Evaluation book
III
ASUN: going, going
OPINION
by LYNN HOLD EN
What's an ASUN? It's name is one of those abbreviations
which flies between the mouths of the University elite almost
as often as polysyllabic words spew from the mouths of English
professors.
As an animal science major, I could describe an ASUN
as a 68-legged animal (on good days) inhabiting the Union
mainly on Wednesday afternoons.
Unlike the steer, sheep or hog, it has no value either
for its meat or hide. Instead its value may be described
as, well, as . . .' uh . . . indescribable.
Maybe nonexistent would be a better word. I prefer not
to think so. The optimist in me refuses to let me classify
anything as non-functional.
Constitutionally, ASUN is THE governing body over the
students of the University of Nebraska. They have the final
say over everything, right? Well, your mother is really the
tooth fairy and the Board of Regents exists.
If this year's Senate were to pass something of major
significance ("Let's Pretend"), it would not go into effect until
the Board of Regents approved it.
That's only fair, I guess, since the Regents represent the
taxpayers and the taxpayers do support the school and should
have some say in how things are done.
ASUN is also undergoing an identity crisis. It has come
to share the spotlight with other governing organizations which
more directly affect students' lives: AWS, IDA, IFC, ICC (pardon
the abbreviations) and Panhellenic.
Some of the more prominent campus issues this year have
been the abolishment of women's hours and the possible
establishment of coed visitation.
These matters do not fall directly under Senate's jurisdiction.
With those organizations named taking care of these matters,
Senate can only pass its time by proposing budgets, advising
the administration or legislature, or creating committees. Senate
has lost its place in the hearts of NU students.
The future of ASUN? A prophet I ain't.
Suggestions have included restructuring the student and
faculty senate into one senate; establishing a bicameral student
legislature; abolishing Senate; or, again waiting to see if next
year's crop of student representatives will be the long-awaited
ideal combination of personalities which will bring innovation,
ingenuity and fearless leadership to Nebraska students.
And now, my next topic, 'Eternity Is . . ."
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Faculty: only half there
by GARY SEACREST
Nebraskan Stiff Writer
The Faculty Evaluation Book
will rate only approximately
half of the undergraduate
courses offered at the
University.
"I'm happy we got that
much, considering the teachers
had to shoulder a large part of
the responsibility for carrying
out the project," said Ken
Wald, chairman of the ASUN
faculty evaluation com
mittee. Wald explained that many
courses were not evaluated
either because the instructor
opposed the idea of faculty
evaluation, or, due to a
mistake, the instructor did not
receive an evaluation packet.
Although Wald was generally
pleased with this year's faculty
evaluation, he said, "I got
angry at some of the reasons
teachers gave for not
participating in the evaluation.
Frankly, some instructors were
scared to be evaluated."
Wald said one English
teacher said the only thing
freshmen were capable of
evaluating was the classroom
atmosphere.
Wald, a junior from Lincoln,
expects that the 223 page book
Program Council
Re-interviews
The Nebraska Union Pro
gram Council will be re-interviewing
students Thursday
evening for positions on
several film committees.
No chairmen were selected
for several of the committees
during last Saturday's inter
views, according to Tom Lon
quist. Program Council
chairman.
Students are especially need
ed to work in the area of
special films as well as a new
ly created area designed to
deal with film festivals, un
derground films and local stu
dents' films, he added.
Anyone interested in apply
ing for the positions should
sign up for an interview in
Room 128, Nebraska Union.
will be distributed by March 2.
Three hundred fifty books are
being printed. These will be
distributed to dormitory units,
fraternities and sororities,
libraries and college depart
ment offices.
Commenting on the
usefulness of the book, Wald
said, "Students can get some
general idea of an instructor.
But we don't want the book to
be used as the only criteria for
choosing classes."
Although there were plans to
include $500 in advertising,
Wald said the book would pro
bably not have any advertising.
However, Wald still expects the
project will not spend more
than its allotted $5,000
budget.
The Faculty Evaluation Book
will contain numerical results
of a 26-question survey of
courses and will have no in
terpretation of the raw data.
The results of the evaluations
of over 1,000 course sections
will be in the book.
The .book will provide
statistics of total enrollment in
each class, the number of
students responding to the
survey and a breakdown of
instructor evaluation with
ratings from excellent to
poor.
Graduate courses and quiz
sections were not surveyed.
Laboratory instructors were
not evaluated either, but the
value of labs was considered in
the survey.
Some faculty criticism of the
evaluation was valid, according
to Wald. He said the form used
for the evaluation was too rigid
tu measure precisely the ef
fectiveness of an instructor.
"In order to get faculty
evaluation established there
will have to be a minor revolu
tion in the American educa
tional system," Wald said.
"The faculty will have to be
willing to be evaluated and
they will have to be involved in
planning the evaluation."
Wald hopes future faculty
evaluation will become the
joint effort of the Teaching
Council, Faculty Senate and
ASUN.
Club offers film
The original 1931 version of
"The Threepenny Opera" will
be shown by the German Club
Thursday. Feb. 12 at 7:00 p.m.
in the Nebraska Union Audi
torium. Starring Lotte Lenya, the
film has often been listed as
one of the top ten movies ever
made, according to German
Club officers. Club members
will be admitted free and non
members charged 50c.
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