Page 4 - Tuesday, November 18, 2014

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Page 4- Tuesday, November18, 2014 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom

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MEGAN MCDONALD
PETER SHAHIN and DANIEL WANG KATIE BURKE
EDITOR IN CHIEF EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS MANAGING EDITOR
Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorial board.
All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
Innovative learning
The U's inventive teaching methods aid student development
lthough many see the arts and sciences as separate
entities with different learning processes, the University
is currently working to innovate both disciplines through
grants that will promote engaged and interactive learning. The
University of Michigan Museum of Art recently received a $1
million endowment from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation in an
effort to promote further integration of museum collections into
academic endeavors. Researching Evidence Based Undergraduate
Instructional and Learning Developments, a group of faculty
members who have started to reform the way STEM courses are
taught, has also received a $2 million grant from the National
Science Foundation. Both developments demonstrate initiative
to improve education through experiential learning that
would greatly benefit the University's student population. This
commitment to engaged learning will allow the student body
to reap the benefits that the University has to offer through a
comprehensive education across the disciplines. However, the
University should continue to develop new ways to incorporate
these multidisciplinary instructional methods.

Caught being Black

C onfronted. Attacked.
These two words are not
synonymous, and have
very different
definitions and "
connotations.
On Nov. 9,
Aura Rosser'
was shot in her
home. She was
a 40-year-old
mother of three, ;
a committed E
partner to her RE NE
boyfriend. And PASQUINELLI
she was Black.
She was in the
midst of an argument with her boy-
friend, and her boyfriend called the
police with the intention of having
the authorities escort her out of the
house. The police reportedly entered
the home, saw Rosser with a knife in
her kitchen, and shot her. Rosser's
boyfriend, Victor Stephens, claims
that lethal force was unwarranted in
this situation; "Why would you kill
her? It was a woman with a knife. It
doesn't make sense."
In the various news articles
reportingRosser's shooting, the word
"confronted" is used to describe her
activity before the shooting. These
descriptions have not made it easy
to interpret what that word means in
this context, but the fact of the matter
is that "confrontation" isn't usually a
word used to describe a life-threat-
ening situation. Police are authorized
to carry out lethal action when their
lives are at risk, but it is hard to tell if
this was the case. The use of the word
"confrontation" and no other word
has made me skeptical of the neces-
sity of the two policemen's actions.
The officers who responded to the
call made by Stephens have been
taken off their usual duties of active
road control due to their actions that
evening. A full investigation will
determine the future of the status of
their positions.
Not every shooting of a Black

civilian by a p
unwarranted or u
violence is an
people in genera
people. However,
indicates Blacks a
than whites or L
by police officers.
are associated w
have perpetuated
toward Black m
individuals in gene
University study,;
likely to unwarra
Black faces with
"crime-relevant
objects." What
these statistics
show is that
there is indeed
an embedded
issue with race
and police
violence that is
regularly denied
by those who
do not want to
address it.
In the case of
Rosser, there is ar
There is a clears
ing the discussionc
against the Black
there is a pretty lar
room with regard
in particular. Aurt
another Black life
of unnecessary an
police violence. Ev
tation with the pol
enough to persua
that the police wer
shooting of an inn
police department
the use of lethal a
endangerment oft
publically annou
tion of these twoc
the shooting.
In a city that h
a fatal shooting b
since the 1980s,
police violence is;

'olice officer is of problems in Ann Arbor. This
njustified. Police instance, however, is a manifestation
issue regarding of discriminatory police violence
, not just Black against Blacks. I'm not arguing that
current research Ann Arbor is going to become the
re far more likely next Ferguson, Missouri. Or any
atinos to be shot other city where police violence
Stereotypes that against Blacks is a systemic and
ith Black males ongoing problem. But, the fact
police violence that this is an ongoing issue in our
ales and Black countryis ahuge problem.
eral. In a Stanford A reason that this problem exists
participants were is that people with the power to
antedly associate change it, as well as many aver-
age Joes and
Josephinas, fail
.a hto recognize it
Police are authorized as an objective
to carry out lethal and real prob-
lem. We all know
action when their lives somebody who
responded to
are at risk, bUt it 15 Michael Brown's
hard to tell if that was,. shooting with
words along the
the case. lines of "calm
down. Innocent
white people are
shot by police
ace issue at hand. officers, too." Maybe you are the
stigma surround- person that thought or said that. OK,
of police violence fair. But, the issue our country faces
population, and is not about (and has never been
ge elephant in the about) the unfair treatment of white
to Rosser's story people. It is critical that we accept
a Rosser's life is the systemic issue surrounding dis-
lost at the hands criminatory police violence towards
id discriminatory Black individuals. The facts are
*en if her confron- there. Studies and data support that
ice with a knife is innocent Black people are discrimi-
de you to believe nated against in the case of police
e justified in their violence, thus more likely to be shot.
ocent woman, the You aren't hearing about this issue
that encourages because Black people are more sensi-
ction in a case of tive to police violence amongst their
their officers has community members, or because
nced the demo- Black people are more likely to be
officers following violent and criminals.You're hearing
about it because it is a tangible prob-
asn't experienced lem facing the Black community.

The UMMA grant will be used in multiple
ways, all of which are aimed at integrating
the museum collections into the learning
experience. The grant will fund two new
positions, an academic coordinator and a
collections assistant. Of the $1 million received
from the grant, $750,000 will go toward
the creation of the academic coordinator,
responsible for managing UMMA collections
andintegratingmuseumexhibits into abroader
range of courses and more student research
projects. This is a long-term investment in
multidisciplinary exploration at the University.
The use of this grant will serve as an example
of opportunity to utilize overlooked resources
in order to innovate learning across disciplines.
The $2 million NSF grant will be used to
fund the work of a group of faculty members
working on the REBUILD project that focuses
on experimentation and data collection of
student success in STEM classes. REBUILD
is based on the need to explore different
teaching methods in order to keep up with the
digital advancements of the academic world
through methods such as the use of "real-
life" research experience, online tournament-
style homework and video enhancement of
resources already available online. Research
conducted by REBUILD has shown that
active learning has many educational benefits.
It also points to improvement in professor
instruction when student success data is
gathered from one generation of students
to the next. Although this experimentation
is necessary to improve the effectiveness of
STEM courses at the University, necessary
trial and error might put current students at a
disadvantage academically.
Efforts to innovate learning have proven
successfulboth at the University and elsewhere.
For example, Laura Olsen, a professor of
molecular, cellular and developmental
biology, has changed her teaching style from
a traditional form to a "flipped course" style,

in which students are responsible for reading
material before class so that time in lecture
can be spent working through problems.
Similarly, Lehigh University in Pennsylvania
has implemented its Mountaintop Program,
which allows students to create their own
hands-on project proposals, which are
carried out in a free-form way that allows for
student-led exploration. This initiative follows
educational studies that suggest that student-
led projects not only help students to better
retain knowledge, but also cultivate-innovation
that they can use to foster future success.
Furthermore, Northeastern University's
acclaimed co-op program - in which students
are placed in semester-long experiential
learning environments such as internships,
research or study abroad opportunities - has
proven to cultivate a greater sense of motivation
and purpose in learning.
The ability to provide students with
alternative learning options often hinges on
access to resources, something in abundance
at the University. Underutilized libraries
such as the William L. Clements and Bentley
Historical libraries, which house a wealth of
pre-20th-century original documents and
maps, could be used to more actively engage
students in the humanities and social science
fields. The audio and video-editing studios,
located in North Campus's Duderstadt
Center, provide a platform for all students to
develop audio-visual skills that can be used
to supplement any academic pursuit. The
University also houses a 3-D printing lab
with student access, allowing STEM students
to keep up with technological advances
in their fields. The innovative use of the
recently received STEM and arts grants are a
step in the right direction, putting into place
innovative programs. This more wholesome
and well-rounded way of educating will help
students engage at the University, and thus
engage with the world at large.

y a police officer
it's clear that
not a large source

- Rennie Pasquinelli can be
reached at renpasq@umich.edu.


A s we sink into the deep
depression that signals the
impending doom of winter,
we search for
ways to make'
ourselves warm
again, inside and
out. People turn
on the Christmas "
music way too
early and pull
out their favorite
sweaters with the
hope that these MAURA
small efforts LEVINE
will stave off the
inevitable arctic
chill. But in Washington, D.C., I've
noticed a new and different method
of keeping warm - the community.
Here, people have relied on other
people in ways that I have never
before noticed in Ann Arbor and, as
students, we could learn a thing or
two from this metropolitan territory
with Midwest kindness.
In D.C. there aren't many places to
study. Our Michigan in Washington
cohort ends up studying in makeshift
study lounges, which are really aban-
doned classrooms in our dorm or in
the ever-present Starbucks. In Ann
Arbor, at any coffee shop all you can
see are students typing away at their
computers, dark circles encompass-
ingtheir eyes as they scratch furious-
ly at the keys, hoping their final paper
will suffice. They hardly look up, too
engrossed in texting their friends
about plans for the evening and blast-
ing the electronic dance music that
will help them make it through the
homework pain.
In D.C., however, the vibe is dif-
ferent. No longer on campus, there
are people of all ages and all colors
and sizes at Starbucks. There is a
communal bar table in the middle of
the shop filled with singles reading
newspapers, families with babies,
30-year-olds eating sandwiches and'
little old men drinking espresso.
Less than half of the people are
plugged into a device and I feel like
an outsider for doing so. There's a
woman with her architecture draw-
ings spread out on a shorter table and
right next to her a stranger reads the
newspaper. Two old men who are
apparently complete strangers strike
up a conversation. One tells the other
about his upcoming trip to South
America and the latter launches
into a story about his world travels.
Soon the two are friends, exchang-
ing e-mail addresses on little slips of

en to interaction
paper. I notice this interaction and low price
smile because it feels like a small nights in
town - it's warm and friendly. Past gues
The truth is, people are anxious who ren
that technologyis pulling us further reviews a
apart as humans and making us before yo
interact less, when I would argue sketchy,
just the opposite, it just depends on (and eco
where you are. My favorite example roommat
of this phenomenon is Uber, the New Yor
smartphone app that allows you experien
to call up a car

for the night or for several
n cities around the world.
ts evaluate all of the people
t out and you can read
and see pictures of the space:
uo commit. While it.sounds
it's actually a charming
nomical) idea. One of my
es recently used Airbnb in
k City and had a wonderful
ce. The woman who hosted
her was thinking

EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS
Edvinas Berzanskis, Devin Eggert, David Harris, Rachel John,
Jordyn Kay, Aarica Marsh, Megan McDonald, Victoria Noble,
Michael Paul, Allison Raeck, Melissa Scholke,
Michael Schramm, Matthew Seligman, Mary Kate Winn,
Jenny Wang, Daniel Wang, Derek Wolfe

to drive , you
anywhere with ,
anyhee wth They're welcomin
a wait time of ng
usually less than and accomodating and
five minutes no
matter where frankly it's a reprive
you are in the
city. The catch is from the cutthroat
that Uber hires University of Michigan
civilian drivers.
Virtually anyone fighting-for-the-curve
can sign up to
become an Uber attitude.
driver and (after
a background
check and driving history check) duringaseparate t
they can escort people around just a bed and breakfa
by turning on their app whenever currently runs a
they have time. In D.C., we take her home. She wa
Uber everywhere. It's cheaper than to communicate,
taxis and'instantaneous. people who signui
When I first heard about this for human int
service I thought anyone who took welcoming and
it must be crazy. We're the kids who and frankly it's a
grew up in a generation where you cutthroat Univer
can't trick-or-treat alone for fear fighting-for-the-c
of being abducted by a pedophile; - While there
we don't get in strangers' cars. Yet between D.C. and,
technology has allowed us to do just diversity of age
that, and has given us a wonderful more varied off ca
sense of human trust and a much- mean the human
needed human interaction. Through be any less. In fac
taking Uber nearly three times a human interaction
week, I've met some pretty cool be greater ben
drivers. More than half the time young. But as I'v
I take an Uber I end up having a time again, I feel
really interesting conversation with polarized: people
someone and listening to his or her groups, their owt
funny story about the drunken guy fraternities and s
last night who was sitting in my place own friends the
in the backseat. Sometimes I even get year. The hashtag
advice about somewhere I have to go funny but uncomf
in D.C. before I leave. The point is, Arbor. While I'm
they're normal people for the most fallen prey to this:
part and I've never felt unsafe. In something to say
fact, I love the human interaction. It make someone'sc
warms the soul to come in contact act of humankind
with friendly people regularly. They don't have t'
Uber isn't an anomaly. Airbnb is friend. You just I
another service with a similar idea, human interactio
except instead of taxis it targets the headphones e'
hotels. Airbnb is an app where you
can find a room in someone's home - Maura L
or their entire home and rent it at a a

of opening
up a home
for battered
and abused
women and was
garnering advice
on how best to
run a shelter.
My roommate
enjoyed staying
with her and said
she would stay
with her again.
The woman
I stayed with
tripwantedtoopen
st in the future and
yoga studio out of
s friendly and easy
with. Most of the
p tohost are looking
eraction. They're
accommodating
reprieve from the
sity of Michigan
urve attitude.
is a difference
Ann Arbor because
and profession is
ampus, that doesn't
interaction should
t, you would think
n on campus would
ause everyone is
e written time and
like Ann Arbor is
stick to their own
n races, their own
ororities and their
y made freshman
g #nonewfriends is
ortably true inAnn
guilty of having
idea myself, there's
for how you can
day just by a small
ness or interaction.
o become your best
have to be open to
n - and take out
very once in awhile.
Levine can be reached
it mtoval@umich.edu.

But I didn't know that I would feel anxiety every time
I open my front door, or that being chased by 10 men
you don't know, or being surrounded, feels invasive
and makes me feel scared and gets my adrenaline
going every day:'
- Actress Jennifer Lawrence said in an interview Saturday when discussing the
emotional toll and lack of privacy that comes with being a movie star.

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