Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Tales from Higher Education

Here's a content description of a course at Temple University in Philadelphia, entitled "Urban Society: 'Race,' Class, and Gender in the City" from Front Page ezine:

"Take Professor Melissa Gilbert, an Associate Professor of Geography at Temple University, whose course “Urban Society: ‘Race,’ Class, and Gender in the City” teaches students that gender and race are “social constructions” designed to oppress nonwhites and women; that American society is structurally “racist;” and that all whites are racist, sometimes unconsciously so (which is itself a racist claim). How this can be justified as an academic course, and how it relates to the professor’s professional credential, which is “geography,” remains shrouded in mystery – unless of course one accepts the perversion of academic studies as ideological propaganda."

You really should read the entire article at http://tinyurl.com/c8bwjo especially if you are paying a student's tuition at Temple (about $21,500 a year). And if you are not paying this, maybe you should mull federal subsidies for higher education.


3 comments:

  1. Our Bowling Green State University teaches a similar course. The content it the same. The course is one of several "electives" required of all students, regardless of course of study.

    Our granddaughter is a sophomore this year, living with us as she attends college, and her text books and the assumptions imposed on her by her instructors has my tongue warped and bitten most of the time.

    She knows better, thank God, and she's paying her own tuition, so what she learns better jibe with her values or she just lets it pass through her as she moves on.

    I don't like the promotion of hatred in any form. Regardless of how they try to shove it at me, or even worse, at my kids.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Barb,
    I’m sorry to have taken so long to comment. Since this post I was stuck in the hospital with a touch of pneumonia: no fun. Because I have leukemia and non-Hodgkins lymphoma, the doctors were trying to build my blood up before sending me on my merry way yesterday. What I really needed was to visit you at Over Coffee… for a steaming mug and a bundle of good cheer!

    I am really passionate about education, especially K-12 education (and plan to post on it soon) because as a community college instructor for 12 years up to last December, I have seen its poor results in students who have been cheated out of the knowledge they need to move ahead in life.

    But higher education is also important. Many professors use the classroom to express weighted statements, usually very liberal opinion. My son had a German graduate student instructing his physics section who did so constantly. Even though no one’s grade was affected (at least my son’s was not), this is a waste of expensive classroom time. With courses that are mainly ideological in intent (the one’s you ironically describe as “electives”), matters are much worse because there are negative consequences to disagreeing with the instructor or content. And the student’s money is wasted. These courses provide no value added to a degree and really cheapen academic integrity.

    I admire your granddaughter’s tenacity and industriousness (she obviously comes from good stock). Here’s hoping she moves swiftly along to the point where she need take only those courses that will actually advance her academic goals.

    ReplyDelete
  3. People who have completed their higher education and wanted to start their practical life need to contact with out resume writers. Our team of professional writers are always ready to help you making a good resume that will lead you to get better job.

    ReplyDelete