NSU Horizons Fall 2010

Working with the Broward Sheriff’s Office and its forensic team, those enrolled in the undergraduate course are shown what it is like in a real crime laboratory. “It’s saying to them, ‘so you saw this on television, let’s see if that’s the way it really exists’,” said Garcia- Brown, who believes that there are many positives for using pop-culture references to convey serious subjects. “In developing a course, you can take that information, enhance it, and put it into a curriculum, and that is what gets a student’s attention.” Suzanne Ferriss, Ph.D., teaches one of the most popular courses in the Undergraduate Honors Program— Chick Lit, Chick Flicks. The course features a reading and viewing list of novels such as Sophie Kinsella’s Shopaholic and Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones’s Diary and movies such as Amy Heckerling’s Clueless . “Exposure to popular culture is not the same thing as studying it or reflecting on it,” said Ferriss. “The fact that students are exposed to such an enormous variety of films, television, video games, books, and graphic novels suggests that we should be teaching how to ‘read’ them as carefully and critically as we would other texts. You can have something that is intellectually challenging that is popular, too.” The undergraduate honors course, Motorcycle Myth and Culture, looks at the motorcycle as it has appeared in art, film, literature, music, and television. Taught by Ferriss and Steven E. Alford, Ph.D., professor at the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences, the course also focuses on how the two- wheeled vehicle has acquired meaning and created an impact in many cultures. “We examine the motorcycle’s place in economics, politics, history, and cultural anthropology, so it becomes entirely cross disciplinary,” said Alford. “In this context, it becomes more than a mechanical device and a form of transportation.” The course also drives home the importance of motorcycle safety, added Alford. Biology major Ramey Alfarra always wanted a motorcycle. But his dreams of owning a bike were always deterred by myths surrounding motorcycle safety and culture. “The course gave me a more realistic outlook, and the knowledge encouraged me to purchase my first motorcycle.” There was something even more far reaching for Alfarra than finally getting enough courage to get his dream bike. “I believe this kind of interactive course helped me to better understand and retain information. The way the material was taught has positively affected the way in which I approach more traditional, lecture-based courses now.” Ferriss isn’t surprised. “Students develop the same skills they would in a traditional class, but they also have the chance to study something that gives them pleasure. It’s a great hook to get them learning.” Tucked away in some of NSU’s complex courses, pop- culture references have found their place. In a capstone seminar on strategic management for doctoral business administration candidates, the classic rock group, the Grateful Dead, closes out the last day of study. “On the last day of the seminar, everything is tied together by showing that the Grateful Dead were masters of strategic improvisation. In business, you have to know how to turn on a dime, and this is what the Grateful Dead did,” said Barry Barnes, Ph.D., professor and chair of the Leadership Program at the H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship. Nontraditional ways of presenting subject matter is nothing new at Nova Southeastern University. NSU was founded on the idea of cutting-edge teaching methods in order to provide a rich educational experience. Barnes offered his own analogy. “Nova Southeastern University is the Grateful Dead of universities because it was—and is—always doing something different, unique, and ahead of its time.” n 33 horizons Left: Barry Barnes, Ph.D., uses the Grateful Dead in a capstone seminar.