Column: 'Real' Courses

I sit, suppressing a groan, and make the futile attempt to steer the conversation in another direction. The discussion is all too familiar to me. The message is quite clear: Dad is obviously not impressed with my liberal arts selections. He'd rather the twenty thousand go toward more "substantive" classes. I became aware of my father's attitude when I filled out my course selections the summer before freshmen year. Back then, I spent days carefully composing my schedule-to-be. After meticulous bubble-coding, I proudly unveiled my masterpiece to my parents. They were underwhelmed. I guess it was "Introduction to Folklore" that did it. Or maybe the freshmen seminar, "Americans Defining Their Freedom." I believe Dad uttered the words: "What is this crap?" Calculus was the only thing that saved me. Contrary to my parent's fears, I wasn't trying to fill my course load with guts. (I know, the Folklore looks mighty suspicious.) I was trying to expand my so-called horizons, do something different. Those high school basics were rapidly becoming like stale leftovers from the four food groups. I was in college now, baby; I was looking for some hors d'oeuvres. So I stood by my morsel of Folklore. I explained to my parents that we'd entered higher education. Liberal Arts. Experimentation. I patted my father on the back, assuring him it would all be okay. But we continued to run into the same conflict. With each conversation, I silently vowed that when I had kids, I would embrace their every course choice. Even "Balloon Art 101: Mastering Those Nifty Animal Shapes." Then one fine day, I found my father's words falling out of my own mouth. I was home, catching up with an old friend. Spring term was upon us, so we partook in the customary listing of our classes. "Jewish Life in Medieval Spain," he began. "Why are you taking that?" I condescended. In my head hovered an unspoken thought: that's not a real course. Sounds familiar, no? I shut up. But, of course, Dad and I are not the only ones who have created this category of supposedly real courses. It happens all the time at Penn. Premeds may scoff at the "light" loads of those destined for mere grad school. Whartonites, in turn, tout the superiority of their schedules. College students retort that a good education consists of a diverse set of courses. A friend once complained that it was frustrating knowing that while she slaved over complex engineering courses, others in Am Civ simply had to memorize straightforward material. I think she was being polite, avoiding a comparison with a Communications major like myself. But I sympathized with her point of view. I am certainly not suggesting that Comm or Am Civ courses only require rote learning. Her complaint represents a large generalization and does not take into account the long hours spent formulating one's own research into well-tailored, thought-provoking papers. But the substance of the humanities and the sciences are obviously different. As a Math minor -- boy, was Dad happy -- I've taken technical courses alongside Communications courses. Actually, when I began taking classes in the Annenberg school, I received lower grades than I did in Calc. It was another type of difficult. The subjective nature of the Comm material was hard for me to pin down. Understanding all of the concepts in the professor's lectures did not guarantee an "easy A" as one might suspect. So what's the definition of a "real" course, anyway? Is the whole concept simply an attempt to condemn those courses that aren't one's own? A bit of cognitive dissonance, rationalizing that one's own path is superior? Or is the attitude just another closed-minded point of view that should be purged during the era of diversity? According to my father, a real course is anything that has to do with Math or Science. Despite his love of opera and mysteries, it seems that he will forevermore look askance at the humanities. But last week he recalled a Psych professor he once had, a favorite teacher of his college career. My father was enthralled by this class - a class he probably would not have taken if it had not been required. My aim in my undergraduate years is to have not merely one, but many of these engaging experiences. My particular approach is to take a great variety of classes and gain exposure to many fields before settling into one area in later life. It's not the approach for everyone. Premeds and engineers are forced to travel a more narrow route. As for me, I'm learning to handle the fact that by certain standards of realness, my schedule falters. At least when my father sighs and shakes his head, my major teaches me how to communicate a pleasant but firm reply. Elinor Nathanson is a senior Communications major from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Just in the Nick of Time appears alternate Fridays.

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