Potential primary teachers in Colorado face having their college study options seriously curtailed. The Colorado Commission on Higher Education could cut by more than half the "majors" (main courses of study) available this autumn for future primary teachers at the University of Colorado campus in Boulder.

Of 53 majors now available to prospective primary teachers, the commission's staff has approved only nine, with another 11 still under consideration. However, at the university there is worry that prospective teachers will be restricted to just a few traditional fields. Regent Jim Martin said the commission "has lost sight of the value of a liberal-arts education and is trying to translate graduation into job training".

More than 30 majors have either been pulled from consideration by the university or are not recommended for approval as part of the teacher-education programme. They include women's studies, ethnic studies, music, classics, French, Spanish, Italian, German, sociology, philosophy, Asian studies, psychology and religious studies.