WEEKLY REPORT NO. 46, 18--24 NOVEMBER 1958

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP60-00594A000400010034-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 24, 2003
• Sequence Number: 34
• Publication Date: November 24, 1958
• Content Type: MEMO

n^N?^~t? FORM NO-Approved For ase ;@P
Gfflce Memorandum ? UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT
: Chief, Intelligence School
DATE: 24 November 1958
FROM : Chief, Clerical Training
SUBJECT: ?':reokly Report No. 46, 18 - 2Z November 1958
1. Floxowriter: The Agency survey on #he otcntia ual
use of Flexo miters is still being conducted. whho
has charge of this project has informedi Operations'
Support Faculty that a copy of the repor would be given to OTR.
2. Numbers in Clerical Induc-ion Training. During'the week of
18 November 1- , there 7cre 46 people in Clerical Induction Training.
Of these, 9 were entering for the first time.
3. Numbers in Clerical Orientation Training. There were 13
people in Clerical Orientation for the we-71,77717 November 1958.
L!. Results of Official Agency Testing Administered by Clerical
Induction. The results of the tests administered to the entrance-on-
duty employees for the week of 18 November 1;'58 were as follows:
Tested Qualified
Shorthand 6 0
Typewriting 17 6
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 Approved
since new students may enroll at any
time. Here the learner is permitted
to gauge the amount of work to be
covered and to advance at whatever
rate of speed his individual aptitude
and ambition dictate. It is at this
point that the issue is joined.
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T HAT OLD BUG AB , t e time avmg taught several systems of
element, is haunting private busi- shorthand, I feel qualified to state
ness schools more than ever now. categorically that the Gregg system
In group training, the teacher is is the easiest, simplest, and quick-
free to handle the problem by pac- est to learn. Anyone with average
ing progress according to prescribed intelligence can, with moderate ef-
lesson plans to be completed within fort, master this useful subject. But
a certain term. In individual instruc- in determining the length of time re-
tion as practiced by the majority of quired for such a course, we must
business schools, however, the speci- consider certain aspects of the study
fied term of study is eliminated, of a skill subject.
ous conceptions about
shorthand skill. Here is a
is familiar to a registrar:
What is a reasonable time in which
Gregg shorthand can be mastered?
Into how short a period can we com-
press a shorthand course? To how
great an extent can we accelerate
our courses?
Prospective students have errone-
acquiring
scene that
The young visitor (in this case,
a high school graduate with one year
of college training) explains that she
has a very limited time in which to
study the course. She aspires to learn
stenography "in the shortest possible
time." When you encourage her to
be more specific, she tells you, "I
hope to study very hard in order to
become a secretary in one month."
Confronted with pertinent facts and
data in rebuttal, she will modify her
statement with, "Then I surely should
be able to complete the course in
two months."
Is any other vocational goal sought
in so short a training period as sec-
retarial work? Why is the time ele-
ment of such urgency?
One reason is that, even in periods
such as the recent recession, there is
still a great demand for office help.
Many students of all ages are moti-
vated to enter the labor market
simply because a weekly paycheck is
attractive. Others have more urgent
reasons: marriage plans, supplement-
ing the family income in these times
of spiraling prices, financial com-
mitments. Then there are the college
graduates with straight liberal-arts
backgrounds who are impatient to
get their careers started; unable to
secure the jobs that they feel they
merit, they decide to obtain entry
through the stenographic route. All
Some Special Factors
1. Mental and Physical Co-ordina-
tion. We all know that a subject like
history, for example, requires only
perception. A subject like shorthand,
however, requires physical adaptation.
I recall a student with a master's
degree in psychology who was anx-
ious to learn Gregg quickly (since
she was. promised a position in per-
sonnel work) but who found
advanced dictation very difficult.
Why? Because she was by nature
what I term a slow-paced individual
-she talked deliberately, walked
leisurely, responded with premedita-
tion. Younger high school students
were marching up the ladder of
higher speeds while she lagged be-
hind. A rapid learner who is handi-
capped by an inadequate background
Drake Business Schools, Inc,
Ne~ York, N. Y.
Approved
in English also requires more time.
2. Period of Crystallization. An-
other point to consider is the process
of learning itself. There are limita-
tions to what one can absorb in a
given time. Indeed, psychologists
tell us that too much cramming with-
out time for a natural process of
adaptation, or period of crystalliza-
tion, often produces diminishing re-
turns. Time should be allotted for
review and practice.
3. Quantity and Quality. That too
rapid training may result in a lower-
ing of standards is another danger.
When quantity is emphasized, qual-
ity often becomes secondary, and
accuracy then takes a back seat.
4. "Lonesome" Shorthand. Another
consideration is the fact that short-
hand needs a steady companion,
typewriting, in order to be service-
able. Since transcription skill is the
final test of a good stenographer,
training that correlates shorthand and
typing development must be included
in a secretarial course.
The question "How short can a
shorthand course be?" reminds me
of a question asked Abraham
Lincoln: "How long should a man's
these cases have one element in legs be?" You all know the answer
common-"Time is of the essence." to that one: "Long enough to reach
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BUSINESS EDUCATION WORLD
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the ground." The analogy in A num er o outstanding students
shorthand field lies, of course, in
goals and standards.
1. GOALS. Since it is more im-
portant to know where you are go-
ing than to get there quickly, let us
spotlight the objective.
Last summer I experimented with
a bright, eager group of high school
students in a ten weeks' special sten-
ography course. It consisted of two
periods a day of one hour each, plus
a minimum of two hours' home-
work. During that time, the students
were able to complete the Simpli-
fied Manual and take between 60-
and 70-wam from text material.
Does such progress deserve kudos?
Yes, because the objective-personal
use: note-taking during lectures,
writing of messages, introduction to
secretarial work-was accomplished.
In my classes at present are a
number of students whose aims are
to qualify for the 80-wam school clerk
exam given by the New York City
Board of Education; others have set
as their goal a Drake diploma (100
wam) ; a few are aiming for higher
speeds to meet Civil Service re-
quirements. Since there are many
levels of secretarial work, trainees'
aspirations may match any of them;
differences in training periods result.
2. STANDARDS. Business stand-
ards fluctuate. During a period that
is characterized by a secretarial
shortage, standards are lowered and
minimum requirements may tem-
porarily be acceptable. But, as Alan
C. Lloyd has pointed out in his in-
formative article, "New Secretarial
Opportunities" (American Business
Education, December, 1957), "When
the number of job seekers and job
openings fall into balance about 1960
or 1961 (the dates pegged by
NOMA), the capacity to compete will
be basic to secretarial job success."
A Fair Challenge?
The factors that I have explored
concerning the nature of the study
of shorthand, individual aptitude and
ability, goals and standards should
under no circumstances discourage a
have succeeded in completing the
course and earning a diploma in a
three months' training period; but
they had three (in some cases, four)
hourly sessions daily, plus homework
assignments. Then, too, some were
taking a refresher course; and others,
although they were beginners in
shorthand, had a knowledge of type-
writing. I contend that the average
trainee should aim for the six months'
course. Many will require eight
months or more to fulfill goals.
Modern times demand modern
methods, and speed is certainly one
of the ingredients. I have used with
excellent results the helpful Gregg
pamphlets, "Streamlining Gregg
Shorthand." If every moment is
utilized, a lesson a day can easily
be completed in a two-hour steno-
graphy period. As the pamphlets
suggest, every sixth lesson may be
omitted for sight reading. An intro-
duction to dictation very early in
the course will enliven the. class and
hasten progress. Dictation material is
varied in conformity with the differ-
ent stages of development represent-
ed in the classroom.
Up-to-date devices also play an
important role in accelerating the
course. Tape recorders and record
players are a boon to teachers and
learners alike. For the former, they
act as expert substitutes; for the
latter, they stimulate higher speeds.
Despite the many short cuts used,
students. still persist in demanding
additional hurry-up methods, plead-
ing for some technological pill to be
invented in lieu of an extended train-
ing period. How can we reconcile
the student's importunity with the
teacher's dedication. to develop each
member of the class to his limits?
I've used this story about Presi-
dent James A. Garfield to drive home
the point to some of my students:
When Garfield was president of
Hiram College in Ohio, he was ap-
proached by the father of a prospec-
tive student.
"Can you simplify the course?" the
father asked. "My boy will never
take that in. He wants to get through
by a shorter route."
"Certainly," answered Garfield, "I
can arrange for that. It all depends,
n? -course, on what you want to make
of him. When God wants to make
an oak, He takes a hundred years;
but when He wants to make a
'squash, He requires only two
"I don't %vant to rush through
shorthand, but I surely should
be able to complete the course
two months."' TYPICAL
"When God wants to make an
oak, He takes a hundred years;
bnt when He wants to make a
s(luash, fie requires only two
nionths." JAMES A. CARFiELD
sessions are longe ? months."
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prospective trainee. I simply wish to
point out that a high school student,
after studying for two years (at a
less intensive rate, I concede), is re-
quired to pass an 80-warn speed test
only. Is it not too challenging to ex-
pect business-school students to
match or surpass that score in three
months or six 'months, even though