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Page 4-Tuesday, February 5, 1980-The Michigan Daily


LSA

'consumers need voice

Ninety Years of Editorial Freedom

Vol. XC, No. 103

News Phone: 764-0552

Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan

The study space game
you're bound to lose

"
"

The nature of the "product" which the
Literary College provides necessitates a more
formal role in the decision making process for
its "customers." An education, let alone: a
good education, is difficult to define because
students have different needs, expectations,
and abilities. However, a few fundamental
characteristics can be ascribed to a quality
education.
The curriculum must be challenging in par-
ticular courses. Further than that, a student's
program must include intellectual obstacles
and not follow a course of complacency. The
understanding of ideas and the acquisition of
skills comprise the basic subject matter. The
composition and breadth of course offerings
also transmits to the student certain values
and insights. The curriculum of the college
merely provides an outline, the boundaries of
which conf ine a student's education.
TEACHING IS THE active force of
education. A good teacher does not merely
transmist information from a rostrum, as is
often thought sufficient in academia, but alsp
guides and develops students' thoughts; to
learn to think, although it may sound absurd,
should be a goal of all students. The develop-
ment of a good teacher. requires individual
dedication and institutional support and en-
couragement. Though teaching and the
curriculum are the traditional parts of an
education, support services, especially per-
sonal and academic counseling, have an im-
portant educational function. For at a
residential university such as Michigan, the
whole environment and all experiences
become part of a student's education.
Education is complex. Administrators and
faculty members are limited in their ability to
improve education and their interest in doing
so is often similarly limited. Only students
can adequately' evaluate their education:

they alone know whether their expectations
are being fulfilled and whether they are being
intellectually challenged.
However, students should not be merely
thought of as consumers oif. an educational
product. Indeed, the College, structurally and
actively, keeps students from influencing
their educations through a "market system."
The granting of tenure drastically reduces the
College's ability to meet changing demands.
The faculty's reluctance to conduct and
release information from course evaluations
denies students the opportunity to act as in-
formed consumers. Students are
distinguished from consumers in that they
can provide constructive alternatives and
solutions, not merely choose from alter-
natives already provided. Students have long
LSA-SG Forum
been the active impetus for educational in-
novation. This is not to say a consumer-
producer relationship is . desirable in the
College. Some amount of stability must exist
in education; certain aspects of a good
education never change and should not
become victims of momentary whims.
However, students do have important
abilities both as evaluators of and innovators
for education.
STUDENTS MUST HAVE a formal role in
the actual decision-making process of the
University and College. Mere "input" into the
decision making process is insufficient, for
recommendations, suggestions, and
evaluations can easily be denied serious con-
sideration. Nor is marginal inclusion on stan-

T HERE ARE a number f games
at this University that students
are always trying to win: "Let's go
CRISP" is one not-so-favorite; "Let's
Go From 3rd Floor West Engin. to 4th
Floor MLB in Ten Minutes" is
Another; and of course, there's the
Monopoly of University contests,
"Let's Try to Graduate."
Although triumph in these three
games can often be achieved by
overriding, running, or brown-nosing,
there is one game that is becoming
increasingly difficult to win-"Let's
Go Study."
The problem, quite simply, is that
there are too many players and not
senough squares on the board to
accommodate them. Almost every
night, and especially on Sundays and
during exam periods, students must
use "Stratego" to find study space in.
libraries, or "Risk" noisy locations in
dorms or classroom buildings. All too
.often, the answer for hundreds of
students hunting for a quiet place to
study is "Sorry."
Many more devious players of the
"Let's Go Study" game have adopted
a "Dungeons and Dragons"
b
p
y

ding committees sufficient. First, students'
abilities are not recognized as being equally
as valuable as those of administrators and
faculty.
Second, the committees can be easily
circumvented by the College's Executive
Committee. Third, ad hoc committees can be
formed, with students not necessarily in-
cluded, to deal with issues outside the
jurisdiction of the standing committees.
Fourth, the formal structure and procedures
which exist for tenure decisions deny students
the opportunity to utilize their abilities as
evaluators of teaching. By denying students a
more formal role in decision making, the
faculty prevents the knowledge and in
novations students can offer from being tran
slated into College policy.
Individual students have a responsibility to
themselves, future students, and the College,
to become actively involved in their
educations. Though individual students
remain at the University a short, period of
time, student interests are similar for all
students at any one time. Only students can
truly represent student interests.
The willingness of the faculty and ad-
ministration to play internal political games
with the quality of education is evidence thaO
the students' welfare is not treated seriously.
Indeed, if the faculty and administration were
truthfully dedicated to the notion that the
College should be an institution of quality
education, they would welcome -students'
knowledge and abilities into the decision
making process.
LSA-SG Forum is a bi-weekly column
covering significant issues addressed by.
the Literary College Student Government
This piece was written by LSA-S
President Dan Solomon.

approach-they search out the many'
smaller campus libraries, or slip
surreptitiously into the Law Library,
Furstenberg Library, or Public Health
Library.
This game-plan, however, cannot
work for most students, because
spaces in such locations are severely
limited.
There are nearly 36,000 students at
the University. The Undergraduate
and Graduate Libraries combined seat
only about 2,400. There is clearly a
problem.
The newly formed Task Force on
Study Environments will attempt to fix
the study game so that. more students
can play. Perhaps more classroom
buildings can be opened up, and
increased security provided so that the
failure of the Angell Hall Study Rooms.
is not repeated. Perhaps some new
library or library addition could be
built, although such a plan is probably
not feasible. Perhaps professors can
start to give out fewer assignments.
Whatever the solution, action should
come soon. If students lose the study
game, they won't care about the
CRISP game, and can't win the
graduation game. And that's no fun.

FEIFFER

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FBI bribery probe is.a
ong attack on corruption
ICANS WHO had been hoping to pay bribes. In most cases, the agents
some Republicans were the were steered toward bribeable
d guys" in the capitol, and officials by contacts they had made
still smug in their partisan while in their undercover guises. This
se seven-and-a-half years would seemto have been a reasonable
Watergate break-in, had and fair procedure.
d news to swallow , this The exposure of the errant ways of
The Federal Bureau of the elected officials is certainly \a
ition unveiled its two-year welcome revelation; even more
corruption among politicians welcome is the indication that the FBI
bs ranged from minor state is now directing some of its efforts
U.S. Senator. Virtually all toward combatting white collar crime.
nbers in good standing of the The superior training of Bureau
tic party. agents is well-suited to the
oruses singing "everybody unvravelling of political corruption
ut only a few get caught" are and organized crime. Often, the
begin soon, and in fact, such . perpetrators of these crimes have the
is are well-taken. The vast influence and financial resources to
of public officials who have foil the law enforcement attempts of
bes-or who would if one were lesser -crime-fighting units.
-have not been prosecuted And after all, it is these high level
igated. But the FBI is to be crimes that hurt the most people:
led for taking a step, at least, Embezzlement by a corporation vice-
erreting out all lawbreaking president is ultimately absorbed by the
rs. consumer; organized crime runs the
prehending the alleged drug business that poisons the ghettos,
?rs, the FBI agents posed as and corruption in Washington and
nen and Arab sheiks willing state capitols bilks us all.

Loo~to .
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2"d

YICFA

04

1


As American students and
working people living in the
United States,-we have a special
responsibility to help the
Nicaraguan people build a new
society. It was our government,
in our name, that kept the'
Somoza family in power as a dic-
tatorship for almost half a cen-
tury and worked to the last
moment to prevent the victory of
the popular Sandinista forces.
By demanding that the U.S.
government adopt a friendly and
supportive policy toward the
Nicaraguan revolution-with -no
strings attached-and by
showing friendship and support
for the Nicaraguan people our-
selves, we can usher in a new era
of solidarity between the people
of our two nations.
SUPPORTING the National
Literacy Crusade would be an
excellent way to develop these
ties. Under Somoza, 60 per cent of
the Nicaraguan people were
illiterate. The 40 per cent who are
literate received sub-standard
educations. In rural areas most
people only went to two or three
grades of school; in the cities
people went to the sixth grade.
High schools were not very com-
mon outside of the cities, and in
the cities most were private or
Catholic schools, which charged
tuition. In some rural areas, the
recent literacy census has found
that 90-95 per cent of the people
are illiterate.
The new Government of
National Reconstruction began
organizing the literacy campaign
in August 1979, two weeks after
the victory over Somoza. Over
170,000 people, mostly high-
school and college-age youths,
have volunteered to serve as the
teachers during the campaign.
Beginning around March 24,
when the rainy season ends in
Nicaragua, these volunteer
teachers will fan out into the
countryside and slums to teach,
the more than 850,000 illiterate

hammocks, and lanterns for the
J'e shouid he p volunteer teachers.
In the United States the
National Network .in Solidarity
eraCVwith the Nicaraguan People was
 icara2z un organized to educate Americans

crusade program

By Rob Warren


THE REVOLUTIONARY
government considers that
education is one of the basic
priorities of the revolution. Con-
sequently, is has made all
schooling free, and started this
literacy campaign. It considers
literacy to be, with food and
health care, the three top
priorities that it must deliver to
the people as gains of the
revolution.
"The literacy campaign that
we are going to carry out in the
first year of the revolution is a'
clear sign of the democratic
character of this revolution, for
the weapon of knowledge is going
to enable each individual to ob-
tain an education, to be really
free," comments Octavio Rivas,
assistant minister of education in
Nicaragua (International Press,
February 4, 1980).
The method to be used is that of
Paolo Friere, world renowned
Brazilian educator, author of
Pedagogy of the Oppressed,
whose methods for mass literacy,
based on the life experiences and
consciousness of oppressed
peoples, have already been used
in Chile, Peru and other
developing countries. Friere was
in Nicaragua to help with the
initial setting up of the campaign.
DURING THE campaign, all
schools will be closed so that the
volunteers can take part. The
main structures for the.campaign
come from the mobilization of
Nicaragua's masns nranizatinns

benefits of the revolution to the
countryside, use texts which will
provide a political awareness. to
the illiterates on what has hap-
pened in Nicaragua and an un-
derstanding of the revolutionary
process. It is expected that many
of the illiterates whose political
consciousness and independence
have been developed by
becoming literate will be brought
into the mass organizations
(youth, womens', unions, far-
mworkers, etc.) that are or-
chestrating the campaign and
are seen as the essential defen-
ders of the revolution.
The campaign is being carried
out as was the war against the
Somoza dictatorship-with
seriousness and vigor. Volun-
teers are being organized into
Brigades and Fronts, with the
same names as the brigades and
fronts that fought the guerilla
war against Somoza.
THE TOTAL cost of the
literacy campaign is estimated at
$20 million. This figure includes
money for paper, pens, pencils,
textbooks plus food, uniforms.

about the Nicaraguans and raise
money for the literacy campaign.
At the second national conference
in solidarity with the Nicaraguan
people, the National Network
pledged to raise over $500,004
worth of material for uniforms
and insignias for the literacy
workers.
People from religious
organizations, trade unions, and
universities as well as doctors,
political activists and community
organizations are working
nationwide on this campaign. The
U.S.' solidarity effort for
Nicaragua is receiving a big
boost with the tour of Soni
Chamorro from Nicaragua.
Chamorro is the fund-raising
director of the Nicaragua
National Literacy Crusade. She is
on a two week tour of the United
States speaking about the cam-
paign.
Chamorro will be speaking in
Ann Arbor on Monday, February
11 at 8:00 p.m. -in Angell Hall
Auditorium C. The talk is bein
co-sponsored by the Ann Arbor
Nicaragua Solidarity Committee,
Office of Ethics and Religion,
Guild House, Interfaith Council
for Peace, LSA-SG, MSA and the
Ann Arbor Committee for Human
Rights in Latin America.
Bob Warren is a member of
the Ann Arbor Nicaragua
Solidarity Comm itee.


n

MWE

LETTERS TO THE DAILY:

Workers must organize

To the Daily:
The threat of nuclear annihi-
lation has been magnified many
times by the Russian invasion of
Afghanistan. This threat of war,

We of the Socialist Labor Party
claim that the only way to
prevent this nuclear holocaust is
for the working class to organize
and tn nrnclim noiail nunerchin

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