[University of Waterloo]

 
Daily
Bulletin



Waterloo, Ontario, Canada | 519-888-4567 | Backwards and in high heels
Friday | Past days
Search past Bulletins
UWevents
UWinfo | Text
About the Bulletin
Mail to the editor

Monday, July 16, 2001

  • Campus trees are in crisis
  • Teachers get advice about conflict
  • Monday notes

Midnight Sun update:
UW's solar car team led the field at the first checkpoint of the American Solar Challenge race. Follow the team's progress as it travels Route 66.

[Damaged trees]
Photo by Barbara Elve
The bare branches of a chestnut tree, growing out of a raised planter near the rock garden, illustrate the effects of drought and disease, as well as the stresses of the urban environment on campus trees.

Campus trees are in crisis -- by Barbara Elve

The signs are all around us: bare branches, dead crowns, brown patches. Trees on campus and throughout southwestern Ontario are suffering.

Droughts of the past few years have weakened many trees, making them susceptible to insects and disease, say UW grounds foremen Jerry Hutten and Les Van Dongen, who oversee the trees on campus.

Although last summer was wet -- 588.4 mm between April 1 and October 31 -- rainfall levels for 1998 (312.5 mm) and 1999 (470.9 mm) were well below the average of 572.1 mm for that period. So far this year, rainfall has been less than average.

Dutch elm disease -- which nearly wiped out the elm population several decades ago -- has resurfaced, attacking elms of all ages on the North Campus.

Nearly a dozen red maples scattered around the university grounds are struggling. Pale, undersized leaves can be spotted on the drought-sensitive trees, which were planted early in the history of the campus.

Austrian pines, also planted as part of early landscape efforts, are being hit by diplodia blight, which causes defoliation and a general decline.

And mountain ash, which can be found at UW Place, are looking "like someone has taken a propane torch to the bark and leaves" -- the victims of fire blight.

Adding to the drought problem are the stresses of the urban landscape and the tendency of landscapers to create pockets of plantings of a single species.

In an urban setting, trees suffer from reduced moisture levels because they are surrounded by hard surfaces. Roots receive less oxygen due to soil compaction, and root space is often cramped as a result of surrounding pavement and buildings. As well, paved surfaces magnify the heat and there is little undergrowth to cool things down.

Not only do studies show that biodiversity is healthier for plants; monocultural environments make it easier for disease to spread.

Ground crews are responding to the crisis by attempting to improve the vigour of trees -- especially the most vulnerable newly-established trees -- by watering, says Hutten, a strategy that is both time-consuming and labour-intensive. A special wand is used to deliver water directly to the roots.

More attention is also being paid to selecting the right tree for the right environment, he adds, instead of planting for purely aesthetic reasons. While native species tend to be hardier, that's not always the case. The ginkgo -- an Asian species which may have grown here in prehistoric times -- is particularly resistant to air pollution.

Some 16 trees measuring up to eight or nine inches in diameter were transplanted this spring to make way for construction of new buildings, and few new trees will be planted until those projects are completed and conditions on campus improve.

As for the rest of us, says Hutten, we can give the root space of trees a wide berth to avoid further compacting of the soil. "Respect the trees," he adds.

Online course selection begins this week

Spring term undergraduate students should select their Winter 2002 courses through the QUEST online process between July 18-24, 2001. This new class enrolment process uses an appointment system; upper year students will go first.

Says the registrar's office: "You'll be given an appointment -- a time frame of approximately 4 to 5 hours -- to let you know when you can select your classes. Prior to your appointment time you'll need to plan your schedule using the information provided to you in the class enrolment instructions.

"To find out when your appointment time is, visit QUEST on July 16 or 17, 2001, and login using your UWuserid and password. If you don't know your UWuserid or password you'll be able to look it up on the QUEST site...."

General information sessions have been scheduled to acquaint students, faculty and staff with course selection using QUEST. They'll take place in DC 1350 today and tomorrow at 1:30, 2:30 and 3:30 p.m.

On a related note: the registrar's office sends a "reminder to students who will be using an override form to enrol in classes that are otherwise unavailable to them. Please hand in the completed override form to the registrar's office before your scheduled appointment."

Teachers get advice about conflict

"A mild embarrassment" can be a useful tool for teachers -- useful in getting disruptive students to quiet down, anyway.

So says a "teaching tips" sheet developed by UW's teaching resources and continuing education office, as the result of a workshop last term on conflict management for teachers. "No matter how hard we work at preventing conflicts, they are a part of life," explains teaching assistant Geneviève Desmarais of TRACE, "and instructors, from the most entertaining to the most challenging, have encountered them at times. Though as instructors, we prepare ourselves to transmit knowledge, we receive very little guidance regarding how to cope with distracting, upset, or angry students."

She summarizes some of the advice that came out: "When conflicts do arise in your classroom, don't ignore them. Most classroom conflicts concern distracting student behaviour, such as talking, and are easy to cope with. Move around the classroom to create some dynamics and keep the students' attention on you, make eye contact with the distracting students, or pause during your lecture. . . . If the behaviour persists or degenerates, you may consider verbally addressing the class or asking the disruptive students to leave.

"Sometimes classroom conflicts depart from mere distractions and escalate into authority challenges. The key to getting through these public confrontations is to avoid taking the challenge personally. You should try to relax and keep calm, and keep your voice sounding clear and firm instead of defensive or sarcastic. Acknowledge the value of the student's opinion, and maybe suggest discussing the matter privately at a later time.

"Many of the conflicts we encounter as instructors will occur in private, for example over a grade complaint. The key goals here are to maintain professionalism, and to focus on the issues at hand, not the person."

Her summary was published in the May issue of the TRACE newsletter Teaching Matters. The full tip sheet on conflict management is available on the web. Among its suggestions:

Monday notes

Engineering's Sir Sandford Fleming Foundation faculty-level debates begin today, and will continue through Wednesday in DWE 2534 from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day. The finals will take place on Friday July 20. Each member of the top team at the faculty level will receive a $100 prize; runners up will receive $50 each.

Tomorrow evening the University of Waterloo Choir will perform Music From Stage and Screen at the Theatre of the Arts. The program includes medleys from the musicals Oliver, Brigadoon, and Les Misérables as well as songs from various Disney movies, and a solo baritone performance -- Omnia Sol Temperat from Carmina Burana by veteran UW chorister Fred Chapman. Tickets are $12 for adults, $8 for seniors, students and children.

The City of Waterloo's volunteer services department is recruiting for the following opportunities:

For more information on these opportunities, please call Mary Thorpe at 888-6488 or email her at mthorpe@city.waterloo.on.ca.

Avvey Peters


[UW logo] Editor of the Daily Bulletin: Chris Redmond
Information and Public Affairs, University of Waterloo
credmond@uwaterloo.ca | (519) 888-4567 ext. 3004
| Friday's Bulletin
Copyright © 2001 University of Waterloo