By Zach Blinke
staff writer
After four very long years at DHS, I have explored a very wide range of classes from AP psychology to Foods and Nutrition, off of the basis on what I thought I might be interested in. To some extent, I regret some of my choices a little bit for winding up in classes I didn’t fully want to be involved with. But from this experimentation, I wound up in a class by the name of Theory of Knowledge.
When I first arrived, I didn’t really know what I should have been expecting. Then as we began to get into things, I realized this class was not like anything I had previously experienced. Thrown into a very different situation than what I had was used to was mildly shocking, and a bit much to take in at first. This was a class that actually promoted intuitive thinking and question asking.
Without sounding too cheesy, this course really opened my mind to a whole new way of thinking. Being able to ask ‘why?’ in a classroom is something younger kids are deprived of. Schools often think that the subject material of ethics and philosophy are not appropriate for high school students to be learning about. However, I think it is the perfect time to begin looking at these topics. These subjects often catch the interest of students because it provokes an unknown curiosity about the world; there isn’t always a right or wrong answer, every situation has multiple approaches and solutions. The class focuses on finding knowledge issues and the ways of knowing, which represents an unorthodox method of learning. And it works. More than any other class, I found myself making connections or wishing I could have had my own peers in my class to see what their views on the subject matter was.
At the same time though, I am incredibly thankful I wound up in a class of very diverse people, all of whom I may have never met or gotten to know without the class. Each person had a completely different perspective than the next. We were encouraged to share ideas and expand upon one another, no one left out, every idea valued. This is a very different method of teaching than what I had been previously used to as stated above, but it was a welcome change. At no point did I feel uncomfortable sharing my thoughts. Even though outlandish and a little absurd at times, every other student in the class seemed to be engaged and ready to listen.
I have taken more from this class than probably any other without even realizing it. I find myself thinking about discussions had in previous classes, and how much I wish I could have shared the experience with my usual social group, because as young minds, in such a rapid state of shaping and development, curiosity is incredibly important to success, and feeling purpose while still keeping life as interesting as can be; with most modern day curriculum set up in a laminar fashion, it is a refreshing change to see a class that truly encourages students to think outside the box.
The class has truly changed my perspective of learning, and has made me more open minded to a lot more aspects of the world than I did before. For anyone who is looking for something different from the everyday class, I would recommend this a million times over as the work one must put forth is worth it for the experience.
