Faculty Personal Development: Inside and Outside the Classroom

B R I G H A M YO U N G U N I V E R S IT Y- I DA H O | S P RI N G 2013 | VO L. 13 NUM. 2
t Faculty
Personal
Development:
Inside and Outside
the Classroom
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t editor
I N T H I S I S S U E O F p e r s p e c ti v e
As teachers, it is important for us to always be renewing ourselves and learning new things,
both in teaching and in our disciplines. When we don’t, our teaching can become stagnant and
stale. But it can be equally important to be learning new things outside of our discipline. These
experiences can add an extra spark that can enhance our lives, and in turn, our teaching.
I learned how much outside subjects and experiences can enhance my teaching when I went
on a faculty excursion to Peru. You might ask, “How can a trip to Peru enhance the teaching of
mathematics?”
D aris H oward
E D ITO R
Publication Committee
Learning and Teaching
Council
[email protected]
or [email protected]
Though we did not study any mathematical subjects directly, I found mathematics in the world
around me everywhere we traveled. They were in the water systems that provided life in the
deserts. They were in the amazing images in the Nasca Plains. They were in the intricate symbols
of Machu Picchu. And they were in the monuments of Cusco.
But I learned and saw more than just math. From a frightened orphaned child on the street to the
college students trying to sell their artwork so they could afford to stay in school, I learned about
people and about life.
I found that the travel and new understanding of others and the world around me brought an
energy to me that transferred over to my teaching, whether or not it was directly related to my
discipline. It increased my excitement and desire for my students to learn and understand that
wonderful world of knowledge.
With this insight, we have dedicated this issue to college funded travel, research, leaves, and
development. I have heard the questions from colleagues across campus: “What kind of project
could I do that would benefit the university and myself?”, “What have others done?”, and “What
does one do in such a leave?”
With these questions in mind, we asked all of the department chairs to suggest faculty
development that has occurred in their departments that might give insight to other faculty
across campus. We then asked those whom the department chairs suggested to share their
experiences with us. Not all were able to find the time to do so, but those who did gave an
interesting cross section of work that has occurred, and important events related to their
experiences.
The articles included in this issue came from their experiences. They include everything from
student mentored research and personal development to faculty and student semesters in
China. We hope you will find the selection useful and something that will spark ideas for your
own possible faculty development.
e d ito r s
Contact information for the editors of Perspective magazine.
Lei Shen
Language & International Studies
[email protected]
413 SMI
496-4318
Ronald Nate
Economics
[email protected]
104 SMI
496-3810
Kevin Galbraith
Home and Family
[email protected]
223K CLK
496-4011
Janell Greenwood
Health, Recreation & Human Performance
[email protected]
250 ROM
496-4708
Justin Bates
Theatre and Dance
batesj@ byui.edu
230 SNO
496-4826
Daris Howard
Mathematics
[email protected]
232U RKS
496-7537
Contents
Gold for Things of Gold, and 21
1 The
the Silver for Things of Silver:
A Rendered Service of BYU-I
Learning Model in Beijing, China
L E I S HE N
8 What’s the Best Book You’ve
Never Read?
An Odyssey of Ignorance and
Obfuscation
David Roc k
12
Learning More Than
Programming
Daris Howard
17
Of Love Affairs
J. O mar H ansen
Using Faculty Development
Leaves To Re-Direct Mentored
Student Research Projects
Ryan S. Da B ell
26
The Canyoneering Accident
Database
steve k ugath
32
Fulbright? Not Quite
40
What Can I Do To Influence
Student Learning
david pigott
tyler watson
46
t
THE LIGHTER SIDE
Only at BYU-Idaho
Ron Nate
The Gold for Things of Gold, and
the Silver for Things of Silver:
A Rendered Service of BYU-I
Learning Model in Beijing, China
1
L E I S HE N
One day in late December 2012, I received an email from
The bluntness apparently upset both parties. After
a participant of the Fall 2012 BYU-I Semester in Beijing
a few investigative and clarifying exchanges in the
Program (BYUISB). In the email, the student aired his
cyberspace, I and the parties involved agreed that the
grievance about his “confrontation” with one of his Chinese confrontation resulted from a misunderstanding. The
professors at our program host university. The conversation “squabble” was quickly and amicably resolved. However,
between the student and his professor went like this:
this incident intrigued me to delve deeper into the realm
of our program’s participants who lived in a theologically,
Professor: Why haven’t you learned how to speak
culturally, and academically different environment. I
Mandarin Chinese?
felt the desire to find out what kinds of challenges and
setbacks our BYUISB program students encountered.
Student: Because you never taught us how. You talked
How did they wrestle with them? What can our program
most of the time in class and students don’t even have a
improve to make this study-abroad program a lifechance to speak.
changing experience for prospective participants? With
SHEN | 1
these basic questions in mind, I conducted a survey with
open-ended questions among our program participants.
In addition to the survey findings, communications with
those who were in the mentor role were used to gauge the
answers to the survey questions above. I hope the findings
and thoughts shared here can help other teachers and
mentors of similar programs. Considering in the previous
Perspective Magazine issues we shared many faculty’s ideas
and thoughts, hence I attempted to make a special effort
to present how a group of BYUISB students, far away
from the radar of parents and faculties, were striving and
struggling to apply BYU-I Learning Model on foreign soil.
An Overview of BYU-I
Semester in Beijing Program
BYUISB program evolved from the BYU-I Term in Beijing2
and was officially started in the Fall of 2011. According
to the agreement between BYU-I and our program host
university in Beijing, Capitol Normal University (CNU),
each party accepts ten exchange students with tuition
waivers per year. Our program uses this privilege to reduce
the overall program cost. Our participating students enroll
in BYU-I as regular on-campus students do except they
study at CNU in Beijing. Participating students can take
BYU-I online courses while in Beijing. BYU-I accepts the
credits earned in CNU. Participating students are required
to abide by the BYU-Idaho Honor Code and meet dress
and grooming standards even though they are off the
BYU-I campus. One Chinese faculty accompanies the
group to the site, assists on various issues, guides local
field trips and then returns before BYU-I Fall semester
starts. In the middle of the program, another faculty
will pay a short visit to attend to concerns and exchange
information with CNU’s coordinators and deans. Though
seemingly routinized, it takes ample collaboration of all the
departments involved to make it work and run smoothly.
Faith Comes to Play When
Facing Challenges
The BYU-I Learning Model vision statement articulates
that it is intended to build faith and bring life-changing
learning experience.3 Creating a semester-long studyabroad program is one answer to this call. Living and
studying in a different culture can be exciting and
intimidating. Students are challenged academically,
spiritually, and physically.
To illustrate, CNU’s Mandarin Chinese program is
academically rigorous and intensive. Students must rise
to the challenge of zero to minimum English instruction.
In addition, Chinese professors are entitled to paramount
authority in the classroom. Based on my on-site classroom
observations, although many junior professors adopted
communicative teaching methods4, a few senior professors
still stuck to the teacher-centered approach. Some of our
students were frustrated either by not understanding their
professors or by not being provided with opportunities to
participate or both.
Under this circumstance, the BYU-I Learning Model
came to play. I noticed students gathering in groups after
class and teaching one another. In other words, those
who adapted to the environment well would reinterpret
classroom instruction and work with those who needed
extra time to adjust. Trust, assurance, and faith permeated
through these types of mutually beneficial activities.
When asked if it challenged them to adhere to the five
principles of the BYU-I Learning Model in their difficult
time during the program, one student responded:
This incident intrigued me to delve deeper
into the realm of our program’s participants
who lived in a theologically, culturally, and
academically different environment.
PERSPECTIVE | 2
Another student shared a similar view:
“Going to Beijing, I and other students were more than
ready to exercise faith....Learning in China from Chinese
professors encouraged students to exercise the faith. I
was reminded of my mission in a lot of ways, watching
everyone striving to learn a language that many agree
is very difficult. There is no doubt in my mind that every
one of them relied heavily on the Holy Ghost to learn....
Students must learn to act for themselves....Each class
required preparation; students had to prepare a lot just
to be able to understand what was being taught in many
cases.... There were also plenty of opportunities to
ponder and prove the lessons learned in China because
everywhere we went we had to try to apply and prove
what we learned in day to day situations.”6
“I wouldn’t think of adhering the five principles to learn
and grow academically and spiritually as a challenge
while I have been here, despite it being a more atheistic
environment than Rexburg. Living the gospel is a habit
for me. Sometimes when I’m really tired it’s the habit
part that gets me on my knees or opens the scriptures
for me, but the habit doesn’t keep me on my knees nor
does it keep my eyes open on the page. Faith and love
for the Lord are what keep me doing those things and
are my usual motivators. I still seek to learn by faith, by
the Spirit, and by praying every morning and evening,
before class, and several other times throughout
the day....In all, it has been great here. I feel that my
testimony has grown since I’ve been here. It’s hard
not to adhere to the principles when I know how much
better they make life.”5
When clarifying the importance of faith, the prophet
Joseph Smith taught, “Faith is a principle of action and
power” (3).7 Our modern Church leader, Elder Marcus B.
Nash, also echoed, “We too can exercise such faith in the
Lord, believing and trusting that our kind and constant
God will bless us with His miraculous power suited to our
circumstance, according to His timing. As we do so, we too
will see the hand of God manifest in our lives” (100).8 The
survey results showed that exercising their faith in the Lord
Jesus Christ bestowed students with strength, power, and
capacity in overcoming their challenges. One student even
claimed that he had learned more from his BYU-I fellows
than from one of his professors (Ironic, isn’t it?).
Service Brings Assurance in
Jesus Christ
Spiritual growth and service are inextricable. In an
atheistic environment, keeping one’s spirituality intact and
growth at the same time can be tough. Rici Johnson, the
President of Beijing First Branch, stated that it is vital to
lay hold on the word of God. Any slackness in spiritual
growth can derail us from the spiritual path. He witnessed
the consequence of people who couldn’t resist temptations
and how it negatively affected their spiritual and
temporal lives.9 Our program students lived and studied
in a multifunction complex building with hundreds of
international students from all over the world and from
SHEN | 3
I noticed students
gathering in groups
after class and
teaching one another.
In other words, those
who adapted to the
environment well
would reinterpret
classroom instruction
and work with those
who needed extra
time to adjust.
very diverse backgrounds. Our students enjoyed this
enriching and missionary experience;10 however, mingling
with such a diverse group of students in daily life inevitably
challenged our students in anchoring themselves firmly
in the word of the Lord. From the survey, I learned that to
keep their spirituality intact and growing, most students
engaged themselves in the Church service, in addition, to
prayers and the Scriptures. One student shared:
“I know there is strength that comes from learning
God’s word and I need that. I’m really thankful for
the members in the branch here. There are many
opportunities to serve in this branch and the members
are very caring about each other and visitors. There
are also many opportunities to do missionary work
here since there are many foreigners at CNU, and I
have enjoyed sharing my beliefs with those who are
interested in hearing. In all, it has been great here. I feel
that my testimony has grown since I’ve been here.”11
The support from the local branch and church members
was colossal. On the first day of attending the sacrament
meeting, our students were invited to sit on the stage and
PERSPECTIVE | 4
The survey results showed that exercising
their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ bestowed
students with strength, power, and capacity in
overcoming their challenges.
those holding the priesthood joined in administering the
sacrament. During the entire BYUISB program, most of
our students served in different capacities and engaged
themselves in church-organized activities. Getting to
the meeting house for the congregation from where our
students stayed in Beijing, our students needed to walk
and then change four subway lines on a one-way trip.
Nevertheless, it didn’t stop them from serving diligently.
Along with engaging themselves in the Church activities,
our students also made efforts to volunteer in the local
community. In one case, a student worked with a nonprofit organization to teach migrant worker’s children
English and simply play with them. The children were
thrilled and the student felt rewarded. The student
explained, “There were also plenty of opportunities to
ponder and prove the lessons learned in China because
everywhere we went we had to try to apply and prove what
learned in day to day situations.”12
Collaboration Creates Excellence
At the 182nd Semiannual General Conference, Elder M.
Russell Ballard taught, “Great things are brought about and
burdens are lightened through the efforts of many hands
‘anxiously engaged in a good cause’” (29-30).13 This is
attested in handling an emergency case in our program.
For study-aboard program directors, receiving a message
of “We are in the hospital, but no one is dying” really was
no different from “Someone IS dying.” After some frantic
effort, I learned a student of our program just had a surgery
and was recovering. Without any faculty on the site, fellow
students worked everything together from arranging
the hospital and surgery (all in Chinese!) to getting the
approval from the insurance company. Fortunately, all of
these things were resolved within two days. Along with it,
the local branch President and priesthood brothers rushed
to the hospital. The CNU coordinator visited the student
and communicated with the doctors. Back on the Rexburg
campus, many “anxious hands” were also extended to
rescue. Ric Page from Academic Administration offered
advice, Tyler Andreasen provided insurance tips, Darin
Lee, from his fishing trip, designated a Travel Office
assistant for flight change policies. John Ivers and Michael
Paul were on alert. Scott Galer, former dean of our
department, coordinated and advised through the entire
operation. They responded to this emergency so timely
and selflessly that one would think they were on duty
rather than on Christmas break. This operation reminded
me of Elder Ballard’s analogy in teaching engagement in
service. He stated, “Though seemingly insignificant when
compared to the total, each bee’s one-twelfth of a teaspoon
of honey is vital to the life of the hive. The bees depend on
each other” (29).14 The success of an operation depends
on the contribution and collaboration of each individual
member in the team. With a consensus to striving to love,
serve, and teach one another, we can collaboratively create
excellence in serving our students and serving one another.
Look Forward and Move Onward
The BYU-I Semester in Beijing program is still at its
experimental stage and under periodical self-reviews.
What can we do to keep student’s spirituality growing
and protect them from straying? How can we attend to
our student’s needs to make the program more affordable,
manageable and effective? After ecclesiastical interviews,
surveys, and reflections, our Chinese Section has made
some changes and initiatives. First, prepare participants
spiritually and culturally. Not every student can stand
steadfast in faith. Mingling with Chinese and international
students provides plenty of spiritual sharing opportunities,
but also brings temptations from the adversary. To resolve
SHEN | 5
this, our program will offer a prerequisite one-credit
preparation course for prospective participants. The
curriculum of this course will focus on providing more
clear BYU-I standards and expectations (e.g. curfew,
dress and grooming, dating policies, different teaching
philosophies, etc.). Second, act upon student’s needs. The
survey results showed that program students yearned for
having a teacher or supervisor with them during the entire
program. Therefore, our Chinese section tentatively plans
to explore an on-site faculty model. By being present, we
hope we can better attend to students’ needs and find out
the solutions to students’ challenges. Third, develop more
reliable assessment tools. At CNU, students’ performance
is heavily test-based which may not reflect students’
knowledge about and skills in the real world. Alternative
or task-based assessment can be utilized to enhance the
fairness and validity of the measurement. Fourth, be
cognizant and open to other study-abroad models. Quite a
few students in the survey expressed their wish to extend
their study-abroad program to one year. Some hope
the program can be available for all-track students. We
relish the idea, but need to figure out how to stretch our
resources to make it happen.
To conclude, seeing is believing. As one student put
it, “As China has become more and more open to outside
influences, it has adopted many things, such as market
economy, capitalism, and McDonalds, but with distinct
Chinese characteristics.”15 Students may be confronted by
all kinds of challenges in study-abroad programs, yet the
programs provide them with abundant opportunities to
strengthen their faith through learning and serving one
another. One student attested, “At times they (challenges)
might be presented in different forms, or in different
situations, than usual. But in the end, it’s all the same….
Being far away from my family has prompted me to
look inward….It gives me a nudge to change my way of
PERSPECTIVE | 6
Students may be
confronted by all
kinds of challenges
in study-abroad
programs, yet the
programs provide
them with abundant
opportunities to
strengthen their faith
through learning and
serving one another.
living, in actions and thoughts. I’ve grown as a result.”14
The remarks from the students who participated in the
survey have reflected the important inter-relationships and
connections of teaching and learning.16 If the faculty strive
to serve and mentor students in an onward and innovative
way, we someday will be rewarded by the service our
students will do to the others.17
References
1
Chronicles 29:5.
9
Rici, Johnson. Personal Interview. 27, August 2012.
2
Galer, Scott. “The Ship of Curious Workmanship Sails to China: Term in Beijing
for BYU-Idaho.” Perspective 6.2 (2006), 35-39.
10
3
“BYU-I Learning Model.” Brigham Young University-Idaho., 2007.<http://emp.
byui. /rigginsw/BYUIlearningmodel.pdf>
11
Michelle, Tom. “The Five Principles.” E-mail to Lei Shen. 29 Nov. 2012.
12
See reference 6.
13
Ballard, Russell. “Be Anxiously Engaged.” Ensign 42:11 (2013), 29-31.
14
See reference 13.
Proselytizing in public is not permitted, but sharing about faith among nonChinese citizens at one home or in the vicinity of one’s home is alright.
4
Communicative Teaching Method is also known as Communicative Language
Teaching (CLT) or Communicative Approach which emphasizes learning a foreign
language through meaningful interaction, learning process, personal experience
outside classroom or in an authentic environment.
Henderson, Emily. “Happy Late Thanksgiving and An Early Merry
Christmas!!.”Email to Lei Shen. 12 Dec. 2011.
15
Crosland, Armando. “The Five Principles of BYU-I Learning Model.” E-mail to
Lei Shen. 30 Oct. 2012.
16
Gillette, Ryan. “The Five Principles of Learning Model.” Email to Lei Shen. 18
Jan. 2013.
17
5
Clark, Kim. General Faculty Meeting, Jan. 17, 2013. <https://www.byui.edu/
learning-teaching/articles-and-videos/general-faculty-meeting>
6
Here I would like to thank Kevin Galbraith and Justin Bates for their proofreading and patience.
Smith Joseph, and Rigdon Sidney. Lectures on Faith: Delivered to the School of
the Prophets in Kirtland, Ohio, 1834-35. New York: Shadow Mountain, 1993.
7
8
Nash, Marcus B. “By Faith All Things Are Fulfilled.” Ensign 44:12 (2012), 99-100.
SHEN | 7
What’s the Best
Book You’ve
Never Read?
An Odyssey of
Ignorance and
Obfuscation
David Rock
“Brother Rock doesn’t seem to know anything about
the subject.” (World Foundations 101 student, Course
Evaluation, Fall 2012)
A couple of years ago the chairman of the Foreign
Languages department was asked to submit the name of
someone to teach a course in the Foundations program. I
must say I was flattered when my name came up, since
several of my colleagues, all of them smarter than me,
had previously accepted assignments to teach and even
develop Foundations courses, including World Foundations,
Pakistan, The Middle East, and The Developing World.
I wish it were the case that I got the invitation because
of my vast erudition and my reputation as a charismatic
teacher. I believe instead that there was a quota to fill, and
everyone else either was already doing it or was doing more
important things. At any rate, I was invited to join the
World Foundations teaching team, and my first assignment
was a section of FDWLD 101 in Fall semester 2011.
For those who are not familiar with the course, World
Foundations 101, according to the catalog description,
is “the first half of a 2-course sequence that examines
great world civilizations through literature, art, music,
philosophy, and history.” It’s basically a combination of
humanities and comparative religion. The course covers
a bewildering array of topics: the temple pattern and
monomyth; Judaism; the Mesopotamians; Greek history,
religion, philosophy, drama and music; Hinduism;
Buddhism; Islam; the Romans; the Middle Ages, including
religious architecture and music, the Mass, and the Divine
Comedy. Basically, in order to teach this course you have
to know everything from kashrut to kyrie eleison; from the
Babylonian Exile to the “Babylonian Exile”.
In a perfect world a person would have a 3-hour load
reduction in order to prepare before teaching a new and
unfamiliar course. In my case, however, I had already
had a 3-hour leave during the calendar year for another,
unrelated and, as it turned out, less urgent purpose. But
I was an optimist, just like Oedipus and Gilgamesh were
optimists. I figured, I’m a smart guy. If I can tune a bagpipe
band, I can teach this class. If I can learn to ride a unicycle,
I figured, I’m a smart
guy. If I can tune a
bagpipe band, I can
teach this class. If I
can learn to ride a
unicycle, I can learn to
do this.
PERSPECTIVE | 8
I can learn to do this. I’ll just stay a chapter ahead of the
students, and “take ye no thought how or what thing ye
shall answer, or what ye shall say...” (Luke 12:11), and
everything will be fine.
Ever since grad school I have enjoyed asking my
colleagues, “What’s the most important book you’ve never
read?” I now hereby and freely confess: Prior to my first
semester teaching FDWLD 101, I had never read the
Divine Comedy. I had read Don Quijote three times. I had
read Moby Dick twice. I had even read William Shirer’s The
Rise and Fall of the Third Reich when I was in 8th grade, but
I had never read Dante. I had never read the Qur’an, much
less Gilgamesh or the Bhagavad-Gita.
This is not to say that I was completely unprepared to step
into the World Foundations classroom. I had read Oedipus
the King. I had read Aristotle’s Poetics and was therefore
prepared to explain katharsis, hamartia, and the so-called
“three unities”. I’m no stranger to irony, both situational
and dramatic. (As I write this, my fly is open and I have
no idea.) Even without formal training in the history and
theory of drama, I’m sure I could have found something to
say about Oedipus; after all, he and I have a lot in common:
I have a penchant to speak without thinking and often end
up putting my foot in my mouth, which is why I, too, have
a swollen foot and have to buy two pairs of shoes just to get
two that match in different sizes.
Enter Chorus
Chorus:
No, no
the miseries numberless, grief on grief, no end—
too much to bear, we are all dying
O my people . . .
My Ph.D. is in Spanish literature; unfortunately, not
many of the topics included in FDWLD 101 were covered
in my graduate courses or reading lists. And there’s a limit
ROCK | 9
to how much class time you can kill with a few odd-ball
facts, but I give it the “old college try”, as my dad would say.
Spain used to be Hispania, a Roman province. Maimonides,
Averroes, Seneca, and at least three Roman emperors
(Trajan, Hadrian and Theodosius) were born in Spain.
Enter Chorus
Chorus:
Will this be on the test?
The Second Punic War began in Spain. Hannibal Barca.
Hannibal Lecter. Hannibal, Missouri, childhood home of
Mark Twain. I went there when I was eleven. I remember
climbing the stairs to the lighthouse, the point being that
Hannibal must be pretty important if they’re still naming
towns and serial killers after him.
Did you know Nike didn’t start out as a shoe? And
Rubicon wasn’t always a Jeep. And Oedipus wasn’t always a
complex. And Hippo isn’t just an animal that can chomp a
crocodile in half. Yeah. That’s what I’m talkin’ about!
Did you know there are two basic forms of sea jellies,
labeled “medusa” and “hydra”? Hail, Hydra! Good thing I
know my mythology.
There are some things I’ve known for many years, and of
these, a small handful are actually on the syllabus. I already
knew, for example, that Hammurabi had a code of laws.
I learned this as a Boy Scout while studying for the Law
merit badge. I knew previously about musical modes from
learning to play old-time clawhammer banjo, wherein
the term “G modal” comes up from time to time as an
alternate name for “sawmill” tuning. And my expertise as
PERSPECTIVE | 10
And there’s a limit to how much class time you
can kill with a few odd-ball facts, but I give it
the “old college try”, as my dad would say.
a practitioner of the Scottish bagpipe has also served me
well in the unit on Greek music. It turns out, for example,
that the aulos is really just a primitive bagpipe. (I know: it’s
not fair to say that the aulos is “primitive” compared to an
instrument that routinely provided background music for
the evisceration of Englishmen and which was once legally
banned as a weapon of war.)
Just as my knowledge of banjos and bagpipes has been
instrumental in helping me pass myself off as a pseudoexpert (I pronounce it “puh-sway-doh) on Greek music,
likewise my having read El Cid, La araucana and El gaucho
Martín Fierro for my Spanish major prepared me to present
a lesson module on the nature of epics in general, and
thereby conceal the fact that I hadn’t read any of the ones
that are actually in the course. I already knew, for example,
that epics are long narratives, often in poetic form, which
recount the deeds of heroes, and are often produced by
Cecil B. DeMille. I like Gilgamesh, now that I’ve read it.
It’s kind of like a cross between Allen Ginsberg and the
Chicago Cubs, with a smattering of the Bible thrown in to
help sneak it past the PTA.
Before teaching FDWLD 101, I knew enough about St.
Augustine to realize that half of the people in the world
pronounce his name wrong, and nobody knows which half.
As for me, I hedge my bets by saying both “AW-gus-teen”
and “uh-GUS-tin” interchangeably, sometimes even in the
same sentence. I had heard of the Vedas, but I had no idea
about “Vedanta”, much less “ghats” (I thought they were
a mountain range in India). I knew that gothic cathedrals
have pointed arches and flying buttresses, but I had never
heard of Hildegard of Bingen. Before teaching the course
I would have guessed “motet” was a small motorcycle
popular among college students. Now, having joined the
World Foundations teaching team and having gone on an
in-service trip to India, I realize motets are also a popular
mode of transportation among Sikhs and Hindus, and if
you don’t like the way they drive, stay off the sidewalk!
All things considered, I’m grateful for the opportunity
to teach World Foundations. It has taught me some things
about the world, and about myself as well. Perhaps the
most important thing I’ve learned is that I don’t need to
know everything as long as I know everything else. The
Delphic Oracle identified Socrates as the wisest man in the
world. Socrates’ wisdom consisted precisely in his claim
not to know anything. I have never made such a claim. I
see no need. So what if I’m not as smart as Socrates? I’m
probably not as smart as Heraclitus either, but unlike
Heraclitus, at least I can say I went out twice with the same
girl. Like Heraclitus, I believe in change. A couple of years
ago, for example, if you would have asked me, “What’s the
best book you’ve never read?” I might have answered, “The
Divine Comedy”. Now I would probably say, “Teaching
What You Don’t Know”.
Bibliography
Huston, Therese. Teaching What You Don’t Know. Cambridge: Harvard UP, 2009.
Sophocles. Oedipus the King. The Three Theban Plays: Antigone, Oedipus the King,
Oedipus at Colonus. Trans. Robert Fagles. New York: Penguin, 1984.
R O C K | 11
Learning
More Than
Programming
Daris Howard
Many years ago, when I taught both computer science
and mathematics, I was asked by Ricks College to go for
training in objected oriented C++ programming. At that
time a book company sponsored a summer program at
another university, where faculty could take classes in
new technology and receive graduate credit. Ricks College
administrators said they would fund my summer work
there if I would go.
I hated the thought of leaving my family for that length
of time, so I worked it out that I would pay the extra
needed to take them with me.
I contacted those who administered the program, and
asked if I could rent a full apartment in the dorms where
they housed the participants. They told me I could not, and
they didn’t want families to come. When I asked them for
hotel references, they informed me that even though they
could not stop me from renting a hotel room, they still
didn’t want me to bring my family.
Undeterred, my wife, Donna, worked out the hotel
details, and I worked out the program registration. We took
a week to drive there, stopping at historical sites along the
way. When we reached the university and I signed in, the
people in charge of the program were upset that my family
was there, and were very belligerent about my registration.
Work began, and the computer programming course
was intensive. It started out each day with the hundreds
of participants meeting in a huge cafeteria for breakfast,
where all general announcements were made. We then
went to class. Classes and labs ran until nearly midnight
with breaks for lunch, dinner, and snacks.
On Wednesday evenings, everything shut down for a
few hours for volleyball. I didn’t get to be with my family
very much, so during that time I would run across the
street to the hotel and bring my family over. Everyone
seemed to enjoy having my children there, and doted on
them, making sure they drank only the “nonstructured”
lemonade.
On Saturday afternoons everything shut down for some
sightseeing. I took my family to some museums, and we
had a good time. Sunday was considered a regular class
day for the program, and everything ran from 7 AM until
midnight. I didn’t go to class on Sunday, but instead spent
the day going to church and doing Sunday things. This put
I contacted those
who administered
the program, and
asked if I could rent
a full apartment in
the dorms where
they housed the
participants. They
told me I could not,
and they didn’t want
families to come.
PERSPECTIVE | 12
me a bit behind on Monday, but I worked hard to be ahead
by Saturday so I could catch up quickly.
I wanted to get the most out of the program that I could,
so I even did extra programming, creating music and
fancy splash screens on all of the programs I turned in. The
directors even asked to use one of my screen designs for
the T-shirts we received, which I gladly allowed them to do.
When I finished my assignments, I helped my classmates
who were struggling with theirs.
Everything seemed to be going well until the last Friday,
the very last day of class. During announcements at
breakfast, the director reminded everyone that they were
expected to go to “The Prom” in the evening.
I raised my hand and asked what The Prom was.
He smiled as he answered. “The Prom is the best and
culminating part of the whole program. The company
has rented a very famous bar, along with all of the private
I didn’t get to be with
my family very much,
so during that time I
would run across the
street to the hotel and
bring my family over.
rooms. There are lots of the finest drinks, dancing, and
then, if you want, you can enjoy a private room. It is a great
way to really enjoy yourself while you are away from home
and your spouse.”
The thought of what he was implying didn’t sound good
to me. “I won’t be going,” I said.
He suddenly became very angry. He had me stand then
spoke loudly. “Everyone goes to The Prom! Everyone! The
company has put tens of thousands of dollars into making
it nice, and everyone is expected to go. In the twenty years
this program has run, everyone always has, and everyone
always will, go to The Prom.”
“Well, not this time,” I replied, “I don’t drink, I don’t
dance with women who aren’t my wife, I don’t go into bars,
and I definitely don’t need a private room.”
For almost ten minutes the director belittled my values
and made it sound as if I was ungrateful for the book
company going to all of the work and expense to make
things nice. He finished by saying, “You will go to The
Prom!” as if it was an order.
I simply shook my head. “I will not.”
I then sat down, very aware of everyone staring at me.
The director ranted about my ingratitude and stupidity for
another few minutes, and made it sound as if they would
withhold my certification. But he didn’t tell me again that I
would go. I think he knew what the answer would be.
As we dismissed for class, I had barely stood up when
another man grabbed my arm.
“Are you a Mormon?” he asked.
“Yes,” I answered.
“So am I,” he said.
HOWARD | 13
I felt a flood of relief, feeling that I had found
someone who would stand up for me on this
issue, but in this I was wrong.
I felt a flood of relief, feeling that I had found someone
who would stand up for me on this issue, but in this I
was wrong.
“You should go to The Prom and just drink pop or
something, and show them you can live by your values and
still have fun,” he said.
“How can I be living by my values if I am someplace
where I don’t feel comfortable?” I asked.
“There is nothing wrong with being in a bar, nor with
dancing with women that aren’t your wife,” he said in a
disgusted tone.
“In my opinion, there is,” I replied.
He told me off some more, but when I made it clear I
would not go, he just threw his hands in the air, said some
derogatory things to me, and walked away.
When I walked from the cafeteria there were three
ladies from my class waiting for me. They immediately
surrounded me.
“What if they don’t give you your certification?” one of
the women asked.
I just shrugged. “I came here to learn object oriented
programming, and I have done that. I don’t need their
certification to tell me what I know.”
“What are you going to do if you don’t go to The Prom?”
another asked.
“I am going to go back to my hotel room and spend the
evening with my wife and my children. We are going to
go swimming in the hotel pool and have a pizza party,” I
answered. “And my kids have found a television station
that plays the Jetsons all evening, and we are going to
watch that. If you want to join us, you’d be welcome, but
you’d have to pay for your own pizza.”
They looked at each other and then moved off and
started to talk among themselves. When I finally arrived
at class, everyone turned and stared at me. The three
women arrived quite a while later. I finished up my last
programming, and then spent most of the day
coaching others.
At each break, I was alone. People might say hello briefly,
but they would quickly move away from me and talk to
someone else, often looking in my direction. I was sure
everyone thought I was strange, and wanted to keep their
distance from me. I could hardly wait for the class
day to end.
PERSPECTIVE | 14
As dinner time was approaching, and class time was
I nodded. “I just didn’t expect that. Yesterday I thought
almost over, the teacher went over each person’s grade with everyone either hated me or wanted to avoid me because I
them to make sure the required work was completed. I was was weird.”
last, and as I came up, he announced that I had an almost
We went in and found seats in the auditorium. When it
perfect score. The class cheered for me. The instructor
was time to receive our certifications, no one said anything
then thanked me for tutoring those who had struggled,
to me, so I took my place in line with all of the others. The
saying it was the first time his whole class had completed
instructors handed them out to their classes. When it came
the requirements, and he felt much of it was due to my
my turn to receive mine, my instructor didn’t hand it to me.
individual effort with people. Again the class cheered,
Instead, he stepped to the microphone.
especially those whom I had helped.
“Before I give Mr. Howard his diploma, there is something
I felt very relieved as the class day ended and I joined my I would like to say about him,” my instructor said.
family at the hotel. We had a wonderful swim, enjoyed our
I thought he might talk about my extraordinary
pizza party, and I delighted in watching my children laugh
programming skills or how I had created super splash
at the Jetsons cartoons.
screens and music. Perhaps he would talk about how my
Graduation was the next day at 9 am. I had told Donna
screen images were used for the t-shirts everyone was
about the previous day, and I told her I didn’t know
given, or that I was the top programmer in the class and
what would happen when it was my turn to receive the
had helped those who had struggled. But he didn’t mention
graduation certificate.
any of those things.
As I approached the auditorium with my family, I was
Instead, as he spoke, he looked at my family and smiled.
suddenly surrounded by the same three women from the
“I’ve taught here at this program since its inception twenty
day before.
years ago, and for the first time, someone brought a family.
“Guess, what?” the first one said. “We decided that if you
I want to say that it felt good.”
could stand up to them and not go to The Prom, then we
Of one accord everyone in the auditorium rose to
could too.”
their feet for a standing ovation that went on and on, and
“Yeah,” another joined in. “We have come for years and
increased as the instructor motioned for my family to stand.
have always hated The Prom.”
The third one added, “We considered that if we hated it,
others might as well.”
“So do you know what we did?” the first one asked. I
shook my head, so she continued. “We hurried and made
fliers saying we would have a pizza party and a movie in
the dorm lounge for just a $4 donation for the pizza and
the movie.”
“And you won’t believe what happened,” the second one
said. “Almost everyone came to the dorm party - hundreds
of people. Only six people went to The Prom.”
“Yeah,” the first lady said. “Come to find out, almost
everyone has hated The Prom since the first day, but no
one has dared say anything until you did. Then everyone
felt they could.”
The ladies then left for graduation, leaving me standing
there, stunned by what I had just heard. Donna asked,
“Daris, are you all right?”
For almost ten
minutes the director
belittled my values
and made it sound
as if I was ungrateful
for the book company
going to all of the
work and expense to
make things nice.
HOWARD | 15
I received my certificate and returned to sit by Donna.
After the last person had their certificate in hand, the lights
went out for a 10 minute slide show set to music. The
pictures were taken by a man who had been there through
the program with no other assignment than to take
pictures. The first dozen slides were of people checking
in. But then there was a slide of my children sitting on the
grass cheering for me at the volleyball games, and everyone
in the auditorium broke into applause. From then on,
about every fourth slide was of my family, and each time
one came up, everyone cheered.
When the lights came up and the ceremony was over, we
were quickly surrounded by people wanting to talk to us.
Many asked us questions about our family and the church.
Everyone seemed to already know our religious affiliation.
It was a long time before the crowd dissipated and we were
able to leave.
As we walked away, I turned to Donna. “Is it such a
strange thing to bring a family and do the things we do
normally? I never meant to be unusual. I just didn’t want to
be away from my family.”
She smiled as she answered. “I guess maybe it is stranger
than we thought.”
We took another week to get home, visiting other sites
on our way. The next summer, as the time for the program
was coming around, I considered going again, but I
didn’t have the funds. But I did receive two interesting
emails from the three ladies that had been in charge of
the dorm pizza party. One lady said a large percentage of
the participants brought their families. She said she had
decided to bring hers, and found that the book company
went out of their way to accommodate them and provide
events for them during the day.
The second email was also interesting, and helped me
realize that sometimes we make a difference even when we
don’t think what we are doing matters. Though the email
came from the same lady, all three of the ladies had put
their names at the bottom. It simply said:
“The Prom no longer exists. This year, instead, they have
scheduled a movie and pizza party in the dorms. Thanks.”
And I realized that what I had learned from my
experience there that summer was far more than just
objected oriented programming.
PERSPECTIVE | 16
Hardy, Tennyson, Wallace, Bruce, Singe, Lady Gregory,
The Clancy Brothers, and Tommy Makem2. And now I
have been asked to explain the pedagogical significance
in a thousand words.
I suppose that explanation would begin with a plaque
fastened to the brick–wall of a pub on Fleet Street in the
center of London. The sign reads:
I went to see Major Harrison Hung Drawn and Quartered. He was looking as cheerful as any man could in
that condition.
Samuel Pepys 13th October 1660
Though I knew it before it was clear, this sojourn in
Great Britain was love. I was in love and in an affair that
would only last a little over a week.
Of Love Affairs
Scotland
J. O mar Hansen
The history of a writer is his search for his own subject,
his myth-theme, hidden from him, but prepared for
him in every hour of his life, his Gulliver’s Travels, his
Robinson Crusoe.
Thornton Wilder
Quoted in Thornton Wilder: a life
The love affairs began early for me; A Grotto somewhere
in the middle of Iowa. A shrine of some sort that my father
had found on the map and on a weekend we piled into the
Lincoln and made the pilgrimage to discover what it was.
What we found was wonder. A Catholic priest’s devotion
for a miracle. A grotto of stone created rock by rock until
it was a symbol. The impression is still with me. This was
a place built by hands that begged to create meaning. Built
in the middle of miles and miles of cornfields to remind
the faithful of their need to remember. To remember an
ancient story symbolized in rock. History was alive in it,
and I loved it. It was my first love affair with story.
So in two thousand and ten I was given leave1 to travel
to the land of my chosen predecessors. Not Denmark
the land of my forefathers, but England and Scotland
the land of my chosen mythology-the place where the
stories began for me. The land of Shakespeare, Dickens,
So confessions are necessary, and they begin in Scotland.
A day and a half in Edinburgh led to three walks up and
down the royal mile where endure such historic treasure
as the John Knox house, Deacon Brody’s Pub, St. Giles
Kirk, Adam Smith’s and David Hume’s statue, Holly Rood
Palace, the Castle, and just off the mile Greyfriar’s Kirk
where the haunted tomb of bloody Mackenzie still brings
in multitudes to hear the story of where the slaughter and
torture of the Presbyterian covenanters took place. There
is the statue of Wallace and Bruce at the Castle, a statue of
the young poet Robert Ferguson, in the middle of the royal
mile, who died in an asylum, and across the way from the
royal mile is the monument to Sir Walter Scott.
The first day was topped off, literally, by climbing
Arthur’s Seat where the views of the city and
surrounding area made me long for more, though I
knew it would be a long time before I could return.
Stonehenge
At Stonehenge, an October storm had rolled in by the time
I had hastily purchased a flimsy rain parka in a small shop
in Salisbury and gotten myself on the two–decker bus that
takes one to the monument,3 I was freezing. When I came
through the tunnel that lead out into the vast grassy plain
for my first intimate view of the shrine of the ancients,
HANSEN | 17
the wind was thrashing the sleety downpour sideways in
drenching hordes.
The storm was so insistent, that to pull out my
camera would have been catastrophic. For a moment I
wondered if it was the sanest choice to just turn around
and ride the bus back to Salisbury and the train back
to London. But once I walked close to the stones, they
called out to me. If rocks can profess love, then the great
stones seduced me. I could not leave the ground until
I had circled the monument completely. I had risked
pneumonia to feel the pull of these druid stones that
worshiped the sun even though the sun, “For sorrow
would not show his face.” Love won out.
Stratford Upon Avon
A few days later I stood directly in front of the house where
the Bard was born and raised. Unlike Stonehenge the day
was fair, warm, and clear. The love affair that had begun
in high school, when Mrs. Lavin had read out loud his
plays now was fulfilled as I stood on the sacred ground. It
reminded me that in life true love is never wasted when
it is meaningful. I walked the streets the Bard had walked,
saw the second best bed, and felt the wonder of Halls
Croft owned by the Puritan doctor who married Suzanna,
Shakespeare’s oldest daughter. I sat worshipfully in the
house where Anne Hathaway accepted the young suitor
seven years her junior. I wondered at what the young
couple whispered to each other in those times before they
were married and spent a life apart for so many years.
When I left Stratford–upon–Avon I left part of my heart.
London
Finally, in the ancient city of London, the old Roman
settlement that would become the center of the world, I
wandered daily circling the city, seeing every site that
I could possibly take in. There was the changing of the
guard, Westminster Abbey, All Hallows Church, and The
Tower of London and Traitors Gate not far from the afore
mentioned plaque with Pepys quote; a testament to the
cruelty of human beings toward other human beings.
PERSPECTIVE | 18
When I came through the tunnel that lead out
into the vast grassy plain for my first intimate
view of the shrine of the ancients, the wind
was thrashing the sleety downpour sideways
in drenching hordes.
In the center of London was the British Museum
filled with Egyptian artifacts, Sutton Hoo relics, royal
jewels, and the beautiful and awe inspiring remains
collected from around the world.
Also in the center of London was Dickens house,
where on the third floor, alone, I felt the presence of
Dickens’s sister–in–law who died in the house. Twice. I
felt it. Twice.
I spent many hours at Piccadilly Circus and the
West End where I attended the musical production of
Oliver in the historic Drury Lane Theatre. Here I was
disappointed not to have seen or felt the famous ghosts
of actors unwilling to leave their home.
The zenith of the affair came as I sat on the hard
wooden seats of the reconstructed Globe Theatre and
watched with a packed house of other anxious theatre
lovers the thing that had happened 400 years ago. Truly
the ghosts of those who had come before must have
been in attendance rejoicing with the living. Three times
I attended the Globe, seeing Henry IV parts one and
two and Merry Wives of Windsor. The actors, directors,
designers, and technicians who created these plays knew
that they were part of the telling of history, because I sat
in history. I sat in a place created purely to remind the
world of the importance of history and story.
All goods things
But the affair was done. I would return to Idaho. I missed
my wife and my family who had so generously allowed me
to fulfill this love affair. And now I am home, and I am now
telling the story. What was gained? What was the value of
such an affair? Out of this leave came a new workbook, a
new online class, a whole slew of visual aids, pictures, and
HANSEN | 19
a greater sense of historical place. It is mostly on paper and
much remains in my unfortunately finite mind.
But the real importance was what cannot be
explained-a tactile love of place and its value. I now had
a memory of images of real things that now had become
mythic in my mind-mythic, because history is made up
of the empirical and the irrational. What can be proved
and what can only be felt? The import for my students is
the hope that I might be able to instill in them the desire
to seek the proof of history and then explain it to others.
They will have to seek out the empirical. But to really
teach history, they will have to learn to tell it. For that
they need the myth. They will have to have a love affair
of their own.
1
Sabbatical in prior days and a term that seems more appropriate.
The latter are Irish and that love affair began with Irish music and must someday
be fulfilled. Just saying if anyone reading this wants to help in my unrequited love.
2
3
Which in and of itself was an affair. Question; why in heavens name would a
rational human being sit on the second level of a two decker bus so as to watch that
bus slice through the winding hilly roads of the Warwickshire country side to watch
how close one was to dying in a fiery crash since the English evidently don’t believe
in shoulders on a road.
They will have to seek out the empirical. But to
really teach history, they will have to learn to
tell it. For that they need the myth. They will
have to have a love affair of their own.
PERSPECTIVE | 20
Using Faculty
Development Leaves
to Redirect Mentored
Student Research Projects
Ryan S. Da Bell
In the past several years there has been an increased
interest in mentored student research at Brigham Young
University-Idaho. To be sure, what activities comprise
“mentored student research” vary widely across campus;
but for me, establishing a program for students to conduct
meaningful research in my specific area—physical
chemistry and quantum mechanics—was a several-year
journey. I used a 12-hour leave at a transition point to help
wrap up one study and commence another.
In 2007 I was approached by a new faculty member in
the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at BYU
in Provo, Dr. Jaron Hansen. Jaron is very enthusiastic
and passionate about his work. His idea was to start a
collaborative study of atmospheric radical-water complexes.
Although skeptical, I was willing to listen to his ideas, so
he started explaining his approach. The role of BYU-I
students and myself would be to work on computational
studies of radicals—determining their preferred
geometries, their electronic structures, and so on. Our
students would also determine the likelihood of forming
radical-water complexes: Combinations of a radical with
a water molecule that result in making the radical more
stable in the atmosphere. Radicals are a class of highly
reactive electron-deficient molecules responsible for a
number of notorious atmospheric processes. For instance,
radicals associated with pollution are responsible for both
ozone production at ground level and ozone destruction
in the stratosphere. Consequently, their structure and
behavior is of a particular interest. Our theoretical studies
at BYU-Idaho would be coupled with experimental work
in Provo to further knowledge of this important class of
atmospheric compounds.
I was initially reticent to proceed with the collaboration.
I told Jaron that, given the class load of my students
and myself, we wouldn’t be able to move as quickly as
a graduate student. Upon assurances that this wasn’t a
concern for him, we began working on the problem, with
Jaron providing computational resources through the
Fulton Supercomputing Lab at BYU.
Because leave time wasn’t available to start up the project,
it took longer than anticipated to get off the ground. But,
with the dedicated work of several undergraduate students,
we established a protocol that worked well for running the
Our theoretical
studies at BYU-Idaho
would be coupled
with experimental
work in Provo to
further knowledge
of this important
class of atmospheric
compounds.
DABELL | 21
With the dedicated
work of several
undergraduate
students, we
established a protocol
that worked well for
running the required
calculations.
required calculations. We then began in earnest working
on our first molecule—a radical based on 2-E-hexanal, a
common outgassing product of algae and a number of
other plants.
Over approximately 2-2.5 years, seven undergraduate
students worked on the calculations required to determine
the radical’s geometry, characterize its interaction with
water, and determine the thermochemistry of the system.
Along the way we had valuable assistance from Jared Clark,
one of Jaron’s graduate students. By Spring 2010 we were
seeing the proverbial “light at the end of the tunnel.”
In Fall 2010 I was granted a 12-hour leave where the
primary focus would be to write up the results of the
project. Jaron had arranged to have the paper submitted
to an invited special issue of The International Journal of
Quantum Chemistry that focused on the computational
studies of atmospheric radicals. The students had made
my task easier by writing up their separate contributions
into briefs that I could use to bring together and finish the
paper, but the work remained to be compiled. In addition,
I also faced the question of “what next?” I had found the
process of research beneficial to myself as well as to the
students who worked with me, but I hadn’t really thought
about what to pursue after this.
The 2010 leave was a valuable resource of time—time
to carefully compile the results of the project, re-examine
calculations, double check results and interpretations, and
make numerous corrections to the evolving manuscript. By
the end of 2010, the draft was nearly complete, and with
much assistance from Jared Clark, final edits were done
by March 2011. The paper was accepted later that year,
and the print version came out in April 2012 (Burrell, et
al., “Computational study of hexanal peroxy radical-water
complexes”, International Journal of Quantum Chemistry,
112, 1936 (2012)).
At the same time, the leave provided time to carefully
consider the next project I would introduce to students.
Working with Jaron, we identified the next target of
study—a family of plant-generated molecules collectively
called pinenes. During the leave I could establish the
protocols students would use during their research work
PERSPECTIVE | 22
so that they could progress in an effective way. I was able
to consider what milestones within the project qualified
as “completion points” such that students who finished
working with me could feel a sense of accomplishment,
while others took up the project where they left off.
Faculty development leaves have not eliminated
necessary course corrections; the students and I still run
into the frequent snags and setbacks common to many
investigations. Even so, as our radical-water complexes
project demonstrated, development leaves are a valuable
tool for facilitating major transitions in an ongoing
line of research.
I had found the
process of research
beneficial to myself as
well as to the students
who worked with me,
but I hadn’t really
thought about what to
pursue after this.
DABELL | 23
Thomas E. Ricks
Endowment
faculty in their
enrichment
retraining and
teaching efforts
My experience there was truly a
memorable one. I had the opportunity
to work closely with Eugene Corporon
and Dennis Fisher at UNT and gleaned
from their expertise many things that
I will be able to utilize in teaching my
conducting class as well as on the podium with the BYUI Symphony Band.
Diane Soelberg
I took about 400 photos, many of which
I will use in my courses. But more
important is that I will never forget the
smells in the air, the colors of the earth,
the textures of the stones, etc. These
ineffables are what I try to help the
students feel.
Martin Raish
thomas e. ricks grant application deadlines:
november 1st, march 1st and june 1st.
for more information visit www.byui.edu/ter
In previous canyon
adventures if I reached
a point that I could not
down climb, I simply
turned around.
The
Canyoneering
Accident
Database
steve k ugath
It was late at night and I was driving north through
southwestern Wyoming to participate in a twenty-eight day
mountaineering course in the Absaroka and Wind River
Mountains. The year was 1993. All hope of connecting
with a good FM station was lost so I settled on listening
to a staticy AM station out of Salt Lake City. I remember
the newscaster somberly reporting on an accident that
had taken place. Details were sketchy but the announcer
shared the tale of an LDS Scout Troop out of Salt Lake
who ventured into Kolob Canyon in Southern Utah’s
Zion National Park. What was supposed to be an exciting
adventure for five young men and their 3 leaders turned
bad quickly. Several of the scout leaders were killed in
hydraulics formed at the base of several waterfalls. The
remainder of the group wisely waited for rescue, spending
four nights on a small ledge that they had constructed out
of rocks in the frigid canyon.
I distinctly remember feelings of sadness. How tragic to
lose a son, a brother, a father, a scoutmaster. However, I was
also fascinated with the wonder of how events unfolded
in the canyon that day. I wanted to dissect the events and
key in on the crucial mistakes that lead up to the tragic
moment when life was lost. Had the internet been what
it is today, when I pulled into the sleepy town of Lander, I
would have deployed a laptop and searched for a wireless
connection in search of more details and understanding.
Several years later I found myself in a canyon sliding
down a thin nylon rope into deep recesses of sandstone.
I was experiencing technical canyoneering. I had hiked
through many canyons in the past, but this was different. In
previous canyon adventures, if I reached a point that I could
not down climb, I had simply turned around. Many of
my explorations ended in inevitable retreat. Now, however,
I was purposely building anchors, rigging ropes and
rappelling various distances, sometimes as much as three
hundred foot drops to descend downward over massive
dry-falls navigating to the canyon’s terminus. I was earning
my stripes in the relatively new sport of Canyoneering.
As with most pursuits there is a learning curve in
technical canyoneering. Unlike hobbies such as chess,
genealogy, golf, or photography, there is little room
for error. Setting up a rappel incorrectly or making a
bad weather reading can prove catastrophic. With my
background in mountaineering, I had some sense to
surround myself with competent Canyoneers and to
participate in certification courses which would expand
my knowledge and skill set, ultimately aiding me in
making important life preserving decisions. I often asked
canyoneering friends for their take on the Kolob Canyon
tragedy. They responded in similar fashion stating, “The
PERSPECTIVE | 26
water flow in the canyon was too severe… they never
should have entered the canyon that day.”
I was seeking for more insight, searching for options
not just black or white answers. For example, what if I
entered the canyon when water flows were reasonable, and
they rose suddenly while making the descent? What could
be done in that situation to avoid being sucked into a
hydraulic at the base of a waterfall and being entangled in
the rope just descended?
It was during a canyoneering certification course with
the American Canyoneering Association (ACA) in Cedar
City, Utah that I finally found answers. During lunch one
day, during the course, I asked my instructor, Rich Carlson,
what he would have done in the canyon that day had he
been there? Like others he began, “I wouldn’t have been
there in the first place.” Then he said, “For the benefit of
everyone there, would we mind if he told the story from
the beginning?” Everyone was listening intently now. It
was apparent that there were many students in the course
who knew nothing of Kolob Canyon, much less the
tragedy that took place there eight years previously.
For the next twenty minutes Rich powerfully and
skillfully recounted every detail known; the scout’s intense
preparations, their entrance into the canyon, the rigging of
rappels and subsequent drownings, the rescue, the reunion
of survivors with loved ones, the legal battles that
ensued that tried to assign fault, and finally the out of
court settlement.
I was mesmerized by the story once again. The gaps
in my understanding grew smaller and in some cases
all together vanished. Through his careful narrative my
decision making model was being enhanced. When his
story was complete, he said, “So now you know what
happened… let’s learn some techniques that could be
K U GAT H | 2 7
When his story was complete, he said, “So now
you know what happened… let’s learn some
technique that could be applied under similar
circumstances that could save lives.”
applied under similar circumstances that could save lives.”
And we did.
The course left a big impression on me. Rich had related
multiple stories during the course where bad decisions
ended in death or injury. Each story represented a piece
of knowledge that could easily be applied to prevent or
respond to potentially bad situations. I later called Rich
and asked him if there was a source for all the stories he
told. I had read and studied similar books that existed for
mountaineering, rock climbing, avalanche and whitewater
accidents. Rich shared that at one point he began to put
together a book, but that “life had gotten in the way.” I
expressed interest in helping out, if he ever started the
project back up. I didn’t know then that twelve years and
many canyons later I would propose the creation of a
Canyoneering Accident and Near Miss Database as part
of a sabbatical leave.
My sabbatical goals were really pretty simple. My
application for leave phrased it differently, but I really
wanted to become a better teacher, learn some new
software in the process and, of course, save the world! The
following is how I attempted to achieve those goals.
Classroom Connections
I knew from the start that I wanted to involve students in
this project on a number of levels. They would certainly
benefit through their participation, and I knew the project
would be enhanced with their aid and energy.
In addition, it’s never wise to roam and explore remote and
dangerous canyons alone; they would make for great
travel companions.
Students in the Canyoneering course during my
Fellowship leave (I did teach one course during Fellowship)
were actually excited when I announced the big assignment
for class. They were to gather data on an assigned
canyoneering accident that lead to a death, from as many
sources as possible. They were to then develop a storyline
based upon all collected sources - a storyline that in their
opinion most closely reflected the truth. I anticipated
that they would ask should they consult regarding more
direct sources such as survivors, family, and friends. I
responded that I would leave that decision entirely up to
them, giving them some direction on how to approach
such a conversation/interview. In many cases I facilitated
their connection since I was familiar with a number of the
individuals involved. In the end, about half the students
made direct contact and they reported their conversations
to be extremely insightful, positive and of value.
If asked, students would tell you that they do not sign up
for a Canyoneering course to do research and make reports.
Students in the Recreation Management major are all about
hands on learning. Together we worked out the logistics for
several expeditions to famous canyons where accidents had
taken place - canyons like Blue John and No Mans Canyon
in the Robbers Roost region of southern Utah.
Blue John is a wild and remote canyon, so remote
that Butch Cassidy and his Wild Bunch would retreat
there after a train or bank robbery. In May of 2003, Aron
Ralston began a solo descent of Blue John Canyon, which
runs about fifteen miles start to finish. Midway through
the descent his arm became pinned between the canyon
wall and a large boulder. After five days of being trapped
in this deep and remote canyon, he successfully freed
himself by amputating his arm. Miraculously, he made
it almost back to his truck, but a rescue helicopter found
him first. Aron’s story of survival became all the more
powerful for students as they placed their arm where his
was and imagined the lonely feelings he dealt with waiting
to be rescued or to die. In addition, I challenged them to
navigate the remainder of the technical section where he
PERSPECTIVE | 28
was trapped using just one of their arms-including an 80
foot rappel. Aron’s story is a powerful lesson in the risks
of venturing solo, and that canyons may appear static, but
they are in fact in motion.
My canyoneering classes will typically fill up after a day
or two of registration. To the initial registrants, I send out an
e-mail with a warning: “Do not take this course if you have
a severe fear of heights or tight places…I’m not a trained
therapist!” Usually a space or two will open up as students
realize the class may be more than they bargained for.
No Mans Canyon, like Blue John, has been sculpted
over the years by desert floods. The walls are high and, in
places, not much more than 8 inches apart. No Mans
Each story
represented a piece of
knowledge that could
easily be applied to
prevent or respond
to potentially bad
situations.
K U GAT H | 2 9
begins as a sandy wash for several miles. Gradually, the
walls grow closer and direct sunlight more obscure. Then it
begins a severe drop through twisting sandstone corridors.
It ends with two rappels. The first drops down forty feet to
a small ledge before it plummets another one hundred feet
down an over-hanging wall.
Louis Cicotello, an experienced mountaineer and
canyon explorer, along with his brother David, reached
the rappels on a beautiful spring day in March. They both
successfully rappelled down to the ledge and pulled their
rope. Louis rigged the final one hundred foot rappel and
started down. However, both of his rope ends were not
touching the ground, and he fell seventy feet to his death.
David remained trapped for six days on the ledge-unable
to go up canyon-as the wall he had descended was forty
feet straight up. He was also unable to descend as the
only rope was now at the bottom of the canyon. David
scratched in the walls an accounting of his time there-not
sure if he would live to be rescued. David and Louis’ story
is also a powerful one that clearly depicts the importance
of properly rigging descent ropes.
The last teaching component of my leave was to
participate in a four day Canyon Rescue certification
course in Southern Utah. In eleven years of teaching
canyoneering here at BYU-Idaho, we’ve only had a few
twisted ankles. As the instructor would I be able to safely
initiate and carry out an evacuation if the need arose?
Answering that question lead me back to my old friend
Rich Carlson. Rich’s rescue course effectively improved my
skills in equipment usage and improvisation, creating haul
systems which allow for safe raising or lowering of injured
persons, and strategies to reduce the need for rescue in the
first place.
Qualtrics to the Rescue
Whenever I joined a group of Canyoneers I was always
amazed at the stories. Much like fishermen, I’m sure their
stories tended to grow with time. I recognized that there
was great value in documenting, preserving and sharing
their stories of misadventure for all Canyoneers; I made
the decision to create an easily accessible data base, but
first I needed data! I teach a Research & Evaluation course
for our Recreation Management students. Scott Bergstrom,
PERSPECTIVE | 30
I personally had
several close brushes
in the mountains
where no one was hurt,
but a few feet here
or there could have
resulted in disaster.
BYU-Idaho’s Institutional Research guru, had told me
about some great new survey software the University had
obtained a license for. Scott had me send him over ten
questions. Within minutes he had sent me back a fully
formatted survey and access link (sorry Scott if I’m making
extra work for you).
The lesson was pretty clear. If Scott could do it in a
couple minutes I could too-eventually! I’m not sure that I
even used those original questions Scott had formatted as
the survey would evolve significantly over the next month.
Regardless, I was on my way to creating a thirty plus
question monster of a survey.
Qualtrics, I found, was extremely intuitive and user
friendly. In addition, the reporting tools were very
powerful. New users to this software will find that survey
construction is simple, though working with collected
data and generating the desired reports takes some time to
learn and develop proficiency.
With a rough survey draft in place, I was able to enlist
the help of an expert panel for refinement. I felt that in
addition to sharing their expertise, that if I connected with
the right people they would help spread the word of the
project and encourage participation. The panel was excellent
in both regards. With the survey completed, I knew we
would need some “carrots” to encourage Canyoneers to
share details of their mishaps. A few phone calls and e-mails
to canyoneering industry leaders (rope, carabiner, helmet
manufacturers, guidebook authors and even a canyon
photographer) landed the project about $1,000 worth of
equipment to be given away. I posted multiple times to
four on-line canyoneering user groups (about 4,500 people).
I also made an effort to be present at the canyoneering
rendezvous and visited many late night campfires and
encouraged Canyoneers to participate in the survey.
Saving the World: The
Canyoneering Accident and
Near Miss Database
I hoped that by creating an easily accessible and free
database of canyoneering accidents that future accidents,
like Kolob Canyon, could be reduced. The idea of including
near misses appealed to me, as I personally had several
close brushes in the mountains where no one was hurt,
but a few feet here or there could have resulted in disaster.
Surely, there was much to learn from analyzing close
calls as well.
The key strategy of the Canyoneering Accident and
Near Miss Database is to put into narrative the unfolding
events leading, or almost leading, to an accident. An
expert panel, and survivors, had the opportunity to
weigh in, much like the National Transportation Safety
Board (NTSB) does following an accident involving an
airplane. With careful analysis and discussion of solutions,
canyoneering can become an even safer outdoor pursuit.
Leaders of canyoneering trips can become better educated
by learning from the mistakes of others and developing
new decision and technical skills.
It has been almost 20 years since two fine men were lost
in the turbulent waters of Kolob Canyon. Certainly more
will die in the pursuit of adventure in the beautiful slot
canyons of Utah and other locations around the world. If
the Canyoneering Accident and Near Miss Database helps
spare even one life or proactively prevents a small mishap,
then it has been a success.
Note: The database is still under construction. It will be housed on the American
Canyoneers website: americancanyoneers.org
To view the completed survey go to: https://byui.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_ahfwGIkVSLQJgI4
K U GAT H | 3 1
Fulbright? Not
Quite
david pigott
I recently had the opportunity to teach at a university in
Kampala Uganda. After two attempts getting a Fulbright,
and failing, I decided to make my own. I like to think the
rejection was because of my desire to stay a shorter time
than the full semester + two months demanded in the
application process. Family considerations and our threetrack system limited my ability to do the full six-month
stint. At least this is what I like to think when reviewing
Fulbright’s decision when they responded with the pat
“Applications were particularly competitive this year with
many interesting projects. We encourage you to apply next
year.” Syncing up my five-year rotation for sabbatical with
the Fulbright program’s hazy, labyrinthine maze of hoops
to jump through—not to mention our short summers and
generally off-kilter semester schedule—I decided to make
my own Fulbright. We’ll call it a “Partialbright.”
I’ve been traveling to and studying about Uganda and
East Africa for about ten years now. I know its history better
than many Ugandans and probably better than that of my
own country. Over the years I have witnessed the rapidly
transforming economy, the brutalities of dictatorship, the
effects of climate change on smallholder farmers, the
successful reduction in AIDS victims through education,
the often deleterious effects of NGOs, the UN and other
aid-related institutions, the increasingly intimidating
presence of ubiquitous army and police as the dictator/
president clamps down on protests, among many other
observations. Most of all I’ve been able to witness and track
the dissolving traditional cultures due to the above forces
and the global economy in general. (I made a documentary
film called Cultured Pearl: Voices of Uganda about the latter.
You can view it on the streaming server.)
With an emphasis in cultural history, and the effects
of globalization, I set my sights on the one university in
Uganda that would dovetail with my academic interests:
Muteesa I Royal University, owned and operated by the
Kingdom of Buganda. The Buganda tribe is the most
powerful tribe in Uganda (hence the name the Brits gave
the colony in 1888 when they claimed it as a protectorate).
Muteesa has a vested interest in preserving its heritage, and
yet, before the arrival for my Partialbright, it had no oral
history program nor any inventory documenting its rich
heritage through oral tradition. Most of my students were
unaware of their cultural heritage. I had found my niche.
Before ever setting foot in the classroom I knew
technology would be one of my greatest impediments to
teaching in Africa. I have become so accustomed to using
digital copy, web-based lessons, projectors, whiteboards,
electricity, desks, floors, roofs, windows with glass in them,
not having chickens stroll into my classroom in search of
a stray seed, the serene absence of discos just outside my
class window, that I suppose I was a little spoiled. I knew
I couldn’t require that my students buy a book, nor be
expected to access the podcasts, videos, and other digitally
Before ever setting
foot in the classroom
I knew technology
would be one of my
greatest impediments
to teaching in Africa.
PERSPECTIVE | 32
Virtually all of the
older generations
can tell you at any
given moment
their ancestral line
stemming back at least
a dozen generations,
often all the way back
to the origins of the
tribe or clan.
based course materials I use in my courses here, so I
decided to bring all of my class—each assignment, each
video, each article and assessment—on USB drives to be
handed out to each of my students. I assumed (correctly)
that one way or another my students would be able to
access at least a computer, ideally one linked to the Web.
AlphaGraphics was kind enough to donate their unclaimed
USB jump drives—all wiped clean—to this cause. Thank
you to Will at AlphaGraphics, Rexburg.
Being among the losers in the Fulbright game, my
Partialbright actually freed me to make whatever I wanted
out of my intended three-month stay in Kampala, the
country’s capital. The vast majority of African culture
comes from a long history of oral tradition. Writing
systems never originated in Africa. Virtually all of the
older generations can tell you at any given moment their
ancestral line stemming back at least a dozen generations,
often all the way back to the origins of the tribe or clan.
Sadly, the younger generations cannot do this, and show
little interest. As a result, an immense cultural shift is
taking place, and many African cultures are forgetting who
they are and where they came from. They are constantly
reminded of who they should be, as demonstrated in the
tsunami of Western media. Painfully aware of this rapid
dissolution of tribal and cultural traditions, I set out to
establish a program in this smallish university to document
and account for at least some of the folktales, parables,
songs, dances, and ancestry among my students.
But how to accomplish this? How could a foreigner
dictate to the locals the need to account for and preserve
their past? Why was their past more important to me than
to them? It turns out, after a few painful class periods of
hammering out the questions they would pose to their
oldest living ancestors back in their home villages, they did
care. They cared enormously. They just needed someone
to teach them how to do it. The Oral History Project was
just one of several major assignments for the two classes I
taught at Muteesa I Royal University. A forthcoming article
will detail some of my experiences there.
A Postcard From the Field
“How was Africa?” is the typical question I get upon
my return. “Great” or “amazing” or “pretty messed up”
or “complex,” I say, knowing that any attempt at even a
superficial accounting would fall far short of doing the
continent any justice.
PIGOTT | 33
What I want to say is “How much time do you have?”
or “What is your basic knowledge of Africa, so I can have
a reference point to answer your question?” knowing that
eyes would glaze over, people would look at their watches,
fake a phone call, or run off to rearrange their sock drawer.
Very few of us really want an answer to “How was/is
Africa?” because it’s often not very good news. Most people
are in a sublime state of willful ignorance when it comes to
Africa. It’s way over there, very poor, and generally a source
of rich country guilt or anxiety. Most people just don’t care.
They should.
Africa is on the cusp of finally breaking out of its torpor,
after 500 years of foreign exploitation. This is largely due
to a renewed interest in its abundant natural resources.
Indeed, there is a new Scramble for Africa, not unlike its
19th century predecessor, but one less based on a “civilizing
mission” and more based more on cold, hard cash—usually
in the hands of the already rich. That “other Africa” we don’t
envision when we think of “The Dark Continent,” the one
full of “natives” and big game, and armies of macho Ernest
PERSPECTIVE | 34
About those children of the rich, those lucky
enough to attend university: most of them
are in such haste to adopt the Euro-American
ethos that they haven’t taken time to consider
what they’re abandoning.
Hemingways hunting Kudu. That Africa is still there (minus but all the girls accepted the subordinate role of the wife in
the family dynamic. Wives are to eat on the ground while
the big game, unless you’re in a park), but it is becoming
their husbands eat at the table or on the couch. Wives are
increasingly less relevant and left in the dust amidst the
to kneel before their husbands each day. Adultery by a
mad rush to “modernize” “globalize” and “digitize.”
Indeed, there are two Africas, actually hundreds of them, woman almost invariably ends in divorce and shameful
but I’ll stick with two for obvious reasons. Africa is splitting ostracism by the husband, whereas adultery by a man is
most often overlooked.
into a perpetually impoverished class and a rapidly rising
In my problem-solving unit of the course, most
minority middle class. The divide will continue to broaden
of the solutions the students proposed asked for
as the rich countries inject ever more capital in hopes of
greater government involvement (funding, advocacy,
extracting cheap minerals: the rich will get richer, their
“sensitization”), and yet they all hated the government and
children will get richer still—I taught a few of them and
didn’t want its powers to grow (sound familiar?).
they have distinct contempt for the hovelling masses in the
villages; the poor will get less poor, but not at the same rate,
Both boys and girls in my class rejected outright any
recognition of gay rights. Uganda has the harshest anti-gay
thus they will feel as if they are getting poorer.
laws in the world, and my students reflected this attitude.
About those children of the rich, those lucky enough
to attend university: most of them are in such haste to
Even Mormons appear as liberals when it comes to gay
rights issues in Uganda. Downright persecution is tacitly
adopt the Euro-American ethos that they haven’t taken
approved and when I broached the topic of gay rights
time to consider what they’re abandoning. Only slightly
in my interview with the former Prime Minister, Apollo
aware of this before my teaching stint, I incorporated a
Nsibambi, he got positively hostile and basically told the
bit of anthropology into my course, much to the dismay
West to jump in the lake if they wanted to impose their
of my students: an oral history project whereby they
would interview the oldest available relative to ascertain
perverted value system on Africa—aid or not. I do admire
his moxie, but thus far haven’t seen Uganda sending back
and document what life was like in “the old days.” Their
findings have become the beginnings of what the university any aid checks.
The topic of Aid (again, part of the forthcoming article)
and the Kingdom hope will be an ever-growing collection
of oral histories of the Baganda people.
often ties me up in knots, having spent the last ten years
Further, despite their rush to modernize and throw
providing aid to Ugandan schools. Aid itself has become
off the yoke of traditional African culture, my students
big business. Very big business. The Development course
I taught at Muteesa I contained 18 students, virtually all of
still have some pretty traditional attitudes when it comes
whom wanted to work for an international NGO (nonto modern social issues such as gender equality, civil
governmental organization). They saw the NGO industry
rights, and the role of government. Most of my students
as a way to make a good living, drive a white SUV—which
acknowledged the theoretical equality of men and women,
PIGOTT | 35
By some estimates
women do 85% of the
work in rural Africa.
PERSPECTIVE | 36
are everywhere in Africa—and insert themselves into the
bureaucracy of Aid. I chafe at this attitude, but this is a
topic for another article….
At the top of my “agenda” in teaching a course entitled
“Globalization, Development, and Africa” was to teach
critical learning, problem solving, and communication
skills to my students. The way information is conveyed
at school is at the heart of Africa’s seeming inability to
solve its own problems. Students are “taught” theory and
concepts, but not much application; no relevance nor
application to the real-life problems they see all around
them. So, I endeavored to teach practical skills: the
Learning Model for those who know the parlance. My
African students, identical to my American students a few
years back, were resistant to this new and more dynamic
approach, so conditioned passive listening, then cramming
for exams and forgetting what they learned were they.
Nevertheless, I like to think of the new leaders of Africa
as possessing great research, problem solving, diplomatic,
and communications skills; but above all, high moral
fiber. I only found evidence of cheating in about a fourth
of the assignments (a bit disappointing considering my
frequent forewarnings). The best student for the duration
of the semester was rewarded with a free laptop (used and
donated by a generous Rexburger for just such a purpose).
But I digress.
So, the two Africas are not converging, but diverging.
The peasants are increasingly marginalized and oblivious
to many of the changes taking place. One issue they are
painfully aware of is the changing weather patterns in
My African students,
identical to my
American students a
few years back, were
resistant to this new
and more dynamic
approach.
equatorial Africa attributed to global warming. The rains
are becoming less predictable. The peasantry usually rely on
small-holder “gardens,” often less than an acre from which
comes most of their caloric intake. In a cash economy,
subsistence farming is not a moneymaker, but some money
is generated with the surplus harvests, sold on the side of
the road—every road—and invariably by women.
But subsistence agriculture does have its advantages,
such as not feeling much of the pinch of the global
economic crisis. Peasant farmers’ money is in the ground.
While we fret about losing our 401k, they hoe their sweet
potatoes and life goes on as it always has. When the crash
hit, it was not the peasants, but the city folk that had to pay
double and triple their usual food costs. Peasants made out
like bandits leading to yet another setback in their wellbeing: land grabs.
In centuries past, most of the land tenure in sub-Saharan
Africa was tribally orientated, meaning a chief would give
away plots with vague boundaries. At independence the
new governments tried to survey and plot the bewildering
system, bequeathing land titles to those who could
pay. Peasants generally had no money, nor any proof of
ownership except a verbal acknowledgement from the
chief who no longer had any political power in the new
system. There has been some push back from the tribal
system, but generally this has been a losing battle for
traditional land tenure in Africa. Land grabs and title fraud
are still a problem as sub-Saharan Africa merges onto the
21st century highway.
It is this 21st century shuffling of the global economic
and political deck that could serve to Africa’s advantage if
its people can take advantage of their many opportunities.
China, India, Europe and the U.S. are all clamoring for
a bigger slice of the African Cake (colonial metaphor
intended). The scramble is on and China is winning, at
least for now, and it is the already empowered who are
profiting immensely. The divide widens. Will technology
be the X factor in allowing the poor to participate in the
Scramble? Not if current president, Yoweri Museveni,
has his way. Each time I’ve visited Uganda I’ve noticed a
growing military and police presence. Now on virtually
every major intersection rests an army truck fully loaded
with M-16 toting soldiers in fatigues (often napping in
PIGOTT | 37
Peasants generally had no money, nor
any proof of ownership except a verbal
acknowledgement from the chief who no
longer had any political power in the
new system.
the shade); and three or four traffic police shaking down
truckers (or the unawares professor driving peaceably
with his family—see blog for details of how I got out of
one such occurrence). If the current powers-that-be have
their way, there will be no Arab Spring south of the Sahara,
regardless of what Twitter or Facebook might portend for
the mass-movement movement.
Despite the overfarming seen here, rural Uganda is about
the most beautiful and productive place on Planet Earth.
What did I learn from my extended stay? What can
I “profess”? Since I am a “professor” I must profess
something! I learned that the capital, Kampala, is growing
so rapidly, and the state cares so little for its improvement,
that it will likely just collapse under its own weight within
the next decade. The overwhelming confidence that the
Private Sector would solve all problems has led to an
individualized and selfish mentality, exemplified by the
25,000 private mini-buses (called taxis); and the 75,000
motorcycle taxis (called boda-bodas). No central planning,
or vision, for the city has led to a city of over three million
with no public parks, no public transit, no logical street
system, no centralized sewage system. The government’s
hands-off approach to development has made the city
almost unbearable to live in. Museveni (President) will
most likely just wash his hands of improving the city,
and build a new capital somewhere friendlier to his
dictatorship (like his home district). In a city the size of
the greater Houston area, I counted a total of five traffic
lights and one overpass; all other intersections collide into
a morass of Darwinian driving splendor.
Most homes use either latrines out back (medieval) or
a septic tank system, both of which are contaminating
the entire water supply. Water is collected either through
ingenious rain collection from rooftops, or pumped up
from the never-ending supply from the regular rainfall—
we are in the Lakes District, after all, the inter-lacustrine
region for my stuffy professor colleagues.
I learned that despite the abundance of water, and
the glorious tropical climate which grows enough food
to support the world’s second highest birth rate (3.8%
per annum), Ugandans grossly under-exploit (typical
American perspective) their natural resources; that life
expectancy is at an eye-popping 52 years in a land that
knows no hunger, but is the epicenter to endemic diseases
like Ebola (outbreak while we were there), HIV/AIDS,
Marburg’s Disease (outbreak while we were there), West
Nile Virus, not to mention protracted civil conflicts.
Why the rampant poverty amidst such potential and
plenty is still a conundrum for me.
I learned that despite all of these setbacks to
development, coupled with the widespread poverty
and lack of access to education, Africans are, ironically,
happier than we Americans who take our many luxuries
for granted. Each time I visit Africa I relearn a lesson I
have not incorporated into my daily life: “stuff ” does not
make us happy; it makes us miserable. There is a baseline
of necessities (adequate shelter, food, some clothing, a few
dollars in the bank, and most importantly good family and
friends) beyond which we begin to covet, become jealous,
and feel like failures for not owning so we can size up our
new acquisition against our “friends.” The latter sentiments
are products of the many products we have available to us
and are at the heart of the Western model of development:
more jobs are created by making more stuff, which creates
more jobs to make more stuff. This is all relatively new to
much of Africa, and it is not healthy (physically, in the
PERSPECTIVE | 38
form of the hamburger/soda diets; emotionally in the form
of materialism).
This is the lesson I take back each time I visit Africa and
I see it in ever-greater measure with each trip. And yet if I
could just get the new 7" iPad with retina display and a pair
of Beats by Dr Dre I know I would be so much happier and
that life would be so much easier.
Three faculty members came along for the first two weeks: Jeremy Lamoreaux,
Shane Cole, and Kevin Shiley. I’ll let them tell their stories in another article. I
think the trip was of immense value both academically/professionally, but also
spiritually, emotionally, and collegially.
1
2
This is taken from a blog post I made last November. Many more in the blog about
our adventures over there: pigottsinafrica.blogspot.com
PIGOTT | 39
What Can I Do
To Influence
Student
Learning
tyler watson
Do you remember the professors you enjoyed and learned
most from in college? Likewise, do you remember those
“easy” professors who usually gave A’s? Are the two groups
the same? There is little correlation between being a lenient
professor and being a professor that is appreciated by the
students. Good evaluations are not so much a function
of lots of high grades as they are of other factors—mainly
enthusiasm and love of the subject matter.
Research on the utility of student evaluations to measure
teaching effectiveness of university professors could be
the largest body of work conducted on pedagogy in the
academe (Cashin, 1995). According to Wachtel (1998) in
his brief review of the literature, there has been nearly 80
years of research on the usefulness of student ratings of
professors. Yet professors continue to debate the usefulness
and validity of student evaluation data.
Overall, while the literature on student evaluations is
copious, common concepts emerge in the research. First,
student evaluations of teaching performance are valid,
reliable and good measures of student learning. Second,
the expected grade of a student may be a serious and
important confounding variable to the valid use of student
ratings. Third, some variables that influence student
ratings can be controlled by the teacher but others cannot.
Understanding what variables are under the control of the
professor can empower both faculty and administration in
the process of interpreting student evaluation data.
The validity of student ratings of university professor
teaching is well established, although not entirely without
controversy (Marsh, 2007; Wachtel, 1998; Cohen, 1981;
McKeachie, 1979; McKeachie, Lin & Mann, 1971; Costin,
Greenough, & Menges, 1971). During the last 70 years,
hundreds of studies have been conducted to establish the
validity and usefulness of student ratings in the evaluation
of teaching performance (Wachtel, 1998; Cashin, 1995).
Cohen (1981) found strong evidence of the validity
of student evaluations. His meta-analysis of 41 separate
validity studies showed a high degree of correlation
between student achievement and instructor rating even
when the study controlled for variables like expected grade.
However, Dowell and Neal (1982) disagreed that the
evidence was clear. They claim that while there has been
extensive research on the validity of student ratings, the
researchers frequently implement validity study
designs inappropriately.
Centra (1977) found a strong and significant correlation
between student performance and global student ratings
of the professor. Other researchers agree with Centra. In
Understanding what
variables are under
the control of the
professor can empower
both faculty and
administration in the
process of interpreting
student evaluation data.
PERSPECTIVE | 40
The validity of student ratings of university
professor teaching is well established, although
not entirely without controversy.
their study of introductory psychology students, McKeachie, of the instructor or course (1976). However, it is important
to consider that students who learn more from a course,
Lin, and Mann (1971) found that student outcomes on
and subsequently expect a higher grade as a result, will rate
a standardized analytical test were positively associated
the course higher.
with the student’s assessment of the skill of the instructor,
One of the most commonly cited and referenced
feedback provided by the instructor, high interaction
between the student and teacher and “warmth” or a positive phenomena in support of the argument that students
are not always capable of evaluating teaching is the “Dr.
rapport between teacher and student. These positive
Fox effect.” Students who were entertained by a lecturer
evaluations of the instructor validated the idea that highly
rated professors also achieve high levels of student learning. that did not present any informative content frequently
rated the experience higher than when a lecturer was not
A common misconception among university faculty
entertaining but presented substantive information (Ware
members is that students rate easier professors higher
& Williams, 1975). However, the Dr. Fox effect was less
and that student evaluations encourage professors to
substantial when tested empirically across multiple sections
be more lenient on grades. However, in one of the most
comparing student learning with student ratings (1975).
comprehensive reviews of the last 70 years of research data,
So, if student evaluation data is valid, and if student
Aleamoni (1999) pointed out that the external validity of
learning can be influenced by some characteristics of the
student evaluation data had been clearly established. He
teacher, it stands to reason that university professors would
stressed that extensive correlational studies have shown
be interested in knowing what factors most significantly
that students are able to determine good teaching from
influence how much a student learns in a course.
poor teaching and are not simply reacting to grades or
other unimportant factors. Further, the ratings of students
correlate highly with multiple types of learning outcomes; in
some cases the correlational coefficient was as high as r=0.89. The purpose of this research project was to determine which
course variables most directly influence student learning.
Even with mounds of historical evidence some
Student evaluations are conducted every semester for
researchers are convinced that student evaluations of
the first four years of all professors’ careers at Brigham
professors are not valuable. In a landmark paper, Feldman
Young University-Idaho and then every 3 years thereafter.
(1976) summarized the available research on the potential
bias of grading and student evaluations. According to
All students in each course are given the opportunity to
Feldman, studies conducted until the early 1970’s either
complete an evaluation of the course and the professor
discounted the bias in student ratings due to the expected
through a web-based survey system. I selected one
grade of the student or concluded that there was weak
department at the University as the study group. The
correlation between what a student expects their grade
department offers 59 courses, 20 lower division (including
to be and their assessment of the professor or course as
4 general education courses) and 42 upper division courses
a whole. His assessment of the body of research up to
and a total of 146 separate courses (sections) in an
that point was different. In the scores of research studies
average semester.
conducted at the individual level, Feldman found that
I queried all of the student evaluations available in
nearly all of the studies had a positive association (r=0.10 the selected department from fall semester 2008 until
0.44) between expected (or actual) grade and overall rating summer semester 2010 (n=7365). I excluded all continuing
Methods
WAT S O N | 4 1
The ultimate objective
in teaching is to
increase knowledge.
education courses and courses that were taught online.
This data set formed the basis of my analysis. I then
added a variable to the data to determine if a course was
upper division or lower division and another variable to
distinguish general education courses from courses offered
for a major or as an elective.
Once compiled, I conducted multiple regression analysis
on the student evaluations to create a predictive model
professors could use to improve student learning. Multiple
regression models can help researchers predict a particular
outcome (in this case student learning) given various
values of input (or independent) variables (Kuzma, 1984;
Bowling & Ebrahim, 2006). The benefit of a multiple
regression model is that the researcher can also account
for the amount of variability in the final outcome. Some
researchers think that using a regression model with ordinal
data is not appropriate and that statistical corrections must
be made to models involving categorical data (McCullagh,
1980). However, despite this concern, I believe that using
multiple regression analysis with ordinal student evaluation
data was useful for this study for four reasons:
1 Student evaluation data using a seven point Likert scale
is not treated by those who use the data as discrete
categories, rather they use the scores as they would
continuous data;
2 The nature of a seven point Likert scale approximates a
truly interval measurement and the power of multiple
regression analysis in combination with the large sample
size should eliminate potential for inferential distortion
(Bollen & Barb, 1981);
3 If professors desire to influence student ratings in a
predicable way, the true value of the multiple regression
analysis in this study is in the size of the beta coefficient
and not necessarily in the R2 value;
4 Ordinal regression analysis was conducted on a number
of test models to identify variation in the predictive
power defined by the R2 in multiple regression and the
pseudo R2 of the ordinal regression and there was very
little difference between the values (Adj R2 = 0.863 ,
pseudo R2=0.732) .
Therefore, multiple regression analysis is the best and
most valuable tool in this case.
Correlational coefficients were computed for the
entire data set to establish which variables may be closely
associated to ensure that two highly correlated variables
were not both included as independent variables in
potential regression models. This process ensured that
confounding causal variables did not unduly influence the
final model (Bowling & Ebrahim, 2006).
Results
Descriptive Statistics
The data were heavily skewed towards first year students
consisting of 49.7% freshmen, 19.7% sophomores, 15.8%
juniors and 14.8% seniors. The majority of respondents
were taking classes for general education requirements
(54%) while 30.1% were taking courses for their major and
another 8% for minor requirements. Fifty three percent of
the respondents were female. About one out of five of the
courses evaluated were classified as upper division (20.1%).
Regression Analysis
The ultimate objective in teaching is to increase knowledge.
I ran a regression model using all of the other questions
in the evaluation as independent variables and student
learning as the dependent variable and found that it was
possible to predict self-reported learning fairly well. This
model accounted for 63.8% of the variance found in student
learning (Adj R2= 0.638, SE= 0.701). However, selfreported student learning became much less predictable as
the model was reduced into more usable subsections and
individual variables, with only a few exceptions.
I first analyzed the variables that describe professor
characteristics found in the instructor section of the
evaluation. This model provided some predictability (Adj
R2= 0.472, SE= 0.878; see table 1) but still includes too
many variables for an instructor to control. Examination
of both student (table 2) and course characteristics (table
3) indicated that neither of these models improved on
PERSPECTIVE | 42
the predictability of the dependent variable “The course
developed new knowledge and skills in me”.
(See Tables 1, 2, and 3)
Many of the individual question responses were highly
correlated with one another and because of the large
sample size, all variable correlations were statistically
significant. Therefore, instead of eliminating variables
from the process, I examined independent variables
based on the size of their beta coefficient in relation to
the dependent variable. This allowed all variables to be
included in the analysis and accounted for the variable
influence each potential independent variable would have
on the students’ self-reported learning.
While these regression analyses are interesting and
informative, they are a bit cumbersome for a typical
faculty member to manage. It is difficult to change every
aspect of a course and even more difficult to change every
characteristic of a professor. With the complexity of these
regressions in mind, I wanted to find a few variables
that may be able to positively impact student learning
by themselves. I chose the variables that had the largest
coefficient values and the largest t-test scores in the models
above. I then conducted the analysis on each variable
separately. The analysis showed the variable, “Instructor
motivated me by his/her enthusiasm to want to learn
about the subject,” had only a slightly smaller influence on
student learning than any of the previous robust models
(39.3% of student variability).
The variables “I sought opportunities to reflect on
what I had learned in the class” and “Class assignments
contributed to my learning and growth” also accounted
highly for the variation in the dependent variable (ADJ R2
= .398 and .426 respectively).
(See Table 4)
Interestingly, time spent by the student in preparation
for the course (Prep time) had an extremely low coefficient
in the model, indicating that the students believed that
the time they spent outside of class was completely
independent of how much they learned.
Perhaps the most interesting finding of the study was
the lack of influence that expected grade had on student
learning. The grade a student expected only accounted
for 4.9% (ADJ R2= 0.049, SE = 1.228) of the variance in
student learning.
Conclusions
These findings suggest that professors are capable of
improving student learning by being more enthusiastic
teachers, and by creating a learning environment where
students are more interested in the process. As professors,
our first responsibility is to ensure that students learn.
While these regression models do not account for all of the
variation in each student’s self-reported learning, they do
give us a window into how we can improve.
Some may critique these findings by equating
enthusiasm with personality or simply being a good actor.
However, enthusiasm is expressed in many ways, not
just flamboyance. Students are able to determine when
a teacher is excited about what they do, even when they
are not part of the theater faculty; and according to this
research, that excitement equates to better learning.
Perhaps the most interesting finding of the study
was the lack of influence that expected grade
had on student learning.
WAT S O N | 4 3
Table 1
Table 2
Multiple regression model accounting
Multiple regression model accounting
for instructor characteristics in
for student characteristics in student
student learning
learning
B
SE B
P
B
0.144
0.000
Prep time
0.001
0.007
0.911
0.000
Class attendance
0.006
0.002
0.000
0.018
0.000
Class type
0.019
0.000
0.104
Professor type
0.071
0.018
The Instructor modeled
0.144
0.019
0.080
0.076
problem solving
were clear
Instructor gave helpful
0.014
0.011
0.201
0.090
0.017
0.000
0.000
I was prepared for each class
0.051
0.015
0.001
I arrived at class on time
0.046
0.013
0.000
-0.007
0.013
0.574
0.103
0.013
0.000
0.082
0.017
0.000
0.408
0.016
0.000
0.064
0.015
0.000
discussions
learning with others
I worked hard to meet
questions
requirements of class
0.003
0.015
0.836
requested assistance
Instructor motivated me by
0.001
0.011
I sought opportunities to share my
and constructively to student
Instructor was available when I
0.015
I was an active participant in
feedback
Instructor responded respectfully
0.060
-0.040
Expected grade
use of class time
Examples and explanations
I sought opportunities to reflect on
what I learned in class
0.240
0.016
0.000
I made important contributions
his/her enthusiasm to want to
to the learning and growth of
learn about the subject
classmates
Instructor starts/ends on time
Instructor held me accountable
P
1.087
1.483
Instructor made good
SE B
Constant
Constant
-0.012
0.014
0.387
0.049
0.013
0.000
0.073
0.018
0.000
0.147
0.019
0.000
Notes: ADJ R2 = 0.433
for coming to class prepared
Instructor provided
opportunities to participate
in the class
Instructor provided opportunities
to reflect upon learning
and notes
Notes: ADJ R2 = 0.472
References
Aleamoni, L. M. (1999). Student rating myths versus research facts from 1924 to
1998. Journal of Personnel Evaluation in Education, 13(2), 153-166.
Bollen, K.A., Barb, K. H. (1981). Pearson’s R and coarsely categorized measures.
American Sociological Review, 46(2), 232-239.
Bowling, A.; Ebrahim, S. (2006). Handbook of Health Research Methods; Investigation, Measurement and Analysis. New York: Open University Press.
Cashin, W. E. (1995). Student ratings of teaching: The research revisited. IDEA
Paper, 32
Centra, J. A. (1977). Student ratings of instruction and their relationship to student
learning. American Educational Research Journal, 14(1), 17.
Cohen, P. A. (1981). Student ratings of instruction and student achievement: A
meta-analysis of multisection validity studies. Review of Educational Research,
51(3), 281-309.
Costin, F., Greenough, W. T., & Menges, R. J. (1971). Student ratings of college
teaching: Reliability, validity, and usefulness. Review of Educational Research, 41(5),
511-535.
Dowell, D. A., & Neal, J. A. (1982). A selective review of the validity of student
ratings of teachings. The Journal of Higher Education, 53(1), 51-62.
PERSPECTIVE | 44
Table 3
Table 4
Multiple regression model accounting
Regression models for individual
for course characteristics in student
independent variables effect on
learning
student learning
B
SE B
P
Model Variables
B
SE B
Constant
1.556
0.073
Major
0.015
0.014
0.302
Constant
2.355
0.052
Upper or lower division
0.044
0.037
0.235
I sought opportunities to
0.635
0.009
Prep time
0.046
0.020
0.000
refelct on what I learned
Class type
-0.005
0.015
0.728
in class
0.139
0.020
0.000
Course was well organized
0.041
0.019
0.033
Constant
2.720
0.048
-0.046
0.020
0.024
Instructor motivated me by
0.545
0.008
to learn about the subject
0.087
0.016
Model C***
0.000
and helped me to achieve
Constant
2.562
0.047
course objectives
Class assignments
0.586
0.008
Assessment activities accurately
-0.021
0.014
and growth
Notes:
knowledge and abilities I
aquired from the course
*ADJ R2 = 0.398
0.311
0.018
0.000
**ADJ R2 = 0.393
my learning and growth
The course provided opportunities
0.000
contributed to my learning
0.153
and fairly measured the
Class assignments contributed to
0.000
his/her enthusiasm to want
expectations were clearly
defined
Instructional resources were useful
0.000
Model B**
Course objectives were clear
Student responsibilities and
P
Model A*
***ADJ R2 = 0.426
0.087
0.016
0.000
0.032
0.014
0.021
0.077
0.016
0.000
to learn from and teach other
students
Group work was beneficial and
meaningful
Students were actively involved in
this class through discussions,
group work and teaching
Notes: ADJ R2 = 0.485
Feldman, K. A. (1976). Grades and college students’ evaluations of their courses and
teachers. Research in Higher Education, 4(1), 69-111.
McKeachie, W. J. (1979). Student ratings of faculty: A reprise. Academe, 65(6),
384-397.
Kuzma, J. W. (1984). Basic Statistics for the Health Sciences. Mountain View, CA;
Mayfield Publishing Co.
McKeachie, W. J., Lin, Y., & Mann, W. (1971). Student ratings of teacher effectiveness: Validity studies. American Educational Research Journal, 8(3), 435-445.
Marsh, H. W. (2007). Do university teachers become more effective with experience? A multilevel growth model of students’ evaluations of teaching over 13 years.
Journal of Educational Psychology, 99(4), 775.
Wachtel, H. K. (1998). Student evaluation of college teaching effectiveness: A brief
review. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 23(2), 191.
McCullagh, P. (1980). Regression models for ordinal data. Journal of the Royal
Statistical Society, Series B, 42 (2), 109-142.
Ware Jr, J. E., & Williams, R. G. (1975). The dr. fox effect: A study of lecturer effectiveness and ratings of instruction. Academic Medicine, 50(2), 149.
WAT S O N | 4 5
tthe lighter side
nothing, but after three or four annoyed glances and an
exasperated look toward me from the student, I asked, “Is
the piano music too loud? I will be happy to go ask them to
quit until you finish.”
The student’s reply was priceless. “No, Brother Nate, it’s
not too loud; it’s just that whoever is playing keeps missing
the flat and it’s driving me crazy.” That was news to me and
my tin-ear, but it was a fun reminder that our BYU-Idaho
experience is truly peculiar by world standards.
Rate My Professors
Only at BYUIdaho
Ron Nate
A few years ago I was giving a quiz to my Principles of
Microeconomics students. The room was quiet and the
quiz was going well. Near the end of class time, as usual,
there were about three students taking a bit longer on the
quiz than the rest of the class.
Then it began. From the classroom next door we could
hear a student practicing a hymn on one of the classroom
pianos. The hymn sounded nice and it wasn’t too loud so
I left things as they were. I thought to myself how unique
BYU-Idaho is compared to the typical university. I couldn’t
imagine many other schools where there were pianos in
the classrooms, let alone students wanting to practice
hymns between classes.
After about five minutes though, I noticed that one of
my quiz-takers was getting restless and annoyed. He would
periodically look up from his paper and glance toward the
wall where the piano music was coming from. At first I did
Back in 2004, Rate My Professors was a fairly new
website. In fact, I hadn’t heard of it until my good friend
from graduate school, George, told me about it one day
in a telephone conversation. Like myself, George is an
economics professor; he teaches at a college in New York.
He told me how Rate My Professors worked. It is a
free site where students can rate their professors, provide
comments and advice, and give a “chili pepper” if they
think the professor is hot. He also told me that there were
ratings already posted on me, and that I should check it out.
But that wasn’t the end of our conversation. As usual, we
talked some politics, sports, and caught up on each others’
families and doings. At one point in the conversation,
I noted that Bill O’Reilly (Fox News) said something
interesting about a particular policy. (I’ve never regularly
watched O’Reilly, but for some reason had seen some of
it the night before.) To my surprise, George had a visceral
reaction to my mention of O’Reilly. I mean over the top, he
really detests the guy. I made a mental note to not mention
O’Reilly again in our conversations.
After the phone call I did go and check Rate My
Professors, and as promised, there were ratings and
comments about me. (I was pleasantly surprised to see how
generous my students were toward my teaching.) Then I
PERSPECTIVE | 46
decided to check George’s ratings. His were very good and
deservedly so.
Then I thought it might be fun to rate George myself.
So, I gave him high marks (he honestly deserves them)
and a chili pepper (mostly charity) and a simple, playful
comment: “He’s the Bill O’Reilly of economics.” I was sure
he would get a kick out of it.
Well, a few days later I got—let’s just say—a strongly
worded email from George. He included a link to a news
story that indicated a Fox News staffer was preparing to
file a lawsuit against Bill O’Reilly for sexual harassment.
This breaking news story was dated just two days after I
had commented on Rate My Professors. George called
me a “donkey” of sorts, and demanded that I remove the
“O’Reilly” comment from Rate My Professors.
I tried, but once a comment is posted, it can’t be
removed. It is still there to this day. The lawsuit against
O’Reilly turned out to be frivolous and unfounded and
George has since settled down. We still are and always have
been friends, and I still can’t help but smile when I think
of his email to me (he was really annoyed, but very funny
about it).
Word to the wise, be careful what you post. You never
know what may happen next and once it’s on the internet,
it may be there forever!
CALL FOR PAPERS
The theme for the Fall 2013 volume of Perspective is
“Lessons Learned From Teaching At Ricks / BYU-Idaho”.
Through the years, the wonderful faculty and
administrators of Ricks College and BYU-Idaho have had
experiences that would benefit those who have followed.
Often these experiences are not recorded and leave
with the faculty members when they retire. We would
like to invite those faculty who have retired, are about to
retire, or who have had significant time and experience
on this campus, to share one or more of their greatest
experiences and insight with us by addressing the theme:
“Lessons Learned from teaching at Ricks / BYU-Idaho.”
We would like to issue a call to faculty and administrators,
former and present, to submit short articles devoted
to this theme and we would like to have each college
represented. Articles can range in length to about 1600
words (approximately 6, double-spaced pages of text). If
willing to submit an article or if you have questions, please
contact one of the editors for Perspective or send an email
message to: [email protected]. Our editor team is
very happy to help. For submission format, please see the
Style Guide at: www.byui.edu/learning-teaching/facultycommittees/publication/perspective-magazine-style-guideoverview.
Also, we would like to remind readers to submit any
stories or anecdotes, both humorous and inspirational, for
The Lighter Side section of the journal.
N AT E | 4 7
The purpose of mortality is to learn and grow to
be more like our Father, and it is often during the
difficult times that we learn the most, as painful
as the lessons may be.
President Thomas S. Monson
October 2012, General Conference