New criteria for the design of liberal arts programs are formulated. These criteria concern the relationships among liberal arts content, process, and delivery system. The central role of process in time-variable educational systems is stressed. (Author)

Red Ink College is a hypothetical, private, coeducational institution located in the northeastern United States. The college is operating at a deficit that increases each year. A faculty curriculum committee is investigating the idea of introducing a time-shortened baccalaureate. Considerations involved in the decisionmaking are the history of…

Time allocated for social studies instruction showed a very slight correlation with fifth graders' achievement in that subject, suggesting that "allotted time" should be carefully qualified when used as a variable in assessing instruction. (Editor)

Areas of proposed reform in medical education are discussed, with attention to implementation, financing, obstacles, needed resources, and pedagogy. The trade-off between students' need for time off and perceived need for instruction time is noted. It is argued that costs of reform in time and resources are often ignored. (Author/MSE)

A survey of 12 medical and other health sciences schools which have implemented a standard three-year curriculum in the past few years revealed that only one of these schools is planning to revert to a standard four-year program. Some are introducing more attractive four-year curriculum options. The schools' self-ratings of the success of the…

Students and faculty at the University of Arizona College of Medicine found the three-year medical program to be an unsatisfactory educational experience due to excessive intensity of classroom work, insufficient vacation time, and inadequate time to teach basic science. Measures of student performance showed no differences between three- and…

Results of an open-ended, five-question inquiry sent to sample members of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) are presented and discussed. The questionnaire sought to probe into how AACTE members feel about the concept of an extended or five-year program for preparing prospective teachers. Questions concerned: (1)…

Alternative theoretical approaches influencing the research design of the Beginning Teacher Evaluation Study are discussed. One line of research used an Experimental Teaching Unit (ETU) to create a semi-standardized situation for comparison of teachers. Though this approach introduces a uniformity which appears to increase comparability, it is at…