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THE TWIG
FEBRUARY 5, 1976
THE
MEREPITH
TWIG
COLLEGE
Should students be
qualified or
^quantified’?
Letters to the editor
The Task Force on Curriculum Reform’s proposal to the
Meredith Curriculum Committee contains one major alteration of
the college’s graduation requirements. This change is en-
corporated in the subject area it titles “Communication Skills.”
The proposal suggests a change of the foreign language
requirement from the present mandate 0 to 12 hours to a 6 hour
requirement. Neither requirement provides for the optimal
language program. The proposal offers some solutions to current
problems.
Under the Collegecatalogue, the student is currently required
to take up to four semesters of a foreign language. Placement is
based upon the scores of a foreign language test.
The Curriculum Reform proposal asjcs that students who
have had two years of language in high school be allowed to
choose between specific language or general language courses.
Students with less than two years of a high school language would
be required to take two semesters of a specific foreign language.
Most currently entering students would have this latter option.
Under our current requirements, few students are gaining a
competency in a foreign language. Their two years of required
language are essentially being wasted-few students with just the
two years of language are prepared to pass the reading com
petency requirements for higher degrees. Most students, not
aspiring to higher degrees do not have, after two years, sufficient
skills in a language to be able to practice these skills enough with
either conversation, reading or writing to retain their knowledge.
There do not seem to be any benefits to be derived from
partial study of a particular language. Language study is not a
place to bring about appreciation of literature. Students do not
gain an appreciation of great literature by stumbling clumsTy
through diluted editions. It would be better to study excellent
translations of these works.
We should either have no language requirement or a
qualitative one requiring a proficiency in one or more areas of
language use if the courses are to have any long term value. In
deed, two years of a language, under the present curriculum,
might be adequate if the high schools prepared the students for
upper level language training, but they do not. Most students have
had quantitative but not qualitative exposure to foreign
languages in high school.
The Curriculum Reform offers a solution to the problems
presented by the matriculation of ill prepared students. Under the
present structure, students with minimal qualitative language
qualifications are placed into Meredith’s second year program.
With poorly prepared students, teachers of these classes can do
little more than teach a modified, moderately accelerated first
year course. The Curriculum Reform proposal suggests that the
two years be concentrated into one year, students would then
have the choice of a review course or an introductory course in
the language. Student and faculty energywouldbe maximized if
such one year programs could be devised and if students could be
placed with students who are their equals in qualitative
background.
If dabbling in a language must be a requisite for graduation,
the presentation of an alternate of general language and
linguistics courses is a good one. The course idea is a good one
even if it is not required.
Dear Meredith Community,
Before the memories of
this past Christmas slip any
further away, I would like to
sincerely thank the people in
the Meredith Community who
participated in the “Toys for
Tots” drive sponsored by the
Meredith Christian
Association. I appreciate your
willingness to give a toy or
game to an underprivileged
child in Wake County. You will
be interested in knowing that
the toys donated by Meredith
varied considerably, in
cluding such things as
homemade bean bag games,
books, balls, stuffed animals,
and dolls. The toys were
collected by a local fire
department for distribution to
the needy children.
The Meredith Christian
Association will be sponsoring
many types of activities
during the spring semester,
including Wednesday worship
services, growth groups,
service projects, and a forum
on medical ethics. I encourage
each of you to get involv^.
Sincerely,
Nancy Pentecost
President
Meredith Christian
Association
enthusiast I am appalled at
the lack of athletic recognition
in the total Meredith com
munity. Although not
claiming that academics
should be neglected, I believe
that the student who par
ticipates in extracurricula
activities, including sports, is
more well rounded and ver
satile than the academic
bookworm. It’s discouraging
to learn of females with good
academic standing and ex
cellent athletic talent who
were diverted from Meredith
because of the apathy and
lack of scholarships in sports
at Meredith. These well-
rounded, talented students,
while going to other schools,
would be a great asset to
Meredith’s community. A
winning season would attract
new applicants to Meredith,
increase pride of student
body, add publicity to the
school, and promote physical
fitness as well as academic
excellence. And furthermore,
as much as Meredith College
stresses women’s in
dividualism and equality, it’s
hypocritical to hinder female
students to excell in inter
collegiate sports.
Dear Editor,
I would like to comment
on your January 25 editorial.
You stated that “most names
(of weak faculty members)
can be derived through
analysis of the faculty
evaluations distributed at the
end of last year.”
I agree that the
evaluations might show some
weaknesses of some faculty
members. I do not agree with
the implication that the
evaluations are a definite
source for finding the names
of “weak faculty members of
departments.”
Dear Editor,
As an active and par-
ticipating Meredith sports
Signed,
A Concerned and Proud
Meredith Athlete
While working closely
with Dr. Lyn Aubrecht to
develop the evaluation form
last year, I came to un
derstand two important
things: (1) Evaluation
responses are only opinions,
not facts and (2) the results of
any faculty evaluation should
be used only as one of several
factors in determining the
strength or weakness of the
faculty.
All members of the
Meredith Community need to
remember these two im
portant facts if we are to
continue to have faculty
evaluations.
Rebecca Askew
SGA President
Evaluations are judged
A letter to the editor in
this issue suggests an in
teresting question. What is the
purpose of the faculty
evaluations if it is not to
measure the students’
evaluations of the quality of
the individual courses, the
texts and the teaching?
Consulting the ex
planation attached to the
printout of the evaluation
results on reserve in the
Meredith library, I found the
statement “The purpose of the
evaluations was twofold: (1)
to help in the evaluation of
courses and teachers and (2)
to help improve courses and
instruction at Meredith
College.” Both are excellent
goals. Conclusions made
about courses and faculty
members should admittedly
be made “cautiously,” but
they should be made. If such
conclusions cannot be made,
we need to consider a new
evaluation instrument.
The evaluations seem
fair, they do not present an
exceedingly negative view of
the Meredith curriculum,
rather, since few areas were
evaluated as poor, they tend to
present an overly optimistic
picture. These few areas
should surely be analyzed and
improved.
Since a very basic pur
pose of teaching is to com
municate knowledge of a
discipline to a student, it
would seem that student
responses to faculty
evaluations would be the best
means of judging the
(Continued on Page 3)
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