A great point to argue is why our University of California system requires every student to take UWP101 (University Writing Program). And this is not exclusive to any one major; it's everyone from wine making to math majors. On one side you have the English, comparative literature and other literary arts majors who feel this is all redundant of their previous core classes. Then, there are those in the science field, like math and engineering, who don’t get a lot of exposure to the subject and could generally prove beneficial.
There were a few people in class almost “ranting” about how having to take this class as a requirement was just a waste of their time and or a way for the University to hold you back. There are obviously those with the great talent for the English language and writing, yet they have to suffer like everyone else. But on the other extreme there those that may be in the same major but have trouble with writing and everything this course potentially has to offer to improve. And then there are those who feel that even having the knowledge gained through this class will not help them in their future profession.
Being an engineer major, I feel as if I’ve been kept away from any type of critical thinking and writing aside from small research projects. Even then, this doesn’t even require the same kind of thinking as I have to do with English. There is more information to base my writing from in engineering, whereas we would just be given a single word, phrase, or even cartoon in this class. I feel that this opens the mind to a more critical way of thinking and helps me think in an “outside the box” kind of way. And maybe it’s just this class and the way it’s being taught but my house mate is taking UWP104 and complains about writing essay after essay about science type articles.
If anything this class is just a refresher and shouldn't be thought of as a set back. I know this class probably wouldn't do me much good if I am working as an engineer, but it's still good to have some knowledge about writing the language we speak.
2 comments:
I totally agree with you, being a computer science major made me realize that critical thinking is totally different from algorithm solving, sure both require deep thinking, but UWP classes need to think more in every aspect.
And what do you mean by students who has talents in writing have to suffer like everyone else?Does talents in writing give them disadvantage?
On Eddy's comment: What is "deep thinking"? I am curious why we put a structure of verticality on thought. Warren’s post appears to suggest a similar conceptual terrain of deep and shallow thinking, but refigured to be ‘in’ or ‘out’ of ‘the box’. What is ‘the box’? Let’s put pressure on this term and see where—and what—it really is. I appreciate your post and the way that it reflects on this class, but I still want us to be more precise about what we mean by "critical thinking"—I fear that this phrase gets thrown around as a way to *not* describe what we mean by it.
Post a Comment