May 22, 1914] 



SCIENCE 



14:1 



this resolution that it all depends upon what 

 the senior year is devoted to, whether it is or 

 is not equivalent to a year in medical school. 

 The senior year at Purdue in the course lead- 

 ing to the " B.S. in Science " is the equivalent 

 of a medical college year and not " essentially 

 different or distinct." Also, one might suggest 

 that the meaning of equivalent should be 

 stated if the paragraph is to be forceful. 

 Moreover we shall point out later, the main 

 difficulty in duplication is not between college 

 and medical schools, but between college and 

 high schools. 



Other responses have come from presidents 

 of institutions. Between these there is a 

 world of difference. One is as follows: 



The National Educational Association has a 

 committee out on this question [reform of the 

 whole system of public schools]. It would be un- 

 desirable for the medical schools to take any defi- 

 nite action in conflict with the recommendations 

 of this committee, or with the action of the N. E. 

 A. I think that the best we can do at the pres- 

 ent time is to accept the public school system as it 

 is and build on it. Referring to the recommenda- 

 tions of Professor Holmes, of Earlham College, I 

 beg to say that I do not believe that it is desir- 

 able to attempt to tie down colleges as to the char- 

 acter of their work for their degrees; I think the 

 colleges would resent any attempt to impose such 

 uniformity on them. I think, further, that the 

 consensus of opinion at our conference, including 

 the opinion of Dr. Welch, was that such stereo- 

 typed uniformity was undesirable. No two men 

 would probably agree on exactly the relative dis- 

 tribution of time between the various subjects, or 

 on the most desirable choice of subjects them- 

 selves. I, therefore, think it will be wise to keep 

 out of the way of such complications and difficul- 

 ties that would' beset us if we attempted such uni- 

 formity. 



The writer of this letter misunderstands 

 Professor Holmes schedule, which was sug- 

 gested as the form of a course. In carrying 

 out such a scheme no limit is placed upon the 

 individuality of teacher or student. The 

 " relative distribution " of time is one thing, 

 the essentials of premedical teaching is an- 

 other. There is a least time in which the 

 essentials can be covered by the average stu- 



dent and the schedule is made for the average. 



Allowance is always, I hope, made in colleges 



at least for the brilliant students for whom no 



schedule can ever be made. 

 Another presidential letter follows: 

 I will answer first the questions formulated by 



your committee. 



1. We offer everything required in the regular 

 premedical course, that is, we fulfill the two-year 

 requirements of the American Medical Associa- 

 tion and besides this have just adopted an agree- 

 ment with Western Reserve Medical College for a 

 combination course — ^three years at our own school 

 and four years at Cleveland. 



2. I believe that the only way in which uniform- 

 ity of essentials in premedical traiaing can be ob- 

 tained is by the adoption by the American Medi- 

 cal Association of standard requirements for a 

 three-year course. Our faculty believes that the 

 course suggested by Professor Holmes, of Earl- 

 ham College, is an excellent one with possibly one 

 or two minor additions. We are, at present, giv- 

 ing everything in this course and should be glad 

 to publish in our catalogue a regular three-year 

 premedical course if sanctioned by the Medical 

 Association. 



3. Our faculty believes that duplication of 

 work is practically unavoidable in view of the 

 quality of teaching done in certain secondary 

 schools in the country. We believe that the best 

 way to get efficient teaching in these schools so 

 that work done there need not be duplicated in 

 college is to increase considerably the require- 

 ments for those who wish to teach in such schools. 

 Our idea is that the present system of examina- 

 tion required of teachers ia many subjects tends 

 to an unwise dissipation of energy on the part of 

 the candidate. We should advise much stricter 

 requirements in that particular line in which the 

 candidate wishes to teach, with a thorough exami- 

 nation, and, at the same time, elimination of a 

 dozen or more odd subjects now required ia Ohio 

 teachers' examinations. We believe that this 

 method would make for the securing of well-pre- 

 pared specialists in the various departments of 

 secondary schools. 



4. As stated above, we have made formal ar- 

 rangements for a combination course only with 

 Western Reserve Medical School. We are, how- 

 ever, prepared to enter into the same combination 

 with any school in the A plus class of the Ameri- 

 can Medical Association. Our requirements are: 

 Three years spent in residence at . . .; the pass- 



