21 October 2002
Copyright © 2002 World Expertise LLC – All rights
reserved
A periodic electronic newsletter for engineering education leaders,
edited by Russel C. Jones, PhD., P.E.
International developments
1) Chinese Internet users are reporting more sophisticated
filtering of their browsing and e-mail recently, suggesting a newly refined
approach in the government’s efforts to control Web content moving into and
out of China. According to an article in the 1 October 2002 International
Herald Tribune by Thomas Crampton, recent restrictions include selective
blocking of e-mails containing certain words, difficult access of secure foreign
sites, and interruption of search engines on particular topics. This moves the
filtering by the Chinese government beyond crude blocking of entire web sites,
using methods similar to anti-pornography software filters used by employers
with office networks. See http://www.iht.com
2) The government of Saudi Arabia is making grants of
$200,000 each to 12 higher education institutions in Palestine to help keep them
solvent, according to a note in the Chronicle of Higher Education by
Daniel del Castillo. In addition to direct aid to the Colleges, the Saudi
government is paying for 75% of the tuition and fees for third- and fourth-year
students. Due to the economic crisis in the area, the Palestinian Authority is
no longer making support payments to the universities, and students are often
not able to pay their tuition and fees. More than 85,000 students are currently
enrolled in Palestinian universities throughout the West Bank and Gaza. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/09/2002092404n.htm
3) European research officials are instituting a generous
new program of research grants that they hope will keep bright young scientists
and scholars working on the Continent, according to an article by Erica Goldman
in the 11 October 2002 issue of Science. The “European Young
Investigators Awards” comprise a talent competition, which will offer grants
totaling $1.5-million a year for the next five years. The competition will be
open to scientists from anywhere in the world, but the winners must do their
work in one of the 15 participating European countries. Participating countries
hope to fund 30 to 50 awards in the first round. See http://www.sciencemag.org
4) A newly formed university in Japan, Ritsumeikan Asia
Pacific University, is trying to attract foreign students by offering bilingual
classes in a multicultural environment. According to an article in the Chronicle
by Alan Brender, the institution was established to give Japanese students
an understanding of other countries, and to help foreigners understand Japan.
Foreigners make up only 2.8% of the students at Japanese universities, with the
vast majority of them Chinese or South Korean students who tend to blend in. The
president of the new university notes that typical Japanese universities are not
ready to become international, but he hopes that the new school will lead others
in that direction. See http://chronicle.com/weekly/v49/i05/05a05701.htm
5) US President George W. Bush has announced that the
Unites States will rejoin the United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization (UNESCO), according to an article in the 20n September
2002 issue of Science by John Bohannon. US membership was ended 18 years
ago by then President Ronald Reagan, who charged the UNESCO leadership with
mismanagement and hostility to a free press. Since then many campaigns –
including a 1993 petition signed by 37 Nobel laureates – have urged the US to
rejoin. The announcement by Bush, made in conjunction with his get-tough-on-Iraq
speech to the United Nations, was welcome news to UNESCO. Membership fees for
the US will be approximately $60-million per year, amounting to 22% of
UNESCO’s current budget. See http://www.sciencemag.org
6) A new survey of Chinese colleges indicates that distance education is their top priority for the next couple of years, according to a note in the Chronicle by Florence Olsen. As many as 800,000 students will gain access to higher education through distance-education programs that have been authorized by China’s Ministry of Education. The survey data show that nearly half of Chinese colleges and universities increased their information technology budgets by 5% or more this year compared to last year. The distance education initiative is in response to tremendous interest and commitment in China to provide more postsecondary education, while current classrooms are full. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/10/2002100302t.htm
7) Women from 41 nations meeting in Ottawa recently voted
to assemble the first international organization to promote the recruitment,
retention, and networking of female engineers and scientists, according to an
article in October 2002 issue of The Institute by Helen Horwitz. The
International Network of Women Engineers and Scientists (INWES), to become
operational next year, will serve as a worldwide information resource and offer
a platform to promote greater educational and career opportunities for women.
The new organization is sponsored by UNESCO and by the Society of Women
Engineers. See http://www.ieee.org
8) American-style Universities in the Middle East are
experiencing unprecedented surges in applications and enrollments from Arab
students who have chosen or been forced to remain in the Arab world to pursue
their studies, according to an article in the Chronicle by Daniel del
Castillo. New US visa policies requiring more stringent background checks for
Arab students have led to indefinite waits, postponements, and cancellations of
acceptances at US universities for a significant number of Arab students. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/10/2002100706n.htm
9) Developing countries are losing their most educated skilled workers to the world’s wealthiest nations, according to an article in the September 26th issue of The Economist. The article points out that for the world as a whole, it makes sense for the cleverest to exercise their skills where they earn the greatest reward; but what holds for the world may not hold for individual countries that lose large swatches of their educated people. Some economists argue that the impact of emigration on a sending country may be beneficial, by raising the pay for those left behind and by making education more valuable there. Others point out, however, that the loss of the skilled and educated – people who often help create new jobs for others --has a negative effect. The article lists ways that developing countries can reduce ‘brain drain’ – such as making their countries good places to work. See http://ecomomist.com/printedition/displayStory.cfm?Story_ID=1352810
10) Student clashes
on the Middle East have been taking place on dozens of US campuses, according to
an article in the October 5th New York Times by Felicia R.
Lee. In addition to the usual pro-Palestine and pro-Israel standoffs, students
at about 40 colleges have organized a divestment campaign against Israel. Amid
these tensions, a new group called the Tikkun Campus Network has been organized
to tone down the angry rhetoric by acknowledging the legitimacy of both sides
and by emphasizing a common humanity. See http://www.nytimes.com.
The campaign for divestiture of investments in Israel has been described in an
article by Michael A. Fletcher in the October 12th Washington
Post. Students and faculty at a growing number of universities are pressing
schools into selling their holdings in companies that do business in Israel, as
a way of protesting Israeli treatment of Palestinians. But Jews and others say
that adopting the tactics used to oppose apartheid in the 1970’s and 1980’s
paints the Israeli government as racist and oppressive. Harvard University
President Lawrence Summers has warned of a ‘upturn in anti-Semitism’ on
campuses and across the globe. See http://www.washingtonpost.com.
11)
American students are better prepared for college now than ever before,
according to a recent state-by-state report card on higher education described
by Jonathan Margulies in the Chronicle. “Measuring Up 2002” by the
National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education grades all 50 states on
their ability to prepare students for postsecondary work, and how well they
deliver it. As in the first report issued two years ago, states were rated on
six criteria: student preparation, participation, affordability, completion,
benefits, and learning. As in the previous report, states generally were given
‘C’ grades, but performance fell off in two categories: affordability
dropped from C- to D, and benefits (what states gain from an educated
population) fell from B- to C+. Analysis by the Chronicle indicates that
the highest rated states were Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey
and Virginia, while the lowest ratings were to Mississippi, Nevada, Tennessee,
West Virginia, and Louisiana. See http://chronicle.com/weekly/v49/i07/07a02401.htm
12) An increasingly
competitive higher-education market is putting colleges under pressure to
neglect their public mission, according to a report by the Futures Project,
which is described in an article by Peter Schmidt in the Chronicle. The
report states that for-profit higher education providers and other competitors
are eating into the profitable sectors of the market that colleges have
traditionally tapped into to subsidize their less-profitable endeavors, such as
humanities programs that do not produce much revenue or services to
disadvantaged students. The report says that many college leaders are concerned
that for-profit competitors will ‘cherry pick’ the most profitable programs,
drying up a key revenue source for traditional colleges. Presidents of
prestigious institutions were also concerned about the effects of competition
with one another, and leaders of regional public colleges were concerned about
the effects of competition from two-year institutions. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/10/2002100102n.htm
13) The number of
foreign nationals in engineering bachelor’s degree programs in the US is
increasing significantly, according to a report from the Engineering Workforce
Commission analyzed in an article in the October 2002 issue of Engineering
Times. According to “Engineering and Technology Enrollments, Fall 2001”,
the number of foreign nationals enrolled
as freshman engineering students rose 18.6% in 2001, and at the graduate level
foreign national enrollments increased by 14.7%. The report also indicates that
overall freshmen engineering enrollments increased 5% from 2000, with those
starting masters programs up 5.4% and those starting doctoral programs up 8.3%.
See http://www.nspe.org.
14) A House of
Representatives education subcommittee assessing the role of accreditation in
higher education criticized the 50-year old accreditation process, according to
an article in the Chronicle by Richard Morgan. Lawmakers charged that the
accreditation system fails to ensure academic quality, lacks accountability, and
drives up college costs for administrators and students. The Subcommittee
chairman expressed concern that accreditation agencies impose standards that
have little to do with academic quality. The President of the University of
Phoenix, a for-profit institution operating in 25 states, testified that the
variety of standards among regional accrediting agencies is problematic.
Defending the system, the president of the Council for Higher Education
Accreditation described it as an extraordinary example of a successful
public-private partnership. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/10/2002100204n.htm.
15) A recent report
by the Association of American Colleges and Universities calls for a
reorganization of undergraduate education, according to an article by Scott
Smallwood in the Chronicle. “Greater Expectations: A New Vision for
Learning as a Nation Goes to College” calls for creating a ‘practical
liberal education’ and raising the expectations of students, professors, and
the public. Among other recommendations, the report says that colleges should:
help students become intentional, lifelong learners; create new assessments that
require students to apply their learning to the real world; eliminate the
artificial division between the liberal arts and pre-professional education; and
create a closer alignment between schoolteachers and college educators. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/10/2002100103n.htm
16) Congress is
putting the squeeze on the oversight board of the National Science Foundation,
according to an article by Jeffrey Mervis in the October 4th issue of
Science. The visibility of the National Science Board has increased as
Congress pushes ahead with a bill that endorses doubling the NSF budget over the
next several years. Some in Congress want the Board to have greater resources
and independence, and to more aggressively oversee the Foundation and its
$4.8-billion budget. Current NSF Director Rita Colwell argues that the current
balance between the Board and the Director works well. In February, NSF was one
of the few government agencies that got a gold star from the Bush administration
for its management prowess. The NSF Board has 24 members, typically
well-regarded researchers or administrators from academia or industry, who are
chosen by the President and confirmed by Congress for staggered 6-year terms.
See http://www.sciencemag.org
17) The impact of Title IX of the Education Amendments of
1972 on the underrepresentation of women in the disciplines of mathematics,
science and education is being examined by Congress, according to an article by
Anne Marie Borrego in the Chronicle. Title IX forbids sex discrimination
at educational institutions that receive federal funds. At a recent Senate
hearing, witnesses differed on progress made over the past 30 years. One said
that studies show that women have less access to important resources than men,
and that universities should be required to provide more institutional support
such as scholarships for female graduate students. Others pointed out that women
professors in engineering and science encounter barriers on the road to tenure,
because many of them want to start families in their early 30’s just after
finishing their Ph.D. programs. Another witness cited ‘good news’, pointing
out statistics showing that the proportion of computer science graduates who
were women doubled from 14% to 27% between 1972 and 1997. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/10/2001100403n.htm.
Additional commentary on whether the improvement in equality in sports provided
by Title IX can be repeated in the lab is provided by Jeffrey Mervis in a note
in the October 11th issue of Science.
See http://www.sciencemag.org.
18) US institutions have trained relatively few foreign students in sensitive areas, according to a study reported by Michael Arnone in the Chronicle. The Georgia State University study indicates that over the 10-year period from 1990 to 1999, US universities awarded 1215 doctorates in science and engineering to students from countries that sponsor terrorism – but that only 147 of those degrees were in sensitive fields where the training could potentially be used by terrorists for conventional or biological warfare. The 147 degrees that might be used for warfare were in nuclear engineering, biotechnology, and organic chemistry. They were awarded to students from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Sudan and Syria. Observers noted that even if the US barred foreign students from study in sensitive areas, there would be no way of ensuring that such knowledge did not fall into the wrong hands. And it was also observed that today’s friends may be tomorrow’s enemies, and vice versa. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/10/2002101702n.htm
19) The cover story of the October 4th Chronicle
of Higher Education covers “10 Ways Colleges Can Cut IT Costs”. The
items listed are: 1) create limits or rules for student printouts, 2) cap the
bandwidth available in dormitories, 3) end free dial-up modem services, 4) stop
investing in phone systems students won’t use, 5) work with other colleges to
sign joint licenses for software, 6) use students to handle help-desk questions
at night, 7) remember that the dot-com boom in IT salaries is over, 8) join
purchasing pools for hardware and other IT expenses, 9) use ‘life cycle’
planning to centralize desktop purchases, and 10) use a ‘preferred provider’
for technology purchases. In each case, the article gives a rationale for the
approach, and cites institutions that have used it. See http://chronicle.com/free/v49/i06/06a03901.htm
20) Fed up with spam, irate students and professors want
colleges to crack down, according to an article in the Chronicle by
Florence Olsen. Spam is a bigger problem for colleges than for corporations
because college networks are more open to the public. Spam is difficult to limit
because spammers are constantly changing their techniques. Some colleges are
teaching people how they can reduce spam, while others are experimenting with a
variety of technical means to block spam – some of which make on-campus e-mail
less convenient. The article lists seven approaches to fighting spam. See http://chronicle.com/free/v49/i05/05a04701.htm
21) Cuts in college computing budgets are wider and deeper
than previously reported, according to a survey described in the Chronicle by
Vincent Kiernan. One third of the 632 two- and four-year institutions responding
to a Campus Computing Project survey reported cuts in their computing budgets,
compared to 18% last year. Moreover, this year’s cuts are more severe: 15% of
the institutions said their academic computing budgets had dropped by 5% or
more, compared with only 8% of institutions last year. In other findings, the
survey documented college’s adoption of online portals: 21% of the respondents
reported having such a portal, and 20% more said theirs was under development.
The survey also found that wireless network technology continues to spread
through academe: 68% of the colleges reported having some sort of wireless
network, up fro 51% last year. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/10/2002100201t.htm
22) Microsoft has won support for its Tablet PC concept
from several industry heavyweights, according to an article by Alexander Wolfe
in the October 2002 issue of IEEE Spectrum. Devices will start appearing
in November, amply configured as general-purpose machines with enough power to
run the full-blown Windows XP operating system. Their unique feature will be the
ability to allow handwritten text to be entered onto a digitizing tablet and
recognized – a functionality called pen-based computing. The units, about the
size of current small laptops, will provide the full power of a PC with the
simplicity of paper. Tablet PCs are expected to be the size and weight of the
more compact laptops and sell for around $2000. See http://www.spectrum.ieee.org
23) The University of Phoenix Online is adding three
doctoral programs, according to an article in the Chronicle by Elizabeth
Farrell. The new doctoral programs, in business administration, education, and
health care systems, are based on the popularity of the online school’s
undergraduate and master’s degree programs in the same disciplines. The North
Central regional accreditation body approved the new programs, which join the
one previously developed doctoral program in management in organizational
leadership. The online university hopes to enroll 300 to 500 doctoral students
over the next three years. See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/09/2002093008n.htm
24) Online colleges are complaining about traditional
institutions’ tough credit transfer policies, according to an article by Dan
Carnevale in the Chronicle. Many online institutions report that a large
number of their students are at least initially rejected in trying to get online
credits transferred to traditional institutions – and that some find that
ultimately they cannot do so, so that their time and money has been wasted. This
difficulty in transfer may be scaring off potential online students, slowing the
growth of online education. Many traditional institutions say that they do not
have the time or personnel to determine which online institutions are
legitimate, and they are suspicious of national accreditation by the Distance
Education and Training Council. See http://chronicle.com/free/v49/i08/08a03501.htm
25) Universities that fail to crack down on student
software pirates face a growing threat of lawsuits or new regulations, according
to an article in the Chronicle by Katherine Magnan. At issue is the
growing concern about illegal sharing of copyrighted music, videos, and other
materials over computer networks. Colleges, with their high-speed networks and
computer savvy students, are fertile grounds for such activity. Peer-to-peer
software (P2P) facilitates such illegal transfers – but also has a legitimate
function in facilitating scientific research and academic collaborations. An
industry association has sent a letter to universities urging them to educate
students about the moral and legal issues involved, specify what students can
and can’t do on the computer network, make sure they are complying with the
rules, and punish those who are not. See http://chronicle.com/free/2002/10/2002101401t.htm
26) National governments are attempting mandates and legal
actions that would affect Web sites hosted in another country, according to an
article by David Banisar in IEEE Spectrum Online. Imposing jurisdictions
on the traditionally border-free Internet ranges from countries such as China
and Saudi Arabia which have made wholesale restrictions of access to the
Internet, to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of the United States. The
author argues that decisions are being driven by the needs of law enforcement
agencies, restrictive governments, and large corporations, and that the needs of
citizens and consumers have largely been ignored. See http://www.spectrum.ieee/WEBONLY/resource/oct02/webs.html
27) ‘Is the personal digital assistant (PDA) poised to be the new technological darling on campus?’, asks Scott Carlson in an article in the Chronicle. The small size of the devices is attractive to educators, who say that they are less disruptive in classes than laptops. But the limited functions of PDAs concern others. Many of the devices now are wireless, so that they can connect directly to college networks. And various add-ons such as folding keyboards and extra software extend their capabilities, turning them into miniature word processors. The University of South Dakota is in its second year of requiring freshmen to purchase Palms, and professors have incorporated them into many disciplines. See http://chronicle.com/weekly/v49/i07/07a03301.htm
28) The number of minority students attending American
colleges and universities jumped 48% in the 1990’s, according to a study by
the American Council on Education. As reported in the September 23rd
issue of the New York Times by Diana Jean Schemo, the ACE study shows
that all minorities posted double-digit gains
in college enrollment during that period. But despite the greater numbers of
minority students in colleges, blacks and Latinos lagged behind whites and Asian
Americans in graduating. The study also found a widening gender gap in college
attendance among African-Americans, with college attendance by women under 25 at
43.9% in 2000, but that of men only 33.8%. See http://www.nytimes.com
29) Programs set up to help minority students, such as
ethnic housing and support systems, have led to segregation at many colleges and
are a form of racism, according to a new report by the New York Civil Rights
Coalition. The Coalition is a nonprofit group which opposes most forms of
affirmative action but promotes racial diversity. As described by Jeffrey Young
in the Chronicle, the report examines promotional material from minority
programs at 50 public and private colleges across the country, and details the
range of services offered to minority students. While colleges tout such
programs, the Coalition’s strongly worded conclusion calls them
“segregationist” and “apartheid policies”. A representative of Stanford
University, cited in the report, says of minority students: “We really
advocate for them. We’re proud of them. We promote them. This year’s
incoming freshmen class is comprised of 52% people of color, and Stanford is
known for providing quality, comprehensive programs and services for all its
students, including those of color.” See http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/10/2002101005n.htm
30) More students are winning scholarships based on merit
rather than on need, according to an article by June Kronholz in the September
23rd issue of the Wall Street Journal. While the biggest share
of the nation’s $74-billion in financial aid, from both private and government
sources, still goes to low-income kids, it is shrinking fast. Governors
and state legislators want to keep their brightest kids in-state, and both
private and public colleges are interested in boosting the academic profile of
their student bodies. Merit based scholarships are used to attract the
youngsters that the colleges want. States devoted 79% of their scholarship money
to financially needy students in 1999, but that is down from 89% a decade
earlier. Colleges and universities, which awarded $14.5-billion in scholarships
in 2000, gave almost half to students based on academic merit, sports ability,
musical talent, etc. The sudden increase in merit aid is popular with white,
middle-class parents, who are the most politically active voters and demanding
consumers. See http://www.wsj.com
31) Study abroad trips that go bad – due to sexual
harassment or other trouble -- are the topic of a major article by Jeffrey Young
in the Chronicle. A recent federal court ruling in a case involving
Eastern Michigan University extends sex-discrimination protections beyond US
borders. The court ruled that Title IX protections apply abroad when students
are enrolled in study-abroad programs, saying that “female students should not
have to submit to sexual harassment as the price of educational opportunity”.
One attorney said “People who are traveling under any kind of institutional
imprimatur need to know that the institution’s rules apply to them wherever
they may be”. See http://chronicle.com/weekly/v49/i06/06a04901.htm
32) An ASEE/SEFI/TUB Colloquium “Global Changes in
Engineering Education” was held in Berlin on 1-4 October 2002. The program
focused on three tracks: National Accreditation/Global Practices; Educating
Engineering Students in Entrepreneurship; and Technology in Learning Systems. A
plenary keynote address was presented in each track, followed by parallel
breakout sessions with several speakers on each of the tracks. The colloquium
ended with a session summarizing each of the tracks, and with a large number of
poster papers presented briefly by authors as an introduction to poster-side
discussions. Abstracts and papers from the colloquium are posted on the ASEE web
site at http://www.asee.org/conferences/international.
A summary of the conference is being prepared for publication in ASEE Prism.
33) The 2002 ABET Annual Meeting will be held in Pittsburgh
at the end of October. On 27-29 October there will be a faculty workshop for
program improvement; on 30 October a Commission summit; and on 31 October-1
November the 2nd annual conference on outcomes assessment for program
improvement. Details of the program and registration material are available on
the ABET web site at http://www.abet.org
34) The 2003 annual meeting of the European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI) will be held at the University of Porto in Portugal, from 8-11 September. The theme of the meeting is “Global Engineer: Education and Training for Mobility”. A call for papers and first announcements will be available soon on the SERI web site, at http://www.sefi.be
35) The September 2002 issue of the European Journal of
Engineering Education concentrates on mathematics in engineering education,
with eight papers on that topic edited by guest editor Leslie Mustoe. Papers
discuss the role of mathematics learning centers, similarities in math for
engineers and economists, mathematical e-learning, and other timely topics. See http://taylorandfrancis.metapress.com
36) The
October-December 2002 issue of the electronic journal TechKnowLogia is
available online. The theme of this issue is TECHNOLOGIES AND TEACHER EDUCATION.
Papers cover the training of teachers to effectively utilize educational
technology, technology integration in the classroom, distance technology
teaching, the digital divide, handheld computing, and other related topics. See http://www.TechKnowLogia.org
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