Dear Editor:
It seems to be a foolish practice to force every student in almost every class to take a final examination. Obviously there are pupils whose academic standards could not be improved by taking a final examination, and there are also those whose achievement could only be lowered by participating. And moreover, there are probably certain courses, because of their structure, academic level, and purpose that make them inherently incompatible with final examinations.

Many students, therefore, are clamoring to have final exams removed from the Maine West curriculum. However, it seems unclear to me exactly what criteria would be employed and who would evaluate the pupil on the basis of this criteria, as to whether a student took a final exam or not. Until the administration can satisfactorily answer these questions based on previous experience, I seriously question whether fundamental policy changes would be made.

Steven R. Kisslinger

Dear Editor:
The security guards in C‑wing seem to be more concerned with chasing students as they leave school than they are with guarding the cars and their contents. A number of tapes, tape decks, and other things have been stolen from inside locked cars.

It seems to me that truancy should be left to the deans and security to the guards.

Susanne O'Brien


Editor's Note: When your complaint was presented to Mr. Burk, he replied that the job of the guards is to regulate traffic into and out of the parking lot, and that every staff member is responsible for stopping truants. He also checked and found that only two thefts from cars have been reported this school year.