opinion
Battalion/Page 2 r
August 12,1982
Slouch
By Jim Earle
*7 have a portable fan.
Student makes last
school observations
Editor:
Upon preparing to walk across the
stage this Saturday at G. Rollie White
Coliseum, there are a few observations in
regard to teaching practices at this school
that I’d like to pass on. During the past
four years I’ve spent as a mechanical en
gineering major. I’ve heard a lot of com
plaining about the antics of mechanical
engineering professors: sometimes un
fair, but oftentimes very well founded. A
look should be taken at why this is so.
Out of a total of about 60 professors in
the Department of Mechanical Engineer
ing, there are at least a handful that have
built up very harsh reputations with the
Reader’s
Forum
students. These professors often seem to
be only concerned with failing the
“dumb” students and passing the “smart”
ones, regarding learning as something of
only secondary importance. Perhaps
these instructors don’t realize that the
high number of poor grades given out in
mechanical engineering courses is as
much an indication of poor teaching as it
is of poor learning abilities. The current
employment slump will somewhat boost
the graduate school enrollment here; but
at a time when Texas A&M is otherwise
hurting for engineering graduate stu
dents, such cold-hearted undergraduate
instruction will only hamper graduate re
cruiting.
It is indeed an administrative error
that all professors, including those that
have demonstrated a dislike for both stu
dents and teaching, are required to
teach. I agree totally with Dr. Rod O’Con
nor of the Department of Chemistry,
who suggests that such professors be
allowed to concentrate on research and
consultation while others more suited to
teaching be allowed to concentrate thus-
Dorsey George
Class of ’82
The Battalion
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Effects of American amnesia
YE'
5TA
Once upon a time, hundreds of
thousands of foreigners fled their old
countries and repression, and on weath
er-beaten boats set sail for the New
World. In their desperation, they risked
all the perils awaiting them in the un
charted waters ahead. Many died en
route from starvation, disease and blood
thirsty pirates, while those who endured
the voyage had little life left at its end.
And yet they came, wave after wave, in
search of milk and honey. They had
heard of the land of opportunity.
On arrival, the American natives, hav
ing known only the fruits of plenty, were
initially perplexed by the onslaught of
these sickly appearing foreigners, unable
to understand the deprivations the new
comers complained of. The foreign lan
guages and customs were comical and
ridiculous to hear and see.
Soon, however, suspicion of the im
migrants seized the natives as they began
to fear the loss of land and food. Curious
sympathy turned into determined re
sentment. And as open hostility height
ened, foreigners became “fereigners”
who had to “go back home.” The chief of
behrooz
moghaddam
the tribes imprisoned the unwelcomed
guests, freeing them later only to be ship
ped back to the places they feared most.
The immigrants in this short story
could easily be the French, Irish or Ita
lians who crossed the oceans in the 18th
and 19th centuries. But, they are not.
Rather, they are the Indochinese,
Cubans and Haitians who only a few
years ago dreamed of the New World.
And, the natives could easily be the harsh
realities that awaited the first pilgrims
over 200 years ago. But, they are not.
Rather, they are the Americans of the
20th century.
In searching for explanations,!
particular sticks out.
During the course of America’s!;
cedented growth, AmericanshaveM
ally forgotten what made thiscMj'
great. More specifically, they
gotten that it was the meltingpoi!]
sperate foreigners that propelk
country into its political and etc
majesty of today; that it was their At x
for freedom and recent memory (if AAJ /
ression which produced the A®p
constitution; and that it was theirfl
of hard work that formed the baseip
ensuing economic boom in this col
The immigrants of today continl
bring with them these very qualitil
Finally, the effects of this aEp,
could very well lie fatal. Notonlyal
lions of oppressed people left will
mares — but America itselfisthreJ
mares — but America itself is
For when Americans can no Ion;
member what first motivated their
tical and economic strength, theyw
losing that very strength. Andthtl
World as such will inevitably becoi
Old World.
ly. It should be pointed out that there are
many instructors at this University who
are very effective teachers and maintain
excellent rapport with students, even
ones they’ve never taught.
In regard to the technology of en
gineering education, there are a few sel-
dom-used tactics that I feel would help to
lighten the burden of relating subjects
like solid mechanics and thermodyna
mics. First, it is often the case that one
student can often relate a particular con
cept or problem solution to another stu
dent better than can a seasoned profes
sor, who may be unaware of his tenden
cies to skip over the subtleties involved.
If the practice of students helping each
other learn was formally employed by
instructors, the traditional learning pro
cess could be appreciably improved
upon. Second, gaining a working know-
Jedge of an engineering discipline is like
learning to play the piano: competence is
gained only after much practice over a
period of time. In several problems
courses I have had, the homework prob
lems assigned were just hard enough to
puzzle most of the class and were far
from sufficient in number to produce a
good working knowledge of the material.
I feel that a student’s time is much more
effectively spent in seeing simply the
strategy used in solving a good number
of the problems, and not in sitting and
staring at a problem that only bogs him
down.
Finally, the Department of Mechanical
Engineering could relieve some of the
alienation between it and its students by
simply giving some consideration to stu
dent input. If the teacher evaluations
completed by many of the classes at the
end of the semester carried any weight,
several of the tensions that exist now,
would have been relieved long ago. It
makes no sense to provide educational
services without virtually any attempt to
understand how effectively they are
being adminstered.
Appreciation of English
Editor:
A professor at a major university like
Texas A&M needs the ability to teach.
However, with the large amounts of re
search performed here, this ability is be
coming harder to find. Some teachers are
unable to explain the material to the stu
dents so that the subject can be under
stood. Others have no spare time for
their students outside of class. As if this
were not enough, some teachers just do
not seem to care.
Each semester students are asked to
evaluate their teachers. How much
weight these evaluations carry is ques
tionable. Every marginal teacher I have
had in my four years at this University is
still here, while one of the few truly good
teachers, Dr. Charles Harrison, is about
to leave. This is not his own choice. He is
not being offered a job in the fall. This
saddens me, and I am sure also affects a
majority of the students Dr. Harrison has
taught.
Dr. Harrison, visiting assistant profes
sor of English, is one of the rare indi
viduals who truly has a knack for
teaching. He possesses a thorough know
ledge of his subject, and the wit to impart
this knowledge. He is willing to talk with
and help students with any academic or
personal problems. In short, he honestly
cares about his students.
I feel privileged and fortunate to have
had Dr. Harrison as a teacher. The stu
dents are the people who lose when a
teacher the caliber of Dr. Harrison is not
rehired. I can only hope that his future
employer has the sense to appreciate his
merits.
Yum
Cluti
Stru
Pron
•Aire
staff photo by Octavio G® 1 *
Bill Gouldin ’81
Ben Bonin ’82
Dr. Charles Harrison got a surprise
at the start of his English class.
Harrison’s contract with the
University ends this summer, and a
group of his fun-loving students
decided to surprise him with
singing telegram. Despite ^
surprise, Harrison conti#
with the class.
(Mas