![\"Tour\"](\"http:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/scalzi.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
TCNJ students sample academic delicacies across disciplines<\/strong><\/p>\n Thomas Edison once said, \u201cRestlessness and discontent are the first necessities of progress.\u201d Those who stand still in flattery of their being begin a gradual slide toward mediocrity.<\/p>\n TCNJ has taken heed of Edison\u2019s words, and rather than rest upon its laurels has incorporated both meticulous planning and boundless vision into a curriculum that whets the intellectual appetites of its students and faculty members. Each of the College \u2019s seven schools offers innovative classes that make for a tempting academic menu. Check out the following courses as an appetizer, and check out the “Online Exclusives” in the Spring 2007 issue of the magazine for more courses.<\/p>\n Mexican Seminar is a course taught by Joe Goebel, assistant professor in the Department of Modern Languages. The program offers students an opportunity to further develop their ability to communicate in Spanish and also study Mexican history, culture, and geography. What better way to achieve those objectives than a three-week immersion in the Yucatan Peninsula, where students see, hear, smell, taste, and touch what they have studied?<\/p>\n The trip is taken after final exams and focuses on studying the Mayan culture. The class of 20 students and Goebel visit the famous Mayan cities of Calakmul, Uxmal, Chichen Itza, and the capital city of Merida. They spend time in the jungles of the southern Yucatan and the fishing villages of the northern coast, exploring caves, taking horseback rides through haciendas, and attending celebrations like Merida en Domingo. It \u2019s a whirlwind of language and cultural learning for students, many of whom claim to have learned more Spanish in three weeks than in high school and college courses combined.<\/p>\n \u201cI tried to create a concept where the students are learning Spanish and content simultaneously, \u201d noted Goebel. \u201cWe experience different parts of their culture in big towns, like Merida, and also small local towns. They see and do things they probably never would have imagined doing.\u201d<\/p>\n Without question, exploration is a steady component to the trip. A late-night quest for a jaguar sighting is the type of journey Goebel is known to organize during downtime. One brave student rappeled 50 feet into a cistern known as a cenote<\/em> to take a swim in an underground cave holding natural waters beneath the surface. \u201cOnce she went down and was so excited, everybody wanted to rappel down,\u201d recalled Goebel.<\/p>\n A tradition that has evolved through this annual trip is a baseball game between the American students and local Mexicans. Goebel collects bats, balls, gloves, and other equipment during the year and donates it to the Mexican residents each visit, after the game between students and locals. This provides another event for interaction with locals in a casual atmosphere, where students learn more about the language and culture.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re trying to instill curiosity in the students to continue their education and also develop a thirst for knowledge,\u201d Goebel said. \u201cWe want to inspire them to continue to do things like traveling abroad. When you can broaden their minds, it \u2019s the greatest reward for a teacher.\u201d<\/p>\n Lynn Goedecke, adjunct professor, developed the concept for a course titled Wrongful Conviction: Causes and Remedies, which inspires and generates intrigue among her writing students.<\/p>\n \u201cWrongful conviction is a topic that\u2019s interesting to everyone,\u201d Goedecke said. \u201cIt teaches students the importance of research and persuasive writing. Everyone writes better when they \u2019re engaged in the material they\u2019re writing about.\u201d<\/p>\n Currently, there are hundreds, possibly thousands of people serving prison sentences who are not guilty of the crimes for which they were convicted. Many are on death row. The course examines issues and problems with the criminal justice system that led to the conviction of the innocent. Throughout the course, Goedecke teaches students methods to achieve greater depth and quality of research. In doing that research, she hopes students analyze the readings, inherit the skills they absorb through other polished writers, and incorporate those traits into their own presentations.<\/p>\n \u201cToday, kids are brought up using Internet searches and look for quick bites that tend to be poorly written, \u201d said Goedecke. \u201cThere is a big difference between scholarly and non-scholarly resources. We want them to research quality writing and then present their own persuasive arguments in a useful and articulate manner. \u201d<\/p>\n A feature of the course has students watching three films pertaining to wrongful conviction. The first is a case of youths from Florida wrongfully accused of murder. The second is about an individual who spent 11 years in prison before DNA evidence proved that a witness was incorrect in identifying the person as the perpetrator. The final film chronicles the events of a wrongfully convicted criminal who is set free and how that particular state attempts to rectify its erroneous judgment.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile it\u2019s not a criminal justice course, those who have interest in that field learn that the ability to write is critical, \u201d said Goedecke, who has a degree in law. \u201cWriting is the most important skill that you can have in law.\u201d<\/p>\n Any student who is interested in reversing a wrongful conviction through DNA evidence should register for CHEM 360: Forensic Chemistry. John Allison, professor and director of forensic chemistry, developed the forensics program at TCNJ after teaching for 25 years at Michigan State University. This course would make CSI fans go wild. It discusses chemical aspects of forensic science, such as detection of latent or hidden evidence (fingerprints, markers of counterfeit money and document authenticity, as well as genetic materials).<\/p>\n Students take part in different types of labs, studying compounds and becoming familiar with instrumentation. There are conventional experiments designed to give students experience with a specific method, and there are labs where students conduct original research on misunderstood topics.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is a difference between forensic science and forensic chemistry,\u201d noted Allison, who designed all the labs himself. \u201cA forensic scientist looks for the quick answer. A forensic chemist studies all the components.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have fun in labs and try to make it different every week. I set up small crime scenes that they have to investigate. \u201d<\/p>\n This past summer, 10 TCNJ students received internship positions at the New Jersey State Police Laboratory in Hamilton. Allison has established an exclusive relationship between TCNJ students and the New Jersey State Police due to the excellence of the forensics program. Two TCNJ undergraduates also participated in undergraduate research in forensic chemistry, supported by a National Institute of Justice grant.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re doing some studies on a chemical called luminol,\u201d continued Allison. \u201cIf you spray it on the surface of blood, it reacts and fluoresces in blue light. So if a criminal tries to clean up blood after a crime, not only will you see the blood remnants glow in the dark, but also the wipe marks. \u201d<\/p>\n Human Ability\u2014Unplugged is a course so innovative that it was featured in The Chronicle of Higher Education<\/em>. The course was originally designed for students to explore models and theories that examine social, political, cultural, and economic factors that define disability and determine personal and collective response to difference. Now, approximately one-third of that class is comprised of students with varying degrees of developmental and intellectual disabilities. Those Career and Community Studies (CCS) Program students are infused into the classroom with typical college students.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve taken the original concept and integrated the CCS students into the course,\u201d said Professor Jerry Petroff. \u201cIn this type of class, everybody wins. The study of liberal learning increases cognitive development in the CCS students. For the typical college students, they hear firsthand what people with disabilities go through. Hearing stories from a person \u2019s mouth rather than reading or being lectured to about it has a more profound impact. \u201d<\/p>\n In addition to traditional studies, classroom discussions, and online chat sessions, there are team projects where students collaborate in small groups on interview assignments, book and film reviews, and special topics\/issues papers. The class also takes a field trip to Pure Vision Arts in New York City, the premier studio for artists with developmental challenges.<\/p>\n \u201cStudents view people with disabilities with greater comfort and humanity after taking this course,\u201d Petroff added. \u201cSo\u2026a future engineer can become more sensitive to building structures that serve disabled people\u2026The possibilities are endless.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" TCNJ has taken heed of Edison\u2019s words, and rather than rest upon its laurels has incorporated both meticulous planning and boundless vision into a curriculum that whets the intellectual appetites of its students and faculty members. Each of the College \u2019s seven schools offers innovative classes that make for a tempting academic menu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":227,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-103","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-spring-2007"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=103"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/227"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=103"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=103"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=103"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Immersion Excursion<\/h3>\n
Power of the Pen<\/h3>\n
![\"Wrongful](\"http:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/tour-42-15256228-v2.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWrongful Conviction: Causes and Remedies
\n\u00a9 Christian Schmidt \/ zefa \/ Corbis<\/div>\n<\/div>\nNot Your Father\u2019s Science Class<\/h3>\n
![\"A](\"http:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/tour-mix-ps007041-v2_000.jpg\")
<\/p>\nA Forensic scientist looks for the quick answer. A Forensic chemist studies all the components.
\u00a9 David Wasserman, magnifying glass;
\n\u00a9 Lors Studio, student in lab.<\/div>\n<\/div>\nOpening Doors and Eyes<\/h3>\n
![\"Tour\"](\"http:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/scalzi.thumbnail.jpg\")
Thomas Edison once said, \u201cRestlessness and discontent are the first necessities of progress.\u201d Those who stand still in flattery of their being begin a gradual slide toward mediocrity.<\/p>\n