THE UNIVERSITY'S AIM.

A review of the changes in curricula adopted by the American colleges in general as a result of the Great War, impresses upon us the fact that Harvard is taking a distinct stand of her own in the matter of scholastic reform. Other colleges are modifying their entrance requirements, or laying emphasis on particular studies of a practical nature; Harvard has reformed her system with a view to increasing undergraduate interest in scholarship. We cannot but feel that the University has taken the better considered course, and at the same time has struck at the real root of the problem.

The chief value of a college education lies, not in any specific facts the student may learn, but in a general wide development. College should teach men to face life, not merely a particular phase of life. But the trend of changes at other colleges is toward practical efficiency--it is essentially a part of that paternalistic Prussian atmosphere which pervades the country. The inauguraters of these changes seem not to care whether a man thinks, so long as he is a good cog in the machine of government.

The University has seen that ideas are not the result of any special curriculum, but of a system which encourages the student to think. Two factors are preeminent to the success of such a system. First, many instructors who stimulate thought; second, an opportunity for instructors to meet the undergraduates for discussion and an emphasis on a general grasp of the subject rather than a knowledge of details. The second factor the University has already grasped and acted upon; it remains to develop the first. This will take time. In the meanwhile it is deeply satisfactory to know that Harvard has seen beyond the immediate conditions of our country, and is working to establish those basic factors in a real democracy; spontaneity of action and of thought.