6 U. THE NATIONAL COLLEGE NEWSPAPER News Features FEBRUARY 1989 6 U. THE NATIONAL COLLEGE NEWSPAPER News Features* FEBRUARY 1989 FOCUS Many professors live by the words "publish or perish," their careers sometimes hinging on hav- ing their work published. Most faculty agree that research can only enhance education. Yet they find it difficult to equally divide time between teaching and re- search while maintaining the qual- ity of both. Drawing the line between TEACHING 0. AND RESEARCH 'Professors ignore undergraduates' ... A new book by Milwaukee author Charles Sykes, entitled ProtScam: Professors and the Demise ofHigher EducationJ" is making waves at U. nf Wisconsin, (UW) Madisnn. The < bok criticizesprofessors at large research-nriented uni- versities, stating that "professors are overpaid, underwork- ed architects of academia's vast empire of waste," Sykes _ said. "Professors at large research-oriented schools such; as UW-Madis n are neglecting teaching responsibilities in nrder In psrsue mnre financially and professionally profit-p able avocations." Douglas Maynard of the UW-Madison 4 sociology department disagrees: Sykes "is making an artificial distinction between research and teaching. By using our own research to enforce our teaching, we are . providing an enhanced education unavailable elsewhere." Stephen White, The Badger Herald, U. of Wisconsin, Madisont Research involves students ... Professors must try to include undergraduates in their research activi- ties, panel members said at a forum "Student Learning in a Research University," at U. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Members on the panel included professors, heads of re- search and a student government leader. Some argue that research opportunities at alarge university provide advan- tages over attending a small college, said Joel Schwartz, political science professor. "There's a faculty with a cutting" edge, and undergraduates are part of shaping that cutting edge," he said. Participants in research at universities like UNC is less than 1 percent. But at smaller, private colleges, like oberlin in Ohio and Swarthmore in Per.,sylvania,o closer to 30 percent of undergraduates participate in re- search.. Nancy Wykle, The Daily Tar Heel, U. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill --- R ESE ARCH OVERALL Students question research ... Although many students statewide support the Jobs, Education and 1. Johns Hopkins U., (MD) 1 Yale U., (Conn.) Competitiveness Bond Act, a number of Rutgers U. under- 2 Massachusetts Institute.Of.2. Princeton U., (NJ) graduates remain skeptical about its benefit to the universi- ty community. "Money from the state for education is a Technology 3. California Institute of Technology good thing," said Rob Hill, president of Rutgers College Governing Association. "But none of the money is really 3. . of Wisconsin, Madison 4. Harvard U., (MA) going to undergraduate student needs." The funding from 4 CornelU.,(NY).Massachusetts Institute of, the bond issue "is not going to have much of a positive effect on undergraduates, unless you believe in Ed Blous- 5. Stanford U. (CA) Technology ,° tein's trickle-down theory of education," said Trevor Lewis, student representative to the University Board of Gov 6. U. of Michigan 6. Stanford U, (CA) ernors He was reerri g to Universty President Edward 7. U. of Minnesota, Twin Cities 7. Dartmouth College, (NH) Blouste n's argument that better research faciitiesw il lead to better faculty which in turn will lead to better under- 8. Iexas A & M U. 8. Columbia U, (NY) graduate education. "What I'm saying is maybe a university is more than just buildings and an image," Lewis said. 9. U. of California, Las Angeles 9. Rice U, (TX) Rebecca Phillips, The Daily Targum, Rut- gers U., NJ Publish or perish syndrome plagues campuses Research ranked highest priority,* teaching second By Dave Rossell The Daily Northwestern Northwestern U., IL Northwestern U. (NU)faculty feel the university rewards research more than teaching, according to the final report of the Task Force on the Undergraduate@ Experience. Thirty-seven percent of the faculty members surveyed ranked teaching as their top priority, while 64 percent ranked research first. "The reward structure in the uni- versity is such that the departments are heavily weighted toward research," said history Professor William Heyck, chairman of the Task Force. "It is time for the central administra- tiontoreward teaching as well," he said. NU Provost Robert Duncan said that NU emphasizes teaching more than many other research universities. "Research is a major component of what faculty do here and it has a major "We're talking about a climate in which everyone knows that the big awards go to research instead of teaching." - ARLENE DANIELS impact on how they are evaluated," Duncan said. "But for a major universi- tylike this, I've been impressed with the care and attention faculty put to teaching." Still, some faculty memhers disagree. In a survey last spring, about 10 percent of faculty said they thought under- graduate teaching is rewarded "quite a it" or "a good deal," and 39 percent indicated it was rewarded "basically not - at all." "We're talking about a climate in which everyone knows that the big re- wards go to research instead o4 teaching," said Arlene Daniels, profes- sor of sociology. "In a way, you can't help but feel teaching pulls you away from research," Daniels said. "On the other hand, you're hired for teaching. I like (teaching) when I do it, hut I can't help ut feel it's sapping our energies." Other faculty members said they felt the same way. "Northwestern does place an emph asis on research and publication," said John Hunwick, chairman of the history and literature of religions department. "I believe research and publication should be an important part, but they should not always be overriding." NU does provide some incentives for teachers, the Task Force said, but those incentives reach only a small portion o the faculty. The College of Arts and Sci- ences has established the "Great Teachers Program" which has supplied some endowed chairs for outstanding teachers. By Suna Purser a The Battalion Texas A&M U. In the dog-eat-dog world of higher education, POPS (publish or perish syndrome) is beginning its infesta- tion here at Texas A&M, and is ram- pantly spreading through the faculty ranks. Becoming a first-rate research institution and attracting the world's top-notch scholars are the germs that give POPS its impetus. And the sad thing is, few faculty members are im- mune to the deadly disease. How can you, the unsuspecting student, tell if you're being exposed? For your handy reference, here is Dr. Suna's POPS checklist: 1. The professor's door is shut at all times, even during designated office hours. What this means is that they are undeniably uninterested in stu- dents' concerns. You KNOW they're in there be- cause you hear them frantically typ- ing. If your entire career depended on how much you published, how con- cerned would you be with a measly undergraduate student? 2. A class discussion focused on the latest chapter the professor has au- thored. This allows professors to pump their egos. 3. Professors "appropriate" student research. Having exhausted every idea, these desperate, dehydrated professors find a bright student, and their publishing worries are over. 4. The final symptom is found in teaching automatons who come into the classroom with no facial express- ions. And so it seems that POPS - in many instances - has supplanted the good ol'"mom and pop" professors who genuinely had student education and growth at heart, and not their own professional and personal gain.