Calaway \u2799, Jaynanne

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The Park Place EconomistVolume 6 | Issue 1 Article 101998The Oxford Experience: A Tutorial Versus aModular SystemJaynanne Calaway '99Illinois Wesleyan UniversityThis News and Commentary is brought to you for free and open access by The Ames Library, the Andrew W. Mellon Center for Curricularand Faculty Development, the Office of the Provost and the Office of the President. It has been accepted for inclusion in Digital Commons@ IWU by the faculty at Illinois Wesleyan University. For more information, please contact digitalcommons@iwu.edu.©Copyright is owned by the author of this document.Recommended CitationCalaway '99, Jaynanne (1998) "The Oxford Experience: A Tutorial Versus a ModularSystem," The Park Place Economist: Vol. 6Available at: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/parkplace/vol6/iss1/10The Oxford Experience: A Tutorial Versus a Modular SystemThis news and commentary is available in The Park Place Economist: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/parkplace/vol6/iss1/10Stumph to Bring Great Ideas toDepartment  Nathan TaulbeeI hope to round out your outstanding Eco-nomics Department by interesting students in macro-economics as a field of interest and research.Those are the words of IWUs newest Eco-nomics professor, Dr. Carolyn Stumph.  Having re-ceived a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance and aPh.D in Economics from Lehigh University, along withan MBA from Oklahoma City University Stumphbrings a great variety of knowledge to IWU.In addition to having three degrees, Stumphalso served as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. ArmyField Artillery Corps in Fort Sill, Oklahoma.  Whilethere, Stumph worked primarily with intermediaterange nuclear missiles, which today are no longer inservice.After leaving the service Stumph worked as asales representative for the Johnson & Johnson Co.pharmaceutical division. She then served as a finan-cial consultant for Merrill Lynch, where she discov-ered her desire to further explore the economics field.This caused Stumph to return to Lehigh to obtain herPh.D.As a recent graduate student, Dr. Stumph hasmany great ideas for the Economics Department andits students.  Some new courses that Stumph wouldlike to see added to the curriculum include Econom-ics of Technological Change, Business Cycles andForecasting, and Monetary and Fiscal Policy.  Inthe classroom, Stumph plans to involve students byestablishing mini-economies that will increase in-sight into a particular theory, along with increasingstudent interaction.  In addition, she believes that stu-dent interest can be raised through examining currentevents and real world problems.Stumph enjoys macroeconomics and believesit is an important field because, as part of a free mar-ket economy, informed consumers and voters can con-tribute to their own prosperity.  In addition she feelsmacroeconomics is needed to better understand local,state, and federal decision-making.  Besides macro-economics, Stumph also has a great interest in gametheory and the problems facing developing countries.Several things attracted Stumph to IWU.  Firstof all, she appreciates our philosophy that studentscome first.  She also likes the students and faculty shemet while visiting campus. I thought it was wonder-ful that so many of you attended my seminar in orderto have a say in the hiring process.  The congenialityamong the departments across campus is also quiteunique in my experience.Dr. Stumph has great advice for all IWU stu-dents.  For those who remain undecided on whether ornot to attend graduate school directly after undergradu-ate studies, she recommends getting a job first.  I wasnot always driven to get my Ph.D. and I found mywork experience to be invaluable.  It enabled me toget more out of my education because I knew whichquestions to ask.Stumph also recommends getting involved inmany activities.  She believes the activities will im-prove a resume and increase the leadership, teamwork,and communication skills necessary in the businessfield.Though Stumph has spent much time study-ing supply and demand, economics is not her entirelife.  She enjoys spending time with her husband Timo-thy, whether it be skiing, mountain biking, or runningmarathons.Stumphs arrival at IWU is anxiously antici-pated by both students and faculty.  Her broad back-ground and great ideas give students something to lookforward to.  Lets just hope that she does not includerunning a marathon as a course requirement!The Park Place Economist / vol. VIThe Oxford Experience:  A TutorialVersus a Modular System        Jaynanne CalawayUpon stepping out of my coach at theGloucester Green bus station in downtown Oxford, IFrom the Economics Departmentthe steps waiting for faculty.  Alumni, we hope youwill return to the campus of IWU and visit our newfacilities!The Park Place Economist / vol. VIknew my year abroad as a Visiting Student atPembroke College would be the experience of alifetime.  I am now well into Hilary Term, the secondof three terms in the year, and taking a moment toreflect on my experiences thus far.  An Oxfordeducation certainly centers around the tutorial system,as opposed to the modular system found in the States.And yet, the Oxford experience entails so muchmore.  Before focusing on the backbone of Oxfordsreputation, academics, I would like to clarify that ayear spent in Oxford holed up in libraries by day andwriting essays by night would be a travesty.Oxford is known as The City of DreamingSpires.  There are more cathedrals and bell towersthan I could possibly count.  In fact, every night at9:05, the Christ Church Tower rings 101 times.  Itrings 101 times to commemorate the first graduatingclass, which had 101 members.  It rings at 9:05 becausethat was the original curfew in Oxford hundreds ofyears ago.  I often stop in the middle of Carfaxintersection in City Central and turn a full circle justto take in the atmosphere and remind myself of thehistory.  My room, which happens to be up five flightsof rickety, old, wooden stairs, is well over 300 yearsold.  Some parts of Oxford date back to the 11thCentury.  I was very excited the first time I ate at TheEagle and the Child, the pub C.S. Lewis frequented.  Iwas in awe the first time I walked through the meadowsof Christ Church at dusk.  I reveled in the beauty ofmy first morning to see daybreak while rowing on theIsis River.  Oxford may well be the most beautifulplace on earth.Yet the heart of Oxford remains in its 35colleges.  Much to my surprise, I quickly learned thatno Briton studies more than eight hours a day, unlesshe is having what is commonly known as an essaycrisis.  This is when one has not planned ones timewell and ends up doing all the reading and writing foran essay within the 12-24 hours before a tute (shortfor tutorial).  Otherwise, most of my colleaguesawaken in time for breakfast and work through mostof the day, perhaps taking time to hang out in theafternoon or attend one of many sports practices.  Manycharge that Pembroke College revolves around twothings: rowing crew and nightlife.  Clubbing andpubbing are the two main nightly activities.  Somepeople, though, prefer to take their respite in theafternoon.  My favorite afternoon activities haveincluded ice-skating, seeing a film, or window-shopping.Nonetheless, academics remains the backboneof the Oxford experience.  I am enrolled in thePhilosophy, Political Science, and Economics (PPE)Honor School, which decrees that I read two papersin our terms, take two classesper term.  For eachpaper, I write a weekly 12-15 page essay.  For eachessay, my tutor assigns a reading list.  One list mayhave 50 books on it!  There are no textbooks required,though textbooks often show up on the reading list.Many days, I spend an entire morning and afternoontromping all over Oxford looking for books.  TheBodleian is the central library in Oxford and the oldestlibrary in the Western world.  Oftentimes, the Bodleianis the only library in Oxford with a book.  On the downside, no one may check books out of the Bodleian.On the up side, I know that the books I need will alwaysbe at the Bodleian.  Since many libraries close in theearly evening, one must plan ones day well to be ableto get all the reading done.  Fortunately, I soondiscovered that no one reads everything on the list.Not even the tutors really expect us to read everything.I quickly learned that they hold up an unattainablestandard, without anticipating that anyone will everachieve it.After reading various arguments andapproaches on a topic, I set out writing the essay.  Mymoral tutorthe equivalent of an advisoronce toldme never to spend more than four hours writing anessay.  However, I think that must not have includedrevisions, for by the time I finally print out an essay, Iwill have spent well over four hours.  I then take theessay with me to my weekly one hour tutorial.  Manytutors require their students to hand in their essay 24hours ahead.  Mine have not.  In general, PPE tutorsare more easy-going.  Sometimes, I read my essayaloud to get the discussion rolling.  A good tutor spendsmost of the hour going over the basics and then fillingin the gaps.  A tutorial system allows a tutor to addressindividual confusions and thoughts on a topic.  This isthe essence of an Oxford education: the one-to-onehourly sessions.  It is just me and an internationallyknown expert in the field.  This term, I have the sametutor for both papers: International Economics andEconomics of OECD Countries.  We had to rearrangeone of our tutorials because he had to suddenly fly toMoscow to serve in an advisory role regarding aFrom the Economics DepartmentThe Park Place Economist / vol. VInational economic dilemma.  One day last term, mytutor for Classical Economic Thought, Walter Eltis,mentioned that he had to run off to Londonthat Tonywanted to discuss something with him.  Yes, that iscorrect: Tony Blair!The most difficult aspect has been the lack offormal feedback on my work.  My tutors read andmark my essays, but have not assigned a grade to themthus far.  There are no tests until collections (finals),which are taken at the beginning of the next term afterthe six-week break.  Even then, collections do notformally count for anything.  Full-time Oxford studentsreceive no permanent markson their transcript until finalsat the end of their time atOxford, which is normallythree years.  However, thecollections do serve asindicators of a studentsprogress and retention.  Ifthey do not do well, there areconsequences.  Anothersignificant difference from aliberal arts education likeIllinois Wesleyan is thatOxford students study onlytheir subject.  They do not have general educationrequirements.  Instead, it is assumed that economicsstudents will learn about the arts and humanities ontheir own.  I have found that Oxford students generallyhave a broad range of interests and knowledge.  Thesports players go to plays and ballets; the scientistsparticipate in poetry readings; and most everyonespeaks more than one language.  On the few days thesun is warm enough to sit out on the quad, one findspeople playing chess and drawing portraits instead ofthe traditional American game of frisbee.  If I were tocharacterize Oxford in any one way, it would be thatit is a place to talktalk about anything at any timewith anyone.  Whether it be with tutors or friends,conversations freely move from economics to politicsto religion to literature to art to morality to philosophyand back to economics again in a matter of minutes.As for the formal academic requirements,weekly and biweekly lectures and seminars aresupplementary and optional.  Tutors are generallyassociated with the same college as their students,though not always.  On the other hand, lectures areuniversity-wide.  Thus, ones tutor is most likely notthe lecturer for the same subject.  It is assumed thatstudents will attend lectures in order to receive theinformation they will need for finals.  I rarely find alecture which corresponds with that weeks essay topic.Consequently, I plan my week around how long I judgeit will take to read the books and articles on my readinglists from my tutors.  One does not sign up for lectures.As a Visiting Student, I am taking advantage of myyear here by attending lectures not only in economicsbut also in other subjects which interest me, such aslaw, politics, and ethics.Finally, I arrive at thelong-awaited aspect ofcontent: do they teach thesame basic material as in theStates?  From talking withPPE freshers (freshmen), Ihave gleaned that the macroand micro theory courses arevery similar to our own,concentrating mainly onClassical models.  However,many of my papers havecorresponded to second andthird year work.  I wasshocked to find that most of my tutors do not believethe Classical models, with perfect markets, are relevantsince they do not exist.  In my Labour Economicspaper, I studied various alternative explanations forreal-world phenomena, such as the monopsony theoryto explain why a minimum wage might actually raiseemployment.  There is a strict format for all PPEessays: introduction, explanation of key definitions,opposing theories to answer the question, empiricalevidence, and then a judgment and summary of thefindings.  For instance, in the case of the essay topicDoes the introduction of a national minimum wagenecessarily raise unemployment?, one wouldintroduce the topic, define low-paid jobs andunemployment, review the Classical model in whichwage floors always lower employment, introduce amonopsonist model which proposes the oppositeconclusion, summarize the empirical evidence, andthen make a judgment.  Most Oxford students focusmainly on British markets.  Because I am an AmericanVisiting Student, my tutors try to assign Americanauthors also.I was shocked to find thatmost of my tutors do notbelieve the Classical eco-nomic models, with perfectmarkets, are relevant sincethey dont exist.From the Economics DepartmentThe Park Place Economist / vol. VIMany peopleboth here and at homehaveasked me which system I think is superior.  Frankly, Ideem neither to be superior.  Obviously, the Oxfordsystem has history and reputation on its side.  As ajunior studying abroad, I feel that the freedom andflexibility of the tutorial system have fit me nicely.This system has allowed me to read more on thesubjects which truly interest me while also learningthe aspects which my tutors deem most important.However, I would not recommend the system for everystage of a college career.  I have witnessed many aPembroke fresher falter in the wake of so muchfreedom.  Freedom is always accompanied byresponsibility.  The tutorial system requires a greatdeal of self-discipline.  As for the content, I do advocatereading all sides of an argument for oneself, and notjust from a textbook summarizing a topic.  Of course,it does require more time and effort to learn the bulkof a subject on ones own, attending tutorials only toclarify and fill in the gaps.  In the end, the superiorityof one system over the other depends largely on theperson and the purpose of study.From the Economics Department

The Oxford Experience: A Tutorial Versus a Modular System

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The Oxford Experience: A Tutorial Versus a Modular System

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