Tuesday, April 7, 1998
New year-long cluster classes offered for general education
REFORM: Integrating survey courses on race, thought may be
difficult
By Brian Fishman
Daily Bruin Contributor
UCLA administrators have released a new wave of cluster courses,
as a part of a proposed general education overhaul.
The three new interdisciplinary classes are prototypes, intended
to test the cluster class concept for more widespread use in the
coming years.
The three exclusively freshman cluster courses to be offered
next year are "The History of Social Thought," – an introduction to
political and philosophical thought in the modern era –
"Interracial Dynamics in American Literature, Culture and Society"
and "The Evolution of Cosmos and Life."
Cluster classes will not dominate general education; only three
of the 11 required general education classes would be fulfilled by
the clusters.
"We are trying to create the best of both worlds. You’d have
this year-long interdisciplinary cluster class, but you could also
take courses from many departments," said Ed Berenson, provost of
the College of Letters & Sciences and chair of the GE reform
committee.
The classes are intended to give students a broad,
multidisciplinary understanding.
"We’re hoping to build a platform of understanding for students
to use," said Jon Davidson, the lead professor for The Evolution of
Cosmos and Life.
Specifically, Davidson’s course will investigate life’s origins.
"We want to investigate the connections between the evolution of
life and the evolution of earth," Davidson said.
We want to build excitement in students and understanding of how
scientists think, he continued.
But Davidson realizes that there will be complications with an
interdisciplinary class. He worries integrating four professors
into the instruction will be difficult, as has happened this year
with the first cluster class, "Global Environment: An
Interdisciplinary Perspective."
"One of the objectives of the cluster course is to not isolate
professors into separate modules," he said. Davidson indicated that
if professors sit-in on their colleagues lectures, the class would
run more smoothly.
Integrating different professors’ lectures may be more difficult
in some clusters rather than others.
"The subject matter of this course is somewhat
pre-disciplinary," said Ivan Szelenyi, the lead professor for The
History of Social Thought. "A lot of books we will be reading were
written before distinct disciplines existed."
The class will cover thought from the 17th century through
modern times, according to Berenson.
Because the readings in his class are inclusive, Szelenyi
expressed fewer worries that integrating several professors would
impede the students’ experience.
Szelenyi indicated that many students in his course will be
South Campus students.
"Our aim is to create, eventually, a social studies mind in our
students’ studies," he said.
"Global Environment," the only cluster being offered this year,
will also be offered next year.
Future general education reform will depend on a vote sometime
next year by the Committee to Reform General Education.
Davidson endorsed the committee wholeheartedly.
"I think the committee has done an excellent job in researching
a new approach to general education," Davidson said.