Temple courses that teach students real life lessons

With the Fall semester right around the corner Temple students have begun scheduling their new classes. It’s always hard trying to get that perfect schedule you want or figuring out which professors and courses are the easiest.

But there are so many different courses that often students don’t even know about. Of course you have your major requirements, but then you are left with electives to choose from, and those can be difficult to decide between at times. You don’t necessarily want to pick a hard elective but you also don’t want to waste your money and time on a pointless class.

So we talked to Temple students from varying majors to give us insight into which classes they felt taught them something meaningful and will one day help them out in the real world. Below is a list of a few classes Temple offers that students feel are worth taking.

Drugs in Urban Society: GUS 4013

“There are two versions of the class, one is offered at Temple in a normal classroom, and the other is offered in a classroom at the Graterford State Prison,” said Carly Bellini, a junior in political science. “I am in the Graterford chapter of the class. We talk about societal reactions to drug use in America, as well as in other countries. What makes the class so interesting, worthwhile and rewarding is that half of the students in the classroom are inmates at Graterford. In class we refer to them as the “inside” students. Many of the inside students have experienced first hand the effects of drug laws and societal stigmas in regards to drug users and dealers. While we have a lot of reading and writing assigned for the class, the other Temple students and I, which we call “outside” students, are getting the most real world education you could possibly get. While the information I have learned from the texts has been interesting and beneficial, the education I have received from listening to other’s lived experiences in urban poverty is invaluable. When dealing with a topic like drug use and abuse there are a lot of statistics, but approaching the issue with compassion and understanding is crucial and arguably more important.”

Investing for the Future: EE 0822

“It basically teaches you all about stocks and bonds and retirement,” said Becca Feldman, a senior in neuroscience. “And the mid-term project is literally tracking your spending for over a month and then doing a paper so it really gets you thinking about the useless things you spend money on. The final is financial planning for like the next three years, so the class explains stuff you need to know but won’t necessarily learn in a class or from someone. It also just makes you very aware of your spending.”

Disability Identity: THRC 0813

“Disability identity talks a lot about the history of disability,” said Kayleigh Wilkes, a senior in therapeutic recreation. “It talks about how they were viewed from like the 1820’s as circus acts and really puts it into perspective for people pursing careers that work with people who have disabilities, and it teaches you how to continually make their quality of life better. Another really good thing we did was we actually learned all about the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990) and we went out and measured different buildings using the standards to see how accessible they were. So actually going to apply real life measurements really makes students see that some buildings are not easy for people with wheelchairs to get around.”

Self Defense for Women: ONCE 0228

“I feel this class is incredibly important because as a female student, especially in North Philadelphia where our chances of being in danger are heightened, it is crucial to understand how to properly protect yourself in a situation,” said Rebecca Roth, a senior in advertising. “It is also important to become more aware of your surroundings and it’s knowledge I feel all women should have going through life.”

Sex Crimes and the Law: CJ 4501

This course discusses what sexual crimes are and the nature of them. It goes into experiences of victims and how both the criminal justice system and society responds to it. “We talk about so many important issues that are relevant and about gender and stigmas involving sex crimes,” said Kelly Lorenzi, a junior in criminal justice.

Religion in Philadelphia: REL 0876

“I found it really interesting just because I was learning different perspectives about different religions and how people are treated differently because of that,” said Maggie Costello, a senior in marketing and MIS. “Especially with the status of the US at this current time, we need to be educated about our differences rather than belittle others. We learned all about the different religions in Philly and when they came around. We also learned about architecture of churches and places of worship and why they were created the way they were. I’m Irish Catholic, which is huge in Philadelphia, and there used to be a lot of violence against Irish Catholics including throwing Molotov cocktails into a lot of the cathedrals, which is why they are brick with massive windows so the structure was safe.”

AIDS and Society: PBHL 2203

“AIDS and Society ultimately changed my perception of HIV-positive status, as well as the disease in general,” said Logan Beck, a senior in journalism. “Prior to this course, I knew essentially the ‘tip of the iceberg’ when it came to HIV/AIDS. Throughout the course we engaged with several speakers, some of which are HIV-positive, and I learned just how harsh our society can be, and that it needs to come together in order to fight stigma and discrimination for those with the disease. It ended up being a life-changing course for me, and it inspired me to cover HIV/AIDS in Philadelphia for an entire semester in one of my upper level journalism courses. It also inspired me to possibly one day go to law school and become a nonprofit lawyer in order to assist those people who do see institutionalized discrimination because of their diagnosis.”

 Persuasive Writing: ADV 1196

“This course was an advertising class that I took and it really taught me how to improve my writing skills,” said Claire Dabney, a sophomore in advertising. “I know now what to say to get people to do what I want, which is a great skill to have, especially when it comes to convincing your boyfriend.”

Race and Poverty in the Americas: REL 0833

“This course discusses the racial inequalities in the United States and how the U.S. likes to be considered ‘color blind’ but really we aren’t,” said Gabbi Langan, a sophomore in speech pathology. “We like to think that the US is a melting pot of all races but we aren’t, and you learn the concept of race is a socially constructed idea.”

Sports and Leisure: AAS 0857

“Sports and leisure in the U.S. with Professor Smith was a race gen ed class,” said Kayleigh Wilkes, a senior in therapeutic recreation. “It was just really eye opening in the sense that people just think about everyday racism, but this was really in depth about how it affects sports. We had to go to the Blockston Library (on Temple’s campus behind Tpac) and find a piece of memorabilia and wrote a paper about how it ties into today’s modern world and the issues of racism.”

Gender in America: SOC 0851

“Professor Czerniawski’s class, even though it was called Gender in America, didn’t just talk about male vs. female,” Carolanne Patrylak, a junior in communication studies. “I learned about other genders like transgender and gender queer. It was great because I never fully understood those concepts and now I understand them a little more than I did. It’s so important because this is becoming so prominent today and is important to respect everyone, which is what I feel this class taught me.”

Interpersonal Communications: AOD 0836

“Interpersonal Communications taught me how to be more understanding and observant when it comes to others,” said Alex Cove, a junior in public relations. “In class we looked into different personality types, the many ways people deal with conflict, and the ways communication is misinterpreted. I learned a lot about small things like eye contact, hand gestures and vocal tones that have really helped me in interview settings and when dealing with people in general. I also learned a lot about myself in the class because we took the time to look into our own communication styles and how we can improve. The class was extremely productive and fun – I always looked forward to going it.”

Justice in America: CJ o852

This course teaches students about U.S. society’s conflicts and the struggle for balance between state power and the right of individuals. “It’s a lot about racism and how to listen to everyone’s sides and give a fair ear to all,” said Julia Levan, a sophomore in business. “It teaches you how to say your opinion in a respectful way to others without coming across as rude or acting as if you are better.”

 Ceramics for Non- Tyler BFA: CRFT 2152

This course offers an intro to the world of ceramics for students that are not enrolled in the Tyler School of Art. It is a little different than your average sit in a desk and learn course. “My teacher was really cool and liked to give us life lessons along with the material,” said Michelle Joseph, a senior in Finance.

Institutional Racism: SSWU 3096

This course teaches students about different forms, practices, and effects of racism all together. It dives into institutional racism specifically, as it’s seen in education, human services, housing, law, business, and prisons. “It was a class required for my social work major so we talked about the different ways society evolved to be white-focused and different ways that it affects us all,” said Julie Nass, a senior in social work.

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