In some ways, the use of an "Illinibucks" system sounds like it could be a good idea. It would allow students to prioritize what aspects of university life they wish to prioritize, specifically areas where they'd like a leg up on their fellow students. Since each student would be receiving "an allocation of 'Illinibucks'" students ideally would have a capped number available for purchase. I can see the "Illinibucks" as being usable for various school-related activities which are currently administered on a first come-first serve basis. These could include but would not be limited to: time tickets for course registration, scheduling advising appointments, research positions, on-campus tutoring, out of class time with professors or TAs, admittance into smaller class sections, recommendation letters from department heads, override capabilities, or early admittance to career/internship fairs. Obviously some of these opportunities would be in much higher demand than others, and this could cause the system to not serve its intended purpose. For example, if every student wanted to use their "Illinibucks" for registration, then their affect would be mitigated and effects would be very limited.
When it comes to “Illinibucks” pricing, problems could arise if the price was too low or too high. If the price was too low, then there would be no degree of exclusivity, all students could purchase them, and they would therefore be relatively worthless. If pricing was too high, then only the wealthy could afford them and the functioning of campus would reward the rich and put everyone else at a disadvantage, despite everyone spending the same amount in tuition. In addition, allocating “Illinibucks” would open the door to the opening of a black market where students could stand to profit a great deal if they were willing to sell off their “Illinibucks” to their peers. In my opinion, opening such a market could cause more harm then good.
I've use the Illinibucks prompt in previous offerings of this class, but yours is the first time I can recall a student mentioning use for a research position. I would be interested to read more about how you think those are allocated.
ReplyDeleteI mentioned in class that back in the late 1990s, I used undergrad TAs/peer mentors in my class. These were students I recruited who had taken the class already and done well in it. Don't you think that is how research positions get filled?
From my experience at this university I have actually seen a wide variety of ways research positions are allocated. I know of Professors who go the same route as you did, rewarding the most high achieving students with TA positions in the course the following semester. I am currently working in one of those positions, but I got the job more so because of the meetings I set up outside of class, an interest in an organization the professor helps run, and by taking multiple classes with the same professor. It wasn't so much that I was a stellar student in the class as much as I expressed an interest in helping out, and making myself accessible.
ReplyDeleteThe research I mention in this post (the first come, first serve type) are in reference to scientific projects that go on at this university. The bigger projects which have multiple grad students and undergrads working in a lab. I believe psychology and education labs also can fall under this category. From what I've heard, paid positions in these labs can be competitive (especially depending on the project) and in my opinion are a hot commodity, particularly for those students looking to apply to grad schools and even more so for pre-med students. These positions involve submitting resumes, applications, maybe even interviews. Jumping to the top of the applicant pool via "Illinibucks" would provide a serious advantage, especially if it allowed students to pick the research project of their choice.
I agree that the use of Illinibucks for registration purposes can undermine the integrity of the University system, in that those who do well (like James Scholars), won't be able to be rewarded for their academic success. As far as TA's and research positions go, I believe in most cases TAs are selected by the professor. However, I believe I know plenty of people who got research positions without being a top student in their class. They simply have had better relationships with the professor or were some of the few people that applied for the position.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the potential black market if the Illinibucks exist and the allocation is fair to everybody. I also agree that the current registration system is relatively far because the seniority and academic performance will be a factor in academic standing. If we keep the system and also promote Illinibucks, the demand of Illinibucks will be different due to their original priority under the regular system so that might cause black market for exchanging Illinibucks and increase the unfairness of the resource. Since we all pay tuition and effort to get into the university, the unfairness resource is unreasonable because people already pay for the service.
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