WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20, 2001
NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN - 5A
Shortened semester adds stress
By Karen Lucas
Special to the Kansan
Cutting class is hardly an option this summer for Leslie Eberly.
"You would miss an enormous amount of information," said Eberly, a Topeka senior who is one of 30 students taking the intensive version of Chemistry 184. "They cover a lot of chapters quickly."
Although courses like Chemistry 184, which is Foundations of Chemistry I, can be pretty demanding during a fall or spring semester, they can be even more so in the summer when they meet for fewer weeks.
When the beginning chemistry class is taught in the fall or spring, students attend three 50-minute lectures and a lab that meets for two hours and 50 minutes each week. In the summer, they have five one-hour lectures and nearly six hours of lab in just one week.
Peter Hierl, who is teaching the lecture portion of the course, is up front about the time commitment.
"If you spend 30 hours on the course and then you need to work 30 hours a week to earn tuition, it doesn't leave much time for partying," he said.
While Eberly juggles her part-time babysitting job with the final course that she needs for her degree in education, Kadie Lintner is spending a good part of her summer tackling Spanish 104—a course she can no longer put off if she plans to graduate by December 2002.
The Spanish class, which meets for five two-hour sessions a week, begins a new chapter every other day.
"It's very intense," said Lintner, Overland Park junior. "There's a good two hours of homework every night, if not more."
in the summer semester, two graduate teaching assistants share the Spanish 104 teaching
load. One teaches five classes and trades off with the other instructor for the next five. In the fall or spring, only one GTA teaches a section.
Gabriela Chavarria, one of the summer GTAs, said she favored the arrangement because it gave her time to work on her dissertation as well as to prepare for class.
Lintner said she liked having two instructors for the course.
"Tomas is very funny and makes class interesting," she said. "Gabriela is very organized and teaches very well, so it's a good balance."
About 20 students are taking Spanish 104 with Chavarria and Tomas Chacon, but only six students are enrolled in German 104—a number with which GTA Helmut Tweer is more than happy.
"The class size is wonderful because you can interact much better with the students and address their problems immediately." Tweer said.
Tweer also said he liked how the extended classes gave students more time to immerse themselves in the language. Yet, he said, the longer class periods had a downside.
"For two hours, you have to calculate students' fatigue and, therefore, find ways to keep that from happening." Tweet said.
Phillip Paludan, history professor, also commented on the challenges that a longer class session posed. For his four-week civil war course that is worth three credit hours, he alternates lectures with videos and discussion.
"When you got students for two hours and 10 minutes five days a week, even the best lecturer loses their attention," Paludan said.
Lucas can be reached at 864-4810 or writer@kansan.com
SURVEYING THE DAMAGES
KU Facilities Operations worker Mike LaBonte surveys the construction site where the ground beneath buried storm drain pipes washed out, causing a sink hole in the road. Initial repairs began Tuesday on the road, which acceses Wescoe, Budig and Anschutz Hills. F.O. workers said the project should be completed by Wednesday, weather permitting.
THAD ALLENDER/KANSAN
LAWRENCE AUTOMOTIVE DIAGNOSTICS INC.
842-8665
2858 Four Wheel Dr.
Discover the Difference
$5 OFF
Any service
with minimum
$20.00 purchase
841-6886 Holiday Plaza Coupon #8 25th & Iowa Expires 7/20/01
Now Leasing for Fall!
- 1 & 2 Bedroom Apts. • Fitness Room
• 2 & 3 Bedroom Apts. • Sports Court
• Washer/Dryer • Fireplaces
• Microwaves • Built-in bookshelves
• On 'e • Wet bars Mon.- Fri.
8:30 a.m.- 5:30 p.m.
Sat.
10:00 a.m.- 4:00 p.m.
Closed Sunday
*amenities until*
Get up to$500 off first month's rent on select 1 bedroom apts!
(785) 841.7726·3100 W.22nd Street
IMPERIAL GARDEN
2907 W. 6th St. BEST BUFFET IN LAWRENCE!
Tel: 841-1688·842-9988
Cool off with our specials:
Tuesday- 2 for 1 anything
Wednesday-No cover for ladies $1.00 anything
Thursday- No cover all night $2.00 double wells
Friday- Retro night $2.50 pitchers, $2.00 wells
Saturday- $1.00 anything
2515 W.6th Street 842-9845
AT NEW STUDENT ORIENTATION
PRE-ORDER YOUR
FALL TEXTBOOKS AT
WWW.JAYHAWK.COM
---