THE HARE AND THE TORTOISE

Now that the reading period is going into its third year, many of the old abuses are fortunately being slowly obliterated. The fact that it has been made shorter this year than previously should permit the instructors in charge of courses to cover their required field without having to require the routine work in the time theoretically to be devoted to personal research. Another interesting change has been effected in English 72.

Instead of forcing the men in the course to distribute their work over a diverse selection of required books, everyone is to be allowed to select a pertinent subject in a field of wide range and cover it in the manner which he may see fit. In addition, it will not be necessary to spend half of the reading period preparing a written report to assure the instructor that the work has been done. If this plan is carried out as it has been set forth, a few more of the bonds of preparatory school methods will take another step towards a well deserved past.

With these innovations in one of the larger English courses, it becomes more apparent that it is merely a matter of time until the ideal of a constructive reading period will be attained. The present imperfections are still rather glaring, but the new improvements that are offered every year point to it short duration of the present unfortunate experimental period.