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A350XWB
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08 Apr 2008, 10:55 pm

I have nothing against philosophy in itself, but I think that the philosophical needs vary with the field in which we study, i.e. a computer engineer wouldn't have the same needs as a physicist, and still, the physicist won't have the same needs as the physician would have; all philosophy courses are common to everyone...



MissPickwickian
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15 Apr 2008, 8:18 am

Literature is useless unless it interests you, I am sad to say, although English composition is essential.

I think that the higher maths should be optional. They are great things, the trigonometries and calculi, but only future engineers will find them fun and useful.

History and Geography should be compulsory. It is important that students understand the world they live in and how it came to be.

I am going to argue that philosophy should be compulsory, as odd as that sounds. Do not, my people, freak out about the "abstraction" in that subject. Philosophy is one of the most misunderstood subjects; it is not a lot of nebulous, poetic musings about how there is no reality. It is in fact Greek for "teaching people to think logically about everything", which is invaluable.


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Awesomelyglorious
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15 Apr 2008, 9:06 am

MissPickwickian wrote:
History and Geography should be compulsory. It is important that students understand the world they live in and how it came to be.

Depending on what we consider the use of education. Those 2 subjects are important for understanding what to vote for. Really though, I would argue that what we need are better econ classes given the centrality of the subject to the workings of our society.
Quote:
I am going to argue that philosophy should be compulsory, as odd as that sounds. Do not, my people, freak out about the "abstraction" in that subject. Philosophy is one of the most misunderstood subjects; it is not a lot of nebulous, poetic musings about how there is no reality. It is in fact Greek for "teaching people to think logically about everything", which is invaluable.

Definitely highly recommended. Too many people make too many assumptions about the world and don't think enough about them.



ddrapayo
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17 Apr 2008, 4:00 pm

The fact is, (or at least the fact should be that they're teaching you to think. Although in the US, thanks to No Child Left Behind, it's more important to teach to the test. And children are getting left behind because ofit.



ebec11
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19 Apr 2008, 8:19 pm

I'm starting to think Science is useless!
I am learning NOTHING I will care about after the course is over
I think it should be an option for people, not mandorary.



deep-techno
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21 Apr 2008, 7:45 am

English Literature is a useless subject. How is learning 'Of Mice and Men' parrot fashion going to help me later in life?

However, I can understand that Creative/Original Writing is useful if you want to write a book or become a linguist/author. A wide range of educated vocabulary would also be somewhat useful in vocational documents as well, such as a CV.


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Vashna
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21 Apr 2008, 10:53 am

My college requires a course that is intended to 'show' students how to work at college. It alledegly prepares them for the 'rest of their college career' and uses a lot of rhetoric to that effect. In reality, no real topic is covered by the course material and the class is a good deal of busy work.