2008 Woodie Awards
8 Simple Rules
Jay Nargundkar
Issue date: 3/6/07 Section: Opinion
One of my favorite columns this year in The Diamondback was by Ben Johnson a few weeks ago when he described our school as a place for the "intellectually promiscuous," somewhere you can "study anything, take risks, make mistakes and move on."
He already pointed out the wonderful opportunities we Terps have, such as sports and the diversity of extracurricular activities available. Instead of rehashing those, I'd like to address what else we can do better. The following are eight suggestions that I think would improve the undergraduate experience immensely.
For students:
- Go to class. Participate. Nothing sucks more than when a professor asks a question and then everyone sits through an awkward silence for a minute or two. Finally someone volunteers or the professor gets embarrassed and moves on. I also hate when a class is sparsely attended except on days when a test is given. We all benefit when everyone shows up to class and actually engages in it.
- Take an interest in your professor. Even the less-engaging lecturers are interesting people to talk to outside of class. These are experienced people, sources of advice and great contacts for references and job referrals.
- This is a research university. I recommend following columnist Ben McIlwain's recent exhortation to get involved with a research project. You will get experience in the field you are studying (and maybe confirm or overturn your interest in that field) and a practical education that goes beyond what you get in the classroom.
- Lastly, I'd like to appeal to everyone to put a stop to a unique and irritating phenomenon I've witnessed in countless classes. Don't start loudly packing up five minutes before the end of class and stampede toward the exit, drowning out your professor's feeble attempts to finish his or her lesson. Unless the lecture hall is actually on fire, you can show him or her the courtesy of staying until the proverbial bell.
For professors:
- If you want attendance, earn it. Don't grade students on showing up, or you'll have a bunch of disinterested students making it worse for everyone else. Besides, we are old enough to make that decision. If you want students to pack your lecture hall, don't teach straight from the book! Reading directly off of pre-prepared PowerPoint slides is little better. Use both, but go beyond and add real value to the classroom experience.
- Participation! Call on students and make sure you know they get what you're talking about. Call someone up to the board to work a problem. I know many of you teach in large lecture halls, but even a small but productive effort to learn students' names will pay off. Interaction is the key.
- Even though we have useful systems such as Blackboard, WebCT and others, there are still too many classes where professors don't take advantage. Posting materials online might give students an excuse to not attend, which is why what's offered during lecture has to be especially useful.
- Teach to your strengths. I've had charismatic professors who used humor and stories in class with great effectiveness. I've also had no-nonsense professors who imperiously commanded the respect of a class. Both were successful in their own styles. But we've all had professors who repeatedly make unsuccessful jokes or who try and control their class the wrong way. Stick with what you're comfortable doing; the students will respond accordingly.
If students do their part, professors won't have to deal with unresponsive lecture crowds. If professors do their part, students won't have to suffer through any boring or pointless lectures. To get the most out of our four years here, we should abide by these 8 Simple Rules.
Jay Nargundkar is a junior finance major. He can be reached at terpnews@gmail.com.
He already pointed out the wonderful opportunities we Terps have, such as sports and the diversity of extracurricular activities available. Instead of rehashing those, I'd like to address what else we can do better. The following are eight suggestions that I think would improve the undergraduate experience immensely.
For students:
- Go to class. Participate. Nothing sucks more than when a professor asks a question and then everyone sits through an awkward silence for a minute or two. Finally someone volunteers or the professor gets embarrassed and moves on. I also hate when a class is sparsely attended except on days when a test is given. We all benefit when everyone shows up to class and actually engages in it.
- Take an interest in your professor. Even the less-engaging lecturers are interesting people to talk to outside of class. These are experienced people, sources of advice and great contacts for references and job referrals.
- This is a research university. I recommend following columnist Ben McIlwain's recent exhortation to get involved with a research project. You will get experience in the field you are studying (and maybe confirm or overturn your interest in that field) and a practical education that goes beyond what you get in the classroom.
- Lastly, I'd like to appeal to everyone to put a stop to a unique and irritating phenomenon I've witnessed in countless classes. Don't start loudly packing up five minutes before the end of class and stampede toward the exit, drowning out your professor's feeble attempts to finish his or her lesson. Unless the lecture hall is actually on fire, you can show him or her the courtesy of staying until the proverbial bell.
For professors:
- If you want attendance, earn it. Don't grade students on showing up, or you'll have a bunch of disinterested students making it worse for everyone else. Besides, we are old enough to make that decision. If you want students to pack your lecture hall, don't teach straight from the book! Reading directly off of pre-prepared PowerPoint slides is little better. Use both, but go beyond and add real value to the classroom experience.
- Participation! Call on students and make sure you know they get what you're talking about. Call someone up to the board to work a problem. I know many of you teach in large lecture halls, but even a small but productive effort to learn students' names will pay off. Interaction is the key.
- Even though we have useful systems such as Blackboard, WebCT and others, there are still too many classes where professors don't take advantage. Posting materials online might give students an excuse to not attend, which is why what's offered during lecture has to be especially useful.
- Teach to your strengths. I've had charismatic professors who used humor and stories in class with great effectiveness. I've also had no-nonsense professors who imperiously commanded the respect of a class. Both were successful in their own styles. But we've all had professors who repeatedly make unsuccessful jokes or who try and control their class the wrong way. Stick with what you're comfortable doing; the students will respond accordingly.
If students do their part, professors won't have to deal with unresponsive lecture crowds. If professors do their part, students won't have to suffer through any boring or pointless lectures. To get the most out of our four years here, we should abide by these 8 Simple Rules.
Jay Nargundkar is a junior finance major. He can be reached at terpnews@gmail.com.
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