Thursday, November 7, 1991
When lectures come to life...
Profs shut the books and, shelve traditional teaching methods
d J. Csir
b Flo
The Collegian
Kenley Branscome filed
filed into Nick 8, joining
about 23 other students
one Saturday morning at 8 a.m.
All the sixth semester
management major had had to eat
and drink was a bag of potato
chips and a Pepsi, but this
wouldn't be enough to last him
until 4 p.m., the end of the
simulation.
"I was skeptical at first,"
Branscome said. "But later, I
viewed it (the simulation) as a
worthwhile teaching technique."
He wasn't quite sure what the
class would be doing for the next
eight hours, but he participated
anyway.
No, he wasn't part of an
experiment in a Stephen King
novel, but rather one of many
students who has participated in a
classroom simulation.
Gayle Morris, a visiting
Assistant Professor of
Economics, invited a Washington
D.C. consultant to run a
simulation called "Green
Revolution" available to her
Economic Development and
Women in Development classbs
last spring.
Most students took the roles of
peasant rice farmers in India
during a five year production
period, while others became
bankers, suppliers and traders.
During the simulation, Morris
and the consultant would walk to
different tables in the room and
say, "Farm one, you just had
twins and farm two has a
drought."
"Farmers could sell their rice or
use it to feed themselves. They
could support their children or
hire them out to other farms,"
Morris said.
The students were given class
time credit for attending the
simulation, but were required to
write a report about what they did
during the simulation with the
concepts they learned in claSs.
Morris noted that this wasn't a
game like "Monopoly," where
students could "go for broke" if
their situation was getting worse
within the simulation's context.
"It's not that 'we get to play
farmer for a day,"' said Morris,
"but it's an educational exercise
for students to take seriously and
to learn without taking notes."
She said there is always a risk
that the simulation will fail, but
Wondertwin powers activate: Theater Director Kathleen Campbell
squares off against student Jim Barrett during a teaching exercise designed
to help actors focus body energy.
most students have a favorable
opinion of it after eight hours.
Not every unique teaching
method needs to have a
simulation. Sometimes students
are asked to express their creative
side, found in the right side of
the brain. That's what Kathleen
Campbell, Director of Theater
and Lecturer, does in her acting
COMM
"I try to get them involved in
"You have no clue why you're doing this."
the creative process in a lot of
little ways," Campbell said.
She asks her (Introduction to
Acting) students to find an object
found in nature, like a pine cone,
an acorn, or a rock, and describe -
in writing what details the object
has, using the five senses.
For instance, Skip Hiller, a
first semester Spanish major,
named his rock Frank. "You have
no clue why you're doing this.
But at some point it (the object)
becomes your friend."
Campbell doesn't reveal to
students what they will be doing
with their objects, which can
Features
prove frustrating at times.
"You wonder where the project
is going, but then after spending
time with your object, you get
caught up in it," said Danny
Burger, a first semester general
studies student.
Name tags are another exercise
Campbell uses to break the ice
and make students tap into their
expressive natures. Students must
display their name on their body
-Skip Hiller
First Semester / Spanish
for every class period. Names
have been placed on belts,
sandwich boards, hats, and one
student even put letters running
up a pant leg.
"The main reason for doing
this is for the students to become
familiar with non-verbal
language," said Campbell, noting
that acting, as well as life, is
mostly based on this kind of
communication.
Communication is also
important in the business world,
where college graduates--
comfortable with the routines of
class work, eating at the Gorge
Greg C;eibel/The Collegian
and registering for class--must
face demanding and narrow
minded employers.
Dr. Rod Troester, Assistant
Professor of Speech
Communication, incorporates a
business / communication
simulation called "Looking
Glass" in his Speech
Communication in Business
course.
"It's nothing earth-shaking or
monumental," he said. "It
provides us with an organization
we can play with. The students
can make mistakes, but the
consequences would not be the
same as in a real organization."
Students apply for positions
within the fictional lighting
company, hold job interviews,
write memos, and even make
presentations to the Board of
Directors.
Trocster said that skill
development courses are better
suited for simulations. "All
simulations are based on the idea
of experimental learning, that
assumes people learn best when
they experience it," Troester said.
By getting students involved
emotionally, mentally and
behaviorally, called the three
domains of learning, Troester said
simulations are an effective tool
in teaching. "It's a different
means to the same end," he added.
Page
Student
evaluations --
Do they really
count?
Your professor hands you
a packet of papers and a box
of pencils. You've just been
chosen to hand out and
collect your prof's
evaluations. And you
thought getting into Who's
Who was an honor.
But are evaluations
important enough to take the
time to shade in those little
ovals?
Dr. Daniel Frankforter,
Professor of History and
Acting Division Head of
Humanities and Social
Sciences, said, "They are
taken very seriously."
Students respond to
general questions about their
professor's preparation,
presentation, and other
factors on a scale from one
to seven. The overall rating
for the course and the teacher
are also included,
Once the evaluations are
completed and sent to
University Park, a computer
processes the information,
and the results are sent to
each division office. One
prof the evaluation is
given to the professor and
one is placed into a dossier.
A second written
evaluation asking for input
on course strengths and
weaknesses is also placed in
the Ale.
If alit:el:0'1)k
position,
, is he in or a
is "up for review," every
re
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sixth
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k professor is either
; ed tenure or ii
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anthill salary increase.;
luld..prornotieß .
partially based on t _
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evaluations.
Professors are evaluated
on four areas of academic
perform ance: teaching,
research, scholarly activity
and service.
-Floyd J. C*