# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1944_S510
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

Report of Beard for Higher Education _ . sii

es have been charged with far greater responsibility in curricu-
aatters than one would expect to find in institutions consisting
ily of secondary departments, _ The president has not been

ee the director of the German gymnasium.’ “In consequence, -
dual instructors, in frequent instances, are deeply entrenched
notion that they are a “law ‘unto themselves.” It is in the very
of supervision of instruction that any suggestions for improve-
reach most intimately into the beliefs and practices of the indi-
ial. In a, number of instances the presidents: of our institutions
Obably lack the necessary background and knowledge of adminis-
tive procedures, and are not generally familiar with the principles
nd practices of teaching. Consequently the teachers are reluctant
Qaccept their judgment in matters of teaching procedure. Our pres-

‘instruction. In the last analysis, effective supervision must -be per-
‘formed by those who are qualified through knowledge of the principles
if teaching.

C. Grading Systems

At the close of the 1941 academic year six different grading
systems were in use in the ten preparatory schools. Most of their
aduates enter the St. Louis Seminary. The great diversity in the
symbols for expressing achievement required a great amount of
iterpolation by the Seminary Dean and made statistical handling of
the grades almost impossible. Hence a uniform method of letter
grading (A BC D F) in conformity with American college usage was
uggested by the Board for Higher Education and is now in use in the
ollege division of all of Synod’s colleges and seminaries.

D. Outcomes of Instruction

_ A rather reliable measure of the effectiveness of instruction is

secured by the use of standardized tests. Such tests are particularly

“useful since they permit a comparison of the average student'in our

“synodical institutions with the average student in hundreds of Ameri-

can colleges and universities, Since the same. battery of tests may be
given at each of our institutions at a certain grade level, the relative

measure of the performance of the average student at Synod's ‘8 insti-

tutions may also be secured. .