Ping.
However, it is just as important to have people from different economic and political beliefs too.
Open dialogue helps dispel misconceptions about other people and classroom discussions can go a long way with an intellectually honest moderator.
Hope this isn't too trite.
Those of you who are recent graduates, or employers of graduates, let me know if any requirements for multi-cultural or interdisciplinary courses have made you (or your employees) better individuals.
As we know, these requirements focus on womens' studies and ethnic studies curricula. And the professors in these fields tend to be women and ethnic. The requirements just allow the administration to crow about their "diverse" faculty. I took one of these courses: New age silliness.
What is multi-cultural?
Math. From the Hindus, carried by the Arabs, refined by the French and Germans and back to Ramanujan. There is nothing more pure than mathematics. It pervades all cultures and is the yardstick to measure civilization.
A course with more than one culture studied, or one with the appropriate percentage of "minority" content?
History of math. It covers all cultures. Where else will you learn of early 20th century India (Ramanujan) and the holocaust in Hungary (Erdõs).
What is interdisciplinary?
Math. Math is everything. Economics, physics, chemistry, anything worth studying is, at its core, mathematics. If it's not mathematics, then it's either experimentation or taxonomy, neither of which are very intellectually challenging.
These wussy psuedointellectual disciplines have drowned the Academy. With each requirement for diversity or multiculturalism, the freedom of the liberal arts education is lost.
Sorry. I had to rant.
I personally think multi-culturalism and m-c courses are a waste of time, big time. Our son was homeschooled, leaves for Notre Dame in the fall. I will consider it a HUGE waste of money if he is required to take even one class, even one workshop on this subject. To me it is a boondoggle for the know-nothing professors who teach it. And, frankly, it is also leftist/ secular propaganda being crammed down the students' throats. Here's what I think you should teach -- WESTERN CIVILIZATION. Our history, what it is built on (Judeo-Christian values/ Magna Carta), Ancient Civilizations that led to Western Civ, the great literature of Western Civ, the great music of Western Civ, great thinkers of Western Civ. And then, for heaven's sake, teach your students how to think for themselves. None of this - 'You don't get an A unless you parrot the leftie Professor.' How can you go wrong? No need for junk food if you have a banquet. Which we have in Western Civ.
i think it's a sorry situation that the boomer generation demanded and got changes to the humanities requirements of many universities and colleges. the rise of the so-called "j-schools", or journalism schools virtually eliminated the sciences and humanities, and look what we got as a result today in the media.
these occurred in the circa 1970 and on.
feminism and fundamentalists, at odds with each other, often sided together against the humanities.
when dr. harold bloom, the shakespearean scholar retired, he gave his 25,000 books to a catholic college library, honoring the catholic church for its role in the humanities in western civilization.
the humanities are the glue of western civilization, judeo-christian civilization, and need to be restored to prominence.
the frankfort school-lacan-foucault-derrida-derived feminism that dominates our universities needs to be confronted. louis althusser, for example, murdered his wife but is honored by today's feminists.
What is multi-cultural?
I think it is better to ask "Why have we changed from 'tolerating' other cultures; to 'viewing' other cultures as a 'virtue'?"
It's one thing to expect us to be TOLERANT of people from other countries (India for example), yet a totally different thing to use these cultures as a virtue unto themselves. In India, they STILL have a caste system in which the lower castes may not even assocate with the upper castes. This means talk, eat with, or be seen in public with upper castes. In Africa, they still have cannibalism and slavery. These are hardly admirable qualities in any sense of the word.
We have Muslims who now demand to broadcast their prayers 5x/day, every day from their Mosques, in communities where playing a radio loud will result in a fine.
America USED to be melting pot. People came here, they learned English, they attended schools, they started working and earning a living, and they blended into America and the best that everyone had was shared by all. Now, we have to accept the worst of every culture, by force of law. We now have people coming into this country (illegally) and grabbing as much benefit as they can, without working to earn it. And we are told to be 'receptive' to this in the name of 'multi-culturalism'. How can this be good?
So how do I respond? Well, I have no problem hiring women, minorities or whites (which are quickly becoming a minority); but I refuse to hire someone who cannot speak English, and who attended a 'minority college'. Why? Because if they require a special college in order to get their degree, they are too weak to fit into my team. And MY team members (christian, muslim, white, black and mexican)all work together as a group. The group will not make special concessions for the individual, nor should they be expected to. Unfortunately, this appears to be the goal of 'multi-culturism'.
If the kids are being taught feel-good pap which they cannot use in their careers, then the university has failed in it's mission.
Considering the price of a credit hour these days, the universities have a moral obligation to provide useful knowlege relevant to the student's major.
Ping to you and your ping list. What do you think about multi-cultural requirements, from an ethnic perspective? I would love to have some African-American views to shoot with.
Rep.Prof.,
I am a former public school teacher and am currently a mom to three elementary school age children. I am also a classical musician.
From my experience with public school children, I believe they get a great deal of multi-cultural education from little on up through their social studies curriculum as well as attending school with persons from different cultures. I think multi-culturalism does not need to be studied in depth as part of a liberal arts education. Today's students have been living the global village most of their lives, unlike their professors when they were the same age.
As for interdisciplinary studies, I do see a value here. Taking classes that are linked can be very broadening. For example, seeing the historic relationship between periods in art and music in their place in world history can make a person more able to see how other aspects of the world connect.
My children are in a parochial elementary school that uses a liberal arts curriculum. The best thing you can do for your students is what is being done for my children. They are being taught how to think for themselves. Focus on what they need to be able to do this, and let the rest fall away.
Multicultural education should be based on teaching students how to respect and work with other parts of the world. They should know better than to invite a Hindu to a steak house or a Muslim to a BBQ but running down the US because that's the fashionable thing to do does not add market value to a graduate.
The business school graduates seemed to be the ones best prepared and least likely to exhibit the above tendencies. Of course, most of those had prior experience in the real world.
OK, you asked. Interpret this as you need to fulfill your needs.
Oh, in the eyes of most employers, "multi-cultural studies" graduate implies a job at Starbucks or a state/gov't wanker job.
My courses in math, physics, engineering, computer programming, economics, civics, technical writing, and personal finance helped me the most after graduating. The French, music, art, scuba-diving, "womyn's" studies, and literature courses, while fun, were a waste of time.
Yes. Knowledge is multilogical and multivocal. No one ever goes through a day in their life on just one side of their brain or using only one discipline.
It should certainly include some awareness and understanding of Western Christian civilization. And of the subcultures in America which are part of that.
As a side note, when I went back to school for some CS classes, I stoutly told the advisor that I refused to take any 'humanities' courses as a condition for post-baccelaureate studies. he X'ed them out and said, "Welcome to the CS department".
A working hypothesis of mine is that if one takes anyone who is an advocate of multiculturalism, one will find through interrogation of that individual that he or she has a ridiculous sense of entitlement and believes that math and science have no application beyond getting one through academia (hence, the question your received was likely already answered before it was asked of you).
For a discussion of how math and science education in the U.S. has been declining in recent years, see this essay on the TIMSS study ("Poor U.S. Test Results Tied To Weak Curriculum"):
http://4brevard.com/choice/international-test-scores.htm
For a discussion on multiculturalism, see the essay "What is Multiculturalism?"
http://www.fee.org/vnews.php?nid=3601
and also "The Tragedy of Multiculturalism" by Irving Kristol (7/31/91 editorial opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal; can't post on FR).
Another piece on multiculturalism is "The Other Face of Multiculturalism" by Sam Francis (RIP two days ago), Chronicles, April 8, 1998:
http://www.samfrancis.net/pdf/all1998.pdf
See also "Demystifying Multiculturalism" by Linda Chavez:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1309153/posts
The multicultural agenda is driven by an organization called NAME. Read the "Multicultural Shaping of Teachers":
http://www.washingtontimes.com/functions/print.php?StoryID=20041214-090300-3736r
and check out NAME's website:
Warning: you can't really understand all of what multiculturalism is about without at least an introductory understanding of "Critical Theory" and "Postmodernism." Also, much of multiculturalist thought is derived from feminism and the LGBT movement.
Diversity is as diversity does. One combination of different courses provides empty variety. Another combination provides strong and coherent preparation for (you pick it) life, profession, certification, etc.