Newspapers / Methodist University Student Newspaper / Feb. 26, 1992, edition 1 / Page 2
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Page 2 SMALL TALK February 26, 1992 Teachers from page 1 grade just like everybody else. I wouldn't give him an 'A' just on his name." Dr. Colonnese, an English pro fessor, made quite a few students' "Toughest Teacher" lists. Rumor has it that Dr. Colonnese once flunked nearly an entire English 101 class. One student joked, "that man gave me nightmares." She went on to say that although Dr. Colonnese was a tough teach er, she learned a lot from him. "He smoothed out my technique; I'm better at bringing out my main points," she said. Another stu dent said that, although he did well in his high school English classes, he got a "D" from Dr. Co lonnese in English 101. "He's a tough grader," this student said. "He will drop you a letter grade for minor grammar mistakes." Other students had difficulty with the course load. "Every time you turn around," one frustrated stu dent reported, "you're doing an other paper." Suggestions for getting through Dr. Colonnese's classes ranged from "use big words" to "proofread your paper at least ten times." One student suggested talking to Dr. Colonnese during his office hours. "If he knows you're trying, he'll help you out a lot," he said. Some people men tioned that Dr. Colonnese talks about the students' papers in class, so "be prepared for criticism." And last but not least-watch out for vague pronouns! Dr. Colonnese, like Dr. Walsh, believes that his tough-guy reputa tion has been blown out of propor tion. "I've never flunked anything approaching a third of my stu dents, much less fifty percent, al though there were times when half my students probably deserved to flunk," he said. He also said that, while he knows that he is consid ered a tough teacher, "I'm certain ly not a prescriptive grammarian. Instead, I stress simple clarity." Dr. Colonnese believes that "many entering freshmen are ill- prepared for the rigors of college study." He feels that high school English teachers spend too little time teaching students the rules of basic English usage. "Multiple choice questions on Huckleberry Finn do not necessarily prepare students to write college level es says," he said. When asked if it were true that he criticizes students. Dr. Colon nese replied, "It's true that I cor rect things, and that I believe in honesty and directness. I believe it serves no purpose to provide students with an inflated percep tion of their own abilities. Con versely, if something is well writ ten, I tend to be lavish in my praise." Dr. Colonnese said that if students are having trouble, he would be happy to help them. In fact, he said that he helps so many students outside class that his of fice seems like Grand Central Sta tion. Another name that came up frequently was that of Dr. Perkins, a history professor. One student said that the tests he took in Dr. Perkins's class had forty multiple choice and two essay questions and that "all the choices [on the multiple choice section] seemed right." Furthermore, he said, "it is impossible to get full credit on the essay questions." This student had given up even trying to study for Dr. Perkins's tests. "Just guess," he said, "because his tests are impossible." Another student thought that Dr. Perkins didn't in teract with the class during lec tures; consequently, she said, the students didn't always understand the information that was put out. "When the highest grade in the class is a C+," this student said, "you have to question his ability to get the point across." This stu dent found Dr. Perkins's tests "abstract, not directly from either the book or the notes," and sug gested that those studying for his tests "read the text very carefully, paying attention to small details that might not seem very impor tant." "Frustration" was a word Dr. Perkins used often when he spoke to Small Talk. "There is frustra tion at both ends of the education al process," he said. The students are frustrated, he says, because understanding a subject like histo ry requires that they have a high level of verbal proficiency. "If they have trouble understanding the text, they are going to have trouble on the tests. Some of my students don't have the requisite background to do well in this class and I, like most college pro fessors, don't have skills in reme dial teaching." Dr. Perkins also mentioned his own frustrations. "I'm frustrated because I don't see a lot of moti vation in my students. I've heard people say, 'I don't understand why I got a low grade; I studied three hours for this test.'" Dr. Per kins said that some of the best stu dents don't consider it unusual to study ten to fourteen hours for a test. Dr. Perkins says that he sees a positive correlation between motivation and test scores. "Stu dents who take summer classes are usually more highly motivat ed, and the grades tend to be high er in those classes." Dr. Perkins says that his teaching style is "to start out by showing the students the forest, then the tree, then the limbs, but it is up to the student to put the leaves on the tree. But some stu dents spend so much time worry ing about each individual leaf that they never get 'the big picture.'" Dr. Ward, Dr. Kline, and Dr. ColUns were runners up in the in formal "Tough Teacher Poll." Dr. Kline expressed surprise that he had not made the cut; Dr. Collins and Dr. Ward expressed disap pointment. I have never taken a class from Dr. Kline, but if it's any consolation to Dr. Ward and Dr. Collins, they both made my per sonal "Tough Teacher" list. Dr. Hendricks Speaks at Opening Convocation by Diana Pressley Opening Convocation was held Monday, Feb. 3, 1992, in Reeves Auditorium at 1:00 p.m. Dr. Hendricks was the featured speaker. Kim Ratliff, student body president, spoke first by bringing the student body up to date on the activities of the Student Govern ment Association. Ratliff ex plained that the student body was in the process of organizing more forums between Dr. Hendricks and the student body. The SGA has also fostered communication with the administration and facul ty by placing a student representa tive on all committees. Ratliff also explained that the senators would be meeting to work on revi sions of the constitution and would begin a survey of students and faculty so as to better locate Methodist's weaknesses and im prove in those areas. Next, Dr. Bitterbaum spoke of the community's well-being and our caring, respect, and under standing for each other. He intro duced Dr. Hendricks' speech which was entitled "What Does the Eye Say to the Ear?". Dr. Hendricks spoke of how we should recognize and appre ciate the diversity in our nation and here at Methodist. He explained that "... a strong and effective society demands more than diversity. It also re quires unity. One of the results of a good liberal arts education is that it helps us to appreciate peo ple from other backgrounds, cul tures, and traditions. We learn to appreciate not only other places but other times. A person who Jmows only people who are just like him or her has a very limited range of view ... But some peo ple fear those who are different. If they meet someone from anoth er race or culture they are auto matically suspicious and on guard. For many people different signals dangerous'." The president went on to speak about the persecution of the e^ly church and said, ". . . some historians suggested that this per secution was due to the fact thal the church allowed slaves and women to have an active part in the church. This was a threat to the established order and contrib uted to the persecution of the ear ly church." Dr. Hendricks ended his speech with a series of sugges tions for the audience. "We come from different traditions and cul tures .. Each tradition is to be val ued and appreciated. . . Each tra dition helps us to be more than we would be alone... We must never forget or fail to appreciate our own roots."
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Feb. 26, 1992, edition 1
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