How would you survive a zombie outbreak on a college campus?<\/p>\n
Just ask the students in Julie Douberly\u2019s class \u201cThe Living Dead in Film,\u201d a popular First-Year Experience (FYE) seminar in which they designed and presented zombie preparedness plans along with a short film for their final exam.<\/p>\n
The course title is unconventional, but it\u2019s just one of more than 180 sections offered in 2011 that are designed to teach Georgia Southern\u2019s first-year students important skills and help them successfully transition to college life. Douberly\u2019s class focuses on building information literacy skills. \u201cThose skills \u2013 learning to interact with academic texts, knowing where to look for resources \u2013 are absolutely essential to succeeding in any class at Georgia Southern,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Other FYE course objectives include learning the specifics of college research, time management and plagiarism, which are made more interesting through an eclectic mix of themes. Students may select from unique titles such as \u201cRap and American Culture,\u201d \u201cThink Like a Nurse,\u201d and Don Berecz\u2019s \u201cStrategy and Backgammon.\u201d<\/p>\n
Berecz, director of the University\u2019s fraud and forensic accounting program, has brought his longtime gaming experience to the classroom, linking the strategies of the board game to the business world. \u201cExperienced successful business professionals develop a winning game plan. This doesn\u2019t happen suddenly or by chance, and is the result of good-short term and long-term decision making based on past experiences, the current environment, future predictions and the need for changing strategies,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
In addition to teaching the basics of backgammon play, Berecz introduces his students to different areas of the University \u2013 the RAC, Student Employment, the Wildlife Center and the first football game of the season \u2013 to acclimate them to campus life.<\/p>\n
Berecz\u2019s students keep a log of every match, play fellow students at least once during the semester, and write a required paper on \u201cHow to Become a Better Backgammon Player.\u201d One highlight of Berecz\u2019s class is the mid-term exam, another hands-on activity. \u201cWe meet in the Russell Union ballroom for a backgammon tournament,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
In the past two years, Douberly \u2013 a writing and linguistics professor \u2013 has taught six FYE seminars, including Harry Potter\/Twilight. This fall, she will explore \u201cSuperheroes in Pop Culture.\u201d \u201cI like to change up the topics after teaching one a couple of times. It keeps me from getting bored with any particular subject, plus I get to discover new resources along with my students,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n
Chris Caplinger, director of Georgia Southern\u2019s FYE program says that the classes are frequently referred to as a professor\u2019s \u201cpassion\u201d course \u2013 a topic or subject of interest that they love. \u201cThe classes are also a way for students to connect with other people who share an interest in the subject,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI try to pick a topic that I\u2019m particularly interested in and passionate about at the time \u2014 but also one that I think students will be into as well,\u201d said Douberly. \u201cI hope that it\u2019s a little easier for them to read academic articles about and do research on topics that they are genuinely interested in.\u201d Caplinger agreed. \u201cEverybody likes to do research when they like a certain topic.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mike Czech has shared his passion with students for the past two years. Czech\u2019s \u201cThe History of Rock-n-Roll\u201d not only explores rock music from the 1950s to the present, but Czech also reveals his experiences onstage as a guitarist and vocalist in the band \u201cThe \u201880s Academy.\u201d Czech, the assistant director and tutorial coordinator of the University\u2019s Academic Student Success Center, believes that in order for students to grow and succeed, it\u2019s all about putting pen to paper.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel that students need to read and write as much as they can to gain the confidence to find their own voices as people who will have to interpret various experiences in their college career and beyond,\u201d he said. Students have the opportunity to do just that by keeping a daily \u2018Rock and Roll\u2019 journal. \u201cI also have my students write a paper analyzing every track from start to finish on their favorite CD to get a holistic listening experience \u2013 as opposed to the fragmented one-song digital download from the artist \u2013 and complete a group project at the end of the semester, where they teach the class over a specific genre of rock and roll,\u201d said Czech. This summer, the musician\/instructor is teaching FYE\u2019s first online class, in response to the University\u2019s growing online degree programs. \u201cI am interested in seeing the similarities and differences between the face-to-face and online versions of this class,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
This fall, FYE will expand its program to include a second required course, called FYE 1410 Global Citizens. \u201cThis course is for second semester freshmen,\u201d said Caplinger, \u201cand essentially the theme is \u2018think global, act local.\u2019 \u201d According to Caplinger, University students from other countries \u2013 global ambassadors, so to speak \u2013 will visit classes to share their experiences, providing students with information about Georgia Southern\u2019s Study Abroad and Alternative Spring Break programs.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is energizing working with freshmen,\u201d said Caplinger. At the same time, he says that students have to be actively involved and also willing to ask for help when they need it. \u201cA student\u2019s success is based on what a student does,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n