Tuesday, October 5, 1982
Page 2
Daily Nebraskan
Members teach classes of 100 or more
Century Club tackles lecture class problems
By Lori Sullivan
Large lecture classes'can pose large problems, and the
UNL Century Club is working to solve them.
The Century Club is a year-old volunteer organization
of 30 faculty members who teach lecture classes of 100
or more students. Members trade ideas and teaching
techniques, working together to overcome large class
problems.
Ted Pardy, associate professor of life sciences, teaches
a physiology class of 360 students.
Potential problems in large classes are student aliena
tion, feelings of anonymity and a sense that the instructor
is inaccessible, Pardy said.
One solution for the problems is to create the "atmo
sphere of a small classroom," Pardy said.
The key is to get away from being a small figure locked
into the front of the classroom, he said. One method is
to use a microphone that permits movement. This allows
an instructor to go all over the classroom, establishing
important eye contact with students.
Slides and other visuals make good use of the space
in large classrooms, Pardy said.
"If you have a 14-foot screen, usfc it to get a really
nice big illustration up for everyone to see," he said.
Another means of "shrinking" a large classroom is
using in-class question groups, Pardy said. He said he
finds when students work together on problems, they
participate just as they would in a small class.
"Students should also be encouraged to ask ques
tions during a lecture," Pardy said. "And response is
important. You should positively reinforce the student
by saying something like 'I'm glad you asked that,' then
give a complete answer."
The mass behavior of students in a large class can
be hard to control, Pardy said. He referred to what he
calls the "graffiti gradient" as a measure of the difficulty
Pardy knows when his students
are getting bored. . . . When chairs
begin to squeak and feet start to
shuffle, he will ask his students
why they are bored.
-from Associate Professor Ted Pardy,
member of the UNL Century Club
in keeping contact with students-in the back 01 a room.
Pardy said as a rule, the front four rows of desks will
be relatively mark-free. However, he said, as you move
toward the back, graffiti on desks increases steadily.
An instructor can not control only by "force of
presence," but needs to use a variety of methods to
keep contact with the class, Pardy said. The hardest
thing about teaching a large class is presenting the mater-
DEEM
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ial you need to, wnue momionng me teeling in the
classroom, he said.
"You need to realize what is going on and have a
series of responses ready to deal with it," he said.
Pardy said he knows when his students are getting
bored. His first indication is the noise level.
When chairs begin to squeak and feet start to shuf
fle, Pardy said at times he will ask his student why they
are bored. Often he finds out they have understood the
point he is making and are ready to move on to another
topic, he said. By communicating with his students,
Pardy said, his lectures become more productive.
Common ways instructors lose the attention of a
class are "using a winding-up tone," and "oversum
marizing," he said. Valuable time is lost that could be
used for covering new material, he said.
"You have tQ be enthusiastic, present good material,
and stay on top of the class," Pardy said.
Some introductory classes can be taught well in large
lectures, he said. Although- they have their problems,
large classes achieve "economies of scale" which allow
the purchase of expensive media equipment which could
not be justified for a small class.
Pardy has established a "hot line" telephone answering
service for his students. At any time, callers can leave a
question or problem on the recording. Pardy listens to
the tape, calls students and works with them to solve
their problems. Pardy said he also uses some of the hot
line questions in class to clear up any remaining problems.
Continued on Page 9
Events focus
on wellness
Wellness Week will con
clude Wednesday with 10
programs and a keynote
address all aimed at giving
people more knowledge on
the spiritual and mental
aspects of wellness, Deb
Fischer, University Health
Center radiologist, said.
Sister Mary Christelle
Macaluso will deliver the
keynote speech, "The Joy
of Loving Yourself," at
11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in
the Centennial Room in
the Nebraska Union.
The other programs,
locations and times are:
9 a.m. - Career and
Personality Assessment,
East Union.
10 a.m. - Study-Time
Management, east union.
10 a.m. - The Spiri
tual Dimension of Well
ness, Nebraska Union.
11 a.m. - Film Festi
val, union main lounge.
1:30 p.m. - Getting
to Know Me: Journal
Writing, union.
2 pjn. - Career and
Personality Assessment,
union.
2:30 p.m. - But I
Was a Straight A Student
in High School, union.
3:30 p.m. - You
Me A Relationship, union.
SAVE U P TO 50
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Police
Report
The following calls and
complaints were received by
UNL police from 7 a. in.
Sunday to 7 a.m. Monday.
9:27 ajn. - Vandalism
to a sign reported at
Regents Hail, 3835 Hold
rege St.
4:04 p.m. - Theft of
netting surrounding tennis
court at Harper-Schramm-Smith
reported.
4:18 p.m. - Purse thclt
reported at Love Library.
7:34 pin. - A fire safety
poster reported set on fire
at Abel Hall; no damage
listed. .
8:42 pin. - Bicycle re
ported stolen from 22nd
and S streets.
11:08 pjn. - Nuisance
phone calls reported at San
do Hall.
1:57 ajn. - Fire alarm
set offal the Horse Barn on
East Campus; there was no
fire.