Seventy-Third Year EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS OF THE UN1VERSITY OF MICHIGAN UNDER AUTHORITY OF BOARD IN CONTROL OF STUDENT PUBLICATIONS "WhereOpinions Are Free STUDENT PUBLICATIONS BLDG., ANN ARBOR, MICH., PHONE NO 2-3241 Truth Will Preval" Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of staff writers or the editors. This must be noted in al reprints. AY DECEMBER &, 1963 - NIGHT EDITOR: MICHAEL SATTINGER Evaluating the Teacher: A Chance to Contribute THE FEW MOMENTS at the end of a semester when a student pauses to write an evaluation of his teacher could well be the best-spent moments of the term. For the student, it can serve as a stim- ulus to look back at the education he has received during the past few months- something most students seldom or never do-and to consider its broad purposes and how well they have been achieved. It also offers him an opportunity to get criticisms of the course, formerly repress- ed by timidity or fear of grade-point re- prisals, off his chest. And in considering how to express them, he may turn crude gripes into constructive criticisms, learn- ing something about the problems of teaching in the process. FOR THE TEACHER, it can provide some crucial feedback which generally is hidden behind the blankly-staring or falsely-enthusiastic classroom faces. or the department and the University, the evaluations can provide the most re- liable - though imperfect - device for evaluating a very elusive quality: good teaching. And in making the measure- ment of instruction more feasible, they could increase the importance of good teaching as a criterion of faculty promo- tion. This in turn could promote respect for the dedicated teacher in a university which tends to over-reward research and other such "visible" activities. THIS IS WHAT teacher evaluations could be. But the present questionnaire and procedure for distributing it have fallen. short of this potential. Prof. Louis I. Briggs, head of a group which is trying out a new questionnaire in selected classes this semester, cites several shortcomings of the older forms. Many students don't fill them out at all. Those who, do often misinterpret questions. The results, once collected, are hard to quantify and com- pare. The new questionnaire Prof. Briggs' group has come up with is a promising one. It is .a good compromise between the wide-open-essay type which discour- ages many students and leads to useless Friday COw To Pressur AT THE DISCRETION of individual in- structors, classes may be held next Fri- day and Saturday. This is a justified de- cision from the faculty point of view but to the student, it is an infringement on his rights. At the beginning of the term, admin- istrators set aside Friday as a study day. Most instructors, however, were unaware of this. When the announcement was made less than two weeks ago that no classes would be held Friday, instructors threw up their hands in despair. AN EXTENT these men have a point. One can understand the "fairly gen- eral concern" faculty members of the lit- erary college expressed over what they Editorial Stf RONALD WILTON, Editor DAVID MARCUS GERALD STOROR Editorial Director City Editor BARBARA LAZARUS............ Personnel Director PHILIP SUTIN............ National Concerns Editor GAIL EVANS,.................. Associate City Editor MARJORIE BRAHMS .... Associate Editorial Director GLORIA BOWLES ..................... Magazine Editor MALINDA BERRY................Contributing Editor DAVE GOOD.......................Sports Editor JIM BERGER ...............Associate Sports Editor MIKE BLOCK............... Associate Sports Editor BOB ZWINCK.............Contributing Sports Editor NIGHT EDITORS: H. Neil Berkson, Steven Hailer, Edward Herstein, Marilyn Koral, Louise Lind, An- drew Orlin, Michael, Sattinger, Kenneth Winter. ASSISTANT NIGHT EDITORS: Mary Lou Butcher, John Bryant, Robert Grody, Laurence Kirshbaum, Richard Mercer. Business Staff ANDREW CRAWFORID, Business Manager PETER ARONSON............. Advertising Manager LEE JATHROS .............. ..... Accounts' Manager JUDY LEPOFSKY........Associate Business Manager RUTH SCHEMNITZ ................ Finance Manager JUNIOR MANAGERS: Harvey Braunstein, Susan Craw- , , TAv Ca_. m nm .Tid clsti BraaJonston. responses, and the too-rigid variety once * used which yields results that are equal- ly meaningless because too oversimplified. It makes answering easy for the rela- tively uninterested student. Well-written multiple-choice questions (example: "In- dividual help and further discussion out- side of class was (a) quite readily avail- able, (b) usually there if needed, . (c) rarely available") allow him to give a fairly useful evaluationwith little effort. This should assure that virtually every student will give his instructor at least a rudimentary evaluation. On the other hand, students are en- couraged to take advantage of this oppor- tunity by elaborating at greater length on their multiple-choice answers. Thus in addition to the survey-type information from the multiple choices, the teacher can receive some readily incisive com- ments and novel ideas from the few stu- dents willing and able to put some thought into their answers. BUT IF THE QUESTIONNAIRE is to suc- ceed, one simple but important change must be made in the way it is distributed. The practice has been to pass them out in class and collect them within five or ten minutes. This hurry-up procedure de- stroys the whole concept. Even the stu- dents who would like to do a conscientious job are limited to writing down the first thoughts-however disorganized or in- complete-that come to mind. If, when distributing the question- naires, the instructor would simply say, "Those of you who want some time to think before writing these may take them home," this barrier would be easily elim- inated. Students who didn't care about the whole business-the ones who'd be likely never to return the forms if they took them home-could mark the multi- ple-choices and hand them right back. Those interested enough to take them home, presumably, would be interested enough to return them. Given these opportunities, the success or failure of teaching evaluations rests with the student alone. Using them wise- ly, he can make an important contribu- tion to his education and to his university. -KENNETH WINTER sses Unjust ed Students consideied the abrupt announcement of this study day. To the professor who is already under difficulties in trying to compress his course into 14 weeks, this announcement might have come as a shock. And some most likely considered it an unreasonable demand. But to the student it was a welcome re- lief and a chance for, an extra day of study for finals. THE ORIGINAL DECISION was un- doubtedly made by administrators with the student in mind; they realized the new pressures of the trimester system. They saw the need for more time to pre- pare for finals; they also must have real- ized what faculty reaction would be. Administrators felt students needed this extra day. Students wholeheartedly agree. But some faculty members-unaware that the decision had been made at the beginning of the term-felt they were being treated unfairly when it was rean- nounced. Under faculty pressure, the present compromise measure was born. And this is where the students' rights have been violated. THE DECISION-as it first was made- should stand. Students without the ex- tra day will suffer from lack of time to prepare for finals. Administrators real- ized this yet gave in to the demands of certain members of the faculty who felt they needed this extra day to complete course matter. This decision seems to put an unneces- sary emphasis on the needs of the pro- fessor and fails to account for the stu- dent's difficulties. This is unjust. Moreover, the student _-. --_ _a e _ a _ _ __ _ a . . .. , . .. s :4i4 * t S P 4 r'uNIG AAR.; TODAY AND TOMORROW: U.S.: from Woer to Wooed By ERIC KELLER Daily Correspondent BASEL-Europe stood still as the American presidency changed hands last week. The news from Washington seemed to crowd front pages of European newspapers. The first major European states- man to come back with a strong impression of the new White House was President de Gaulle of France. Although he made public no official changes in his public policy, it seemed that he was in- terested in giving the impression of cordiality between Paris and Washington. De Gaulle has been able to ful- fill an image which he has creat- ed over the past few years. On several occasions, spokesmen for his administration have pointed out that France is a close ally to the Atlantic Pact. She keeps her integrity at all times and at the same time, the West will always be able to count on her in case of crisis. THE MOMENT of crisis was here-and General de Gaulle prov- ed France one of the steadiest al- lies within the NATO alliance. His talks with President Johnson were described as very cordial and both statesmen are said to have pointed out that differences between France and the United States have often been exaggerated. Apparently, de Gaulle was high- ly impressed by the smoothness with which President Johnson had taken over the presidency. Influ- ential French ministers have im- plored de Gaulle to create a vice- president's post in the French government.- They fear that sinister elements in France may have been encour- aged by John F. Kennedy's" assas- sination to try another-and bet- ter planned-coup on the stout general. In the past all attempts at would-be assassinations have been crushed. The secret French nationalistic group, the OAS-a remnant of the Algerian war-has made several tries at getting de Gaulle. FEARS for de Gaulle's life are not groundless. Pro-Gaullist fofc- es maintain that the sudden death of de Gaulle would creatse tremen- dous national problems or seven provoke chaos and endanger the Fifth Republic. Even if French op- position leaders indirectly mini- mize de Gaulle's importance to France, his death would surely not add to the continuity of French politics. Under the Constitution and fol- lowing old French tradition, the successor of the president in case of death would be the president of the Senate. But the present presi- dent of the Senate, Gaston Mon- nerville, belongs to the radical so- cialist party and is a sworn anti- Gaullist. De Gaulle is now said to be considering the creation of a vice-president's post seriously. BEYOND THESE FEARS, Gaul- lists seem to be quite assured of their position. At their party con- ference in Nice, they spread only notes of optimism and some bit- ing critical remarks for "Monsieur x." This "Monsieur X" is the un- official opposition candidate, Def- ferre, a socialist mayor of Mar- seille. COMMENTARY: De Gaulle Optimistic But France Is Restless CHARLES DE GAULLE .. cordiality By WALTER LIPPMANN IT IS TAKING too simple a view of President Johnson's problems. to overlook the deadlock and standstill which prevail at home and abroad in the late President Kennedy's program. Although Presidentr Kennedy might have waited until he had been re-elected, he could not have put off indefinitely a serious re- appraisal of many of his foreign policies. The condition of affairs has changed tremendously since these policies were first conceiv- ed and formulated. They were ad- dressed to the world of the late 1940's and the 1950's when there were two, and only two, great powers. Now, there are several, and the two big nuclear powers are finding that in the outer world their control is weakening and their influence diminishing. * * * IT WILL BE NECESSARY to re- appraise the policies which come down from the time when the non- Communist world, and particularly the European part of it, looked to Washington for leadership because it depended wholly upon the Unit- ed States for its defense against Communism and for its recovery from the war. This abnormal relationship had to come to an end. It was the avowed purpose of our postwar policies to bring it to an end. And though it is human to cling to a superior place, we must recognize that Europe has recovered and en- joys a freedom of action hitherto denied it. This is because the bal- ance of-power has been organized successfully to rule out great war. By the end of the 1950's when the New Frontier was struggling to come into power, the abnormal preeminence of the United States had already begun to fade away. The phenomenon was then ascrib- ed to the weakness of Eisenhow- er and not to the nature of things. General de Gaulle has note brought about the decline of NA- TO and the American-led Atlantic partnership and the primacy of the United States in all the un- derdeveloped continents. General de Gaulle is pointing out the de- cline of an American leadership which was temporarily necessary but inherently abnormal-abnor- mal in regard to the national spir- it of the Europeans, abnormal also in regard to the historic traditions of the Americans. * * * IN MY VIEW, President John- son will do well to begin with a confident acceptance of an ac- complished and unavoidable fact -that our position in relation to Europe is no longer that of guard- ian and tutor. From abjuring the pretension to superiority in world leadership will come, one may hope, the end of that eager-beav- erism which has interferred with our serious thinking and has done nothing but irritate and destroy confidence. We should accept the fact that since we are no longerneeded or able to lead Europe, the time is over for hot-foot missions to Paris and London and Bonn and Rome to sell one of our devices., It is time to relax and wait considerately and receptively for proposals from Europe. It is most emphatically not the time for the new President to consider traveling abroad, for, him to listen to the naive argument that, face to face with the European leaders and with sufficiently large crowds cheering him along, Europe will relapse once more into the de- pendent posture of the 1940's and the early 1950's. The time before our elections is. too short, the accumulated prob- lems here at home are too many, to allow time or energy for the diversions and distractions of propaganda travels abroad. WE ARE IN THE 1960's, and we must search our minds lest we accept unexamined the assump- tions of the postwar years, lest we act on the reflexes which were conditioned in another age. The paramount theme of the 1940's was the necessity of American inter- vention to save European civiliza- tion from destruction. The para- mount theme of the 1950's was to consolidate the western world against the onset of revolutionary Communism. The paramount theme of this decade as we know it thus far is that we are emerging from a two- power world and entering one where there are many powers. It will be false to say that a recognition of the change in our relative position is a revival of iso- lationism. A reappraisal ofour po- sition involves no retreat from the task of maintaining the nuclear peace. It means no withdrawal and no desertion of our friends. But it does mean a change in our role in power politics, let us say from wooer to wooed, from buyer to sell- er, from seeker to sought. (c) 1963, The Washington Post Co. Not all, though, seemed to speak against the oppositio* the week of President Kennedy's funeral. On the contrary, it was crowded with signs of dissatisfaction with the Gaullist administration's present stabilization and budget plans. France suffered some severe in- ternal disruptions. * * * TUESDAY: French National Railroad workers strike for 34 hours. Wanted: a 12 per cent salary raise and an additional week per year of vacation. Wednesday: Demonstrations in several cities against "Force de Frappe," France's own atomic de- fensive weapon system. This is the first time that demonstrations against a government policy have been seen in French cities for years. Friday: Strike of university stu- dents and professors. Wanted: bet- ter facilities and more auditori- ums, in short,an additional $125 million to the already extensive educational budget. On Friday aft- ernoon student demonstrations on the campus of the Sorbonne re- sulted -In a battle between 3000 st dents and police. Only after, two hours of this stone-throwing versus water hose and shock bat- tle, the demonstrating groups started to disintegrate. Demon- strations were also held in similar ways in Grenoble, Reims and Nanates. * * * BUT GAULLISTS don't inter- pret these signs to be dangerous to their party; even if the opposi- tion thinks they are. Only in a single matter did the anti-Gaul- lists seem to carry the majority of opinion when Defferre declared that it was disgraceful to see that President de Gaulle went to John F. Kennedy's funeral wear- ing his general's uniform instead of wearing civilian clothes. CHORAL UNION: An Uninspired Reading Of Handel's 'Messiah', UNDERSCORE: JFK's Political Style: its" Effect on Europe HAD IT BEEN a snowy, Christ- mas type evening last night, one might have been moved by; the Yule spirit to listen joyously to the Choral Union's production of "The Messiah." But since it was just another cool, late autumn night, the listener was forced into the realization that this was just another reading of Handel's epic Christmas piece. The orchestra, under guest con- ductor Harold Haugh, was for the most part uninspired. The strings sounded consistently overbearing and discordant, and their articu- lation was so poor that in the overture the extended trills sound- ed as if they w re notes with measured time values. By PHILIP SUTIN National Concerns Editor TRENDS in Western Europe to- ward the moderate Jeft and the American folksy style of political campaigning suffered a serious blow with President Kennedy's death. Hisevigorous, youthful New Frontier and shrewd campaigning have been a strong influence in Europe. They gave impetus to the challenge to that region's aged leaders by impatient younger men that is now beginning to bear fruit. The adoption of the Kenne- dy style by some of these younger men also forced the older leaders to deal more with the public. While President Lyndon B. Johnson will continue the essen- tial Kennedy program for some time, his style will be different. He is older, less intellectual and less skilled in public appearances. Johnson is also somewhat more conservative than Kennedy, thus diminishing the aura of dynamic liberalism that wafted from the White House to Western Europe. WESTERN EUROPE, through- out the Kennedy years, has been swinging to the left, although not the old-fashioned, doctrinaire So- cialist left. With a revamped phil- osophy that sounded more like the tian Democrats finally managed to force "an opening to the left" and set up a coalition government with the Socialists. In France de Gaulle is losing popularity. The youthful Socialist mayor of Marseilles, Gaston De- frerre, is meanwhile becoming a leading figure in the anti-Gaullist forces. WHILE KENNEDY maintained close friendships with the older, more conservative Adenauer and Macmillan, pronouncements such as calling for social reform in Lat- in America through the Alliance for Progress and asserting the need for youthful, vigorous lead- ership created a favorable climate for the moderate left. Politicians such as Mayor Willy Brandt of West Berlin began to imitate Kennedy's campaign style; they began to build images similar to the late President's and met success doing so. Theodore White's "The Making of a President, 1960," became must reading for cam- paigners not only in Western Eu- rope, but also throughout the dem- ocratic world. Politicians used Kennedy's com- bination of personal charm, skilled staff and shrewd analysis of poli- tical trends in their quest of elec- toral victory. They adopted such The trumpets and harpsichord; on the other hand, were usually clear and concise, and the former's appearance in the Hallelujah chorus and later, in the bass' last solo, was refreshing. * * * THE CHORUS, spearheaded by fairly sensitive sopranos, suffered under a conductor who seemed un- sure of himself and equally un- ,sure of his performers. There were moments of great pain for Haugh as first the strings, and later the chorus, made out-of-time en- trances. One cannot be sure whether these blunders resulted from insufficient rehearsal time or from sadly unpolished musicians. The nucleus of the ensemble, the soloists, made happy excep- tions to the general feeling of tension that prevailed. All four seemed more than adequately ac- quainted with their parts. All sang expressively and gave a sense of continuity to the story of Christ's coming. Lois Marshall, soprano, and John Craig, tenor, deserve special commendation for their offerings. The bass, Richard Cross, seemed to strain in his extremely low range and tired as the program progressed, resulting in a slightly muddy texture to his voice. The contralto, Beverly Wolff, was deli- cate and beautiful, but she wag occasionally meek and the strings, reminding one of an elephant crossing a high wire, drowned her out. * * * "Did He Say 'Let Us Continue' Or 'Let Us Work Continuously'?" PECEMBER 1963 SII I ,4 Iinees THE OVERALL FEELING that one has after listening to this performance is uninspired peace of mind. The orchestra can only do so much to destroy the con- tinuity of the story which the text n meticulnlv outlines. One has