General Ed Classes

General Education requirements for students results in a longer time to actually work on minor and major requirements. Allysa Pracz, Oral Communications teacher at Northern Illinois University, holds a just and honest opinion that General Educations classes are useless because they may have nothing to do with one’s major. For instance, a college algebra course would obviously have no effect on a student studying Creative Writing. The only question left to answer would be, why do such requirements exist? It could also be understood that courses required in fact focus on what students should have learned in high school. Pracz recalls her freshman year in college, stating, “I remember as a freshman taking classes such as ENGL 103 or COMS 100. Yes, both classes may be beneficial to some, but they mostly just rehash concepts and skills that the majority of students already possess or will pick up in other courses throughout their academic careers.” College students should be somewhat familiar with the basic concepts of many subjects offered, such as writing papers or algebra. It could also be proven that students are not quite interested in classes that they see as useless. For instance, students who major in Apparel Merchandising would have no interest in taking biology courses. Disinterest could ultimately result in bad grades and a low GPA for students.

In discussions of whether too many children now days decide to go to college, one controversial issue has been if kids can get equal knowledge in the workplace without the debt. On the one hand, the article “Are Too Many People Going to College?” by Charles Murray, argues that too many kids are going to college who aren’t college material, and are either wasting their time or flunking out. On the other hand Freeman Hrabowski with “Colleges Prepare People for Life” contends by writing about how colleges not only prepare you for your career, but for life. Then there is somewhat of a middle ground with Liz Addison, who believes that two year community college programs are the way to go, because they offer a chance to learn at a level you will understand and maybe enjoy, which lessens the chance of you being a dropout. My own view is that a college degree is needed to get into certain occupations but, many circumstances it would be a waste of money. It all depends on what interests that individual and what they will easily excel at.

Some people believe students should be required to take a music, a drama, or an art class. This requirement could prove problematic for many students. Students would be unable to take necessary classes before college. The classes should be electives because some people may want to take more advanced classes, some people do not have talents in the arts and if students are forced to take the classes, they may not focus as much.

In some schools there is only standard subjects. These classes do not teach you things you will need, outside of school such as cooking or how to pay bills. In order to prepare students for outside of school rather than just them being taught what they need to pass school, there should electives. It is important students know how to take care of themselves. Ultimately, having classes for students will give them a chance to learn how to be on their own.

I agree with Delbanco that college is overcrowded, under resourced, and little attention is paid to the fact that a whole person should be developed (154). I am convinced that a liberal arts education is what is needed to be successful in the world today. Not only is this particularly clear in universities like NYU, but also in specialized schools all around the country. For example, a student at the Stern School of Business is marketable to corporate businesses such as Morgan Stanley and firms on Wall Street, but the students may lack the knowledge necessary to transfer out of that specific field. Liberal arts colleges within universities (or even those that stand on their own) are much more useful today than specified schools because liberal arts classes offer opportunities to be exposed to a variety of subjects. They can also spark interests or passions one never knew they had. Delbanco says that colleges offer students too wide of an array of classes to take, and believes that they are too unrelated. While it does seem like classes such as the history of Australia’s koala population may seem unimportant, it is less about the specific class and more about the university creating a well rounded person that can integrate well into

I think everyone should get at least some education after high school. Three main reasons why you should go to college after high school is first you more professional when applying for a job, next you can meet more people and socialize, lastly is self discovery.

In Life today a college education is no longer an option or privilege, but rather it is a necessity. We are raised to believe that a person needs higher education in order to succeed in life. There is a saying, “if you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” You may ask is college necessary? There are people out in the real world that have never set a foot on a college campus before and they are doing better than others that have their master’s degree. There are many views from both sides that have a good argument.

A solution proposed by Caldwell is that we focus not in a specific degree, but rather a “liberal education” in order to justify the high cost of college (214). He goes on to state that “…if you’re not planning on becoming, say, a doctor. The benefits of diligent study can be overstated” (214). This makes sense. Firstly, unless you are working towards being employed in a specific field of study, it would be advantageous to a student to be educated more broadly, thus widening their scope of opportunity. The more knowledge and experience you have in different areas, the more versatile you will be as an employee and in life overall. Also, the auditing of colleges can be done to ensure that students are receiving the education they are paying for.

College can be very helpful in more ways than just giving people more head knowledge. I do not disagree that people will benefit from learning a trade skill. In my personal opinion I think we should teach the basics of some trade skills in high school, and let the student decide if a college education is something they want to pursue. After coming to a college I do see that people should come even if it is for two years. The debt is always in issue when coming to school, but there are plans you can make to pay them off. Coming to college can do a lot to help anyone, but for the students that are coming right out of high school, college can be a safe place for them to experience the real world. In some cases it can give them some much needed

After someone completes high school, their first step is figuring out what kind of career they want to pursue. Most careers require a college degree just to apply. At this point, they should decide what their major is going to be and see what college is best for them to attend. Every college requires “general education” classes that the students must pass to graduate. Taking these extra mandatory classes is just time lost that college students will never get back.  General ed classes are also a waste of money, as many students acquire major debt from trying to pay for these required classes. If students were able to only take courses that help them in completing their major, more students would actually finish the classes and get their degree instead of dropping out. Universities should not necessitate students to take these general education courses that have nothing to do with the their major.

One thing our society to acknowledge is that college is about the skills and education people gain while they are there and how to apply them in the future. Colleges create an

Alyssa Pracz, a journalist at Northern Star, makes the point that “[p]rofessors, however, tend to teach the material as if everyone taking the class is planning on majoring in the subject” when, in reality, students just see the class as another general education course. Additionally, students struggle in some of the subjects which have nothing to do with their particular majors. Pracz also states, “As a result, many students' grades suffer, sometimes to the point of lowering their grade point averages so much that they are unable to get into the major they planned on pursuing”. Ultimately, if a student has a huge passion and dream for his life, and cannot pass a certain general education course then his whole future is foiled. General education classes are redundant and do not aid the student whatsoever in cultivating skills required for his future job. Colleges and universities think general education courses are helping students when they actually are hurting them.

College is where you will find many opportunities which is why people should attend college. Many high paying jobs are out there waiting for someone with the degree they desire to come forth. Not only will college make you a better person, but will also take you on an unforgettable journey. Some people may not understand the logic between right, and wrong and what is better than to learn about philosophical ideas, ‘if the new republic was to flourish and endure, it required, above all, an education’ (Singletary 10). Subsidizing STEM classes is a bad idea because lack interest will occur, many jobs will be at stake, and Arts would be too expensive.

I believe that a student should be able to choose some of the classes that he/she is interested in. This is the basis of the existentialist philosophy that was developed in the nineteenth century. A student should be allowed to choose classes that they are interested in other than the classes that are required by the school curriculum. Even though

In Charles Murray’s article Are Too Many People Going to College, Murray explains how students should be learning the liberal arts subjects when they are young and when they are older they should focus on the classes that are beneficial to them for their career path. Murray explains how students should learn the basics when they are in elementary and middle school and once they go to high school they should start pursuing classes that focuses on their career field (page 235). Although this is partially true, there is a flaw in his thinking. Hypothetically thinking if this happened, once students attend college and need to apply the knowledge learned before they went to high school, there might be a high possibility that the students