COLUMN: Making requirements make sense

From Emily Lieff's, "Sassy Peach," Fall '99 From Emily Lieff's, "Sassy Peach," Fall '99In yet another addition to Penn's list of changes to make way for the 21st century, the College of Arts and Sciences has been planning a "top-to-bottom" review of the general requirement. After finally filling all 10 general distributional requirements, 4 language requirements and even a WATU, allow me to put in my two cents about where the changes should be made: From Emily Lieff's, "Sassy Peach," Fall '99In yet another addition to Penn's list of changes to make way for the 21st century, the College of Arts and Sciences has been planning a "top-to-bottom" review of the general requirement. After finally filling all 10 general distributional requirements, 4 language requirements and even a WATU, allow me to put in my two cents about where the changes should be made:Change No. 1: Sector VI, The Physical World Personally, I filled this requirement by taking "Chemistry in Society." On the first day, the professor asked us each why we chose that class.The answers included "Because I hate science," "Because I've already failed three science classes," and, most commonly "I need this to graduate. If college students are simply trying to avoid this requirement rather than enjoy it, perhaps we need to make some changes. I would suggest combining the Physical World requirement with the Living World requirement. Hard science is basically something many liberal arts majors learned in high school and don't want to do again. Increasing the available options would increase the chances that your average Art History major can find a class that won't put them to sleep. This way, rather than boring us with the atomic weight of carbon, College students can walk away from Penn with some science experience which actually interests them. Change No. 2: The Language Requirement. The language requirement also has to be changed. I personally am a textbook case of why the language requirement is totally useless. After four semesters of Hebrew at Penn, I can still only speak the language in the present tense. Lets face it? some of us were not meant to be U.N. translators. So, instead of requiring four semesters of intense grammar and endless verb conjugations, the language requirement should consist of two language classes, alongside another two classes on the culture or history of the peoples who speak the language. This way, we can use our language requirement to learn more than the minutiae of grammar. In addition, if the College wants to start real change, they should consider dropping the language proficiency requirement. Though I can technically read and write Hebrew, I am about as proficient in Hebrew as I am in Dutch. In fact, after passing the Hebrew proficiency with flying colors, I still only have the reading and writing skills of an Israeli third grader. Today, language instructors must gear their classes towards the examination, leaving no room to teach real-world communication skills. Please, don't force us to learn a language just to pass a test. Instead, waive the proficiency so that we can focus on actually mastering a language. Change No. 3: The Quantitative Skills Requirement. According to the College, this requirement was founded because, "in contemporary society, citizenship, work and personal decision-making all require sophisticated thinking about quantitative evidence." One word: boring. If the University is truly interested in creating "sophisticated thinking," the proper approach is certainly not to force students to study statistical data -- a topic infamous for its mind-numbing qualities. Instead, the College should work to bring us sophisticated thinking in another way -- through the use of computers. While Penn is working day and night to bring the campus into the 21st century, we need to bring the curriculum into the next millennium along with it. Wiring our campus with high-tech equipment is only part of the solution -- the College should also teach students to take advantage of the technology. By giving us knowledge that will help us in the real world, and not just look good on paper, the College really can give us the "sophisticated" skills that we deserve.