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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on May 28, 2023 11:52:59 GMT -5
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Post by Crucis#1 on May 28, 2023 17:02:29 GMT -5
The pedagogical methods of instruction have also evolved over the last 50 years. The emphasis is on experiential methods of study vs the memorization and regurgitation that prior to the 1970’s was so often the standard. Depending upon the institution, with the changes in pedagogy, motivated students have the opportunity to explore additional facets in their instruction for presentation and evaluation by their professors..
The vast majority of professors today were college students in the 90’s and early 2000’s. My daughter’s college room mate is a tenure professor in anthropology and archaeology at a PAC 12 institution. Her curriculum and methods are more relatable to her students and highly evolved than many teachers we have seen in the past. I remember a professor at a well respected school of education that I attended in the 90’s, using the old overhead projector slides that were curled and appeared to be several years old. It was a fun and intense series of curriculum at the start of experiential methods. I enjoyed the professor’s methods of instruction and his friendship. It was day and night in methods from some of courses that I attended at HC as well as a current Big East school and a A10 school that I also were enrolled 50 years ago.
Today’s students and their parents at elite institutions expect more in the methods of instruction. Some call it grade inflation, looking closely, if the student has mastered the subject they deserve the A+, A or B +, they have earned, instead of being forced into a “Bell Curve” grading process that is unfair to a percentage of students. Professor job evaluation also is a critical component that we did not see 50 years ago. An instructor who is not providing quality instruction is more likely bounced today based on feedback. If the instructor truly is concerned about the education of each student, he or she should do summersaults to ensure that their curriculum meets the objectives of the syllabus and students can achieve mastery of the instruction.
A side note, 30 years ago, I enrolled in a graduate school class, on the first day of instruction, the professor said “I do not give A’s”. I did not expect to be given an A. If I earn an A or an A+, it should be my grade. With his demeanor after making that statement, I unenrolled in that class, and enrolled in a class that grading was objective and the professor was much more concerned in individual student achievement, and not pontificating.
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Post by sader1970 on May 28, 2023 19:24:02 GMT -5
Well, in the real "old days," an "A" was the highest grade possible. There was no such thing as "A+." I know for example my son took a lot of AP courses in high school and while I forget exactly how it worked now, get an "A" in an AP course and, voila, you not only get more than a 4.0 (5.0?) and heaven forbid you got an "A+" in an AP course! I was never a proponent for anyone getting more than 100 on a test . . . . no bonus points. Same for an A being the max. I'll throw the question out to those "in-between" ages between the 60's and the 80's, did they raise the GPA (or whatever they call it now) to qualify for Dean's List, Magna, Summa and Cum Laude once they went to an A+ grade and students could get more than 4.0 in a course? If they didn't, that would seem to be a major factor in why so many more honor grades. As I write this, I realize I might be sounding like the cranky old man that I am. [hopefully, many others also fall into that category here]
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Post by HC92 on May 28, 2023 20:10:20 GMT -5
"I don’t think HC students today are smarter than they were in 1988-92. I think education overall has been dumbed way down." I don't think this is true. My courses at HC were challenging, but I hear anecdotally (and reliably I think) that the courses at HC are currently very challenging as well, maybe even more so. I have a current student at HC. I stand by my earlier comments whether others want to believe them or not.
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Post by Crucis#1 on May 28, 2023 20:33:40 GMT -5
After year one with a student entering his second year, are the course graded on a Bell Curve, or are students truly given the grade they earn? Back in the day, my perspective, a number of instructors used the Curve to satisfy some masochistic pleasure of theirs.
Just asking as another cranky old man. 😊
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Post by Crucis#1 on May 28, 2023 21:01:17 GMT -5
By the way….if I am alive in 10 years and capable of attending…I sincerely hope that wherever the college commencement ceremony is for my granddaughters, I hope it is in a well maintained, handicapped accessible with elevators, highly secure and climate controlled facility, with multiple and nearby restrooms for a then 83 year old + man. Sitting on a lawn or in a football stadium 30 rows back and barely being able to see them walk across the stage…..will make me even a crankier old man than I am now, especially if the tuition is in excess of 100 grand a year.😎 For us of the male gender, Fitton only has one men’s room available during commencement, Porto potties are not acceptable.
This past weekend and next weekend, several colleges and universities in the Commonwealth will have their commencement ceremony, sunshine or light rain, outdoors. If there is heavy rain, the participants in the ceremony will be in one building, and the family members in another building seeing the ceremony via a YouTube Link. Fortunately the forecast is for sun and temperatures not exceeding 80 degrees. About 10 years ago, a colleague of mine had a daughter graduating from Marist. The weather conditions were similar to last year’s New Hampshire playoff game. My friend’s family suffered through sitting in the rain as there were no contingencies for miserable weather, they were in the rain for over two hours. They only exception I will make for sitting in such miserable conditions is for a HC playoff football game. 😂
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Post by hcpride on May 29, 2023 5:05:25 GMT -5
Sooo, 46% of HC seniors at HC now graduate with honors? Does strike me as a bit high…but others might draw the line at 50% or 99% or have no concerns at all.
When my high school (I teach) hit 90% on the honor roll the school board addressed it. Parents/kids were in three general groups. Group 1 wanted to ban the honor roll as it unfairly stigmatized 10%, excluded kids felt felt very sad, and the honor roll was racist as Hispanic kids were underrepresented. Group 2 wanted attendance as an alternative factor to permit kids who were otherwise left off due to grades another path to the honor roll. Group 3 wanted to address rampant grade inflation by raising the standard for inclusion on the honor roll.
Group 2 pretty much got what they wanted (we’re now at 95%). I had my money on group 1 and group 3 didn’t have a prayer.
(We did stop publicly posting the honor roll at the school and that was in reaction to some of group 1’s concerns.)
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Post by sader1970 on May 29, 2023 5:09:09 GMT -5
Sounds like a vote for the DCU.😂
Is the Indoor Practice Facility too small? Believe past indoor commencements have been on the Hart court. Maybe too small now with the larger graduating classes?
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Post by sader1970 on May 29, 2023 5:13:24 GMT -5
Sooo, 46% of HC seniors at HC now graduate with honors? Does strike me as a bit high…but others might draw the line at 50% or 99% or have no concerns at all. When my high school (I teach) hit 90% on the honor roll the school board addressed it. Parents/kids were in three general groups. Group 1 wanted to ban the honor roll as it unfairly stigmatized 10%, excluded kids felt felt very sad, and the honor roll was racist as Hispanic kids were underrepresented. Group 2 wanted attendance as an alternative factor to permit kids who were otherwise left off due to grades another path to the honor roll. Group 3 wanted to address rampant grade inflation by raising the standard for inclusion on the honor roll. Group 2 pretty much got what they wanted (we’re now at 95%). I had my money on group 1 and group 3 didn’t have a prayer. That’s a ridiculous situation IMO. 90%-95% on honor roll. Do you teach at Regis or Chaminade? Bring back the SAT requirements, Holy Cross!! 😉
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Post by hcpride on May 29, 2023 5:27:57 GMT -5
Sooo, 46% of HC seniors at HC now graduate with honors? Does strike me as a bit high…but others might draw the line at 50% or 99% or have no concerns at all. When my high school (I teach) hit 90% on the honor roll the school board addressed it. Parents/kids were in three general groups. Group 1 wanted to ban the honor roll as it unfairly stigmatized 10%, excluded kids felt felt very sad, and the honor roll was racist as Hispanic kids were underrepresented. Group 2 wanted attendance as an alternative factor to permit kids who were otherwise left off due to grades another path to the honor roll. Group 3 wanted to address rampant grade inflation by raising the standard for inclusion on the honor roll. Group 2 pretty much got what they wanted (we’re now at 95%). I had my money on group 1 and group 3 didn’t have a prayer. That’s a ridiculous situation IMO. 90%-95% on honor roll. Do you teach at Regis or Chaminade? Bring back the SAT requirements, Holy Cross!! 😉 Between rampant grade inflation in the high schools (at least in my area), lack of student ranking (at least in my area), universally positive teacher recommendations(at least in my area), ‘help’ given on the un-proctored college application essays, and SAT optional admissions I sometimes wonder what some colleges look at when it comes to academic qualifications.😝😝
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on May 29, 2023 6:13:46 GMT -5
Sounds like a vote for the DCU.😂 Is the Indoor Practice Facility too small? Believe past indoor commencements have been on the Hart court. Maybe too small now with the larger graduating classes? Calculations for life safety purposes, i.e., emergency exits etc, were done by the architects for Loyola Field at the Luth. Max seating capacity IIRC was 6,000. Main egress and exit would be the bank of doors at the northeast corner, which opens onto a parking lot for the athletic department, and where there was a temporary, small skating rink in the first winter after Luth opened. This does not mean there are sufficient nearby bathroom facilities for 6,000 people. Luth also has A/C. I haven't the foggiest of how much it would cost to hold a commencement with 6,000 in attendance at the Luth. I expect that a protective floor of some sort would need t o be placed over the turf.
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Post by Crucis#1 on May 29, 2023 12:39:19 GMT -5
I have been watching various commencement ceremonies held over this past month. An enjoyable experience watching the speakers and the honorees, as well as the pageantry from each college and university.
Yesterday I watched the Boston College ceremony on You Tube. I noticed the Cardinal played a role in the ceremony. Was the Bishop MIA at the HC commencement? I looked carefully and did not see him on the stage. Oh my! Guess he does not like our Alma Mater. Maybe the next guy will be more friendly.
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Post by rgs318 on May 29, 2023 13:04:15 GMT -5
...or more Christian?
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Post by Crucis#1 on May 29, 2023 16:08:47 GMT -5
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Post by Crucis#1 on May 30, 2023 20:28:39 GMT -5
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Post by Crucis#1 on May 30, 2023 20:45:37 GMT -5
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Post by Tom on May 31, 2023 7:53:17 GMT -5
Let's see ... Holy Cross has an outdoor football field and an indoor football field, basketball gym and a hockey rink. How can we ever make both an outdoor and contingent indoor graduation work on campus? Doesn't take a lot of imagination. And don't tell me parking is a problem. We handled parking for 17,000+ against Fordham for a football game, we can handle parking for 10K and graduation. Is it possible that they have concerns that Fitton is not accessible to the disabled? (Hart certainly is). If so, can’t they get creative with temporary structures of some variety? If you can get a wheel chair onto Fitton for a football game, you can get one on the field for a graduation. I do not know anything about the accessibility status of the bathrooms on the visitors side. I went to a graduation at Fairfield some years ago with someone in a wheel chair, I thought it was going to be a case of just park somewhere on the field. They actually had a small dais with a roof and room for the person and one guest. It worked quite well. It wasn't a stadium so I don't really remember what the bathroom situation was
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Post by breezy on May 31, 2023 11:28:38 GMT -5
A weird coincidence in my classmate's advice to the graduating class. I have a newspaper clipping on my kitchen table; my late wife cut it out from the Newark Star-Ledger on June 21, 1986. It is a column by Ann Landers, citing a list of Resolutions that a reader found in his late father's desk. I've kept it on my table both as a memory of her wisdom and as a means of dealing with things that life throws at you. One of the Resolutions is: "Resolve to listen more and talk less. No one ever learns anything by talking." :
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Post by Crucis#1 on Jun 5, 2023 13:34:53 GMT -5
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jun 5, 2023 14:04:18 GMT -5
I watched the video replay of the start of the baccalaureate mass. I counted eight Jesuits who were sufficiently ambulatory to participate in the opening procession. There are likely several others in the community who are either too frail or were away. www.youtube.com/live/nQJh0D2Ha-o?feature=share&t=325
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Post by Tom on Jun 5, 2023 14:53:58 GMT -5
I watched the video replay of the start of the baccalaureate mass. I counted eight Jesuits who were sufficiently ambulatory to participate in the opening procession. There are likely several others in the community who are either too frail or were away. www.youtube.com/live/nQJh0D2Ha-o?feature=share&t=325Last I knew, there were 11 Jesuits in the community. To the best of my knowledge they are all reasonably healthy or ambulatory. Frankly, anyone that is too old or frail gets shipped off to Weston where they are better able to handle the infirmed. There was a Jesuit in the community who did nothing for HC (and as such wouldn't process) and only worked for the Nativity school. Not sure if that is still the case based on the Nativity school's status
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Post by hchoops on Jun 6, 2023 7:42:08 GMT -5
I watched the video replay of the start of the baccalaureate mass. I counted eight Jesuits who were sufficiently ambulatory to participate in the opening procession. There are likely several others in the community who are either too frail or were away. www.youtube.com/live/nQJh0D2Ha-o?feature=share&t=325Last I knew, there were 11 Jesuits in the community. To the best of my knowledge they are all reasonably healthy or ambulatory. Frankly, anyone that is too old or frail gets shipped off to Weston where they are better able to handle the infirmed. There was a Jesuit in the community who did nothing for HC (and as such wouldn't process) and only worked for the Nativity school. Not sure if that is still the case based on the Nativity school's status What is the status of the Nativity school ?
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Post by sader1970 on Jun 6, 2023 9:30:58 GMT -5
I'll let the locals chime in. Sort of tangential to your question, the Ignatian Volunteer Corps had a volunteer working there while I was on the regional council hiatus and was told that whoever that volunteer was (name/background unknown to me), he left Nativity school and the IVC as he was sympathetic to the bishop's position. There is a spot in the upcoming year (volunteers run essentially an academic year - September to June) for an IVC volunteer at Nativity.
Remind me again how long before the RI transplant retires? He's not the biggest supporter of Holy Cross either as I understand it.
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Post by Tom on Jun 6, 2023 9:42:22 GMT -5
Last I knew, there were 11 Jesuits in the community. To the best of my knowledge they are all reasonably healthy or ambulatory. Frankly, anyone that is too old or frail gets shipped off to Weston where they are better able to handle the infirmed. There was a Jesuit in the community who did nothing for HC (and as such wouldn't process) and only worked for the Nativity school. Not sure if that is still the case based on the Nativity school's status What is the status of the Nativity school ? The Nativity School of Worcester is no longer a Catholic School. However since you asked the question, I checked their website, Fr MacMurray is still listed as being on staff there. Going back to my original point, I don't know if Fr MacMurray also has duties at Holy Cross, and, if he does not, not unreasonable to think he would not participate in commencement.
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Post by Sons of Vaval on Jun 6, 2023 9:48:15 GMT -5
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