Analysis Of Annie Murphy Paul's Are College Lectures Unfair?

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Annie Murphy Paul’s “Are College Lectures Unfair?” is a well-written research based argument, but is it solid? In her article she questions “Does the college lecture discriminate? Is it biased against undergraduates who are not white, male and affluent?” She spends the rest of her essay providing evidence that active learning would benefit students who are “female, minorities and low income first generation college students”, while passive learning provides a bases for discrimination against the under- privileged. Unfortunately, while making good points, her essay is unfair. I think she’s the one being biased. Her predisposed claim makes it seem like only the teachers are at fault for teaching their students in a passive way by providing such …show more content…

Paul seems to make it out as something that we struggle through as students and can’t bear to hear the teacher say another word. Lectures are important, if done correctly, students do enjoy it. Students can speak their mind, compare and contrast, disagree and agree etc. we shouldn’t throw that away for mere view or thought of active learning. Active learning will not fit all courses, such as humanities, talking about ancient art works is all you can do in a sense because you can’t magically uncover another Picasso in the back of your classroom closet. Seems like the research that Paul provides in her article is from people who have never heard of a good lecture and have failed to observe what really happens in lecture. Her point is not clear. Is she talking about boring lectures? Good and bad lectures? …show more content…

Does that mean every female who feels discriminated in a classroom based lecture should study from a computer screen? As a female, I would never think that I should move to an online learning environment just to be equal with my male peers. It is absurd to think that moving females to an online environment is a solution for discrimination in a classroom setting. Her whole article is grounded on a specific cultural form that favors some people while discriminating against others, including women, minorities, and low-income and first generation college students (Paul 1). How is online classes going to change that? Even if there was a chance you were convinced by Paul’s argument this statement crashes is all down the drain. She is basically affirming that online classes, which are filled with many reading materials and quizzes, engage in active learning, which is true because the professor has no choice. Professors cannot give an active lecture over the computer. As a student, I am currently enrolled in two online classes: sociology and anthropology. There is no way that a professor can assist students through an online class without any tests or assessments, it can’t be based off just reading material because how is the professor going to know if the student is doing well or not? So indeed it is necessary that tests and

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