RESEARCH BULLETIN OF THE NATIONAL VOL. XVI * No. 2 EDUCATION MARCH + 1938 ASSOCIATION From High School to College Published by the RESEARCH DIVISION of the NATIONAL EDUCATION ASSOCIATION 1201 Sixteenth Street, N. W., Washington, D. C. mirmrarrarTm tt v«T eT Cc RESEARCH BULLETIN or me Published five times each year in January, March, May, September, and November President, CAROLINE S. WOODRUFF NATIONAL EDUCATION ASSOCIATION Executive Secretary, WILLARD E. GIVENS Director of Research: William G. Carr; Associate Director: Frank W. Hubbard Assistant Directors: Richard R. Foster, lvan A. Booker, Hazel Davis Research Assistants and Section Heads: Frances G. Bradley, Louise B. Sease, Helen H. Cox, Anna Haddow, Madaline K. Remmlein, Ruth Shirley, Mildred Wharton, and Vera D. Vinogradoff Executive and Editorial Offices 1201 Sixteenth Street, N. W., Washington, D. C. Copyright, 1938, by the National Education Association of the United States Entered as second-class matter February 10, 1923, at the Post Office at Washington, D. C., under Act of August 24, 1912. Acceptance for mailing at special rate of postage provided for in Section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917, authorized February 10, 1923. Subscriptions The payment of the $5 membership fee of the National Education Association entitles one to receive for one year the Research Bulletin, the Journal, the An- nual Volume of Addresses and Proceed- ings, and certain other publications of the Association. One dollar of each $5 mem- bership fee is for a year’s subscription to the Research Bulletin. The Research Bulletin may be received regularly thru a special subscription at $1 per year. Many of the early issues of the Research Bulletin are already out of print. The special subscription at $1 per year offers an opportunity to maintain a complete file of future Research Bulletins. Those entitled to receive the Research Bulletin regularly are asked to report at once any change of residence, giving old as well as new address. Purchasing Copies Additional copies of this issue of the Research Bulletin may be obtained at the following prices, postpaid if remittance accompanies order: Single copies, 25¢. 2 to 9 copies—10% reduction. 10 to 99 copies—25% reduction. 100 or more copies—33% % reduction. Orders for Research Bulletins not ac- companied by remittance are subject to transportation charges. Make checks pay- able to National Education Association. Reproduction of Material in Researci Bulletins Material appearing in the Research Bulletin is copyrighted. However, De- partments and regularly affiliated organi- zations of the National Education Asso- ciation may reproduce parts of these bulletins for the advancement of education. These departments and organizations need no authority other than this notice previous to such reproduction. In other cases appli- cation for the release of materials is re- quired. Address communications to the Research Division, National Education As- sociation, 1201 Sixteenth Street, N. W., Washington, D. C. CONTENTS Page FoREWORD 64 THE QUEST FOR FURTHER EDUCATION 65 Circumstances Which Produce, or Tend To Widen, the Gap between High School and College 65 The Nature of Student Difficulties 66 The Guidance Needs of Successful and Unsuccessful College Students 66 Purpose of This Bulletin 67 Limitations of the Study 6 Source of Data 68 Scope of Data 68 GUIDANCE WITH RESPECT TO COLLEGE ENTRANCE 0 The High-School Guidance Program Pertaining to College Entrance 70 Preliminary Contacts between Colleges and Their Prospective Students 74 ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS AND ADMISSION PROCEDURES 77 Unit Requirements 77 Types of Evidence Collected and Used in Admitting or Rejecting Students 78 Uniform Application Blanks 81 81 Special Plans of Admission Used in Individual Colleges Self-Appraisal of Admission Procedures by Those Who Supplied Information on These Practises 83 INTRODUCING THE STUDENT TO COLLEGE LIFE 85 Prevalence of Freshman Week Programs 85 Major Functions of Freshman Week Activities 85 Freshman Week Activities 86 Opinions of College Officials as to the Effectiveness of Their Freshman Week Programs 87 THE FRESHMAN CURRICULUM AND METHODS OF TEACHING 89 Selection of Courses 89 Special Courses for Freshmen 90 Adaptation of the Materials and Methods of Teaching 91 Freshman Load ........ 93 An Appraisal of the Freshman Curricalum and T eaching Methods 93 THE GUIDANCE AND SUPERVISION OF COLLEGE FRESHMEN 95 Plans for Student Counseling 95 Health Services Provided for College Freshmen 96 Regulations with Respect to Living Quarters 96 Financial Aid ........... 99 Self-Appraisal by the Colleges of Their Procedures in Counseling and Supervising College Freshmen 100 Use or RECORDS IN FRESHMAN GUIDANCE 102 Reports Which High Schools Send to the Colleges 102 Records Maintained by the Colleges 102 Reports Which Colleges Send to High Schools. 103 Self-Appraisal by the Colleges of Their Own Systems of Records and Reports 105 Improvement of Record Forms and Measuring Instruments 105 COOPERATIVE ATTEMPTS TO IMPROVE ARTICULATION BETWEEN HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE 107 Cooperation with Accrediting Associations 107 Direct Cooperation between High Schools and Colleges 108 Other Types of Cooperation - 108 Major Emphasis in the Relationships ed Colleges and High Schools 110 SUMMARY OF CURRENT GUIDANCE PRraActTises AFFECTING COLLEGE FRESHMEN 111 SELECTED REFERENCES 114 APPENDIX 117 121 List oF TABLES AND FIGURES [ 63 ] FOREWORD N A LETTER to General Breckenridge, dated February 15, 1821, Thomas Jefferson said of the school system which he envisioned for Virginia, “Let us keep our eye steadily on the whole system.”” With remarkable clarity he saw the need for a system of education in the United States so organized and coordinated that the common schools and the universities could, as he expressed it, “go hand in hand forever.” One hundred and seventeen years have passed. Still the challenge of Jeffer- son’s words has not been adequately met. Education as a whole has experienced rapid growth and, in some respects, has become highly efficient. But, partly as a result of rapid growth and development, the various units in the entire system of education are not adequately unified. Faulty articulation of these units is a perennial problem at all educational levels. Nowhere is the problem of articulation more troublesome than for high schools and colleges, where the problem is complicated by traditional differences in purpose and procedure, by tremendous growth of both institutions during the past fifty years, and by the rapid changes in policy and practise now taking place thruout the field of education. Neither the high school nor the college has been unmindful of, or indifferent toward, the imperfect articulation existing between them; but recent trends are forcing them to reevaluate their efforts to bring about greater unity. Frequently and earnestly inquiries such as the follow- ing are voiced: Is it possible so to coordinate the work of high school and col- lege that the latter will receive from the high school those best fitted for college education ? Can the difficulties of student adjustment be lessened so that more of those who enter college will remain and make the most of their opportunities ? This issue of the Research Bulletin approaches these questions by sum- marizing the guidance and orientation procedures actually being used in repre- sentative high schools and colleges. It identifies practises stamped with the ap- proval of wide usage and calls attention to promising innovations. It evaluates various aspects of guidance by summarizing the opinions of college officials as to the effectiveness of their own programs. This bulletin should be helpful to administrators and counselors of students both in high schools and in colleges. It should encourage high schools carefully to reappraise their efforts in guiding students toward, or away from, college and in preparing those who go to college for the opportunities and responsibili- ties that will come to them. It should stimulate similar self-appraisal on the part of college authorities and should suggest many possible improvements in orientation and guidance programs. Finally, this bulletin should help to stimu- late wider and more effective cooperation among high schools and colleges, a relationship on which satisfactory articulation so largely depends. Witrarp E. Givens, Executive Secretary, National Education Association. [ 64 ] The Quest for Further Education Going away to college is a momentous oc- casion for most of the young people who decide to continue their education beyond the high school. The experience is unique, adventurous, thrilling. In many ways it resembles a child’s first day in school, when for the first time he exchanges the familiar environment of the home for the untried surroundings of the school. College entrance, too, usually involves a rather complete change in environment: introduction to new classroom procedures; adjustment to a different kind of school atmosphere; and, very probably, accommodation to a residential en- vironment that is wholly different from that to which the young person is accustomed. Confronted suddenly with numerous situa- tions and problems which have not been en- countered before, the entering college student often is more or less discouraged, bewildered, and in need of judicious and friendly counsel. Thru his own efforts he may be unable to span effectively the wide gap between high-school and college experiences. What can be done to aid the student with this important transition ? This is the question on which the present study is focused. Circumstances Which Produce, or Tend To Widen, the Gap between High School and College The immaturity of entering students—The purposes of the typical college freshman are not too clearly defined. He is restive under au- thority, yet too immature for constant self- direction. Usually he is unaccustomed to assum- ing the amount of self-direction which college life implies. His strong desire for social approval prompts him to sacrifice independent judgment when necessary “to be one of the crowd.” These states of mind often make it hard for him to assume that personal responsibility which is imposed by a strange and somewhat more free environment. The size of colleges as compared with high schools—Many students are perplexed and baf- fled by the mere fact that the college to which they go is larger than the high school they at- tended.' Furthermore, because recent increases in college enrolments have come about thru expansion and enlargement of existing institu- tions more largely than thru the establishment of new colleges, adjustment problems caused by size of school are becoming more numerous. Just as it often is harder to find one’s way about in a large city than in a small town, so it is harder for students to discover their oppor- tunities and responsibilities in a large school than in a smaller one. An increase in the number of institutions in- volved—The establishment of many new col- leges during the past half century and particu- larly the opening of thousands of new secondary schools have made it increasingly difficult for high schools and colleges to maintain close re- lationships. When each college drew most of its students from a few preparatory schools whose chief interest was in preparing students for that college, the problem of mutual understand- ing and integration of effort was relatively simple. Now that a college draws its students from hundreds of different schools, and they in turn send their graduates to scores of differ- ent colleges, intimate contacts are hard to main- tain. Greater differences among entering students —A significant change in the general compo- sition of the college student body has added further to the difficulty of personal adjustment on the part of entering students. Approximately five times as many students are now in college as there were at the opening of the century. With this rapid growth in enrolment, the dis- parity has increased in the cultural and social background of college students, and in their respective abilities and interests. The typical freshman class at the present time comprises a broad range of talents and needs. The students usually have been trained in high schools hav- ing widely different programs. Their academic and vocational experiences and ambitions are quite dissimilar. An evolving school program—New purposes and procedures, too, have entered both the field of secondary and higher education. Secondary education no longer is focused exclusively on preparation for college, and the curriculum of the college itself has been greatly enriched and diversified. All this has increased the oppor- tunity for a college freshman to undertake a college course quite unrelated to his high-school preparation. 1Of the nation’s 25,000 high schools, nearly half have enrolments of not more than 100 students. On the other hand, only about 15 percent of the liberal arts colleges have enrolments smaller than 200 students [65] The Nature of Student Difficulties The specific problems of college freshmen have been analyzed and catalogued by many investigators. Voigt? suggests that the prob- lems of adjustment are of six general types, namely, those relating to: Adjustment to a new physical environment, in- cluding the use of new facilities and equipment, such as libraries, laboratories, and study halls. 2. Academic adjustment. 3. Personal adjustment to a new type of living ar- rangement, including the necessity of making choices with respect to afhliations and friend- ships, and about expenditures both of money and of time. 4. Personality growth and character development, including both physiological and _ psychological factors. 5. Building for one’s self a philosophy of life, in- cluding attitudes toward religion, vocation, and social and civic responsibilities. 6. Preparation for a life work and the achievement of goals in this field. Wood and Learned ® list the causes of dif- ficulty, in the approximate order of significance, as follows: 1. Difficulty in working out and observing a study schedule. 2. Failure to adjust promptly to classroom methods which differ from those previously used (lec- tures, note taking, etc.). 3. Devoting too much time and energy to out-of- school activities (athletics, parties, etc.). 4. Living away from home. 5. Living with a group of men or women (in clubs, fraternity houses, dormitories, etc.). 6. Doing the amount of work expected by college instructors, which often is far greater than the amount expected in high schools. 7. Inability to make effective use of library fa- cilities. 8. The distracting influence of outside work, when students must earn part or all of their college expenses. 9. Discouragement. 10. Loneliness. These and other problems are recognized and implied by Knode* who attributes student difficulties to: (1) lack of sufficient mental capacity, (2) inadequate or faulty study habits, (3) improper adjustment to courses, (4) lack of definite objectives and driving power, (5) distractions and worries, and (6) lack of proper outlets—physical, social, and mental. The Guidance Needs of Successful and Unsuccessful College Students The obvious need for better guidance pro cedures for college freshmen is driven home }, statistics on first-year failures. So impressive are these figures that in many cases the whole program of orientation is focused on the pre- vention of student failure. ‘This is important, to be sure, for each elimination shows that the gap between high school and college has been too wide, at least for the student involved. The withdrawal of large numbers of students during their first year at college—not neces sarily because of unsatisfactory progress in academic classes—is further evidence of some kind of maladjustment. In 426 colleges studied by Kelly,® the freshman enrolment in October 1935 was 94,367 as compared with a sopho- more enrolment of only 69,832—a difference of approximately 26 percent. If the college pro- gram is of genuine value, some means should be found to prevent the annual waste that oc- curs as a result of the elimination or with- drawal of a fourth of all those who embark upon it. Any effective program for bridging the gap between high school and college, moreover, must look to something more than the preven- tion of failures and a reduction in the number of freshman withdrawals. Better articulation between high school and college should result in bringing the advantages of college education to many young people who, under present con- ditions, do not enter college at all. Duffus® calls attention to the fact that in 1890 nearly half of those who went thru high school went on to college, whereas at present not more than a fifth continue their education. Altho admit- tedly a large percent of those who graduate from high school would not profit materially by the usual type of college education, few would deny that many whose schooling ends with high-school graduation are equipped to take advantage even of the present college program as well as, or better than, those now 2 Voigt, Irma E. Freshman Orientation. Adapted from an article scheduled to appear in the May 1938 issue of the Bulletin of the National Association of Deans of Women, a department of the National Education Association. * A study by Ben D. Wood and W. S. Learned, summarized in: Knode, Jay C. Orienting the Student in College. Contributions to Education, No. 415. New ivy Teachers College, Columbia University, 1930. p. 24-28. * Knode, Jay C., op. cit., p. 5 Kelly, Fred J. Continuity pH College Attendance. U. S. Office of Education, Bulletin, 1937, No. 24. Washington, D. C ’ Government Printing Office, 1937. p. ® Duffus, R. L. Democracy 7 "College. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1936. p. 2. [ 66] an tr¢ the orl the wi tus ful to hig urg ust of dor to gat con anc gui me: bili wo! tior of ; trib lies twe pro que sch whi selv whe opir mer met coll thos suit tere Univ attending college. On the basis of a statewide testing program in Ohio, Toops ’ declares that, in that state alone, 12,000 to 17,000 intelligent and scholarly seniors are graduated each year from the high schools who should continue their education but do not do so. Finally, an adequate program of freshman orientation must meet the needs, not only of those who otherwise would fail in college, withdraw because of poor adjustment, or re- tuse to enter, but also of those who, tho success- ful in meeting every college requirement, fail to make full use of their college opportunities. The need for help in bridging the gap between high school and college is probably fully as urgent because of the difficulties of students usually considered successful as it is because of students who withdraw from college as a result of failures. Purpose of This Bulletin This bulletin reports a study of what is being done by high schools and liberal arts colleges to improve articulation between them. Altho occasional reference is made to related investi- gations, the bulletin seeks primarily to give a comprehensive overview of current guidance and orientation procedures. Because whatever guidance is necessary for the successful adjust- ment of college freshmen is a joint responsi- bility, shared by high schools and colleges, it would seem that the practises of both institu- tions should be examined and appraised as parts of a single continuing program. A major con- tribution of this survey of practise, therefore, lies not in the problems analyzed but in the twofold approach which it makes to these problems. Limitations of the Study The bulletin does not attempt to answer the question, What percent of the nation’s high- school graduates should enter college? Those who believe that colleges should concern them- selves only with the more gifted students, from whose ranks the leaders and molders of public opinion are to be drawn, would solve the adjust- ment problem rather largely by highly selective methods of admission. They would have the colleges train relatively few individuals—only those able to profit by difficult intellectual pur- suits of specified types. Others whose chief in- terest is in greater diffusion of education, look 7 Toops, Herbert A. ‘‘A Catechism on a State-wide Testing and Guidance Program.” University), 1934. p. 2. (Mimeo.) upon the problem of freshman orientation pri- marily as that of remaking the college program to fit the interests, needs, and abilities of all high-school graduates who conceivably might continue their education. One group fears that college enrolments already are too high; the other contends that they should be increased several fold. This bulletin merely assumes that whatever the program offered in college, and whatever the number able to profit by that pro- gram, discreet guidance toward college and suc cessful orientation in college will need still to be achieved. Complete reorganization of secondary and higher education is advocated by some critics of the plausible way to improve articulation. Accord- school only present program as the ing to this point of view, such reorganization particularly the general use of junior colleges would stop adjustment problems at their source. Instead of bridging the gap between high school and college, this step supposedly would elimi- nate it. To demonstrate the validity of this argument or to refute it lies beyond the scope of the Reorganization eventually may eliminate adjustment problems. present investigation. In the meantime, however, students need, and can be given, much practical help and guid ance with the difficult transition between sec ondary and higher institutions as at present organized. Experience has shown, moreover, that until reorganization is relatively complete, the introduction of junior colleges postpones rather than solves the problem of student ad- justment to college life. When graduates of junior colleges enter the advanced classes of regular colleges, among students many of whom have been on campus at least two years, their difficulties are sometimes more acute than if they had entered the freshman class and made the adjustment along with all the others. “Guidance” is so broad a term, and guidance activities often serve so many purposes, that rigid definition and classification of procedures are extremely difficult. This study, however, is limited as strictly as possible to activities that are focused more or less directly on the prob- lem of better articulation between high school and college. It recognizes, but does not discuss, many phases of general guidance—educational, vocational, and personal—also, special guidance problems, such as the orientation of students handicapped by physical disabilities or defects. Columbus, Ohio: the Author (Ohio State [ 67] With reference to guidance practises at the high-school level, there is in this bulletin an in- tended emphasis on guidance toward college. This is true, not because the guidance of students toward college is considered more important than the guidance of that larger number who do not continue their schooling, but merely because of the inherent purposes and limitations of the study. Source of Data This bulletin is based on reports from 1600 high schools and from 423 colleges and uni- versities. The two questionnaire forms on which these reports were submitted were distributed in January 1937. Since it was not feasible to include every in- stitution engaged in higher education, the in- quiry to colleges was sent only to liberal arts colleges—including universities with liberal arts departments—the 656 institutions listed in the college directory prepared by the United States Office of Education.* The inquiry pertaining to high-school prac- tises was forwarded to 4100 public high schools and approximately 600 private and parochial schools. The latter were obtained from Porter Sargent’s Handbook of Private Schools and in- cluded all those featuring college preparatory work. The inquiry went to all the accredited public high schools listed for cities over 10,000 in population in the Office of Education high- school directory—nearly 1700 schools. In addi- tion, enough high schools were selected random from smaller communities, includiny rural areas, to bring the quota for each star, to one-sixth of all the high schools located within it. In Alabama, for example, 22 blank. went to the high schools located in cities above 10,000 in population; then in order to get 63 schools—one-sixth of all those in the state—4| additional high schools in smaller communities were selected at random from the accredited list. Scope of Data The 423 reports from colleges and unive: sities were classified and tabulated according to (1) size of freshman enrolment in Octobe; 1936, (2) type of control, and (3) type of student body. Thruout the bulletin these classi fications are followed whenever the tabulations revealed marked differences in the procedures of various types of institutions. ‘Table | shows the number and percent of institutions of each type from which replies were received. Over « hundred institutions are included whose fresh man enrolments were less than 100, 100 to 199, and 200 to 399, respectively. There are only sixty-two of the larger institutions, thirty- four of them with freshman enrolments in ex- cess of 600. About a fifth of the replies came from public colleges and universities; more than half, from denominational schools. Co- educational institutions are in the majority, but more than a third of the returns were from separate schools for men or women. ® This method of selection excluded junior colleges, colleges for Negro students only, professional schools, teachers colleg: and normal schools. TABLE 1—NUMBER AND PERCENT OF REPLIES RECEIVED FROM VARIOUS TYPES OF COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES Number of institutions whose freshman enrolment, Total autumn 1936, was Classification _- 600+ 400-599 200-399 100-199 100— Number Percent 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Type of control i binds Atte th kee Keuwie kaaedsk~ an 25 17 29 9 5 85 20.1 I ic 65k 5 one's di wevvne 0 3 39 100 80 222 52.5 Private, non-denominational........... 9 8 37 40 22 116 27.4 Total—see below Student body as atin eae band Sb eae ee 27 19 68 o8 50 262 62.0 NSE ob cRE CWA tO cee cedendag een 6 5 18 14 15 58 13.7 CO ee. Pee 1 3 19 30 41 94 22.2 Men and women in separate schools or QIN oo.ads dav citecives sivas 0 1 0 7 1 9 2.4 PIG 64 5 40 cashuc outs cecdb cde tdedan 34 28 105 149 107 423 | EE Oe See ee rr 8.1 6.6 24.8 35.2 SA 100.0 For Among the 1600 replies from high schools there were 1340 from public schools, 217 from private non-sectarian and 43 from parochial or sectarian high schools. The reports from public high schools were further classified for the purposes of tabulation and interpreta- ion as shown in Table 2. All groups are large schools, t enough for the purposes of statistical compari- son. The largest group, according to enrolment, represents the medium-sized high school with 200 to 1200 students. More than half of the replies came from cities over 10,000 in popu lation. The number of regular and reorganized high schools was almost identical. TABLE 2.—PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS FROM WHICH QUESTIONNAIRE REPLIES WERE RECEIVED Classification 1 Site of SC hool Large (More than 1200 students Medium (200 to 1200 students) Small (Less than 200 students) Enrolment not indicated Type of community City over 10,000 in population Town or city: 2500 to 10,000 inhabitants Rural community or village, below 2500 in population Type of community not indicated Form of organization Regular high school¢ Reorganized high school Total Number Percent 2 3 405 30.2 523 39 0 364 27.2 48 3.6 Total ee Del 755 56.3 166 12.4 415 31.0 4 0.3 Total €e below 667 49.8 673 50.2 1340 100.0 «A “regular” high school was defined in the questionnaire as one with ‘“‘no junior high school preceding >A “reorganized”’ high school was defined as one “which follows or perhaps includes—-a junior high school [ 69 ] Guidance with Respect to College Entrance The High-School Guidance Program Pertaining to College Entrance One of the important guidance functions generally conceded to belong to the high school is that of helping students to decide whether or not they should go to college. Are the high schools assuming this responsibility ? Have sys- tematic guidance procedures been developed ? Are the pupils’ interests, needs, and abilities fully explored ? How soon does the high school attack the problem of college entrance? What form of advisory service is available for each high-school student? Current practise in this area of guidance is suggested in the question- naire replies from 1600 high schools summa- rized in the following paragraphs. In this description the proportion of high schools making use of various procedures to improve articulation between high school and college is perhaps slightly larger than it would be if all the nation’s high schools were repre- sented. The schools most alert to the problem, and in general those with the most forward- looking programs of guidance, probably re- sponded more readily than others to the ques- tionnaire which was distributed. Hence, a limited amount of selection very likely has occurred in spite of the effort made to obtain representative replies. Influence exerted by advice given to high- school students—In most of the high schools here represented, certain students at least are advised definitely either to go on to college or TABLE 3.—OFFICIAL ADVICE GIVEN not to do so. In some schools every student- nearly every one—is advised officially with re{ erence to this question. The extent to which such counsel is offered in 1552 high schools of various types is summarized in ‘Table 3. Du: ing the year 1936, nearly 190,000 high-schoo! graduates were subject to whatever guidance procedures were followed in these schools. ‘This fact may well be kept in mind, not only in con nection with Table 3, but also with reference to all the practises reviewed in this section of the bulletin. Apparently, as shown in the third column of Table 3, private and parochial schools send « much larger proportion of their graduates into college than do the public high schools—approxi- mately 70 percent as compared with 28 per- cent. Column 4 indicates, too, that the percent of freshmen who enter college with the definite recommendation and official approval of high- school authorities is larger from private and parochial high schools than from public schools. Moreover, the percent of students entering co! lege without any definite recommendation one way or the other from high-school authorities is more than twice as large in the case of graduates of public high schools as for those from private and parochial schools. Column 6 brings out this difference and shows that on the problem of college entrance the larger high schools advise the smallest percent of their students. From the small public high schools reporting, only 37 percent of the graduates who entered college TO HIGH-SCHOOL GRADUATES WITH RESPECT TO COLLEGE ENTRANCE Percent of those entering college Percent of who were— Type of high school Total graduates — Total number of entering —advised -—advised --given no graduates* college® to enter not to enter official advice 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 3200 SeNbis Mi GOREN ooo ccc cece svesecesese 182,346 28.0 44.3 3.4 52.3 100.0 Large (over 1200 students)............... 114, 282 28.3 40.1 3.2 56.7 100.0 Medium (200-1200 students)............. 58,831 25.8 50.2 3.4 46.4 100.0 Small (below 200 students)............... 6,984 24.8 59.5 3.3 $7.2 100.0 217 private, non-sectarian schools........ 0.545. §,913 69.0 78.1 3.3 18.6 100.0 43 parochial or sectarian schools... ..........0655 1,218 69.5 63.9 10.1 26.0 100.0 @ Number of graduates, spring of 1936. > Percent of those graduating in the spring of 1936 who entered college in the autumn of 1936. [70] re in the autumn of 1936 did so without official approval or disapproval. From the large high schools, however, 57 percent of the entrants had been given no definite recommendation. According to Table 3, only about one student in 30 enters college after being officially ad- vised not to do so. Use of a regular procedure—Miore than two- thirds of the reports from high schools indicate that some kind of regular procedure is followed in advising students as to whether or not they should enter college. Over 90 percent of the private high schools and almost that large a proportion of the parochial and sectarian high schools follow some uniform plan for advising students with respect to college entrance, but only 67 percent of the public high schools use regular procedures in this type of guidance. According to our tabulations, systematic guidance procedures are slightly more common in reorganized high schools than in regular high schools; also, they are considerably more numerous in large high schools than in the smaller ones. In public high schools with more than 1200 students, the percent having a regu lar plan for advising students about college en- trance is almost as large as that for private and parochial high schools. As the size of the public high school decreases, however, the percent falls, first from 83 to 69, then to 48 percent for schools which enrol fewer than 200 stu- dents. Grade level at which guidance begins—Ap- proximately one-third of the high schools rep- resented in this study begin to advise the stu- dent with respect to college entrance when he reaches the ninth grade. In an equal number of schools there is no one grade in which this type of guidance is consistently introduced. In 13 percent of the regular high schools and 16 per- cent of the reorganized schools, guidance to- ward or away from college begins in either the seventh or eighth grades. In 22 percent of the reorganized schools and 13 percent of the regu- lar high schools, it is deferred until the tenth grade. Significantly, among the schools which make any attempt to counsel their students with respect to college entrance, only | percent postpone the matter until the students’ senior year. These facts suggest that long periods of constructive educational planning are prefer- able to last-minute attempts at guidance. Person chiefly responsible for guidance with respect to college entrance—In more than half of the small public high schools represented, and in over half of the private and parochial schools, the principal is chiefly responsible for guiding pupils toward, or away from, college. In large schools having more than 1200 stu dents, someone else usually is responsible—a special counselor in 24 percent of the cases, the homeroom teacher in 8 percent of them, and the dean in 4 percent. In about 60 percent of the large schools and in nearly as many of those having 200 to 1200 students, no one person is chiefly responsible for this kind of pupil guid- ance. Wherever this is true, the obvious danger ot divided responsibility is present. Facts considered in advising students as to college entrance—Types of information used as a basis for counseling students about going on to college are listed below according to fre- quency of mention in the questionnaire replies : Marks in high-school subjects A description of personality and characte: Che number of credits earned in certain subjects Interests and purposes as revealed by interviews or questionnaires Ratings on one or more general intelligence tests The economic status of the family The desires of the student’s parents Apparent abilities of the student in fields other than academic subjects The student’s health record Scores on objective tests in high-school subjects Scores on college aptitude tests Scores on tests used to discover special abilities Vocational interests and abilities. Only the first item in this list was mentioned in as many as three-fourths of the questionnaire replies. The last five items are considered in less than half of the high schools represented. ‘The remaining items are taken into account in approximately two-thirds of the participating schools. When separate consideration is given to the practises of schools in which no regular pro- cedure is followed in advising students with re- spect to college entrance, a somewhat different emphasis on the foregoing items is revealed. According to the frequency rankings, schools following no regular procedure pay relatively more attention to the economic status of the family and the desires of the student’s parents, and relatively less attention to his interests and purposes as revealed by interviews and question- naire analyses. The following additional facts serve as the basis for guidance toward, or away from, col- 1 ] lege in a relatively small number of the high schools from which reports were received: Attitude toward college—cultural enthusiasm Known habits of work—persistence Family tradition and background Social maturity and adjustment Initiative and qualities of leadership Record of extracurricular activities Ability to take responsibility Evidences of ability to cooperate Homeroom data Evidence of an awakening ability, even when pre- vious record has been somewhat unsatisfactory. Approximately one-fourth of the high schools included in this study participate regularly in a cooperative testing program for which some liberal arts college, or university, is jointly re- sponsible. If our data are representative in this particular, such programs are more common in public high schools than in private and paro- chial schools. The results obtained in coopera- tive testing programs apparently prove helpful in guiding the student toward, or away from, college, for they are so used in four-fifths of the high schools in which such testing programs are carried out. Cooperative testing programs, such as those referred to above, are carried out on a statewide basis in about one-fourth of the states.' Usually cooperation on the part of high schools is volun- tary and direction of the program is in the hands of one or more state colleges or univer- sities. The tests generally are given simultane- ously at designated testing centers thruout the state. Sometimes the tests are for high-school seniors only; sometimes they are for all high- school students. Participation on the part of students is optional. The test results are used in student guidance and, in some states, as a basis for scholarship awards. Use of a single permanent file, in which all the available information about each student is centralized, was reported by 85 percent of all the high schools included in this study. Virtu- ally all of the reports stated that this informa- tion—or at least nearly all of it—is available to faculty members and others who are legiti- mately concerned with the students’ progress. The dissatisfaction with present systems of school records and reports, so often expressed, was noticeably absent from these questionnaire replies. Discussion of the college-entrance problem with parents—A large majority of the paro- chial and sectarian high schools included in ¢! survey and nearly all the private, non-sectarian high schools regularly arrange for one or more conferences between the student’s adviser and his parents in which the matter of college , trance is discussed. Only about half of the pub- lic high schools, however, have adopted this guidance procedure. If such conferences con- tribute materially to the cause of better articu- lation between high school and college, much wider use of this plan by public high schools should be encouraged. Recommendations to parents on the advisa- bility of college entrance for their children are much more positive in certain types of schools than in others. Table 4 suggests the extent to which such conferences result in some definite recommendation to the parent. TABLE 4.—FREQUENCY WITH WHICH PARENTS ARE DEFINITELY AD.- VISED AS TO COLLEGE ENTRANCE FOR THEIR CHILDREN Percent of schools where definite Type of school Number advice is given Always Usually Seldom Never 1 2 3 4 5 6 Public high schools 587 10.7 69.7 18.9 0.7 Private non - sec- tarian schools... 192 44.8 51.0 3.2 05 Parochial or sec- tarian schools... 32 43.8 50.0 6.2 0.0 Wad aenie aie eho 2 811 20.1 64.5 14.8 0¢ Faculty advisers—Each student has a faculty adviser in three-fourths of the high schools in- cluded in this study. The percent of public schools in which each student is assigned to a specific adviser is slightly larger than the cor responding percents for private and parochial schools. The proportion of large high schools in which each student has an adviser is con siderably larger than that for either group of smaller schools. The percents for schools of various sizes were: large high schools 83, me dium-sized schools 75, and small schools 65 percent. In nearly half of the schools where faculty advisers are assigned, the student has a different adviser each year. The smaller the school, the more likely it is that the adviser is changed 1 Among the statewide testing programs are those of Colorado, Connecticut, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. from year to year. Conversely, the larger the school, the better the student’s chances are of having one adviser for the whole of his high- school career. Figure I brings out this trend. Probably this difference can be attributed in part to the relatively more rapid turnover of teachers in the smaller schools. Forty-two percent of all the high schools in which faculty advisers are assigned require a definite number of conferences between student and adviser. Such regulations are in effect in only 25 percent of the small public high schools, but they have been established in 53 percent of the large high schools included. Half to two- thirds of the schools in which a specific number of conferences are required have fixed the num- ber at “more than one conference each year.” Less than 10 percent require conferences dur- ing the senior year only, and only 18 percent require a minimum of one conference during each school year. ‘The number and frequency of required conferences between student and adviser are greater in large high schools than in small, in reorganized high schools than in regular, in private and parochial schools than in those under public control. Special help given in selecting colleges— About three-fourths of all the high schools co- operating in this study assign to some one mem- ber of the faculty the responsibility of keeping informed about the entrance requirements and curriculum offerings of various colleges and universities. Nine-tenths of the private and FIGU parochial schools follow this practise and almost that large a proportion of the large public high schools. Even among the small and medium- sized high schools, responsibility is centered in one individual in 56 and 68 percent of the cases. The person to whom this assignment is given is expected, of course, to familiarize himself with the entrance requirements and offerings of those institutions to which the graduates of the high school most often go. One of the ques- tionnaire replies stated: The teacher who has this responsibility in our school has on hand about 100 of the current cata- logs from the colleges to which our graduates usually go. These are kept on a special shelf where students may go to them for information. If a stu dent shows some interest in a college not repre- sented in this collection, the teacher writes out immediately for one of its bulletins. During their senior year, nearly all students have a course with this teacher in which some analysis and comparison of the offerings of different colleges constitutes a definite part of the work. It is doubtful whether most high schools follow a plan as definitely organized as that just described ; but, according to 97 percent of tue questionnaire replies, adequate sources of information (college catalogs, special bulletins, etc.) are available to the staff member who is expected to be familiar with the entrance re quirements and offerings of various colleges. Table 5 shows that most high schcols help their students to select the respective colleges and universities to which they go and advise them as to the general type or types of work RE I IN APPOINTING FACULTY ADVISERS IN PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS OF VARIOUS SIZES PLANS FOLLOWED | Same adviser thru- Other plan Different adviser SIZE OF SCHOOL out high school each year | | TTTTTYT T , | Large ] | 7 re than 1 stude | Medium | - = ——! = | zVUV stucent TT oe | Small a: | o 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 Percent of High Schools haved fe . : ‘ i meen [73] which they probably should undertake. Private and parochial schools, especially, give their stu- dents this kind of guidance. TABLE 5.—HELP GIVEN IN 1564 HIGH SCHOOLS IN SELECTING SPECIFIC COLLEGES AND CERTAIN DEFINITE TYPES OF COLLEGE WORK Percent of schools Type of help given — Public Private and parochial 1 2 3 Student is helped to select a particular college or univer- sity which he will enter... .. 81.6 98.5 Student is advised as to specific types of work to pursue in RS hi cece tec cus 83.5 97.3 Previews of college life—Nearly all the re- ports from high schools state that a serious at- tempt is made to give students as much insight as possible into the opportunities and require- ments of college life. This claim is made by all the private and parochial schools and by 92 percent of all the public schools. The leading methods used to acquaint high-school students with college life are summarized in Table 6. TABLE 6.—METHODS MOST FRE- QUENTLY USED TO ACQUAINT HIGH-SCHOOL STUDENTS WITH THE OPPORTUNITIES AND RE- SPONSIBILITIES OF COLLEGE LIFE Schools where used Procedure ———_—_-- Number Percent 1 2 3 Placement of college bulletins or manuals in the hands of students............... 1309 88.9 Talks to groups of students by a representa- tive of certain colleges and universities... 1215 82.4 Conference of students with their faculty RENNER. 5 i ik ac 0s enh taekis 640 bx8a<< 1031 69.9 Talks to groups of students by a member of the high-school faculty................ 692 46.9 Organized visits to a near-by college or Es. bndibedenen cp a0beeechee 505 34.2 The average number of different methods reported by each school is 3.3. The most widely used device is that of placing college bulletins in the hands of students—a type of guidance which, tho helpful, has its obvious limitations. Procedures not listed in this table which cer- tain high schools have found to be effective are: In senior classes, students are introduced to some of the teaching methods generally used in college classes—particularly, the lecture method and note taking. Trips are often arranged for individual student allowing them to visit whatever college they ex pect to enter. Talks to groups of students are given by the al of various colleges. Clubs, sometimes known as College Clubs, build 4 their entire program of activities around ¢h, problems of attending college. Courses in guidance (and sometimes those in othe; subjects) deal with the offerings and requir ments of various colleges. Homeroom programs and discussions are concerned with the problems and opportunities of colle, life. Preliminary Contacts between Colleges and Their Prospective Students The decision as to whether or not to go t college and especially the selection of a pa: ticular college frequently depend on the guid ance and recruiting practises of colleges and universities. In spite of what is done in high school to acquaint students with various insti tutions, young people often feel uncertain about what they want to do until they come into direct contact with someone representing eac! of the colleges under consideration. Methods used by the colleges, therefore, to acquaint prospective students with their offe: ings are highly important factors in pre-college guidance. Moreover, the first contacts of an institution with its students often indicate with surprising accuracy the general quality of its program. Among the devices used by various institutions to inform prospective students about their offerings and requirements are traditional catalogs, informational pamphlets, special bu! letins, committees of alumni established in var ous centers, high-school commencement speak ers, and student activities such as athletic events, musical programs, and debates. Many colleges, too, have field representatives who make direct contacts with prospective students. These direct contacts usually appeal to high-school seniors confused as they so often are by a mass of pubs licity material and complicated printed expla nations. The direct contacts of colleges with their prospective students—Some kind of direct con tact is made with future students in 93.8 per- cent of the 423 liberal arts colleges and unive: sities whose guidance and orientation procedures are summarized in this report. Relatively fewe: publicly controlled institutions than private and denominational schools establish such contacts, yet 84.7 percent of the former contact at least [74] part way. leges vatir may note colle of Ww mak On | of a fresk instil T ortel repr schor ing | 82.2 freq are: high of th stud the « tive the high (5) in ¢ coop A not of es stud inch testi pate tests ising over ful | colle that ance go © resu failv uren base cour In cr dents ey ex other quire erned olleg ruld and high nsti bout into each EO iter lege an vith its ious out nal ul part of their prospective students in some direct way. Of the denominational and private col- leges, 95 percent take this obvious step in culti- vating confidence and goodwill. Size of school may account largely for the difference just noted. Slightly less than 80 percent of all the colleges enrolling more than 400 freshmen— of which two-thirds are public institutions- make direct contacts with prospective students. On the other hand, this is done by 95 percent of all the colleges enrolling fewer than 400 freshmen—of which only 11 percent are public institutions. The way in which direct contact is most often made with prospective students is for a representative of the college to speak to high- school seniors in groups. Of the colleges mak- ing any type of direct contact with students, 82.2 percent employ this device. In order of frequency of mention, other types of contacts are: (1) a college representative interviews high-school seniors individually ; (2) an officer of the college writes a letter to each prospective student or his parents; (3) a representative of the college confers with the parents of prospec- tive students, either at the student’s home or at the college; (4) an annual visiting day for high-school seniors is held by the college; and (5) contacts are made thru a testing program in certain high schools in which the college cooperates. Apparently, the practise mentioned last is not widely recognized as an important means of establishing direct contacts with prospective students, for only 15.8 percent of the colleges included in this study participate in cooperative testing programs. Institutions which do partici- pate in such programs, however, find that such tests are helpful in identifying the most prom- ising candidates for admission to college. More- over, Cooperative testing programs prove help- ful to colleges in many other ways. Half the colleges participating in such programs report that the test results are used regularly for guid- ance purposes in cases where the pupils tested go on to college. Almost as many use the test results in studying the causes of success and failure in college, in refining technics of meas- urement and procedures of admission, and as bases for advising all high-school seniors en- countered as to the probability of their success in college. A third of the colleges which join * Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching 202 p. Thirty-Second Annual Report. New York: the Foundation, 1 with high schools in cooperative testing pro grams use the test results as guides in modify ing related college courses. A few colleges make direct contacts with prospective students thru local parent-teacher associations, churches, students’ organizations, women’s college information centers, women’s clubs, and lecture bureaus. Others put on col lege-day programs in high schools, give special musical programs in the high schools and on their own campuses, and conduct competitive events for high-school students such as intet high-school track meets, dramatic and forensic contests, basketball tournaments, and competi tive contests for college scholarships. Still an other practise followed by a few institutions is that of having college students interview high school seniors individually or speak to them in groups. Guidance versus commercialism in recruiting college students—The amount of guidance ac tually administered to prospective students thru the contacts mentioned in the foregoing para graphs cannot be determined from the data of this study. Such contacts can be extremely help ful in guiding students to the right school. From other sources it is known, however, that many college representatives are interested primarily in the number of students they can persuade to enrol and secondarily, if at all, in student guidance. In such cases they tend to draw to their own institutions students who could profit more by the offerings of rival schools. Many times they unwisely encourage students to go to college who ought not attempt academi work beyond the secondary-school level in any institution. “The latest annual report of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching calls attention to the fact that “un bridled competition has led, increasingly in recent years, to practises that can only be con demned.” ? An improvement in recruiting prac- tises recognized as one of those most urgently needed is that of substituting genuine guidance for the commercialism, questionable ‘induce ments,” and high-pressure salesmanship often used in the first direct contacts between col- leges and their prospective students. During 1937 both the Association of College Representatives and the North Central Asso- ciation of Colleges and Secondary Schools pre pared tentative statements covering ethical and [75] unethical procedures in recruiting students. It is expected that at an early date a statement will be agreed upon and officially endorsed by these and other accrediting associations. The following principles are included in the pre- liminary statements already issued : = . Published information may properly be sent to high schools with or without invitation. It is ethical to display such material in high schools, but those in authority are under no obligation to the colleges to arrange such displays. . High-school authorities may properly assist their students in obtaining part-time work, loans, scholarships, or other forms of financial help announced in college bulletins, but it is unethical to seek forms of assistance not thus listed in published statements. 3. Colleges may properly hold high-school visiting days and high schools should feel free to an- nounce such programs and allow pupils to at- tend them. 4. It is unethical for a college to employ any rep- resentative whose salary depends on the num- ber of students recruited. 5. High schools may properly invite college repre- sentatives to appear on guidance programs, but such representatives should refer to their own institutions only in reply to direct questions from students as to facilities and offerings. 6. It is unethical for a college representative to appear at a high school without invitation; likewise for the high school to arrange confer- ences for such uninvited representatives. nN 7. Conferences between college representatives high-school students should be arranged during students’ free periods. 8. An alumnus of the college should not be p: with the college representative while studen. are being interviewed. 9. College-day programs, with representat present from several institutions, are p: sible, but conferences between students and sy representatives should be entirely optional! the former. 10. Any form of misrepresentation by college 1 resentatives is unethical; likewise, prejudicig statements about other institutions. 11. It is unethical for colleges to request, and { high schools to supply, lists of students about : graduate which indicate in any way those pu; with outstanding abilities. A number of other recommendations proposals are included in the statements fron which these are adapted, covering such matters as: “bidding” between institutions for student; with outstanding abilities; “shopping about by pupils and parents for the best obtainable awards; and, correct and incorrect forms t be used in applying for, and in granting, finan cial aid.* Altho these statements are subject to modification, they suggest the essential core of a code of ethics intended to redirect the empha- sis in recruiting procedures, placing it where it properly belongs, on student guidance. % For the complete tentative statements see: (1) The North Central Association Quarterly 12: 13-16; July 1937. (2) Minut of the meeting of September 3, 1937, of the Association of College Representatives—obtainable in mimeographed form fron secretary, Milton C. Towner, Appleton, Wis. [76] C lege mea entr dure tim¢ tors othe clea Sine rath are thai cou q the thei den the: to Th but det den tak 6 a Entrance Requirements and Admission Procedures Closely related to the procedure used by col- leges in recruiting their students, and in some measure integral parts of that process, are the entrance requirements and admission proce- dures associated with actual enrolment. Some- times entrance requirements are decisive fac- tors in the student’s selection of a college. At other times they represent hurdles that must be cleared after a given college has been selected. Since their fundamental purpose is selection rather than pre-college guidance, however, they are treated separately in this bulletin rather than as procedures used by the colleges to en- courage or dissuade college attendance. The intention of colleges at times to secure the largest possible number of students, and their ability at other times to select their stu- dents from a larger number of applicants than they can accommodate, are consistently related to individual college entrance requirements. These requirements, sometimes experimental but more frequently traditional, are applied in determining whether or not a prospective stu- dent has been adequately prepared to under- take college work. Unit Requirements The tendency to require not less than 15 units of secondary-school work is fairly general in American colleges and universities. ‘The dis- tribution of these units into specified and non specified subject groups varies greatly, how- ever, from school to school. Decided evidence of a trend toward granting the prospective stu- dent greater freedom of pattern in making up the total unit requirement is found in Figure II. From 1930-31 to 1936-37 there was a decrease in the percent of schools specifying the nature of all units accepted for admissions purposes and a decrease in the proportion of schools naming 10 to 14 of the units required. On the other hand, during the same period larger per cents identified themselves with each of the groups specifying none of the required units, 1 to 4 units, and 5 to 9 units. The average number of specified units in 1930-31 was 10.0; in 1936-37, 9.4. Among the subjects specified for college en- trance, English heads the list. In 1930-31, 85.3 percent of all the colleges responding to the FIGURE II KEY: HBB All courses definitely specified 5 to 9 specified units [-__] No course definitely specified NUMBER OF SPECIFIED UNITS USUALLY REQUIRED FOR ADMISSION IN 1930-31 AND 1936-37 Fed 10 to 14 specified units FE 1 to 4 specified units 1936-37 Research Division, National Education Association questionnaire required one or more courses in English and in 1936-37 this percent had in- creased to 87.7. Despite the current populariza- tion of the social sciences and natural sciences, the proportion of colleges specifying require- ments in the former field increased only from 68.1 percent to 68.3 percent and remained sta- tionary at 49.9 percent in the latter field. Neither of these subjects is required as often as mathematics which, ranking just below Eng- lish, was required in 81.6 percent of the col- leges in 1930-31 and in 80.4 percent of them in 1936-37. The foreign language requirement showed the most marked decrease—a drop of 3.5 percent—but still 59.1 percent of the col- leges require one or more courses in this field. Occasionally, some unusual requirement such as a certain vocational subject or Bible study is also included in the specified unit require- ments. Table 7 indicates the trend in the number of specified units usually required in each sub- ject. Despite the tendency to free prospective students from too rigid a pattern of require- ments, the subjects which carried the most weight in 1930-31 are still the most prominent in 1936-37. The typical pattern is 3 units of English, 2 units of mathematics, | unit of social science, | unit of natural science, and 2 units of a foreign language. This permits 6 elective units for the student in making up the usual 15-unit requirement. Types of Evidence Collected and Useq in Admitting or Rejecting Students When the prospective student prese: the college of his choice evidence that | satisfied the 15-unit requirement, the next sideration is the quality of this work. \Ja; institutions of higher learning—especial| older schools in the New England and \J Atlantic States—reexamine their applicant respective of high-school records of ac! ment. Others accept, as sufficient proof of +! candidate’s ability to do college work, ac! ment records, recommendations, and other dence of mental endowment and accom ment submitted to them by the seconia: schools. Still others rely on the results of ex aminations given under the auspices of independent agency—standardized tests of | lege aptitude such as those used by the Col! Entrance Examination Board, the Ameri Council on Education, and Ohio State U; versity. Acceptance of graduates from approved secondary schools without examination began about 1871. The University of Michigan was one of the first to inspect and accredit high schools from which students might enter wit! out further evidence of ability to do college work. Other institutions soon adopted the plan and it came into wide use especially after the introduction of the so-called Carnegie unit tem of evaluating high-school work. The Na- TABLE 7.—TREND IN UNIT REQUIREMENTS FOR PROSPECTIVE COLLEGE STUDENTS, 1930-31 TO 1936-37 Bn onl Percent of the colleges with some - ‘fied Subject field requiri requirement which specifie certain = ~ ----—- courses 1 unit 2 units 3 units 4 units 1 2 3 4 5 6 ee 1930-31 361 0.0 1.1 85.9 ) 1936-37 371 0.0 0.8 84.6 14 eS ae ee eee 1930-31 345 4.1 73.3 22.3 1936-37 340 6.8 74.4 18.8 ) Gociel asfemes. .... vsckervniadenssenss 1930-31 288 68.1 28.8 3.1 0.0 1936-37 289 65.4 30.4 4.2 0.0 Natural science 1930-31 211 78.2 19.4 1.9 0.5 1936-37 211 78.7 18.5 2.8 0.0 Foreign language 1930-31 265 1.5 64.5 10.9 : 1936-37 250 2.0 71.2 9.6 1 Vocational subjects and Bible..................... 1930-31 36 1936-37 49 [78 ] tional Survey of Secondary Education reported that, in 1932, 23 percent of 517 colleges and universities Were accepting students using the hich-school diploma as a single criterion of fit- ness and that 63 percent would accept students on the basis of a transcript of credits presented from any recognized and accredited high school. \ltho unit requirements still occupy a promi- nent role in admissions plans, the most recent tendency seems to be to require several types of evidence as to the qualifications of prospec- tive students for college admission. Whether or not all the evidence is taken into consideration in admitting or rejecting students, the colleges apparently have found it wise to obtain con- siderable information about those who apply for admission. Figure III shows what proportion of the 423 institutions represented in this study regu- larly collect various types of evidence and the percent using each type as a basis for ad- mitting and rejecting students. It shows also the percent of schools which occasionally col- lect and use the same types of information. Six types of information are obtained regularly in a majority of the schools represented: (1) the transcript of high-school credits, (2) rank in high-school graduating class, (3) scores on an intelligence test administered by the college, (4) the results of an entrance health examination, (5) the high-school principal’s judgment as to the student’s strong and weak points, and (6) a description of personality and character. Other types of evidence reg ularly collected by 25 to 50 percent of the colleges are: a record of the student’s extra curricular activities, scores from one or more achievement tests administered by the college, the report of an interview between the stu dent and a member of the college staff, the high-school diploma, and the student’s rating on an intelligence test taken in high school. The transcript of credits, which is used regu- larly as a criterion of fitness for college en trance in 86.1 percent of the colleges, is the only type of information which a majority of the schools regularly employ for this purpose The three items ranking next according to frequency of regular use in admitting and re jecting students are: rank in class, the high school principal’s judgment, and a description of personality and character. These regularly determine an applicant’s eligibility for college entrance in 37 to 48 percent of the liberal arts colleges. Much of the information regu larly obtained is used occasionally to disbar an applicant, or to admit one who lacks certain of the usual requirements. Table 8 indicates the total frequency with which various types of evidence are collected and used at least occasionally in admitting and rejecting students. The items are arranged TABLE 8—TYPES OF EVIDENCE COLLECTED AND TYPES USED BY 423 COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES AS A BASIS FOR ADMITTING AND RE- JECTING STUDENTS Types of evidence 1 Transcript of high-school credits with subject marks Rank in high-school graduating class.......... High-school principal's judgment....... el Record of personal interview by member of college staff Description of character and personality from high school Results of intelligence test taken in high school Results of College Entrance Board Examinations Results of general intelligence test taken at college Results of objective achievement tests taken in high school Results of health examination taken at college High-school diploma... . High-school extracurricular activity record Results of objective achievement tests taken at college High-school health record. . Results of essay-type examination taken at college Other ieapomtamt fheme ©. oo... ccccccccccccccess Number Number Percent using of collecting using those collecting 2 3 4 407 371 91 371 279 75.2 354 268 75.7 304 235 77.3 308 214 69 5 278 168 60.4 192 166 86.5 203 143 418.8 256 135 52 272 132 48.5 163 132 81.0 304 131 43.1 233 117 50.2 166 111 66.9 104 70 67.3 69 56 81.2 ““Other important items’’ collected and used: references from pastor, employer, alumni, etc.; general and personality data obtained from sources other than high school; record of health from physician; record of oculist’s examination; vaccination record; emotional and personality test results; results of special tests; results of competitive examination for scholarships; cumulative record cards; church relationship; records from previous college in case of transfers; vocational objectives, interests, and experiences; results of state testing program; and standing of high school from which applicant graduated [79] FIGURE III TYPES OF EVIDENCE COLLECTED AND USED IN ADMITTING OR REJECTING a " COLLEGE STUDENTS Transcript of credits Rank in class Intelligence test scores (college) Health examination (college) High-school principal's judgment Description of personality and character | tO Telelele! | st Record of extracurricular uf activity | st | % Achievement test scores 1 (college) ore es ot Interview report | ; (college faculty member) ti seserstetenssstesensisieecbooeed } of High-school diploma J Intelligence test scores etatetatetetatetetatatate’ SI (high school) Achievement test scores etetatetatetete® scesecenen (high school) Health record Potetetetetete pommel (high school) pé Essay-type examination | Pesscscecedeossssd (college) th tr College Entrance Board oats ot Examinations + lf Miscellaneous’ } - sc 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 Percent of Colleges Research Division, National Education Association = al KEY: Collecting information Regularly J Occasionally [] Never ws Using information to ed- RRB Regularly Bee Occasionally [__]Never al mit or reject students * Includes: references from pastor, employer, alumni, etc.; oped end p y date obtained fom sources other than high school, . record of health from Physician; record of oculist's i ~— ional and p y test results; results of special di tests; results of i for scholarshi lati record cards; church reletionshio, records | from previous college in case E of trensters; vocational objectives, interests, and experiences; results of state testing program; and, standing of high school from which eppli- ss cant gradueted. ona [80] according to the number of schools using them nore or less often to determine eligibility for college entrance. [he transcript of high-school credits, the results of the College Entrance Board Exami- nations, the high-school diploma, the record of a personal interview with some member of the college staff, the high-school principal’s ‘udgment, rank in high-school graduating class, and a description of character and personality prepared by high-school authorities have the greatest proportionate use for student selec- tion. Certain miscellaneous items! are deci- sive factors in admitting students in the 16.3 percent of the colleges obtaining these types of information. From the questionnaire there is no way of knowing the combinations of evidence required for admission by various colleges. One western state university reported, however, that its applicants may gain admittance to freshman standing thru any one of seven different ways. Similarly, admission to one of the largest east- ern colleges for women is gained thru choice of four plans, each of which includes a scholas- tic aptitude test and transcript of high-school credits in combination with certain other types of information. Briefly stated the present trend in admis- sion practise is toward the collection of many types of evidence as to the ability of the appli- cant to undertake college work and to rely somewhat more often than formerly on sec- ondary-school records, standards, and recom- mendations. The personal interview on the part of a member of the ccllege staff is the most prominent factor in admission in which the college plays a direct part. College En- trance Board Examinations are characteristic of so important a group of the oldest institu- tions in the country, however, that it should not be inferred that control of college entrance requirements has shifted to the secondary sche ols. Uniform Application Blanks Colleges and universities in various states and regions have worked cooperatively to de- velop improved application forms for use in all the institutions represented. Such uniform application blanks usually result in several distinct improvements in admission procedures. Each item on the blank is subjected to such 1See footnote * in Table 8. critical evaluation by representatives trom the cooperating schools that insignificant and irrelevant facts are less likely to be included Conversely, the experience ot various colleges rin such a way that all items is brought to be: of real importance are more likely to be in cluded. Once the form has been agreed upon too, it can be used with greater ease both by high-school graduates and by the high-school administrators and others who supply informa tion to colleges with reference to prospective students. Obviously, it is easier for high-school authorities to familiarize themselves and their students with a single application form than with many. Among the uniform application blanks al ready developed are: (1) the “Uniform Col lege Information Blank of Ohio Colleges,” (2) “Uniform Personal and Scholastic Re ord and Application for Admission to Highe: Institutions in the State of Washington,” and (3) a uniform “Application for Admission,” used in twelve Colorado colleges. Special Plans of Admission Used in Individual Colleges Up to this point the discussion has centered around the most prevalent methods of select- ing students and the usual types of evidence collected and used for admitting or rejecting them. Departures from traditional procedures were briefly described by 62 of the colleges represented in this study in response to the question: “Is your institution now using a new or unusual plan in admitting or rejecting freshmen ?” Following are brief descriptions of some in- dividual methods of selection and admission employed by specific institutions: Public Institutions 1. We admit students ranking in the highest 25 percent of high-school class without respect to sub- jects presented. High-school class rank is used also for admission and retention in various curricula- A state university enrolling more than 600 freshmen. 2. A Committee on Admissions holds personal conference with “doubtful” cases, especially those away from academic work for years, those with foreign credentials, etc. When stated requirements are not fulfilled (as in case of no Regents examina- tion grades), the Committee has power to apply such other measures as may test ability to take col- lege work; measures used include psychological tests—An eastern state college for women. [81] 3. Admission to College is based on the rela- tive achievement of each fifth of the graduating class of a given high school as freshmen in this institution during the four years preceding the ad- mission of any one class. From these data we com- pile a code number. A typical code number is that for High School which is 34788. 20/55253 The figure 20 indicates the number of students admitted to this college from High School during the past four years. The figures above the bar represent, in turn, the average rank in tenths of our freshman class for those from each fifth of the high-school’s graduating classes. For example, those ranking in the first fifth of the high-school graduating class ranked, on the average, in the third tenth of our freshman class; those admitted from the second fifth ranked, on the average, in the fourth tenth of our freshman class; etc. The figures below the bar represent the: number ad- mitted from each fifth. For example, there were five from the first fifth, five from the second fifth, two from the third fifth, etc. The certification privilege is extended to a high schvol for as many fifths of its graduating class as show ratings of 6 or better in the numerator of the code number for the school. In the foregoing example, High School is accredited for two- fifths of its graduating class. We require an aver- age rating of 6 or better because six-tenths of our freshmen make average grades equal to, or better than, the standard set for graduation purposes. We have computed code numbers in this way for eight years. The results have been far better than we anticipated. Certain high schools maintain the same rating year after year. Others show changes that invariably can be explained by local conditions. Two high schools in the state this year will be accredited for the entire graduating class. Sixteen are accredited for the upper four-fifths; some 60 are accredited for the upper three-fifths; and ap- proximately 40 have lost the entire certification privilege. Any graduate of a high school in this state who is not eligible for admission by certificate on the basis of the code number for the high school is required to take a college aptitude test which is given in eighteen cities of the state during the first week in August. Selection on the basis of the aptitude test is competitive, the number admitted depending on the difference between the quota es- tablished by the Board of Trustees and the number granted admission by certificate—An eastern state college. 4. A weighting is given to the high-school aver- age, psychological and achievement tests, physical examination and personal interview. Each student’s situation is reviewed by the Admission Committee before admission is granted.—A mid-western city university. 5. Students with percentiles below certain levels on entrance tests and with poor high-school records are required to enter general college—a two-year program. They may transfer to other colleges only upon proof of ability—A southwestern state uni- versity. 6. Under the authority of the Southern ciation of Colleges and Secondary Schools we }a,, admitted to our freshman class superior st (at or above the 60th percentile on the Am: Council Psychological and other tests) upon pletion of three years of senior high-schoo! including our entrance requirements. Thes: carefully paired with controls. This has bee: ried on for three years.—A southern city coll 7. We have individualized the problem o! mission. Each application is carefully studi: see if the applicant is properly qualified to « the work he proposes to do. We take into ac the subjects studied, the quality of work, the of applicant in class, the results of standard tests, personal ratings furnished by school, the tion of applicant’s ability to his secondary s record, and the rating of applicant’s schoo! as vealed by records of former students.—A New | land state university. Private Institutions 1. Since 1921 we have acted on the principle of securing as full information as possible about th applicant and accepting or rejecting him on 1 basis of the judgment of a group of experie: faculty members. We do not require any parti pattern of high-school preparation, or even hi: school graduation, tho almost all our freshmen ar high-school graduates——A coeducational colleg the Middlewest. 2. For occasional non-recommended graduates i. e., graduates of non-approved schools, or ca: dates whose preparation has been irregular—, dating examinations are given in English compo sition, algebra, and a foreign language, designed to determine the adequacy of the students’ prepa tion for college work. Graduates of non-approved schools were not considered at all this past { —A southern university. 3. We are working out a “converted school grad system which we hope will enable us to judge close!) the degree of correlation between success in indi vidual high schools and preparatory schools and college success. We intend to supplement our tra ditional admissions plans with this plan—An cas! ern private college. 4. We have the last few years been requiring a mental ability test and the filling out of a ques tionnaire by all applicants. Forms for these sent to the high schools and administered there. ‘| questionnaire is a test in simple English without a label that it is a “test."—A New England college. 5. As a guide we use a predicted score which is worked out for each applicant. The predicted score is based on the College Board examinations and the Scholastic Aptitude Test weighted and worked into a formula. It correlates fairly we!! with success in college work but we also give 2 great deal of weight to school record, recommend. tion, and rank in class—An eastern college for women. 6. All students in the lower two-fifths of bette: urban academic high schools and in the lowe: [82] three-fifths of ordinary high schools must take a How to Study Course” and must be recommended college entrance by the high school from which fins they come.—An eastern university. Denominational Institutions 1, Our emphasis is on “admitting” and not “re ‘ecting” students. Selective admission is possible only after capacity attendance is reached, and we have not yet come within range of that blissful state! Because of the variety of programs avail able, anyone with a high-school diploma is given a chance to try himself out with college work.— 1 college in the Far West. 2. Students in the lower third of their respective graduating classes are advised against entrance, sometimes excluded. Those in the upper third are admitted without reference to specific subject re provided eleven or units are e., non-vocational). This policy is quirements, more “scademic” (i. experimental, subject to annual revision.—A college in the Middlewest. 3. Believing that intellectual ability and person- ality are better indications of success in college than is the completion of a set number of specified units in preparatory school, —— College will hereafter decide on the admission of students upon the basis of cumulative records embracing the student’s high- school courses, activities, personal characteristics, capacities, and primary interests, together with statements of references, personal interviews wher- ever possible, and any and all other information available to the college. While the student’s back- ground of information, as shown by preparatory credit, will be taken into consideration as one means among several of judging his fitness fot college, no set pattern of entrance units is outlined and each application will be judged on its own merits. In general, graduation from high school will be expected, but an occasional student of su- perior ability, seriousness of purpose, and adequate maturity may be admitted without graduation. rhis change has grown out of 2 study of problems of admission made by the faculty, and it is be- lieved that the new criteria for admission will make possible a wiser selection of students.—A col- lege in the Middlewest. 4. We use a Student Analysis Blank. We also mail each prospective student a copy of “After High School—What?” Personal interviews are obtained in about one-half the cases. After regis- tration we administer the Thurstone Psychological Examination and the tests of the Cooperative Test Service in English—A southern college for men. No discussion of methods of selection and admission would be complete without some mention of the Progressive Education Associa- tion’s eight-year project for better coordination of high-school and college work.* Thirty high schools are conducting experiments in progres- 8 For a fuller account of this experiment see: Aiken, Wilford M (Supplement No. 11) 19: 22-37; January 1938. [8 3 sive secondary education, and more than 200 cooperating colleges have agreed usually to ac cept, during the experimental period, without regard to traditional course and unit require further subject examina ments and without tion, the students recommended for college entrance from these schools. ‘Typical of the comments on admission procedures by colleges cooperating in this experiment is the following: We are cooperating in the Progressive Educa tion Association’s Experiment in which 30 secondary schools are preparing young people for college by special curricula. Students from these schools are considered for entrance into this college in com petition with other candidates on the basis of prin cipal’s recommendation, Scholastic Aptitude ‘Test, and school record. In some cases the English com prehensive examination is offered also —A college for women in New England. Self-Appraisal of Admission Procedures by Those Who Supplied Information on These Practises In response to the question, “In your judg ment, how successful on the whole is your in stitution’s present plan for the admission and pre-college guidance of students?” 17 percent of the colleges report that their plan is highly successful; 80 percent, moderately successful ; and 3 percent, quite unsuccessful. Since this question was answered by one individual only in the case of most of the colleges, the replies represent but a single-judgment evaluation of the schools’ admission policies and procedures. Nevertheless, the appraisal merits considera tion, for each respondent was selected by the college president as the person most familiar with orientation procedure in the institution concerned. Factors believed to be responsible primarily for whatever measure of success has been achieved by the colleges in selecting and ad- mitting students are listed in the left-hand column of Figure IV according to frequency of mention in the questionnaire replies. Those thought to be responsible for unsatisfactory en- trance requirements and admission procedures are enumerated in the right-hand column of this figure. These statements clearly imply that personal knowledge of the prospective student and his past achievements based upon close cooperation Record “Preparing Students for College.’’ Educationa with the high school which knows him is es- sential in satisfactory selection. If such knowl- edge is lacking, the college will find in its freshman class misfits who are not qualified to undertake higher education but who | been admitted wholesale, or blindly, becay not enough attention has been paid to important function of selection. FIGURE IV Factors to which SUCCESS is attributed Personal interviews and contacts Careful evaluation of each applicant Good high-school records The personal ratings obtained from high schools Effective cooperation with high schools The limitation placed on the number of new students Suitable entrance examinations Willingness to reject students not prepared for college work Aptitude test results The state testing program The emphasis placed on character College officials’ talks to high-school groups Careful guidance in planning programs of study Cooperation of alumni ——__, FACTORS REPORTED TO BE CHIEFLY RESPONSIBLE FOR SUCCESS, AND FOR FAILURE, IN THE MATTER OF COLLEGE ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS AND ADMISSIONS PRACTISES Factors to which FAILURE is attributed Insufficient data on students to judge ability The wide variations in high-school grading s tems Admissions of students on high-school certificate only Lack of pre-college guidance Unreliable and prejudicial high-school record and recommendations Necessity of admitting students without ability Failure to use suitable tests—intelligence; achieve ment; aptitude Inadequacy or incompetence of the college staff Too much competition from near-by colleges Lack of time between date application for admi sion-is made and opening of college year Lack of cooperation and contacts between college and high-school officials Insufficient counsel with students at registration Lack of time given to problem Lack of definite entrance requirements [ $4] Introducing the Student to College Life Prevalence of Freshman Week Programs To provide an educational and friendly nitiation into the business of being a college student, many institutions have set up elabo rate programs of informational lectures, place ment tests, and social and recreational activi- ties, extending over a period of from one to seven days preceding the regular work of the first semester. In many institutions this initia- tory period is known as “freshman week.” Some of the practises now commonly iden- tified with freshman week were introduced at Wellesley as early as 1916, and at the University of Rochester a more fully developed program was inaugurated in 1918. Freshman week first received widespread attention under its present name, however, following its organ- ization at the University of Maine in 1923. Today, according to questionnaire replies from 423 institutions, 83.1 percent of the liberal arts colleges—and university liberal arts de- partments—have such periods of orientation prior to the official opening of regular college terms. Freshman week is used less frequently in colleges enrolling fewer than 100 freshmen than in larger colleges, but even in the small est schools freshman week programs are a1 ranged in 69.7 percent of the cases. In each of the four groups of colleges enrolling more than 100 freshmen, the percent of schools having a preliminary orientation period ex ceeds 85. Classification of the replies according to form of control and type of student body indicates that freshman week programs are carried out somewhat more often in public colleges than in private and denominational schools; likewise, that they are used more widely by women’s colleges than by eithe: mens colleges or coeducational institutions. Major Functions of Freshman Week Activities Two general purposes characterize this pre liminary orientation period: (1) to acquaint new students with the college—its facilities, opportunities, and requirements; and (2) to discover enough about each new student so that his counselors can help him to formulate an appropriate study program. One stresses informing the student about the college; the other puts the emphasis on informing the college about the student. FIGURE V To acquaint new students with the college To gain information about the student for guidance purposes THE MAJOR PURPOSES OF FRESHMAN WEEK PROGRAMS Other objectives’ 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 Percent of Colleges *“Other objectives’ listed in the questionnaire replies were: (1) to welcome students officially, (2) to inspire freshmen with a desire for educational adv t, (3) to interest students in extracurricular activities, (4) to give students social guidance, (5) to get students settled in proper ing and boarding places, (6) to give placement tests and section freshman classes, (7) to help students make certain necessary personal adjustments, (8) to identify students in need of an extended program of orientation, (9) to help students get acquainted with one another, (10) to check up on the health of freshmen, (11) to stimulate personal guidance, (12) to establish a wholesome relationship between each freshman and his faculty adviser, and (13) to teach freshmen how to study. TABLE 9.—ACTIVITIES CARRIED ON DURING THE PRELIMINARY ORI- ENTATION PERIOD IN 344 COL- LEGES AND UNIVERSITIES Freshman week programs in Activity which activity is included Number Percent 1 2 3 Registration. . eee eee 322 93.6 Lectures to freshmen on aspects OI Pens vi sGadecnen nxt 318 92.4 Freshman examinations......... 300 87.2 Entertainments, parties, or picnics. 294 85.5 Distribution of bulletins or pam- phlets containing college regula- tions and other information for freshmen. ... SN re ieee 284 82.6 Personal conference between each student and a faculty member. . 254 73.8 Tours of the campus... ‘ 225 65.4 Special religious services sponsored IR rena a We wa Gace dod 166 48.3 Ceter aekieielas®, «..ccccasaacuc 63 18.3 “Included among “other activities’? were: (1) introduction of the students to instructors, upperclassmen, leaders of student organizations, and leaders in church and civic groups; (2) acquainting ‘students with the daily routine—including care of rooms, calisthenics, a military régime, etc.—-with the use of the library, with college songs, and with points of special in- terest in the community; (3) instruction in how to study, health habits, mental hygiene, and social hygiene; (4) participa- tion in impressive induction ceremonies, extracurricular activi- ties, fraternity and sorority activities, big-brother and big-sister activities, and in conferences of various types; (5) getting students settled with proper rooming and boarding accommoda- tions; (6) distribution of books and lockers; and (7) photo- graphing students. Figure V shows; for the colleges having such orientation periods, the percent which strive to achieve each of the above-mentioned objectives and the percent emphasizing cer- tain other functions more or less closely re- lated to them. Altho both of the major pur- poses are incorporated into the great majority of freshman week programs, 93.0 percent of the schools strive to acquaint new students with the college but only 78.2 percent seek to discover enough about the students to assist them in formulating appropriate programs of college work. In other words, freshman week is used more often for informing freshmen than for guiding them. Freshman Week Activities During the preliminary period of orienta- tion, the registration of entering students leads all other activities in frequency of use, and possibly in amount of time consumed. Certain other activities, however, are quite generally present in freshman week programs, as Table 9 suggests. Significantly, five activities have a more frequent place in these programs | personal conferences between each student a faculty member, and in more than a fo of the colleges no provision is made duri: freshman week for this important guida service. In these institutions, unless the tual process of registration includes a cert amount of individual guidance, which quently it does not do, the student is left his own resources—to outline his courses adjust himself to the new environment with the help of whatever information he can , from lectures, printed materials, or upperc! man friends. Chief topics presented or discussed du) freshman week—A somewhat different ). spective on the nature of freshman week | grams is obtained by considering the chief topics presented to, or discussed with, ent ing students during the preliminary period of orientation. Table 10 indicates the frequen with which certain topics find their way into such conferences and interviews. This table overlaps Table 9 in a few cases, but on the whole the tables supplement rather than dup! cate each other. TABLE 10.—MAJOR TOPICS PRE- SENTED TO, OR DISCUSSED WITH, ENTERING STUDENTS DURING THE PRELIMINARY ORIENTATION PE. RIOD IN 344 COLLEGES AND UNI. VERSITIES Freshman week programs in which Topic topic is presented or discussed Number Percent 1 2 3 Planning the student's pro- gram of studies.......... 286 83.1 History and traditions of the ee 279 81.1 Extracurricular activities. . . 279 81.1 How to use the library..... 264 76.7 Differences between high- school and college life... . 260 75.6 Effective methods of study. . 246 71.5 Budgeting the student's time 222 64.5 Opportunities for financial aid and part-time employ- Ee eee rT Tere ee 168 48.8 | ee ere 62 18.0 *“Other topics’? presented and discussed during the pre- liminary period of orientation include: (1) health questions (2) fraternities and sororities; (3) the honor system; (4 student government; (5) opportunities in physical education and athletics; (6) rules and regulations; (7) the significance of a college education; (8) the personnel services of the c lege; (9) cultural, social, and scholastic opportunities; (10) a philosophy of life; (11) moral and religious opportunities (12) student fellowship; (13) individual responsibilities; and (14) points of interest in the city. [86] \ lhe leading topic of freshman week confer- ences and interviews is that of planning the student’s program of studies. The question- naire replies make it clear, however, that the only suggestions regularly given to students in many colleges are those presented in group conferences. Personal guidance of individual students in planning their program of studies is less general than one might readily infe: from this table. Other topics presented or dis cussed in three-fourths or more of all the freshman week programs are: (1) the history and traditions of the college, (2) extracurricu lar activities, (3) the use of the library, and 4) significant differences between high-school and college life. Opinions of College Officials as to the Effectiveness of Their Freshman Week Programs Reports from 98 percent of all the colleges having freshman week programs indicate that these programs are at least moderately suc- cessful and nearly a third that they are highly successful. This almost unanimous verdict with respect to the actual value of freshman week activities, expressed in Figure VI, shows that the procedure has passed the stage of being a doubtful experiment and has become a guidance device of tested merit. FIGURE VI SELF-APPRAISAL OF FRESHMAN WEEK AC. TIVITIES AS CARRIED OUT IN 344 COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES Percent of programs regarded as: Quite unsuccessful Highly successful | Moderately successful | } | | | | } | | j | ' wer : | | Research Division, National Education Associatic Factors to which the success of freshman week programs was most often attributed by the respondents in this study are listed in Fig ure VII. The real significance of many of these factors is further emphasized in the statements made concerning the reasons for failure, or partial failure, of freshman week activities. These statements, arranged according to fre quency of mention in the questionnaire replies, are shown in the right-hand column of the figure. Altho much can be accomplished in a brief preliminary period of orientation such as has been described in this section, it should not be regarded as an adequate means for inducting the student into the atmosphere and life of the college. Properly conceived, it is a useful device in guidance but its purposes should be clearly defined, its activities carefully planned, its limitations fully recognized. Bragdon' has pointed out that an “‘undercrowded” program is likely to create indifference; also, that an “overcrowded” program often leads to fatigue and causes the student to feel that no one in this whole new environment is interested in his development as an individual. For maximum success, both of these extremes musi be avoided. The facts presented in this section of the bulletin tend to substantiate the following con- clusions adapted from a report by Knode in one of the most thoro appraisals of freshman week activities thus far reported: 1. Freshman week is a successful institution which bids fair to become a permanent device It is not a panacea for all orientation ills. 3. The frequent failure of college officials to follow up the contacts made during freshman week is a lamentable weakness of such programs. 4. No freshman week program should be under- taken without careful previous study. 5. After being inaugurated, freshman week pro- grams should be subjected to continuous study.? N These suggestions by Knode, and the con structive observations cited earlier, on factors contributing to the success or failure of fresh man week activities, are policies which cannot be safely ignored by those responsible for the development and administration of freshman week plans. Carefully observed, they should lead to orientation programs that are truly helpful in solving the problems of entering students. * Bragdon, Helen D. Counseling the College Student. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1929. p. 32. * Knode, Jay C. Orienting the Student in Coliege. Contributions to Education, No. 415. New York: Teachers College, Columbia University, 1930. 140 p. [$7] FIGURE VII FACTORS TO WHICH THE SUCCESS AND FAILURE OF FRESHMAN WEEK PROGRAMS ARE ATTRIBUTED Factors to which SUCCESS is attributed Wide use of personal conferences and contacts The ability and friendliness of campus leaders and faculty advisers A carefully planned, well-organized program The acquaintance given to students with regula- tions, traditions, and policies of the institution A system of student advisers which involves the selection of an upperclassman, to serve as senior adviser for each entering freshman Limitation of the freshman class to a relatively small number of students A suitable battery of examinations including health tests Exclusion of upperclassmen from the campus dur- ing freshman week Wholesome social and recreational activities Not permitting fraternity or club ‘‘rushing’”’ at this time Lectures on how to study and organize one’s work The use of freshman camps Care used in selecting a faculty adviser for each student Amount of time and attention given to the problems of each individual Factors to which FAILURE is attributed Shortness of the orientation period Not enough personal contact and guidance Lack of careful planning and efficient organiz tion Program too heavy Lack of interest or skill on the part of facu members in assisting entering students Fraternity and sorority ‘rushing’ Too large a group of entrants Lack of suitable guidance before the stude: arrives at college Students are not kept busy—have too much id time during freshman week Tests used are inappropriate or unreliable Too many social and recreational events are scheduled More attention should be given to study habits [83] wh A = —(- --. me > ae. The Freshman Curriculum Selection of Courses Extent to which freshman courses are re quired ~Those engaged in higher education are by no means agreed as to how much free dom students should have in selecting their college courses. Some take the position that all, or at least nearly all, the student’s courses should be elective, in order that he may pursue a program of work most in line with his inter ests, needs, and abilities. Those who hold this opinion believe that differences among students are too great to warrant any large core of pre scribed work. In response to this point of view, a significant increase in the number of courses offered and a considerable extension of the elective system were two of the important trends in higher education in the early years of the present century. There are others who believe, however, that the elective system has little or no place in liberal education. ‘They doubt whether or not students know their own interests, or, knowing them, select their courses on that basis. To prevent haphazard, superficial choices, some would go so far as to prescribe virtually all of the student’s work. Ranged between these extreme positions are those who recognize both the need of the im- mature student for counsel and advice in plan- ning an integrated educational program and the needs of different students for courses adapted to their several abilities and interests. The prevailing philosophy, as reflected in the practises of 385 colleges and universities, is suggested by Figure VIII. Speaking in terms of the average requirements of these colleges, the courses definitely specified for entering freshmen constitute approximately half of the typical freshman load. About one-eighth of the student’s work is optional within certain specified subject fields and about three-eighths of it is entirely optional. In 50.1 percent of the 385 colleges report- ing on this item, not one course is entirely op- tional with the student and in an additional 35.3 percent not more than a fourth of the student’s choices are wholly unrestricted. Every course is definitely prescribed in 6.5 percent of the colleges reporting and three-fourths of the courses, or more, in an additional 22.5 and Methods of Teaching percent of them. The student is free to choose all his courses in only 4.4 percent of the schools represented and as much as half of them only in another 5.0 percent of the cases. In the light of these findings alleged deficiencies in the general program of freshman education must be attributed more often to faulty re quirements and unwise counsel than to exces sive use of the elective system. Advice Jit In nearly en with respect to optional courses all the colleges in which fresh men are allowed to choose at least part of! theit courses, someone 1S designated to advise each freshman as to the courses which he ought to select. Only among institutions where the freshman class exceeds 600 students is there any significant percent of schools where stu dents are not regularly advised with respect to elective courses, and even among these only 13 percent leave the students to their own resources. The advice given with reference to elective courses differs, to be sure, from one school to another. In some colleges about the only help given is that of answering students’ questions and otherwise explaining the scope and purpose of the various courses offered. In FIGURE VIII AMOUNT OF FREEDOM WHICH THE TYPICAL FRESHMAN IS ALLOWED IN SELECTING COURSES | KEY L _} Percent ¢ f work wt h, on the average, is en- tirely optional Percent of work wt h, on the average, is Op- tional within certain subject fields se 4 ee Percent f work which, on the average, is Jetinitely required [389] other colleges, however, the adviser looks over the student’s record, discusses his program with him, and recommends specifically certain courses which he should pursue. Advisers differ, too, in the thoroness with which they analyze each student’s case. Not infrequently they rely on information that is superficial and meager. Our reports show that nine times out of ten the adviser takes into consideration the student’s interests as revealed thru an interview or questionnaire; also, about three-fourths of the time he bases his decision in part on the amount of work the student has done in high school in related fields. No other types of information are considered regularly, however, in a majority of the colleges which cooperated in this study. Facts taken into ac- count in | to 40 percent of the cases were: (1) scores from tests just given in connection with college entrance, (2) teachers’ marks, which the student received in related high- school subjects, (3) scores on achievement tests given in high school, (4) age, (5) gen- eral intelligence, and (6) relation of the course under consideration to the student’s major and minor subjects, when these are known. Special Courses for Freshmen Orientation courses—During the past few years orientation courses have increased with remarkable rapidity. Such courses have dif- fered widely in detail, but among them two general types are clearly discernible. One type of orientation course has for its major pur- pose the introduction of the student to one or more major fields of knowledge—social studies, natural science, etc. Such courses have their effect on the adjustment of freshmen to college life, for they seek to orient students intellec- tually, to give them perspective, and to inte- grate their work in various subjectmatter fields. A second type of orientation course deals with the opportunities, responsibilities, and problems of college life. These courses are focused directly on the everyday problems of entering students, especially on personal ad- justment to the new situations in which they find themselves. In the following paragraphs the term “ori- entation course” is used to refer only to the second type, for in the present inquiry in- formation was obtained only with respect to courses which seek directly to bridge the between high school and college by analy the students’ immediate problems. Restricting the term “orientation course this sense, one in three of the 423 participa: schools gives such a course. Furthern among the colleges offering such a course, : out of ten require it of all entering freshn In duration, these courses vary greatly, { less than 5 class periods to more than 40. ‘| average course utilizes 25 class periods, about one in three runs for more than 35 , periods. College credit is given for the w done in these courses in nearly two-thirds o{ the cases. It is allowed somewhat more ofte: in large freshman classes than in small, twice as often in coeducational institution in separate colleges for men and women. One of the important purposes served courses which deal with the opportunities, sponsibilities, and problems of entering fre men is that of acquainting the college with students. In the orientation course there splendid opportunity to observe each student and explore his interests, abilities, and limits tions. Two-thirds of the schools offering 0: entation courses report that thru this channe! they obtain information about each freshman which is used later in guiding his educational efforts. With reference to the kind of orientation courses under consideration here, Terman says that in his opinion, “regardless of what courses may be required for the purpose of acquainting the student with world problems, there should also be a required orientation course dealing with the problems of self-discovery and sel! direction.” + In justification of such a require ment, Terman says that as a result of such course the student “will almost certainly | better prepared to grapple with the problems of civilization, or science, or anything else than he otherwise would have been.” Remedial courses—Some kind of remedia! instruction—not a part of freshman week activities—is provided in 70 percent of thi colleges and universities included in this study If our data are representative, colleges which enrol 200 to 300 freshmen offer remedial courses somewhat more commonly than eithe: larger or smaller institutions. Also, public col leges and coeducational institutions provide 1A statement made by L. M. Terman in his introduction to: Bennett, M. E. College and Life. New York: McGraw-Hi! Book Co., 1933. 456 p. [90 ] ie ly: ns medial instruction relatively more often than private and denominational schools and sepa rate colleges for men and women. Table 11 re shows the types of remedial work provided, the extent to which each type is used, and the average number of class periods per year de voted to each form of remedial instruction. Review courses in certain subject fields are provided more frequently than remedial courses of any other type and, apparently, the usual practise is for such classes to meet four or five times a week for at least twelve weeks. How- to-study classes and work in remedial reading are offered less frequently and, on the average, have much less time devoted to them. Occa- sionally other forms of remedial work are pro- vided, such as, phonetic instruction, corrective physical education, and work in mental hy- orene. TABLE 11.—TYPES OF REMEDIAL INSTRUCTION AVAILABLE FOR FRESHMEN IN 266 COLLEGES Average number of periods per Number Percent year Colleges offering Type of remedial work 1 2 3 4 Review courses in certain subject fields ; 186 69.9 56 How to study and how to rganize one’s college work 102 38.3 23 Instruction in the tech- nics of reading 76 28.6 28 Other types ®.... : 33 12.4 42 « This table summarizes the offerings of 266 of the 274 col- ] and universities in which some kind of remedial work is leges provided. > “Other types’’ of remedial work included here are: Phonetic ourses for students with handicaps of speech or hearing, in- struction on the use of libraries, corrective work in physical education, and courses in mental hygiene for those seriously handicapped by unfortunate personality traits. The common freshman year—The problem of freshman orientation is sometimes intensi- fied in large universities by the fact that stu- dents enrol in various “colleges” or “schools” within the university, each one of which is more or less independently administered. ‘To overcome this handicap a few universities, notably Yale, have introduced the “common freshman year.” Under this plan all freshmen enrol as part of a unified university class, hav- ing its Own separate administration that cuts across all departmental lines and university subdivisions. For the most part, too, they pur- sue a common program of study regardless of the “school” or “college” they intend to enter. Announcement has just been made that the University of Illinois will probably introduce the common freshman year within the near future. Adaptation of the Materials and Methods of Teaching Two common defects of freshman courses The curriculum and teaching methods of col leges and universities may be poorly adapted to the needs of entering students in at least two ways. Sometimes the courses offered merely duplicate work that students have already done. The same textbooks and references may be used; the same general methods of teaching may be employed. Such courses offer little in centive or opportunity for growth and often lead to poor student morale. At other times freshman courses err in the opposite direction. There is too wide a break in subjectmattetr or too much difference in methods of instruc tion. Moreover, since entering students diffe: widely not only in natural ability but also with respect to educational background, materials and procedures well suited to the capacities and interests of some entering freshmen may be quite inappropriate for others. Improvement of freshman courses efforts to improve the quality of freshman in- struction show that this is a problem of seri ous proportions. Numerous colleges recently Current have revised, or are revising, certain freshman courses, and many unusual attempts are being made to improve the quality of freshman teach- ing. Instead of assigning new instructors to freshman classes, some colleges are now plac- ing these courses in the hands of their most able professors. Thru special salary induce- ments, awards for the best undergraduate teaching, and other devices, a new attitude toward freshman teaching gradually is being cultivated. Courses are being developed which neither repeat the work done in high school nor emulate that of graduate departments. Provision for individual differences—Not the least of the efforts being made to improve freshman courses are those centered on the problem of providing for individual differ- ences. Nearly three-fourths of. the 423 col- leges represented in this study regularly clas- sify entering freshmen into more or less homo- geneous groups in one or more subject fields. Homogeneous grouping is relatively more com mon in colleges with 200 to 300 freshmen than [91] in any other group. Whether or not there is any reason for the parallelism, this is also the group—as noted earlier—in which provisions for remedial instruction are most often made. Since homogeneous grouping does not, of itself, guarantee that adequate provision wil] be made for individual differences, the use of this procedure with college freshmen must be < . . ce Homogeneous grouping is practised in 251 of appraised largely in terms of the adaptations di the 423 colleges in connection with English associated with it. In approximately three. f1 courses. In other fields, too, it is often used, as fourths of the colleges and universities which h the following data show. Freshmen are sec- section students according to ability, it is re T tioned according to ability in foreign language ported that freshman instructors make impor- on in 146 colleges; in mathematics in 139; in nat- tant differences in the subjectmatter content of f« ural science in 96; and in social studies in 44 various class sections and make use of widely institutions. different materials and methods of instruction, The bases used for sectioning classes, listed Altho this clearly shows that much is being according to frequency of use, are: (1) test done to provide for individual differences, the ti score in the subject at the time of college en- data also indicate a need for further develop he trance, (2) number of high-school credits in’ ment in this area. With only three-fourths b the subject, (3) intelligence test rating, (4) of the colleges making any use of homogeneous th high-school marks in the subject, (5) achieve- grouping and a fourth of these making little di ment in class during the first quarter or semes- or no adaptation of courses, further provision m ter in college, (6) achievement during a six- for individual differences is surely possible. in week trial period, (7) the student’s field of In adapting freshman courses to the needs of specialization, (8) aptitude test score—if the different sections, one interesting contrast in it student has had no previous training in the practise is revealed by the questionnaire replies. in subject, and (9) reading test score. The largest percent of colleges in which in f¢ ol y' FIGURE IX pt W, AVERAGE NUMBER OF HOURS’ WORK WHICH FRESHMEN MAY CARRY AT ANY 7 ONE TIME IN 423 COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES o ni W ir MAXIMUM tc ; tl Without special permission , > With special permission tz P H MINIMUM T Ir Without special permission T T With special permission E C) 4 8 12 16 20 P Average Number of Hours’ Permitted Research Division, National Education Association A **Number of hours” in this instance refers to the number of class periods per week. In other words, 16 hours per week is equivalent to four classes, each meeting 4 days a week. mr [92] tion, eing ; the elop- irths leOUus little ision yle. 1s of t in lies. In- etructors make important differences in sub ‘ectmatter for different sections is the group enrolling more than 600 freshmen. The pet cents range from 82.6 for large institutions down to 62.8 for colleges with fewer than 100 freshmen. In adapting methods of instruction, however, exactly the opposite trend appears. The percents in this case range from 70 per- cent for the large institutions up to 80 percent for colleges with less than 100 freshmen. Freshman Load Since the student’s success in college some- times depends quite largely on the load which he attempts to carry, the regulations adopted by colleges and universities with reference to the amount of work which freshmen may un dertake are of interest here. Figure 1X sum marizes such regulations in terms of practise in the average college. In addition to the facts shown in this figure, it should be pointed out that only one college in ten will permit entering freshmen to enrol for more than 20 hours’ work without first obtaining special permission to do so. More- over, two schools out of three will not grant permission to any freshman to carry more than 20 hours’ work. The most common regulation with reference to minimum load is 12 hours of work. Unless special permission is obtained, no freshman may carry less than 12 hours’ work in 40 percent of the colleges represented in this study. In granting special permission to students to carry more than the usual maximum or less than the usual minimum load, the circum- stances and types of information listed below —in the order of frequency of mention—are taken into account: Previous scholastic record Health status of the student The student’s program of part-time employment Intelligence test rating The student’s participation in extracurricular activ- ities Test scores on achievement tests Evidences of unusual interest on the part of the student in the program requested Proved ability—during the first quarter or semes- ter in college Requests of parents or employers. An Appraisal of the Freshman Curricu- lum and Teaching Methods The amount of failure among college fresh- men in some measure reflects the extent to which the curriculum and methods of teaching are poorly adapted to the abilities and needs of the students. That some who fail ought never to have entered college 1s venerally ad mitted, but it is also true that many failures l could and should be prevented. In the present study, information was obtained from 214 col leges on the number of freshmen dismissed for poor scholarship before the end of the school year 1935-36. Information was also given by 270 schools on the number dismissed for poor scholarship at the end of the school year 1935 36. Estimating from these reports slightly more than 13,000 students were dismissed from the 423 colleges included in this study during, or at the close of, that year. This is nearly 12 percent of all their freshmen. ‘Table 12 shows the average number dismissed be cause of failure during the first year in college from freshman classes of various sizes. If the questionnaire was properly interpreted, these averages do not include those who voluntarily left college because of failure, but only those who were officially advised to leave. ‘These data suggest an urgent need for further im provement in the freshman curriculum and in the methods of instruction used in freshman classes. The way in which college officials evaluate the attempts of their respective schools to adapt the curriculum and methods of teaching to the needs of entering freshmen is shown in Figure X. Unless modesty led many respondents ta undervalue the work being done in this con nection, there is ample room for further im provement of freshman instruction. Fewer than one-fifth believe that their respective institu tions have been highly successful in developing a satisfactory curriculum and discovering the most appropriate teaching methods. The factors believed to be primarily res ponsible for whatever success has been achieved in improving freshman instruction are listed in Figure XI according to frequency of men tion in the questionnaire replies. ‘Those to which failure is attributed are likewise enu- merated for purposes of comparison and con- trast. Without assuming that these observa- tions are infallible, helpful use can be made of them by anyone faced with the practical problem of improving freshman teaching. Each [ 93 ] college can examine its own practises by using these statements of critical self-appraisal as a kind of checklist, not for the purpose of arriv- ing at some meaningless total score, but as a means of discovering unrecognized weaknesses. TABLE 12.—-AVERAGE NUMBER OF FRESHMEN DISMISSED BECAUSE OF POOR SCHOLARSHIP, 1935-36 Average number of Average Average Size of freshman class freshmenin number percent each group of dismissed dismissed FIGURE X A SELF-APPRAISAL OF THE FRESHMAN CURRICULUM AND TEACHING METHODS py 396 COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES Percent of colleges in which the steps taken are considered: Quite unsuccessful Highly successfu colleges 1 2 3 4 More than 600 students. 1,179 140 11.9 CEE: 400—599 students : 479 49 10.2 Moderately successful 200—399 students. ..... 263 29 11.0 100—199 students...... 143 15 10.5 Fewer than 100 students 68 9 13.2 Pienarch Divicion, Netionsl Gilucetion A FIGURE XI METHODS Factors to which SUCCESS is attributed Personal attention given to each student Small classes Unusually competent instructors and departmental officers Excellent advisory service for entering freshmen Appropriate curriculum content Flexibility of the curriculum The use of homogeneous grouping The remedial work done and how-to-study courses offered Restriction of the freshman load The care used in selecting freshmen A helpful testing program A program which encourages students to assume responsibility The use of survey courses Restriction of extracurricular activities for fresh- men Every member of the college faculty, in turn, teaching freshman courses Assumption by faculty members of their share of the responsibility for student failures Practise of giving a second chance to any student who has a good attitude FACTORS BELIEVED TO BE CHIEFLY RESPONSIBLE FOR SUCCESS AND FAILURE IN PRO- VIDING A SATISFACTORY FRESHMAN CURRICULUM AND SUITABLE TEACHING Factors to which FAILURE is attributed Inflexibility of the curriculum Insufficient staff, resulting in classes too large for individual attention to the students Inefficient staff Lack of funds Extreme variation in the pre-college training o! entering students Inadequate advisory system Failure to make use of homogeneous grouping Too much part-time employment on the part of freshmen Freshman load too heavy and academic standard too high Need for orientation courses, including remedia! work and instruction in how to study Too much freedom allowed to freshmen in elect ing courses Too many extracurricular activities on the part of freshmen Lack of correlation among freshman courses Need for better pre-college records on each student [94] cus sel ma rr tt A fr if | Othe as No { ulz es advis nitel; Signe may will : but |} The Guidance and Supervision of College Freshmen Plans for Student Counseling [here are faculty advisers or personnel of- ficers to whom freshmen are expected to go for suidance in all but 8 of the 420 institutions which reported on this item of the guidance questionnaire, that is, in 98.1 percent of the cases. Yet the provision made for bringing the student and adviser together, and encour aging the student to seek advice on his prob- lems, differs widely from one institution to another. In more than three-fourths of the colleges, for example, each freshman is regularly as- signed to an adviser to whom he goes for gen eral guidance thruout the year. In many other colleges, special advisers are appointed for freshmen who, for some reason, are in need of special attention. Nearly 15 percent of the col- lezes however, as Table 13 reveals, do not assign students to any one adviser. Presumably, in such cases, the student may go to any one of a number of designated faculty members or counselors. The merit of this arrangement is that the student may be more frank in dis- cussing his problems if he goes to an adviser of his own choosing than if he must go to a coun- selor assigned to him. The disadvantage in it TABLE 13.—CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH EACH FRESHMAN IS AS- SIGNED TO A FACULTY ADVISER OR PERSONNEL OFFICER Condition Number of Percent of colleges colleges ¥* 2 3 Each freshman is assigned to an adviser for general guidance thru- CUE Tica sk ns daccccacade 308 77.0 A freshman is assigned to an adviser if his college work proves to be un- a ee a 51 12.8 A freshman is assigned to an adviser if his high-school record is inferior. . 16 4.0 Other conditions under which specific assignments are made*........... 35 8.8 No freshman is assigned to a partic- GT Ce edkc ks desteacaee 57 14.3 *“Other conditions’ under which freshmen have definite advisers assigned are as follows: (1) honor students have defi- nitely assigned advisers; (2) two student counselors are as- signed to each residence hall; (3) class sponsor from the faculty may designate the adviser for any student who, in his judgment, will serve the student best; (4) advisers are assigned according to the courses taken; and (5) each freshman has an adviser, but he must select his own. is that what is everyone’s responsibility tends to become no one’s responsibility, with the result that many students are reluctant to dis cuss their problems with any guidance officer or faculty member. Another marked difference in the advisory systems used in different colleges pertains to the number of regular contacts between stu dents and their counselors and the presence or absence of any degree of compulsion in this matter. Table 14 shows the usual number of interviews which freshmen have with thei: advisers, and Figure XII the extent to which such interviews are, and are not, required. Only one college in five has an advisory sys tem resulting in more than a half dozen regu- lar interviews during the year. The average number of conferences per student is 5.2, and, in one-eighth of the colleges represented in this survey of practise, the number of interviews per year averages not more than two. Ninety percent of the colleges require each student to have at least one conference with his adviser, the most common requirement—found in 55.5 percent of the colleges—calling for at least one interview during each semester or quarter. FIGURE XII REQUIREMENTS WITH RESPECT TO INTER. VIEWS BETWEEN FRESHMEN AND THEIR ADVISERS PERCENT OF SCHOOLS IN WHICH INTERVIEWS ARE REQUIRED No required conferences Other requirements® At least once each semester or quarter At the beginning of the schoo! year only Research Division, National Education Associat © Other requirements’ listed were as follows: (1) when student's work begins to prove tisfectory; (2) wh the dean considers it ad- visable; (3) depends on the student—of some, only one interview is re- quired; of others, several; (4) one each month at first, then as often as is deemed advisable; (5) wh the student desires to change his pro- gram; and (6) one at the end of the year to plan the sophomore program. [95] TABLE 14.—AVERAGE NUMBER OF INTERVIEWS PER YEAR BETWEEN FRESHMEN AND THEIR ADVISERS Percent of colleges Number of colleges Average number of interviews during the year 1 3 1 or 2 , ; a's d 12.9 3or4 a eee 34.5 S5or6... 7 31.3 More than 6 , x 21.3 BOOM. «5 en i 249 100.0 Average number of interviews per student per year. $.2 Health Services Provided for College Freshmen Because good health frequently is a deter- mining factor in the successful adjustment of the entering college student to the new and often strenuous demands of college life, the health services provided in liberal arts col- leges and universities are a vital part of the broad program of orientation and guidance. Table 15 indicates the health services reported in connection with the present study and shows the relative frequency with which these serv- ices are available. TABLE 15.—HEALTH SERVICES PRO- VIDED FOR ENTERING COLLEGE STUDENTS IN 423 COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES Percent of colleges Number of Service provided colleges 1 2 3 Health examination 361 85.3 Medical diagnosis in case of illness or poor health 66.0 Complete medical treatment in case of illness or accident—except for hos- pital care 47.0 Infirmary treatment for students hav- ing contagious diseases 44.2 Health-clinic service 35.7 35. First-aid or emergency treatments 141 33. Psychiatric service for students with personality maladjustments 112 26. Hospital care for the full duration of Smee. 5... s . cpeekwebadeweh css 82 19.4 Other health services? 49 11.6 * “Other health services’’ reported were: (1) X-ray and am- bulance service; (2) infirmary care for minor illnesses; (3) medical supervision for all athletic contestants; (4) surgery; (5) complete laboratory service; (6) dental prophylactics and dental examinations; (7) optical care; (8) hospitalization in- surance; (9) health inspections for all food handlers; (10) con- sultation with an orthopedic specialist; (11) compulsory vacci- nation; (12) follow-up in cases of severe illness and of certain physical ailments; (13) personal attention and care in dormi- tory; (14) diet service; and (15) daily mid-morning nourish- ment for under-weight group. Heading the list of health measures | entrance health examination, a service vided in 85.3 percent of the colleges here resented and one that is required of al! sty dents in 97.5 percent of the schools in which it is available. The only other service provided in a majority of the colleges is medical diag- nosis in cases of illness or poor health which develop during the year. Many other forms of health service and health care are ayailable for college freshmen in certain colleges, hoy ever, suggesting that a limited number of jn stitutions regard the conservation and improve ment of student health as major responsibili ties. Complete medical care in case of illness or accident, except for hospital care, is pro vided in 47 percent of the schools from which information was received. The average number of different types of health service available in all the colleges rep resented was 4.0, the number differing in direct proportion to the size of freshman enrolment from 3.1 in colleges with fewer than 100 fresh men to 5.6 in those with more than 600. Among the health services listed in the foot- note accompanying Table 15 are a number of significant health measures which, altho not in general use at present, merit the attention of those responsible for health promotion in colleges and universities. As stated in an earlier paragraph, health examinations are required of all students in virtually all the colleges in which this service is available. Table 16 indicates the persons to whom the results of such examinations are reported. More than two-thirds of the colleges give each student a report on his own health, and half of them file such reports with the student personnel officer of the college. Ob- viously, the information gained thru the health examination must be readily available to those primarily responsible for the student’s activi- ties if it is to prove effective in the maintenance and improvement of his health. Regulations with Respect to Living Quarters The most striking differences between the student’s college experiences and those of the pre-college period very often are associated not with the college classroom but with the housing accommodations and out-of-school en- vironment to which he is subjected. Typically, the college student leaves the parental home to [96] Coll Priv Boal Frat Coo; Othe Nun nent resh- OUU, foot- ‘r or not tion 1 in alth s in vice S$ to are eges Ith, the ()b- alth lose iVi- nce take up his residence under conditions quite different from those to which he has been ac- cyustomed. Sometimes the entering student is in only child exchanging the environment of a small family for quarters in a dormitory or fraternity house where quiet and privacy are all but impossible. Again, it is a young person accustomed to the constant companionship of others who suddenly finds himself living alone in the restricted environment of one small room. It is changes such as these which account in no small measure for the maladjustments of college freshmen. Recognizing this fact, most colleges try in some way to see that entering students find TABLE 16.—PERSONS TO WHOM THE REPORTS OF HEALTH EXAMINA- TIONS ARE REGULARLY SUB- MITTED Percent of colleges Person to whom health report is sent Number of colleges 1 3 The student himself... . 69.1 The student personnel officer of the college. . ‘ “ee : 50.2 The student’s parents eT eee ee 41.9 The student's faculty adviser id 30.6 The health and physical education department of the college Others 27.5 65 20.0 *“Others” to whom health reports sometimes are submitted include: (1) various divisions of the college’s health service department—specialists, nurses, the infirmary, the health com- mittee, etc.; (2) principal of the high school from which the student was graduated; (3) the state department of health; (4) the president’s office; (5) the placement bureau; (6) heads of dormitories; (7) the committee on extracurricular activities; (8) sight and hearing handicaps, to all the student’s teachers; and (9) the student’s family or personal physician. satisfactory quarters. ‘he amount of super vision exercised in this connection, howeve! varies greatly from one school to another. Local conditions and the housing facilities of the col lege, as well as the interest of college officials in this problem, are factors that help to deter mine the accommodations available to students. Types of living quarters available to men and women students, respectively, in the 423 colleges cooperating in this study are shown in Table eS The table indicates, too, how fre quently the various types of accommodations are available in colleges of different sizes. In interpreting these data, it is well to keep in mind the fact that 262 of the colleges, or 62 percent of those included, are coeducational institutions and that the remaining 38 percent are separate colleges, either for women or fot men. According to the reports summarized in Table 17, dormitories are available for women students somewhat more frequently than for men. Likewise, dormitories are available in institutions admitting fewer than 600 students more often than in schools with larger fresh man classes. The situation with respect to liv ing in private homes is exactly opposite—such accommodations are available for men more often than for women, and in the larger colleges more often than in the smaller ones. ‘The per- cent of colleges in which boarding and rooming houses and fraternity or sorority houses are available to students decreases consistently with size of school. Moreover, living quarters of these types are available for men nearly twice TABLE 17.—RESIDENCES AVAILABLE TO ENTERING FRESHMEN IN 423 COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES Colleges classified according to size of freshman enroiment Type of living quarters men 400- 200- 100- 599 399 199 3 4 5 College dormitories............ d 84.0 75.6 RU I cna vccs sc uamds 88.0 88.4 Boarding and rooming houses... d 64.0 52.3 Fraternity or sorority houses... . 80.0 65.1 Cooperative houses. . . TP. 4.0 5.8 Other types of living quarters-.. . 0.0 0.0 Number of cases on which per- cents are based.... 3 25 86 114 Percent where available to All colleges Percent where available to Percent where available to women 100— 600+ 400- 200- 100- 599 399 199 Men Women 8 12 13 65 23 8 129 90 321 * “Other types of living quarters’? mentioned in the questionnaire replies were: (1) bachelor apartments, (2) the Y. M (3) the Y. W. C. A., (4) military barracks, and (5) trailers. [97] as frequently as for women. This difference is especially pronounced in colleges with fresh- man enrolments below 400. Cooperative houses are available in many large colleges, and ap- parently are somewhat more widely used by women students than by men. Such is the de- scription of the accommodations available in liberal arts colleges. The discussion now turns to the regulations and restrictions which colleges impose, in their attempts to create and maintain the best pos- sible environment for entering students. Table 18 shows what percent of the colleges allow freshman students to live in private residences, and under what conditions residence in private homes is permitted. A few colleges allow no student to live in a private home—not even in the parental home. In most cases, however, some freshmen do live in private residences, under specified circumstances. The regulations with respect to fraternity and sorority houses are considerably more strict than those just described. These are outlined in Figure XIII. Half of the colleges reporting on this item do not allow women to live in sorority houses during their first year at col- lege, and more than a third forbid men to reside in fraternity houses during their | man year. In addition, approximately | 5 cent of the colleges permit freshmen to in fraternity and sorority houses only d the last half of their first year in attend TABLE 18.—RESTRICTIONS WITH kg. SPECT TO FRESHMAN RESIDENCE IN PRIVATE HOMES Percent of colleges w! applies in the ca Restriction Won 1 3 Freshman not permitted, under any circumstance, to live in a private Freshman may live at home of relatives Freshman may live in a private home where he works for partial Freshman may live in private home on an approved list maintained by the college Freshman may live in a private home only in an exceptional case by special permission of his No restrictions whatever Number of cases on which the per- cents are FIGURE XIII REGULATIONS AFFECTING MEN (144 colleges) ¢___ Permitted only during lest half ___? of freshmen year PERCENT OF COLLEGES RESTRICTING FRESHMAN RESIDENCE IN FRATERNITY AND SORORITY HOUSES REGULATIONS AFFECTING WOMEN (73 colleges) Living in sorority houses prohibited Research Division, Netione! Educetion Associat — where proper study * “Other conditions” applying to both men and women in certain colleges were: (1) by approval of dean; (2) only in certain houses conditions are known to exist; and (3) under close supervision of matrons or house mothers. [98] Financial Aid (ne of the most difficult problems encoun- tered by many college freshmen is that of ob- taining the funds absolutely necessary for their maintenance at college. Altho this problem does not affect all students, there is a surpris- ingly large percent of them who go to college without having money enough to meet their necessary expenses. Moreover, a great many of these students have no one to whom they can go for financial assistance. ‘Their continu- ance at college depends on their own earnings and frugality and on such help as may be given to them by college authorities. In response to this ever present and frequent need, most colleges have developed some form of help for those who need financial assistance. In 85 to 99 percent of the colleges federal aid is given to needy students and in about 50 to 90 percent of them loan funds and scholarships are available. Central employment agencies, too, are widely used in helping students to find part-time employment. Table 19 shows the ex- tent to which financial aid of various kinds is given to freshmen in 423 colleges of different sizes and types. Cooperation with the National Youth Administration and the provision of scholarships are types of assistance given by a somewhat larger percent of the colleges with fewer than 200 freshmen than by colleges with larger freshman enrolments. Loan funds and central employment agencies, on the othe: hand, are found in a much smaller proportion of the small colleges than of the larger ones. Cooperation with NYA, employment agencies, and loan funds are relatively more common in public colleges than in private and denomina tional schools, but scholarships are relatively less common. The same is true for coeduca tional institutions as compared with separate colleges for men and women. Loan funds and agencies to assist students in finding part-time employment are available in a smaller percent of the separate colleges for women than in schools of any other type. The average number of freshmen enrolled in the 1936-37 freshman classes of the 423 col leges included in this study was 259. The aver- age number of men doing some kind of part time work in the 200 colleges which could supply information on this item was 73. The average number of women employed part time in 224 colleges was 39. Altho direct compari son of these numbers with the average fresh man enrolment in the larger group of colleges might involve considerable error, these ave ages do suggest that large numbers of freshmen are earning part or all of their expenses at college. In the 332 colleges in which some form of help is given to freshmen in finding part- time employment—tither thru an employment TABLE 19.—TYPES OF FINANCIAL AID GIVEN TO FRESHMEN IN 423 COLLEGES OF DIFFERENT SIZES AND TYPES Percent of colleges of different sizes and types where available Freshman enrolment Type of financial aid Cooperation with NYA@.... Scholarships ° A central employment agency helping students to find part-time employ- ment Loan funds Other types?® Number of cases on which the percents are based... 34 28 105 149 100— Public andde- cational All colleges < where available Form of control Student body a Private Coedu- Men Women Number Percent nomina- tional 107 85 338 7 5§ 94 423 * The reference here is to the financial aid provided by the federal government to needy college students. The plan requires the cooperation of college authorities in outlining suitable work projects for the students receiving such aid. > “Other types” of financial aid reported were: (1) opportunities for work in and around the college (other than NYA projects); (2) provision for deferring or reducing tuition payments in special cases; (3) outright grants-in-aid; (4) cooperative houses in which students share in domestic work and economize on necessary living expenses; and (5) assistance in obtaining part-time work by various members of the faculty. [99] agency or the personal efforts of faculty ad- visers—a careful investigation of the type and amount of work to be done and of the con- ditions to which the student will be subjected is regularly made in 311, or 93.7 percent, of the cases. The importance of such investiga- tions apparently is fully recognized in most institutions where the guidance program in- cludes attention to the problems associated with student employment. Self-Appraisal by the Colleges of Their Procedures in Counseling and Super- vising College Freshmen Figure XIV indicates the measure of suc- cess which, in the opinions of those who res- ponded to the inquiry, in attending the efforts of colleges and universities in those aspects of guidance discussed in the foregoing paragraphs. Only one in five of the respondents term the program highly successful, as carried out in their respective institutions. Approximately 3 percent believe that their advisory and super- visory procedures are wholly inadequate for the needs of their entering students. The inset in Figure XIV shows that the practises of separate colleges for men and wo- men are evaluated somewhat more fay than those of coeducational institutions. |; possible that certain characteristic differe; exist between the student body of the ty cal coeducational institution and that of ¢| average separate college. ‘These differenc present—combined with differences in ad) sion practises and in other administratiy: instructional procedures may operate to reduc the need for guidance in separate colleges a compared with the corresponding need in ¢ average coeducational institution. Whateye; the cause, the percent of separate colleges wel! satisfied with their advisory and superviso: service to freshman students is more than twice as large as that for coeducational schools. The factors listed in Figure XV, according to frequency of mention in the questionnaire replies, are those credited with whatever suc- cess has been achieved in advising and super- vising freshmen and with the shortcomings and failures attending this aspect of fres! man guidance. No implication is more clearly or prominently revealed by these statements of self-appraisal than the necessity for pe: sonal attention to the problems of individual students. FIGURE XIV Percent of schools in which practises are rated: Quite unsuccessful Highly successful Moderately successful Research Division, National Education Association ADEQUACY OF THE PRACTISES OF 423 COLLEGES IN GUIDING AND SUPERVISING FRESHMEN THRUOUT THE YEAR Separate colleges [ 100 ] rding nnaire idual FIGURE XV FACTORS REGARDED AS CHIEFLY RESPONSIBLE FOR SUCCESS AND FAILURE IN SUPER- VISING FRESHMEN THRUOUT THE YEAR Factors to which SUCCESS is attributed Personal interest in, and direct contact with, students and close cooperation on the part of the entire college staff A carefully planned, well-administered, central- ized advisory system Competent freshman teachers who are willing and able to personalize their instruction Classes smal! enough to make possible close super- vision and frequent personal contacts Adequacy of the information obtained about each student An effective health service program Excellent orientation courses Provision for remedial work when needed Splendid cooperation on the part of parents A suitable testing program The separation of discipline from guidance Periodic check-up with students whose work is not strong The flexibility of the whole program of counseling and supervision The proctor system used in college dormitories An unusually effective placement bureau A rural location conducive to quiet and study A ban on all automobiles for students The complete absence of fraternities Helpful cooperation on the part of fraternities and sororities The separation of freshmen from upperclassmen A good admissions system Factors to which FAILURE is attributed Faculty members assigned to freshman classes not as Well trained and competent as they should be An inadequate, unsystematic, decentralized sys tem for giving students advice and counsel Too little time and effort devoted to the counsel ing and supervision of freshmen Too many non-resident students—not fully under the control of college authorities Lack of knowledge about entering students Lack of material facilities, particularly dormitorie or other suitable housing accommodations Lack of orientation courses Lack of provision for remedial work Need for a resident psychiatrist to handle prob- lems of personality maladjustment Lack of vocational guidance Students’ problems not discovered soon enough Too many large classes Too many freshmen doing outside work Lack of coordination of guidance activities Need for greater flexibility in guidance proce dures Too few contacts with students’ parents More health services urgently needed Not enough regular conferences, bringing to gether the student and his adviser Use of Records in Freshman Guidance Reports Which High Schools Send to the Colleges Ready adjustment to the new environment of the college on the part of an entering stu- dent often hinges on how quickly and how thoroly the proper college authorities become acquainted with him, and with his needs. This, in turn, depends in many cases on the kind and amount of information which is supplied to the college by the high school he attended. Some- times the student enters college accompanied by no record or report other thar a certificate of graduation and a transcript of credits listing the courses taken and semester grades received. Such a report obviously serves only as a kind of formal introduction, leaving it to the stu- dent and the college to develop as best they can the kind of intimate acquaintance which may be essential to the student’s success. Among the high schools represented in this study, however, sending to colleges only the standard transcript of credits is the exception rather than the rule. All the private schools except three, 95 percent of the parochial and sectarian schools, and 85 percent of the public schools regularly supply certain kinds of infor- mation to colleges and universities over and above the transcript of credits. Among public high schools, the smaller the school the more often a transcript of credits is the only form of record supplied. Additional information is fur- nished in 93 percent of the large high schools, 89 percent of the medium-sized schools, but in only 71 percent of the small high schools. Table 20 lists the types of information which high schools sometimes send to colleges and uni- versities along with the transcript of c: The table also indicates how frequent], how infrequently—these additional reco: made available. A description of personal i: character, an intelligence test score, and port on extracurricular activities are th types of information regularly supplied many as one-third of the high schools report; The elementary-school record is almost : supplied as a regular, routine procedur: apparently can be supplied by scarcely than one-fourth of the high schools. Unle record quickly loses all its value for gui purposes, better preservation of it would to be warranted. Some of the uses which colleges and uni ties make of the information given to then the high schools—in admitting and rejecting students and as a basis for freshman guida: —have been cited earlier. Records and report of this type form the cornerstone of the fresh- man guidance program. Records Maintained by the Colleges The record systems maintained by colle: in common with those of elementary and sec- ondary schools, vary widely in both form and content. Colleges sometimes add virtually not! ing to the records received from high scho: except lists of courses taken and term o: mester grades received. Furthermore, excellent records obtained for admissions purposes some- times are filed away to lose all their potential guidance value. Other colleges, however, ma! effective use of comprehensive student records. Using the facts obtained from high schools as TABLE 20.—INFORMATION IN ADDITION TO THE TRANSCRIPT OF CREDITS SUPPLIED TO THE COLLEGES BY 1375 HIGH SCHOOLS Regularly success is Number of schools supplying Percent If student’s 0 success is doubtful If student’s request Regularly request doubtful 3 4 5 6 Description of personality and character Score on intelligence test Record of extracurricular activities...................... Statement of interests and purposes as revealed by interviews or questionnaires Report on the social and economic status of the home Scores on objective tests in high-school subjects Elementary-school record 47 650 46. 28 461 39. 29 699 34.3 42 $43 23.3 37 628 18. 43 737 17.: 32 378 15. 6 4. ellent some- 1 ential In ike On equest , foundation, they supplement these records not only with courses and grades, but also with health data, test scores of various types, records of extracurricular activities, observations and comments with respect to special talents and limitations, and reports of interviews between students and advisers. All available information about each enter- ¢ freshman is centralized in a single, perma- nent file in 73 percent of the colleges and uni- versities represented in the present study. The smaller the freshman class, the higher is the proportion of colleges in which a single, cen- tralized system of records is maintained. ‘The percents range from 56, for schools enrolling more than 600 freshmen, to 83, for those with fewer than 100 freshmen. Regardless of the system of records in use, 98.3 percent of all the questionnaire replies in- dicated that all, or nearly all, the information available about each student is readily acces- sible to faculty members and other persons legitimately concerned with his progress. Ap- parently, then, freshman instructors and coun- selors have little difficulty in obtaining any available information about the students in whom they are interested, except perhaps for a certain amount of inconvenience in obtaining and replacing such records. This does not mean that adequate information is always at hand; for, probably in many instances, facts important for counseling purposes are not collected and recorded. In all but two of the 423 colleges and uni- versities, progress reports are sent to one or more interested persons. Sometimes these re- ports are issued regularly; at other times they take the form of special reports, intended to call attention to some particular phase of the student’s work. Table 21 shows the conditions under which progress reports are issued and the persons to whom they go. Reports Which Colleges Send to High Schools Follow-up reports obtained by high schools —According to the replies submitted in this investigation, nine-tenths of the high schools regularly receive from certain colleges and uni- versities the achievement records of former students who enrol there. Furthermore, the high schools which obtain reports regularly on at least part of their former students receive them, on the average, for about 80 percent of those who enter college. ‘Two high schools in five, however, get follow-up reports on less than 75 percent of their former students, and one in five, on less than 50 percent of them. The percent of private and parochial schools obtaining the college achievement records of former students is somewhat higher than that of public high schools—96 percent as compared with 87. Furthermore, 94 percent of the pri- vate and parochial high schools receive reports on more than three-fourths of their former students, whereas only 61 percent of the public high schools get achievement records on that large a proportion. Among the public high schools, follow-up records on at least some of those who go to college are more generally obtained by the large high schools. College achievement records for all former students, however, are more often obtained by the smaller schools. Table 22 brings out these differences. For the most part, the follow-up record ob tained by any high school pertains only to the student’s achievement during his first year, or part of his first year, in college. Only one high school in twelve usually obtains a report cover TABLE 21.—EXTENT TO WHICH VARI- OUS TYPES OF PROGRESS REPORTS ARE ISSUED IN 418 COLLEGES Percent of schools in which reports are issued Person to whom report is submitted At regular Only if progress Only on intervals is unsatisfactory request 1 2 3 4 To the student's parents To the student himself To principal of high school from which the student graduated To the student's faculty adviser. 49.8 To others ja 2.4! 4.3¢ « “Others” to whom regular reports are sometimes issued are: (a) persons who are assisting certain students financially, (b) social director or hostess, (c) regional or state accrediting association, (d) the state supervisor of secondary education, (e) organizations granting scholarships, (f) the college physi- cian, (g) heads of dormitories, and (h) fraternity or sorority sponsors. > “Others”? to whom progress reports are sometimes sent if the student’s work is unsatisfactory include: (a) the scholarship committee of the faculty, (b) the personnel committee, (c) the college physician, (d) the athletic director, (e) head of the department in which the student expects to major, and (f) persons who are assisting students financially ¢ “Others” to whom reports are issued on request include (a) organizations granting scholarships or student loans, (b) the Bureau of Immigration—for foreign students, (c) prospec- tive employers, and (d) persons who are assisting students financially. [ 103 ] ing the entire college course and only one in seven a report which covers any period longer than one year. The follow-up report usually received by a third of the high schools is one covering only the first quarter or first semester that the student is enrolled. TABLE 22.—_-FOLLOW-UP RECORDS OB- TAINED BY PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS OF VARIOUS SIZES Percent of high schools obtaining Type of record Large Medium 1 College achievement record obtained for at least part of former students College achievement record obtained for all former students A considerable number of high schools check up on the progress of their students in ways other than by merely examining the follow-up reports sent out by the colleges. For example, half of the private and parochial schools and nearly a fourth of the public high schools send representatives regularly to certain colleges and universities to discuss with college officials the progress of their former students. Likewise, approximately half of the high schools—pri- vate, parochial, and public—obtain regularly, thru interviews or questionnaires, the sugges- tions of their former students with respect to college preparation. Such suggestions are said to be extremely helpful to high-school authori- ties in improving guidance procedures and col- lege preparatory programs. Large high schools send their representatives to certain colleges to discuss the progress of former students with college officials more often than do the smaller schools, but the latter more often canvass the opinions of former students for suggestions on how to improve their work. Table 23 suggests the bearing which size of school has on the use of these procedures. Information about former students which high schools would like to obtain—Like the record which goes from high school to college, the follow-up report which goes back to the high school is often rather meager. Table 24 lists the types of information which high-school counselors would like to have about those who have entered college from their respective schools. Some of these needs were voici those who now receive no follow-up re; Many of them, however, come from sch, where some kind of follow-up record is us obtained. Obviously, much pioneering w) necessary before any considerable part o1 information will be supplied regularly + rank and file of American high schools. TABLE 23.—EXTENT TO WHICH Two FOLLOW-UP PROCEDURES ARE USED IN PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS of VARIOUS SIZES Percent of public high schools using Follow-up procedure — — Large Medium Smal 1 2 Representative sent regu- larly to certain colleges to discuss with college offi- cials the work of former students Suggestions obtained regu- larly from graduates at- tending college on how the high school can better prepare its students for college TABLE 24.—KINDS OF INFORMATION HIGH SCHOOLS WOULD LIKE TO RECEIVE FROM THE COLLEGES WHERE THEIR FORMER STUDENTS ARE ENROLLED Kind of report wanted Number of times Percent of replies mentioned mentioning item 1 2 Record of achievement in college—grades Statement indicating strong and weak points in the student’s preparation... . Adaptability demonstrated by the student Interests and activities of the student Character traits displayed by the student Social adaptability of the Comparative records (achievement of students compared with that of en- trants from other schools) . List of courses taken by students Report on study habits Other types (including: atiendance record, healih record, vocational decisions, and the financial situation of the student while in [ 104] Purposes served by follow-up records—Col lege achievement records of former graduates can be used to good advantage by high-school counselors in guiding their students toward, or away from, certain institutions. ‘They are so ysed in three-fourths of the high schools in- cluded in this survey of guidance practises. Follow-up records also prove helpful in im- proving high-school courses in 55 percent of the schools participating in this study. Other uses which high schools make of these records are: (1) to advise and encourage students now in college; (2) to stimulate high-school stu- dents and faculty members; (3) to give pub- licity to the work of the school; (4) to incor- porate into a permanent records file, used for reference and research purposes; and (5) to appraise and improve the general guidance pro- cedures as they relate to college entrance. A great many high schools are losing entirely the guidance values of follow-up reports. Specifi- cally, ninety-four of the questionnaire replies from high schools where follow-up reports are regularly received—/7 percent of them—state that no use whatever is made of the informa- tion. In all such cases the latent value of follow-up reports should be discovered and utilized. Self-Appraisal by the Colleges of Their Own Systems of Records and Reports The extent to which the records and reports now in use in colleges and universities are re- garded as satisfactory by those who responded to the college questionnaire is shown in Figure XVI. Approximately a third of the respond- ents are entirely satisfied with the system of records and reports now in use in their re- spective schools. Factors believed to be primarily responsible for the fact that records and reports are satis- factory are listed according to frequency of mention in the questionnaire replies in Figure XVII, in comparison with a corresponding list of reasons for the failure or inadequacy of the records and reports in use. Improvement of Record Forms and Measuring Instruments Because of differences in fundamental edu- cational purposes and procedures among edu- cational institutions, and because of variations with respect to size, facilities, and form of organization, no single system of records and reports is equally appropriate for ; high schools or for all colleges. Nevertheless, som« degree of uniformity is desirable—more than the amount often found in the record systems of neighboring institutions of comparable size and type. Just as the advantages of uniform application blanks have been discovered by a Tew groups ot cooperating colleges, the merits and limitations of uniform systems of records and reports are becoming apparent thru the re search and experimentation of various inte! ested groups. Systems of records and reports that can be used to advantage in several insti tutions have been developed by individual uni versities in cooperation with the high schools of various states, research committees of regional accrediting associations, the Educational Rec ords Bureau, the American Council on Edu cation, and many regional and district associa tions whose membership includes workers in both high schools and colleges. Such projects are particularly wholesome when high schools and colleges work cooperatively toward the development ota single, continuous record, one that is useful in guidance work thru the high school period and, for those who continue their education, during the period of college attend ance as well. Prerequisite to a satisfactory system of re« ords and reports are measuring instruments that yield accurate and reliable information. High schools and colleges must be concerned, therefore, not only with the improvement of records but also with the development of bette1 technics of measurement. FIGURE XVI ADEQUACY OF THE RECORDS MAINTAINED AND PROGRESS REPORTS ISSUED WITH REFERENCE TO COLLEGE FRESHMEN Percent of schools in which the system of records and reports is rated Quite unsuccessful Highly successful Moderately successful [105] FIGURE XVII | FACTORS TO WHICH COLLEGES ATTRIBUTE THE SUCCESS OR FAILURE OF THEIR SYSTEM | OF RECORDS AND REPORTS Factors to which SUCCESS is attributed Adequacy or completeness of information avail- able Concise form in which information is recorded Information centralized in a single personnel file Regularity and accuracy of reports Selection of persons to whom reports are sent— parents, counselors, and others as well as the student Small student body Use of information by faculty members who take a personal interest in their students The cooperation of parents The use of duplicate records Effective cooperation on the part of the entire faculty Factors to which FAILURE is attributed Information not centralized in a single pers file Form of records and reports not suitable volves unnecessary duplication; not cor incomplete; difficult to interpret; may be | out in several different ways An understaffed department in charge of re and reports Lack of equipment and supplies Lack of cooperation from parents and a members of the faculty Reports not sent to persons who should rec them—parents, former high-school princi; freshman adviser, etc. Infrequency of reports Records not kept in duplicate form Attitude that records and reports are end themselves rather than the means to an end Use of reports in a mechanical, impersonal instead of using them as devices for get better acquainted with the student as individual The task of bridging the gap between high school and college is far too difficult to be per- formed successfully by the independent efforts of any one institution. Wherever effective work has been accomplished, evidences are invariably present of generous cooperation on the part of many persons and many different agencies. The problem defies solution, too, except thru care- ful, systematic study. Several specific illustra- tions of cooperation between high schools and colleges already have been cited, such as co- operative testing programs, organized visits to certain colleges and universities, and the inter- change of student records. In addition to these activities, however, many institutions at both levels seek to narrow the gap between high school and college thru various other coopera- tive activities. This section of the bulletin calls attention to some of the agencies, projects, and devices identified with this united attack on a problem common to both high schools and colleges. Cooperation with Accrediting Associa- tions Cooperation with one or more regional ac- crediting associations and other agencies whose purposes include the improvement of articula- tion between high schools and colleges was re- ported by 46 percent of the small public high schools included in the present study, by 71 and 79 percent of the medium-sized and large public high schools, respectively, and by 83 percent of the private and parochial schools. Similarly, approximately four colleges out of five among those included in this study, re- gardless of size or type of control, are main- taining some sort of cooperative relationship with one or more accrediting or research agen- cies concerned with better articulation between high school and college. Associations and agencies thru which both high schools and colleges are working toward ‘The state accrediting associations referred to were: the California Association of Secondary Schools and Colleges; State Accrediting Association; Kentucky Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools Cooperative Attempts To Improve Articulation between High School and College a better integrated program include: the five regional accrediting associations—North Cen- tral, Southern, Middle States, New England, and Northwest—state departments of educa- tion, state accrediting associations,‘ College Entrance Examination Board, Educational Records Bureau, Cooperative Test Service, Committee of the Progressive Education Asso- ciation, Exeter Conference, American Council on Education, Cooperative Study of Secondary School Standards, American Association of Junior Colleges, and various state or district associations of college and secondary-school ad- ministrators and personnel workers.? Other associations and agencies mentioned in the questionnaire replies from colleges were: the American College Personnel Association, American Association of Collegiate Registrars, National Association of Deans of Women, Northwest Association of College Registrars, Pacific Southwest Association of Colleges and Universities, Association of American Colleges, Association of American Universities, various state associations of colleges,’ and state and regional associations of registrars.* At first thought, cooperative endeavor on the part of so large a proportion of the high schools and colleges with organizations and agencies such as those listed above suggests a wholesome interest in the effective integration of secondary and higher education. An analysis of the type of cooperation given, however, is somewhat less encouraging. The kind of cooperation listed in the ques- tionnaire replies from both secondary schools and colleges was largely passive in character. Table 25, based on the replies from high schools, accurately describes the prevailing trend at both levels. Merely to meet the re quirements set by some accrediting organiza- tion, to submit routine reports, and to allow the school to be inspected by representatives of an accrediting agency do not necessarily Georgia Montana State Accrediting Association Nebraska Association of Accredited Schools; Ohio College Association; Oregon State Accrediting Association; and the Virginia Association of Private Schools. ? Prominent among the organizations listed in this group were the association Wisconsin, and the Association of Ohio College Field Secretaries. 2 * According to the questionnaire replies, the improvement of articulation between high school and college is one objectives of the associations of colleges which exist in Alabama, Florida, Georgia York, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. *The state and regional associations of college registrars, with which the colleges are cooperating, are of college presidents in Pennsylvania and of the Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, New identified with "3 °¢ ° : > " . - . ™ 2 . Colorado, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Ohio, South Carolina, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and the Pacific Coast region [ 107 ] make for better articulation between high school and college. Effective cooperation in the solution of this problem implies a positive pro- gram and the assumption of a proportionate share of leadership and responsibility by indi- vidual high schools and colleges. TABLE 25.—TYPES OF COOPERATION GIVEN BY HIGH SCHOOLS TO AC- CREDITING ASSOCIATIONS AND OTHER AGENCIES CONCERNED WITH ARTICULATION Type of cooperation Frequency of mention 1 Meet requirements Send reports to accrediting agency Attend conferences Respond to questionnaires............ Member of high-school faculty is a member of the accrediting commission School inspected by representatives of the accrediting agency.............. Direct Cooperation between High Schools and Colleges One other type of activity merits special mention, namely, the direct cooperation of high schools with various colleges and univer- sities. Frequently, research projects dealing with the articulation of high schools and col- leges are undertaken at various colleges and universities which cannot be carried out except thru the cooperation of a large number of high schools. In the questionnaire replies from the 1600 high schools included in this study, men- kind in connection with thirteen state colleves and universities and nine private colleges and universities.” The types of work mentioned were: (1) course of study revision, (2) special testing program, (3) development of satisfac. tory college entrance requirements in mathe- matics, (4) development of satisfactory re- quirements in the social studies, (5) revision of entrance requirements in English, (6) re- vision of entrance requirements in foreign |an- guages, and (7) the development of an inte- grated health education program. An illustra- tion of cooperative research in this area, not reported in the questionnaire replies but widely known thru published reports, is the extensive research program of the University of Buffalo. Several of the studies in this series involved the analysis of high-school records and other forms of assistance and help from high-school people. Other Types of Cooperation Activities reported by high schools—A third of the private and parochial high schools and nearly half of the public high schools maintain closer relationships with colleges in the imme- diate locality than with others, with the result that students adjust themselves to college life more readily there than when they enter more remote institutions. In a great many high schools, too, both the administrative officers and teachers participate regularly in joint conferences with college ad- ministrators and teachers. The extent to which tion was made of cooperative research of this 5 The schools mentioned were: University of Alabama, Alfred University, University of California, University of Colorado, University of Georgia, Harvard University, University of Illinois, Illinois State Normal University, University of Iowa, Lawrence College, University of Michigan, Mills College, University of Minnesota, University of Missouri, Northwestern University, Princeton University, Stanford University, Temple University, University of Tennessee, University of Wisconsin, University of Wyoming, and Yale University. ®See Mills, Henry C., and others. Studies in Articulation of High School and College. University of Buffalo Studies, Volume 13, Bulletins 1 to 9. Buffalo: the University, 1936. 351 p. TABLE 26.—THE USE OF JOINT CONFERENCES IN IMPROVING ARTICULATION Percent of high schools of various types Percent finding such conferences helpful participating Large Medium Small Public Non- public * Public Non- public* Large Medium Small 1 6 10 11 For high-school and college admin- istrators and personnel workers, to consider problems of articulation. . 61 For high-school and college teachers, to bring about better integration of courses and eliminate duplication. . 54 44 40 Based on questionnaire replies from 1532 high schools. *Includes all private, parochial, and sectarian high schools. [ 108 ] ndic cedul leges artic! secon e ich of co study cedul enrol but © use ( leges cents thru tise | missi care€ smal large Specif que of t Regul recc fror Partic sch per: Frequ eva mis Atten apr the que coll Spons ision re- lan- stra- not dely sive ilo.* ly ed ther hool hird and tain me- sult life ore ence sity, y of ume IN «ich conferences are used, and the almost freshman classes in the denominational schools mnanimous feeling that they make for closer included in this study were smaller on the aver relationships and better articulation, can be age than those in either the private or public noted from Table 26. colleges, probably accounts at least in part for Activities reported by colleges—TVTable 27 the fact that nearly all the percents in column ndicates some of the special cooperative pro- 8 of Table 27 are smaller than the correspond cedures and research projects thru which col- ing percents in the adjacent columns. leges and universities are attempting to improve In connection with the second item in the articulation between these institutions and the table, one other fact should be mentioned. secondary schools. The table shows how widely Altho 61.2 percent of the colleges regularl; each procedure is employed in the whole group analyze the achievement records of freshmen ot colleges and universities represented in this with reference to the high schools from which study, and also the extent to which each pro- they were received, it is almost certain that cedure is used in colleges of various sizes and the value of this research is not fully capital in institutions under various types of control. ized. For, of the more than 200 schools regu The percents in columns 2 to 6 in Table 27, larly making such analyses of freshman rei relating to the frequency of use of each proce-_ ords, only 61.9 percent report the results to dure in colleges varying in size of freshman the various high schools concerned. Would not enrolment, indicate an interesting trend. With better articulation between high school and but one exception the percent of schools making college be furthered if all colleges would re use of any given procedure is smallest in col- port to the high schools, as a basis for curricu leges with fewer than 100 freshmen, the per- lum adjustment and the improvement of high cents increasing with remarkable consistency school guidance, the progress of their forme: thru the four remaining groups. Only the prac- students? Here, again, the percent of schools tise of encouraging students to apply for ad- employing the suggested practise seems to be mission to college early in their high-school related to the size of school as indicated by careers is relatively more common in the freshman enrolment, the percents ranging from smaller colleges than in those having the 44.4 in colleges with less than 100 freshmen largest freshman enrolments. The fact that to 76.9 in the larger institutions. TABLE 27.—SPECIAL PROCEDURES USED BY COLLEGES TO IMPROVE ARTICULATION BETWEEN HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE Percent of colleges and universities using Procedure Size of freshman class Control All ~ — institutions 400- 200- 100- - Public Denom. Private represented 599 399 199 3 + 10 Specific help given to high schools on re- quest, e.g., curriculum revision; selection of teachers; design of buildings Regular analysis of freshman achievement records with reference to the high schools from which they came ‘ Participation in joint conferences for high- school and college administrators and personnel officers . ae Frequent research having to do with the evaluation of various criteria for ad- apply for admission to college early in their high-school careers, with subse- quent educational guidance by the Sponsorship of joint meeting for high- school and college teachers of various subjects—English, mathematics, etc. Representation on a joint high-school and college committee which is actively working for better articulation........ J 15 { 109 j The chief significance of Table 27 lies, not in the differences which exist in the practises of different groups of colleges, but rather in the suggestions which it contains as to special procedures that are proving their value in many colleges and universities but have not been given a trial in many others. Further use of joint conferences, joint committees, and coop- erative research projects, and the earlier identi- fication and proper guidance of prospective col- lege entrants would undoubtedly have a most wholesome effect on the careers of college freshmen. Major Emphasis in the Relationships of Colleges and High Schools Criticism is often voiced to the effect that higher institutions are themselves chiefly re- sponsible for the gap between high school and college, because of their inflexible standards and their unwillingness to introduce any change in traditional programs and procedures. This point of view is well expressed in the following quotation: In so far as it was able the college has sat com- placently on the top of the educational pyramid, fixing its standards by a mixture of tradition and experiment, and imposing those standards on its students and on the (secondary) schools.” To the extent that this criticism is valid— and few would maintain that it is wholly un- merited—the colleges are responsible for much of the maladjustment among their entering students. Maladjustment among students is inevitable so long as the colleges emphasize primarily the selection of students who will fit a certain type of curriculum, and devote little energy to the revision and adaptation of their programs to needs of those whom they admit. The time is not yet at hand, if indeed it ever will come, when the careful selection of college entrants is unimportant and admission stand- ards can be safely abandoned. On the other hand, if colleges have been remiss in acknowl- edging and making duc provision for indiyidya! differences among their students, as many | servers believe, there is every reason for then to redirect their energies in such a way tha: the needs of students are emphasized fully 4 much as the maintenance of certain impersona! standards. Twenty-seven percent of the colleges and universities included in this study report that they place greater emphasis on adapting and readjusting the college program to the needs of students than on getting high schools and high-school students to conform to their estab lished entrance standards. Forty-two percent place considerable emphasis on both objectives, neither one to the exclusion of the other. Thy need for further recognition of the student's interests, however, is attested by the fact thar 23 percent of the colleges frankly admit thar they are interested chiefly in the maintenance of entrance standards. Colleges of various sizes and types differ their adherence to these two points of view. If our data are representative, more attention is paid to conformity and less to the adaptation of the college program by institutions enrolling more than 600 freshmen than by colleges of any other type. Emphasis on conformity also appears to be somewhat more prevalent among separate colleges for men and women than in coeducational institutions. The smallest pro portion of schools emphasizing conformity ¢ college standards and the largest proportion interested primarily in the adaptation of the college program to student needs are identified with the group having freshman enrolments of 400 to 599. ; The cooperative and research activities de- scribed at the beginning of this section will be- come more productive, and all attempts to im- prove articulation more fruitful, as an increas- ingly large proportion of the colleges identify themselves with those already concerned with the adaptation of their program to student needs. * Duffus, Robert L. Democracy Enters College. Chicago: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1936. p. 7. Sui E: exan with iden scho weal cove mer! pre iC wou anol inst deal now as t G Wi sche adv tran this incl pro usu: ance higt tim mer pro twe mo! sche fro yea! ofte the hig! bety As anc wh ous tior rsonal S and that lent’s that that lance view, tion ation lling Ss of also Ong n in pro tion the ified ents de- be- Summary of Current Guidance Practises Affecting College Freshmen Each high school and college can profitably examine the practises reported in this bulletin with two practical purposes in mind: (1) to identify, from procedures widely used in other schools, elements of apparent strength and weakness in its own program; and (2) to dis- cover promising innovations which seem to merit careful consideration and perhaps trial use. Before adopting new procedures, however, either those in general use or those that rep- resent pioneer efforts, every school will need to appraise them in terms of its own objectives ind educational philosophy. This study provides no specific outline of , superior plan for improving articulation be tween high school and college. On the con trary, the facts presented indicate clearly that procedures highly effective in one situation would be wholly inadequate and ineffective in another. The following paragraphs, therefore, instead of recommending specific procedures, deal very largely with a summary of the efforts now being made to guide and orient students as they pass thru high school into college. Guidance with respect to college entrance- Widespread acceptance on the part of high schools of some measure of responsibility for advising students with respect to college en- trance is indicated by the fact that, in giving this type of counsel, two-thirds of the schools included in this study follow some regular procedure. In small high schools the principal usually assumes chief responsibility for guid- ance with respect to college entrance; in large high schools, special counselors—and some- times, no one person or department. Appoint- ment of a specific adviser for each student and provision for a few scheduled conferences be- tween student and adviser are devices com- monly employed, especially in the larger high schools. Typically, guidance toward or away from college begins before the student’s senior year in high school, in the ninth grade more often than at any other level. A majority of the small high schools, especially non-public high schools, regularly arrange for conferences between students’ advisers and their parents. As a specific outcome of these and other guid- ance procedures, 40 to 78 percent of those who enter college from high schools of vari- ous types do so with the official recommenda- tion of high-school authorities. In order to give students a preview of college problems, a few secondary schools offer special courses, organize “college clubs,” and introduce their seniors to the methods of teaching commonly employed in college classes. In spite of the activities just enumerated, however, many high schools either ignore all responsibility for this kind of pupil guidance or make use of only a few of these practises. An impressive majority of the colleges in cluded in this study make direct contacts with at least part of their future students, but thus far relatively little effective guidance has re sulted amount of commercialism that has character from these contacts because of the practises. Preliminary work ized recruiting recently done on codes of ethical procedure in student recruiting is evidence of a growing awareness that colleges, as well as high schools, are obligated to give helpful guidance with respect to college entrance. The influence of entrance requirements on articulation between high school and colleg With but few exceptions, high-school gradua tion with at least 15 units of credit is expected of those who apply for admission to the 423 colleges included in this study. Between 1931 and 1937 the average number of units de finitely specified for admission decreased from 10 to 9.4, but the typical requirement still is quite specific: 3 units of English, 2 of mathe matics, 1 of social science, | of natural science, and 2 of foreign language. Graduation from an accredited high school, as evidenced by a diploma or at most by a transcript of credits, is often the only requirement for admission. Many institutions, especially those with more applicants than they can accept, make use of numerous other standards for admission. Rank in high-school graduating class, the high-school principal’s recommendation, a description of the student’s personality and character, re sults from various aptitude tests, and the re sult of an interview between the applicant and a member of the college faculty are the types of evidence most frequently considered. Simi- lar information is collected by many colleges that do not use it in admitting and rejecting students because of its value in the guidance and orientation of college students. attempts to im- Significant among other prove articulation by means of admission pro [111] cedures are (1) the uniform application blanks that have been developed cooperatively for use in certain groups of colleges, and (2) the flexible plans of admission and entrance re- quirements, quite different from the tradi- tional ones in general use, with which various colleges are experimenting. A factor cited by college authorities as essential to a satisfactory plan for selecting students was adequate ac- quaintance with the prospective student and his achievements growing out of close coopera- tion with the high school which he attended. Freshman week programs—Approximately three-fourths of the colleges participating in this study have some kind of freshman week program or other preliminary orientation pe- riod. The leading objective of these programs is to acquaint new students with the college, but many institutions are equally concerned with obtaining information about the students. Registration, lectures, examination, social af- fairs, distribution of bulletins and other printed material, and personal conferences between students and faculty members are the principal activities. Planning student programs, devel- oping school morale, acquainting freshmen with the facilities and activities of the school, and helping students to find satisfactory hous- ing accommodations are specific problems on which the work is focused. Factors to which the success of freshman week programs is most often attributed include: numerous personal contacts, the ability and friendliness of cam- pus leaders and faculty advisers, and careful advance planning. Adjustment on the part of college freshmen to academic problems—Recognizing the influ- ence which the number and character of a stu- dent’s courses have on academic adjustment, colleges usually adopt certain course require- ments and regulations as to the number of courses permitted. On the average, half of the freshman’s courses are definitely required, one-eighth of them are optional within speci- fied general fields, and three-eighths are en- tirely optional. The average minimum and maximum loads which freshmen may carry without special permission are 13.1 and 16.8 hours per week, respectively, and the corre- sponding averages with special permission are 10.9 and 18.4 hours. Orientation courses, deal- ing with the opportunities, responsibilities, and problems of college students, are offered in about a third of the institutions represented in the present study and, wherever offered courses nearly always are required. Some of remedial instruction is provided in a ity of the colleges, but there is wide va; in the types of work offered. Review course: various subjects, remedial reading, and co on how-to-study are the types most often 4 able. Homogeneous grouping, at least in soy, freshman classes, is used in about three-four+h: of the liberal arts colleges, but scarcely mo, than half combine homogeneous grouping wi: a serious attempt to adapt materials and meth ods to the abilities and interests of the varioy groups created. Among other practises intended to hel; freshmen with their adjustment to the demands of the college classroom are: (1) selection o/ the most able faculty members as freshma; instructors, and (2) the use of what is termed “the common freshman year.” In this area of guidance, as in many others, intimate acquaint ance with students and personal attention : their problems are cited as the factors chief responsible for whatever success has _ been achieved. This implies, of course, suitable va ations in curriculum offerings and in methods of teaching. Procedures used in the guidance and gener: supervision of college freshmen—Advisers wh give special attention to the problems of fresh men are available in virtually all the colleges cooperating in this study. In three-fourths ot them, each freshman is assigned to a specifi adviser with whom he has, on the average, five interviews during the year. Four-fifths of the colleges require a health examination at the time of entrance and, depending on the col lege, offer additional health counsel and health services up to complete medical care so long as the student is in residence. Financial aid fo: students usually is available thru some chan- nel, particularly thru scholarships and federal grants to needy college students. Loan funds and central employment agencies have been es tablished in a majority of the colleges and are found in nearly all of the large, public inst tutions. One of the most important aspects of freshman guidance has to do with the supe: vision of housing accommodations. More than half of the colleges restrict or prohibit fresh man residence in fraternity and sorority houses Nearly all specify conditions under which freshmen may reside in private homes. Do mitories are available for at least part of ' {112 ] nclud sonal score, curric follow vho eport t the y bot etter quent ondar ‘eshman students in 75 to 95 percent of the rious types of colleges included in this report. The use of records in the improvement of yticulation—The importance of records and eports is brought out repeatedly in this review { guidance procedures. They are cited in the guestionnaire replies as an essential element effective pre-college guidance and in the lection, orientation, and later guidance of Jleze students. Aside from a transcript of redits, however, only three types of informa- ‘on are regularly supplied to colleges by as inv as one-third of the 1600 high schools ncluded in this study: a description of per- onality and character, an intelligence test wore, and a report on the student’s extra- curricular activities. Most high schools receive follow-up reports on part of their graduates vho enter college but, on the average, such reports are obtained on only about 80 percent { those who enter college and for a period of nly one year or less. One of the needs stressed y both colleges and high schools was that for etter records and reports and the more fre- quent interchange of information between sec- ondary schools and colleges. Adequate records are being used by institutions of both types not only in the individual guidance of students ut in the appraisal and revision of curricu- lums, teaching methods, standards of achieve ment, and general guidance policies. Cooperative projects concerned with better articulation between high school and college Altho approximately three-fourths of the high schools and colleges represented in this study are cooperating with one or more regional accrediting associations, their participation is quite largely passive in character. Thru the special projects of accrediting associations, however, the direct cooperation of high schools and colleges in research studies dealing with problems of articulation, the eight-year experi ment of the Progressive Education Association, the investigations of the Cooperative Study of School Standards, operative enterprises, better Secondary and other co articulation be tween high school and college is being achiey ed, Joint conferences for faculty members of col leges and secondary schools, which bring these groups together for the discussion of their com mon problems, are said to result in better artic ulation by more than nine-tenths of the partici pating schools. One of the wholesome results which should come from all such cooperative efforts is a decrease in the proportion of colleges which, in their relationships with high schools, emphasize conformity to college standards ove and above the interests and needs of students Selected References AIKEN, WILForD M. “Preparing Students for Col- lege.” Educational Record (Supplement No. 11) 19: 22-37; January 1938. Points out that preparing students for college is not synonymous with preparing them for college entrance. Gives a preliminary report on the prog- ress of 300 students participating in the eight- year study of the Progressive Education Associa- tion. AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS, a department of the National Education Associa- tion. Youth Education Today. Sixteenth Yearbook. Washington, D. C.: the Department, 1938. 512 p. Reviews the facts of youth education today and suggests courses of action to be taken by educators in guiding youth toward more satisfactory oppor- tunities for growth and development in and out- side of school. Baker, Harry J., chairman. “Mental Hygiene and Adjustment.” Review of Educational Research 6: 457-576; December 1936. A review of literature and research in the field of mental hygiene, extending beyond the limits of subjectmatter into the whole life of the child. Batpwin, Atice M. College Bound. Scranton, Pa.: International Textbook Co., 1937. 19 p. A handbook for high-school girls preparing for college. Gives practical suggestions for meeting college adjustment problems. BENNETT, MArGaretT E. College and Life. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1933. 456 p. An orientation source book for college fresh- men. Discusses questions which are seldom dealt with in more than an incidental way in the aca- demic environment. Bracpon, HELen D. Counseling the College Student. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1929. 162 p. A study dealing with the problems and process of counseling, with particular reference to the woman’s college. Focuses on problems such as those which occupy a part of every educational and vocational guidance program—the face-to- face part of personnel work. BRAMMELL, P. Roy. Articulation of High School and College. U. 8. Dept. of the Interior, Office of Education, Bulletin, 1932, No. 17. National Survey of Secondary Education Monograph No. 10. Wash- ington, D. C.: Government Printing Office, 1933. 96 p. A report of a nationwide survey of practises affecting articulation between high schools and colleges. Emphasizes the need for more continuous attention to individual students from the time they enter high school until they leave college. DoeRMANN, Henry J. The Orientation of College Freshmen. Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins Co., 1926. 162 p. A study, confined to liberal arts colleges, which presents (1) an analysis of the problem of fresh- man orientation, (2) a description of significant methods for the solution of the problem, (3) an outline of a comprehensive guidance p, and (4) the means whereby that program carried out. Durrus, Ropert F. Democracy Enters Colle, York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1936. 244 , The first part of the volume deals with +, temporal background of the American college ay, its place in the evolution of our system of , ™ tion. Later chapters discuss new systems of dere: mining both the ability and the achievemen; the individual student. An attempt is mac; relate technics of admission to curriculums and , methods of teaching. Fiinton, Doris Hott. “Bridging the Gap Between Secondary-School and College Methods of Study Education 57: 641-44; June 1937. Suggests a “how-to-study” course appr for use with prospective college students af; graduation from high school and before colle; entrance. Fraser, Mowat G. The College of the Future. Ney York: Columbia University Press, 1937. 529 , An appraisal of fundamental plans and tre: in higher education, with the suggestion tha: tools of learning be taught in secondary schoo so thoroly that colleges will be free to educa mature persons—students capable of maintaining constructive points of view. GARDNER, DonrreD H. The Evaluation of Highe) Institutions. Vol. V. Student Personnel Servic: Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1936. 225 | The report of an investigation for the Nort! Central Association of: the admission and orienta tion of college students; student records; educa tional, vocational, and personal counseling; extra curricular activities; loans, scholarships, and grants-in-aid; health service; housing and board ing of students; placement service; and disciplin: Concludes that the adequacy of the provisions made by any college for student personne! servic: is a valuable index of institutional excellenc GREENLEAF, WALTER J. “College Entrance Requir ments.’ School Life 22: 303, 316; June 1937 A description of the development and present status of college entrance requirements of various types. GrizzeLtt, E. D. American Secondary Educat New York: Thomas Nelson and Sons, 1937. 312 | The presentation of a philosophy of secondary education for prospective teachers. Lays stress o1 the need for intelligent guidance of individual students toward or away from college. HEATON, KENNETH L., and KoopMan, G. Roser! A College Curriculum Based on Functional of Students. Chicago: University of Chicago l’ress 1936. 157 p. An account of an experiment in curriculun revision at Central State Teachers College, Mount Pleasant, Michigan. The new curriculum was vised to meet the individual needs of students and | to serve, at the same time, as a preliminary back [114] HENDER Prog! 1938. De indiv tensi' IoHNSO Cour 377 | Af the ¢ cent colles have ime vey ¢ such the § JONES, New \ admi prop prac KANDE ary Novi Ci to § suite misc form KNODE Cont Tea 140 Di plisk colle KURA in A New sity, A colle of s and posa cedu ophy Los A the 21, ground for professional or other specialized in- struction. uecx, ArcH O., chairman. “Pupil Personnel, Guid- “ance, and Counseling.” Review of Educational Research 6: 153-275; April 1936. A review of literature and research in the field of guidance and counseling, covering essentially the period from October 1, 1932, to October 1, With th. 1935. HenpeRSON, A. D. “Individualization in the Antioch Program.” Educational Record 19: 38-55; January lege and iT educ of dete ment 1938. Description of a college program which stresses individual selection of students and features ex tensive guidance and orientation work. lonwSON, B. LAMAR, editor. What About ourses? New York: Henry Holt and Co., 1937. S andt Survey Be tween Study ( 377 p. After discussing the place of survey courses in the college curriculum, the volume describes re cent curriculum modifications in twelve different colleges and universities where survey have been introduced. The last half of the vol- me attempts an appraisal of the composite sur- vey course and of the more specific survey courses such as those identified with the natural sciences, and the humanities. courses the social studies, Jones, ARTHUR J. Principles of Guidance. 2d ed. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1934. 456 p. A book intended to point out to teachers and administrators, on both the high-school and col- lege level, the relation of guidance to other phases of education and thus to form a basis for the proper evaluation of guidance procedures and SX ‘ duc ate taining Higher ervice 296 North rienta practises. KANDEL, I. L. ary Education.” November 1936. Cites a number of attempts by secondary schools to substitute integrated, coherent curriculums, suited to differentiated student abilities, for the units and courses “Promising Innovations in Second- Educational Forum 1: 29-38; ed Ica miscellaneous assortments of formerly in use. Knope, JAy C. Orienting the Student in College Contributions to Education, No. 415. New York: Teachers College, Columbia University, 1930. 140 p. Describes the purposes, procedures, and accom- plishments of freshman week programs in 149 colleges and universities. KurANI, HABIB AMIN. Selecting the College Student in America. Contributions to Education, No. 503. New York: Teachers College, Columbia Univer- sity, 1931. 118 p. An analysis of admission procedures in 287 colleges and universities. Sets forth a philosophy of selection believed to be consistent with social and educational demands. Offers concrete pro- posals for improving admission and selection pro- cedures—proposals in harmony with the philos- ophy advocated. Los ANGELES SCHOOL JoURNAL. “Pupil Guidance in the Classroom.” Los Angeles School Journal. Vol. 21, No. 29. April 25, 1938. juire esent ress lum punt de and | iCK [115] exclusively to This entire issue is devoted problems of pupil guidance and contains prac tical information of special interest to classroom teachers. MacLean, MAtcoo S§., and Guidance in the General College, University of Minnesota.” Education 57: 588-94; June 1937. Describes in detail a guidance program in which student personnel workers take six steps in han 2) synthesis, 3 and oTHERS. “Personnel Work dling each case: (1) analysis, diagnosis, (4) prognosis, (5) treatment, and (¢ follow-up. McConn, Max. Planning for College. New Frederick A. Stokes Co., 1937. 267 p. A book for prospective college students and their families to study together in planning fo: college entrance. Contains helpful suggestions on choosing a college, preparing for admission, and making a satisfactory adjustment to college life Mitts, Henry C., and oTHers. Studies in Articula tion of High School and College. University of Buffalo Studies. Vol 9, Series I (319 p.) and Vol. 13, Series II, (351 p.). Buffalo, N. Y.: the University, 1934; 1936. hese studies deal with the selection, guidance and instruction of students entering Buffalo Un York: versity. Many are cooperative studies, involving high schools as well as the University. Special reference is made to experimentation with com prehensive examinations designed to detect and stimulate the most capable students. On the basis of these examinations students are exempted from some of the usual course requirements and some times are given advanced standing, or college credit, without following usual class routine. NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR THE STUDY OF EDUCATION Guidance in Educational Institutions enth Yearbook, Part I. Bloomington, IIl.: Public School Publishing Co., 1938. 313 p. Careful note is taken of recent developments in the curriculum, in society, in knowledge of the individual, and in conceptions of education. In the light of these developments, this yearbook dis Thirty-sev cusses the purpose, scope, and general nature of guidance service. PATERSON, DONALD G.; SCHNEIDLER, GWENDOLEN G and WILLIAMSON, EpMuND G. Student Guidance: Techniques. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1938. 316 p. A handbook for counselors in high schools and colleges, presenting detailed information about the most reliable and valid guidance technics now available and about the proper handling of edu cational, vocational, and personality problems PROGRESSIVE EDUCATION AssociATION. “Trends in Se ondary Education.” Progressive Education 1 363-433; November 1933. An entire issue of the periodical is devoted to progressive education in the secondary schools Special emphasis is placed on freeing the schools from rigid college entrance requirements for the purpose of experimentation in articulation. STRANG, RutH. Behavior and Background of Stu dents in College and Sec ondary School. New York 1937. 515 p. Brothers, Harper and A searching analysis of student problems and A source book on personality traits needs based on a series of investigations relating measurement. Summarizes and evaluates to adolescent problems such as physical character- and procedures used in appraising px istics, intelligence, achievement, personality, atti- lists and describes 45 personality tests and tudes, interests, social and economic background, devices, and includes a bibliography of | and expenditure of time and money. WILLIAMS, RosBerT L. “Present Practice in (4 STRANG, RuTH. Counseling Technics in College and Guidance to Freshmen in 107 American ( Secondary School. New York: Harper and Broth- and Universities.” Peabody Journal of | ers, 1937. 159 p. 13: 289-96; May 1936. A practical reference book giving suggestions A description of formal guidance on how to conduct case studies, interviews, and affecting freshmen in 107 colleges and uni, observations and on how to use rating scales and affliated with the Southern Association o0{ other guidance technics. leges and Secondary Schools and the Amer} STRANG, RuTH. Personal Development and Guidance Association of University Women. in College and Secondary School. New York: Wiutitamson, E. G., and Dartey, J. G. Study) Harper and Brothers, 1934. 341 p. Personnel Work. New York: McGraw-Hil| p A summary of investigations relating to per- Co., 1937. 297 p. sonnel work intended for the use of guidance spe- Recognizing the complex nature of Am cialists, research workers, and teachers, whose education, this book takes the position ¢! part in the guidance of students is increasingly thru effective personnel work can the ne recognized. This volume is an excellent source for the individual student be discovered and sup, references on guidance available prior to 1934. Woop, Ben D. “The Major Strategy of Guidance Towner, Mitton C. “Bringing Order Out of ‘Re- Educational Record 15: 419-44; October 1934 cruiting’ Chaos.” School and Society 47: 188-91; Stresses the importance of accurate measw: February 5, 1938. ments and of the accumulation and skilfu! Reports a study made by the Association of pretation of pupil records. Cases are cited to College Representatives of ways and means of trate the value of the principles set forth. eliminating the objectionable features of “student Wrenn, C. G. “Current Progress in Student Pe recruiting.” sonnel Programs.” Education 56: 345-50; Feb: TRAXLER, ArTHUR E. The Use of Tests and Rating 1936. Devices in the Appraisal of Personality. Educa- A comprehensive over-view of guidance pra tional Records Bulletin, No. 23. New York: Edu- tise, with special emphasis on promising innova cational Records Bureau, 1938. 80 p. tions in current procedures. APPENDIX Illustrative Sections from the Questionnaire to High Schools (Sample copies available on request) SO ag OO ge) Sali pa SRO ae ER NR No An Ce he cae as “i - Washington, D . January 1937 National Education Association of the United States Research Division THE ARTICULATION BETWEEN HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE An Inquiry Form for Public and Private Secondary Schools To the Secondary-School Principal : This questionnaire applies only to high schools which prepare some or all of their students directly for college You need not fill it out if your high school has no senior year from which the graduates go directly to college. Please return this form, when filled out, to the Research Division, National Education Association, 1201 Six teenth Street, N. W., Washington, D. C. I. Basic Information 1. Name of person reporting 2. Official position = “eS you usually receive such records? Please check (\V ) one item: 2 (1) First semester or quorter only (2) First year only a tenet (3) First two years only. ka Pe Te = we S (5) Other period (state. ib) gomeSe SBE se pes Poe ; —e “4 tleges : 1 Records and Reports to Co yt ee . -h student jn one permanent hn Be tion about eac B ‘ s and others 1 informatis o faculty rnembert Yes No----- who are legiti- 1 keep al o.. Cte al ee jon about each student 4 ailable , +n formation & of your infor . - ith the student’s prost E3Sf.-- 2, 1s all oF mos to any collese Of No mately concerned W -an i an the usual tra mation (other than cs ae Does your school supply m_ vee a S . > 4 ‘ ob which your students e" aM - ene | : a ve | | | | | val ae ‘tions under which information 15 anne supplied to colleges - bss j request 1{ student's success in On req , tion about students Regularly i, ed splot erie = we ee See leg earn. — V. Special Conditions and Activities Facilitating Articulation between High School and College 1. Do you have one or more liberal arts colleges or universities in your immediate locality (city, town, or county) F N , 2. If there are certain liberal arts colleges or universities in your immediate locality : a. Is the articulation between your high school and the local colleges or universities better than that between a b. What features, if any, of the articulation between your high school and the local colleges or universities are not present in your relationships with other institutions of higher education? Please describe briefly : Illustrative Secti aaa ve sections f S trom the Qu . , estionnaire (Sample copies available to Colleg es on request) xvoat ~— “shige “ : : fe -_ 7% - ? = 1 cas Ge : . " Natio I nal Educati Y a iati tion Association of the United S a i | 4 ited States ; Research Diy ision S THE : ; 1 ADMISSION AND N Al GUIDANCE OF FRE | Ped ged - OF FRESHMAN STUDENTS , Y Form for Liberal Art Coll | we | | . 8 Colleges a i iti ‘ f a . nd Universities Y ; d ring itis Questi If | This questi i : Ss ) lestionnaire ; ] aire 1s concert liberal se seer oe P mcert 1 with the admi 1 Ss Tactises 1 seers or departments, should be disrc ond “ spe Aa nal echnical sci to prac tises which affect fr 1 pes Aecapecpttn, Jy estions."Respons ro = | : Ples : ct freshmen in college vn sof te — fn vers | ease return one lleges or de r l aan Pacts 7 td 3 is . SGakuue ofan partments f heral ar+ T ¢ . s 4 5 Pa in seh gta ~ é this form, when fill 1 out. to t —s ind sciencs 10uld be | ‘ ~ ,l , Washingt D. ¢ ; oe ee ; : ihe se n gpeence yr mongrel ¢ arch Division, I Mien Anandios ee ) . I. Basic Inf- i : ia nformation Person reporting > 4 fi t 2. Officiz N ficial position .___ a TTR SEA a settilticiieen aan Se Le ; ae 4 es Oth a Re ae TT. Fe, le RET nem CWESERA Yor part rier “= ) i fe K ~ . - ; 1! I. Admission and Precollege Guidance of Students . \ ¢ a of high-school credit in each of the following subject fields were usually required for ‘ | admission to full freshman standing in your college of liberal arts in the years indicate , l , ¢ Bs - » é . ; ‘ umbe ts * required : in 1936-37 in 1930-31 Subject field “(1), English. bi ce AT Tata sash ieee Sees - > rs — eae SS) ‘ a | 4 Re ee ts FEC le > ‘gf gf. = ) Oo acquaint new student, Period? Please ¢ ated ¥2 : 7 8 ~ one? natyniet al —Rihedy iD, ' ' . ee eet gst eT PQ a dimagee tei Ri a a ROR a Sak peso amet cS : IV. Guidance and Supervision of the Freshman in College advisers or personnel ffi cers to whom freshmen may go lor es NO = 1. Does your institution have one or more faculty guidance during the school year see ; aa freshmen lable for the guidance ot yersonnel officers are aval Please check (Vv) each apf 2. If faculty advisers or college | ‘| officer ned to a particular adviser or personne a. Under what conditions is a freshman assig priate item (1) Each freshman is assigned to an adviser ior general guidance thruout the year __.--- (2) A freshman is assigned to an adviser if his hi (3) A freshman is assigned to an adviser i his college (4) No freshman ts assigned to a particular adviser year, how often is the student requ (state briefly) -..---------- . gh-school record is inferior work proves to be unsatisiac tory ired to confer with his adviser? b. If each freshman is assigned to an adv r (1) At beginning of school year only (4) Other plan 2) At least once each semester or quarter ne (3) No conferences required iser for the entire r with faculty advisers or personnel officers during the year? Ba Approximately - . times pe ’ hman conte c. How often, on the average, does a fre Orientation Courses and Remedial Instruction dealing primarily with the opportunities, responsibilities, and a Vat..n. We P 3. Does your institution offer a freshman course 7. What heal ; . ealth services does y P except for th S does your institution provide. i e usual student health fee)? Pleas Prov ide, if needed, for all freshman st 1 . se check (1 ) each appropriate item: udents (without charge ——o (1) Health examination [ 119 ] Th : ‘ e Questionnaire to Colleges (continued) Regulation of Living Quarters 9. What t Pg types of livin : : men ) at your institution ? Picase checks png to students F V Men students Women Students rs regardless of each appropri .f , S of whether they ; PPropriate item separately for men tall com er for fre en students - eecnen (1) College dormitories deems, (2) Private homes ve " (3) Boarding and rooming houses . on ee (4) Fraternity or sorority houses ‘ | —— (S) Other types (name them) - If private homes or boarding men permitted ive j and i to live in them ? and rooming houses - ; e ‘ § houses 2 m? Please check ( Vv) for bomen to students, under what t ' en and women s at Conditions 7 nN students : Ons are f; | Freshman men Freshman wome rn ened = No restrictions whatever | 2) If residence ; i Be € 18 on institution's i (3) If freshman lives at home of pe an si | oat lative a ae 4 eat wey hee eee ks Be BOE Tr > 12. Does your institution assist freshmen who need financial aid If so, by what means is such aid given? Please check (VV) each appropriate item: (1) Loan funds (2) Scholarships (3) Central agency for obtaining part-time employment ation with NYA (National Youth Administration) x _ 2 Ss ~ - a0 i a = —— erry 15. In your ent, how Success fu 1 who) r our f r c f I on th h le are the Practises of uy Institution 0 ] os . P g Highly suce ecefal.. Moderately success ful tecnica Quite unsuccessful 16. What f. for guiding and ann, 0° YOu think is & and supervisi are primarily responsi eflects of each: ing freshmen ? Please sta ponsible for the succe i : State such factors brief $s (or failure) of 'Y, and indicate your Presen * the desirable or onkens aa, ms gt Comma a. pois PK eel a % an gr oak ait P oniniescmermonsaune Pee eng DAMS tea eet I shad. of Ti hii z V. The Freshman Curriculum and M 1. What percent of the typical freshman’s academic load (as measured in semester hours or quarter hours) is composed of courses that are: (1) Definitely required........-----0-+++ _. percent (2) Optional within certain subject fields _ percent (3) Entirely optional with the student.........--++eeeererereeseeerereeeeeesereeeneses _. percent 100 _—s percent Total typical load in.cgurses are optional with freshmen, does your institution advise each freshman concerning his ee Le a # 7™ 2. Is all or m are legitimate! ost of your information a} 5 ¢ ely concerned with the student's sons ben A student available to fac Yo... No... 3 fo pie Tp ie SOME Lette TE ees FT wee Rees a 5 ae a cab mai sew LRP TS ae if i VII. Special Procedures Facilitating Articulation between High School and College p: 1. Is there a joint committee composed of high-school representatives and of officers or faculty menibers of for better articulation between high school and college? Yes----- a 4 your institution, which is actively working 2. Does your institution regularly participate = in joint conferences for high-school administrators and college per- { articulation between high school and college ? sonnel officers for the purpose of discussing problems o Wilencun lsawso . Does your institution promote joint meetings of high-school and coliege teachers of individual subjects, such bs Fine o0insnsenunes baKeeee ene ees Cidattewes {een a 4 3 as English, mathematics, or foreign language ‘ 4. Does your institution, when requested, give specific help to high schools on such problems as the high-school Pi nceaaneed ss CORR Me Gaesee ¥es..... G...-- j curriculum, selection of teachers, design of school buildings, etc.?....---++ +++ 5. Does your institution regularly analyze the college achievement records of its freshmen with reference to the | rticular high schools from which they graduated ?.... 12... cece esse eee teen eee enceees Yes----- No----- f { so, are the results of such studies sent to the high schools concerned ?......--6eeeee seers a | 4 6. Does your institution conduct research for the purpose of evaluating various criteria for the admission o! il students to college (e. g., do you evaluate, thru research, intelligence-test scores, test scores in high-school subjects, { —Prrrert,: foley) te ee Fd ee eS..--- INOW --- to=. sAmission early in their high-school careers H — a rn wn il Figurd I, II. ITI, IV, VI VII VIII IX List of Tables and Figures |. Number and Percent of Replies Received from Various Types of Colleges and Universities Public High Schools from Which Questionnaire Replies Were Received Official Advice Given to High-School Graduates with Respect to College Entrance Frequency with Which Parents Are Definitely Advised as to College Entrance for Their Children Help Given in 1564 High Schools in Selecting Specific Colleges and Certain Definite Types of College Work Methods Most Frequently Used To Acquaint High-School Students with the Opportunities and Responsibilities of College Life [rend in Unit Requirements for Prospective College Students, 1930-31 to 1936-37 Types of Evidence Collected and Types Used by 423 Colleges and Universities as a Basis for Admitting and Rejecting Students Activities Carried on during the Preliminary Orientation Period in 344 Colleges and Universities 86 ). Major Topics Presented to, or Discussed with, Entering Students during the Preliminary Orienta tion Period in 344 Colleges and Universities Iypes of Remedial Instruction Available for Freshmen in 266 Colleges Average Number of Freshmen Dismissed because of Poor Scholarship during 1935-36 3, Conditions under Which Each Freshman Is Assigned to a Faculty Adviser or Personnel Officer . Average Number of Interviews per Year between Freshmen and Their Advisers s. Health Services Provided for Entering College Students in 423 Colleges and Universities . Persons to Whom the Reports of Health Examinations Are Regularly Submitted . Residences Available to Entering Freshmen in 423 Colleges and Universities 3. Restrictions with Respect to Freshman Residence in Private Homes . Types of Financial Aid Given to Freshmen in 423 Colleges of Different Sizes and Types 20. Information in Addition to the Transcript of Credits Supplied to the Colleges by 1375 High Schools 1 . Extent to Which Various Types of Progress Reports Are Issued in 418 Colleges . Follow-Up Records Obtained by Public High Schools of Various Sizes . Extent to Which Two Follow-Up Procedures Are Used in Public High Schools of Various Sizes . Kinds of Information High Schools Would Like To Receive from the Colleges Where Their Former Students Are Enrolled . Types of Cooperation Given by High Schools to Accrediting Associations and Other Agencies Concerned with Articulation . The Use of Joint Conferences in Improving Articulation 108 . Special Procedures Used by Colleges To Improve Articulation between High School and College. 109 Figure . Plans Followed in Appointing Faculty Advisers in Public High Schools of Various Sizes . Number of Specified Units Usually Required for Admission in 1930-31 and 1936-37 Types of Evidence Collected and Used in Admitting or Rejecting College Students ’, Factors Reported To Be Chiefly Responsible for Success, and for Failure, in the Matte: College Entrance Requirements and Admissions Practises ’. The Major Purposes of Freshman Week Programs ‘I. Self-Appraisal of Freshman Week Activities as Carried Out in 344 Colleges and Universities . Factors to Which the Success and Failure of Freshman Week Programs Are Attributed Amount of Freedom Which the Typical Freshman Is Allowed in Selecting Courses Average Number of Hours’ Work Which Freshmen May Carry at Any One Time in 4 Colleges and Universities [121] Figure . A Self-Appraisal of the Freshman Curriculum and Teaching Methods by 396 Colleges and XI. XII. XIII. XIV. XV. XVI. XVII. Page Universities hit DRM AGL ER eae cee a Kain PhS lee | eo at er Factors Believed To Be Chiefly Responsible for Success and Failure in Providing a Satisfactory Freshman Curriculum and Suitable Teaching Methods...... Requirements with Respect to Interviews between Freshmen and Their Advisers Percent of Colleges Restricting Freshman Residence in Fraternity and Sorority Houses Adequacy of the Practises of 423 Colleges in Guiding and Supervising Freshmen thruout the ME. Sis) cum niean Ch Muaaae eee ete see ee Sy ee er eres 2 af Factors Regarded as Chiefly Responsible for Success and Failure in Supervising Freshmen Co SE CE re meee Lae re es ee A eee ee Adequacy of the Records Maintained and Progress Reports Issued with Reference to College SI aa one aa i eh aah as a Bs axasee a apaek, saan Farle Bcaitinb shes Ss An + wing's NIE rT nincild ot waka ood Gi ad ceca race nie dma bee ae OIE in cic each © [ 122] 94 94 95 98 100 101 105 . 106 PUBLICATIONS ON RELATED TOPICS... Youth Education Today. Sixteenth Yearbook, American Association of School Administrators. February 1938. 512 p. $2.00. Population Trends and Their Educational Implications. Research Bulletin, January 1938. 60 p. 50¢. Pupil Personnel, Guidance, and Counseling. Review of Educational Re- search, Vol. 6, No. 2, April 1936. 124 p. $1.00. Education for Character. Research Bulletin, Part 1, March 1934. 40 p. 25¢. Education for Character. Research Bulletin, Part II, May 1934. 64 p. 25¢. Pupil Personnel, Guidance, and Counseling. Review of Educational Re- search, Vol. 3, No. 3, June 1933. 96 p. $1.00. Tests of Intelligence and Aptitude. Review of Educational Research, Vol. 2, No. 4, October 1932. 72 p. $1.00. Tests of Personality and Character. Review of Educational Research, Vol. 2, No. 3, June 1932. 88 p. $1.00. The Classroom Teacher and Character Education. Seventh Yearbook, Department of Classroom Teachers. June 1932. 272 p. $1.50. Character Education. Tenth Yearbook, Department of Superintendence. February 1932. 536 p. $2.00. All orders for publications should be accompanied by funds in payment for same and must be so accompanied when orders for material amount to $1.00 or less. Orders not accompanied by funds in payment are subject to transportation charges. Discounts on quantity orders of the same publication: 2-9 copies, 10 percent; 10-99 copies, 25 percent; 100 or more copies, 33/3 percent. Make checks or money orders payable to the National Education Association of the United States, 1201 Sixteenth Street, N. W., Washington, D. C. ETTER COORDINATION, or articulation, B of high-school work with college work is ur- gently needed in this country. The curriculum of the upper years in the high school and the lower years in the college should be treated in a sequential way. The present hiatus between high school and college is bad. There should be a constant flow of work from one to the other instead of a dammed-up or turbulent stream.—Daniel L. Marsh.