If I hear a proposal emerging here, I think we could probably get the University Sustainability Committee to back it.

Jeff Howard


-----Original Message-----
From: Center for Theory [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Cole, Richard L
Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2010 11:50 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: why didn't we think of this?!

Here's one more point, small perhaps, but maybe worth making.  The original article in the Chronicle stated one objective of  UNT's new office hour policy to be to:  encourage faculty to engage in "more interdisciplinary collaboration."

Perhaps that will happen , but doesn't the very discussion generated by Ben's post illustrate the far greater power of the internet to encourage "interdisciplinary" conversation?

Hell, I've not spoken with Tim  Morris  in years.  I bet he and I could sit in our offices 24/7  and never have as meaningful a conversation as that available to us on-line, on a rainy afternoon.

Richard Cole

________________________________________
From: Center for Theory [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Silva, David [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2010 10:44 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: why didn't we think of this?!

Now we're talking! Virtual can work.

So much "serious stuff" that I discuss with a student one-on-one I now do by e-mail. Not only does the asynchronicity of the format allow both parties to answer as convenient, but it also fosters the development of more thoughtful and edited dialogue (though not always) and it provides a written record of the "conversation," as well as any agreements that might emerge. I like the protection afforded by this record.

I've been thinking about engaging students for an hour in an open forum that would employ some sort of real-time chatting or video conferencing. I've seen examples of programs that allow for X number of people to sign in and see each other during a discussion.

The challenge -- as ever -- is to be responsive to the times (which, as ever, are a-changin') without sacrificing those core principles that guide our work as educators-plus-researchers. And note that we've all chosen to do both -- not one to the exclusion of the other -- and so we've got figure out how to balance.  Nobody said it'd be easy, especially since what might have worked in 1985 won't fly as effectively today.

-David Silva

-----Original Message-----
From: Center for Theory [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Alaimo, Stacy
Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2010 10:31 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: why didn't we think of this?!

Yes to virtual office hours!   Working from home minimizes carbon emissions
air pollution, and the consumption of fossil fuels as well.

Stacy Alaimo
________________________________________
From: Center for Theory [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Cole, Richard L [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2010 10:27 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: why didn't we think of this?!

Tim makes a very good point.  As anyone who has actually taught a class in the past 10-15 years knows, today's students are more interested in knowing, and far more likely to use, a faculty's e-mail address than his/her office hours.

In the spirit of "accessibility," perhaps it makes more sense in today's virtual world to post times available for "on-line" consultation rather than, or in addition to, "office hours."

Richard Cole


________________________________________
From: Center for Theory [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Morris, Timothy R [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2010 7:36 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: why didn't we think of this?!

Policies that mandate faculty "office presence"
(common at 2-year schools and now, we see, increasingly
at 4-years), show a contradiction between pressure
to go virtual and pressure to be in a fixed, supervisable
location.  I'm starting a 14-hour workday in my office right now, so
I don't have any problem being accessible to students; the spirit of the
rule is actually fine with me.  But I was just as accessible yesterday
"at home" when I was dealing with advising problems over the Internet
all day long.  (What's the difference, since most of my "work" takes
place over e-mail anyway?)  It's ironic that technologies that have freed faculty from
the physical office create counterpressures to nail them down where they
can be seen: it's one of those "despite or perhaps because of" situations.
TM

Tim Morris, Professor and Associate Chair
English Department Box 19035
University of Texas at Arlington
503 W Third St Carlisle 203
Arlington TX 76019
817.272.2739
________________________________________
From: Center for Theory [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Silva, David [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Tuesday, September 07, 2010 11:07 PM

Josephine writes:

"Both adjunct and T/TT faculty are facing multiple sets of competing goals"