March 10, 1999
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THE MICHIGAN REVIEW
o CAMPUS AFFAIRS
Team Homework Unfair BY
Scon BEHNAN
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N 1992, UNIVERSITY OF Michigan students witnessed a revolution in the math department known as the "New-Wave Calculus." To this day, students enrolled in Math 115 and Math 116 still experience this "New-Wave Calculus," which promotes graphing calculators and a new approach to problem solving known as "team homework." With the graphing calculators, students can now graph functions, and thus understand concepts like differentiation and integration more effectively. However, U-M's policy of "team homework" not only impedes the student's learning process, but also disgraces the meaning of a team. Math 115 is a traditional introductory calculus course geared towards freshman. One of the largest classes in the University, its student body ranges from math-oriented engineers, to students struggling to complete their quantitative reasoning credit. With the introduction of "New-Wave Calculus," individual homework no longer plays a role in the overall grade. Instead,
DHuMOR BY DAVE GUIPE
F YOU'RE LIKE ME, WELL, YOU probably need to seek professional help. What I mean is, if you're a sophomore like I am, it's about time that you start thinking about that age old question that has plagued college students for generations. That's right, it's time for you to decide what your major will be. Right now you're probably thinking: "Dave, you can't be serious. I mean, choosing a major would imply that I actually intend to graduate and go out into (gulp) the real world!" Trust me, I feel your pain. Despite what some fictional characters will tell you, life is NOT a box of chocolates. So, unless you can convince Bill Gates that you're his long lost nephew Theron, you're going to have to actually make an effort to get a degree. This is not a cause for alarm, however, since there are plenty of majors out there for those of us who aren't familiar with the concept of "making an effort." So, in order to guide you in this major decision (Get it, "Major decision?" It's a pun. Oh shut up! Now it's not funny anymore!), I've devised the following description of some potential majors that you may want to consider. Let's start with my own personal choice ...
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instructors check only team homework, given weekly to assigned groups of students. On the first day of class, the instructor randomly assigns four students per team, who then meet to solve a set of problems. Together, the team submits its written solutions, with everyone receiving the same grade. However, many math students ask themselves: does each member contribute equally? In a class of such wide disparity of intelligence and work ethic, the answer is no. For example, consider the following scenario of "student AU and "student B" assigned to the same group. "Student A" is an eager, diligent, and bright math student striving for high achievement in his class. "Student B," on the other hand, vastly prefers solving Nintendo games to math problems. At the team meeting, a prepared "Student AU quickly answers the questions while his team members stare in awe. A late-arriving "Student B" shrugs his shoulders and stares at his watch. At the end of the meeting, "Stu.dent A" chooses to write the report, because he is unwilling to risk his team homework grade, which constitutes 25 percent of
the overall grade. Sadly, the team homework grade equals that of the final exam. I recently spoke with a friend from a far more prestigious institution than U-M, Johns Hopkins University. "Professors at Hopkins know better than to play around with grades like that with the intense competition for graduate schools," he said. On the other hand, UM's Math Department reaffirms its policy on its homepage, stating, "Everyone in your group will be responsible for everyone else in the group learning the material." In other words, "Student B" will receive a boost to his already failing grade due to the efforts of "Student A," who will be punished for his aptitude. The Math Department is right to assume that people work in t~ams in the real world. However, teams in the professional world form through merit, not chance. For example, biology students are familiar with the dynamic duo of Francis Crick and James Watson. After years of intense study, these scientists became the first to trace the molecular structure of DNA. They voluntarily worked as a team because they envisioned the potential of working
together. Now suppose that we apply the Math Department's philosophy to this DNA team. Instead of a diligent biologist like Watson, Crick might find himself with a drunken poet from the slums of Liverpool. Crick would would have spent the rest of his life teaching him what a cell is, and the acronym DNA would be unknown today. The Math Department should follow the example of the Chemistry Department, which has a more responsible policy for group work. For example, in Chemistry 130, students have the option of forming study groups to assist in understanding. It is highly unlikely that either "Student A" or "Student B" would sign up for such a team. However, common students find these groups helpful, and have enrolled in great numbers in the past year. Furthermore, it is not ridiculous for the Math Department to require team homework in upper-level courses like Math 216, which consists of mostly math-majors and engineers. In an introductory course like Math 115, team homework is a benefit for some and a burden for others. One wonders what's next. Team tuition payment? .tvR
Major Confusion English: Yes, the English degree, a source of bad jokes at any university. The truth is, U-M has a really good English department, and if you are interested in English-related topics, such as literature or creative writing, then you may want to consider majoring in English. As an English major, you will be expected to" analyze" various pieces of writing, from novels to poetry. By "analyze," I mean read the piece and then make up some meaning that has
the influence of such substances. Sociology. Sociology is defined as "the study of making things more complicated than they actually are." If you major in sociology, you will spend a lot of time coming up with intricate theories to explain normal human behavior. For example, in a sociology class that I took here during my first semester (I was young and foolish), I was required to learn about some theories as to why President Johnson escalated the Viet-
Despite what some fictional characters will tell you/ life is NOT a box of chocolates. nothing to do with the actual topic. For example, if you were to read a poem about someone painting a fence, you could argue that the poem actually symbolizes the Crucifixion and probably get an "A." Philosophy. Here's a good one for those of you who aren't planning on getting a real job following graduation. As a philosophy major, you will be required to think about random topics while under the influence of, uh, perfectly legal substances. You will also get the opportunity to read about the thoughts of others who were also uJ,1der
nam War. If! remember correctly, they included the "Johnson Wanted To Win The Next Election" theory, the "Johnson Wanted To Take The Attention Off The Fact That His Domestic Policies Made FDR Seem Like A Conservative" theory, and the "Johnson Was A Moron" theory. Political Science. lf you're reading this newspaper, chances are that you're interested in politics. In that case, political science may be the major for you. Once again, U-M has a very good political science department, and they expect you to actually know what you're doing. But if you have lots of political
opinions that you are prepared to back up with actual facts, you may find this to be an enjoyable major. Physics: If you're one of those people who prefers to major in a subject that has right answers, you may want to consider one of the sciences, such as physics. As a physics major, you will be required to learn various equations that have no application in the real world unless you're a physicist. If you're interested in both political science and physiCS, you could double major and write your thesis on how Star Trek is actually representative of the political landscape of the 1960s (Klingons symbolized Russians, Captain Kirk wasJFK, etc.). Math Yeah, right. General Studies: What's that? You say that you want college to be exactly like high school? Then general studies may be the major for you. This major will allow you to take classes in a varietyofsubjects and ensure that you won't have to work too hard in any of them. It also may allow you to someday appear on Jeopardy! Now that you have my analysis, you should be able to effectively pick a major. So I shall leave you to your decision while I go eat lunch: cold pizza from my refrigerator. Now that's what college is all about . .tvR