 

he Grinnell

carlet and Black

New Education
Plan Approved

Gi-innell College will probably have
a teacher certification program in
elementary education next year, as
u result of action taken by the lac-
ulty at Monday's meeting. The lac-
ulty approved the program. It still
must receive Trustee approval, and
is on the agenda ior this weekend‘s
Board oi Trustee meeting

The program would be modeled on
one which was presented to the
faculty for examination and outlined
in last week’s 3&5. A third faculty
member would be hired for the Educ
cation Department. He would have
primary responsibility ior organize
ing and conducting the program.

The college used to have a pmr
gram in primary education, but
it was phased out [or various rea-
sons nftcr 1961.

The department was caught in a
squeeze between the small size of
the staff and the large number or
requirements or the Iowa State Dee
partmcnt oi Public Instruction. It
was oiteh necessary for students
to attend Grinnell [or more than
eight semesters to complete the
program, which had to be done in
addition to fulfilling the other grad—
uation requirements oI the college,
Since then, the requirements of
both the college and the State Der
partment have been relaxed.

Eager
Faces

V

Friday
7, 1972

April

olume 80 Number 26

 

at

About zoo people attended the All-College Evar
luatory meeting yesterday to hear President
Leggett's address,

leggett Adresses
All-College Meeting

”Our diiiering cxpcctiitiohsoiwhat
Grumell is or is not and stiould or
should not be" is the essential pro-
blem oi the college, president Glenn
Leggett told some two hundred Slur
dcnts and iaciilty at a meeting in
Roberts Theater yesterday.

The meeting, called by the new stue
dent Government Association Pl'eslr
dent, Russell MoGrcgor. and Wool
Presidents Anne Walter and John
Rieiier, was billed as an "allr
college evaluatoi-y meeting "

Many college problems, McGregor
told the audience at Roberts yester-
day morning. could be dealt with
more eiiectively through better
communication roi thatreason.lie
said, son scheduled the evuluntory

College Theft Reports Climb

Reports oi larcenies occurring at
Grinnell College have risen by large
numbers in the past two years, Chiei
oi Police Bill Peters has told the
sets. Peters' tiles show that the
proportion oi college theits to the
total reported in the city have been
almost doubling annually.

Thirteen larceny reports were iiled
irom the college in calendar year
1970; last year, 23 oi the city's 116
reports oi theit originated at the

college; and nine oi the twenty—some

See FACULTY Page 6
News Analysis

Explains Credit-EraSe

by Marilyn Mulligan

(The new grade—erase grading proposal, reported in last week’s Campus
Memo, is slated to be debated and voted upon by the iaculty in next Monday's
meeting. Marilyn Mulligan, Science division student representative to the
All-Campus EPC, has worked in the iormaiion or this proposal during the
year, and oiiers her comments below on the rationale tor the system and

how it has developed.)

student understanding oi grading alternatives and the rationale behind the
grading proposal now beiore the iaculty is crucial ii the proposal, however
it is passed, is to be allowed to iunction at maximum beneiit tor the stu-
dents. The proposal, which has been passed by the Executive Council and
iorwarded to the iaculty, recommends agrading system in which the grading
alternatives would be a, As, B, Be, c, erase.

The original recommendation oi the Alerampus Educational Policy Com-
mittee was modiiied by the Executive Council so that a credit—erase option
is no longer included. The Council accepted other EPC recommendations
the dropping oi the D and F grades, and instigation oi a system oi “erase”
in which marks below a C grade will not be recorded on the transcript and
will receive no credit. The question comes beiore the iaculty next Monday
ior discussion and vote.

The All-College EPC in its initial discussions oi grading systems laid
down guidelines ior itseli which stated that “our iinul proposal will include
systems irom which grades can be derived ior those who need or request
them”. This was necessary, the EPC telt, to satlsty the demands oi
graduate schools, the wishes oi those students who preier to Work under
a graded system, and the disposition oi the college to protect, one way or
another, those students who would opt iorcreditonly (it such a system were
devised) and who might change their minds later.

The majority oi students, the EPC concluded, want and need some type or
evaluative and comparative analysis oi theirwork Rapportbetweeh the stu-
dents aud the iaculty, the Committee ielt, allows ior an ample exchange oi
expectations and intentions concerning academic work. it iailure in evalua-
tive communication, thereiore, should not be the iault oi a numerical ele-
ment in the grading system

EPC rationale tor the dropping oi the F grade lies primarily in the ieeling
that the r is a purely punitive measure with no educational value. Since
credit is now not received ior an F grade, and since it is not considered in
the credits toward achievmg a an, there is no justiiication ior recording
iailui-e, The B it is awarded ior work completed and the transcript is
intended to he a record oi this achievement.

Graduate schools accept students tor the work they have accomplished,
thereiore the EPC did not ieel that graduate schools should necessarily
have the iniormation oi iailure. Even should a student take a course three
times heioi-e a C or above is required, the material has been learned sar
tisiactorily and thereiore no particular punishment should be given. Rather,
the student's perseverence should be rewarded.

The situation at the D grade is more controversial because oi the greater
irequency on grade reports oi us than M Furthermore, the D grade
under the present system does receive credit, One department, ior example,
boasts that its irequent use oi the D grade encourages students who work
hard but do poor work: the D grade oiicrs a chance to pass with uiisatis~

tactory work,
See ANALYSIS Page 2

reports iiled to date in 1972 were
irom the college students,

Typewriters, stereo equipment,
and casli are the mayor ooiects ot
theit on campus, 540/, oi the reports
concern these items. But other re—
ported theits were or musical inc

struments (one violin, one guitar),

cameras, clothing, lope recorders,
television sets, radios, a wrists
watch, blank checks, and college
identification Cards.

Few oi the stolen items are re-
covered by the police, though some
are returned to the student owners
after the larceny report is iiled,
and many billiolds are later re-
covered without money

The cause oi the large number of
thefts reported from campus is sim-
ple, Chiei Peters says : ”You've
got a bunch OI goddamned thieves
up there."

There is usually a large conceur
tratiun of thefts around times DST
[ore college vacations, Peters notes,
indicating that some students steal
other student's property at a time
when they can take it to their home
community to im ket it As an eXr
ample, three reports oi stolen type-r
writers were made within one day
oi December 16 last year, Just be
fore the end til the semester.

Some larceny reports, however,
may not he legitimate, Peters specu-
lated. The theits could be “hock shop
deals" wherein a student sells his
own property, and then claims a
loss, leaving his parents and/or
insurance company to reimburse
him

The Grinnell Police are usually
limited in what they can do about 1'8-

Speakers

by Roxane Brown

The upcoming Grant 0 Gale
Physics Symposium (April 14—15)
which is being held in Mr Gale's
honor was initially planned as a
surprise larewell gesture to the
well-respected and dedicated pl'ctr
lessor oi Physics,

Mr Gale, who has taught Physics
at Grinncll ior 40 years, says that
“I am extremely siii-pi , d pleased
and honored by the physics Sylnr
posium which has been arranged by
the physics stnii in connection with
my retirement." The symposium,
he ieels, is an excellent why to send
him oil

“The group oi ioi-mer students
which has been selected (to speak
at the Symposium) is quite typical
oi the nearly two hundred who have
graduatcd and gone into business,
industry, and teaching in general
individual interests show up during
their Grinnell undergraduate years
and it is interesting to iollow the
separate careers as they develop."
John Johnson (class oi ’65) is speak-

ported theits; Peter's says he has
checked pawn shops in nearby cities
when property like a violin is re
ported lost But the main source or
potential iniormation. students, are
generally closed to the police.

“A lot at college students have an
idea where the stuii wont lo, but
wouldn't tell us," petcis says,
though he speculates that the --Robin
Hood" typc admiration given some
thieves several years ago is dis
minishing

Now, the rising numbci ot theits
(and the rising number or reports)
indicates that college students are
more concerned with the problem.
“They're coming around to where
I even expect them to turn someone
in sometime", the Cliiei told the
5&8

”I get a kick out oi you college
students sort," he said “You want
to be all on your own, ..but let one
oi you get tickled "

Constitutional
Changes Pass

Two proposed amendments to the
SGA Constitutuion were approved
overwhelmingly by students voting
in lunch lines last Tuesday. A
proposed Article in which would
require every department oileringa
maior to have a student EPC was
approved by 91% oi the student body,
and 67% approved an amendment
which would include student mem
bers oi the All~College EPC as vot—
ing members oi SGA,

meeting “1 - one member or the
adinlnisti-t ’on, Glenn Leggctt, to
speak to students and other ins
tei-esletl cllizons ol the community
on his individual perspectives oi
problems at Griiiiiell College."

More SGA sponsored student/
iaculty/admiuistralion dialogs si—
milar to the Thursday meeting may
be in tho oliing, Vice-President John
Fieiler told the SKtE later: already
a Tuesday uItci‘nDOll studentriaculty
panel in ARH to address "specie
no issues" has been planned.

In his thirty~livc minute speech on
the problems of Grinnell, President
Legeett sketched his View oi what
Gl'innell, its 11 “small, independent,
residential, undergraduate, liberal
arts college" should he, The pmr
bleln oi our diiiering expectations,
he said, is due to our diiiering in-
terpretations oi those words,

Leggett's analysis oi the diiiering
interpretations oi “liberal arts",
admittedly oversimpliiied, divided
people into three schools oithought.
those “ho believe that interest iolr
lows knowledge, those who believe
that knowledge iollows interest, and
those who believe thatthehere—antl—
now clientele oi students is the best
judge of what it needs to know.

--To niv mind." Leggett said, "our
present curriculum isainixture
0] all three of these notions of libs
ernl arts it it were not tor
the hardheaded standards of our
Incillty and the competitive academic
power oi our students, my personal
instincts [or order and system might
be outraged. Even so . . . I would
like a bit of reassurance that all’s
right with the Curricular world at
Grinnell , . ,

"What is oi real importance . . .
is our system orcontrolllng our edu—
cational movements,” And prior to
that problem, Leggett said, is the
problem oi diiiering expectations.

The President's statement of the
problems oi the college, expressed
yesterday, will he the take-oii point
{or more speciiic discussions later,
even though Russell McGregor noted
in introducing Leggctt that “the
views expressed by the President
are not necessarily representative
of how the SGA cabinet; the Joint
Board, or students view the depth
and priority oi campus issues."

The “All-college evaluatory meet
ing number two" will be Tuesday
at 4,15 in Mill auditorium. There,
a student and inculty panel will de-
bate and expand upon President
Leggelt’s presentation, SGA Vice
President Anne Walter said

Represent Shifting Trends

ing on “Recent Developments in Line
dei-graduate Physics Curricula,"
The topic oi undergraduatephysics
' curricula, Gnle notes, is particuarly
important now that physics has “lost
some oi its popular clamor but not
its glamor " Ted Mallick (class
oi '60), speaking on "The notection
oi Concealed i‘iicarms A New
Application or Old physics" and
George simon (class oi '55), speak-
ing on “Motion and Magnetism on
the Sun" were iniluenccd by the long
time interest oi the department in
magnetism Mallick's interest is in
applied magnetism and Simon pre-
iei-s the theoretical aspect. "in
spite oi this, Gcoi-gc is the best
statistician that the athletic depart-
ment evcr had "
stoplieii Schoolmhn (class oi '62),
whose interest is thermodynamics,
will lecture on "The Sun A Close
up Look at a Nearby sta “Semi—
conductors, Pasl and present" is the
topic oi Robert N. Noyce (class oi
'49, and a member oitlie Board oi

Trustees), The inclusion of this
subject, Gale tools, is a sign oi the
changing times. "Transistors were
new ln the early titties and by the
sixties astrophysics was opening up
whole new fields iol' research and
investigation, It is one of the great
satisfactluns and rewards oi teach,
ing to see the chain reaction at
activity spread "

Mrs. Hiser will Continue to leach
one course per semester next year
and will supervise the speech clinic
However, slle will be [ornially rc-
tired and Will hold the title of pro-
Iessor emeritus.

One student summarized the re-
spect she has, commanded in her
career.

“ShC is tl grand and delightful
lady With an air oi concern that
makes her un excellent teacher and
person.”

Thanks ior 35 (36, this full) years

oi devotion,
NEXT WEEK
Grant 0. Gale

A Unique Look at

 

