lens or a kite graph if it had bitten us on the ankle.

None of us had the skills to enjoy biology.

Now there are four new books of biological skills, as distinct from biology itself, with splendidly clear instructions. These are Field Techniques, such as setting transect lines; Research Skills, such as tracking down abstracts; Data Handling, such as ensuring that the dependent variable goes up the y-axis; and Laboratory Skills, such as ensuring that the microscope does not plummet through the slide. It all makes perfect sense. Why was Training College never like this?

The biology skills series are a bargain, and include skills shared with other subjects in the school syllabus. Let us hope that the physics, chemistry and earth science equivalents are on their way.

Ken McAllister