Putting Las 10 Tne Test

C;/ ;,.:' \ 10.. ': .',c·;o',·-f Bentley Historical ubrary 1150 Beal Avenue Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2113 Putting lAS 10 tne Test by Beth Martin vice in the United States." Briggs further swers questions from an "audience" com- date will utilize a vastly different v<r With foreign graduate students earn stated that other colleges were not deal- posed of evaluators from ELI and a rep- cahulary than a physics candidate. There ing half or more of the graduate degrees ing with language problems in a system- resentative from the department with fore, Briggs notes, there's "no way to say in science from American universities atic way when the U-M first drew up its which the candidate is associated. the range of two students' vocabulary today, most students have likely been policy. Next, the testee is placed in a mock are the same if both receive the same instructed by at least one international An assessment of an ITA' s English "office-hour" situation, where he must score." The ITA test is scored on a scale teaching assistant (IT A). Often this situ proficiency beginS with answer typical questions of one to five, with five being the highest ation creates a language barrier, for al a series of exams. similar EST[ Rs £L ~./HfI<. PIA t£ Ci...A,S[... that, he might ~ncounter possible score. Those who receive a score though ITAs may be brilliant in a par to the SAT, whIch can . dunng real offIce-hours. of four (full acceptability) or five (supe be taken in a graduate's C7Cro £L HUNDO H£ W7TBlf...? These include not only rior acceptability) are I/generally accept ticular subject area, they have not always ! mastered the technicalities of the English native country as well topic-related problems able for a range of teaching ~gnments," I I language before stepping into a class as the United States. For from the course, but also states another Ell brochure. In fact, those 1 room. U-M students these ex- everyday questions a stu- who receive a score of five are automati The problem of IT As with language ams include either the dent might ask. cally eligible to teach courses in any de barriers is certainly not foreign to the u~ Test of English as a For- The last,part of the test is partment, even those where English is M. According to Dr. Sarah Briggs of the eign Language (fOE¥L) composed of a II question the main subject. These candidates are U-M's English Language Institute (ELI), or the Michigan English handling" session, where also eligible to "have responsibilities re I the p~dent's office of the U-M was Language Assessment J t1 the T A candidate video- lating to the LSA Upper-Level Writing I flooded ten years ago with complaints Battery (MELAB). tv~ taped as he answers more Program." I concerning the language diffi culties 0 From there, foreign typical questions from Stud~nts ..w;bo . re.;Qiv:~a.four minus .' '.' fO.'TJ\&'Since then. the U-M holS set ruduate students ~ho d ~~i re TA pOSt- students. The ELI brochure states that (acceptability restricted) are limited to ) Engll~ proficiency and teaching stan bons must take the lnternation~ Teach-: "' ''[gJeoerally [candi~ates] rated as accept- assignments like upper level courses or dards to improve the quality of student ing Assistant English Evaluation (IT A able are able to un.derstand and respond labsthatare."rel.atively structured with ...~ ' instruction. test). This entirely oral communication appropriately to at least 75 percent of the built-in support." A score of three (fun "U-M was one of the first uhiversi exam attempts to imitate the actual job of .;:... questions." ited acceptability) lirrlits a candidate to ties to take this issue seriO~Sly," stated a T A. The first part of the test consists of '. The nature of the oral test varies with foreign language teaching assignments. Briggs, and in fact, one Ell test brochure a background interview. Then the poten- each candidate, as the subject matter John Swales, director of Ell, stated states that the "U-M Ell testing service is tial T A presents a "mini-lesson" similar "taught" by each T A will be different. that there are problems with the four the oldest English proficiency testing ser- to a class that he might teach, and an- For instance, a political science candi- Please See Page 9 AlA Speaks Against PS 111 Incident by Jason Camhi therefore unacceptable. college orientation programs which tend celebrated conservatives. One of the most The University of Michigan College Wheeler cited several examples of to espouse politically correct thought as common targets of such academic reduc Republicans brought Jamey Wheeler, attempts at indoctrination that have re the only legitimate type of thinking. tion is former President Ronald Reagan. executive director of Accuracy in cently occurred across the country. Another major problem AlA has with Academia, Inc. (AlA), to campus as its Among them was a required ecology universities is the widespread use of Please See Page 9 keynote ~aker for its February 1 meet course at the University of California at teaching assistants (fAs) as substitutes ing. AlA, founded in 1985, seeks to alert Irvine, whose textbook, Save the Earth, for professors in the classroom. Wheeler the public and to protect students in uni contained pieces by such "noted" ecol<r argues that if students are annually pay versity communities from the "liberal gists as Ted Turner, Jesse Jackson, and ing upwards of $20,000 for their educa INSIDE indoctrination" that occurs both in the the Dalai Lama, and a film shown at tion, then they deserve nothing less than classroom and in the university environ Cornell University during resident advi the attention of a full professor. ment in general. In addition, the group sor orientation that depicted scenes of These examples seem to portray AlA Serpent's Tooth 2 works to protect the rights of students. graphic homosexual acts. By publicly as an ultra-conservative group which Both Wheeler and his organization exposing these and siprilar acts, AlA has lacks sympathy for people with more Science 3 have cited many problems with the U successfully combatted them. liberal views. By Wheeler's own admis M, as well as other university systems One of the methods currently em sion, however, the group also tries to Letters 5 across the country. Most of these prob ployed by AlA in its fight against the help professors "that are in colleges and lems involve the so-called indoctrina forced indoctrination of students is the universities who are not conservative but Editorial 4 tion of students, particularly in class extension of its field of infIuer'lce to high who are willing to stand up for tradi rooms and orientation programs. This schools. By expanding its scope, AlA tional values and Western culture." AlA's Book Reviews 7-8 indoctrination, according to AlA, usu hopes to in<;rease at an earlier age the primary goal is to maintain the academic ally takes the form of programs designed awareness of students who will most integrity of education. Sports 10-11 specifically to make those who hold p<r likely be the primary targets of this type Also of interest to AlA are attempts litically unpopular viewpoints feel as if of treatment. This sort of advanced n<r by the liberal left to rewrite history in an Music 12 their thoughts and ideas are wrong and lice should serve to lessen the shock of effort to detract from the reputations of - ~ .. "T"" " ,.·.· ._. _ ' '''_._ HH ''" .. ·'_ <_~", ' ..·, __.,, ~ .. _ ... _ . -T ~"--> "• .'_ '-..-.....'''''''_'"''''.,.''''.__ " _____'''''' __.~'lC _____ .... _ ___....... ' .. IlS....... ___ .... _ ..........., .... ____ _ 2 THE MICHIGAN REVIEW February 10, 1993 I III \ 11 C II )( ; .\ '\ I{ E , IE'" Serpent's Tooth The Campus Affairs Journal of the University of Michigan "We are the Establishment" EDlTOR-IN-CHIEF: Tony Ghecea In the tradition of Zoe Baird and Kimba of Housing and Urban Development made up. PUBLISHER: Aoorew Bockelman Wood, the Clinton administration Henry Cisneros has requested that the EXECUTIVE EDITORS: Joe Coletti, Jay D. t.A:NeMl, Tract proudly announces the casting call for White House review lithe inadequate Dan RosMnkowski (D-IL), Chairman of Robinson, Stacey Walker CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Beth Marti! Alien 3. government response to last year's riots the House Ways and Means Committe, in South Central Los Angeles and to press declared on CNN's Evans and Novak, ASSISTANT EDITORS: Ryan Boeskoo~ Nate Jarrlson, From the February 4 issue of the Wall for more help there." We can think of "I'm not particularly enthusiastic about Brian Schefke Street Jaurnal: "It's hard not to notice that several billion reasons why the secretary dates or schedule&" Especially not April MUSIC EDITOR: Chris Peters the stock market has been doing rather might be mistaken. 15th. UTERARY EDITOR: Adam Garagiola GRAPHICS EDITOR: Win Ryan well of late, adding 45 points to the Dow EDITORIAL STAFF: Matt Anderson, Eddie Amer, Eric Jones industrials index yesterday. We've In a letter to the Daily, the Ella Baker In yesterday'S Daily, graduate student Berg, McheIe Brogley, Jason CarriII, Andrea Cousino, KIm been trying to square this optimism with Mandela Center for Anti-Racist Educa Mechele de Avila whined that she was Conley, Joe Epstein, Frank Grabowski, Crxey HiI, Aaron the goings-on in Washington. We've con tion identified UCAR as the "United offended by the decision of two West Kanter, Gene Krass, Eric Larson, Eric Lepard, Erin M::EIIigott, Crusty MIncher, Tom Paska, Dave Perczak, cluded that the Clinton administration Coalition of Racism." Freudian slip? Quad residents to display a "Pussie Rd." Drew Peters, Shamon Pfer4, Dave PoweY, Jay Rarros, can take full credit.

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