Newspapers / Bennett College Student Newspaper / April 22, 1983, edition 1 / Page 4
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PAGE FOUR THE BENNETT BANNER FRIDAY, APRIL 22, 1983 Newsmakers: Campus on parade Scholars Inducted; Eight Belles have met the demanding requirements for joining the Bennett Scholars Program, according to Dr. Robert Miller, coordi nator of the organization. Perhaps you’ve seen the women wearing cardboard candles symbolizing their continuing quest for intellectual illumination. Inducted into the society April 14 were Natalie Bennett, Karen Fisher, Eve lyn Fulmore, Penny Hill, Laurrie Murphy, Andrea Russell, Karen Taylor and Theresa Thompson. * ♦ * Senior Vesper: Dr. Gloria Hillman urged seniors not to “forget or shrug your responsibilty to black America” April 17 in Annie Merner Pfeiffer Chapel. The executive director of the National Coalition on Black Voter Participa tion said that the double evils of racism and sexism can be defeated: “. . . the beauty of it all is that we overcome these obstacles with all the grace that we possess. We are masters of the game.” The service was the first major event to which graduating seniors wore their caps and gowns, having been empowered to do so during the Senior Day Service last month. Home Economics Highlights: A $500 scholarship has been made possible through a gift from Jo Anne Blackstock-Boyette, a 1975 clothing and textile The tuition grant will be made to a clothing and textiles major in recogni tion of academic achievement. j • o fVi Mrs. Boyette is the retail store sales manager at Montgomery Ward in ooutn Square Mall in Durham. Her work there began in 1975 and has taken her to major stores in several southeastern states. Her scholarship is accompanied oy a matching grant from the Montgomery Ward Foundation. In making the presentation to Mrs. Louise G. Streat, chairman of the depart ment of home economics, Mrs. Boyette stated that this contribution was some thing she wanted to do to show her appreciation for the quality of training she had received in her major field at Bennett College.” Mrs. Boyette was the iirst recipient of the Dr. Marie Clapp Moffitt Scholarship in Home Economics. * * * Typing Service: Professional typing of resumes, term papers, book reports, etc., done in my home with fast and accurate service. Call after 3 p.m. 674-9590. Survey says coeds abused by chauvinism W^ASHINGTON, D. C.—Women students may find their self-con fidence and ambitions cooled while men’s are fueled by the climate in many college class rooms, according to a report, “The Classroom Climate: A Chilly One For Women?”, issued by the Project on the Status and Edu cation of Women of the Associa tion of American Colleges. “Men and women may sit to gether in the same classrooms but have very different educational experiences because faculty—both men and women—often treat male and female students differently,” said Dr. B'ernice R. Sandler, who directs the Project and supervised the development of the report. “It doesn’t happen all the time, or in every classroom, but when it does, women’s self-confidence and ami- tions may plummet,” Sandler explained. Frequently, neither the faculty nor the students are aware that any different treatment has oc curred. Nevertheless, faculty may subtly—or not so subtly—discour age women students in the follow ing ways: • Faculty may not be as like ly to call directly on women as on men during class discussion. • Teachers may often ask ques tions followed by eye contact with men students only—as if only men were expected to respond. • Faculty may interrupt women more frequently than men— or allow them to be dispro portionately interrupted by others in class. • Teachers often address their classes as if no women were present (“Suppose your wife . . . ? )or use classroom ex amples in which the profes sional is always “he,” the client or patient always “she.” • Some teachers still use sexist humor to “spice up a dull subject” or make disparaging comments about women as a group. • Faculty may not give women informal feedback on their work. • Teachers may overlook wom en when it comes to choosing research or teaching assistants or give them less responsi bility than men in those posi tions. They may not be as likely to nominate women for awards and prizes, let them know about job opportunities, or offer to write letters of recommendation for them. Supported by a 15-month grant from the Fund for the Improve ment of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) and guided by an ad visory committee of experts in student and faculty development, the publication brings together the results of recent institutional sur veys, empirical studies of post- secondary and other classrooms, Dear Cl airc Mother lacks trust in daughter Dear Claire, I’m from North Carolina and it takes me about an hour to get home. My problem is my mother. She comes to check up on me every time she doesn’t know where I am. If she calls me at 10 :00 p.m. on a Friday night and I’m not in, she will be here Sat urday morning. I love my mother to death, but she is becoming a real pain. How can I tell her without being disrespectful? Momma’s Baby Dear Momma’s, Talk to your mother and let her know your feelings about this. Let her know that she does not have to check up on you because you can be trusted. Prove to your mother that you can be trusted by your actions as well. If you talk to her with respect, she will listen with respect. ♦ * * Dear Claire, A couple of days ago I found out my roommate is an epileptic because she had a seizure. Ever since then, she thinks that I’m afraid of her or that I think that she is some sort of freak. I don’t feel that way at all, but she won’t give me the chance to tell her this. When I try to talk to her, she will walk out of the room and stay for hours. What can I do to let her know that my feelings for her are the same? Upset Dear Upset, Stand in front of the door and do not let her out of the room until you get your point across. Good luck! * * * Dear Claire, I have a serious crush on one of my instructors. I al ways come to his class early so that I can have a few min utes alone with him. He is very nice to me but other than that he does not give me the time of day. My question is should I approach him and make my feelings known or should I suffer in silence? Really in Love Dear Really, Suffer in silence and save yourself a lot of embarrass ment. Academic honors (Continued from Page One) Recognition were Leslie Monique Barr, Adriane Baughman, Beverly Bell, Wanda Dick, Sheila Dockery, Yolanda DuRant, Tonya Horton, Rose Nelson, Renee L. Roberson, Robbin Rowe, Rosa Singletary, Lynell Wellington and Dawn Wilson. and general research in men’s and women’s communication. The report identifies overt and inadvertent faculty behaviors that can lead women students to feel they “don’t belong” and are “not taken seriously” in the college classroom. It concludes that the chilly learning climate such be haviors create can play a major role in limiting women students’ development. “Most faculty want to treat all students fairly and as individuals with particular talents and abili ties,” says Roberta M. Hall, author of the report and assistant direc tor for special programs at the Project on the Status and Educa tion of Women. “However, many professors—men and women alike —may nevertheless inadvertently treat women and men differently in the classroom and in related learning situations.” Hall emphasized that teacher- student interaction in grade school and high school, as well as dif ferent patterns typical of men’s and women’s communication in everyday situations, may make these subtle differences in treat ment in the college classroom (such as not expecting women to participate in class and thus not calling, on them) seem so “nor mal” that neither teachers nor students notice them when they occur. “Taken cumulatively, though. faculty behaviors which either overlook or single out women stu dents becarse of their sex may leave many women feeling they are not on a par with men. Wom en may become less confident than their male classmates about their academic ability, their place in the college community, and their potential for career success,” Hall said. Subtle differences in treatment are not the only classroom prob lems women may face. According to Hall, “Sexist humor and com ments that disparage women as a group are still surprisingly preva lent in many college classrooms, especially in fields that have tra ditionally had few women stu dents. When a professor demon strates the effect of a vacuum by making changes in the shape of a crudely-drawn woman’s breasts, spices up a medical school lecture with a slide of a nude woman in red heels, or refers to women generally as ‘fat housewives and dumb blondes,’ he may perhaps foster collegiality with some male students, but leave many women out in the cold.” Indeed, the report’s findings in dicate that some women have dropped courses or changed ma jors because of such behaviors, while others have hesitated to participate in class and to seek informal help or letters or recom mendation from professors whose classroom behavior communicated negative views of women. “Looking beyond the immediate classroom setting,” Sandler added, “women’s career choices are often narrowed and men’s and women’s ability to work together as equals —both in school and in the work place—may be undermined by an inhospitable college learning climate.” In addition to identifying both inadvertent and overt faculty be haviors that may discourage women, the report includes over 100 adaptable recommendations for faculty, students, administra tors and others to foster aware ness, guide in on-campus evalua tion, and promote change. In releasing the report. Dr. Mark H. Curtis, president of the Association of American Colleges, emphasized that the traditionally masculine world of higher educa tion must recognize that women comprise the new majority of stu dents. “Women students can no longer be seen as a group whose education is anything less than central to the academic enter prise,” Curtis said. Copies of The Classroom Cli mate: A Chilly One for Women? are available for $3.00 each (pre paid) from Box S, Project on the Status and Education of Women, Association of American Colleges, 1818 R Street, N.W., Washington, D. C. 20009. (Bulk rates are also available.) w 1 African dancers perform for Belles: Women of Itie Ghana Dance Troupe made the David D. Jones Student Center come alive during the company’s April 15 appearance. Students flocked from all over campus to catch the impressive show, which featured a host of musicians and dancers. The company is one of several outstanding dance groups to perform here during the last two years. (photo by Myra Davis)
Bennett College Student Newspaper
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April 22, 1983, edition 1
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