THE MICHIGAN DAILY Tuesday, February 23, 1971 THE MICHIGAN DAILY Tuesday, February 23. 1971 NEW DEGREE PROGRAM f ree BGS: From obscui -.Daily-Andy Sacks GROUP of student sit-in at the LSA Bldg. in January, 1969 to protest University language and dis- ibution requirements. In the wake of such protests, the Bachelor in General Studies degree was es- blished.f rity to basis of all communication and knowledge." Mathematics Prof. Wilfrid Kaplan agreed with Seligson, saying "I h a v e never known anyone of stature who was not well acquainted with other lang- uages." Even many faculty members not overly optimistic about the BGS program, however, regard it as a "respectable" college de- gree+ "I generally believe in mnore structured curriculum and re- quirements," says O'Neill. "I think there is a certain risk with freshmen and sophomores in giving them too much lati- tude." "But," he adds, "since the de- gree was designed by the fac- ulty, it is satisfactory." Morris, the author of the re- port on the BGS, believes the degree is not without its short- comings. He says the BGS is an obvious temptation to students "who cannot come to terms with themselves," and adds that some students try to avoid arca- demic difficulty by electing the BGS and only taking courses which.are easy and untroubling to them. He also says the BGS tends to obscure the existence of a growing number of less-struct- ured programs within the scope of the BA. These include indi- vidual concentration programs, where a student selects his own specific field of concentration, such as urban studies or arts and communications. In addition, he says, there are other opportunities for individ- ualizing the educational exper- ience, such as the LSA Course Mart, tutorials, summer reading recognition (Continued from Page 1) As well, there is a 40-hour max- imum limit on courses taken within any one department. The skepticism was in part a result of the way the BGS pro- gram came into being - emerg- ing from the dispute over the language requirement in the BA degree. At that time, BGS candidates were required to complete four semesters of a language at the University if they were unable to pass a proficiency exam upon entering. In Winter, 1969, a joint stu- dent-faculty committee recom- mended the adoption of a sep- arate degree prog'am which would not require proficiency in a foreign language. After considerable debate, ac- companied by a four-day vigil in the office of then LSA Dean William Hays by students op- posed to the BA's language and distribution requirements, the literary college faculty approved the BGS degree. But the requirements for the BA degree did not remain in- tact. A week later, the faculty approved a change in the BA language requirement, making it possible for students to com- plete it by taking four years of, language in high school. In ad- dition, students could now elect languages at the University on a pass-fail basis. Since it sprang from student opposition to the language re- quirement, the' BGS was consid- ered by many to be a "cop-out" for those who elected it, and this view obscured consideration For the student body: LEVI'S CORDUROY Slim Fits ......$6.98 (All Colors) Bells.........$8.50 DENIM of the merits of the new degree program. Although only about 20 stu- dents have graduated with the BGS degree to date, an addi- tional 200 will be awarded the degree this April - marking the first sizeable graduating class of BGS students. Moreover, the report on the BGS states it is probable in the next few years that the literary college will grant more than 300 BGS degrees annually, a figure which, the report points o u t, compares favorably with the most popular departmental con- centration programs. Despite the obvious attract- iveness of the BGS program for students who are not particu- larly fond of foreign language, the program's effect on enrol±- ment in the language depart- ment has been less than might be expected. French Prof. James O'Neill, chairman of the romance lang- uages department, s a y s there has not been a "dramatic drop" in language enrollment since the BGS was initiated. "There has been a perceptible, but modest decrease in enroll- ment for the past four or five years," O'Neill explains. "This amounts to a reduction in ele- mentary and basic languages of about three to five per cent, but we have no way of telling how much of this is due to the gen- eral studies program." "The only sure thing," O'Neill continues "is that the existence of the BGS, and the new LSA language requirement has ,erv- ed to remove part of the 'cap- tive' audience from the depart- ment, particularly from the sec- ond year. But everyone is hap- py about that." O'Neill says the reduction in language enrollment has not forced a cutback in the romance languages department's staff. He adds, however, that while there have been no staff dis- missals, there are usually a few sections each year that do not materialize. While the BGS report has as- suaged the doubts of many at the University concerning t h e academic quality of the program, a number of faculty members remain disturbed that the BGS provides students with a way to avoid languages. "A person m u s t necessarily have acquaintance with anoth- er language besides his own in order to attain the goal of true culture and education," Latin Prof. Gerda Seligson told the faculty after t h e BGS report was presented. "Language is the courses a n d correspondence study. However, probably the most serious problem which Morris and others see with the BGS concerns counseling. Since the BGS students vir- tually plan their own courses of study, they might not receive adequate guidance on their pro- ,grams, and concerning graduate schools and careers. For example, Morris points out that the current wording of the BGS program permits stu- dents to complete a regular de- partmental concentration, al- though it would not be cited on a transcript. Morris' report advocates the establishment of a BGS couni- selor to take c a r e of student guidance as well as administra- tive concerns like late drops and reduced course loads. Despite the optimism of the A professional ABORTION that is safe, legal & inexpensive can be set up on an outpatient basis by caling The Problem Pregnancy Referral Service 215-722-5360 24 HOURS-7 DAYS for professional, confidential and caring help report, the LSA faculty ecenty decided that the BGS program should be watched closely in the future, and a follow-up repot t should be issued in a year or two. Right now, however, the fu- ture of the BGS looks secure, as LSA officials expect an annual increase in the number and aca- demic orientation of students entering the program. TOMORROW: THE BGS AND GRADUATE SCHOOLS 1421 Hill 761-1451 f ree 4i T-LAB 6 wk. lab starting tonight every tuesday 8 p.m. *L S Drunk drivers bring families together. ' . __ { ~ ----m Have You Heard the Latest? In hospital rooms and at funerals. Because that's where the drunk driver's victims wid up. Drunk drivers are involved in at least 25,000 deaths and 800,000 crashes every year. And what can you do? Remember, the drunk driver, the abusive drinker, the problem drinker may be sick and need your help. The first thing you can do is get him off the road. For his sake and yours. Do something. Write the National Safety Council, Dept. A, 425 North Michigan Ave., Chicago, Illinois, 60611. And your voice will be heard. Scream Bloody Murder. 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