Haelin Roberts
ENG 110
8/31/17
Education Assignment
Higher education is an essential part of American culture as much of one’s early years are spent trying to get there. With that being said, many people don’t understand what is so important about college. College is about expanding your horizons and widening your knowledge of multiple topics while also understanding that true learning is never finished.
One of the great things about the college system in the US is that it grooms students to see things multiple ways in their adult life, by requiring them to take courses that show various stances on the same issues. This supports Barnett’s stance that higher learning means that you are always growing as a student and looking to continue to challenge your learning. I feel as if the liberal arts model creates more well rounded citizens because it allows them to see every point of view on an issue. Part of the reason that the US college system is set up the way it is is that it requires students to look at their studies from different perspectives. For example, if someone is a business major, they probably have little interest in environmental issues, but by taking a course on the environment, they may come to understand how issues of climate can affect their study of business or their future career in business. Requiring students to take a wide variety of classes allows them to become more “informed, independent, and sympathetic democratic citizens” (Barnett).
In my education I have been able to see this on my very first day of college, as a business major, much of what I will do will involve writing memos and reports for clients. With that in mind, it would be important for me to have part of my education centered around english and my overall grasp of the language. Many of my classes are interactive, meaning that students are doing hands on work and participating in class. This helps them two fold as it requires them to learn the material they are studying, and put that learning into action. One of the most critical parts of the American college system is the “characteristic emphasis on the active participation of the child in inquiry and questioning” (Nussbaum). This is part of the reason that I chose to go to a smaller university, with smaller class settings there is more personal, hands-on learning that you don’t receive from a lecture hall with three hundred plus students. By putting students into classes they don’t necessarily want to take, it forces them to adapt to learning and being in a space outside of their comfort zone. In it’s purest form “higher education is unsettling; it is not meant to be a cosy experience”. Much of a person’s adult life is spent doing things that are uncomfortable so preparing them for this during their education sets one up for more success in the future.
While the American university system does have its flaws in the fact that it is very expensive and forces students to take classes unnecessary for their major.
It is the best system in preparing students for their future career and citizenship in our democratic society that relies on the understanding of many points of view and the contributions of many different people to create a working society and economy.
