Wednesday, November 27

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The University of Maryland’s Independent Student Newspaper

W E D N E S DAY, N O V E M B E R 2 7, 2 013

58%

Reforms may alter STEM programs

13%

Immigration changes could lower field wages

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By Jim Bach @thedbk Senior staff writer

9%

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according to the Institute of International Education report, compared to about 12 percent who chose to study in Asia in 2011-2012 and less than 10 percent each in Australia and the Pacific Islands, the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean. “Since we’re a Western country, our culture is geared more toward

As university officials continue to push for higher enrollment in STEM programs, experts warn that students in these fields could lose out if a comprehensive immigration reform bill passes on Capitol Hill. A bill aimed at comprehensive immigration reform passed in the Senate this summer by a 68-32 vote. Lawmakers lauded it as a step toward progress, but experts said a provision that offers a shortcut to employment for highly skilled foreign workers in STEM fields could overwhelm the field and drive down wages. If the House chooses to hear and pass the bill, foreign workers looking for STEM jobs could be granted temporary residence, and undocumented STEM students might be able to go through an expedited process to receive a green card. Tech giants such as Microsoft have been active in their support of the changes, citing a shortage of qualified domestic workers and a need to combat brain drains — in which highly skilled

See abroad, Page 2

See STEM, Page 3

8%

study abroad students go to Europe more than any other region of the world. These percentages show the distribution of this university’s students for the 2012-13 academic year. graphic by james levin/for the diamondback

taking flight more than ever before University’s undergraduate study abroad rates hit all-time high during 2012-13 academic year By Madeleine List @madeleine_list Staff writer Casting aside fears of homesickness, culture shock and costs, more students than ever are saying “yes” to an international experience in college. The number of U.S. college students studying abroad has increased steadily over the years, and it hit an all-time high of more than 283,000

students during the 2011-12 academic year, according to the Institute of International Education. Study abroad rates for undergraduates at this university broke records in the 2012-13 academic year, with 1,730 undergraduate students going abroad, according to the university’s Office of International Affairs’ annual report. An increasing number of students from this university are choosing to study in Asia, the university report

showed, with 3 percent more students going to Asia during 2012-13 than in 2011-12. As China becomes a competitive world power, more students are finding that Chinese is a critical language to learn, said Brittany Lashley, a peer mentor at the Education Abroad office who studied in China for a year. Still, about 53 percent of students nationally choose a European country,

Study: Students’ grades better with more quizzes Daily quizzes prepare better than exams do

file photo/the diamondback

Police arrest suspects in View robbery By Teddy Amenabar @TeddyAmen Senior staff writer University Police officers arrested four suspects this week in connection with a robbery outside of University View earlier this month, according to a department news release yesterday. The suspects are not affiliated with the university, University Police spokeswoman Sgt. Rosanne Hoaas said. On Nov. 9, a group of men assaulted and robbed two male university students who were walking along the trail behind the View at about 3:15 a.m., according to the report. The suspects took personal property from the students before fleeing toward Route 1. The suspects did not display weapons during the incident. Police took three suspects into custody Monday and charged them with two counts of robbery, two counts of assault, four counts of conspiracy and two counts of theft less than $1,000. Yesterday, police arrested a fourth suspect, who faces charges of two counts of robbery, two counts of assault, six counts of conspiracy to commit robbery and two counts of theft less than $1,000. tamenabardbk@gmail.com

he instructs his students to pull out a half-sheet of paper and answer a question related to the previous night’s reading. “My interest is in making sure By Talia Richman students learn the material and have @talirichman control over their own grades,” said Staff writer McCloskey, who teaches COMM 107: W hen Thomas McCloskey’s Oral Communication: Principles silver wristwatch reads 5:05 p.m. and Practices. “Daily quizzes faevery Monday and Wednesday, cilitate that.”

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dents brought their laptops to class and took an online quiz daily. Researchers discovered that the average participating student scored half a letter grade higher than in previous semesters on exams with identical questions, and the students who took daily quizzes were better prepared and received higher grades in the other See quizzes, Page 3

Korean restaurant set to replace Route 1 Seven Seas Kangnam BBQ among slate of new businesses By Annika McGinnis @annikam93 Senior staff writer New College Park restaurant owner Ted Seongmuk Sim is culturally split: He’s spent almost exactly half of his life in the United States and the other half in North Korea. He grew up in the county of Kangnam — a “Westernized” part of the Asian nation, full of young people and energy, he said. Then he moved to Kansas and later to this state, where he sent his children to this university. Struck by the school’s diversity and influenced by his own multiculturalism, Sim plans to blend Korean and American cultures when he opens his Korean barbecue restaurant about a mile north of the campus in early 2014. With his 24-hour restaurant and bar, where chefs will cook food in front of customers teppanyaki-style, Sim aims to fill a niche in the city for both

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College students respond better to being graded on frequent quizzes rather than simply through midterms and final exams, according to a PLOS ONE study released last week. McCloskey said the scientific journal’s results are consistent with what he sees in his classroom. Researchers studied 901 students at the University of Texas in an introductory psychology class. The stu-

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a family sit-down restaurant and a college student hangout. “I’m a fusion,” Sim said. “I just want to show what kind of cultures we are sharing with each other.” The restaurant, Kangnam BBQ, will fill the space of former Japanese and Chinese restaurant Seven Seas. It will serve traditional Korean food with some American influences, such as ketchup and mayonnaise, Sim said. Though the restaurant will play Korean pop music, there will be Western-style decorative wood fittings and television screens showing sporting events, said restaurant spokesman David Lee. Along with Kangnam, a new pizza place, Terrapin Pizza Mart, is scheduled to open downtown late this year, as well as a Denny’s and a kabob restaurant in lower midtown. Frozen yogurt shop Tutti Frutti recently opened under the Domain apartment complex, and a Casey’s Coffee is slated See kangnam, Page 2

file photo/the diamondback

Univ libraries costs increase Journal subscriptions rise in price; officials say fees not solution By Josh Logue @jmlogue Staff writer The price of academic texts is on the rise, but students aren’t the only ones struggling to keep up: University libraries officials said the cost of academic journal subscriptions has left them in a financial tight spot. The library’s total collections bud get, a l most $1 2 m i l l ion, has stayed essentially flat for a

decade, while the cost of journal and database subscriptions has increased by about 6.5 percent a year, well above the average inflation rate of about 2.4 percent. Since 2011, a $100 student fee has helped cover some of the costs, but library spokesman Eric Bartheld said it is becoming clear that the fee is not a sustainable solution. The publishing world has undergone significant change in the past few decades. Formerly independent and cheap subscriptions are now managed by a handful of publishers, driving up costs. And libraries across the nation have fallen out of See fees, Page 2

SPORTS

OPINION

TERPS WAITING TO GO BOWLING

GUEST COLUMN: Ending phone discrimination

Football looks at Saturday’s matchup at N.C. State as vital to boosting its case for a better bowl bid this postseason P. 8

Many devices can chat — why do professors hate phones? P. 4 DIVERSIONS

FROZEN CAN’T WARM HEARTS Latest Disney offering retreads solid ground to little impact P. 6


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Wednesday, November 27 by Dan Appenfeller - Issuu