The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, December 08, 1978, Image 6

Texas A&M Newspaper Collection

The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, December 08, 1978, Image 6

Newspaper Page TextPage 6 THE BATTALION FRIDAY, DECEMBER 8. 1978 Reading, ’riting, and arithmetic? Three Rs: No longer the basics United Press International The three Rs: reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmetic. Every push for back-to-basics on the school scene calls for loyal ac ceptance of the big three. But the Rs aren’t one, two, three on a new list of vital subjects in edu cation, according to a report from Texas in the “Bulletin” of the Na tional Association of Secondary School Principals. Reading comes out top; ‘rithme tic, second; but — hold on — per sonal hygiene, comes out third. Writing comes out fourth and biol ogy ties with spelling for fifth place. The report from Prof. L. S. Richardson and Robert L. Car- ruthers of Texas A & M University is based on a survey of 209 randomly selected principals and superinten dents in Texas. Richardson and Carruthers specu lated about “personal hygiene breaking up the three Rs. FRIDAY - DEC. 8 ‘JESS DEMAINE & TEXAS SILVER” SATURDAY - DEC. 9 “GENE WATSON” 1700 Feet From The Villa Maria Exchange On Farm Rd. 2818 "BEST IN LIVE COUNTRY WESTERN ENTERTAINMENT" HOURS Thurs., Fri. 7:00-12:00 Sat., 8:00-1:00 “We thought when we heard educators refer to their students as dirty little kids’ they were using the expression as a term of endearment or were making attempts at humor,’ the two said. “But apparently they were being a little more practical than that. They think enough of personal hygiene to put it ahead of writing. Richardson and Carruthers said they launched the survey in an at tempt to find out what are the basics referred to in all the talk about back to basics. In the survey, the principals and superintendents were asked: “If your budget was drastically reduced and you were told to teach only the basics, what courses would you teach? Rounding out the top 10 were lifetime sports, six; life science and American history, seven; state his tory, eight; civics, nine; earth sci ence, 10. All told, the school bosses men tioned 85 courses. The “Bulletin report only lists the top 50 courses cited. Courses on “health careers came out 50, right behind French, 49; painting, 48; and calculus, 47 (named as basic by just 19 percent of respondents). Continuing the bottom 10: analysis was 40; golf and rhythm games, 45; printing, 44; spelling bee, 43; plumbing, 42; sex educa tion, 41. The survey also found football isn’t king on the Texas school scene. At least not as seen by superinten dents and principals. On the “vital list, basketball was selected above any other co-curriculur activity; track came second. Football emerged third. The “eo-curricular activities didn’t show up until basketball, picked as 14. Spanish followed, 15; music (chorus), 16; band, 18; track, 19; geometry, 20, tied with wood- shop and football. The order of a subject on the list was decided by the percentage of respondents naming it. For exam ple, reading was number one be cause 100 percent of participants named it; arithmetic, two, being selected by 99 percent of the re spondents. Number 50 on the list, health career instruction, was selected by just 13 percent. Basketball was considered vital by 74.6 percent; track by 71 percent, football by 68 percent. The order of some other subjects listed and their numbered place on the list of 50 are: — Arts and crafts, 25; physics, 26; calisthenics, auto mechanics tied for 27; team sports, 28; debate tied with baseball for 29; economics, 30. — Trigonometry tied with vol leyball for 31; home and family living tied with disease prevention and treatment for 32; metal shop tied with driver education for 33. — Number sense, 34; nutrition and weight control, 35; public speaking, 36; penmanship, 37; local history, 38; electrical trades, 39; lit erature, 40. RETURN TO RE-RENT OR, youR Student Government Refrigerajtk ASC PEC. 4-8;ll-l3 T4 Pl\ Aggie Gifts & Novelties for Christmas! LOUPOT’S BOOKSTORE NORTHQATE - Across from thm Pcmt Otticm GIVE SOMEONE SPECIAL SOMETHING VERY SPECIAL.. A CESSNA PILOT CENTER GIFT CERTIFICATE! 845-3051 ATTENTION GRADUATING SENIORS IF YOU HAVE ORDERED A 1979 AGGIELAND, PLEASE STOP BY THE STUDENT PUBLI CATIONS OFFICE, ROOM 216 REED MCDONALD, AND PAY A $2.00 MAILING FEE ALONG WITH YOUR FORWARDING AD DRESS SO YOUR AGGIELAND CAN BE MAILED TO YOU NEXT FALL WHEN THEY ARRIVE. There's no greater gift than one that lasts o lifetime and gets better with age! Thar’s exactly what a gift of flight training will do! You can buy a handsome Gift Certificate for a $ 1 0 Discovery Flight.. or for any denomination to cover part — or all — of a Cessna Pilot Center Private Pilot Course! Or, if your "someone special" is already a pilot, you can select a Gift Certificate to apply to an advanced rating! Make it the greatest Christmas of all... see us now! Cessna^ PHOT CENTER BRAZOS AVIATION 696-8767 EASTERWOOD AIRPORT COLLEGE STATION PLANT SALE Saturday, Dec. 9 10-2 pm FLORICULTURE GREENHOUSE BY THE FLORICULTURE CLUB Mrs. M Um unl( Ling t() exas A&l Lirs of " Indents m nown, w ' iducation; lesides N je Unive ut, says 1 loyment i epartmen 30 jobs of ecause P 1 nd of the fare! bet I Irmstronj Joyees m loom 211 lescriptioi alary and ordmg, 1 iy title e ii54444. ier of opt ;his time taken a fe\ lowapbo Press in 1 Battalion photo by Kipp Shackelford Visions of sugar molecules Final exams don’t bring down Robert Fierce, a sophomore pre-medicine major from San Antonio. Robert decked his room in Dunn Hall with gleaming lights, tinsel and the Christmas spirit to chase away the dead-week blues. Back to the basics: reading the classics \tu u. Uni NEW ’ me fourtl popufitioi me no \ ay over nost pow lie. Yet, world leeds. They ar if special Internal io Shey 1 nture,” s Jm, ove ions’ wor “World lumber 0 United Press International ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Modem educators are font! of talking about getting back to the basics. Students at historic St. John s College are already there. The 350 students who attend classes at St. John s have, since 1937, received basic education with a capital “B. For the 1978-79 school year the education will cost $1,650 for tuition, room and board. The students rear! the great thinkers of civilization and not what has been written about them — they tackle Euclid to understand math and Aquinas to comprehend religion, for example. St. Johnnies, as the students are called, follow the same demanding curriculum based on more than 100 required “Great Books.” Authors include Homer, Plato and Copernicus; Chaucer, Beethoven and Adam Smith; Twain, Shakespeare and Freud. Even transfer students enter as freshmen at St. John's, where everyone follows the chronologically structured schedule focusing on ancient Greeks the first year, the Roman, medieval and Renaissance periods the second year, the 17th and 18th centuries the third year, and the 19th and 20th century the last year. “It’s the hooks that function as the teachers,’ says tutor TliomasJ. Slakey. “That scheme works if you have good books. ’’ St. John’s tutors — they are called tutors to avoid the competitive titles distinguishing professors at most colleges — are learners as well as teachers, often sitting in on courses outside their primary disci pline that they must teach in a coming semester. What everyone does most at St. John s is read and talk, hut faculty and students alike are sensitive to criticism that courses are simply “bull sessions.” Grades are kept (mostly for graduate school purposes), but it is considered bad form for students to ask alxmt them. Students arent allowed to cut classes and rarely do. Loud stereos are about the extent of campus disorder and it is simply assumed everyone does his homework. Students write a major essay each year and graduate only after passing an oral exam on their senior essays, a formal ritual complete with black academic cap and gown. Despite three nights a week spent in class, social life at the school appears normal — if somewhat restrained and self-contained. St. John’s boasts of its National Merit Award winners and above average scholastic test scores. Nearly 17 percent of its graduates end up in law school. Others go into medicine, mathematics, computer science, theology or other professions, attending such graduate schools as Columbia, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Yale, Virginia and Edinburgh. linger, Lim ag: ury coi eloping 1 mr child Childre dered in nderdev ons, she Lim, c idow an ;ed 18 tc ral Ass teniber s iildren. laldhein xecutivi makes is cow hild in if isease. Sun Theatres 333 University 846-9808 The only movie in town Double-Feature Every Week Open 10 a.m.-2 a.m. Mon.-Sat. 12 Noon - 12 Midnight Sun No one under 18 Escorted Ladies Free BOOK STORE & 25c PEEP SHOWS med he f assista 'as her i fe Depi nd Dev< Young, 3, is tin ador to barter’s; bmmiss In sep taders c »d the l dll he a •Dgram: kildren. lerdevd Iren ui ffluent each int To da lave bei I06 alre; wimitti Is own of tl nillion i 'ith plai Help ; » projt ion-gov< Unit Lim s; Wional Spense: H THE FORTUNE COOKIES 1313 S. College, Bryan 822-7661 SUNDAY EVENING BUFFET (5:30-8:30) ALL YOU CAN EAT FOR $2.98 OUR EGG ROLLS ARE VERY SPECIAL and will be served unlimited at this Sunday buffet. Besides thatC there will be: I hot and sour soup wok sliced pork (spicy hot) beef with broccoli and chestnuts sweet and sour pork chicken and shrimp fried rice If you do not have enough of any of these dishes to eat,[ you will receive one coupon for another Sunday buffet|

Texas A&M Newspaper Collection

Texas A&M Newspaper Collection

The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, December 08, 1978, Image 6

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