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opinion
G.E. a waste
of time
College and university
students all over America are forced to take general education
courses for at least the first two years of their college careers.
This is totally and completely unfair since so many courses
are required before students can even begin taking the courses
for their major.
General education
courses should be for students who are undecided on a major,
and need a variety of courses to help them figure out what
they want to do. For all the rest of us who know exactly
what we want, we should be able to immediately enroll in our
major courses.
General education
is a waste of time because many of the classes are a review
from high school.
For example, when
I took biology three years ago, I could not believe how much
of the material was the same crap that I was forced to learn
in high school. Further, it was almost as if my teacher had
met up with the teacher I had in high school, and discussed
the lesson plan.
World history also
seemed like high school review. I was bored to death
in the ninth grade, as I listened to the teacher go on about
China and their issues, as it was when I took the class again
for college.
All that time and
money I wasted on those classes could have gone into the courses
for my major, and I could have been on the way to my career
in teaching so much sooner.
However, since
many professors and university officials believe that general
education broadens students' perspectives on the world around
them, we are all forced to sit through these painfully boring
classes.
This is complete
and utter crap! Every student as well as every professor
knows that college is nothing but a big money-making scheme.
From the expensive classes, to the expensive books, to the
outrageous living expenses, everyone knows that colleges everywhere
are running scams.
I believe that
college should only take two to two and one-half years to
complete. If I were able to take just the classes for
my major, then I would have been done in about two years because
this is my last semester and it has taken me about two years
to finish the classes for my major and minor.
Let us look at
the facts here. Many people in general education courses skip
class all the time because they are not motivated to go, since
the classes have nothing to do with what they want to do in
life. Students begin coming to class more often once they
are in their majors because they are more motivated, and have
survived the dreaded general education courses.
I challenge faculty
and university officials at universities everywhere to make
general education requirements optional for two years, and
let students begin with their lower-division major courses.
I can guarantee that more students will graduate, and there
will be fewer dropouts due to academic probation and other
stress factors.
If students are
given the option of choosing their major courses first and
not having to worry about general education courses, then
students will begin doing better in school. Students will
also be taking away so much more from their college experience
because their heads won't be clouded with unnecessary garbage.
And, the truth of the matter is, most students don't remember
a thing about the general education courses they take.
Once again, I say
give students the choice of dropping their general education
requirements since it is our money and our education.
Larry W. Brunson
Jr. is a journalism education and English major at Cal State
Long Beach.
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