Assignment- Intro to Reading Questions

Assignment: Intro Reading Assignment

1. This course is important because it trains students to become well-versed in many skills, and utilize their knowledge from different experiences and subjects to search for an appropriate solution to an issue. Additionally, this course introduces students to topics relevant in modern society, and enables them to think critically about ways to approach these current concerns.
2. The best reason for exemption from this course would be if a student has an exemplary record of classes or extracurriculars that demonstrate an understanding in current events, the ability to formulate abstract arguments and synthesize information from various sources, and the student exhibits skills in several fields. For instance, a student who has competed on the Speech and Debate team for many years, or is involved in an organization like the model united nations, shows the ability to create a persuasive argument or practical solution to real-life problems.
3. However, it is difficult to measure a student’s ability without some form of quantitative scale, and reside solely on personal experience. Further society is constantly changing with new issues being born everyday, and it is of great importance that today’s young minds are educated on these issues so they are better prepared to face these challenges as adults.
4. Writing as a way of thinking new thoughts, essentially enforces the concept of documenting one’s opinions or ideas to share with others; ultimately enabling the reader to cultivate new thoughts on the matter, only to document their findings and continue the cycle. This idea of collective knowledge allows an issue to be looked at in-depth and from different angles, eventually bringing forth the best possible solution with the greatest benefit and the least amount of cost/consequences.
5. The New Humanities Reader is a call to action for education to reform the study of a single discipline and move towards the development of a renaissance student, due to the perplexing and fluid nature of modern issues: “Globalization, to take one good example, is not just the concern of economists, or historians, or anthropologists. Instead it is an issue for all of them together-and for everybody else as well,” (pg.xxii). The rationale of the New Humanities Reader revolves around the idea that the problems faced today, do not just involve one practice, rather these topics overarch the beliefs of multiple fields. The collaboration of ideas between these fields is essential in discovering the solution with the best outcome and the least amount of consequences. Thus, the education system should adapt to a more interdisciplinary philosophy to develop young students into well-rounded scholars as opposed to experts.
6. The shared horizon touches upon the idea that as individuals our horizons can be seen as a mental limit to our perception or experience. However, when we combined our skills and knowledge with those around us, the horizon is no longer a limit to our capabilities as a human being, but a never-ending line that demonstrates the unlimited opportunities to solve global issues with a vast set of ideas, beliefs, and experiences shared amongst a population. Its importance resides in the fact that when personal ambition dissolves into a collective goal, such as solving global issues, an individual is no longer narrowed to their own skill-set, because the ability to collaborate and share their knowledge with others essentially broadens the potential to discover a solution.
7. The term “a Renaissance of learning” is unique in the author’s use to explain the potential possibilities of new advances and innovations. This phrase denotes a similar meaning to the “shared horizon” previously mentioned, as it encourages the development of versatile intellectuals who can contribute to the collaboration of a body of people aiming to solve a common issue. The diction of Renaissance, touches upon the historical period in which individuals strived to become scholars in many fields such as art, science, literature, and politics, rather than an expert in just one. In using this term, it is obvious that the authors are suggesting that modern day students take a similar approach in their studies, so they can be better equipped for the complexity of today’s problems.
8. The goals of this course, and the philosophies outlined in the New Humanities Reader, go hand-in-hand in the belief that education must move towards a system that encourages interdisciplinary study and diversified learning in order to prepare students to face the complex nature of modern issues. The idea that humans are stronger together than alone presides true, as the collaboration of ideas, knowledge, and experience can help discover the best possible solution, and allow for an issue to be examined under the lens of several different scopes. Banded together with a common interest or goal, the possibilities for new advancements and solutions are limitless when humans trade narrow-mindedness and ignorance, for the opportunity to learn from the perspectives of others.