Discussing their activities so far this year, members of the Task Force on Undergraduate Education met Wednesday evening with the Undergraduate Council of Students.
Following a short summary of the committee's work by the task force members in attendance, the meeting was opened to questions from the audience.
"I'm interested in seeing how UCS would be able to help engage the campus in conversations about (the preliminary report) of the task force," Dean of the College Katherine Bergeron told The Herald Wednesday afternoon.
The task force, which is undertaking a broad review of the College and its curriculum, comprises 10 faculty members and four undergraduates and will release a rough draft of its findings early next semester for the campus to review.
"It went really well," UCS President Michael Glassman '09 told The Herald after the meeting. "I'm always impressed by how the members of the task force have thought about the issues at hand."
The entire task force meets every two weeks, while its subcommittees schedule their own individual meetings. The subcommittees are divided into teaching and assessment, general education, concentrations and advising.
Kathleen McSharry, associate dean of the College and dean for chemical dependency, gave the council an overview of the general education subcommittee's work, dispelling fears that a core curriculum was being considered.
"There have been zero conversations about that," said McSharry, who staffs the committee.
McSharry told UCS that the aim of the subcommittee was to determine "what does the open curriculum mean for today's students" and how the University can support students in navigating their education.
Discussions have also revolved around the growing phenomenon of students completing their concentration by the end of their junior year and how the University could work to provide for upperclassmen courses similar to first-year seminars.
Task force member Jason Becker '09, speaking on behalf of the concentration subcommittee, said the group is trying to define "what does it mean to have a concentration."
"It's important to understand why you have something before you talk about it," Becker said.
Becker also mentioned the possibility of strengthening the College Curriculum Council's abilities to review entire concentrations and the possibility of each concentration requiring a well-defined "mission of purpose."
Task force member Michael Paradiso, professor of neuroscience, said the subcommittee on teaching and assessment has been focused on what elements of a course students were attracted to or disappointed by, as well as the importance of course evaluations as a method of professor evaluation.
Responding to a council member's inquiry about greater faculty involvement in student life, Rakim Brooks '09, UCS academic and administrative affairs chair and a member of the task force, said, "It's a fine line. ... Is it too much to perhaps move back to Faculty Fellows with faculty (in) dorms? Or faculty near campus off-hours?" Brooks explained.
Discussing the freshman advising program, task force member Hannah Pepper-Cunningham '08 said the advising subcommittee was concerned with "how we can make that initial relation more robust."
The subcommittee has also discussed concentration advising, sophomore advising and training support for faculty advisers, Pepper-Cunningham told The Herald.
Other concerns voiced by UCS members included rumors that the University will hire professors known for seminal work in their field, regardless of their abilities as lecturers, to boost the University's standing amongst its peers.
"As long as we continue to maintain we're a university-college where teaching is important, it won't change," said task force member Sheila Blumstein, professor of cognitive and linguistic sciences, who has served in the past as an interim president, provost and dean of the College.
Blumstein also described a case in which an applicant said teaching courses was something he did only because it was required. "He was never invited here," she said.
A council member expressed concern about communication between the task force and the student body, and Glassman closed the council's discussion with the task force by urging UCS members to "think about ways we get students involved."
Becker told The Herald that he found the apparent lack of student interest in the committee's MyCourses page and the task force section of the dean of the College's Web site frightening and said he was "concerned that people aren't using the outlets we're providing."
"I would say that we are dying to hear student opinions," said task force member Fiona Heckscher '09.
To boost student input, the student members of the task force have organized a series of focus group discussions. Becker said the first one will take place this evening and will be a chance to discuss with small groups of students specific issues and broader concepts the task force is discussing.
A Facebook group created by the student members, informal one-on-one conversations and larger open forums - the first one to be held Monday - are other methods the task force is employing to receive feedback from students on the committee's work.
UCS also elected Tyler Rosenbaum '11 as a representative-at-large and Harris Li '11 as head delegate to IvyCouncil, an organization of Ivy League student governments.
