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These pages contain general resources for undergraduates. They include information on presidential scholar events, professional development tips, as well as research, publication and funding opportunities.
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Undergraduate Opportunities and Resources
Peer Learning Assistants are undergraduate students selected
by the faculty member to facilitate teaching and learning activities that might
otherwise be difficult for the faculty member to carry out by him/herself.
Experience at other institutions and in several FYSs and other introductory
level courses at Clark has shown that PLAs are most useful in facilitative
roles, e.g. giving students feedback on early drafts of writing, leading small
group discussions, working with individual students who are having difficulty,
facilitating group project work (in or out of class), and/or facilitating online
discussions on Blackboard. Because they are undergraduates, as is the practice
at Clark, PLAs do not grade student work, and they generally do not have the
content expertise to serve as substitutes for graduate teaching assistants. PLAs
are paid $8.50 per hour from federal work-study funds or from other
institutional funds, or some choose to take academic credit (e.g. independent
study or directed reading) for their work. PLAs generally work about 10-15
hr/wk.
For more information about Clark's PLA program please contact Judy Miller (judmiller@clarku.edu).
Also visit our extensive list of
research
opportunities for undergraduates at Clark and beyond for more opportunities
and resources available to undergraduate students.
Workshops
Check out the Home page.
One of the biggest differences between high school and college is the amount
of responsibility you have for monitoring and managing your own learning
experience. Throughout your college education you will be challenged by an
intensive workload along with the numerous diversions you face while living in
an environment with your peers. You can maximize your undergraduate learning
experience by acquiring and developing the necessary skills for success in
college and beyond. One invaluable skill that supports your overall learning
experience is critical thinking.
What is critical thinking?
Critical thinking is a learned skill that helps you to process complex
information. As a student, you are required to process and retain large amounts
of “new” information. One of your primary tasks as an undergraduate is to sort
through masses of material and identify key elements of an argument. Critical
thinking is the skill that guides you through this process.
At its most basic level, critical thinking involves the mental processes of
analyzing and evaluating information. Throughout college you are asked to
demonstrate your comprehension through assignments that require you to examine
evidence, formulate a conclusion, and explain your reasoning. As you develop
your critical thinking skills you may be asked to gather your own evidence
thorough observation, experience, reflection, or reasoning. Following the
gathering and processing of this evidence, you must formulate and justify your
conclusions. Critical thinking skills enable you to formulate effective
arguments.
Why is critical thinking important?
Critical thinking is not simply about discovering the “right” answer.
Critical thinkers use reasoning to understand how an argument was originally
formulated and what the shortcomings of that argument might be. Critical
thinking is an active process that goes beyond simplistic ways of understanding.
It is a skill and a mode of processing information that allows you to
thoughtfully and systematically interrogate an argument.
Students who cultivate their critical thinking skills learn to raise
questions that are vital to the understanding of an argument. While gathering
and assessing relevant information, students that are critical thinkers engage
with abstract ideas in order to reach well reasoned conclusions or solutions to
a problem. In addition, students who utilize critical thinking are able to
recognize assumptions, implications and consequences of a particular argument.
Their critical engagement with the material draws from a variety of available
frameworks for analyzing and assessing a problem-set. In short, critical
thinkers apply a self-disciplined and self-directed way of thinking. They
incorporate rigorous standards of inquiry that result in the effective
communication of potential approaches to solving a particular problem.
References
Appleby, D. The Covert Curriculum: The Lifelong Learning Skills You Can Learn
in College. In Eye on Psi Chi (Vol. 5, No. 3, pp. 28-31, 34), Chattanooga: Psi
Chi, The National Honor Society in Psychology. (2001).
Hettich, P. I. Learning skills for college and career (2nd edition). Pacific
Grove: Brooks/Cole (1998).
For more information about developing critical thinking skills, the
following resources are available at the CETL library:
Brookfield, S. Developing Critical Thinkers: Challenging Adults to Explore
Alternative Ways of Thinking and Acting. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Inc.
Publishers. (1987).
Kurfiss, J. Critical Thinking: Theory, Research, Practice, and Possibilities.
ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Report No.2. Washington, D.C.: Association for the
Study of Higher Education. (1988).
Paul, R. Critical Thinking: What Every Person Needs to Surrvie in a Rapidly
Changin World (2nd edition). Sonoma State University: Foundation for Critical
Thinking. (1992).
Peer Advisor Training
Student orientation workshop on plagiarism (not
covered in the session, but requested by attendees)
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Plagiarism Workshop (script for peer advisors who ran the workshop)
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Acting with Academic Integrity (handout for students in the workshop)
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