PAGE FOUR
Published Tuesday through
Saturday mornings, during o . llr Battg evairgtu,n
1 the University year, the
Iluily Collegian is a student
operated newspaper. Successor to THE THEE LANCE, est. 1387.
Entered as second-class
T.AMMIE BLOOM, Editor
Managing Ed.. Diehl PacKalip: City Ed., Mike Feinsilber; . Asst. Boa Mgr., Benjamin Lowenstein; Local Adv. Mgr.,
Copy Ed., Mary Lee Lauffer; Sports Ed., Dick McDowell; Sondra Duckman; National Adv. Mgr., William Devers;
Edit. Dir., George Bairey; Radio News Ed.,Phil Austin; Circulation Co-Mgrs.,
Richard Gordon, Gail Fromer; Pro-
Sac Ed., Peggy McClain; Asst. Sports Ed., perm Weiskopf: motion Mgr., Evelyn Riegel; Personnel Mgr., Carol Schwing:
Asst. Soc. Ed., Nancy Ward; Feature Ed., Baylee Friedman; Office Mgr., Peggy Troxell; Classified Adv. Mgr., Dorothea
- Exchange Ed., Edmund Reiss; Librarian, Marcie MacDonald: Ebert; Sec., Gertrude Malpezzi: Research and Records Mgr..
Senior Board, Bey Dickinson. •Virginia Coskery.
STAFF THIS ISSUE: Night Editor, Joe Beau Seigneur; Copy editors, Al. Klimcke, Mike Miller; As=
sistants, Ruth Barnard, Marilyn Pysher, Earl Kohnfelder, Sue Conklin,, Mike Moyle, Bill Eisenberg.
Ad staff, Connie Anderson, Diane Hallock.
New Grading Proposal: Fair to Students
The University Senate will be called upon
today to judge the merits of a proposal for a
revised grading system—one which appears a
more practical and fair system than the one
presently in use at the University.
After extensive study of the grading systems
used at other institutions comparable in size
and curriculums to the University, the Honor
Society Council concluded that the University's
grading system is somewhat out of step with
those used by other colleges and universities.
The council will recommend to Senate that
the existing 3 to -2 grade range be replaced by
a 4 to 0 range, and that a 2 average be required
for graduation. This recommendation is based
in part on the finding that of the 45 schools re
sponding to the survey questionnaire, 64.5 per
cent use a grading system in which 4 is the
highest gradeand 0 is the lowest. Twenty-two
and one half per cent use a 3 to 0 grade range
and 13 per cent had a 3 to -1 range. Seventeen
of the 45 schools are land grant institutions.
Among the reasons the council presents for
deeming the present grading system illogical is
the triple penalization of students who receive
bar grades. The student must repeat the course,
he acquires negative grade points, and the nega
tive grade points are retained on his record even
if he passes the repeated course.
It seems unfair that a student who fails a
course not only receives no grade points for that
particular course, but when his semester aver
age is computed, he loses the grade points he
accumulated in other courses.
Another of the council's arguments is the dis
advantage at which University students are
placed in those spheres where the grade point
average is used as an indication of ability and
performance. The University differs from all
the other institutions covered by, the survey in
that none uses a -2 or has, more than a five
number grade range.
The University's -2 or "double flunk" grade
Last Chance Today
Students in eight colleges will have their last
chance today to vote for their student council
members who will represent them for the next
year. The two-day voting opened yesterday and
will close at 5 p.m. today.
The colleges are Education, Liberal Arts,
Physical Education and Athletics, Mineral In
dustries, Chemistry and Physics, Business Ad
ministration, Home Economics, and Engineering.
To beg, to urge, or to plead with students
to take an active part in determining who their
representatives will be by voting wisely after
much thought would be just so many wasted
words. In the past it has been shown time and
time again that election dates come and go
with little student interest. It seems only a
handful of students outside of those actually
running for positions know what the story is.
A sad situation, true—but, other than a plea,
what is to be done?
This could be called that plea and it will
doubtless fall into the category "so many wasted
words," but it must be made. College councils
are an important cog in the functioning of good
student government. And the councils are only
as good as their members. Vote today. It won't
take long.
Old Gold Lauds
i Sigma Pi Prexy
~~~~,a
~ y~ \
.~~ /
To the president of Xi Sigma Pi,
Daniel Loucks, congratulations
and a carton of Old Golds for fine
work.
. Old Golds are made to give you
smoking relaxation and pleasure.
No "testimonials" or outlandish
claims, just a wonderful Treat in
stead of a Treatment. Light up an
Old Gold today! In your choice
of either King Size or Regular.
Advertisement
atter July 5, 1934 at the State College, Pa. Post Office under
—George Bairey
CORNER SUGGESTION:
__...4
1 7 14, othero
the CORNAR
THE DAILY COLLEGIAN STATE COLLEGE PENNSYLVANIA
FRANK CRESSMAN, Business Mgr.
dam;.
was probably instituted as a means of encourag
ing students failing a course to keep trying—
to work for a -1 and thus to avoid the detriment
to All-University average which a -2 would en
tail. A more positive approach, it seems, would
be to encourage the student to work toward
passing th 6 course. Regardless of the measure
of his failure, he must repeat a required course.
The lack of uniformity in use of the -2 by
instructors is one factor which contributes to its
injustice. Some instructors do not give a -2 un
less a student has made no attempt to fulfill the
course requirements. Regardless of his numeri
cal average, a failing . student who has been
reasonably conscientious and has attended
classes receives a -1 for effort.
Another school of instructors grades strictly
on the numerical basis and gives a -2 to a student
with a 44 average regardless of how much time
the student put into the course. For some in
structors the -2 is a severe penalty reserved for
the most "difficult" student, but for others it is
a part of their grade curve. Under the proposed
grading system there would be only one failing
grade—the 0.
It is believed that the new grading plan would
be an advantage to freshmen who have not had
an opportunity to become accustomed to college
work. There is a possibility , that the number
of freshmen on academic probation each year
might be reduced if students were not penalized
so heavily for a failure.
If the proposal were passed, the details of
putting the new plan into effect would be
worked out by Senate. However, the registrar's
office has stated that the change could be ef
fected with little inconvenience.
Although no grading system is absolutely fair
in every case, the new plan would be an im
provement over the present system where a
student may fail, fail doubly hard, or fail out
of school before he has an opportunity to adjust
himself to college life.
Gazette ..
Today
AMERICAN SOCIETY OF AGRICULTURAL
ENGINEERS, STUDENT BRANCH, 7 p.m.,
105 Agriculture Engineering
BLOCK AND BRIDLE CLUB, 7 p.m., 206 Ag
riculture
NEWMAN CLUB DISCUSSION, 7:30 p.m., 106
Willard
NITTANY GROTTO, 7:30 p.m., 121 Mineral
Industry
FENCING CLUB, 7:30 p.m., north corridor,
Recreation Hall
POLITICAL SCIENCE CLUB, 7:30 p.m., Home
Economics Living Center• business meeting
at 7 p.m. for members only
WRA OFFICIALS CLUB, 6:30 p.m., 3 White Hall
YOUNG REPUBLICAN CLUB, 7:30 p.m.; 317
Willard
UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL
Richard Blank, Myrtle Brown, Howard Down
ing, Joseph Dudek, Patricia Ellis, Thomas Glenn,
Theodore Herman, Anita Isenberg, Baron Kra
mer, Jane Mason, James McLean, Thomas Osen
bach, Edward Patrick, John Pine, Cecelia Poor,
Chester Potash, Libby Schore, John Shaynak,
George Walker.
STUDENT EMPLOYMENT
Camp Starlight will interview men and women
tomorrow and Saturday in Old Main.
2)inrier
a Sox ol
Whitman, 3
„.‘,
Editorials represent the
viewpoint of the writers.
not necessarily the policy of
the paper. Unsigned edi
torials are by the editor.
he act of March 3, ,1379.
bay
.. . unu3sua~
ittle Man on Campus
;: /d&V,e
"Say, Friend, that's not quite what we mean by 'Broad•Jurr,p`.."
It's _ziborti Time
By BAYLEE FRIEDMAN
There is simply no, way out. Man of today, and I suspect of many
yesterdays as well, is being crucified on the clock. . .
Senior board of the Daily Collegian was supposed to mean no late
stories, no headline writing, and no deadlines. We don't worry about
late stories or headlines any more. Deadlines, we worry about.
There's always a city editor or
editorial director smiling his sad,
sadistic smile, reminding us about
tomorrow's you-know-what.
This wouldn't be so bad 'twere
it just in the Collegian office that
the chimes of Old Main meant a
rushing of adrenalin to the cere
brum to the typewriter to the as
pirin bottle. But, darn it, it hap
pens everywhere. Boy and girl en
joying the thoughtfulness of the
Class of 1900
certainly it in -;1 frgat; I
vented benches— #l"gi t ' `
$ll ,1
v r t a„ A 0....
must keep a con
stant
, '''<• ''*!
tab on the • ----.
Bulova. A girl i
could get pinned,. , ~ .0;' • ,',
in the two min- "' - v-e. , ~ I,:• 1
utes between 9:13 \''''''" 4Y
and 9:15. Maybe ''':4, I
engaged. That is, ~.,-,f,i ' '-,„
she could, were - . 7'
she not running i'i, " , 1
frantically with[A' •" 1
her fellow to
Mac Hall to meet Baylee Friedman
a curfew., But deadlines must be
met, so at 9:16 her date (ah, and
he was a nice one, too) is on his
way to McElwain for another hour
and forty-four minutes of femi
nine company. So while the
Watchmakers of America get
richer and seniors get boyfriends,
the coed-with-the-curfew gets to
study. .
Now there's nothing wrong
BARGAINS GALORE!
PENN STATE
Scrapbooks
Picture Albums
Pennants
only 49c each
BX in the TUB
$5 00 Hi SALES, $1 00 IN MERCHANDISE FREE
PENN STATE BOOK EXCHANGE
THURSDAY, MAY - 6; :1954
with studying. A few of our
noted uniersities and grammar
schools leave been founded on
just thaf . principle. However,,,
time and its limitations get in
the way of education, too. For•
instance, Alec Guinness movies.
are a part of education. They,
are one of our few spasmodic
encounters with pure, rich, ele. :
vated (1 hat's e-l-e-v-a-t-e-d)..
humor. But when professors
schedule bluebooks the day fok
lowing "The Man in the White
Suit," etc, education pays the
price of education. Or vice versa..
And take the McCarthy hear
ings: Where but in, front of the
TV set can the American student
get first-hand contact with the
tide of the (pardon Pexpression)
times? Here is an opportunity to
learn the ins and outs mostly
outs—of legal procedure as well
as some very subtle and not so
subtle name calling. We 'enjoy our
classes. Really, we love to learn.
But classes and television don't
(Continued on page five)
Tonight on WDFM
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