2/The Blue Banner/Thursday, Dec. 5, 1985
Opinion
Comps prove little Everyone makes a mistake - even court
It's beginning to look a lot like competency
time.
Everywhere we go people are breaking out in
cold sweats in anticipation of the test that
will make or break their college careers.
On top of final papers, senior level
courses, projects and internships, the
individual departments hit their students with
a test designed to suck all the information a
student has absorbed from four-years of
college.
At least some departments will be giving
competencies. Other majors get off scott-free
with a senior level class, while others are
bombarded with projects and certification
exams •
For example, while poor chemistry students
are struggling with competencies, an advanced
level chemistry course and the Graduate Record
Examination, drama students only have to
participate in theatre productions.
These discrepancies are not only unfair, but
they also discourage students from entering'
majors with tough graduation standards. The
university needs to gather department heads
together and develop a uniform standard to
test competency, just as the faculty senate
determines general education requirements.
Better than that, do away with competency
exams all together. UNC-Chapel Hill, the
motherhead of our 16-school system, does not
have a competency test system. And its
graduates are certainly not considered
uneducated or unworthy of graduation.
Perhaps Chapel HUl's administration
realizes the futility attemping to test what a
student has gotten out of school. If a student
sticks through four years of college, comes to
class and passes his exams, he has earned that
diploma. He does not need a test to prove
whether or not he has learned the material;
those who did not and were never going to
learn, probably dropped out as sophomores.
Rather than gauging one’s knowledge, the
comps usually result in frantic cramming,
ulcers and nerves stretched to the limit. At a
time when advisors should be helping their
seniors find jobs and start the careers they
have prepared for, they are throwing a
pointless test before them, challenging them
to prove they deserve to graduate.
The
Blue Banner
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Editor, The Blue Banner:
During the student court ses
sion held Sunday (Nov. 24), the
justices incorrectly followed
trial procedure for one of their
cases. The defense counsel called
for mistrial and the court grant
ed it.
All of those involved have felt
very disappointed. "What good is
a student court system if it
can't even follow procedure?" one
wants to ask.
But the fact is that procedure
was followed. The whole incident
really attests to the value of
our newborn student court in that
it identified a mistake and cut
it short that very instant. The
court was designed with checks
and balances to serve this very
function.
We poor humans make our mis
takes. Nothing new there. But
here's something that might be:
"the system" passed — and with
flying colors. Hopefully we will
have the foresight to prevent its
being tested like this in the
future.
Bruce Franks
Asst. Chief
Justice
Student Court
Student court: a breeze but...
By Anna Wilson
It was a dark and stormy night. I
was to appear before the court —
not a real honest-to-goodness
circuit court. I had to go before
the dreaded student court. (May I
have the People’s Court music
please?)
Defendent: Anna Wilson.
Plaintiff: UNCA.
Case: Alcohol policy violation.
Was I terrified? Oh yes. I was
afraid I wouldn't get out in time
to watch Murder She Wrote. Somehow
I just couldn't get worked up
about appearing before a court run
by students.
However, judging by the looks of
things, the students on the
judicial court were very serious.
Each student wore what I consider
church clothes. Here I was decked
out in jeans and a regular shirt.
My roommate, along for moral sup
port, was even worse. She wore
sweats. Imagine!
It all started, your honor, when
I was on my way back to the dorm
after checking out Kier at the
One-Night-Stand. The alcohol
permit was approved in the snack
bar. But in my haste to get to my
room, I mistakenly carried a light
beer (tastes great) through the
lobby. Now those of you who know
journalists know we have a
fondness for booze — after all
creating news is a high pressure
I'ob.
But I was not presenting myself
as a drunkard and hollerin'
obscenities in the lobby. I was
just passing through. I was caught
redhanded, though, by the Highris
Patrol, also known as Nazi Vice. I
could have very easily avoided a
confrontation. I could have
guzzled the beer the way my daddy
taught me or I could have hidden
the beer in my coat.
But that would be promoting
•puzzlement and concealment! And I
for one do not want that type of
behavior on our campus. I tried to
weasel through it by pointing out
I was only going up one floor. The
Patrol said it didn't matter.
Well, I wasn't about to pour out
beer Pd paid for with my hard .
earned money so I told the Patrol /
to write me up.
I figured I could get written up
once before I graduated. I was
still a little sad inside to think 1
I wouldn't escape UNCA with a ;
clean record but if I had to go
down I'm glad it was for something
like alcohol.
But to get back to the story, my
court appointed lawyer argued on
my behalf that I had never been
written up and I was a senior set '
to graduate in December. The |
prosecution pointed out I knew the
rules and I should have known bee^*
was not allowed in the lobby. Both ;
councils recommended a judicial
reprimand. (As I understand it,
this is a letter from the judge, '
Doug Griffin, telling me what a
bad girl I have been.)
But I wasn't to get off that |
lightly. The judicial board voted !
to give me judicial and j
administrative reprimand. (I think ^ I
this is a letter from lovacchini, I
the vice chancellor, telling me j
what a bad girl I have been.) *
Was I devastated? No. Now I |
would have two letters to put in :j
my scrap book instead of one.
However I was a little p.o.'ed no
one told me I would have to pay a |
$5 court fee. I could have bought
a 12-pack!
So if you get written up,
remember to take $5 with you in
case you're found guilty and don't
sweat — student court is a breeze
but a pain in the....