The Educational screen (c1922-c1956])

DAYI AS PERSONAL AS POSSIBLE -NEWS News from and about the Department of Audio-Visual Instruction, National Education Assn. Washington Pipe Line • During a very private telephone conversation with Bill Grenoble, Chief of the Motion Picture Information Service of the United States Information Agency, which was interrupted only by the constant beeping of a telephone recorder that neither of us was operating, we picked up some information with regard to the drastic cut that has taken place in his division In the last several months. For example, do you know: (1) that the Motion Picture Information Service staff has been cut 53%? (This means that a little more than every other person on the entire staff has been laid off) ; (2) that the total budget of the Service has been cut from 6.4 millions to only 3 million? (3) that the work in promoting effective utilization of U. S. films distributed by the MPIS abroad will be greatly reduced? (4) that there will be no money available to finance domestic production of films designed to interpret the United States to peoples in foreign lands? (5) that the overseas staffs of the various MPIS offices in foreign countries will be cut approximately 30%? To us this was depressing news because we felt that long strides were being made in building up an effective overseas motion picture information service under the leadership of Herb Edwards, former chief of the Service. We are inclined to agree with Bill that the greatest waste in government today comes not from the inefficiency of individual governmental employees but from the enormous losses that occur when extensive branches of the government are set up at great expense and then after a few months or years are dissolved without ever having accomplished more than a fraction of the work they were organized to do. If you don't like what's happening — if you think it's wasteful to develop A-V CONFERENCE CALENDAR NOVEMBER 1 4 — New Jersey AudioVisual Leadership Council New jersey Association for Education by Radio-TV Meeting, Convention Hall, Room 6, 10 A.M., Atlantic City, N. J. JANUARY 21-23 — Notional AudioVisual Association Mid-Winter Conference, Hotel Buena Vista, Biloxi, Miss. FEBRUARY 13-18 — American Association of School Administrators National Convention, Atlantic City, N. J. MARCH 2-5 — Department of AudioVisual Instruction 1954 Convention, Hotel Morrison, Chicago, III. MARCH 7-12 — Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development Convention, Los Angeles, Calif. (Oneday regional meeting of the Department of Audio-Visual Instruction on March 6.) by J. J. Mcpherson Executive Secretary, DAVI 1201 I 6th St., NW, Washington 6, D.C. an effective motion picture information service and then cut it to ribbons at a time when it is most seriously needed, it wouldn't do any harm to "write your congressman." We in audio-visual found just how powerful that little phrase can be when we put it to work to secure the passage of Public Law 141, which gives the "book rate" for shipping educational films and certain other audio-visual materials. Positively Shocking! C We were recently shocked when an audio-visual center of a leading university sent us a film without taking advantage of the new low "book rate." We daren't mention their name tor fear we may undermine the confidence that the nation has in this center, but we sincerely hope that after all the work they did on the postal bill, they will in the future take advantage of the new low rates! Post Office Scripts 9 With several thousand individual postmasters operating around the nation, it isn't surprising that some institutions which have attempted to take advantage of Public Law 141 permitting them to mail films and other audio-visual materials at the book late have run into differences of opinion. For example, the postmaster in Ellensburg, Washington, denied the application of Central Washington College of Education to mail films at the library book rate at 4c for the first ounce and Ic for each pound thereafter to users within the state or within the first three postal zones. In another place the postmaster insisted that filmstrips had to be in the 16mm size just like motion pictures, or no soap on the new rates. In another place, the postmaster required that ioth the sender and the addressee of film parcels had to be an educational or non-profit institution in order for the special low rates to apply. If your postmaster is giving you a hard time, take your case directly to Mr. R. L. Sheridan, Assistant Director, Division of Mail Classification, U. S. Post Office, Washington 25, D. C. He'll see that you get exactly what you are entitled to receive under the law. Direct results of the savings made possible by the recently passed bill providing book rates for mailing of educational films and other audiovisual materials are in evidence everywhere. For example, the State Museum in New Jersey reduced its minimum charges from 75c to 60c in order to pass the postage saving along to users. Teaching Film Custodians also announced that they would make no postage charge for sending out their films in the future. Help LC! • From John W. Cronin, Director of the Processing Department of the Library of Congress, we have received a note asking us for suggestions as to how Library of Congress film cards can be made more practical to the average user in the audio-visual field. If you have any ideas on the subject, drop him a note directly. Do you feel that the cards are now too technical in their terminology? Would you like to see more information in their summaries? Can you suggest any otli improvements? Convention Plans Proceed • It's too early for the details — but tentative plans for the 1954 DAVI Convention in Chicago, March 2-5, at tlie Hotel Morrison are shaping up well. Here are some of the promising ideas poured into the pot: Keynote address on "A Communications Philosophy for Education" by a leading social scientist . . . Meetings of all national committees . . . "Cracker Barrel" sessions on major problem areas in audio-visual . . . General Se? sion: "What's What with State Audi^ Visual Organizations" . . . Visitatioii= you'll remember in the Chicago area . . . Demonstrations of new utilization and production ideas . . . the "President's Message" ... A series of short presentations on noteworthy current trends in education given by representatives of other leading educational organizations . . . Demonstrations of educational uses of 3-D . . . DAVI banquet with feature speaker . . . DAVI business meeting ... A commercial exhibit of the latest in new materials and equipment. Members of the Program Committee who are working on what promises to be the finest of all DAVI conventions include the following: Lee W. Cochran, Executive Assistant, Extension Division, State University of Iowa, Chairman; Miirgraret W. Pivizia, Supervisor, Audio-Visual Education Section, Los Angeles City Board of Education; H. Wiley Embry, Consultant in Visual Education, Dallas Schools; James P. Fltznater, Director, Visual Education, Chicago Public Schools; Homer Heathnian, New Mexico State Department of Education; Alexander H. Howard, Jr., Director, Office of Visual Education, Central Washington College, Ellensburg, Washington; Wil{Continued on page 382) 380 Educational Screen