V. College Goals and Projects
H. College of Social and Behavioral Sciences
College of Social and Behavioral Sciences (updated 2.2000)
Committee Members: Gene Sessions (History), Richard Hooper (Social Work and Gerontology), Jim Gaskill (Criminal Justice), Lauren Fowler (Psychology), Rob Reynolds, chair (Sociology and Anthropology), Bryan Dorsey (Geography), Marcy Everest (Political Science and Philosophy), Dave Nydam (Military Science)
A.College Status Report
- Labs: The Social Science Learning Support Center consists of a computer lab, a computer classroom, which also serves as a lab when not scheduled, and a testing center. The other labs within the college are the Archaeology Lab, the Crime Lab, the Geography Lab, and the Experimental Psychology Lab.
- Multimedia classrooms: There are seven classrooms currently equipped with a computer, LCD display unit and viscam or elmo for use by the instructor. These classrooms are scheduled by the individual departments which control the classroom. Many faculty have prepared their classroom lectures and presentations for use with this equipment. A problem we are encountering is faculty who have prepared courses for use in multimedia classrooms and then not being able to schedule such a classroom. Therefore our top priority in the college is equipping more classrooms with multimedia equipment.
- Portable multimedia equipment: Two departments, Psychology, and Political Science & Philosophy have portable computers with LCD projectors for use by faculty in teaching.
- Portable display (non-computer) equipment: There are three portable LCD projectors (about 10 years old) with VCRs available in the college, two in History and one in Criminal Justice.
- Multimedia classrooms: There are seven classrooms currently equipped with a computer, LCD display unit and viscam or elmo for use by the instructor. These classrooms are scheduled by the individual departments which control the classroom. Many faculty have prepared their classroom lectures and presentations for use with this equipment. A problem we are encountering is faculty who have prepared courses for use in multimedia classrooms and then not being able to schedule such a classroom. Therefore our top priority in the college is equipping more classrooms with multimedia equipment.
Software and Hardware: Software upgrades for faculty have occurred regularly. Faculty workstation consist primarily of either Silverbird Pentium 200 MMX cpus, and 32 meg. of RAM, or Gateway 500 Mhz Pentium 3s with 128 meg. of RAM. Windows 95 and Windows 98 are in use by most faculty and staff. A few 9less than 5) are using Windows NT. Several faculty expressed interest to gaining access to the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) datasets.
B.College Goals
- A goal of the college is to graduate educated members of society. Students need to gain the disciplinary knowledge and skills demanded by their majors and minors as well as gain an understanding of what the social sciences are and do. Among the knowledge and skills which cut across the social sciences are social science research and analysis skills. Writing skills are also important. In the social sciences, much analysis is statistical, and the labs needed are computer-based, where students can do statistical analysis, preferably under the supervision of the instructor or a trained lab aide. Also, teaching statistical techniques is best done by showing the students and then having them do it themselves, much as in the physical and natural sciences. Disciplinary specific skills in geography, archaeology, psychology, and criminal justice have led to the development of lab courses and labs which enhance professors' abilities to teach and students' abilities to learn the knowledge and skills they will need to be competent professionals.
C.College-level Projects
1.Classroom display units.
- In keeping with the main priority of the college to equip more classrooms with multimedia equipment, the college is requesting funding for fixed and portable multimedia equipment. Specifically:
- Seven addition classroom display units installed in departmental classrooms.
- a1.Budget: 7 units consisting of one Pentium 3 pc, one elmo, and a projection unit @ $7,000 each =$49,000;
- Two additional portable units for Psychology, and Sociology & Anthropology.
- b1.Budget: 2 units consisting of a notebook pc and a projection unit @ $6,000 each = $12,000
- 2.Telephone lines for Social Science Learning Support Center to create a Survey Lab.
- a.Several departments regularly have students conduct surveys, especially telephone survey, as part of research methods classes. By having six to ten additional telephone lines run into the Computer Lab, students would be able to conduct Computer-aided Telephone Interviewing (CATI) using the existing computers. The computers would still be available for regular student use most of the time.
- b.Budget: 10 telephone lines @ ? $.
- a.Several departments regularly have students conduct surveys, especially telephone survey, as part of research methods classes. By having six to ten additional telephone lines run into the Computer Lab, students would be able to conduct Computer-aided Telephone Interviewing (CATI) using the existing computers. The computers would still be available for regular student use most of the time.