Post-War Depression

(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 with-held.)

To the Editors of the Harvard CRIMSON.

It is hard for an undergraduate to appraise the present tutorial system; but it seems to me that the time has come to put greater emphasis on the general examinations and less emphasis on the course work. The way to do this, probably, is to cut down the required number of courses, especially during the Senior year, while also elaborating the general examinations and building up the tutorial staff. No doubt this is the trend.

The reasons for giving course work less emphasis are both mechanical and psychological. Mechanically, as steps toward the mastery of a field, courses seem desirable either as introductory surveys to a general or to a special field, for the orientation of the student. But if one admits the desirability of working for understanding of a field, then courses other than these introductory surveys, seem a hindrance. Seniors, if they are not assumed to be robots, has best go their own gait, using lectures, books, and discussions for one general end according to their individual capacity,--not for several unintegrated courses along the way. The tutorial system, in other words, still seems to be superimposed, to integrate the course system; whereas ideally the course system should merely supplement it. This seems to be the prevalent opinion. But one system can only grow at the expense of the other--hence, lower required courses.

Psychologically also, courses should receive less emphasis because they tend to substitute a near end for a far end, and blur the student's purpose. As is generally admitted, working for factual course examinations induces memorizing. It emphasizes the method of studying for fact rather than for understanding, because course examinations are apt to be matters of fact. Thus the course system, in the handgrip mouth method of study it inculcates, hinders the student working for a general examination.

Since these criticisms are no doubt obvious, it is to be hoped that the number of courses required for graduation and for concentration will be lowered. John King Fairbank, '29.