In like manner to experience that ice is cold is trivial in comparison
with experiencing its preservative effects as seen in cold storage or
its medicinal effects in certain diseases; to know that soda is white
would be trivial in comparison with a knowledge of its properties in
baking.

=Man Should Participate in Valuable Experiences.=--Of the three forms of
human reaction, instinctive, habitual, and conscious, or ideal, it is
evident that, owing to its rational character, ideal reaction is not
only the most effective, but also the only one that will enable man to
adjust himself to unusual situations. For this reason, and because of
the difference in value of experiences themselves, it is further evident
that man should participate in those experiences which are most
effective in facilitating desired adjustments or in directing right
conduct. It is found, moreover, that this participation can be effected
by bringing the child's experiencing during his early years directly
under control. It is held by some, indeed, that the whole aim of
education is to reconstruct and enrich the experiences of the child and
thereby add to his social efficiency. Although this conception of
education leaves out of view the effects of instinctive and habitual
reaction, it nevertheless covers, as we shall see later, no small part
of the purpose of formal education.


INFLUENCE OF CONSCIOUS REACTION

=A. On Instinctive Action.=--Before concluding our survey of the various
forms of reaction, it may be noted that both instinctive and habitual
action are subject to the influence of conscious reaction. As a child's
early instinctive acts develop into fixed habits, his growing knowledge