LESS WRITTEN WORK.

It has long been felt that there is altogether too much written work required of the average undergraduate at Harvard College. In some lecture courses, theses are absolutely essential as there is no other method, except the examinations, of testing the students' ability, but in many other courses it does seem that reports and conference papers are crowded on us in too great profusion. The result is a tendency to turn out superficial and hasty work, and in some cases to resort to unfair means. If there could be some reduction of the amount, the standard of scholarship could be kept just as high, and an undesirable temptation would be removed.

The CRIMSON believes that the least beneficial form of this written work is the weekly conference paper, used in many of the larger courses. It cannot pretend to be an adequate test of the student's knowledge from its short length, and in many courses it is never considered seriously by the members of the class. If oral questioning were substituted, a great deal of good would be done. The preparation for the lecture would have to be more thorough, there could be no unfairness, and the men could not help getting more out of the courses than they do now.