The controversy surrounding the future of the education department should be resolved by the end of this week, and administrators are working toward a solution that would preserve the department.
Over the past several years, the education department has periodically come under fierce criticism--most recently last March when the Council of Social Sciences recommended eliminating the department.
But due to student resistance and efforts to improve the department made by its members and new chair, it appears the education department will probably survive, although it may be altered Dean of the Social Sciences George Wolford said.
Wolford said he and Education Department Chair Andrew Garrod have been negotiating what changes, if any, the department will undergo. He said he was unsure of when the changes would go into effect.
Wolford declined to comment on the specifics of the negotiations, but said he and Garrod have been "working on a compromise that would preserve it and give it another chance."
Wolford said a better sense of trust is growing between the Dean of the Faculty's office and the education department, and the negotiations were going well, but that they were in a "delicate phase."
"Students will be relieved, but not ecstatic, if things go as planned," Wolford predicted.
Wolford said this week would probably mark the end of the negotiations with approval from Dean of the Faculty Jim Wright.
Garrod said he believes the negotiations will lead to a solution that does not dissolve the department. "It's looking good from my point of view," he said.
If the efforts to terminate the department had continued, the entire faculty would have voted on the termination this term as scheduled.
Had the College decided to dissolve the department, some professors would have been laid off and others would have been absorbed by other departments. Some departments would have absorbed the more popular education courses and would have continued to offer them.
The department would have probably become a program and the teacher preparation courses would have been eliminated.
In May, members of the Social Sciences Council -- comprised of the eight chairs of the College's social science departments -- commented on the recommendation to abolish the department.
Members cited such reasons as administrative problems, interpersonal conflicts, the department's publishing too little scholarly work and the department being too pre-professional.
This criticism stems from the dual nature of the department. Not only does the department offer courses about teaching, but also it teaches how to teach. This "teacher prep" portion offers seniors the opportunity to become certified to teach in public schools.
Later that month, Anne Jones '97, who was then a teaching assistant for Education 20, organized a forum to let students question Dean Wolford about possible changes in the education department, reasons behind them, and their consequences.
More than 300 students showed up at the session and those who spoke, voiced their support for keeping the department. Many expressed their frustration with not being told more concrete reasons for shutting down the department.
"I think it's insane that an institution like Dartmouth could downsize or close its education department," Jones said in a recent interview.
The Student Assembly echoed the sentiments of Jones and the students who met at the forum. In May, the Assembly passed a resolution requesting faculty members to oppose termination of the department and this term's Assembly supports the resolution as well.
In a recent interview, Assembly President Jon Heavey '97 said he was opposed to the administration's making any major changes to the department without thoroughly informing students about the reasons why.
"My stance is that the student body has to be well-informed," he said.
However, he also said he has been privy to the Council's report, and he said the reasons behind closing the department "sounded compelling to me."
"If they inform the student body of the full reasoning behind the decision it will certainly help their case," Heavey said.
Last spring, Wolford formed a committee to address the issue of the education department, specifically the teacher preparation program, but through the course of negotiations the "committee became less relevant."
Assistant Dean of the Faculty Sheila Culbert, who is a member of the committee, said the committee is "on a holding pattern right now."
Education chair since July 1, Garrod said he has been working hard to bolster interest in the department, which has been lagging since the administration publicized its intentions to eliminate the department.
Considering increased enrollment ini education classes this term and new departmental activities, Garrod said, "We are doing very well."
With more than 100 students in Robert Binswanger's Education 20 class "Educational Issues in Contemporary Society" and more than 25 in Denise Zinn's Education 12 class "Culture and Classrooms", student numbers in education classes have been "the best in years," Garrod said.
The department resurrected its long-dead departmental newsletter, sponsored a film series this term entitled "Education in a Changing World," and began plans to hold a speaker series for Winter term, Garrod added.
