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Monkeys, Hula Hooping, and the Death of General Education
James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal ^ | September 17, 2026 | Elizabeth Chen

Posted on 09/25/2026 1:58:19 PM PDT by karpov

Pretend for a moment that you are starting your freshman year at Harvard University. You are excited about the college experience and ready to tackle the demanding coursework. You have decided on a major: Studies of Women, Gender, and Sexuality, while also fulfilling a portion of your elective credits with a minor in Ethnicity, Migration, Rights.

You have already reviewed the general education requirements and chosen your courses for the fall semester. Now, you take another look at your selected courses with nervous anticipation.

An expository writing course. Typical.

A foreign language course. Also typical.

The Border: Race, Politics, and Health in Modern Mexico. Sounds intriguing.

Video Game Storytelling. Very excited to take this course.

College students want to have fun, and universities like Harvard make that possible in the classroom. But prioritizing “fun” over rigor is to the students’ own detriment. Harvard’s general education courses cover a wide variety of topics ranging from entertainment and pop culture to liberal politics. Under this system, students can choose to avoid reading classic works of literature, studying American history, and/or learning advanced math and science. But the nonsense in general education is not limited to one’s introduction to college.

(Excerpt) Read more at jamesgmartin.center ...


TOPICS: Education
KEYWORDS: college; harvard

1 posted on 09/25/2026 1:58:19 PM PDT by karpov
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To: karpov

Spending a boatload of money to basically goof around for 4 years.


2 posted on 09/25/2026 2:10:08 PM PDT by ClearCase_guy (Some people want to control their own life, others want to control the lives of others. )
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To: karpov

Every hetero male in college studies women and sexuality. But we majored in something that could get us a job to earn money.


3 posted on 09/25/2026 2:26:26 PM PDT by bigbob (We are all Charlie Kirk now)
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To: karpov

But they’ve been able to get away with because - you know - HARVARD.


4 posted on 09/25/2026 2:27:49 PM PDT by LizzieD
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To: karpov
A course in "ethnicity"? Don't they know that every American is
automatically enrolled in a course in "ethnicity" at birth?

By the time that child graduates from high school, he has completed all
the requirements for several advanced degrees in "ethnicity". I've had more
than enough "ethnicity" shoved down my throat to last 100 lifetimes.

5 posted on 09/25/2026 2:34:51 PM PDT by Governor Dinwiddie ( O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is gracious, and his mercy endures forever. — Psalm 106)
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