September 25, 2002

Wednesday, September 25, 2002

Staff association grows; other news
Online learning experts cohere
A good place to work, and to give
Staff positions for this week
Happening at Waterloo today

Editor:
Chris Redmond
credmond@uwaterloo.ca

Sports season well under way
There's only one Wednesday game for Warrior teams this week: the men's rugby team plays at Western this afternoon.
A weekly sports roundup is available on the athletics web site. This week it includes news of the Waterloo Open cross-country meet on the weekend, in which both men's and women's Warrior teams finished on top.
Also featured: the first-ever game for the women's ice hockey team, which, alas, lost 6-0 to Laurier.

Staff association grows; other news

The UW staff association is proudly reporting that it's reached a new level: 60 per cent of eligible staff are now association members. "It's been a goal to reach that plateau," says Chris Henderson of the purchasing department, the association's secretary. "It wasn't too long ago that we were barely above 50% membership, so 60% is a significant increase that we hope will indicate to staff and administration that our numbers are steadily growing and our voice is becoming stronger." The total number of eligible staff is 1,649. The total number of SA members is 994, which puts the actual figure at 60.27 per cent (as of August 31). Henderson says the biggest cause for the increase is that, as of September of last year, all newly-hired staff are automatically enrolled in the SA. "They have the option of cancelling their membership, but so far, very few of them have. We are also continuing to recruit existing staff who never joined, so our membership stats are rising on both fronts. Most people who quit the association are retirees or staff who actually leave the university. As the SA becomes more vocal and visible we are hoping that our numbers will continue to rise."

The One Book, One Community program in K-W has generated lots of interest and been a huge hit, says Susan Parsons, trade book buyer at the UW bookstore, who's been energetically organizing people to read Alistair MacLeod's No Great Mischief and add themselves to her list. Now that the official count period is over, Parsons says she's "thrilled" with the participation and interest the campaign generated on campus. And she has announced that MacLeod will be on campus Thursday and everyone is invited to a "meet and greet" session in the store, in South Campus Hall, between 2 and 4 p.m. "This will be his only local bookstore appearance while in town participating in the One Book, One Community events. This will be very informal, so drop in anytime and say hello, and get your book signed."

I cannot resist quoting this paragraph from an article in MathNews by "Deceived in Waterloo", who says reality never lives up to the advertising, and that includes the UW residences:

In the pamphlets all the beds had sheets, there were posters on the walls, food on the table and girls sitting around laughing about something or other. So why then, when I first opened my door, there was just some shirtless guy sitting there complaining about how hot it was, over and over and over. The dishes just keep piling up too and the garbage overflowed long ago, but for some reason my parents haven't gotten around to doing anything about it yet. It's been two weeks now and I'm starting to think that something might have happened to them.

Also in that issue is news that math will be entering a team in the engineering Scunt ("scavenger hunt") scheduled for this weekend.

Future lawyers may want to know about a "mock LSAT" (Law School Aptitude Test") that will be offered this Saturday. "The test is very low-cost -- we just use the money to pay for photocopying and buying new tests," says John Vellone of the legal resource office in the Student Life Centre, which is organizing the event. "Very low cost" means $2 if you register in advance by e-mailing your name and student ID number to lro@feds. The mock test is scheduled for Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Math and Computer building. Oh, and the real LSAT will be offered October 5.

Of some interest is a news release from Industry Canada announcing a new $105 million Broadband (high speed Internet access) for Rural and Northern Development Pilot Program. "This program is designed to equip more rural and remote communities with this leading-edge infrastructure," says industry minister Allan Rock. And rural development minister Andy Mitchell: "This will work towards the sustainability of our rural communities and help ensure that families and our youth can have an economic and social future in rural Canada." The program will use a competitive process to support the deployment of innovative and sustainable broadband services to Canadian communities that currently have no high-speed Internet access. Priority will be given to unserved First Nation, northern, remote and rural communities. "The Minister of Industry will make final selections based on recommendations by an arm's-length National Selection Committee, whose membership will be announced in fall 2002. David Johnston, President of the University of Waterloo, will chair the Committee."

Online learning experts cohere

People from eight major Canadian universities, including UW, with an interest in online education have formed a national "collaboration" to coordinate projects being done at the various institutions.

COHERE -- the Collaboration for Online Higher Education and Research -- actually has been in operation for some time, but publicity is just beginning, with the announcement that Joanne Curry has been named executive director. Curry was formerly executive director of the Telelearning Network of Centres of Excellence, which is winding down with the end of its federal research funding.

Funding for the new national group is coming from Industry Canada, says Peter Goldsworthy, a staff member in UW's Centre for Learning and Teaching Through Technology, one of the important nodes in COHERE. (Besides UW, it involves Dalhousie, Simon Fraser, Alberta, Calgary, Guelph, Saskatchewan, and York.)

Here's how the COHERE web site describes its first research project:

This study proposes to use an online learning environment -- in particular a transformative learning approach which encourages reflective practice -- to assist faculty in changing from traditional teaching methods that emphasize subject matter acquisition, to constructivist, transformative learning experiences that emphasize self-reflection and critical knowledge building. In particular, this study will examine faculty teaching beliefs and practices, and explore the possibility of their integrating online learning and technology into courses to create a more learning-centred educational experience -- one that encourages self-directed learning and expanded learning outcomes.

Goldsworthy said work is also under way on "co-development of programs and courses between universities" and on the creation of policies to make student mobility between universities easier. COHERE is also operating University Online, a "gateway to online courses and resources" from the eight institutions.

"What is distinctive about the COHERE Project," a news release says, "is the transfer of the culture of research and scholarship, the very hallmark of the university, into the emerging online environment through the development and application of technology-enhanced learning. The ongoing COHERE research agenda aims at using the most appropriate ways of incorporating the full range of information technologies into university teaching and learning; both online courses and online components within on-campus courses will reflect the latest knowledge on learning with interactive technologies. . . .

"The COHERE Project universities are committed to developing students' capabilities for research and innovation, through online learning experiences which feature inquiry-based learning, critical reflection, and exploring new areas of knowledge. The COHERE universities will also be working together to increase the diversity and depth of courses and programs available online.

"The COHERE Project will also support the ongoing development of faculty in the use of online strategies to complement traditional teaching approaches. . . . The COHERE Project will result in a network of expert faculty members across the country, sharing their scholarly work and collaborating in both teaching and advanced research."

Several people from UW's LT3 are involved in COHERE, and Tom Carey, associate vice-president (learning resources and innovation), is its project director and a member of the steering committee.

[Moser]

A good place to work, and to give

"Dealing with amazing students, lots of variety in her job, a great team, and convenient parking" are some of the things Janet Moser (right) enjoys most about her job, says a profile that appeared in the Gazette recently as part of the Keystone Campaign advertising.

She was the latest person to be singled out as an example of Keystone supporters, who together are seeking to raise $4.5 million for UW from staff, faculty and retirees by the time Campaign Waterloo winds up in 2007.

Says the profile: "As the Administrative Assistant in Distance Education (DE), Janet co-ordinates the department's marketing activities and is involved in reconciling office accounts. Some of the initiatives that keep her busy include organizing an annual Open House for DE students, editing their quarterly newsletter the Correspondent, attending education fairs, and developing ads and web site copy."

Why is UW a great place to work? There is a tremendous sense of community at UW and I work with a great team in Distance and Continuing Education -- we're a terrific example of the adage that 'the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.'

What motivated you to give to Waterloo? First of all, I believe that UW employees need to set an example for the external community -- we need to show them that we believe in ourselves. I also really believe in Distance Education. We have a great product that provides so many opportunities. For example, on-campus students can solve schedule conflicts and people who would not be able to attend classes because of where they live can take distance courses and in some cases complete an entire degree without setting foot on campus.

What projects have you designated your gift to? I give to Distance Education course development. And I also give to the Senate Scholarship Fund -- it's important to me to know that I'm helping students with their tuition costs.

Staff positions for this week

There are just a couple of openings listed in the weekly "Positions Available" from UW's human resources department:

Hydrogeological Technician, Earth Sciences, USG 5
Manager (part-time), Survey Research Centre (temporary position).

"Those interested in applying for an available position are invited to call Human Resources at ext. 2524," the weekly memo says.

The Positions Available list is being included in the Daily Bulletin on alternate Wednesdays this fall, the weeks the Gazette doesn't appear. Fuller details of the positions and related information can be found, every week and all the time, on the HR web site.

Happening at Waterloo today

More than 3,000 students are expected to show up at RIM Park for Career Fair 2002, sponsored by Conestoga College, University of Guelph, Wilfrid Laurier University and University of Waterloo. The event is billed as the largest post-secondary fair of its kind in Canada. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and is open to students and alumni from the four post-secondary institutions. Shuttle buses will run from Needles Hall every half-hour starting at 9:30.

There's a noon-hour concert in the chapel at Conrad Grebel University College: Mina Re Shin plays "Piano Music of Austria and Hungary".

Also at noontime is a brown-bag event sponsored by UW's credit union and other groups: "Reach Your Financial Potential" (12:15 in the multipurpose room of the Student Life Centre).

And the teaching resource office is holding a noon workshop on "Polishing Your Presentation Skills"; I've been asked to mention that it's full.

At 4:30, the organization with the very long name -- the Pure Mathematics, Applied Mathematics and Combinatorics and Optimization Club -- hosts a talk by David McKinnon of the pure math department. "The talk is open to anybody who wants to attend and does not require a lot of background information," Lino Demasi, vice-president of the club, promises. "The title of the talk is "Right Angled Triangles, Fermat's Last Theorem, and a Million Bucks". Location: Math and Computer room 2066.

The UW Students for Life group will host "Pro-Life 101" tonight, described as "an interactive philosophical and scientific defence of the pro-life position on abortion. All are welcome, especially those who wish to challenge the pro-life position." It starts at 7:00 in Arts Lecture Hall room 209.

And the UW Retirees' Association holds its annual wine-and-cheese party today, from 3 to 5 p.m. at the University Club . . . and the Graduate Student Association holds its "best ball" golf tournament and dinner at the Merry Hill Golf Course today . . . and in both Mudie's and REVelation, in the two Village residences, it's "Dons Do Dinner" this evening. . . .

CAR

TODAY IN UW HISTORY
September 25, 1969: Members of the Radical Student Movement confront president pro tem Howard Petch, demanding that he repudiate an Ontario working paper about "Order on the Campus".