The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, April 14, 1986, Page 4, Image 4
Viewpoint
^ j L_ (IJ .1 Monday, April 14, 1986
Fair is fai
English TAs sh
same pay as o
Teaching assistants in
USC's English department are
justified in their attempt to
gain pay equal to that of instructors
in other departments.
English TAs receive about
$2,500 less per year than other
department assistants.
Teaching a class requires a
tremendous amount of work,
and USC is overburdening
English TAs. They are, after
all, students first. And trying
to achieve a master's degree
should not have to be placed
on the back burner to grade a
pile of papers.
If a teaching assistant with
two classes of 25 students
assigns eight five-page paDers.
this means over 2,000 pages to
grade, in addition to preparing
lectures and assignments,
teaching the courses and conducting
student conferences.
Willy Wonka
invites five
to graduation
"Why, it's the most incredibly
wonderfully marvelous gradua- j
tion ceremony in the world,
Charlie!" Grandpa Joe said. j
In the evenings, after he finish- |
ed his supper of watery cabbage
soup, Charlie always went into ;
his grandparents' room to listen
to their stories and, afterward, to
say good night. Often, the stories j
concerned the ENORMOUS
DIPLOMA FACTORY located
actually within si^ht of the house
in which Charlie lived.
And it wasn't an ordinary
enormous diploma factory, (
either. It was the largest and most
C -
lamous in tnc whole world! It I
was owned by a man called Mr. |
William Wonka, the greatest
maker of diplomas that there has 5
ever been. That's what Grandpa t
Joe was talking about.
"I'll tell you something in- s
teresting, Charlie," Grandpa Joe (
said. "Nobody . . . ever . . . co- t
mes . . . out . ... And . . . nobody
. . . ever . . . goes . . . in!C
"In where?" Charlie cried. r
''Wonka's graduation n
ceremonies, of course!" 11
Then Grandpa Joe explained. p
Years before, when he was as h
young as Charlie, Wonka's commencement
exercises had been
open to everybody, regardless of
whether they were related to
graduates or not. And the
ceremonies were so glorious anM i.
u
dazzling that word got around,
and soon thousands upon
thousands of people were lining jc
up for weeks beforehand just to _
get a good scat. And every year C(
the ceremony was more lavish fj
and more spectacular. sc
al
"But the thing got out of th
hand," Grandpa Joe said. "And
after a dozen years the crowds T
got so big that Wonka couldn't hi
fit them in any of his buildings. pj
'What will I do?' Wonka cried. 'I T
can't let some people in and leave ur
others out! It wouldn't be fair!"' in
"What did he do?" Charlie G;
"Why, he left everybody out, dc
Charlie. I.ocked the doors and th
held graduation ceremonies with
no audience at all. And he does
that to this day." co
Send us a I
F.xprcss your likes and dislikes by
ler to the editor or a guest editorial
l etters must be typed, double-sp;
more than 300 words. Include you
dress, telephone number and where
' reached for verification.
Letters also should include whetb
student, staff or community men
editorials must be limited to 500
writers must come to the newsroor
picture taken.
ir
mm
ould receive
ther assistants
English TAs should rcceivc
the money they deserve. In the
non-academic world the
humanities ate being forced to
take a back seat to technology.
It is frightening that this institution
of higher education
seems to agree, and that it
would rather use extra funds
to attract dignitaries instead of
paying educational staff.
USC officials must learn
that to receive quality, you
must pay for it. That's what
they tell students every time
thev raise* tuition Porhonr
... . .1U|?
they should start listening to
their own sermons.
A walkout may be considered
drastic, but it may also
be the only way the administration
can be made
aware of the seriousness of the
situation. With any luck it
won't come to that.
VI
> Wm
Andy
Duncan
From the other side of the bed,
jrandma Josephine sighed.
'How fine the ceremonies must
3e by now if Wonka's been improving
them every year."
on, uranapa Joe," Charlie
.aid. "Wouldn't it be wonderful
o see this year's graduation?"
Grandpa Joe laughed and
hook his head. "There's no way, <
Jharlie. No one's allowed in
here." ]
Just then, Mr. Bucket,
Charlie's father, came into the I
oom waving an evening 1
ewspaper. "Have you heard the
ews?" he yelled. He held up the
aper so they could sec the huge t
eadline. The headline said: i
Wonka Graduation
To Be Opened At j
Last To Luck} Few }
Then Mr. Bucket read the 1
ulletin:
"I, William Wonka, have 1
ecided to allow five people ?
tst five, mind you, and no more
- to visit my graduation
;remony this year. These lucky
ve will be shown around perrnally
by me, and they will be
lowed to see all the secrets and *
ic magic of my diploma factory. K
"So watch out for the Golden t
nvc uoiaen lickets |
we been printed on golden
jper, and these five Golden
ickets have been hidden
iderneath the ordinary wrappg
paper of five ordinary
umecock candy bars. H
"And for those of you who n
>n't get in ? your diploma is in gi
e mail." V
ei
Editor's note: The preceding ti
lurun was sarcastic. s|
letter
writing a let- The Gamecock \
letters a month by
aced and no only be withheld
r name, ad- pseudonyms are no
you can be
er you are a The Gamecock re
iber. Guest and guest editorials
words, and returned. Send
n to have a Gamecock, Drawer
bia, S.C. 29208.
If PHfirc fn f.h'
I ? v t?V# 111 IV
English TAs' pay good
next to other salaries
To the editor:
I am writing the following letter in response
to your headline article of April 2 concerning
the low pay of English teaching assistants.
Last semester I was an English TA, and 1
feel that TAs in the English department
receive enough money for what they do.
Teaching two classes requires about 24
hours per week: five hours in class preparation,
five hours teaching, 11 hours grading
papers and three hours set aside for office
hours. At the annual salary of $6,000, a TA
makes $200 per week for two 15-week
semesters. At an hourly rate, a TA makes
$8.33 per hour. The amount of time for
preparing classes and grading papers may
vary a little from TA to TA.
I think $8.33 is pretty good compared to
working off-campus or doing work-study,
especially since performing as a TA is actually
on-the-job training for manv. if not mmi
TAs.
I don't really understand why TAs in other
departments make more money than those in
English. I think that is their concern and their
good fortune. However, if anyone wants to
entertain the idea of equalizing the income of
IAs in all departments, I would suggest that
he income of I As in other departments be
lowered instead of the income for English
I As be raised.
I would be interested to hear from some of
he more "affluent" TAs in other departments
concerning how much money they
nake for their assigned duties.
I.ike anyone else, I would greatly enjoy an
ncrease in salary; but I find those who arc
ortunate to get an assistantship in English
mgrateful when they denounce a generous in:ome
because they see someone else who is
loing even better.
Larry Bagwell
Comparative Literature,
Grad student
English TAs trying for
ess work, same pay
I o the editor:
Recently, the graduate instructors in the
nglish department at USC have had
cwspaper and television coverage of our
rievances regarding assistantship stipends,
t'hile such opportunities have certainly
nhanced our visibility, they are at the same
me f rustrating; so far no one has voiced the
>ecific reasons behind our dissatisfaction.
? ' I Be?t Newip
i I fir Pnu Im
wv ? was no*
_____ fa* 1981
! Kdilor in C.'h
vill print no more than two Marisa J. h
the same writer. Names will Minting vx
Jeri Rowe
by special exception, and
( allowed. topy 1)eskt
; Linda Tayl<
Assistant Co|
serves the right to edit letters buddy Moo
,, both of which will not be New? Kdlior
letters 10: Editor, The Met Node,
4 ii it f f* A%sis(ttnl Nev
A, Kussell House, Colum- Hal Millard
Paula Weth
''0
! editor
Ill .ni l III
Contrary to the focus of these news stories,
our main purpose is not to make more money.
What we are really seeking is less work for the
same pay.
Our primary purpose in the English department
is to learn. We are students first and
foremost. By offering assistantships, the
university administrators imply their support
of our degree pursuits. However, what they
an. in ian uoing is laKing advantage of an inexpensive
means of providing instruction for
82 percent of all English freshman courses
and 45 percent of all English classes that are
presently taught by graduate students at USC.
The department could never find funds to pay
professors (many of whom would refuse to do
so if asked) to teach the courses that we cover.
We arc frustrated because we spend more
time fulfilling our teaching responsibilities
than studying. Teaching two courses a
semester demands at least 30 hours a week
teaching, preparing assignments and lectures
(we are new at this ? we don't have file
drawers full of prepared lessons), conferencing
with individual students and grading
papers ? a minimum of 400 a semester per instructor.
Plus, in order to make enough
money to pay the bills, many of us who are
^elf-supporting have taken on at least one
overload class.
1 his workload leaves us with enough time
to do only the minimum requirements for our
own graduate courses. We have a high failure
rate among students taking comprehensive exams,
due in large part to the amount of time
spent teaching rather than studying. By refusing
to give the English department more
money the university is forcing us to spend
too much time teaching and not enough time
learning; they are undercutting the entire
principle behind assistantships.
USC is underpaying us to teach invaluable
communication skills to undergraduates ?
skills upon which all other classes in this
university arc prefaced, skills which the
university apparently recognizes as such, since
freshman English is a requirement for every
student. When enrollment skyrocketed last
fall, rather than being provided with more
money to hire additional instructors, we were
forced to increase the number of students
enrolled in each section.
This not only increased our workload, but
it violated the guidelines imposed on the
University by the Southern Association of
Colleges, a governing body that has determined
the number of students that can effectively
be taught in a composition class. SAC also
prohibits first-year graduate students from
taking on the full responsibility of teaching
classes and assigning grades, but our English
department administrators have frequently
been forced to ignore this rule because they do
not have the funds to attract experienced
graduate students to our program.
We are, on an average, receiving $2,000 less
per year ? one-third of our entire salary ?
than other English graduate students in the
Southeast, manv of whom am a
, uiv ivlJUIIkU 111
f"'" The Gdnii
lef Huslnets hdltor Photogri
'orto Maria Frutus Ray Cn
lltor Viewpoint i-xlitfir Assistant
Carl Dawson Sean Kt
Senior P
hlef Spotlight hdltor David L
>r Ed Chambliss Joseph i
py l>e?tk C "hicf Assistant Spotlight Kditors
re Stephen Guilfoyle Senior K
Patrick Jean ^d Bo hi
r Sport* Editor Art Hoe
vs hdltor* John Boyette Amy Dt
Assistant Sport* hdltor Ron! Be
mxion Jeff Shrewsbury Joanne
teach fewer classes annually.
Clearly, we are being taken advantage of in
a number of ways. If the administration
leaves us with no alternative but to take some
form of action, we won't be doing so because a
we arc money-mongers; instead, we will ^
be demanding that the university take significant
steps to remedy this inequitable
situation.
Nancy Lewis
English, graduate student
Students should show
concern for apartheid
To the editor:
While some students are running to and fro
trying to land summer jobs, trying to read the
small print of the summer and fall course
schedule, selling every piece of furniture in
their room or apartment before they
graduate, others are still trying to get President
Holderman's attention concerning the
university's role in South Africa.
Let's face it, many of today's students arc
more concerned about Halley's comet than
they are about South Africa. They are vaguely
familiar with the name Botha ar.d even less
familiar with Nelson Mandela.
Nevertheless, the students that have taken
an interest in the policies of this university
and how they invest university funds should
be commended.
This is not an off-the-wall cause. Apartheid
is a gross injustice to humanity despite the
contradictory reports. This monster has turned
blacks against blacks, whites against ^
blacks, whites aaainst whites onH
w .. uiau illWlV tip"
pears to be no end to the psychological effects
it has on the entire world.
Many of us are too "into ourselves" to be
concerned with South Africa. We are too
caught up with the latest "whatever" to even
support the cause by participating in a walk,
or candelight vigil, write letters, or even make
a financial donation (the "Free South
Africa" button costs 25 cents.)
I admit, I have my share of overload and
may not get out to every meeting or debate
about South Africa. But I have taken the time
to read and become knowledgeable about the
situation. I am writing this letter in support of
the shanty. Perhaps a closer view of the conditions
of South Africa would soften the mental
walls of the university's board members
As college students and leaders, we must
speak out for what is right. I think of the fact
that I would not be attending this univesity today,
had not someone spoken up in behalf of
minorities two decades ago.
Sallic A. Butler
Journalism, junior
acock I
iphy
Editor Kuthy Lewis
onberfi Tracy Mixson
i ("holography hdltor Fred Steppe
'efer Adviser
holograph* Bill Rogers
)otson Director
Garneit, Jr. Bill Clements
Production
eportero Lewis Covington
vn Mark Armstrong
r*e Advertising Manager
'IPo Margaret Michels
a Kayne Student Advertising Manager
Korth Kelli Freas i