Hill, Lillee: Diversity

I did not find either piece to be particularly moving.  I do believe that segregation is wrong but I also believe that getting into a war of words is ineffectual and pointless.
   
"A Call for Unity" claimed that the stance Blacks should be taking was the use of negotiations to reach an end to segregation.  However, I believe that was just a cover: the clergymen who wrote it wanted to look as if they were supporting the Blacks, but I got the impression that the letter was just a cover for their segregationist feelings.  Anyone can write a letter.  It is practically the least supportive thing a person can do short of doing nothing.  They were trying to appear to be in support of the anti-segregation movement, which was what, as good Christian ministers, they should have been doing. But, in reality, they just didn't take as strong a segregationist stance as some of the more radical groups.  To me the letter was just a way for the clergymen to look as if they were taking a stance without having to do any of the work associated with stance taking.  In my opinion it would have been better for them to have done nothing. 
   
Martin Luther King Jr.'s responses to the clergymen felt to me quite like preaching .  His "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" seemed like he was preaching on all the hard times Blacks have been through and how they just had to act right then. I believe if you really feel justified in your actions, you don't have to stand before those who are critical of your choice and defend yourself.  You don't have to cite Saint Thomas Aquinas or say if "I (had) lived in Germany at the time, I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers," if you really believe you are doing the right thing.  If you feel like you are doing what is truly right you can let your actions speak for themselves, especially when confronted with something as trivial as "A Call for Unity."   They say that actions speak louder than words, but when you don't let your actions speak for themselves, they can be drowned out by the yelling your words are doing.  

Winchell, Raechel: Diversity

In response to the letters "A Call For Unity" and Dr. King's "Letter From A Birmingham Jail," I believe that Dr. King was successful in standing his ground while still remaining professional and articulate. I thought that the clergymen were out of line by calling Dr. King and his supporters outsiders. As far as the Black community was concerned, they probably thought of the clergymen as outsiders as well.
      
From my reading, I took the side of Dr. King because not only did he argue his side articulately and professionally, but he was as nice as he could be about it. He was not hateful, and came across as a well-educated person who was well versed in the art of nonviolent argumentation. He held his ground firmly and stood up for himself and his supporters with his well-written rebuttal. He put the writers of "A Call For Unity" in their place without having to use insults or negativity. His education and his ability to mold words into beautiful and well thought out writings allowed him to maintain his dignity even in the nastiest situations, such as incarceration. Most inmates are looked down upon by society, whereas Dr. King remained a strong leader and public speaker for those who were free but had no public voice. His response to "A Call For Unity" still remains an excellent piece of writing, long after his death and the days of racial injustice. Dr. King was an extremely smart and well-read man who took a stand for what he believed in, even when it meant risking his life and the lives of his loved ones. He remained strong and fought for what was right. By standing up for himself in his "Letter From A Birmingham Jail," he proved that he could easily take constructive criticism and quickly provide a polite but extremely well spoken argument.
      
Dr. King was a courageous leader who fought until his death for equality among all races. I feel that the men who wrote "A Call For Unity" were only looking to stir up trouble by trying to pressure "outsiders" to end their non-violent protests. Instead, they lit a fire of determination, which only caused the civil rights movement to grow. These two pieces of writing are crucial to one's education, in that they provide evidence of the freedoms that we as a younger and more free generation continue to take for granted. 

Tan, Su-Ann: Diversity

The work of the legendary Martin Luther King Jr. set the standard of racial integration we live by today. Known for his support of nonviolent protests, he transformed the demeaning social status of African Americans of the past to one of equality among all ethnicities today. Because of his unrelenting passion for freedom and  equality of the ill-treated minorities, he is one of the people in history I consider a great hero of all time.


One incident exemplifies how he strived for the Black community was in Birmingham, Alabama. During one of the many demonstrations by African Americans, eight white clergymen got together and published A Call for Unity in the local newspaper urging the demonstrators to instead turn to local negotiations. They expressed how they disapproved of the timing of the demonstration and insinuated how it was against the law. King, who was arrested for his part in the nonviolent protest, responded to this article by writing A Letter from Birmingham Jail. He wrote about how he regretted the protests in Birmingham but also said that the white community left them with no other choice; the tension that those protests were creating was critical to the growth change that was needed.


Reading these two documents taught me a lesson - that though I may experience difficult times throughout my life, there will always be a window of opportunity to still reach my goal. I have been caught in countless situations in which I feel as if there is no way to resolve an issue. But as I read those works and reflected, I realized that there were other choices I could have taken instead of grudgingly accepting my fate.


Another lesson that I learned from these two documents is the ability to 'disagree without being disagreeable.'.I say this because as I was growing up, my parents have countlessly told me I needed to learn how to do so. When I argued with my parents I either thought that it was futile trying to express my own opinions, or tried aggressively to prove I was right. In retrospect and had I been more intuitive, my 'rebellious' teen years would have been filled much less drama.


I am still in the process of obtaining the patience to hold my thoughts until it is the right time, but I believe I am on the right track now. Reading about how Martin Luther King Jr. strived for his thoughts persuasively and effectively has reflected upon many aspects of my life I have not noticed before. I am still fearful, though, that when I come across a difficult situation, that I would not be able to see all the choices I have. But as I continue about in my life reading more inspiring works and reflecting upon myself each time, I hope to learn to open my inner eye and realize my potential.

White, Zowie: Beloit List

    The current generation of young adults is expected to be the first to not achieve more than their predecessors. The differences between the two generations are seen as a generation gap. The presence of a generation gap between faculty born before 1980, and the freshman class of college students is formed by differences in convenience, technology, communication.
   
Convenience is something that the younger generation takes for granted. The food industry, for example, prides itself on the concept of convenience. During the early lives of most faculty, fast food restaurants were available, but not to the extent of today. Now someone can rarely enter a town that does not have a McDonald's. There are seventy-four McDonald's on the small island of Manhattan, alone. When does convenience become an inconvenience?
   
Technology and it's constant evolution serves as the biggest cause of the generation gap. It allows the younger generation  to access more information, but the younger generation does not know how to use it. The evolution of the cellular phone has brought incredible technology and a new way of life for the younger generation. They are able to play games, access the Internet, text, and more. Cell phones are the focus of the youth's attention and serve as the gateway to the outside world. The older faculty are not as concerned with cellular devices and see them as a luxury, instead of a necessity.
   
Means of communication and skills differ greatly between the two generations. With the growing usage of the Internet, e-mail is used more than the United States Postal Service. The younger generation used mainly used the USPS for packages. People in the older generation have always known to use the Postal Service. However with the help of the younger generation, they are getting used to electronic means of communication. They are not only using e-mail, but social networks and texting, as well. The older generation has better communication skills than the younger generation. Shortcuts and language abbreviations handicap the youth's ability to communicate effectively. Most are not able to switch from texting language to correct English. The Internet and social networks provide a Catch-22. The youth are able to connect with more people internationally, but are unable to communicate in the real world.
    
The generation gap demonstrates how modern advancements can help, or hinder, a generation by comparing two generations. New technology benefits everyone, especially those who know how to manipulate it. The older generation is not negatively affected by changes in convenience and communication.

Honors Faculty Discuss Teaching

(From L to R) Honors student Caleb Parks and faculty members Paul Babbitt, Deborah Wilson, and Abdel Bachri.

The SAU Honors College hosted a teaching exchange session on Tuesday, November 15. Participating were Paul Babbitt, Deborah Wilson, and Abdel Bachri. Dr. Babbitt spoke on how he taught Honors Philosophy as a full honors course (e.g., a course that only enrolls honors students). His class has 15 students. He teaches them through philosophical readings and discussion. He said his honors students, "Are not used to thinking, don't like being wrong, but like authority." That last point, he added, was particularly important in a philosophy course where the whole concept is NOT to accept arguments from authority. On the other hand, though, he noted that his honors students, "do everything I tell them to." When it comes to teaching philosophy, he has found that rodeo scholarship students seem to do especially well in his course. One of them said that falling off of a horse gives one a different outlook on life. Babbitt ended by saying that he tries to stay away from the "banking concept of education" where teachers make 'deposits' of knowledge in the brains of their students. Instead, he wants them to think for themselves.

Deborah Wilson spoke next about when she taught an honors contract course (e.g., a course that enrolls both honors and regular students; the honors students contract with the instructor to elevate the course to honors level in some way) in research methods. The contract called for her honors student to conduct original research (risky behavior was the topic) and present it at a regional psychology association meeting. Three other regular students in the course also conducted their own research as well. All then presented it at the annual meeting of the Southwestern Psychological Association (SWPA). Wilson found that a synergy emerged between the honors student and the three other students. One reason for that was the SWPA deadline. It was in late November, so the research had to be completed before then. Interestingly, all the students presented their research the following semester, after they had already completed the course. The Psi Chi psychology honors society and the SAU Honors College sponsored the trip to SWPA and paid for all expenses.

Abdel Bachri spoke last. He described his approach to honors instruction as different from the other two. He typically enrolls 2 to 3 honors students a semester and meets with them for three hours a week. Together, they all work on a physics project of some kind, usually involving the construction of some kind of equipment. He described one of those projects, a propane-burning standing wave demonstrator:

Drawing by Adbel Bachri

The horizontal tube is a small section of automobile radiator pipe and evenly space holes are drilled into its upper portion. The right side is sealed and a propane tank and feed line are fitted. The other side is sealed with a diaphragm. Finally, a function generator is added to produce sound waves. Once the apparatus is complete and lit, the flame pattern will illustrate standing waves caused by different frequencies. Bachri believes that such hands-on projects serve to give physics students the opportunity to see textbook principles applied in real-life, concrete instances. Such projects also help differentiate them from applicants from other colleges when it comes time to apply to graduate school.

After the three presentations, some discussion followed about similarities and differences in teaching approaches. The participants agreed that teaching physics and psychological research allowed for methods removed from the classroom and from only reading and writing. Babbitt, it seems, has the hardest task. Even we instructors do not expect honors students to come up with original philosophical theories or concepts. But, it is possible for physics students and psychology students to perform new, unique, and even original projects in their fields.

The above discussions took place over a nice sandwich lunch provided by ARAMARK followed by delicious apple cobbler with vanilla ice cream. There will be another teaching exchange session in the spring.

Clinton Center, Heifer, Zoo

A number of honors students, visiting Russian exchange students, and invited guests took a trip to Little Rock Saturday. Leaving at 8 a.m. and returning some 14 hours later, all enjoyed a full day taking in the sights.

The first stop was the William J. Clinton Presidential Center. There we viewed the Clinton facsimile Oval Office, the Cabinet Room, and much more. Some of us also ate at the 42 Restaurant on the ground floor.

(From Left to Right) C. J. Heaton, Courtney Van Camp, and Daniel Tye pose at the 42 Restaurant.

After, the group walked to the nearby Heifer International building and Heifer Village to tour their award winning Green building.

Here is the view of the Clinton Center from the Heifer site. The old railway bridge on the right is now a pedestrian walkway to North Little Rock:

 Finally, we drove to the Little Rock Zoo and spent time looking at the animals there. Here is one of their many chimpanzees:

 It was a long day, to be sure, but a rewarding one. Before making it home we stopped in Malvern to eat. Some of us ate at the Great Wall of China while others opted for more traditional American fare. Interestingly, our two Chinese students passed on eating there, not REAL Chinese food they said.

Honors Haiku

Decided to have students write a haiku or two (or three) describing their first year honors experience.

Haiku poems in English typically have 17 syllables arranged in a:

5
7
5

order. Here's my first one:

Teaching them today
Fall semester nearly done
So much left to do