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$750,000 Award Enables NU to Lead Four-Year, Five-University Effort Pew Trust Grant To Aid Peer Review ProjectBy Kelly Bartling, Public Relations A $750,000 grant from The Pew Charitable Trusts will aid a four-year project by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and four other universities in implementing a model for peer review of teaching. The project promotes leadership, evaluation, interaction and feedback among faculty members from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the lead institution, and its partners the universities of Michigan, Indiana, Texas A&M and Kansas State. The grant will assist faculties in evaluating their effectiveness in the classroom and ultimately improve learning by college students in their courses. "This interactive model clearly improves the practice of teaching, and the Pew award is a huge vote of confidence for the work already done by University of Nebraska-Lincoln faculty on peer reviews," said Richard Edwards, senior vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The project is aimed at developing a mechanism for external reviews for teaching similar to the external reviewing process that nearly all institutions use for a professor's research publications. Nebraska has been a leader in structured peer review of teaching, as one of 12 institutions nationwide participating previously in a Pew-funded peer-review teaching project by the American Association for Higher Education. It also has been the recipient of four grants from the U.S. Department of Education's Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) to promote teaching issues on campus and around the country. "The project is designed to create a model community of scholars who engage in regular substantive peer review for their own benefit," said project leader Daniel Bernstein, professor of psychology at UNL and a Carnegie Scholar in the Carnegie Academy of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. "This vision of peer review combines inquiry into the substance of the intellectual work in a course with a careful investigation of the quality of student understanding." Peer review is not a new concept, but Bernstein said its implementation deserves adequate attention and planning. "Peer review of teaching could be just another academic fad, soaking up energy for a while and then disappearing. We don't think so. But we need to move in some new directions to sustain what progress we have made," Bernstein said. While many institutions rely solely on anonymous student critiques to gauge effective teaching, the structured peer review provides an additional mechanism, based on review of course portfolios and materials, access to independent peers, leadership and support, and further review by evaluative committees. The Pew grant project lays out steps to achieve these goals, beginning with prototype portfolios, creating intercampus teams, outside commentary, peer collaboration and further implementation. Under the four-year plan, the NU team begins with creating preliminary portfolio guides and collaboration, with a conference the second year among project faculties from the universities to discuss implementation on their campuses and setting benchmarks for excellence. During the third and fourth years campus leaders and their teams continue with interaction, meeting, discussion and cross-review. "At the end of the fourth year we expect there will be a large number of faculty and chairs who have experience presenting and evaluating externally reviewed course portfolios, and as many as 200 faculty at five institutions who have exchanged written materials on their courses as evidence of the quality of their teaching," Bernstein said. In addition to the Pew award, 25 percent of the project cost will come through the University of Nebraska, and 25 percent from the four partner institutions, creating a one-to-one match. University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor James Moeser said the support of the Pew Charitable Trust is an essential element in enabling the university and its peers in furthering their understanding of what constitutes excellent teaching. "Cross-campus peer review of teaching could provide the forum for a shared and deeper understanding of both the dimensions of teaching excellence and the nature of appropriate evidence of successful teaching," Moeser said. "As a major research university in America, Nebraska is the recognized national leader in centering attention on the quality of teaching and the learning environment. We were a pioneer in developing quality teaching through FIPSE support and now we continue this leadership in The Pew Charitable Trusts grant for peer review of teaching." The Pew Charitable Trusts support nonprofit activities in the areas of culture, education, the environment, health and human services, public policy and religion. Based in Philadelphia, the Trusts make strategic investments to help organizations and citizens develop practical solutions to difficult problems. Masters Week Nov. 3-5 Masters To Share Histories, VisionsBy Tom Simons, Public Relations Five distinguished University of Nebraska-Lincoln alumni will return to campus Nov. 3-5 for Masters Week, an annual event that honors successful NU graduates. This year's Masters are U.S. Rep. Doug Bereuter (R-Neb.), Maj. Gen. Claude Bolton Jr., Norma Cantu, Jeanette Hasse and Abbas Mohaddes. After four years in the Nebraska Legislature, Bereuter was elected to Congress in 1978 from Nebraska's 1st District and has been re-elected 10 times. He was director of the Nebraska State Office of Planning and Programming from 1968-1970 and a division chief in the state Department of Economic Development from 1967-1968 under Gov. Norbert Tiemann. He brings broad experience to his current position as a businessman, veteran, college educator and urban planner. He has authored significant legislation on trade, water development, agriculture, health, business, housing, American Indian and international hunger and child welfare. He has taken an active role in promoting American exports, especially agricultural exports. Originally from Utica, he earned a bachelor's degree in geography at NU (1961) and master's degrees in city planning (1963) and public administration (1973) at Harvard University. Gen. Bolton is program executive officer for fighter and bomber programs, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisitions at U.S. Air Force headquarters in Washington, D.C. He is responsible for all acquisition activities on the F-22, F-15, F-16, F-117, B-1 and B-2 programs, the Common Missile Warning System and the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System programs. He graduated from NU in 1969 with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering and received his commission through NU's Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps program, and was honored as a distinguished graduate. Bolton went on to graduate from Squadron Officer School, earned a master's degree in management from Troy State University, corresponded through Air Command and Staff College, and earned a master's degree in national security and strategic studies at the Naval War College in Newport, R.I. The South Sioux City native is a command pilot with more than 2,700 flying hours in more than 30 different aircraft. During the Vietnam War, he flew 232 combat missions. Cantu is a professor of English in the department of language, literature and arts at Texas A&M International University in Laredo, Texas, where she has been from 1980 to 1993 and from 1995 to present. From 1993 to 1995, she was senior arts specialist at the National Endowment for the Arts, Folk and Traditional Arts Program in Washington, D.C. She recently returned to her duties at Texas A&M after a leave to be acting director of the Center for Chicano Studies at the University of California at Santa Barbara. Cantu earned bachelor's and master's degrees from Texas A&I University in Laredo and Kingsville and earned her Ph.D. in English at Nebraska (1982). In 1997, she was recognized by the NU College of Arts and Sciences with an Outstanding Alumni Achievement Award. Cantu's scholarly interests and expertise include folklore, Chicano literature, borderland studies, literary criticism, women's studies, and 20th century American literature. Hasse is transplant nutrition specialist at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas. The Gordon native created the first full-time liver transplant dietitian position in the United States in 1987 and is co-editing a book due out in 1999 that will be the definitive manual on nutrition for adult and pediatric transplantation. In addition to the more than 90 professional presentations she has given at the local, state and national levels, Hasse teaches classes for dietetic interns, frequently lectures to universities and has written more than 40 journal articles, book chapters, books, and magazines. Since 1985, she has worked with more than 1,400 liver transplant recipients and 500 recipients of other organs. She graduated with high distinction from NU in 1983 with a bachelor's degree in human nutrition and food service management. In 1984, she interned at Baylor University Medical Center and one year later returned to academics to earn a master's degree in nutrition while continuing to work full-time. In 1990, Hasse again returned to Texas Woman's University to earn her doctorate degree in nutrition. Mohaddes is president and CEO of Meyer, Mohaddes Associates Inc., a California consulting engineering firm specializing in intelligent transportation systems. He co-founded the company in 1991, expanding it to include seven offices in California, Nevada and Idaho. He is also vice-president of Odetics ITS, Meyer, Mohaddes' parent company. Mohaddes is a nationally recognized authority in traffic control and intelligent transportation systems and has many notable accomplishments that include the planning and design of several light-rail transit projects in California, Texas and Illinois. One of the founders of intelligent transportation systems, he developed the Santa Monica Smart Corridor, one of the first major intelligent transportation systems programs in the United States. He co-authored the Traffic Control Handbook, published in 1995. Originally from Iran, Mohaddes earned bachelor's (1979) and master's degrees (1982) in civil engineering at NU. Masters Week was founded in 1964 by Chancellor Clifford Hardin. The program brings successful alumni into contact with students through class visitations, campus tours and meetings with clubs and organizations. Masters are nominated by NU faculty and selected by a committee appointed by the chancellor. Masters Week is sponsored by the chancellor's office, the Student Alumni Association, Innocents Society and the Black Masque Chapter of Mortar Board. O'Hanlon: Teachers College Ahead on ACE ReportThe American Council on Education's Presidential Task Force on Teacher Education released a report Oct. 25 titled "To Touch the Future - Transforming the Way Teachers Are Taught" addressed to institutions with teacher education programs. The report's message was essentially to shape up those programs or get out of the business. The 36-member Task Force, which included University of Nebraska President L. Dennis Smith, recommended that campus chief executives take seven specific actions: take the lead in moving teacher education higher on the agenda; clarify the connection between the education of teachers and the mission of the institution; mandate campuswide reviews of quality; work with governing boards to commission rigorous, independent appraisals of the quality of the institution's teacher education programs; require that faculty and courses be coordinated with arts and sciences faculty and courses; ensure that teacher education programs have the equipment, facilities and personnel to educate future teachers in the use of technology; and ensure that graduates of teacher education programs are supported, monitored and mentored. "I suspect that we will be able to endorse the report fully, from what I have read," said James O'Hanlon, dean of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Teachers College, which has already addressed the major reforms called for in the report. O'Hanlon provided these examples: - Teachers College has selective admissions processes that ensure that only highly qualified students who are dedicated to teaching are admitted to the program. - Up to five semesters of practicum experiences in schools provide teacher education students experience with a wide range of progressively increasing responsibilities. Teachers in K-12 schools play a major role in designing these experiences. - Increased emphasis on content for those preparing to be elementary education teachers. For example, Teachers College students take three math courses which have been specially designed by the UNL math department for elementary education teachers. In most universities, elementary education students take only one math course. - Students preparing to be secondary teachers complete majors in the fields that they will teach, with as many or more credit hours than comparable majors in the College of Arts and Sciences. Arts and Sciences faculty have been recently involved in redesigning these majors. - Teacher education students are provided both course work and practicum experiences to prepare them to work effectively with the great diversity of students they will teach in the schools after graduation. - Outside evaluations have praised the high level of support which K-12 schools in the state provide for UNL's teacher education program. - Outside evaluations have validated the ratings which Teachers College gives its student teachers, which are the final evaluations of their qualifications to be teachers. - Through its "Compact with Nebraska," Teachers College is working on a method to identify how well K-12 students are taught by its graduates. Teachers College is the first teacher education program in the country to commit to producing such evidence. "The report also mentions the importance of adequate support for technology and we feel we clearly have that because our graduates meet the International Society for Technology and Education standards," O'Hanlon said. UNL Chancellor James Moeser praised the Teachers College programs. "I welcome the Task Force report. I think it says exactly what needs to be said because, frankly, there are some institutions that need to 'shape up or ship out' with regard to teacher training," Moeser said. "Without sounding arrogant about it, I really think the University of Nebraska-Lincoln sets the mark for what a university needs to do. I would give our teacher education program an A-minus - and the minus is only because I'm a tough grader and I always want to leave room for improvement. "We shine in two areas. One is in the integration of content from Arts and Sciences with pedagogy, what goes on in Teachers College. The model here is our nationally recognized math-science education program. The other is in the Compact with Nebraska, a statement that we constantly listen to schools to make sure that the teachers we send them are properly prepared." A good measure of that, O'Hanlon said, is whether the schools are happy with the teachers they hire from Nebraska. "The kind of comment that we get from principals is the first-year teachers from Nebraska are more like second- and third-year teachers than first-year teachers when they hire them," he said. "One of the strengths of our program is the intensive practicum experiences that our students have in the schools. When a student graduates from our program, he or she has had a lot of practical experience in the classroom and starts as a strong first-year teacher." In addition to the quality of teachers, the Task Force report also addressed the growing problem of teacher numbers. It said a teacher shortage of an estimated 2.5 million teachers looms in the next decade, up some 20 percent over normal replacement levels. Again, Teachers College has taken steps to address that situation, including the recent introduction of the Accelerated Post-baccalaureate Certification Program, in which a person with a bachelor's degree in English, mathematics, modern foreign languages or one of the sciences can qualify for Nebraska teacher certification in as little as 11 months. The report says the shortage "presents not only a challenge but an opportunity." O'Hanlon agreed, saying it's an opportunity to use market forces to address the problems of teacher quality and teacher shortage. Biological Station Offers Unique Learning Experience Cedar Point Celebrates 25th AnniversaryA unique laboratory and learning center that mixes summer camp with biology has survived for 25 years as part of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln mix of educational opportunities. Cedar Point Biological Station, located on the south side of Lake Ogallala in Keith County, has been a hub of research and teaching activity in the biological sciences since its founding in 1975 by a group of NU professors, including John Janovy, Brent Nickol and Gary Hergenrader. "There are a lot of wonderful stories, most of which I don't know because I've only been going out there the last four years," said NU biology professor Alan Kamil, who succeeded Janovy last month to become the sixth director of Cedar Point. Cedar Point comprises 695 acres and its faculty and staff also manage Arapaho Prairie, a 1,280-acre parcel of the Sandhills owned by the Nature Conservancy. Cedar Point draws students and faculty from around the world to its unique habitat and excellent research facilities. The site is near four types of prairie and many kinds of aquatic environments, and includes the zone of overlap between eastern and western U.S. plant and animal species. Since 1985, added facilities have included a 40- by 20-foot research lab, several heated and air-conditioned cabins for visiting researchers, and a large research building with three wet laboratories, four dry labs, and a multi-use garage and storage area. Now, Kamil said, hopes are to secure grant funding to expand the station even more and to broaden its mission as a key part of undergraduate education in biological sciences. "Over the next four or five years, we hope to take Cedar Point and broaden it and strengthen it," he said. "It's great now, but we want to make it even better. So many things are happening right now in environmental biology, in terms of both education and research, that Cedar Point can become even more important for the university." A significant first step in that process is the development of the Cedar Point Learning Community on campus in Lincoln, scheduled to start in the 2000-2001 academic year. The community will be open to 24 to 30 incoming freshman biology majors each year. The students will live on the same residence hall floor, be able to take at least two classes together and be able to take part in field trips and laboratory tours led by some of NU's top biologists. The year will be capped off with a three- or four-day experience at Cedar Point immediately following the spring semester. Kamil said Cedar Point's activities are geared toward upperclassmen, graduate students and faculty, but he said he hopes expanded facilities and the Learning Community will open up opportunities for younger students. "A biological field station is an ideal context for integrating education and research," he said. "One of the great things that happens when students go to Cedar Point is they take courses taught by active researchers and they live in a community with a lot of active research going on - and they learn a lot. Properly set up, an enriching research environment can also enrich the educational environment." An Oct. 21 reception at the Wick Center marked formal anniversary
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