This report from UC Davis is a good starting point:
Semester Conversion Task Force Report October 1993
http://chancellor.ucdavis.edu/resource/commun/1997/semester/sctfrep.cfm
Benefits of the semester system:
"# provides more opportunity for thorough examination of a subject;
# permits more meaningful term paper and research assignments;
# allows time at the beginning to get into a subject and at the end to
review course work before exams ("dead week");
# permits students to choose research topics or term papers in a less
hurried fashion;
# allows students more time to pace their studies;
# promotes greater interaction between faculty and students;
# results in proportionately less time in administering exams;
# reduces faculty time spent on such course preliminaries as reading
lists, syllabi, etc.;
# promotes better use of textbooks, which are now designed principally
for the semester system;
# reduces the tendency towards fragmentation of courses"
Benefits of the quarter system:
"# afford departments greater flexibility in providing course
offerings and allow for more curricular innovation;
# allow students more flexibility in selecting majors and arranging
class schedules;
# better suit the needs of rapidly changing or emerging disciplines;
# provide students and faculty with more frequent breaks and thus
reduce intellectual fatigue."
Ohio State
Semester Conversion Bibliography
http://www.acs.ohio-state.edu/calendarstudy/biblio_items/references1.html
Cites:
Author : Coleman, Daniel ; And Others
Title : Academic Calendar Change Impact on Enrollment Patterns and
Instructional Outcomes.
Journal Name : Research in Higher Education , v20 n2 p155-66 1984
A study of 10 universities in two states examined the impact of a
change from the quarter to the semester calendar system. A decrease in
average student credit hour load and an increase in the percentage of
students withdrawing from courses were observed.
Author : Gainous, Fred ; Kuzmicic, Jorge ; Romine, Robert J. ;
Culverhouse, Renee ; Dahl, Debbie
Corporate Name : Alabama State Dept. of Postsecondary Education,
Montgomery.
Title : The Alabama College System Quarter to Semester Conversion: A
Working Manual.
Date : 19971100
...The manual identifies challenges and opportunities with regard to
the following areas: (1) instruction, including class schedules,
teaching loads, and instructional programs and awards; (2) fiscal
impacts for students, employees, and college operations; (3) student
services, including the role of academic advisors and the impact on
students; and (4) information services, including forms, files,
personnel, and historical data. The report also contains surveys to be
completed by students, faculty, staff, and administrators requesting
their opinions about the conversion from a quarter system to a
semester system. The report concludes with recommended policy
revisions.
CALIFORNIA STATE POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY, POMONA ACADEMIC
SENATE
Conversion to "'Mesters" Report
http://www.csupomona.edu/~public_affairs/cpp_web/AH005001.pdf
Citations:
C. James Quann (1998). "Converting from Quarter to Early-Start
Semester: Observations Through a Rear-View Mirror," College and
University v74 no.1 Summer/Fall 1998 p20-4
Pennington, D. C., Zvonkovic, A. M. and Wilson, S. L. (1989). Changes
in Satisfaction Across an Academic Term. Journal of College Student
Development, 30: 528
Tan, David L. (1996). "Condensed or Traditional Semester Format: Does
It Make a Difference in Academic Performance?" Education 116 (3):
417-422.
----------------"Annotated Bibliography on Academic Calendars"
http://www.ohiou.edu/~cstf/liter.htm
Cites numerous studies, including:
Boddy, G. W. (1985). Regular vs. compressed semester: A comparison of
effectiveness for teaching in higher education. (Doctoral
dissertation: University of Nebraska, 1985). Dissertation Abstracts
International, 47 (1A), 65
Clark, C. E. (1986). Comparison of the student credit hours
generated, average course loads, grades earned, and withdrawals from
courses accompanying change from the term to the semester academic
calendar at Central Missouri State University. Paper presented at the
MIDAIR Conference, Kansas City, MO. (ERIC Document Reproduction
Service No. ED 276 354)
Davis, J. R. (1972). The changing college calendar. Journal of Higher
Education, 43, 143-150.
The history of academic calendars is traced, beginning with Harvard
through the evolution of the modular calendar. Davis describes and
enumerates the advantages of the semester, quarter, 3-3-3, 4-1-4, and
modular plans, concluding with the Colorado College Plan..."
----------University of Michigan - BIBLIOGRAPHY
Primary Sources: Reviews of Research on Compressed Courses
PDF version:
http://www.cel.cmich.edu/ontarget/aug02/CRAL-bibliography.pdf
HTML version cached by Google:
http://216.239.37.104/search?q=cache:K-wdpUedCwJ:www.cel.cmich.edu/ontarget/aug02/CRAL-bibliography.pdf+&hl=en&ie=UTF8
Cites many potentially relevant studies including:
Scott, P. A. (1995). Learning experiences in intensive and
semester-length classes: Student voices and experiences. College
Student Journal, 29 , 207-213.
-----------search strategy:
"semester system" advantages
"quarter system" advantages
"semester system" bibliography