The new FYS program is shifting here at college and it doesn't seem like it is shifting for the better...
Rather than mingling incoming students with current students and even to other majors, we will be dividing the freshmen class by major and interest. We already have the cliques happening, now the university will be supporting this model. Great.
This wouldn't bother me so much if we didn't already have the cliques formed. We are now encouraging and even supporting college students to be more exclusive in their peer groups.
Cliques naturally occur over time; however, the big difference now is that the university is supporting them. Now peer groups or cliques can have their benefits. It is right that it will help the college transition for incoming freshmen. However, how well are we sticking to the mission of the university that states "...to prepare students for thoughtful and informed living..."
The best way, in my opinion to prepare students for thoughtful and informed living would be to integrate them amongst different peer groups. Otherwise you will have church workers who graduate and go into the real world and are shocked into remission because of all the partying and drugs there are in the world. If the university wants students to be informed about living after graduation, let's not try to create this utopia of people who think just like us while in college.
Granted this whole thing isn't at the fault of the new FYS direction, it has been something that has happened at this university since my second year here. And granted this isn't something that can be fixed overnight or even potentially fixed at all, I am merely voicing my opinion.
I don't think that will make much of a difference. You mingle with people you don't know in your gen. ed. classes, and really, when I registered for freshman classes, I was encouraged to try a class that was geared toward my major.
ReplyDeleteI think it makes sense to have the FYS class actually apply to what you're interested in.
I really don't see what the big problem is with hanging out with people in your major. It makes sense. You can't hang out with everyone, you can't be friends with everyone, and no matter where you are, you're going to be drawn to people who, 1) share your interests, 2) spend a lot of time with you.
Also, if church workers leave here not knowing that people sin, then they're not paying attention. It's not because they only spend their time with other church workers.
Church workers don't sin? Aren't we all saints and sinners?
ReplyDeleteI never said that church workers never sinned, it may have been implied in my poor clarification but I am merely making the point on a personal basis.
ReplyDeleteAnd Bri, I understand your comments and appreciate them.
ReplyDelete