General Education Courses: No Need for Them Essay

Education has existed throughout history in one form or another. The process of passing down accumulated information from one generation to the next has been present in every human society, past and present. From the young listening to the stories of the elders around the hearths of the ancient world, to pupils being instructed in the alphabet in a one room schoolhouse on the American frontier, to the present day online teaching sessions; the tradition of teaching and learning has been a constant in the ever changing world. Education has been and continues to be used for many purposes, chief among them being the creation of an educated citizenry, the empowerment of that citizenry, and improvement of the

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 am writing to you in regards to the blog you posted “The Case Against College Education.” You mentioned, “It is absurd that people have to get college degrees to be considered for good jobs in hotel management or accounting…” It is crucial for an individual to acquire a college degree, however, the American education system is unfair. By attending a college, students have a higher chance of economic success in the future and undergo opportunities to explore a wide variety of possible paths. There are various ways to get a college degree but in the end, there needs to be a lot of reform around education. The question remains, should we help more kids go to college or make it easier for people who did not attend college.

Numerous teens go off to college not knowing basic life skills that become increasingly helpful when you're off on your own. Figuring things out on your own isn’t always an awful thing, but if you had someone to teach you about life and how to manage your way through it, it would be so helpful. One not so great thing about figuring information out on your own is that you could end up making some costly mistakes. One of the best times to learn life skills such as managing money, cooking, raising a child, first aid, relationship and communication skills, and how to get a job is right before a teen goes off to college. There is a great deal of teens who go off to college and will be living on their own for the first time, if we taught life skill type classes in high school they would be more prepared to go off on their own.

Many students feel that some classes are a waste of time and money because they learn nothing about their chosen field. They have to take classes that have nothing to do with their major but must take the class to meet the core education requirement of the college. If these students receive a less than average grade in a class they feel is unneeded then that lowers their overall GPA.

There are several factors that contribute to a student’s success or failure in college. Remedial classes, tuition costs, and inadequate advisors are among some of the greatest obstacles that students face in their college career. Alina Tugend’s article offers great insight to the problems that students face in college and she proposes logical solutions to those problems. I think reforming community colleges in the areas regarding remedial classes, money, and personal advice will assist students in their pursuit of

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.

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.

“Think of it like a layer cake. Starting at the bottom, you have the core network, infrastructure, and fabric, and on top of that you build.” This quotation by author, Joy Deja King explains that with everything one does, they have to start at the bottom. One cannot accomplish anything until building a good, solid foundation. This quotation applies very well to education. Before a job comes college, before college comes high school, before high school comes middle school, then grade school, kindergarten, and preschool. This is because one must learn the basic fundamentals necessary for the next step in life. This is exactly what general education courses aid with in college. These general education courses teach basic skills required for

Second, choosing their own courses makes it possible for students to learn deeper and become more professional in their field. Now there is a hot word called general

They should also know a little about the famous authors of the past such as

In almost every culture and in all parts of the world, getting an education is valuable to a person’s future. But what is it that makes education so valuable? What is the purpose of an education starting from the early stages of a child’s development into adolescents, and from adolescents into adulthood?

I disagree with Bloom because he encourages the idea of taking extra irrelevant classes to achieve the experience of education. It usually takes about four years to earn a bachelors degree. There are many courses such as English, math, history, art, etc. that a student must go through before they get to start on the classes that concentrate on their intended major. These basic courses are part of a program called general education. After completing general education (which usually takes about two years), the students can then begin to study for their degree. Colleges should abandon the law of students having to take general education courses because the courses are irrelevant to their field of study, unnecessary and a waste of time. Instead of taking the extra courses, students can simply meet their needs of a degree in a shorter period of time. Also, Bloom not only that wants students to take general education courses, he wants them to further their education by taking advanced irrelevant courses. Therefore, in their future, they would have numerous opportunities for a better career. Because if a job is not right for the student, he would have other choices to obtain a new job.

Learning and knowledge are highly prized in all societies, especially here in Ireland, where there is a strong tradition of respect for education. The choices that individuals make when leaving school, in particular whether to pursue higher education or not, are likely to have a long lasting effect on their lifestyle. The main purposes for a University education involve: social, national and educational purposes and for the individual personal purposes and moral development. These topics will be addressed in the following paragraphs.