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The Rice Thresher
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by Laura Derr Thresher staff
The Gardiner Symonds Teaching Laboratory II will be accessible to professors who reserve space for their classes as well as to people authorized to check out a key from the Jones Executive Suite in Duncan, according to Director of New Media and Student Computing Bill Diegaard. Every type of technology on campus converges in this high-tech lab: computers, video conferencing equipment, telephones, cable television programming, projection systems, recording equipment, DVD players, VCRs, laser disc players and microphone systems. "We added an extensive digital network which is very, very high speed," Diegaard said. The lab has 20 personal computers with flat screen monitors spaced across curving tables around the room and enough seating for 40 students. Six large plasma displays hang on support poles in the center of the room and show the instructor's screen. The room is designed to be more informal and interactive than a typical classroom. "It's an interesting space to be in, kind of relaxing, enjoyable," Diegaard said. Computer Science Professor Corky Cartwright said he plans to use Symonds II for computer programming in pairs. "The lab is a very intimate, comfortable place to work," he said. "It is ideal for the teams." English Professor Linda Driskill, who has taught classes in Symonds I, said the architecture of the Symonds rooms promote group interaction. "It puts the focus on students working together," she said. The professor becomes a resource instead of the person in control, Driskill said. "When the students are spread around and not all facing a certain point, the faculty member is more the person who sets up a challenge," she said. "It's a different kind of power dynamic." But this doesn't mean teaching is necessarily easier, Driskill said, since self-directed learning can be difficult, and the layout of the room makes it difficult to seize a center position. "There are times when it can be frustrating," she said. The lab cost over $1 million. "That's a lot of money considering the walls are already there, we didn't have to buy the land, and stuff like that," Diegaard said. The lab is "very lavishly equipped," Cartwright said. "There's actually more technology in the lab than my usage requires." "People like to use lots of forms of media - might as well put them all in there," Diegaard said. According to Diegaard, building the second lab was desirable because Symonds II is externally accessible, located beside the Inner Loop, is nearly twice the size of Symonds I and can be partitioned into two rooms. Symonds I was built in 1995 on the second floor of Fondren Library. Also, Symonds II is intended to be used primarily by the School of Engineering, whereas Symonds I was intended for the School of Humanities. "The School of Engineering wanted their own facility," Diegaard said. "The space had been sitting vacant for a long time." While mostly computer science and statistics classes will be taught in Symonds II this semester, the lab may also appeal to professors in other departments. Diegaard said that with its video, audio, projector and online capabilities, it would be a good space in which to teach languages. Driskill said all sections of English 103 this semester will also use the Symonds labs. "The neat thing about the environments of both the Symonds I and II is that more people are turning to the Web to access information," she said. "The Web has really changed the way we think about the writing course. You can have people interacting with texts, finding things, and writing about them and sharing back and forth. It's more hands-on than a traditional class." Named in honor of 1966-'71 Rice Board of Trustees member Gardiner Symonds, the lab was built with a grant from the Symonds Family Fund. A third Symonds lab has been proposed for implementation during coming renovations of the library. Symonds II will not be accessible to the student body at large - at least for a while. Although the lab is currently available only by reservation, Diegaard said he hopes access may be easier in the spring. The threats of theft and equipment damage make access tight, but Diegaard said Symonds II's visibility makes it "more attractive in terms of opening it up" than Symonds I. Having someone monitor the lab is a possibility, he said. "We would like to open it up to the students for continuous usage, but that could be a tough thing," Diegaard said. "At this point, the plan is to lock the door and keep it locked."
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