🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <92350.162157HASSLER@MAINE.MAINE.EDU> HASSLER@MAINE.MAINE.EDU
(John Hassler) writes:
>    It is rather pointless to argue based upon reason and logic.  We are,
>after all, discussing universities.  Politics, by whatever euphemism you
>may wish to call it, has a great deal to do with who teaches what.

     Here, we agree.

>If the physics department teaches calculus, what are the mathematicians
>going to do?

     If the physics department teaches physics (including calculus) to
its students, the mathematics department can teach mathematics to its
students in the way it sees fit.  It can also offer courses to students
who are just plain interested in the subject.  The current system serves no one
particularly well.  Even when there are separate courses for math
majors, departments such as physics apply considerable pressure to keep
the contents of these courses consistent with those of the "math for
physical scientists" courses.  This is not done maliciously; the physics
department often just thinks that a properly designed (by physics
standards) "math for mathematicians" course is good for their students.
Unfortunately, it's bad for the math students and not that great for the
physics students either.
     Lest anyone think I'm unfairly picking on mathematics, I have a
similar bone to pick with all service courses.  I am currently employed
as a tutor in a "physical chemistry for the life sciences" course.  Part
of the problem with any service course is exactly that outlined above:
Conflicting demands placed on us by the various departments which
require their students to take such a course make it impossible for us to
satisfy either the students or their departments.  The biochemistry
department knows which parts of physical chemistry they want their
students to learn:  Let them teach it themselves.  Similarly, each of
the other departments mandating this course could teach the selected bits
of physical chemistry they want.  Let them contract with our department
for instructors if they don't have faculty and students qualified to
teach the subject, but let them retain control over the curriculum by
taking on the administrative and fiscal responsibilities associated with it.

				Marc R. Roussel
                                mroussel@alchemy.chem.utoronto.ca