Liberal Educational System

Educational system has been attacked for the last 20 or 30 years throughout the country, Meiklejohn at Wisconsin, Holt at Rollins, the proposed Harvard plan, these characterize some of the movements under way to change the existing system.

The student universally has objected to the mechanical aspect of education, that is, so many units, so many courses, so many hours of lectures, so many examinations as the components of a college degree. The student with initiative and the desire to study certain things as he saw fit has been highly irked at this situation, this production of brains by mass methods.

At Stanford in 1925 a movement was begun that in a way makes amends for the cut and dried aspect of the lock-step system. Under the title, The Independent Study Plan, a means is offered whereby the student may use his own initiative in his university work. The plan is open to students of exceptional qualifications at the beginning of their junior or senior years.

Dartmouth college has instituted a plan for a very few of its ranking seniors that goes to the extreme in giving the student freedom in his educational work. Those chosen to follow the plan will not pay tuition, will not attend classes if they do not wish to attend, and will not be required to take any examinations. In short they will be allowed to follow the intellectual life at Dartmouth as they see fit. This would be the ideal in education, but unfortunately few students would be strong enough to follow that plan and get anything from their university life other than a good time.

Stanford's Independent Study Plan endeavors to give certain latitude to the student and at the same time put definite checks on him that will make him direct his studies and get something from them. Stanford Daily