matter of patient and extensive investigation. We must say, then, that
we have only the beginnings of a science of education. The problems
which a science of education must solve are almost wholly psychological
problems. They could not be solved till we had a science of psychology.
Experimental psychology is but a half-century old; educational
psychology, less than a quarter-century old. In the field of education,
the science of psychology may expect to make its most important
practical contribution. Let us, then, consider very briefly the problems
of educational psychology.

=Educational Psychology.= Educational psychology is that division of
psychology which undertakes to discover those aspects of human nature
most closely related to education. These are (1) the original nature of
the child--what it is and how it can be modified; (2) the problem of
acquiring and organizing experience--habit-formation, memory, thinking,
and the various factors related to these processes. There are many
subordinate problems, such as the problem of individual differences and
their bearing on the education of subnormal and supernormal children.
Educational psychology is not, then, merely the application of
psychology to education. It is a distinct science in itself, and its aim
is the solving of those educational problems which for their solution
depend upon a knowledge of the nature of the child.

=The Method of Psychology.= We have enumerated the various problems of
psychology, now how are they solved? The method of psychology is the
same as that of all other sciences; namely, the method of observation
and experiment. We learn human nature by observing how human beings act
in all the various circumstances of life. We learn about the human mind
by observing our own mind. We learn that we _see_ under certain
objective conditions, _hear_ under certain objective conditions,