Post-Secondary News Digest for February 2, 2010
Canada
Canada beckons Indian students for higher studies:
(Thaiindian News) A Canadian pilot project aimed at increasing the approval rate of visa applications has almost doubled the number of Indian students in Canadian universities. The program is a collaboration between Citizenship Immigration Canada and the Association of Canadian Community Colleges International. Within the first nine months of the program, the government’s visa offices in India received more than 4,000 applications. International students are wanted for their financial and cultural contributions to Canadian communities and post-secondary institutions.
N.S. students gather for battle of the robots:
(Chronicle Herald) Forty teams of students from around Nova Scotia congregated at Acadia University in Wolfville on Saturday. They were there to compete in the fifth annual Acadia Robot Programming Competition. The winners will go on to Atlanta, Ga., in April. The 20 high school teams and 24 junior teams (ages 9 to 14) had to build their robots from Lego blocks and computer-programmed motors. Winners were from Halifax West High School and Ecole Rose-des-Vents in Greenwood.
Plan for teacher education focuses on social justice, diversity:
(Vancouver Sun) Themes of social justice and diversity issues could be part of every education course offered at the University of British Columbia, if the education faculty approves an overhaul. Even students studying mathematics could be discussing issues of class, gender and race. Changes to programs would also include practicums in First Nations, international, prison or religious schools rather than just public schools. The university will present its proposal to all Vancouver school districts for comment in the coming weeks.
Union sets Feb. 11 strike deadline for Ont. colleges:
(Globe & Mail) The union for Ontario community college teachers has set a strike date for Feb. 11. The impending strike, which would postpone classes for roughly 200,000 students, concerns issues such as workload, academic freedom and a management decision in November that imposed an offer on teachers without consulting them. About 57 per cent of members in the Ontario Public Service Employees Union voted earlier this month for a strike mandate.
Slim pickings for Winnipeg education grads:
(Winnipeg Free Press) There are lots of teaching jobs out there, but none at home for Winnipeg education graduates. Many of the regular recruiters were missing at the annual Education Exposition job fair at the University of Manitoba and at the Winnipeg School Division’s recruiting session last month. Only Saskatoon and the Yukon came looking for teachers. However, there are plenty of jobs in Beijing, Egypt, and Cairo, among others.
U.S.
Michigan State studies use of social media to increase organ donations:
(Media Newswire) Researchers at Michigan State University are studying how social media sites such as Facebook increase the number of people who sign up to be organ and tissue donors. In the first year of the two-year project, ads will be placed on Facebook that link to two college registry programs. The second year of the project will focus on educational efforts and spreading the message to students through Facebook applications.
Online essay ruling cites copyright infringement:
(USA Today) A district court judge in Illinois ordered an owner of a web-based company that sells term papers to stop, unless the site owner obtains proof of the authors’ consent. The order is based on an earlier ruling made in 2006, when co-authors of an undergraduate research paper saw their work show up on three of the company’s sites, and sued. The court ruling does not address the ethical issues of buying a used term paper.
U of Arizona garners US$15M grant for animal lab:
(Arizona Daily Star) The University of Arizona College of Medicine received US$15 million from the National Institute of Health to fund the building of a facility that will house research animals in downtown Phoenix. The 22,000 square foot building will be the work site of 33 researchers and staff. The building will operate according to sustainable principles such as recycling, energy efficiency, water conservation and open-space planning.
Philadelphia dorm evacuated:
(New York Times) Several students became ill and two went to hospital due to a carbon monoxide leak at a high-rise dormitory in downtown Philadelphia. Several hundred students from the Art Institute of Philadelphia were evacuated from the 14-storey building, home to roughly 550 people, before dawn Monday. The building will be closed until the source of the gas is determined, which could take several days. Students will be housed at hotels in the interim.
World
College degrees worth less: researcher:
(Wall Street Journal) A researcher at a Washington-based institute estimates that the value of a college degree is less than half what federal estimates said it was eight years ago. Mark Schneider, vice-president of the American Institutes for Research, estimates the actual lifetime-earnings advantage for college graduates is a mere US$279,893. A Census Bureau report pegged it at US$780,000 in 2002. Schneider cites rising tuition fees, student debt loads and a slow economy, as reasons many are questioning the value of obtaining a degree in higher education.
Cardiff to remedy exam blunders:
(Wales Online) Four medical students will re-take their final exams at Cardiff University in Wales after being forced to repeat their final year when the university mistakenly graduated them last year. The four students had to stop working in Welsh hospitals when the mistake was discovered. The errors were traced back to mistakes in compiling data, which affected the results of 137 students. Cardiff says they are putting extensive new systems into place to stop the mistake from being repeated.
Jail sentence in U.K. degree forgery:
(Daily Mail) A former registrar for the University of Bath will face jail time for forging degrees. Karl Woodgett offered to forge university qualifications in exchange for spanking sessions with young women. Woodgett originally offered the young women cash but then offered them university degrees for what he called a “pain management study” during which Woodgett filmed himself spanking the young women in a hotel room. Woodgett was sentenced to nine months in prison, 12 months suspension and 200 hours community service.
Disorder sufferers don’t see full picture: study:
(Science Centric News) Researchers at the University of California in Los Angeles have found that the brain scans of people with a psychiatric condition in which they perceive a defect in their physical appearance reveal abnormalities in visual processing. In particular, patients with the disorder, called Body Dysmorphic Disorder, were unable to process the image of their entire face, and focused rather on smaller details and imperfections.