PSU Magazine Winter 1997

instructor doesn't know the names of the student and told us the first day we didn't have to come to cla ." "If I didn't feel so connected here, I probably would have tra nsferred to another college," she ays. Having the same instructors, peer mentor, and classmates fo r the whole year in Freshman Inquiry, as we ll as keeping the clas size small, all help create the sense of being part of a community, students say. Also impor– tant is the physica l space, they say. Both freshman and sophomore inquiry have special wings of Cramer Hall, whi ch include classrooms, computer study areas, a pee r mentor offi ce, and informal alcoves where students can socialize. Studies. eing an acti ve participant in the learning process is also a feature students say they like about Univer ity "Everyone has a say in what they're lea rning," Stephens say of his Einstein's Universe course. "You can do your own thing and make it course related. You don't just sit in a class and get lectured at. " tudents also present their projects and topics in class, as well in their se ions with mentors, he says. "And the best way to learn is by teaching others." Michelle Gottlieb, in the same course as Stephens, ays that at first she was dissatisfied with the way class– room discuss ion was dominated by a few students. "It wasn't their fault, but a lot of students weren't be ing heard ," he remembers. After she wrote about the problem in her weekly course journal, "the instructor changed the format the very next class. I was impressed," she says. "What we're trying to do is create a learning community, not a dictatorship in the cla room," says fac ulty Judy Patton. "We don't dictate the ass ign– ments but let the students have a lot of choice. We want to know, are students being challenged or being overwhelmed ?We've never had so much direct contact with students as learners-and it's a revelation." tudents also pra i e the interd isc iplinary nature of Uni ve rsity tud ies classes. Looking at a theme from the point of view of di ffe rent disc iplines makes fo r intellectual "awakenings," says Gottlieb. "It stra ins your mind and you start seeing references to what you're learning all around you every day." Stephens ca lls the unexpected connections made between d ifferent field like phys ics and history, po litics and literature, "definitely intellectu– ally timulating. We get to learn how all of it intertwine . It's a mind opener. " Finally, stude nts pra i e the emphas is on lea rn ing fundamen ta l skills-writing, computer use, resea rch , team work , speaking in fro n t of a group, and th inki ng inde– pendentl y. They say they feel be tter prepa red for the job market and the probab le need to change careers in a fa t-paced world . "You get such a wide view, it's great preparation for going into any number of d irections," says Stephens. lfUniver ity Studies is what Stephen calls a "mind-opener" fo r students, it is clearly opening new PHOTOS BY STEVEDIPAOLA worlds fo r Portland tate itself, while creating a national reputation for innovation . D (Jack Yost MA '7 1 , a Portland writer and fi lmmaker, wrote the article "Wanted: Engineers," which appeared in the fall 1996 PSU Magazine. ) WINTER 1997 PSU MAGAZINE l3