Difference between revisions of "Peoples and cultures"

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Doesn't really work. We need 4 or 5 of these required instead of 1. Such a shame.
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[[Category:Academics]]
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A Williams College graduation requirement.
  
How is being forced to take even more courses that are completely irrelevant to my interests going to help? We do not have a curriculum, and save for this one requirement, we let students choose what's best for them.
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Controversy surrounds this requirement.  Some think it doesn't do enough, presumably, to acquaint students with unfamiliar cultures.  Others think that it is unimportant or presumptuous.
  
Or, perhaps, 0. Or, perhaps, better options if they are going to require 1.
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Some argue that being forced to take courses that are irrelevant to their interests is contrary to the idea of a liberal arts education in which students are allowed to decide what's best for them.  Others would argue that taking such classes outside areas of interest is exactly what a liberal arts education is all about.
  
It's a complete patronizing waste of time because it assumes that everyone at the college belongs to majority Western cultures and needs to exposed to more "exotic" and "diverse" peoples and cultures. What about those from other parts of the world or other cultures? Wouldn't Western tradition be a useful "PC" course for them to take?
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The second argument against the peoples and cultures requirement is that only non-Western cultures fulfill this requirement.  This assumes that only the majority of the college--belonging to Western culture--needs exposure to non-traditional culture courses. Some have said that these non-Western students could be allowed to take traditionally Western courses to fulfill their P&C requirement.  The interesting point raised by this question is whether the requirement should be more individually tailored based on the student's cultural background.

Latest revision as of 18:58, May 15, 2006

A Williams College graduation requirement.

Controversy surrounds this requirement. Some think it doesn't do enough, presumably, to acquaint students with unfamiliar cultures. Others think that it is unimportant or presumptuous.

Some argue that being forced to take courses that are irrelevant to their interests is contrary to the idea of a liberal arts education in which students are allowed to decide what's best for them. Others would argue that taking such classes outside areas of interest is exactly what a liberal arts education is all about.

The second argument against the peoples and cultures requirement is that only non-Western cultures fulfill this requirement. This assumes that only the majority of the college--belonging to Western culture--needs exposure to non-traditional culture courses. Some have said that these non-Western students could be allowed to take traditionally Western courses to fulfill their P&C requirement. The interesting point raised by this question is whether the requirement should be more individually tailored based on the student's cultural background.