University of Texas Austin - Cactus Yearbook (Austin, TX)

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EDUCATION ' Children in McCarthy ' s class associate her with the song The Eyes of Texas and the hook ' em horns sign. McCarthy considered student teaching a learning process for everyone involved. Her classroom supervising teacher had to learn how much leeway to give the beginner and to let the student teacher make mistakes, without jumping in to take control of the situation. As they (the children) got to know me ... they tried to see how far they could go. I expected them to be sweet little angels, McCar- thy said. Finding that her students were not exactly angels, McCarthy had to exercise her disciplining skills and show them who was boss. Briley said many of the activities led by the kindergarten student An elementary student in McCarthy ' s class paints a turkey for the Thanksgiving holidays teacher employed a great deal of motion, or experiencing. McCarthy ' s classroom con- tained many learning centers where the children could learn by playing. In a corner labeled Earth, children could experiment and discover concepts like weight and mass by weighing corn in a balance scale. The children who strung beads together were not just developing play habits but were also developing fine motor skills. Kindergartners also had many art activities. You can tell how children are developing through their artwork, McCarthy said, showing how a child who drew a turkey with a set of large tailfeathers on its stomach did not have as clear a concept of a turkey as a child who had placed them on the tail. Looking back on her semester in the kindergarten classroom, McCarthy believed that the most difficult part of student teaching was trying to satisfy her own teaching goals in addition to satisfying her super- vising teacher. The best part is interacting with the children and putting the theory you learned at UT into practice, she said. Still, I think they (the children) | definitely know their regular 1 teacher is the top person . . . but I think they liked me yes, she said with a smile. Kindergarten teaching may have sound ed elementary to those geared for high-tech careers, but people like McCarthy who were involved in the education of young children knew that it was far more than child ' s play. Dealing with young minds was a complete science. by Maureen Creamer Education 195

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EDUCATION Kennamer Favors Microcomputers For Instruction If a person likes to work with people and if he has a little bit of missionary zeal in him, then he has an opportunity to have a career helping others, said Lorrin Kennamer, dean of the College of Education. Kennamer has spent his career educating and teaching others to educate. Because of the shortage of teachers, Kennamer believed that the Col- lege of Education had a responsibility to produce quality teachers. He was confident the college could meet this demand because of its excellent faculty and The University ' s high admission standards. Kennamer has been the dean of the col- lege since 1972 and prior to that was the associate dean of Arts and Sciences and pro- fessor of geography at UT. Kennamer was a recipient of the Edward S. Noyes Award, a member of the Governor ' s Council on Career Education and listed in Who ' s Who in American Education. As dean, Kennamer has tried to keep the curriculum up to date so that it reflected current trends in education. In this vein, he introduced microcomputers to the Learning Resources Center in the College of Educa- tion. Microcomputers were being used in public schools across the state, according to Kennamer. The faculty taught students to use the computers so they could incorporate them into instruction in the classroom. At- testing to the popularity of computers, Ken- namer said, Children and adults like the idea. Look at the success of Pac-Man. The graduate study program in human resource development was introduced in 1981 at the College of Education and was the first of its kind in the country. This trained people to be trainers in industry, Kennamer said. With this degree, graduates could branch out and work in industry and business with personnel training programs. The dean described his duties as taking an overview of the whole college and being a peacemaker when certain factions get upset with each other. Kennamer had to in- sure that resources were divided so that each department got its relative fair share. It ' s a people business, Kennamer said. by Kristi D. Arnold and Kay Ghahremani Lorrin Kennamer, Dean of Education, prepares students to be the best educators they can be. UT Elementary Education Students Make a Lasting Impression on Children A kindergarten classroom where 5-year- olds made discoveries every minute was far removed in time and space from the massive lecture halls of UT. Student teachers oc- cupied a tenuous position of authority be- tween the children and their parents, and between UT and the elementary school. Mary McCarthy, a senior majoring in elementary education, occupied that posi- tion in the 1982 fall semester. Her student teaching took her to Wooldridge Elemen- tary School in North Austin. McCarthy had chosen to major in elementary education because younger children are still very creative and eager to learn, she said. First impressions were just as important with children as with corporate recruiters. For her introduction to the class, McCarthy carried a large teddy bear that played The Eyes of Texas, and the children came to associate her with that song. Whenever she said, Let ' s sing my favorite song, two dozen little hook ' ems appeared. McCarthy ' s assumption of the teaching role was gradual. The first thing I was allowed to do in the classroom was to read stories, which involves doing a ' transition, ' McCarthy said. Sandy Briley, a UT doctoral candidate, explained that a transition was a short activity such as a finger play or song that led the children from one activity or place to another. To quiet the children, the student teacher could lead the class in Grandma ' s Glasses : These are Grandma ' s glasses (make spectacles with fingers), This is Grandma ' s hat (pat head), This is the way she folds her hands, and lays them in her lap (fold and lay hands in lap). 194 Education

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ENGINEERING Gloyna Revitalizes Academic Programs During the next academic year, we will closely review our accomplishments and chart a course of action for the next decade. The faculty, with the help of our alumni, can attain our goal of excellence in all engineer- ing teaching and research programs, said Dean Earnest Gloyna about the revamping of the College of Engineering ' s programs. Our mission is to provide a superior educa- tional experience for men and women of the state of Texas, to help develop professional academic leadership for this region of the country and to establish a nationally recognized center for academic excellence in teaching, research and professional develop- ment, he added. Gloyna said a revitalization of the college meant developing facilities to accommodate the recent increase in enrollment and a reduction in the student-faculty ratio. New requirements, along with a rigorous drop policy, are only two of the many innovations designed to make the engineering program stronger. The stiffened drop policy would require that after the fourth day of classes, no drops would be allowed in any course. A graduate of Texas Tech University, The University of Texas at Austin and John Hopkins University, Gloyna has led the Col- lege of Engineering since 1970. Gloyna has shown exemplary leadership in the engineer- ing profession, not only as a teacher at UT Austin since 1947, but as a leader in private sector employment. He has held several con- sultantships, has written several books and papers pertaining to environmental engineer- ing and has held numerous non-teaching assignments with commissions and boards during his tenure as dean. Gloyna wanted to make use of his many years of experience in engineering and management. Becoming the backbone of the revitalization of the engineering pro- gram, he initiated a critical evaluation of the college ' s role in serving the engineering pro- fession. In the coming years, he would lead the college in its quest for education ex- cellence at UT. by Kellye Crittenden c tttK fUtt. - IkCoo - College of Engineering Dean Earnest Gloyna is revitalizing the engineering program. Civil engineering student Mark Peterman prepares a concrete mixture for stress tests. 196 Engineering