Bridgewater State University Virtual Commons - Bridgewater State University The ommeC nt Campus Journals and Publications 1986 The ommeC nt, February 20, 1986 Bridgewater State College Volume 61 Number 5 Recommended Citation Bridgewater State College. (1986). The Comment, February 20, 1986. 61(5). Retrieved from: http://vc.bridgew.edu/comment/514 This item is available as part of Virtual Commons, the open-access institutional repository of Bridgewater State University, Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Bridgewater State CollegP he mment February 20, 1986 Vol. XXXI no.·-5 New GER's announced By Pam Sweeney During the 1982-83 academic year at Bridgewater State College the Curricu­ lum Committee, which reviews all new course proposals, once again began a long and detailed evaluation of the Gen­ eral Education Requirements (better known as GERs). To take on this task, the Curriculum Committee developed the Ad Hoc General Education Require­ ment Subcommittee, chaired by Dr. Stanley Hamilton. In December of last year, President Adrian Rondileau approved the recommendations made by the Ad Hoc Subcommittee. The recommendations are outlined in the Bridgewater State College General Education Program Report dated Janu­ ary I 986. Copies of this report are availa­ ble for viewing in the Maxwell Library, the Student Government Association office, and the Comment office. The reasoning behind an evaluation of photo by C hris Howard the GERs is that many students are tak­ Concerned students fill gallery in Council Chambers ing more specialized courses to fulfill the General Education Requirements. Also, On Tuesday, February 18, 1986 the Student Government Association the academic community at BSC is tak- of Bridgewater State ColHege held a meeting to hear the views of the student body, in regards to it's Consti.tut\ona\ Con~ent\on. The a-p-proxi.mate:-y \ 15 students were concerned financially 'needy studerlts e: against the SGA. Both oHhese people, BSC, aswell as the fact that there is a aloniwith other stti ens. spo g.The issue is now being sent, atthe · decline in SAT scores among students in request o( the students, before the Student Court for a decision. ·· . Because of the diversity of views, general. This, as Dr. Hamilton stated, scope of the story, and because the meeting was held only one day before gomg to press, 1t ts being held until the February 27 edition of the Comment. made "the time ripe to look at the GER This will allow for more intense research and in-depth coverage. lt curriculum." will also allow the Student Court's decision to be included. Brent F. Rossi The standards that were accepted by the President and by which all GER courses will be reviewed are as follows: I) Generality 2) Skills 3) Methodology and 4) Pluralism. By generality it is meant that "the GERs will be general to one's role as a WBlM changes and grows contributing membC;r of society during and after the college years,,, as quoted ment is also starting a training program from the subcommittee's report. Also By and unique training that goes on in the for prospective sorts announcers and stated in the report is a list of skills that Lee Stanford WBIM news department helps ensurethe writers. will be emphasized in all general educa­ most well rounded WBIM broadcaster." Programming on WBIM has also,.... tion courses. They include: critical think­ WBIM, Bridgewater State College's Assisstant News Director Mary Beth undergone some changes in the past year. ing, writing, reading, speaking, and radio station has gone through some MacNeil adds,"Since we are Bridgewater Sunday is "Culture Day" on WBIM. The problem solving. Methodology means major changes and growth in the past Instructional Media (BlM), we are mak­ day starts off with "91 Headphones' ·'"' the way in which we obtain information year. Training programs for disc jockeys, ing training our top priority." The news which devotes itself only to acoustic and : about parts of the world in which we live. news personnel, and sports staff as well as training program is similar to the DJ soft rock. It is fo1lowed by '"It Must B(;'.; Lastly, the "multi-cultural, multi­ a new public service program, cultural training program in that it also consists of Sunday". WBIM's public service inter· . national nature of our world" is stressed programming on Sunday, and a listener. all three meetings with the news direc- view program. Recent shows have beer··· in. the pluralism standard of all GER All prospective DJ's at WBIM are toers during which they will outline the about ·stress. liquor laws, and an inter· courses. required to go throl.lgh the disc jockey procedures and guidelines. of broadcast­ view with resigning President Rondileau .. There will be few actual added G ERs training program which was started last ing news at WBIM. The news programs The Portuguese program ''Dimen·· under t':lis evaluation. Yet, professors will semester. This training program involves differs from the disc jockey program in sao/ 20'' follows the public service pro.. · be "rethinking their. course content to three two hour sessions with the program that it requires trainees to .research and gram and features Portuguese music and meet the criteria in the document," and production directors, who explain all write about a local news story and make a news. Next comes "Afternoon Classics", explained Ms. Judith Deckers, chairper­ the standard procedures of broadcasting recording of themselves reporting it as the classical music program, immediately son of the Curriculum Committee. Ms. at WBIM . When the trainees complete well as take a quiz to determine their followed by "Shades of Blue," the blues Deckers went on to say that "companies these sessions they are assigned an intern- awareness of current events. The poten­ show. After the blues show is" Acoustic · are looking for 'Vell-rounded, weir-versed ship with an established disc jockey that tial anchorperson woul then be assigned Horizons". \thich features folk music,. students." Thus, this alteration of Bridge­ lasts from one to three months. After to write news for an already established "Beat International", the reggae show:: water's General Education Program will sucessfully mastering everything they newsteam and will eventually become an and the night is ended with "Sun~~y { help to "develop students we (profession­ need to know to be a DJ, they go on to the anchorperson themself. MacN eil ·fells Night Soµnd Checkn, which is a ~bqw • als) are looking for and to meet the needs rookie show on Saturday mornings. that, "This training program is meant to de~ote<J .. only to music .W,~i:~, · · of society," stated Ms. Deckers. Once the program director feels that the form a newsteam which will }(eep the r~co(g,~c. live:., ~· · · Dr. Hamilton also summed up by stat­ rookie is confident enough, the new DJ audience as well informed about'th¢ili:~· ing that through these changes they're will get his or her own sho\V. environment as pC!?ssibl~~ trying to "combat the notion that a stu­ New to WBIM this semest~fi~::t~e.news ··.• Tl\¢; \\"B~Alf '.' . · · dent's academic i.dentity.is his major. His training program. AU µew .disc Jock;eys ~~pa~d~~:X'~'··' :·. , ···•·. ·..· •·.· .. ,,.· .·. · major is only as strong as the General will be required toundergq_news asw-'J~:,;~y:~~~~waterBe ~. ..... allbroadcasts. Education Program which it as OJ trainingr f\s St~dent Station. tv{an'°' .. hav~ e"pand~d from 13 g~mes last year t~ compliments." ager Davi'.~pit',tta· pudt'l\:the-Jmp9;rta~t: ,: }1, .. ~ame~ -this· ~ea~·: The ·sports ·depart- 2 ·The Comment Thursday, February 20, 1986 Letters Challenger disaster an omen -for America The sudden destruction of ·· the atmosphere was quickly established as fantastical conceptions are not lies in the priests of technology, American heritage ''Challenger" spacecraft and its crew the astronauts were ushered into strictest sense; they are symptomatic of and civil religion have handed down their evoked an archetypal response of horror America's Hall of Greatne~s·. All of the the incessant "fibbing" which neurotics judgement. They say everything is fine; in everyone. Many likened the event to bluster and effusive protestations that the and pre-war cultures typically engage in. that this was just one of those things we the equally horrible assassination of John astronauts, the pioneers and Americans The latest fib was that the Challenger pioneers encounter from time to time. It F. Kennedy. Horror and sympathy for in general have ••the right stuff" were, mission was to be a kind of little red is incumbent upon those who are truly in the astronauts and their families was the however, ineffective in assuaging 'the schoolhouse in the sky. In fact, its role touch with their Judeo-Christian heritage initial and most genuine response to a lingering perception that this tragedy has was a bit more serious than that. It to file a minority report and state that the human tragedy. In the days that a deeper and darker significance than the carried a spy satellite which was to have words of the prophet Obadiah come followed, however, a counterfeit spirit of players in the Theatre Americana would helped defense experts to determine, on a much closer to the truth about the "civic" response reared its ugly head, as have us believe. daily basis, whether or not America meaning of this disaster: those who opportunistically nationalized There are clear indications that the should do to the entire Northern Though exalt thyself as the the disaster dominated 'the media. American· mindset has regressed in its Hemisphere what it did to Hiroshima and eagle, and though Genuine grief gave way to the ritualistic transition from the "malaise" of the Nagasaki.