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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 21, 2000)
THE ARMY OFFERS $12,000 CASH BONUSES Volunteer to serve in one of the Army’s top priority occupational skills, and you could receive a cash bonus of up to $12,000, if you qualify. Find out more about this and other Army benefits. Talk to your local Army recruiter today. 402.467.2221 ARMY. BE ALL YOU CAN BE.' www.goarmy.com dmfymeh, c<dim r . ByJillZeman Staff writer Students who end up rushing to class in their pajamas for a quiz they nearly slept through now may have relief in some of their courses. An online testing program devel oped at UNL, currently used in many courses, permits students to take tests, quizzes and complete homework from any computer with an Internet hookup. The system was pioneered by John Orr, a University of Nehraska-Lincoln associate professor of mathematics. Orr began work on the project in 1996, because math instructors began to place more emphasis on applying calculus to the real world, and he was concerned students wouldn’t get enough practice improving their mathe matical computation skills. Orr said he wanted a type of test that not everyone would pass on the first time, but would give the opportunity to retake different versions until students did pass, he said. Unfortunately, the university did not have the resources for faculty mem bers to rewrite tests and administer all the retakes, which is what inspired On to look at online testing, he said. The first class to implement the program, named the eGrade system, The Men * of Playgirl male dance revue Thur. March 23 l Adv. Tickets: -* V $7 gen., $15 VIP Doors at 8, Show at 9 pin 19+ admitted The Royal Grove 340 W. Comhusker Hwy. 474-2332 Tills picture nas notning to do witn tn© 2nd Annual HOUSING FAIR. So come to the Housing Bair on Wed., March 22 lO am to 2 pm in the NBBR UNION Ballroom for information and services for living off campus and for door prizes and refreshments. was Analytic Geometry and Calculus I in Fall 1996. In Spring 1998, other areas such as history, physics and educational psychology began using the system. Since then, the number of courses that use the system has increased each semester. Orr said there are more than 4,000 UNL students who have accounts with the system. One of Orr’s goals in devising the eGrade system was to get away ffom traditional-style multiple-choice ques tions, so the online testing program offers fill-in-the-blank, matching and essay questions. It also asks students to identify points on maps and diagrams, he said. The eGrade system software being marketed by John Wiley and Sons and is used by 29 schools nationwide. UNL receives royalties from the sale of the software, which helps fund the Online Testing Center at 127-128 Burnett Hall, he said. The Online Testing Center is used by students who are rgquired to take online exams that are administered by a person. This is done so instructors can ensure the student enrolled in the course is the one taking the test, Orr said. The Online Testing Center was funded by a grant to the University Foundation, said Jim Lewis, UNL math ^Expanding Electronic ExamsI department chairman. Lewis said he felt the system has been successful so far. “(The eGrade system) lets you mas ter skills at your own pace and work on concepts in class, rather than computa tion,” Lewis said. Don Bernstein, a UNL psychology professor, uses the program in his Learning and Motivation course. David Jane/DN Bernstein’s students use the system for study questions to aid their reading. He doesn’t grade any online assign ments, but he receives a record stating which students visited the Web site. Bernstein said the online program has improved the classroom discus sions. “I don’t lecture as much because the students have a lot more to say,” he said. Donation helps engineering college ■ College to benefit from academic chair created in memory of UNL graduate. By Glenn Connot Staff writer A new academic chairman position will be created in the College of Engineering and Technology, thanks to a donation by Linda L. Klaasmeyer in honor of her late husband, Keith W. Klaasmeyer. The donation to the University of Nebraska Foundation of $500,000 will provide a selected professor with an annual salary stipend, as well as research and program support. The Klaasmeyer donation was met with a fund created in 1998, the Donald and Mildred Othmer estate gift, to bring the endowment to $1 million. Klaasmeyer said she had the idea of creating a chairman position at the uni versity after she saw an article in a news paper about someone who had done the same. “We wanted to do something to honor my husband and couldn’t think of anything right away,” she said. After she read the article she decid ed it would be a good idea. “I told my boys about it, and they loved it,” Klaasmeyer said. No professor has been selected yet for the position. The College of Engineering and Technology plans to conduct a search for a qualified profes sor soon, said Robb Crouch of the NU Foundation. The position is not restricted to a specific department within the college. Linda Klaasmeyer also chose to cre ate the Keith W. klaasmeyer Chair in Engineering and Technology because of her husband’s and family’s connection to the college and Keith Klaasmeyer’s belief in the importance of education. Keith Klaasmeyer and two of his brothers graduated from the College of Engineering, and three of Klaasmeyer’s four sons also graduated from UNL. College of Engineering and Technology Dean James Hendrix and UNL Chancellor James Moeser both expressed gratitude for the gift. “The college is honored to receive a gift in tribute to Mr. Klaasmeyer and his family,” Hendrix said in a statement. Keith Klaasmeyer graduated from Dunbar High School in his hometown of Dunbar. Two years after graduating from the UNL in 1958, he and his broth er Joy started Klaasmeyer Brothers Inc., a civil engineering contracting compa ny in Omaha. The company focused primarily on bridges and boxed culverts. The compa ny was owned by the Klaasmeyers for about 36 years. Keith Klaasmeyer died in 1998, a year after the sale of the company. Linda Klaasmeyer said she was “thrilled about (the position).” “It was something he would be so proud of.” Copyworks YOUR CAMPUS SOURCE FOR • High Speed, High Quality Copies • Manuals, Booklets | • Color Copies • Resumes, Cover Letters, References • Binding, Laminating • Graphic Design/Custom Printing • Self Serve IBM, Macintosh, Internet • Print from Disk: Color & Black/White • Passport Photos • Free Pickup & Delivery I Copyworks' 1320 Q St., Lincoln (next to Nebraska Bookstore) 477-7400 fax 477-8966 "Do / really need to network7" I get aU Ote answers: unl.eGrad2D00.com