To the Faculty: A Proposed Change in the Curriculum for Freshmen

It is recommended by the Committee on Instruction:

That all freshmen, beginning with the class entering in September, 1945, be required to take, in place of the present requirement of English 1-2, a reading-writing-discussion course to be called simply Freshmen Studies.
That the amount of time to be devoted to this course be four classroom hours and one laboratory period a week.
That the class meets as a unit for lectures, normally but once, and never more than twice a week, and that for the rest it meet in small groups for discussion purposes, with different teachers at different times during the year.
That a staff of from 12 to 15, to be chosen from different departments - with a chairman, and an executive committee of 3 or 4 - be appointed by the President to design, administer, and teach this course.
That the course endeavor
- to give the student a mastery of the mechanics of effective writing, reading, and speaking;
- to introduce the student, through the study of a small number of books of major importance, to the four great human enterprises - philosophy, science, art, and religion;
- to acquaint the student with the nature of a college of liberal arts, and especially with the program, departmental structure, and teaching personnel of Lawrence;
- to encourage a more active student participation in the learning process;
- to emphasize the discussion of ideas rather than the acquisition of information.
That the laboratory period be devoted to active participation in an art.