Technician
Professors work to improve lectures A new course seeks to help professors learn how to better engage students in large lecture courses. Deputy News Editor
The University sponsored a class in D.H. Hill yesterday to help teachers learn tips on how to engage students in a large lecture class, though some professors have already mastered the task. Every semester, multiple sections of large lecture classes are held across curriculums. With the recent budget cuts, this is a trend that seems to be sticking around. In light of that information, the University held a onehour session on incorporating technology and group work to maximize learning and engage students. Sharon Joffe, teaching assistant professor of English, teaches a 120-student course in studies in fiction, along with two other lecturers. Having taught the course for nine semesters, Joffe is no stranger to the challenges of teaching a highly populated class. “It takes a lot of work. I like to have a good lesson plan, but I also have to plan a recitation that engages students and is kept at a good pace,” Joffe said. Joffe said she fully supports the idea of helping professors learn new teaching techniques. “When I began the lecture course, I hadn’t taught one before and there were resources available to me to introduce me to different methods I PHoto illustration by michael pratt could use to teach such a large course,” Students can often feel distant or distracted, which can hurt their Joffe said. performance in the course overall. In Joffe’s course, she utilizes PowHalyee McLean, sophomore in nu- in a big lecture hall.” erPoint slides to keep the pace of her According to psychology profestrition science, lectures quick said she feels Jof- sor David Martin, movement is key and entertaining. fe does a good job in gaining students’ attention in a On the slides, she of making such a large class. almost always in“I try and prevent things from large class intercludes an image getting between me and the stuesting. and bullet points “I have been in dents, so I don’t stand at a podium, to make the conlectures before and I don’t use a microphone,” cepts concise. In where the teach- Martin, who has taught a 400-peraddition, Joffe er stands in the son intro to psychology course for splits the class middle behind many years, said. into three small By pacing the aisles and moving a podium and lecture groups it’s been awfully around the room, Martin attempts e ve r y Fr id ay, boring,” McLean to make eye contact with students giving students a David Martin, psychology professor s a i d . “ J o f f e , and to be within a few feet from chance to interhowever, moves act in a smaller setting and discuss the course mate- around and engages each student with open ended questions and discussion rial. classes continued page 3
“If you keep things somewhat personal, you keep from becoming an inanimate object to your students.”
Science brings rival schools together
Correspondent
With the age-old rivalry palpable as ever, some may be surprised to find the Wolfpack and the Tar Heels intermingle nicely in the science field. The universities boast top-rated engineering and medical schools, respectively. The Rehabilitation Engineering Center recently announced the awards of two pilot grants to the N.C. State engineers as well as Health Sciences students and engineers from the University of North Carolina. Their combined biomedical engineering effort has culminated in the formation of the UNC/NCSU Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering. The purpose of a pilot grant is to help organizations that may need more planning time before going forward with a large project. Combined, the two grants total $50,000, and according to the department’s website, will facilitate further advancements of “clinically relevant rehabilitation engineering research.” The joint department’s website lists two pilot studies members of our engineering faculty and students hope to accomplish. Those working on A Pilot
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Congressman visits NCSU College Democrats Club Congressman David Price stopped by the College Democrats meeting last night for an open discussion.
Jessie Halpern
Madison McLawhorn
february
Raleigh, North Carolina
technicianonline.com
A new NCSU/UNC joint department of biomedical engineering is getting off the ground.
thursday
“These grants are a big deal beStudy of Brain-Computer Interface (BCI)-Driven Orthosis for Rehabilita- cause they allow for undergradution aim to develop a hand orthotic for ate students, graduate students and stroke patients that may be controlled professors to research cutting-edge technologies and devices in an area solely by the patient’s brain. Chang Nam and Richard Goldberg that is very new to our university,” are the project’s Co-Principal Inves- Graham said. Graham is optimistic the departtigators. Nam, a professor at the University ment will grow even more with the and a specialist in industrial and sys- assistance of grants like this one. “I think the tems engineering, recent grants said no special and the curoutcomes have rent research been made as of that is being yet, but this could done in the cha nge a s t he BME departproject just startment speaks ed last month. to the potenGalen Graham, tial of the dea Park Scholar partment in and junior in biothe coming medical engineeryears,” Graing, conducts reGalen Graham, junior in biomedical ham said. search with Nam engineering As is the for the project. goal of a pi“ T h e br a i ncontrolled interface technology is al- lot project, findings from the study ready very advanced, and I have been will pave the way for the schools spending a lot of my time trying to un- to conduct ongoing rehabilitation derstand paralysis patients and what studies involving stroke patients is most important to developing their and others with severe motor impairment using a “BCI-driven recovery,” Graham said. The project’s subjects will be given prosthetic connected to a motor a BCI-orthosis system (one that is imagery-based Wolfpack BCI syslinked between the brain and com- tem we developed.” puter) and will be monitored as they perform basic wrist and hand movements.
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“I think the recent grants and the current research... speaks to the potential of the department in coming years.”
“I don’t like it any more than you do, but the reasons are apparent,” Price said. Price also discussed the upcoming presidential election. He cited Obama as being a good president who has Elise Heglar faced tough challenges during his first News Editor term in office. “It’s hard to hype up this election The N.C. State College Democrats club got the chance to ask an expe- any more than it already has been. We rienced politician questions at their have a current president who, since meeting last night when Congressman his first day in office, has been under siege,” Price said. David Price stopped by. The American Jobs Act was also Price, who represents North Carolina’s Research Triangle, talked about discussed at the meeting. Price rea variety of topics during the meet- sponded to some criticisms the act has ing. Students at the meeting had the received, pointing out with numbers chance to ask Price about things like that he believes there has been some success with the plan. education and the job market. “There’s no question the recovery The districts in North Carolina recently changed, leading Price to be is underway. Those 3,400 jobs that more active near the University area. were created weren’t phantom jobs, “It creates a new reality in our con- they were real,” Price said. Price discussed some of his personal gressional district, which means I will certainly be working around the N.C. thoughts about the budget issues in State community more than I ever the United States at the meeting as well. According to Price, some of the have before,” Price said. Price received his undergraduate typical Republican criticisms about degree at the University of North Car- the current budget are unfounded. “The Republicans beat their chests olina at Chapel Hill and later went on to Yale University. Before he became about balancing the budget, but what a member of Congress, Price was a they don’t want to be asked is who balpolitical science and public policy anced the budget,” Price said. According to Price, having a good professor at Duke University. Anne-Marie Fristoe, sophomore in public policy is essential for a prospolitical science and vice president perous economy in North Carolina. “We’ve learned here in North Caroof the N.C. State College Democrats, said getting Price to speak was easy lina that there is a strong public policy component to because he coneconomic suctacted their orcess,” Price said. ganization first. Fr i s to e a nd His press secreParker both extary wrote on the pre s s e d t hei r groups’ Facebook excitement for wall about potenPrice’s visit to tially coming to their meeting. speak at a meetRecently, one of ing. their main goals “He actua lly as a club has been w rote on our David Price, North Carolina to raise voting Facebook wall Congressman awa rene s s on about coming to campus. speak. He kind of The organization will be holding a came to us at first, which was awevoting registration booth in the Bricksome,” Fristoe said. Sarah Parker, president of the N.C. yard next Wednesday from 11 a.m. to State College Democrats, said it is 2 p.m. Fristoe said registering to vote is imfairly common for the club to be contacted by elected officials who want to portant for students because of how much it can affect the outcome of one speak at their meetings. “We’ve had people from different election. “Just a single college campus in our levels contact us. It’s kind of a mutual state can swing a vote. That’s what action, half and half,” Parker said. One of the things discussed at the I always tell students when they say meeting was how tuition increase af- their vote doesn’t count,” Fristoe said. Parker said the club is excited to get fects students. While Price said the tuition increase is unfortunate for involved with more projects in the students, he maintained that the ris- coming year and hopefully inspire ing costs are necessary to offset large students to get involved. budget cuts public universities have faced in recent years.
“We’ve learned here in North Carolina that there is a strong public policy component to economic success.”
insidetechnician Freshman Leads the Pack on the Diamond Turtle Island Quartet’s performance celebrates Coltrane and the meaning of music. See page 8.
Residence halls announce upcoming soccer tournament The on-campus residence halls will host the ‘World Cup’ soccer tournament in April. See page 7.
After 500 episodes, ‘Simpsons’ still going strong The long-running series continues. See page 6
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