The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, September 08, 1997, Image 11

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    ,ks Bored of education
WglProfessors must learn to skip tedious protocol of classroom rules, regulations
Jn ince it is the be- r. : H safety among students; they will not pay at- or philosophical pondering. extraneous rpcnilatinne that u
i in ted withoj
snt, butweivi
son.’
le of a type:j
r job is to I
spirit high:
ay."
ig setters poil
ince it is the be
ginning of the
fall semester,
udents are busy an-
lyzing and assessing
ie competence of
leir new professors,
trst impressions are
inderway, and most
us are quick to
\ Hi dO CIA vl L 4 I IV IW
e was read\!.ij ace our instructors
eraU in their 0 two cate 8 ories:
Helen
Clancy
editor in chief
Is it too late to drop
lis years tel* ? ss? l or " W *; at u ,„
othspeich af e se does 11118 P rof teach ?
1 But one thing professors tend to forget is
is team to in I 131 stu dents have only one expectation:
nark therein p e hope that the class is inspiring. So when
he first days of class are consumed with
ent, weneed | 10Uselcee P in g” matters, such as discussing
;ar and our : the syllabus, checking attendance and list-
j Ig every bookstore in the known galaxy
very activec: fiat sells the course’s textbook, eager stu-
ances thisye idents are easily disappointed.
;ngth and coj Professors waste too much time hassling
i a great spywith the details. They expect students to de-
participatkielop an allegorical interpretation of Par-
aid. wiise Lost in one weekend while devoting
rogram herewiree class hours to an explanation of the
a trip to JapAtendance policy. Might as well hire a FITS
vas a greati:jlfg cer to teach the class,
e and reallytl wiiile structure is indeed necessary for
i team. SmK| orniriun i cal ] on a j ar g e auc ji ence) j t
•th A ■ a 311 st 'he the creative energy needed in a
? r v^BHollcgc classroom. Students cannot grow
• is a solid foi:l! tellectually d tlley are not challenged. Too
cording toC# ten ’ slrict guidelines impart a sense of
safety among students; they will not pay at
tention if they always know what to expect.
To put it simply: spontaneity breeds
creativity.
For once, I would like to see a syllabus
that reads: “Course Requirements: Be re
sponsible.” Instead, professors feel obligat
ed to describe exactly what margins and
fonts to use in a term paper, followed by a
mathematical breakdown of points deduct
ed and awarded.
Somewhere along this line, the purpose
of the class is buried and lost.
Professors must be under the impres
sion that students crave organization. And
in some cases, this is true. There are stu
dents who only aspire to fill their folders
with neat, categorized notes. Someone
needs to inspire them to greater things —
free thinking, impromptu analysis and
problem solving.
Ultimately, it is the professor’s job to
break the timid habits practiced by
these students.
Catch them off guard with a random dis
cussion. Demand feedback. Tease them
with knowledge they can’t find in a book.
Students can read on their own time
(well, they’re supposed to anyway).
The class discussions that students val
ue most are ones that focus on a marginal,
quirky issue related to the text. Too many
students have taken classes where the
name of the professor is a mystery just one
semester later, and not a single topic can
be recalled. No college-level class should
conclude without a passionate argument
or philosophical pondering.
This isn’t to imply that every class should
be a melodramatic forum for “speaking
your mind,” but students should have the
opportunity to shine as individuals by shar
ing their perspectives.
It’s okay to break the rules sometimes
and stray from the outline on the syllabus.
A perfect balance can be achieved by re
taining useful guidelines and ditching the
extraneous regulations that foster apathy.
For example, a reader would be confused
if this column began with its conclusion,
or was printed upside down. Likewise, the
key to a productive classroom is to ob
serve necessary rules without sacrificing
the message.
The “chapter police” won’t care if
some portions of the text are not utilized.
Usually, the discussions that cause pro-
AHD 7oW
fessors to neglect the book are much
more engaging.
Students and professors alike are guilty
of ignoring the simplicity of knowledge. It
isn’t about double-spacing or seating
charts or title pages. It’s about that pure
moment when an idea is defined and
committed to memory
Helen Clancy is a senior English major
rienced.i
ost of us ks
r to fine-
remember
n and huraa:
iff in is a serin
trnalism majt
Aggie unity brings student
body into close-knit family
“W:
? hr tests,
: one plate
rides, Proclke
ur intro course,
lents with
ib sites with
yr I Toll-free:
flic i 1-800-45M11!
*.pereg rine-pub.com
Dave
Johnston
columnist
ie
’ mM ® «
I
1
one of the
operations
h over
Iwide. The^
virtually a!
is industry
chemical
griculture,
te, financia
e may have
been
outscored,
but we’ve never been
beat.” All good Ags shout
some version of this
mantra whenever the Men
of Kyle “run out of time”
before they can rack up
more points than their op
ponents.
When students hear this
sentiment today, they
think the speaker is arro
gantly refusing to admit defeat, but its original
meaning was much different.
Aggies have always maintained a sense of ca
maraderie. Whenever football fans from another
school came to campus, the contrast was stun
ning. Because of their unity and loyalty to their
school, Aggies were able to score a moral victory
at every football game.
T-sips were considered inferior fans. They
yelled at their own players, threw trash and went
home early — even when they were winning.
On the other hand, Aggies demonstrated their
dedication to the team and the school. Students
stood throughout the game, supported the team
and stayed to the end (and sang a song together)
regardless of whether or not their team had more
points on the scoreboard.
Aggies have held a reputation for unity. Cur
rent and former students gather to sing how they
are “as true to each other as Aggies can be.” Un
fortunately, some indicators hint that the stu
dent body may be less unified now than it was in
the past.
Today our football fans are fickle. They leave
the game early, because beating the traffic is
more important than exhibiting a little Aggie
Spirit. Students berate the fellow Ag who won’t
“uncover” during the yells. When the team loses
a few games, the fans complain about the coach,
shout at the players from the stands and quit
showing up altogether.
Judging by the people in the stands, it looks as
if the Aggies have been losing even the games
the football team won. Those moral victories,
those demonstrations of close-knit Aggie Spirit,
are becoming more infrequent each season.
There are several factors contributing to the
decline in Aggie unity. The campus and the stu
dent body are both much larger than they used
to be.
One political science professor jokingly wel
comed his class to the “Bush School located on
the California campus of Texas A&M.” With the
sprawling campus, students do not even share a
common environment. While many Aggies never
venture on to West Campus, others never wan
der East of the railroad tracks.
It is difficult for students to share a feeling of
community when they do not even share com
mon landmarks or buildings.
The University now has one of the largest un
dergraduate populations in the nation. It is diffi
cult to maintain a family atmosphere among
40,000 people.
Professor Stadelmann, Director of Religious
Studies, suggests that the death of the Aggie joke
has detracted from the unity of the student body.
When Aggie jokes were more popular, the Aggies
were an alliance against the rest of the world.
Now that the jokes are less frequent, there is no
common enemy for the students to unite
against.
As the University continues to grow in vision,
it attracts a more varied student body, which
makes unity more difficult.
People from different backgrounds can
achieve unity by sharing goals, traditions and in
terests, but the University officials prefer to con
centrate on diversity. Instead of accentuating di
versity, perhaps officials should focus on
common ties the students share.
If A&M will retain its unique reputation for a
unified student body, students must purpose to
regain their sense of camaraderie. Aggies should
not determine their school’s value by football
teams, or anything else they cannot control.
Instead they should invest themselves in im
proving their school by contributing to the stu
dent body’s unity. Each student should focus on
the similarities they have with their fellow Ag
gies. Maybe this will be the first step toward be
ing “as true to each other as Aggies can be.”
Dave Johnston is a senior math major.
RecK
10 BABYLOw
TOUR 9t
THE
ROLUNlG
STOHES
rdck;^
ig ca
potential
ing world
The Battalion encourages letters to the ed
itor. Letters must be 300 words or less and In
clude the author’s name, class, and phone
number.
The opinion editor reserves the right to edit
letters for length, style, and accuracy. Letters
may be submitted in person at 013 Reed Mc
Donald with a valid student ID. Letters may also
be mailed to:
The Battalion - Mall Call
013 Reed McDonald
Texas A&M University
College Station, TX
77843-1111
Campus Mail: 1113
Fax: (409) 845-2647
E-mall: Batt@tamvml.tamu.edu
For more details on letter policy, please call
845-3313 and direct your question to the
opinion editor.
‘American code’ of
ethics breaks norm
Mail Call
Inefficient transport
provides better health
With the first week of school
behind us, I feel it is due time to
give some credit to PTTS and
the changes in the busing sys
tem for which it is responsible.
The true reason for these
changes has escaped most Ag
gies, so I will gladly clue every
one in.
It has recently been rumored
among the elites of academia
that the college ranking edition
of next year’s U.S. News and
World Reports would have one
newly added criterion: the phys
ical fitness of Campus X.
Armed with this insider in
formation, the powers that be
on campus worked feverishly
this summer to formulate a
plan to gain the competitive
edge in this area.
Internationally renowned
transportation specialists along
with fitness experts Tony Little
and Susan Powter were brought
in to make a strategy and finalize
a course of action. The results of
these brain exchange sessions
were simple ... transform the
busing system into a model of
inefficiency in order to encour
age and/or force students to
walk, bike, skate and run.
Sure, it is true that inconve
nience, frustration and confu
sion may initially result from
this campaign, but one must
bear in mind that the adminis
tration and their covert fitness
committee calculated for this.
They are simply doing their part
to transform this school into a
“world-class university,” at least
in the eyes of the aforemen
tioned publication.
But who can deny their ef
forts when you realize that a
healthier Aggie populous is the
direct result.
Todd Friant
Class of’99
W£
talk about
the Aggie
Code of
Honor, and
how Aggies
too often do
not follow
it, one be
gins to won
der why. It
could be
that another, unspoken “Code,"
one American society in gener
al follows, takes precedence.
Despite prevalent attitudes
to the contrary, Aggieland is
not in a world of its own. It is
part of a larger society and
cannot help but be affected by
the values and norms of this
society.
American’s live, with in
creasing consistency, by their
own code, and Aggies are no
exception. “Life is a party don’t
spoil it,” is their unspoken
motto. With too few excep
tions, all those who violate this
rule, and only those who vio
late it, are condemned.
In keeping with this Code,
Americans are expected to “tol
erate” eyery kind of deviant be
havior, as long as this behavior
does not spoil the party for
someone else.
For example, few seem to care
how often you drink until you
can’t stand up. Get behind the
wheel while drunk, however, and
suddenly you’re condemned as a
dangerous criminal.
For obvious reasons, this at
titude manifests itself most
blatantly concerning sexual
behavior.
People can read all sorts of
perverted stories, look at erotic
pictures, even engage in un
speakable acts with one anoth
er, and the worst thing they can
expect to happen is for some
one to laugh at them.
Only when they cross the
line and try to fulfill their obses
sive fantasies with an unwilling
partner are most people even
likely to speak out against them.
And what of the brave mi
nority who dare rain on the pa
rade, those who take a stand
against moral corruption, both
public and private?
They are called “right-wing
religious fanatics,” “intolerant,”
and “judgmental," all which
practically personify evil in the
minds of many Americans.
Dare these dissenters of the
Code object to having their
hard-earned money spent by
the government subsidizing
the filth often passing as art,
and the whole world cries
“Censorship!”
And if they object to having
their children subjected to so-
called “value-neutral” educa
tion? Few acknowledge how it
is, in fact, very hostile to the
values they hold dear. Instead
they are given patronizing
speeches about the time-hon
ored “separation of Church
and State.”
Hollywood has become the
Code’s most willing advocate.
Rarely in recent films does
someone violate the Code and
refer to behavior (which does
n’t harm another individual)
as deviant or even “sinful.”
And when they do, they are
self-righteous, blood-thirsty,
hypocritical, racist, thought
less bigots.
This is especially true of
those who appeal to the “ar
chaic” idea of the authority of
God. Note the recent shame
lessly one-sided portrayals of
Stand up for what you
honestly believe to be
right, and speak out
against what you believe
to be wrong.
the Puritans, who, we are to be
lieve, made Nazis look like
kindergarten teachers.
The strongest evidence for
the general commitment to the
Code is the reaction this col
umn is likely to incite in many
who read it. Some who dis
agree with me will no doubt
misinterpret my comments.
They will think I support
throwing those whose
lifestyles I disapprove of into
concentration camps or some
other such nonsense.
This is not the message of
this column. However, what I
am saying is that it is time for
those who believe in a tran
scendent morality to “come out
of the closet,” so to speak, and
stop being intimidated.
Stand up for what you hon
estly believe to be right, and
speak out against what you be
lieve to be wrong.
Let those who blindly follow
the Code call you names and
ascribe all sorts of nasty things
to those who think like you.
I, for one, am tired of being
told my moral convictions are
just a product of my upbringing
and that actions I think are
wrong should be handled with
“tolerance” and “sensitivity.” I
have a feeling I am not alone.
Jason Knott is a sophomore
economics major.