The Muse, vol. 22, no. 17 (25 February 1972)

              The "normal curve" issue
FEB 29 1972
Psych students organize while faculty remain timid
While psychology 2410 students are
presently organizing to fight the psych
department's downgrading of their marks
to conform to a "normal curve'" the Head
of the Psychology Department Dr. Corcoran has labelled last week's Muse article
on the grading issue as "rude" and a
"distortion of facts."
On those grounds, and the fact that he
doesn't "have to explain myself to
students, as long as I am meeting the
administration's expectations", he
refused to make any comment on the
issue.
Last week's article described a meeting
called by disgruntled psych students to
decide on some action to combat the arbitrary cutting of marks to fit into a
"normal curve." The psychology
department has made such cuts in at least
two courses given last term: 2410 and 2411,
an ETV course.
Corcoran was unwilling to identify any
of the "untruths" which he maintains
appeared in last week's article.
His non-committal stand was reflected
in the attitudes of the psychology
professors the Muse was able to interview.
Most only reluctantly spoke to a Muse
reporter, and none were willing to have
their names used.
All denied that they were unwilling to
criticise for fear of losing their jobs,
though one conceded "the administration
might refuse to give us new buildings if we
cause too much trouble."
All blamed the administration and "the
grading system as a whole" for the-
troubles, but were unable, or unwilling, to
pinpoint where the blame lies.
'The system couldn't get any crazier,
and within this structure no matter what
we do some students have to get screwed,"
said one faculty member.
Three of those interviewed tried to
further qualify this "necessary screwing,"
saying that psych courses at Memorial are
considered "slack." Therefore, by their
logic, the administration and the department have to use the normal curve to insure that students who receive A's and B's
can get into grad schools other than
Memorial.
Recently, said one prof, about fifty
percent   of  students  who   applied   for
scholarships came from the psych
department but "only one of those students
was accepted because of the lack of
credibility psych courses have."
Several faculty members also cited the
differences in course requirements that
are outlined by individual instructors. Said
one, "If I lay out a heavy workload for my
students in a particular course and
another instructor teaching the same
course sets a much lighter workload, then
the students I teach could suffer from the
lower grades even though they have
learned more."
Bob Buckingham, one of the chief
organizers of the psych students, believes
the psych department should use the pass-
fail system, rather than giving of specific
grades. Dean of Arts and Science Leslie
Harris, who Buckingham describes as
"very shrewd," says he supports that
method of grading.
"I have been saying privately and
publicily for years that we should be using
the pass-fail method."
But any such change in the near future
is hardly conceivable, and in the meantime students grades will continue to be
cut and professors will continue to furtively say the system is archaic, while they
silently operate within it.
One professor went so far as to privately
caution a Muse reporter, who had approached him talking to another faculty
member, "never ask a prof what he thinks
when there is another prof around,
because he'll hesitate to answer when he
doesn't know how the other guy feels about
the issue."
When asked why he puts up with this he
said, "It's a job, it's a job."
"The other guy" he referred to in this
case later told the reporter he can't envision any change in academic freedom at
Memorial for at least ten years.
But Buckingham and a few others have
already started organizing students in
Psych 2410 so they'll fight for their original
uncut marks. They have also drawn up a
questionaire on acedemic freedom and the
existing structure for all faculty members
to fill out. After the mid-term break the
group will hold another meeting to discuss
the results of the questionaire and decide
on some follow-up action to it.
the muse
Friday, February 25, 1972
Volume 22, Number 17
Greene and Greeley win with comfortable plurality
the losers - stiff upper lip and all that.
In what must be a record turnout for a
CSU election students have overwhelmingly voted in Charlie Greene and
Cyril Greeley as president and vice
president of the Students Union.
Out of a total vote of 3311 (a 46 per cent
turnout), the two polled a plurality of 1130
just over a third of the ballots cast. The
second highest ticket, out of a total of
eight, was Rod Moores and Blair Bradbury, who received 633 votes.
Not unexpectedly, the slate of six
Greene—Greeley council representative
candidates took six of the ten seats.
Elected representatives x with the four
highest number of votes were all G—G
candidates - Kai, Bath, Fred Gough,
Dennis O'Keefe, and Bill Broderick -
while the other two G—G runners, Gary
O'Brien and John Butt placed seventh and
eighth respectively.
The other four candidates elected were
Bob Cantwell, John Basha, Bob
Buckingham, and Brian Clarke.
A total of 50-odd candidates were in the
running, which, plus the near-
wallpapering of the campus with slick
posters, probably explains the high turnout.
The campaign was not an exciting one,
with issues discussed on a superficial
level, and very little difference between
candidates' policies, except, perhaps the
Barn ey Dobbin and Noel Power ticket,
which proposed holding a referendum to
have the union restructured.
Greene, an  Arts student, is presently
the union's finance chairman. Greeley is a
consultant in the Students' Affairs
Department and also president of the
campus Liberal Club.
Like all the other candidates, the two ran
on a middle-of-the-road platform, with a
basically service-oriented view of the
students' union. Some of their major policy
points were:
 To establish a co-op bookstore
 To further expand  the  Students'
Affairs Department
 To build a complex including an
arena, as well as other student facilities
 To channel all athletic funds into
intramural rather than Varsity sports.
The pair have not yet chosen an
executive. They say they will chose their
executive in consultation with the elected
members of council.
One of the biggest surprises was the poor
showing of the "moneyed" ticket, Garner
and Harvey, who only polled 538 votes.
The "New Direction" team, of Morris
and Baker who among other things
proposed a MUN seat in the House of
Assembly and a joint committee with the
Minister of Education, placed third with
571 votes.
Trask and Hiscock were a low fifth with
185 votes.
Next were Dobbin and Power with 117;
then Fleming and Barnable with 74.
McKeever and Pope, erstwhile leaders
of the Reformed Silly Party, were reported
"quite happy" with their 63 vote last place
finish.