<p>i posted this is the ‘other college majors’ forum, but didn’t get much activity. so i thought i’d see what this forum thought:</p>
<p>i’m an english major, and was recently thinking that most of the major-related classes i’ve taken so far could be replaced with individual study. i feel as though this might apply to all english-related classes other than writing courses. all of my literature classes so far have consisted of reading the text and then discussing it. while this is certainly useful, i’m sure anything discussed is already written and published somewhere. feedback on one’s own comments as well as a push to further expand on them is the only thing i can think of that may be lost. material taught in classes dealing with mechanics seems readily available at bookstore. writing, and this is obviously the meat of the major, seems to be the exception. so i guess i’m wondering how much more valuable one school would be over the other for highly motivated individuals. if creative writing is the ultimate goal, it seems like success would come to those already talented and motivated, and i’m not sure how big of a difference the quality of faculty would make.</p>
<p>Interesting.</p>
<p>I think there is definitely something to be gained from classroom learning as opposed to self-teaching… otherwise, it seems like teachers would already have been replaced by books. Are classrooms just ways to subsidize teachers?</p>
<p>I don’t know. I suspect that the class discussions have the potential to lead to more learning than reading literary criticism alone. Of course, this depends on things… like the quality of faculty leading the discussions and the quality of the student body carrying out the discussions.</p>
<p>I’m not an English major, but here’s almost what it feels like to me in CS… when the professor says something, I know it’s important to know and I have an easier time remembering it. I can read an entire chapter from the book and feel like I’ve got the gist of it, but it can be hard to get the main points, the concepts, and without knowing yourself what the important stuff is, you can only guess. The professor knows and passes that on to you, so you don’t get lost in the details.</p>
<p>As far as the class goes, it’s a dual purpose… first, it’s a support network, allowing everybody to benefit from the presence of other points of view and possibly novel insights. It probably also makes you think harder about it yourself than you would if you just read it and accepted it from somebody else. Second, and this may not apply to English, but with other people around me, I feel more driven to succeed, more motivated to compete with them. Not necessarily for the grade, but maybe that’s all it is. If you know other people are going to be evaluating your work and comparing it to the work of others, and this comparison will form the basis for your eventual success (and all that goes with it), you might put more into it. I don’t know. I feel like I do.</p>
<p>i think all of your points are valid, auburnmathtutor. and i’m not arguing one over the other. i think the best approach a balance. obviously while you’re in school, classes will dominate, while they will disappear after graduation. i suppose the balance is in the view of a lifetime.</p>
<p>i’m not saying that everyone would have the same results from self-studying. but let’s assume the student is passionate and motivated (and therefore driven without the presence of competition). in which case, i feel as though getting lost in the details wouldn’t be an issue. reading multiple works over the same topic would seemingly reveal the main concepts through the similarities. i think reading vs hearing differs wildly amongst the population. i’m the opposite. i have an easier time remembering what i read compared to what i heard in a lecture or something.</p>
<p>as far as class discussions, i believe they are certainly beneficial in developing speaking abilities and help better the way we convey our thoughts. i think a well-educated and academically interested group of friends can provide the same thing, although the amount of time spent talking about whatever topic in class is probably far greater than the time spent discussing it amongst friends. </p>
<p>in an undergraduate class, i doubt there would be many novel insights. i would assume almost everything someone might contribute to the discussion is published. the benefit of the class would be in saving time i suppose. but nevertheless, the same objective could be accomplished. although, in my experience at least, a bit of time is lost to comments that are closer to wrong than anything else.</p>
<p>just trying to counter; i have no idea if i’m right (or if there is a ‘right’). thoughts?</p>
<p>i say it’s different for different people. For most, studying with a teacher is much more effective and much more is learned in relatively less time.</p>
<p>For others like me, I can never learn anything from a teacher. Everything I’ve learned was by myself, or casual conversations with others.</p>
<p>Yes, you can learn everything from a classroom yourself, but why waste so much more time? Besides, it’s a good place to socialize and meet new people</p>
<p>Personally, I feel classes tend to be pointless. Classes are paced very slowly so that everyone can keep up, which is annoying. Also, they don’t really add anything that I wouldn’t otherwise get from reading a good textbook (in fact that would help more). Same applies to stuff like sat prep courses: studying on your own is faster, more effective, and far less expensive.</p>