PAGE FOUR Editorial Opinion Exam - Guidelines Needed Approval by the University Sena a. of a final ex amination period marks its recognition of a crucial prob lem posed by the term system but also indicates a re luctance of the policy-makers to face the problem squarely. The plan, which passed the Senate unanimously, calls for a final exam period following the regular 60 days of classes. The period will be established for the fall term and its use is optional in each course. . No classes will be held on these days while students take exams, presuMably. in the present 75 minute periods although the Senate made'no official ruling on this ques tion. Students with two or more finals scheduled for the same day may file to take a conflict examination. The Senate has evidently recognized that even under the term system, many courses conclude with compre hensive final examinations. Testing time has remained_at 75 minutes, which means that an entire course is covered in the same span as one bluebook on one section of the class material. Professors and students alike now feel the weight of ,a hectic finals time, especially with the rewlar' class schedule continuing. _ One complication is that six days are required be tween terms for.processing of transcripts and making reg istration preparations. While the officially-passed policy contained no specific length for a finals peripd, a three day limit was discussed as the most feasible method under the present calendar. Barring rescheduling, there are barely ,enough days after the winter and spring terms for the administrative work and a finals period. No such problem would -exist following the fall and summer terms because of lengthy vacations scheduled. In pursuing a standard pojiry, it seems logical, however, that a three-day period would be adopted after each term. An administratiVe committee.=:survey found that 75 per cent of the courses offered might end with final ex aminations under this plan. Yet the three days are ad equate only for this 75 per cent. The University calendar is too complex to risk the mass confusion which might exist if only several departments in each college decided to schedule additional exams. . . The provision for conflict exams is an attempt to meet the problem which arose under the semester system, that of an excess of tests on one .day. Students carrying an average credit load, however, usually enroll for four courses. In scheduling conflict exams, it will indeed be difficult to find a . day'on which these students will not already have one final planned.' While in effect merely sanctioning a - finals 'period, the Senate is • serving its function as a policy-making body. Too much leeway has been given the scheduling office :concerning the duration of the period as well as the length of the tests within that time. Guidelines can be created without going beyond the policy-planning To aid in administering this plan, the scheduling of flap is preparing a survey on final examination requests far the fall, winter and spring terms. To save time " .and trouble as well as to uncover more opinions, the. survey might well include questions on the number of instructors planning comprehensive finals and those whose tests would ,require more than 75 minutia. The Senate-passed bill still leaves many aspects of the final examination picture out of focus. This un certainty might resolve itself in even more pressured situations that currently exist. The fall term will serve is a testing ground - for this plan. We recommend, however, that the University Senate consider a six-month wait too long to postpone study of an improved final examina tion_period. • , - Ountittgr wuttiviat • to The Free Lance, est. 107 PitlellsisNl Thursday. Jos* 11 and *very Thursdar thereafter *breath Ansa The Buteueer nolleetiau Is • stsdesit-operated seerstiSper. Entered as seesesi thus mustier Jets 1, MI at the State Calks*. Pa. Net Odle* under i the set et Starch S. ME Katt Sedescrtsttes ?des& Fifty seats fee it ;Snag AlOW' !LAY JOAN MEHAN - HERBERT ,WITHER Editor Associate Editor BUIL/MISS Manager .•-- • - Editor, Tam 3114111/111•1 porta •as 0- ' ll Kahl Saab Petaluma& Clrealadaa lilmaaese. Gaut; Parresaeli Oemasee. Lea= Norsiks. MTThis IlitillEt Dorothy Drinker. Nancy McCorido. J Nyora. C11:11114 Ploptiport. SUMMER COLLEGIAN. UNIVERSITY PARK. PENNSYLVANIA Which way out of the dan ger ,of nuclear war is .a ques tion that returns to haunt us' titneand - again. And iB should haunt us, indeed l'aund us un til some road to solution is discovered. There have been - inainy pro posals and many- premises about the horrors a war in our thermonuclear age would bring. I don't pretend to know what isTright. I only wish that _ I did. Some people say that the United States • must " disarm even if. it must disarin alone. The critics of this viewpoint argue that tic—that would the opp nity to America rule the w under Corm nism. They the 1.1 p i States , continu build; deter forces to vent an en, y from attacking.- America, of MISS MILLS course, faces the problem of desiring peace yet not daring to disarm in - fear of loss of world power. Lord. Bertrand Russell offeri another solution. Let Britain , disarm unilaterally, he says, and become a neutral force to propOse solutions which both Letters to the editor must carry the , full name of the author and identification of the author will be verified be. fore any letter. is publisbed. In most cases, letters over 400 words will not be published. The Summer Collegian re serves the right • to edit any letter if it is deemed necessary. The decision to publish or re: , ject a letter lies solely with the editor; litters containing obvious misstatements or lack ing in good testis or fair play will be rejected: On a few oc casions. the name of the au thor will be withheld but only with the consent of the editor. . ~... GOOD f iEF,. . ._,.., • ~ kaleidoscope Which Way Out? LETTER POLICY •'-3 the United States and the So viet Union could accept with out loss of prestige. Russell -agrees that the, neutrals have lacked success to date but feels that the British have enough governmental experience to lead them wisely. These are only a few of the many proposals. Again I don't pretend to know who's right. I -do say, .however, that we in America too often expect a solution, then expect the other fellow to do the solving. Until a real de sire for an answer to this ques tion develops, no such answer will be forthcoming. One may not agree with Lord Russell. Still, his words have merit when he says that if people were anxious for agreement, they would get agreement; -what they want and•get now,is 'disagreement. Not being a scientist, .1 can hardly, verify Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling's state ment that bomb tests to date will cause the deaths •of thou sands of people in the future because of genetic defects. I do know, however, that nature did not construct the human body to reproduce perfectly under .such adverse, manmade conditions. The number Pau ling predicts may mean little, but consider one, of the deaths as your. son or his child a few years hence. That hits home. Americans hare not had their homeland touched by war. In Britain. Russell says, snowed Action Needed The many conferences and conventions that are held on campus each summer promote much criticism of the adminis tration from students, faculty an d , University employees. However, these affairs , are necessitated by the present system and concept of educa tion in Pennsylvania. Despite the initiation of the four term system, one of, the soals of which isto encourage high summe en r ollm e n' University stu dents have as yet shown littl inclination attend Pe n State en mass during the sum This has left the University's physical plant operating at- .approximately one-third efficiency. in the interest of better pub li' relations, and in order to better acquaint the public with the facilities available in , this "backcountry of the state," the administration is doing a“wise thing in allowing organizations to use its physical plant during the summer. Since these facilities are not otherlrise in use and because of its status as a state univer sity. Penn State also, has a cer tain moral , obligation to avail its residence halls to Interested parties. •The money acquired by rent ing these facilities to visitors Graduation Glimpses . Welcome back to Penn' Sta- clearly audible.. tMother Was : tus, my summer friends. And pleased. • to all the new , folks I've di- Speaking of honor students, rected .to Armsbr or Tyson, I I did not recognife to(:q many . hope someone else was on hand from my hubology houric.Per to steer you back toivard the haps they flunked, that course HUB. early in University life r : Inci- Undoubtedly there were few cidentally, my 400-level courses of you around to. see the big were omitted from the, time spectacular at Beaver Stadium. table, but they will melt from. They called it commencement . 10:30 a.m..until noon. ' and 'it was a long feature. ' The lab is required butlec. air conditioning. either. , tures at Whipple 's are optional. Never' will I forget the an- I have the easiest cow?* to get zwuncement of those grad- • attendance at the entire Uni uates who received - high hon- versity, my students tell ms. ors. When one young lady's See you there. naive was read, a long sigh was THURSDAY, JUNE 21,11962 by kay mills . the people feel they would all be killed—ALL be killed—iif a war began.• This idea is not part of U.S: popular opution.. We cannot get over, therea that we are isolated. We are not and we will not be. I don't like being a harhihger of doom. Indeed, no one likes to carry bad news. However. if we continue to enjoy today and let tomorrow take care of it self; we may not.. - eveg be around to sing -thecßld song,, "There's No Tomorrow." Today we may enjoy,l en joy. But—and Russell is a good source of quotes along this line —the English philosopherigays that if the , world .continues along its present path, wi likely .within 10 years and' tain ,within 20. The grim are 6-4 In survival adds. In qther words, "slightly more probable the human race will NO— vive nuclear, war." Maybe this is all exag l era lion. and I. deplore ,exaggera lion in the realm of reality. But on• the off chance that .it isn't, "we've got to get busy. I don't know about yout •my friend, but I'd like to live to see retirement age. -w- As citizens, we have the re sponsibility of - presenting the decision-makers with rational views on ending the current nuclear neurosis. PraCtical politicians may say that p blic opinion is powerless. In this case, hopefully they are w ong. The world's at stake. by feel myers is used to help repay money that was borrowed to finance dormitory construction. Thus, these visitors actually I save students money in residence hall fees. I Despite the 'fact that con ventions are basically goqd for the University .in its entirity, the administration should take o c . action to reduce the 1 con veniences to students,' f culty and employees that are c: c re ated by the visitor's presence. The HUB Terrace B. ra is one such area where action is needed to reduce inconven iences to the student -* body. Conventioneers flocking to the Terrace 'Room have caused students and faculty raenrdaers to waste 15 to 25 minutes (wait ing in long lines at lunch and supper. It seems that conventioneers don't have to eat in the resi dence halls but can mak etheir ow n eating , arrangements. Many of them apparentlY pre fer to eat in the . Terrace loom. - Although this overabundance of patronizers isundoubtedly welcomed by the Man who sells black ink to the ;Terrace Room. it should be remembered that the HUB is the STInENT union building. It was laid for with student finds. .1 I do not 'dispute the- -, right of conventioneers to ; dec i d against—eating in the dormi tories. However, when Ah* exercising of this privilefe in fringes upon the rightfu con venience of the students and faculty. it• is time for adminis trative action on their behalf. ar is 1 cer pdds r he t is that Stir- Warne
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