MIT
MIT Faculty Newsletter  
contents Vol. XIX No. 4
February 2007

This issue of the Faculty Newsletter is devoted to comments on the report of the Task Force on the Undergraduate Educational Commons. [Note: Asterisk before author's name indicates Task Force member.] Click here to add your own thoughts and see how others have responded.

Spotlight
walking in snow
Grappling with Change
This issue's editorial discusses the structure of this Special Edition, and how it came about.
Introduction to this Special Issue
Faculty Chair Steve Lerman puts a proper perspective on this issue of the Newsletter and the Task Force report.
The Report of the Task Force on the Undergraduate Educational Commons
View the final report of the Task Force by selecting the above link.
 
Editorial
Grappling with Change
This special issue of the Faculty Newsletter is devoted to musings, suggestions, cautions, accolades, critiques, exhortations, complaints, explanations, celebrations . . .
Overview of the Report of the Task Force on the
Undergraduate Educational Commons
*Charles Stewart III
The Task Force on the Undergraduate Educational Commons was appointed by former-president Charles M. Vest in the winter of 2003. It was composed of . . .
From the Faculty Chair
Introduction to this Special Issue
Steven Lerman
This special issue of the Faculty Newsletter reflects the best thinking of many of our colleagues who care deeply about the quality of the education we provide to our . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
Will the Task Force HASS Recommendations
Increase Student Apathy?
*Thomas F. DeFrantz and Caroline Rubin ’08
The proposed changes to the HASS portion of the GIRs address many long-bemoaned shortcomings of the current system, such as the somewhat . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
A "Nerd Track" for MIT?
Jeffrey Freidberg
I, like every other faculty member that I have spoken to, would like to thank the Task Force for their heroic efforts over the last two years, culminating in the Task Force . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
Reasons to Continue to Require 8.02
Thomas Greytak and Marc Kastner
It is hard to imagine a future in which an MIT graduate has no familiarity with electric and magnetic fields. However, the report of the Task Force on the Undergraduate . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
Diversity in Foundational Skills and Knowledge
Eric Grimson
What should every MIT undergraduate know by the time they leave the Institute? While this is not the only way to look at the challenge of modifying the General . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
"Big Ideas" and the High School Asymmetry
Sally Haslanger and David Pesetsky
We are writing to express our concern about the changes in the structure of the HASS requirement proposed in the Task Force report. Our concern focuses on the . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
More Science, Not Less!
James L. Kirtley Jr.
The members of the Task Force on the Undergraduate Educational Commons obviously put a lot of time, effort, and thought into their report. The report clearly . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
Recognizing the First Rate
Steven B. Leeb
The Task Force has done tremendous and cogent work, for which we should all be grateful. The presentation of point and counter-point in the report is so complete . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
Five-Out-Of-Six Model is Not Viable for MechE,
but Five-Out-Of-Five Model Is
John H. Lienhard
The Mechanical Engineering faculty see many positive elements in the Task Force report, and we are actively considering how some of its recommendations may be . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
The Changing Nature of "Fundamental"
*David A. Mindell
In the course of our investigations, the Task Force received detailed presentations from faculty currently teaching the GIR science courses, people clearly among . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
AP Credit for 8.01 is Appropriate
Nicholas M. Patrikalakis
One of the recommendations of the Task Force is the elimination of AP credit for all required science subjects, with the exception of calculus. The Task Force report . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
The SME GIRs: Arguments for Five-Out-Of-Five
*Robert P. Redwine
 A key aspect of the recommendations of the Task Force on the Undergraduate Educational Commons concerning the Science, Mathematics, and Engineering . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
The Case for a Shared Freshman Knowledge Base
Caroline Ross
First, I would like to compliment the Task Force on the thorough and far-reaching work that has been done to date. This is a complex problem that defies a . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
Educating Leaders for a Complex World
Adèle N. Santos and Diane E. Davis
From the view of the departments and centers in the School of Architecture and Planning (SA+P), we ask the Task Force on the Undergraduate Educational . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
Toward a Liberal Scientific and Technological Education
Gerald Jay Sussman
I was profoundly disappointed by the Report of The Task Force on the Undergraduate Educational Commons. The Task Force must be congratulated for a well-written . . .
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
A Serious Equivocation: The Issue of Foreign Language Study
Shigeru Miyagawa and Edward Turk
For its mighty efforts at envisioning an undergraduate curriculum appropriate to the twenty-first century, we thank the Task Force. It is gratifying to read, with respect to . . .
Project-Based Learning
Experiential Learning and the Freshman Experience
*Rafael L. Bras and Samuel Bowring
“In light of our findings, the time has come for the Science Core, REST, and Laboratory Requirements to be replaced by a newly designed Science, . . .
Project-Based Learning
Stakeholder Expectations of Learning in
First-year Project-based Subjects
Edward F. Crawley and Diane H. Soderholm
In the design of a curriculum, each subject should have a well-understood role and objective, stated in terms of learning outcomes for knowledge, skills, and . . .
Project-Based Learning
The Importance of Freshman-Year Projects
Daniel Frey
Implementing the recommendations of the Task Force on Undergraduate Educational Commons will not be simple, but it affords us an opportunity to . . .
Project-Based Learning
One Perspective on Project-Based Learning
Les Norford
I have just finished teaching a pilot version of a project-based-learning class with colleagues Jim Kirtley and Steve Leeb. It’s a work in progress, but enough has . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
The Contribution of the Faculty to the Commons
*Daniel Hastings
As educators at MIT, we are fortunate to work with motivated students. They have shown by their decision to come to MIT that they are willing to work hard and are . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
The State of Undergraduate Advising
*Daniel Hastings and Julie Norman
Over the past several years, a number of reports have been produced that address advising and mentoring of undergraduate students: The Report to the Faculty on . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
The Journey, Not the Arrival
*Diana E. Henderson
The questions asked during the past months’ faculty discussions have most frequently begun, “Did the Task Force ever consider…?” When Task Force . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
A Global Education for MIT Students
Linn W. Hobbs and Hazel L. Sive
A major theme of the Task Force on the Undergraduate Commons has been largely overlooked in critical discussions of its recent Report: namely, the desirability of . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
The Broader Education
Paul A. Lagacé
The alarm buzzes again. Her roommate yells at her and Elizabeth reluctantly pulls herself out of bed and into the shower. It is 8:10, but she’s had only six hours of . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
Flexible Majors in Engineering
John H. Lienhard
One of the recommendations of the Task Force (pg. 57, item 4) is that “Departments with large major programs should offer a more flexible degree option that requires . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
On the Pursuit of Beauty at MIT
*John Maeda
I wish I knew the actual statistic, but I find that most MIT undergrads are musically gifted. If not, they’re usually visually gifted, or else great dancers, actors, writers, or . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
Welcome to the Machine:
First-Year Advising, Choice, and Credit Limits
Shankar Raman
The Task Force report has rightly underscored the need for increased faculty participation in first-year advising as a means of encouraging students to engage . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
A Proposal for an Alternative Framework
Emanuel Sachs
We all know the feeling of proposing a new idea to our colleagues and meeting with resistance, especially when the idea concerns teaching! Accordingly, I hope that . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
The Knowledge Debate
Warren Seering
When we consider the Core, our debate focuses on what (or whose) knowledge should be taught. Absent a clear basis for selecting, we hear our assertions grow . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
A Twenty-First-Century Undergraduate Education for MIT Students
*Robert Silbey
The report of the Task Force on the Undergraduate Commons rests on a vision of the MIT undergraduate education that I believe is shared by all of the faculty: . . .
Letters
Igniting Passion in Our Students
Alexander H. Slocum
I originally intended to submit my “Free The Endorphins” quasi-poem that I read at the faculty meeting; however, since Tech Talk asked to publish it, and it also ended . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
Getting There From Here
*J. Kim Vandiver
The reception of the Task Force’s recommendations has been rocky. I am hopeful that we will put in place a set of general education principles and requirements . . .
The Commons, the Major, and the First Year
The Challenge of Multidisciplinary Education for Undergraduates
Rosalind Williams
Research at MIT has been moving rapidly and definitively towards greater interdisciplinarity. External funding sources routinely ask researchers to assemble . . .
From the Students
The Voice of Students:
Student Survey Data on the Task Force Recommendations
The Student Advisory Committee on the Recommendations of the Task Force
On November 21, 2006, the Student Advisory Committee (SAC) on the Recommendations of the Task Force on the Undergraduate Educational . . .
From the Students
Kindling the Fire:
Student Perspectives on the Task Force Recommendations
Fiona Hughes '09, Cassandra Roth '07, Shreyes Seshasai '08, *Aron Walker '07
In november of 2001, 958 members of the MIT faculty (all tenure track faculty) were invited bo the Office of the Provost to complete the HERI faculty survey.
M.I.T. Numbers
Select Data Considered by the Task Force on the
Undergraduate Educational Commons
M.I.T. Numbers
Select Data Considered by the Task Force on the
Undergraduate Educational Commons
M.I.T. Numbers
The General Institute Requirements (GIRs)
   
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