Students should take cultural classes

With class registration open for several students, the anxiety of meeting goal requirements to graduate on time plagues many students. Two of the goal requirements are human diversity and global perspectives. 

Having classes where students learn about other cultures regarding historic events helps broaden their perspectives and lets them gain insight on the world. We as students should strive to incorporate a few classes into our schedules to help us become not only well-rounded students, but more informed citizens. 

High school-level classes sometimes tend to focus on western perspectives, leaving out the perspective of those who were victimized. In college, professors try to incorporate all views of certain events in history. This is crucial to getting all aspects of events in both American and world history, especially traumatic events. Topics are better understood and handled when all viewpoints are brought to the table.

Taking classes that cover a variety of cultures allows students to become informed on a variety of traditions and cultures. Most jobs pride themselves on having a diverse work environment and being able to properly communicate and respect cultures is something that every student will encounter post-graduation. 

Classes that focus on culture strengthen the idea of diversity, equity and inclusion. These courses bridge the connection between international students and traditional students. Additionally, it allows underrepresented groups to share their stories, and teaches how to better advocate for them. Being exposed to different perspectives, traditions and customs helps to cultivate conversation and makes us knowledgeable for future interactions with others. 

By piquing students’ interests in classes, they are more likely to attend events outside of class that relate to the course content. These can be talks, festivals or having interactions with everyday people. By giving students the opportunity the knowledge of topics in class, they can then apply what they’ve learned to the real world. 

The benefits of taking classes that focus on culture is innumerable. We as students need to realize that taking classes that teach us about different cultures helps us to broaden our horizons.