Education Philosophy - Curricula Considering Term Paper

Therefore, instead of requiring non-science majors to enroll in general studies science courses such as biology, chemistry, or "physics for non-majors," the only mandatory science instruction should be courses that relate more directly to useful information. For example, obesity is a virtual epidemic in American society; therefore, a science class in practical nutrition makes mush more sense than the traditional focus of science courses for non-majors. Similarly, computer use classes would be more useful, as would classes emphasizing the logical scientific method rather than substantive science subject matter. Perhaps if mandatory scientific courses related more directly to useful information and to beneficial intellectual processes, American presidential election politics would not feature potential candidates with college (and advanced academic) degrees who still believe that Creationism or "Intelligent Design" are more plausible explanations for the existence of human life than Darwinian evolutionary theory.

As pertains to the study of foreign languages, it is true that bilingual capacity is becoming more and more beneficial in a shrinking global society. However, to the extent that mandatory foreign language studies is justified by this reality, it would make much more sense to (1) impose any such requirements on primary (and perhaps) secondary school students rather than on college students, by virtue of what modern educational theorists tell us about the natural capacity to learn foreign language; and (2) to provide any such mandatory instruction in languages that have specific value in a practical sense, rather than in any language just for the sake of "well-roundedness."

In principle, the concept of a well-rounded education is a good one, and in that respect, mandatory college curriculum requirements do serve a valid purpose, at least in theory. However, in their current form, college programs that require all students to fulfill mathematics, science, and foreign language requirements as a condition of the award of any degree probably do more harm than good. By the time students begin college, they already know what their academic strengths and weaknesses are, and traditional mandatory requirements do not accomplish much with respect to dressing any legitimate need for remedial attention. The suggestion to require only courses that provide tangible benefit and those necessary to ensure adult competence makes more sense than across-the-board mandatory studies in mathematics, science, and foreign languages.

References

Carter, J. (2001) an Hour Before Daylight: Memories of a Rural Boyhood. New York: Touchstone.

Gardner, H. (1991) the Unschooled Mind: How Children Think and How Schools Should Teach. New York: Basic Books.

Gerrig, R, Zimbardo, P. (2005)…