103 Reviews Established as it was at the height of university democratization, the University of Prince Edward Island involved students and faculty to quite an extent in the major decisions in the university. It is interesting to see that the committee, seven years later, is recommending that departmental chairmen should no longer be elected and is also recommending that departmental chairmen should be able to "review and assess" mark distribution in their individual departments. This effort to u n d o the "emasculation" of chairmen does not represent a backlash against democracy and involvement, though; the committee still recommends the involvement of students and faculty in the tenure committee. While this second report will be of principle interest to members of the University of Prince Edward Island (in contrast to the first, which is an interesting sociological study of and about a university), it will also be of interest to those involved in planning similar committee studies in their own universities or those who are interested in other people's solutions to nearly universal problems. Constance Cullen University of Edinburgh Dennison, J. D., et al., The Impact of Community Colleges: a study of the college concept in British Columbia. Vancouver, B.C., B.C. Research, 1975. 184 p. The emergence of the British Columbia community college system, which now comprises fourteen colleges operating on twenty-five campuses, is one of the most remarkable developments in Canadian education during the last decade. Full-time student enrolment in the new colleges grew by 500 percent between 1967/68 and 1974/75. During the same period university full-time enrolment in British Columbia grew by about only 15 percent. Here it must be noted, of course, that university-transfer programs are an integral part of the community college system in British Columbia. In their highly informative report Professor John Dennison of the University of British Columbia, Alex Tunner of B.C. Research and their colleagues Gordon Jones of Vancouver Community College and Glen Forrester of B.C. Research give us a variety of glimpses into the impact of the new colleges on individual and social life. The authors devote nearly half of their volume to providing information on the socio-economic origins, the opinions, expectations, concerns and interests of students. Information is also provided on community views concerning the colleges, on the college faculty and on financial aspects. There is a helpful section on the research methodology utilized. While about 70 percent of community college students in British Columbia enrolled in university transfer courses, less than 10 percent actually transferred. For those who transferred, the new colleges appeared to be providing the preparation required. For those who sought employment on graduation, the colleges appeared to be serving with equal effectiveness. Slightly more than half of the employers, or potential employers of college graduates, rated helping students to learn to think constructively and critically as the most important function of the colleges. A little more than one-third of the employers regarded the learning of specific skills for a trade or profession as most important. 104 Reviews Acceptance of the general education function of the British Columbia colleges if reflected also in the view of faculty members. A majority of the faculty, as reported in this volume, indicated that up to one-quarter of the vocational and career/technical programs should be devoted to general education. Over one-third of all faculty members would appear to favour the colleges developing into degree-granting institutions. If they were to develop in this way, the original conception of them as comprehensive, opendoor community colleges would be altered. At the same time, however, there is growing recognition that the terminal character of many non-university post-secondary educational programs is no longer adequate. The combination of the efforts of John Dennison and his colleagues and the financial support they have received for their project, from the Donner Canadian Foundation and other agencies, has enabled us to appreciate more fully the roles British Columbia's new colleges are playing. A basis of information has been provided through the volume The Impact of Community Colleges. Now more in depth analysis, more comprehensive examination of the roles community colleges should be playing in British Columbia and in other Canadian provinces are essential given the light of the m a m m o t h problems facing Canadian communities and the nation as a whole. D. McCormack Smyth York University Cobban, A. B. The Medieval Universities: Eng., Methuen, 1975. 264 p. their development and organization. London, Much research has been done on medieval universities since the appearance of Hastings Rashdall's great three volume work in 1895. Gordon Leff, in his outstanding volume, Paris and Oxford Universities in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries (New York, N.Y., John Wiley, 1968), brought forward the record in relation to Paris and Oxford. Now Professor Alan Cobban has completed the broader task of revising the historical account of medieval European universities generally in the light of recent research. The first half of this attractive volume is devoted to an analysis of the development of key universities. Following a concise account of the ground from which Western intellectual life emerged, Cobban outlines the rise of the universities at Salerno, Bologna, Paris, Oxford and Cambridge. Two brief chapters are devoted to late medieval universities and the European collegiate movement. The second half of the volume includes chapters on "Medieval Student Power", "The Academic Community", and "The Universities and Society". Cobban is persuaded that knowledge of medieval universities helps to provide the breadth of vision and the perspective so essential on the part of those responsible for the well-being of the contemporary university. His book provides a rich variety of insights which support his conclusion. D. McCormack Smyth York University