New M.A.L.S. Degree

A new graduate degree program conceived to help teachers meet the need for continuing education will be offered for the first time this summer as part of the Dartmouth Summer Term, June 28 to August 22. It will lead to a Master of Arts in Liberal Studies (M.A.L.S.) degree. Designedly different from familiar programs leading to the master's degree in content areas or in education, the new degree is one of a very few in the United States that not only enable but encourage candidates to study beyond their own fields of concentration. John W. Ragle, Lecturer in Education and Director of Teacher Preparation at Dartmouth, will serve as Executive Director of the M.A.L.S. program.

Study will be offered in the three major areas of the College covered by the Divisions of Sciences, Humanities, and Social Sciences. In addition there will be interdisciplinary courses taught cooperatively by departments within the divisions and across divisional lines, elective courses, and a special colloquium for M.A.L.S. candidates. This colloquium will focus on contemporary issues in education and is intended to relate a teacher's academic work to his teaching in the classroom. Ultimately a rotating curriculum of approximately 60 courses will be available to participants in the program, which is an institution-wide venture under the jurisdiction of the Council on Graduate Studies.

A total of 32 credit-hours of distributed course work is required to earn the M.A.L.S. degree. The usual length of time to complete this program will be four summers and will not normally exceed six years. A key element of the M.A.L.S. program will be the individual counseling provided candidates by coordinators from the divisions and by the Director to assure planning in the best interest of each participant.