Konversation Nummer Eins

This is one of three posts I will be making in succession. The first will cover what are colleges actually teaching us; the second will cover what does it mean to be happy (Conversation on the Bus); finally, the third will cover some miscellaneous misadventures and musings about life after my B.A. (or B.S.).

So, what are universities teaching students. First off, I should make some clarifications: I attend a four-year liberal arts university and study biology and psychology under the major of Liberal Arts. Why am I a liberal arts major in the first place? First and foremost, I've changed my major about three times (and I was a liberal arts major after climbing out of the pit of Undeclared), so time was a factor for me. Liberal arts allows me to have a flexible time table... which means if I want ot study biology, I won't have to take 500 level chemistry courses. My knowledge in chemistry is more than basic, please be assured; I've taken up to a 300 level chemistry course and received a B. As for psychology, well, any class is fine within the major requirments; I just want to get on with the Master's program and be done with it. Oh. And my minor is currently art, but will probably go back to Spanish (I think I only lack three or four courses to complete the matter). However, Liberal Arts allows me to be flexible within my thinking; if I don't want to be a wildlife biologist (as Murray has an excellent program and location for such), I don't have to be. On to my next topic:

What the heck am I going to do with that mish-mash of studies? I want to study evolutionary psychology. Evolution is my interest within biology and I'm interested, on the whole, in psychology (clinical work just isn't for me). And Spanish... Spanish is there because I like foreign languages... and the more and more I think about it, the evolutionary psychology of language is a topic of interest for me. So, being here in Germany has proved itself not so useless to my studies. Picking up a second language has done wonders for me as I have become more aware of the subtle (and not so subtle) nuances that each langauge has... I find more and more the connection from Spanish to English to German and it is fascinating. So, although I would love to do my research on violence and homicide, I think I will enjoy researching the development of langauges as well.

Alright then, back to the topic at hand. I would have liked for more of you to ask me questions and comment on the items I present because this would be a good time for me to wonder, "What do others get from attending a university?" However, I don't think that will happen. I shall present the situation to you as it occured in our class today and you can mull over it and be astounded as I was.

German 105 is a culture course. Here, it's even more geared toward culture because, well, a German professor teaches the course. Lucky us, really. Last week we were discussing sterotypes and thoughts we had about German people and the country and one of the topics of discussion was body odor (or as we called it, "stinky"). Our class went on to talk about our bathing habits and bathing habits that are acceptable and whatnot. Of course, (I hope), you know there is absolutely no reason to bathe once every day. I do it because it's a psychological thing about hygiene for me (I am not germaphobic, but it borders dangerously close to being so). And, (I hope, again) you know that bathing everyday actually dries out the natural oils of your skin and hair. Apparently, one girl in the class had a solution: lotion, of course. Who cares about lost oil now?

I don't think she's ever read the back of a lotion bottle. The main ingredient of most lotions is petroleum or some variation of oil. You have to shell out a lot of money to buy non-oil based lotions from a company. But, most lotions are oil-based. Our teacher made the obsveration that it's jst like humans to solve a problem they created when it could just have been avoided in the first place. I agree whole-heartedly. Lotion-girl, I don't think, was quite as convinced.

So, another girl asks; "Don't they know they stink? When I smell I notice it." Now. Do me a favor and re-read that sentence and, please, keep in mind that we are university students studying abroad and have been, supposedly, taught all the knowledge we would need to venture out into the world. We are talking about students who have never learned that everything is relative in the scope of other cultures... well, that's what they tried to teach us at the oreintation anyway. A few of us even made the comment that body oder and it's level of offensiveness are relative.

But Lotion Girl has a quickfire comeback. I want you to keep in mind that Lotion Girl is supposed to be member of the honors program at our university. Se decides that this is the deal breaker, "Well, if you were like a caveman in the stone age I can see where you don't know you don't stink. But if you bathe on the first day and notice you smell good and then on the third day you smell bad, wouldn't you realize you stink?"

I am speechless as soon as she utters the last syllable. This girl is attending the same honors classes I am. Heck, we had one together with one of the best professors on campus who made it his JOB to teach us that everything is realitive and to open our minds to philosophy. Was she asleep during class? If she got an A in the course, I want it appealled to at least a C. I recieved an A and I KNOW I learned, at the very least, that everything is relative.

Our GER 105 professor read my mind it seemed like. He says, "That's like saying something is good and bad. Define good and bad." Bam. HON 251 comes back to smack her in the face.

Now that my little anecdote is complete, I must wonder, "Where are these people during a lecture?" Certainly not learning anything. I don't think it has anything to do with the professors teaching the courses; I might attend a public university but I've had ivy league professors.

My personal opinion is this: four-year colleges are becoming the new vocational-technical schools. They are there so you can learn a trade and get a job. And that's how most students I talk to see it as. When asked, "Why are you here at this college?" most will reply, "To get a good paying job." Isn't that horribly sad? The university used to be, well, just that: the culmination of all of our best knowledge about the universe. This is where a person sought knowledge out because they craved it, because just having a job and paying the bills wasn't enough. They loved knowledge and the doors it opened in their mind.

Nowadays, students are forced to pick something they can finish in four years or less and find a decent paying job. Just look at the number of students who major in nursing (please, don't read into this that I look down upon the nursing profession. Nurses have something I don't and they are good at what they do. Damn good in all of my experiences). But, my meaning is understood, correct?

So, this actually leads us into another anecdote while on the bus from class to my dorm. I actually find it astounding how well it all fits together once I sat down and started brainstorming for these blogs... but I will save that for a bit later. I need to put up my laundry!

Cheers!