Griffin Criticizes Evaluation Sheets
"I do not desire to see myself as others see me, but I see that students are attempting to impose this desire upon me," Prof. Clifford S. Griffin, assistant professor of history, said in an interview yesterday.
Prof. Griffin was discussing the student opinionnaires on faculty members which the All Student Council scholarship committee distributes to departments and schools at the end of the semester.
In the instructions for students answering the opinionnaire, there is the statement:
"There is an honest desire on the part of everyone to see himself as others see him and to profit by such knowledge."
Conformity Is Result
Prof. Griffin said:
"If you always desire to see yourself as others see you,you cannot be an individual.
"The opinionnaires are a rank effort to build conformity. Everyone should have their own standards and should not be afraid to act upon them."
The opinionnaires are filled out by students and placed in the business office. After the grades have been released, professors are allowed to have the opinionnaires to evaluate their teaching and the course.
Prof. Griffin said:
Questions Number 21
"What the opinionnaires mean is that the scholarship committee is attempting to increase my obligation to the students and to decrease the obligation of students to me. I do have an obligation to be a better teacher, but most of the obligation is upon the students who must want to learn."
The opinionnaire consists of 21 questions, spaces in which to comment on the instructor and the course, and a space for the student's self-evaluation.
The 21 questions are answered by placing a check in columns labeled excellent, good, fair-average, poor, unsatisfactory, and not applicable.
Students Should Explain
Prof. Griffin said:
"The main thing is the first 21 questions. They are attempting to make subjective opinion objective.
"The students check one of the columns, but there is no space for the student to explain why he marked the question as he did.
"I suppose the purpose of the opinionnaire is that the students
can give me advice on how to be a better teacher.
"In terms of the questions asked, I do not think the people who make the opinionnaires out have the vagueest conception of what a good teacher is."
Prof. Griffin further criticized the scholarship committee because the committee does not send a covering letter to faculty members along with the opinionnaires.
He said:
"I was not asked politely to distribute the opinionnaires. In effect, I was ordered by the students. The ASC is putting the professors in an awkward position."
On the back of the opinionnaire, a space is provided for the student to list most favorable and least satisfactory characteristics of the instructor.
Prof Griffin said:
"I have no confidence in the capability of the students to judge what is characteristic of a good teacher. I do not think most students have sufficient background for such criticism."
He said he knew of a professor who was criticized most under least favorable characteristics for wearing the same sports coat every day.
Some Comments Are Trivial He said:
"The comments on the sport coat are characteristic of the trivial matters which bother students.
"Students base their opinions of the instructor and the course upon immediate pleasure rather than long-range intellectual pleasure and benefits.
"Many of the people here are not true students. This is the fault of their past scholastic training or their academic and non-academic environment.
"This semester, I have done the best job I could. I already recognize my faults. I will improve, in spite of the opininaire."
Young Kennedy Aids Brother's Campaign
TOPEKA —(UPI)—The youngest brother of Sen. John F. Kennedy (D-Mass) told Democratic legislators yesterday that "the real power of government in the executive branch has not been utilized in recent years."
Meeting briefly with the lawmakers, Ted Kennedy said he felt his brother had "some real friends here in the state of Kansas."
Daily hansan
Thursday, Jan. 21, 1960
57th Year, No. 75
LAWRENCE, KANSAS
Moscow said the missile travelled a historic 7,750 miles "strictly (along) the calculated trajectory." It said the nose cone transmitted
There was no immediate indication whether U.S. scientists also tracked the missile. U.S. naval vessels and aircraft were known to be hovering near the test area where three Soviet scientific ships stood guard.
Weather
TOPEKA—(UPI) A bill to appropriate more than one million dollars over what Gov. George Docking recommended in salaries for faculty and administrators at Kansas universities and colleges was introduced to the Senate today.
THE MELTING POT—Members of "The Crucible" cast rehearse the play to be given here Feb. 9-13. Cast members are (left to right) Alfred Rossi, Chicago, Ill., graduate student; Judith Satterfield, Plains sophomore; Michael Blasin-
Variable cloudiness tonight and tomorrow. Snow flurries tonight. Continued cold through tomorrow. Low tonight 5-10. High tomorrow in 20s.
Bill Introduced to Raise KU Salaries 7 Per Cent
For the first time there was independent corroboration of the Soviet launching claim. An Australian airliner crew reported it saw a fiery explosion in the Pacific test area where the nose cone and last powered stage of the rocket would have plunged to earth:
The committee bill, approved by the Senate Ways and Means Committee yesterday, would give the schools and the regents a total operating budget of $51,643,789 but only $28,620,938 of that would be supplied by state sources (general revenue fund).
game, Gardner graduate student; Charles Kephart, Salina graduate student; Sidney Berger, Brooklyn, N. Y., graduate student, and Karen Duffy, Lawrence sophomore. Gordon Beck, instructor of speech, is the director.
The increase would allow 7 per cent raises for administrators and teachers, the figure recommended by the state board of regents. Gov. Docking had proposed 3 per cent raises for faculty members and none or administrators.
Altogether, the bill would allow $1,577,487 more than Gov. Docking's recommendations, including a number of capital improvements on which he proposed no appropriation at all.
Russia Fires Its First Super Rocket
HONOLULU, Hawaii — (UPI) Russia fired the first of its super-rockets nearly 8,000 miles into the Pacific yesterday. Moscow today claimed the missile hit within 2,100 yards—1.24 miles—of its target.
"the necessary data throughout the rocket's flight" and "its entry into the water was recorded by radar, optical and acoustic stations."
Western scientists were expected to attach considerable significance to the claimed solution of re-entry for such a big rocket as well as the announced triumph of firing a missile virtually twice the breadth of the United States.
First reports from the Pacific had suggested the rocket might have missed the target area and been destroyed by Soviet scientists. Qantas Airline Captain Robert A. Gray and his crew reported they saw a huge explosion in the area and concluded the rocket had been exploded.
Russia's announcement, however, said the "dummy" (presumably meaning nose cone and instrument capsule) hit the water intact. It said the last powered stage "disintegrated and partially burned up." This might account for the airliner's sighting.
Plane Makes Safe Landing
OLATHE —(UPI)—A huge Trans World airliner with a jammed nose wheel and 31 persons aboard made a safe emergency landing today at the Olathe Naval Air Station after circling over Kansas City and St. Louis for almost four hours.
When the big four-engined Constellation touched down at 11:26 a.m. its supply of fuel was almost exhausted. The gas had been consumed deliberately in the four-hour circling operation to prevent fire in the landing.
The tense vigil at the naval base for the craft came within 12 hours after another airliner crashed at Montego Bay, Jamaica, killing 37 persons, and in the wake of several recent air tragedies.
There were no injuries to the 26 passengers and five crewmen in today's landing.
Gates Is Approved For Defense Post
WASHINGTON — (UPI) - The Senate Armed Services Committee today unanimously approved the nomination of Thomas S. Gates to be Secretary of Defense.
Nominations of four other high ranking Pentagon officials were also approved. They were:
Dudley C. Sharp, Secretary of Air
Franklin B. Lincoln Jr., Assistant Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)
James H. Douglas, former Air Force Secretary, to be Deputy Defense Secretary succeeding Gates..
Joseph V. Charyk, Assistant Secretary of Air.
Sen. Glee S. Smith (R-Larned), chairman of the subcommittee which drafted the legislation, said the bill does not include money for new buildings. Construction needs will be studied further and included in a later bill, he said.
They would include the following on which the Governor made no recommendations;
The operating budget bill got affirmative votes from all Republican members of the ways and means committee and neither of the two Democrats voted against it.
Schools would get $403,360 more than Gov. Docking recommended for new and expanded programs under terms of the bill.
University of Kansas-Language center $59,262; increase in general research $33,748; new teachers for increased enrollment $24,586.
KU Medical Center-Improved service in maintenance area. $11,754.
service in maintenance area, $11,734. For capital improvements, the bill would allow the following over and above Gov. Docking's proposals:
University of Kansas—$40,000 for restoration of normal program of repairs and improvements.
KU Medical Center-$15,000 for repairs and improvement of the parking grounds area.
House Approves Salary Raises to Psychiatric Help
TOFKEA — (UPI) — The Kansas House of Representatives, in an anti-climactic move, approved 109-0 to a bill containing $895,375 in salary raises for employees at state institutions.
Republicans and Democrats, in caucuses earlier this week, had agreed to support the bill and Gov. George Docking had indicated he would sign it.
The raises would go to 1,600 employees, including psychiatrists. Most of the money, about $750,000, would be used to hike salaries of psychiatric aides, who do the orderly work at the state hospitals.
The bill was sent to the Senate.
The House gave final approval to four other bills and referred them to the Senate. They would:
- Appropriate $2,414,832 for operation of the Kansas Children's Receiving home, Atchison; the Soldiers home and Mother Bickerdyke Annex; The State Insurance Department; The Boys Industrial School, Topeka; The Girls' Industrial School, Beloit, and the State Grain Inspection Department.
- Appropriate $18,799,344 for operation of the state hospitals.
- Transfer $1,884,457 from the highway general fund to the highway patrol fund for operation of the patrol.
- Transfer $10,000 from the employment security fund to the interdepartmental committee on aging fund.
Two bills were introduced. Both were sponsored by the Ways and Means Committee.
They would transfer $504,021 from the general revenue fund to the emergency fund and transfer $24,889 from the highway general fund to the general revenue fund as reimbursement for expense of providing services to the State Highway Commission.
A bill designed to aid school districts that set up textbook rental programs was introduced by Senate President Pro Tem Paul R. Wunsch (R-Kingman) in the Senate yesterday.