A Solution for a New Semester
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CAMPUS Published by the Office of Institutional Advancement A Merced College News MagazineDIGESTVol. I Edition 2 JANUARY 2012 Tackling Issues The newly formed College Council A Good Deal The Bookstore has bundled together a Changing Rules Many students will be affected by streamlines decision-making while moving forward special 50th Anniversary T-Shirt and sweatshirt for only changes in eligibility for federal financial aid. Staff with key recommendations on communications and $20. Page 3 should be aware of these new rules to assist students. ethics Page 2 Page 8 A Solution for a new Semester Glen Harvey, Instructional Support Technician for Area 1 Biology, formulates a chemical reagent, Benedict’s, which will be used by students in the Biology 1 lab. Benedict’s determines whether a liquid substance contains a reducing sugar. Photo by Robin Shepard Page 1 CAMPUS DIGEST JANUARY 2012 College Council Accomplishes Several Goals New Group Moves on Important Governance, Ethics, and Communication Issues By Dr. Benjamin T. Duran dancy in decision- We also understand that our Strategic Superintendent/President making. Plan needs to be completed, and we intend We recognize to accomplish that before the end of this s a result of the work we have been the need for im- semester. We will be gathering together our doing to respond to the recommenda- proved communi- planning group once again to develop our tionsA of the Accrediting Commission and cations across the objectives, action plans, and timelines, and to begin to address the Strategic Plan’s ini- District. In fact, the to identify those responsible for guiding tiative on communication, we formed the Accrediting Com- the institution toward its goals. “College Council,” which will serve as the mission for Com- My overriding concern, and the focus munity and Junior of my remaining time with the District College’s top-level shared governance body. Dr. Duran The Council has been meeting regularly Colleges (ACCJC) is to move us toward proficiency and sus- since it was formed last October and has is requiring tainability in proceeded to work toward several impor- us to address areas of pro- tant goals, one of which, of course, is the the need for “My overriding concern, and the focus of gram review, creation of our Districtwide newsletter, the “dialogue that student learn- Campus Digest. is inclusive, my remaining time with the District is ing outcomes, It is our intent that the College Coun- respectful, to move us toward proficiency and sus- and integrat- cil serve as a clearinghouse and forum for intentional, ed planning dealing transparently with crucial College informed, and tainability in areas of program review, as required issues . ..” Its fundamental purpose is to documented student learning outcomes, and integrated by ACCJC. provide information, facilitate communica- and about planning as required by ACCJC.” Improving tion, and solve problems related to shared institutional our campus governance. quality and climate with The work of the Council, its agendas improvement.” To that end, we have begun better communications, better governance and action plans, and its membership ros- to discuss all aspects of our communica- structures, and better decision-making pro- ter can be found on our MC4Me portal at tions, from top-down, bottom-up dialogue, cesses will help us move off of warning and https://mc4me.mccd.edu/MC_Council/ to messaging directed to and from our stu- secure our full accreditation. default.aspx, and I strongly encourage you dents. Merced College is now a half-century to visit the site often for current news. We have also worked toward a Distric- old. As we celebrate our past during the Another important function of the Col- twide Code of Ethics, which was presented coming year, we need to look into the fu- lege Council is to survey existing campus to the Board of Trustees for a First Reading ture. Our future is our own responsibility. committees, examine their various roles and during its January 17 meeting. The Code It is the result of the collective efforts of all responsibilities, and to make recommenda- of Ethics is meant to express our collective of us. The College Council is a key compo- tions for operational improvements. In the values, behaviors, and is a commitment we nent in defining that future, in creating the case of the Council, its primary role has all need to make in order to work together conditions for our success, and preparing required the cessation of two existing com- harmoniously and the with respect and the groundwork for plans and goals that mittees, the President’s Advisory Council collegial spirit each of us deserves. It will will guide us in the next 50 years. and the Board Agenda Review Committee. serve to remind us that we are all responsi- I wish you all a wonderful and produc- In other words, we’ve streamlined these as- ble for creating the environment necessary tive new year, and I look forward to hearing pects of our shared governance operations for dialogue that is transparent, inclusive your thoughts and concerns as we continue and that has allowed us to eliminate redun- and respectful. to build our future. Lady Devil Water Polo Player Recognized as Statewide Athlete of the Month Following up on a great season, Lady McGee led the state in scoring with 91 in the championship game, 3 assists and Devils water polo player Kailiponi “Poni” goals, 46 assists and 52 steals. In Novem- 2 steals. At the State Final Four she had McGee was selected by the California ber she helped lead the women’s water polo 4 goals, 1 assist, and 3 steals in wins over Community College Sports Information team to the Coast Conference Tournament Diablo Valley and Sierra College. She was Association and California Community Championship with wins over De Anza, named MVP of the Cost Conference, the College Athletic Association as the No- Ohlone, and Cabrillo. Northern California MVP and was select- vember 2011 Athlete of the Month. McGee scored 10 goals including 8 ed as an All-American. Page 2 JANUARY 2012 CAMPUS DIGEST Professor Uses Games An Offer You Can’t Refuse to Help Students Learn Students may not consider their college education to be all fun and games, but for foreign languages instructor Dr. Caroline Kre- ide, college courses should incorporate games to enhance learning. “Pleasure is the best facilitator for learning to take place,” wrote the German and Spanish professor in the November edition of Connections, a journal of the Foreign Language Association of Northern California. “Empirically, we know that enjoyment helps us assimilate new material with practically no effort, and psychologists have corrobo- rated this fact by considering play an essential feature in any child’s cognitive development,” Dr. Kreide wrote. Games have long been part of a child’s education, but when they enter college as adults, games all but disappear from an in- structor’s bag of teaching techniques. Dr. Kreide’s experience is that games are powerful motivators. “Games have not been used in the college classroom because of two assumptions,” she said, “the first one being that they fail to transmit sufficient depth in an academic content, and the second one being that most college students are expected to be motivated and self-disciplined.” The reality, she said, is that college students struggle with their own boredom and lack of motivation, which prevents them from becoming effective learners. Dr. Kreide has had her share of unmotivated students over the years. To learn about their struggles in the classroom, she began to use questionnaires at the end of each semester to ascertain which Photo by Robin Shepard activities worked and which ones didn’t. Games were always at Student Alejandra Bustos wears a 50th Anniversary T-shirt. the top of the list for the activity that worked the best for learning. The Bookstore is selling anniversary T-shirts with a She discovered that whenever a game was played in class, stu- sweatshirt, both for only $20! Get yours today! dents who were tuning out and nodding off would be transformed into focused and involved participants. Game playing allows stu- dents to leave the class with a positive feeling about the subject. Dr. Kreide uses several board games in the classroom such as Accreditation Work Progresses “Memory,” “Jeopardy,” and “Battleship.” She has been able to tweak By Dr. Anne Newins these games to get the most out of them as teaching tools. Her rule VP of Student Services for her foreign language students is that English is not allowed. “For a teacher, the sweetest moments of classroom games are Work continued on the Follow Up report over the holiday hia- those when students passionately feud over how to answer a ques- tus. Writing team members have created preliminary drafts and tion correctly,” she said. “In those instances the class explodes in plan to have final drafts ready for editing by February 2. The most spontaneous discussion about the subject matter.” complex sections to write have been Recommendations 1 and 3, Games create decentralization in the classroom and decon- which address program review and integrated planning. struct the traditional hierarchy by spreading attention and power In related activities, College Council meetings have been throughout the classroom. Students become more active agents in scheduled for the coming semester. Significant topics will include their own learning, she said. In foreign language classes, Dr. Kreide the Strategic Plan, revisions of our planning handbooks, and ongo- said, “games help to get language under a student’s skin.” ing discussion about the role of the Educational Master Planning Dr. Kreide’s article includes several examples of successful Committee. Committees have been designated and members now games that she has used in the classroom.