MAIL

(Ed. Note--The Crimson does not necessarily endorse opinions expressed in printed communications. No attention will be paid to anonymous letters and only under special conditions, at the request of the writer, will names be withheld. Only letters under 400 words can be printed because of space limitations.)

To the Editor of the Crimson:

If the proposed plan to substitute five required introductory courses in the humanities and natural and social sciences for the present system of concentration and distribution is put into effect, the net result, in my opinion, will be a decisive step backward. It implies a failure on the part of our secondary schools to provide a solid and wide basis for college work or for life. This failure almost certainly exists; yet the trend in the colleges toward "orientation" courses for the Freshman and Sophomore years tends to preserve and aggravate the insufficiency of the schools rather than to remedy it. If, instead of taking over the task of the high schools, the colleges should strive to promote in them greater adequacy and efficiency, a far better situation would be in the making. One might even be justified in looking forward to the day when high school graduates will be really prepared either to take their places in the world of educated men and women or to continue their training along specialized or professional lines. In any case, let that be the direction of our efforts; colleges, with their libraries and laboratories, were not designed to prolong immaturity and dependence, already in this country carried beyond a logical age. Michael K. Clark '43

Ed. note: The Faculty has recently taken under consideration the Student Council report advocating five compulsory broad survey courses in place of the present system of concentration and distribution. The Crimson, feeling this proposal is off fundamental importance, invites further letters on the subject.