Thai calendar question: term or semester? Please ,J;caced. oeg,ster your vote wth ar "X" Dc p , , , er a ter , ~,ter- to a' ,er-ester ,ysrer? Ye, IF tne an'%-er to "1" ,Al, , es, please an...er the FJ1lo”Inq Question The pr. , ar, rea,on I prefer the term system is IT t^c a•is:•er to - I" ..)s No, plea,e ans,er the folln,inq question I ,10 mot nrefer•tne ter , s,,te, p-;flarily because' Co you prete- a seTester [o a tern syster , ?; Yes IF the' a^s..er to - fl."' is Yes The p-c-lar, reaso^ i prefer the jeVeter system Ir the an,-er to The prir-ary reason I do not prefer the semester sstem is I --- WoUld yo,u prefer, if term, are maktained, to: . 1. Start before Labor Day 2.j — Start immediately afte. Labor 11 Day 3., _S t art in mid Or late Septetber 4.! No preference 1 W O O 4 VC ,,, Prerer, if semesters are established. t 6 i . I Start before Labor Day I 2. - --- Start immediately after Labor Day 3. --- Start mid or late September 4. Nu preference VIII Have you ever been enrolled in a college or xi operated under a semester syterl Yes I am en-011 - ea in the college of Calendar system comparison Semester System Fourteen-fifteen weeks of instruction; twice a year. 138-150 days of instruction in the academic year. Four to six courses, 12 to 18 credits, per semester ( maximum of 36 credits per year). Three classes per course per week: 50-minute class periods. Five days of registration-orientation for Fall Semester; three or four days tbr Spring Semester. Five days for final examinations at the end of each semester. Calendar option three: Traditional Semester System for the 1976-77 school year registration-orientation for Fall Semester begins Sep. p. 1976; classes begin Sep. 15; Thanksgiving Holiday, Nov. 25-26; Christmas break begins Dec. 20; classes resume Jan. 3, 1977; classes end Jan. 13; finals Jan. 17-21. Registration for Spring Semester begins Jan. 31; classes begin Feb. 3; Easter holidays, Apr. 8-11; classes end May 20; finals, May 23-27. Twenty-four days of holidays and breaks. Calendar option four: Early Semester for the 1976-77 school year registration-orientation for Fall Semester begins Aug. 18, 1976; classes begin Aug. 25; Labor Day holiday, Sep. 6; Thanksgiving holiday, Nov. 25-26; classes end Dec. 10; finals, Dec. 12-16.. Registration for Spring Semester begins Jan. 3, 1977; classes begin Jan. 6; Easter holiday,' Apr. 8-11; classes end Apr. 22; finals, Apr. 25-29. Nineteen days of holidays and breaks. ' Calendar option five: Short Semester (14 weeks of classes) for 1976-77 school 'ear registration-orientation for Fall Semester begins Sep. 7, 1976; classes begin Sep. 13; Thanksgiving holiday, Nov. 25-26; classes end Dec. 17; finals, Dec. 18 and Dec. 20-22. Registration for Spring Semester begins Jan. 3; classes begin Jan. 6; Easter holidays, Apr. 8-11; classes end Apr. 15; finals, Apr. 18-21. Fifteen days of holidays and breaks. Calendar option six; Modified Semester for 1976-77 school year dates the same as Traditional Semester. The Calendar Commission answers questions Editor's note: the following was sent to The Daily Collegian as an open letter to the University com munity by Asa Berlin, chairman of the University Calendar Commission. Since students first became aware of the activities of the Calendar Commission there has been a great deal of interest in participating in the deliberations. Beside the letters in the Collegian, there have been letters, phone calls and personal conferences with members of the commission. Students have spontaneously created questionnaires and polls, and the results of many of these have been forwarded to the commission to become a part of the study process. The Academic Assembly is one of the groups that has taken on the job of fostering and channelling the input of student opinion. Last week, Joe Kaplan, president of the Acadeinic Assembly, sent the commission 14 thoughtful questions. Since they cover some of the major concerns which have been expressed in other ways, answers to these questions will perhaps be of in terest to a wide audience. Therefore, I am replying to the Assembly (and all the students) through this chan nel of an open letter. t. What is the approxinfate anticipated cost of chang ing from the term systeM"to a semester system? No one can say authoritatively, but our best guess is that the additional cost to the University will be modest. and may in fact be made up in the long run by some savings permitted in the semester system. Most of the work would be done by faculty and staff who are already on full salary. It would be another form of work on courses and curricula which these people are doing all thitime as part of their jobs. 2. What is the approximate anticipated time span for the complete conversion from the term system to the semester system? Probably a full year, and that is why the commission wishes to make its recommendations by the end of December. If a semester plan is recommended and im plemented, this would provide time for conversion before the starting date of Fall, 1976. 3. Are there any plan reevaluate the number of credits assigned to eac urse? A l tif Probably not for most courses, but content to be com pleted in one year and currently offered in a three-term sequence would have to be repackaged. The content 10 ••eeks of stuns per course ~e wer courses Der term More frea,e , t ,acaziGr's I 0 —eek ter' , ,rs,..ff.cie , t 'for aCeauate study ID ,eek term is lop hectic Shorter class per.oi, 14 or 15 .eel, semester mor I,nJuc..e to lear^ing proiess oleaLe answer the following guest Lon Interest can be lost in a j 4 or 4 15 week se-ester lees frequent vacations Agriculture Art, E. Architecture Business Administration Earth E. Mineral Sciences Education A,ader , ,c Assembly Calendar opinion Pol. I,,olvement with a particular course and/or instructor is for only 10 weeks 5. __.„tner Pegistration rust be done 3 times -- Class periods are too long plases anwer.the 'cllcAnne question 3. Lnrqer Christmas break 4. -- Theoistration ;s only twice a year 5. --- b Oner - Involvement ulth a particular course and/or instructor would be fur 14 or 15 weeks i)ther 1 am enrolled in the college 01 XII. My term standing is I 1-3 2. --- 14-6 3. 7-9 I Jl. 10-,and up I Term System Ten weeks of instruction, three times a year. 150 days of instruction in the academic year. nil Three or four courses, to 13 credits, Per term (maximum of 39 credits per year). Three classes per course per week 75-minute class periods. Five days of registration-orientation for Fall Term; three days for Winter and Spring Terms. Three days for final examinations at the end of each term. Calendar option one: Present Term System for the 1976-77 school year registration-orientation for Fall Term begins Sept. 7, 1976; classes begin Sept. 13; classes end Nov. 19; final examinations Nov. 22-24. Registration fr Winter Term begins Dec. 6; classes begin Dec. 9; Christmas break begins Dec. 20; Christmas break ends Jan. 3,1977; classes end March 2; final examinations March 3-5. Registration for Spring Term begins Mar. 14; classes begin March 17; Easter. holidays, April 8-11; classes end May 27; Memorial Day, May 30; finals, May 31-June 2. Thirty-one days of holidays and term breaks. Calendar option two: Term System as before 1974 for 1976- 77 school year registrationorientation for Fall Term begins Sept. 27, 1976; classes begin Oct. 4; ThankSgiving holidays, Nov. 25-26; classes end Dec. 14; finals, Dec. 15- 17. Registration for Winter Term begins Jan. 3, 1977; classes begin Jan 6; classes end March , l6; finals, March 17-19. Registration for Spring Term -begins March 28; classes begin March 31; Easter holidays, April 8-11; Memorial Day,- :May 30; classes end June 13; finals June 14-16. Twenty-sixdays of holidays and term breaks. and number of credits for some practicum experiences may change 'With the change in duration of the ex perience. 4. Will tuition have to be paid in two installments, i.e., one half year's tuition each semester? This is outside the province of the commission. I hope the University would make appropriate'provisions for any hardships. 5. Do you see a decrease in the number of students able to find positions in outside businesses and agencies for practicum purposes, due to the increased number of students requiring positions ( 1 / 2 of the annual number of students as opposed to one-third the annual number, under a semester system will be looking for such positions)? This highly pertinent question will require additional study. Certainly the possibility of additional hardship exists, but there is a chance that plaCement may be easier if our calendar were closer to other institutions sharing those facilities. 6. Do you see any decrease in the variety of courses taught each semester as contrasted to the term system? Theoretically there should not be, but since some members of the commission think there may be, this requires more analysis., 7. What role has the spacing and 4ength of "term" breaks and vacations played or what - role will it play in the Commission's deliberation and-or decision? A great deal. One persistent problem has been the Christmas break: how important is it that this period come within or between terms or semesters? The im pact of starting and ending dates for the summer "break," a spring break around Easter, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, etc. have all entered into consideration. 8. Will: there be difficulty in-securing new working polici4 with hospitals ,: school boards and other agen cies w ere our students are placed for outside study? The answer is essentially the same as for Q 5 above. 9. To what extent will rules affecting students such as thcise regarding course-repeat, drop-add, pass-fail, ete., have to be rewritten? They would have to be changed in terms of specific dates but not intent: For example, if a maximum of two courses of pass-fail is now permitted per term, this could convert to three courses per semester (although No _ No opinion No opiniqn Engineering --- keilth, Phys. Ed. t Recreation Hunan Development Liberal arts ' ---Science Academic Assembly to poll students The Academic Assembly will conduct a campus-wide poll tomorrow and Thurs day of student opinion on the issue of the University calendar. The poll, supported by the Association of Residence Hall Students, Organization of Town Independent Students, Un dergraduate Student Government Senate and other student groups, is part- of the Academic Assembly% continuing right to save the term system at Penn State. Ballot boxes for the poll will be located in thedining halls in each dorm area, on the grdtmd floor of the HUB and in Cham bers. The polls will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. This will be the second poll taken by the Assembly in the last month in reac tion to the University Calendar Com mission's decision to concentrate its study on four types of semester systenis. The commission was set up last December by University President John W. Oswald to find the best possible calen dar system for Penn State. The com mission hopes to complete its study by the end of December. It appears likely that the commission will recommend that the University change to a semester system. The commission has not yet decided to recommend any particular system. It has only narrowed its field of study to four of eight possible alternatives. Apparently, some students are con- Calendar Commission members Opinions: voice views on term, semester The following article concerns the opinions of un- "—Pressure createsemotional and behavioral stress. dergraduate, graduate and commonwealth campus "—Too much time is wasted because of term breaks. representatives to the Calendar Commission, -along with "—lt is a hurry, hurry system." Chairman Asa Berlin and Academic Assembly President Joe A semester system would slow down the pace and make Kaplan college the pleasant, well-paced experience it was meant to be, Nair° said. Collegian Staff Writer , Joe Kaplan (10th-pre-law), president of the undergraduate, Michael Ostroff (7th-social welfare), undergraduate student N ) Student Government Academic Assembly: representative to the Calendar Commission: "Personally, I am in favor of the retention of the present; "As undergraduate representative, I voted in favor of the term system. The Academic Assembly has also voted this term ystem. Isupport all the polls and student input, but I way," Kaplan said. don't feel they will make a real difference in the commission's Many students are drawn to Penn State because of the term leanings," Ostroff said.system, Kaplan said. It's different from *hat most schools , "Therefore, lam in favor of either the ea yor short have and it allows students to concentrate on fewer courses at semester. I think they are better foi students," Ostroff said, one time. aclaing that the starting and ending dates are better for most students. gs Bob Lloyd (graduate-rural sociology), gradu i ate student representative to the commission: "Graduate students as a body have not reached any decision. My gut level interpretation is that they favor semesters," Lloyd said. Lloyd said he got this impression by talking to other graduate students. Lloyd also said he voted for the semester system. .1 Lloyd said he thinks the University should go to a semester which will end early to allow students to get summer em ployment. This is very important to undergraduates but most graduates are here all year long so it wouldn't effect them anyway, he said. Lloyd said he is in favor of the short semester since it begins after Labor Day. "The modified system is in'triguing," Lloyd said. "But I don't feel new material should b/presenled during the week of intensive study." The committee also should consider having oral exams in stead of traditional finals if a modified semester system is used, Lloyd said. John D. Vairo, director of the Delaware County Campus: "I prefer the semester system. Our faculty is on record for preferring the semester system," Vairo said. Vairo said Delaware County Campus faculty and students want to go back to the semester system. In a report Vairo wrote for the commission he listed some faults of the term systein `—The term system does not make academic sense. `—lt is unfulfilled, instead of being 10 weeks of instruction it reduces itself to 8 weeks. "=Students have to cover too much material in too little a time. "—Students must work too rapidly for excellence. "—Students can't retain the information. "—A term system is costly. Students must travel home be tween frequent breaks. the total number permitted would not&change). Drop add dates would also probably change to a comparable stage in the - progress of the courses. 10. What' are the perceived benefits of a semester system? lA. The commission is actively reviewing these now, as Well as the benefits of the term system, but a complete list is not yet available. Some a the most often heard benefits involve the probable ad vantages of a basic 50-minute period, better op portunityl to absorb and understand material over a greater number of weeks, and presumed decreased pressure on the students under a semester system. 11. To what extent will faculty contracts have to be rewritten. Again this' is outside the area of the commission's study. Essentially, a two-semester year would cover the same time as a three-term year. Any differences in length of employment might involve the summer, but this is not automatically necessary if we go to a semester plan. la. Will the physical facilities of the university (classrooms, phys. ed. equipment, etc.) be able to ac commodate students in a semester system? - - We have received no information, and have no reason to believe at. this time, that the 'physical facilities will be inadequate for a semester plan. 13. Can you summarize why the University changed from a semester to a term system? Very briefly, I believe the major reason was to en courage Indents to go to school a full calendar year, thus grad ating in three instead of four years, and thus permitting the university to accept more students in -the-same time with the same facilities. This was ap iihipriate n the early sixties, when the number of students requesting college admission was growing rapidly each year. Not only did a relatively small per centage otl students ever avail themselves - of this op pOrtunity for acceleration, but the pressure for ac cepting additional students has declined and is re versing. Iovould be interesting to note here also that the term plan was not popular when it was proposed. 14! Will the course offerings at the brapih campuses be limited due to their relatively small staffs? ?Again a good quesiton that will spur more inquiry *an we have done: T 3 this point the information from COrnmonwealth Campuses has been more in favor of the semester plans, By JIIW BARR Collegian Staff Writer By JANICE SELINGER fused on this point. In a setter sent to Commission Chair man Asa Berlin last month, Jog,Kaplan, president of the Academic Assembly, prefaced a list of 14 questions on the possible calendar change by saying, "In light of the Calendar Commission's recent decision to recommend to the President one of several semester calen dars..." ' Even if the commission does recom mend chalking to the semester system, Oswald must make the final ,decision, and he may hot approve the change. At its Oct. 25 meeting, the commission, pressed for time by the December deadline, decided to spend much of its remaining time studying four semester calendars as possible alternatives to the term system. Commission members agreed, however, that the _decision would not prohibit them from studying the other systems at a later date or from recom mending any of the other systems, in cluding the term system. Last month's poll by the Academic Assembly showed that students who voted favored keeping the term system by a margin of almost six to one. A similar poll taken by the Student Council of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences on Oct. 24 found that 435' of the 598 persons questioned preferred the term system. Of 188 per sons questioned who had attended schools with both the term and semester Kaplan said he thinks 10 weeks is long enough to have a course. Asa Berlin, chairman of the Calendar commission. "At this moment I am completely undecided as to which is best," Berlin said. "I still feel students would tend to be More relaxed under a semester. But Kaplan dissatisfied with 'sketchy' answers By JANICE SELINGER Collegian Staff Writer Joe Kaplan, President of the Academic Assembly, said in an interview Sunday that he was dissatisfied with the Calen dar Commission's answers to his questions. Kaplan said mostof the answers were sketchy. He said his - overall impreSsion was that the commission's decision to limit study to a semster system is premature. Kaplan said he disagreed with the com mission's answer to his first question. A switch to semesters may not involve monetary costs, Kaplan said, but it will certainly mean added time costs. Faculty and staff who are spending time revising the calendar will have lesi time to spend on things, such as teaching and research, Kaplan said. The commission should devote more time to studying course repackaging, tuition payment and the practicum situation before making any recom mendation, Kaplan said. Tuition must be looked at seriously, Koplin said. "We are a land-grant state institution created for the sons and daughters of the working class so every dollai spent on tuition is a dollar not spent el4ewhere (in the home) where it may be needed," Kaplan said. It is much easier to pay tuition in three The Daily Collegian Tuesday. November 5. 1974-3 systems. 102 said they favored the term• system. The results of both polls were present ed to the commission. Berlin said he also has received a number of petitions from students in East Halls supporting the term system. During their study, commission mem-, bers have used a number of assumptions to guide their decisions. The following is a partial' -list which may help students, voting in tomorrow's poll: —The primary goal of any calendar system is to enhance the' academic• programs at the University. —There is no available evidence that' any type of calendar is intrinsically superior to any other. —Housing, food service and ad ministrative services can adapt to any calendar, given reasonable time for preparation. —Fregtiency and length of class, periods can be adjusted in any calendar. • —A symmetrical calendar is preferred but not mandatory. —A common calendar for the whole University is desirable. —Each calendar must allow for a ;final examination period even if it is only used by a minority of faculty. —Any change from the present calen dar will upset some portion of the Univer sity and please some other portion. —Any calendar would be accepted in time, and activities would be adjusted to fit it. "Personally, I have had several good courses but not one that I wish I had for an additional five weeks," Kaplan slid. "In a 10-week term students who find themselves in a course which is not what they expected or is somehow inappropriate or with an instructor who is not the type they expected for the course they only have the course for 10 weeks and not 15," Kaplan said. It is much easier for students who need to drop out for medical or financial reasons under a term system than under a semester system, Kaplan said. When you have missed a semester you have missed one half of a year's work, he said. It isn't that hard to take 15 credits instead of 12 but it is difficult to take 21 instead of 18, he added. Under a semester system, classroom work could become more compressed and sketchy, Kaplan said. While students, now have 30 weeks of work for 75 minutes a day, under se mesters, students would have 30 weeks of work for 50 minutes a day, he said. "The idea of a semester being less pressure just doesn't seem to hold," Kaplan said. "T would not deny that both the term and semester systems have advantages," Kaplan said. "But I would deny that the benefits of switching to semesters are worth the perceived benefits of one over the other." The Academic Assembly is conducting a poll on the calendar issue tomorrow and Thursday. "I am not counting on the poll to make an impact on the President's Calendar Commission but I am counting on it to make an impact on the president," Kaplan said. "The final decision will have to be close. Even if we stay with the term, people will be disappointed," Berlin said. Berlin said he is worried that the faculty will ignore the cal endar question until a decision is made. installments rather than two, Kaplan said. The commission may be putting too much emphasis on term breaks and vacations, Kaplan said. They should not have such a great effect on deciding a calendar system, he added. "We are looking for the system with the highest learning potential, not the best vacation period," Kaplan said. • "The commission's views on the per ceived benefits of the semester system seem to indicate that any vote to recom mend a semester system now is premature," Kaplan said. Kaplan termed the commission's an swer to question 13 a half-truth. Although most universities may be experiencing a decrease in attendance, Penn State still has more applicants than it can accept, Kaplan said. "We still `get quite a few students during the summer. Maybe 10,000. That is more than some universities have all year long," Kaplan said. Kaplan said the course offerings at some branch campuses will have to be limited because they only have one teacher for certain courses. "Can that teacher handle the increased workload per term?" Kaplan asked. Even if he can, Kaplan said a professor •- • - who used to go on sabbatical for one term now will go for a whole semester. This will mean added workloads for those remaining, Kaplan added.
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