2008 Woodie Awards
Letters to the Editor
Re: "Can Core 350 save itself?"
Give all your half-baked "Core is Hell" whining a rest
If you've ever had a conversation with me you're aware that I do not quickly and easily jump on bandwagons.
You're also aware that I am not afraid to criticize aspects of the Whitworth curriculum and how it's presented.
Primarily: the Core classes.
In fact, last semester I composed and sent a letter of complaint to the Core team, which may have blacklisted me among a few professors.
So this upcoming statement is going to seem ridiculous, if not hypocritical: I am tired of hearing people complain about Core 350.
For the past three months I have listened to my peers articulate their fury and dissatisfaction with a fervent eloquence that until now was reserved for comparing the advantages of MySpace to Facebook. The grand finale of these tirades usually mirrors something similar to: "I just don't care about this stuff" or "What does this have to do with me?"
I have listened to students criticize the seemingly pointless scenarios, the frustration at being assigned a viewpoint, the large class size, the requirement of collaborating with individuals outside their own major, the lack of discussion during lectures and the overall irrelevance of the material within their own all-important life.
Don't get me wrong. Core 350 is certainly not perfect; there is much to be improved upon (specifically Professor Dalton's rendition of Postmodernism - the English majors know what I'm talking about - and the unnecessary review of epistemologies.
We get it, Core Team. If we don't, it's our own fault for not paying attention during 150 and 250, and we should be left to reap the consequences of our negligence.)
My contention with the diehard Core dissenters is this: now that Core is attempting to raise issues beyond the typical Whitworth arena of the brilliance that is Aquinas or Kant, you suddenly find fault. Even if I tried really, really hard to recount all the conversations I've had with people who "like oh my God loved Core 250" - I couldn't.
There have been that many.
Apparently, a class that focuses on an exclusive group of Western male thinkers, and little else, is far more important and relevant to the life of a 20-something Whitworth student than actual issues affecting society today: racism, classism and rapidly depleting natural resources.
Core 350 is the capstone course because it takes the (flawed and watered-down) foundational principles Western society previously studied and asks: how do we go about solving this tragically imperfect world left to us by those wonderful thinkers?
Unfortunately, too many of my peers seem to think that the world's problems are not their own.
Poverty, racism and unevenly distributed resources are realities; they are as much a reality in Small Town, America, USA as they are in That Small Exotic Place You'd Visit over Spring Break but Would Never Live.
The aversion students have to Core 350 is not simply discontent with the structure or the inability of the large class to foster dialogue; it is quite simply indifference, reluctance to engage in issues that are inconvenient, harrowing and too much of a reminder that very rarely, despite our mission trips and Bible studies, do we effectively and earnestly care for our neighbor.
In response to the complaints I am tired of hearing, a few words:
Complaint: The scenarios are pointless, and I don't like being told how I'm supposed to respond.
Response: The scenarios provide practical application of the material. The fact that we're assigned a position to support (in writing only, mind you) (1) requires students to understand the issue from a perspective they initially may not have agreed with and (2) increases students' ability to argue effectively and persuasively, a profitable post-college skill.
Complaint: The class is too large to promote discussion.
Response: Thus the separate discussion groups. Not to mention the fact that the Core classes are the only classes we take throughout our entire Whitworth career that exceed more than 30-40 people. Really, my initial reaction to this statement is "suck it up."
If you're really irritated by the lack of discussion during lectures, then try actually saying something the next time Dr. Waller is standing at the podium listening to nothing but the ticking clock in response to his question.
Point being: a discussion requires participants.
Complaint: I don't like having to work in small groups with people who aren't in my major.
Response: Ah, the sweet sound of a budding ethnocentric.
If we can't collaborate with people who don't think like we do long enough to write a one-page response to a hypothetical question, we probably shouldn't count on any kind of successful interaction in the post-college world, when we're no longer able to ensconce ourselves in our respective major-specific buildings.
Complaint: I just don't care about this stuff. It doesn't relate to my life.
Response: Actually, it does, and you can learn from it. If you think otherwise, you should probably remove yourself from society. You'd be doing us a favor.
Karla Marie Rose
Senior
English
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