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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 22, 1991)
_____-_—-? -— , L-- —-?*■ r>‘." ; _ .____ . .. - i ■■ i . i - i .— -—■■ —-. i. .1..... I....... ■. .. i I'.—-.. 1 '— .-I..—..-I. ■ i New placement system quizzes math students By Wendy Navratil Senior Reporter University of Nebraska-Lincoln students planning to enroll in math classes this fall will have their first test before classes even start. Last year, UNL’s math department began requiring three-part placement tests for incoming freshman who wanted to enroll in math classes. This year, all undergraduates who want to enroll in math classes must take the test or obtain a waiver from the math department, according to Leo Chouinard, associate professor of mathematics and statistics. The only enrollees exempt from the test are those who have completed another math class at UNL with a grade of C or better within the past year. The decision to revamp the math placement system accompanied a decision to revise course offerings, Chouinard said. The new system is designed to make results of the placement exam a more accurate indicator of a student’s skill level, increasing the chances of students passing math courses, he said. Unlike the test that was admini stered last year, this year’s test in cludes four parts instead of three. Students are instructed to complete three out of four sections, depending on if they have studied trigonometry. The test results, which may be obtained within one day of taking the lest, are valid for one year. Students who do not take a math course during that year will be required to take the exam again before enrolling in any math course. If more than one year has passed since students completed a math course, Chouinard said, “we will ask you to take the test again to show that you remember the previous material and that you are ready for the next course.” If the student does not pass the lest, he said, a waiver may be consid ered if other indications, such as strong ACT or SAT scores, show the student is prepared. So far, he said, 92 waivers have been granted for the fall semester. Chouinard said preliminary results indicate the new placement system is a success. Of the students who enrolled in Math 104 after taking the math place ment test last fall, Chouinard said, 75 percent passed the course with a grade of C or better. Only 47 percent of those who did not take the placement test passed the class. Four of the eight people who were granted waivers into the course passed. Since last March, when the test was revised to include four parts, 3,792 students have taken the exam, Chouinard said. About 900 more are expected to take it this week during foreign and new student enrollment. Another 500 are expected to take the test Thursday and Friday, he said. Students also will have the option of taking the test during the first week ofclasses at either 2:30p.m. Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, or at 7 p.m. Monday or Tuesday in Hamilton Hall. Chouinard said he advises students to take the exam as soon as they possi bly can. Welcome Back Locations of renovations. Page 10. Sports coverage of football and volleyball begins on Page 21. Summer rewinds and new releases. The latest in Arts & Entertainment begins on Page 37;_ INDEX „ Wire 2 Opinion 4 Classifieds 16 I---— Professors not surprised by attempted Soviet coup By Jeremy Fitzpatrick Senior Reporter and Stacey McKenzie Senior Editor Although the recent dramatic ousting and return of Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev caught many Americans off-guard, it came as no surprise to two UNL pro fessors. University of Nebraska-Lincoln Professors Raphael Zariski and David Forsythe said they had been surprised at the suddenness of the takeover but had expected that worsening condi tions in the Soviet Union might lead to a coup. “Any shift from one kind of soci ety to another involves hardship," Zariski said. “There is always a ten sion between freedom and order.” Forsythe agreed. “People have been talking about a coup for a long time," he said. “Gor bachev himself said several weeks ago that unless this chaos came under control, there could be a coup." Both professors thought Gor bachev’s ousting was caused by two factors: Worsening economic condi tions, and specifically, a treaty Gor bachev was to sign Tuesday. Forsythe said the treaty would have granted greater authority to Soviet republics and decreased the power of the central government and the Communist Party. Zariski said it would have given the republics control over their natu ral resources and greater autonomy than American states. The treaty would have further reduced the power of established Communists and hard-line bureau crats, who felt threatened by changes and would be receptive to a coup, he said. Now that the coup has failed, For sythe predicted Gorbachev, at least for the short term, will resume his position with the previous central government. ‘‘Now Gorbachev will come out more strongly for democratic and economic reforms,” he said. “Many See USSR on 12 ♦ c * Michelle Hauimarvuany neoraMian Students and patents move belongings by armloads and carloads into Schramm and Smith halls last week. Official: Residence halls a good option By Michelle Paulman Staff Reporter Although fewer students are choosing to live on campus this fall, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln residence halls remain a competitive option, ac cording to UNL’s housing direc tor. Doug Zalechka said he expects about 4,600 students to move into the halls, which opened Wednesday. Maximum capacity, with two stu dents to a room, is 5,000. Last year, 4,750 students lived in the residence halls. Zatechka said the number of resi dents expected to live in the halls is “changing every minute... It’s wild.” He said daily fluctuations of 50 to 100 residents are not uncommon. A head count will be taken Mon day to determine how many students actually are living m the halls. Zatechka attributed this year’s decline in residents to a smaller freshman class. Fewer students graduated from high school last spring, he said. As well as a smaller freshman class, more upperclassmen are seeking year-round housing off campus. The number of apartments See HALLS on 9 Fewer freshmen to be enrolled . at UNL this fall By Alan Phelps Senior Editor___ While UNL’s overall enroll ment probably will be slightly higher this year, the number of freshmen will decrease by about 180 students, an official said. James Griesen, v ice chancel lor for student affairs at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, said that although final enrollment figures will not be known until after general registra tion, July pre-registration and new See ENROLLMENT on 12