Only six and a half weeks and my undergraduate education will come to a close. Woah.
I’ve learned a lot over the past four years, both inside and outside the classroom. Because I decided to double-major, a significant portion of those years has consisted of being in the classroom – though at this point a lot of that is a blur.
But not all of it. Between my two majors, a couple classes stick out as being exceptional. So, without further adieu, the top class from each field …
Journalism: Advanced Newswriting and Reporting for Print, Fall 2012
I took this class fall of junior year. Basically, the class consists of two parts: covering the real-world beat of your choice and discussing the theory/principles behind journalism.
I enjoyed the theory part. The book we used, The Elements of Journalism, gives a digestable overview of the profession, and as the authors say in the book’s subtitle, would be great for even non-journalists to read.
But it was the reporting that I really enjoyed. My beat was the village of Clifton. It’s five miles down the road from Cedarville (one reason I picked it – just a few minutes to drive to interviews), and around 180 people live there. I had driven through it countless times before but knew nothing before fall 2012.
Now I know something, at least. Specifically, I know about Clifton’s connection to Woody Hayes; how the opera house helps keep the village on its feet; and the deep roots Clifton resident Paula Lazorski has to her parents.
Covering Clifton made me realize I would love being a journalist. I met interesting people and learned that there is a story everywhere – even in a small Ohio village barely even on the map. It was so rewarding to come up with a real-world (not campus) story idea from scratch and see it completed.
So for those reasons, Advanced Newswriting and Reporting for Print is the top journalism class I took at Cedarville.
Technical and Professional Communication: Style and Mechanics for Writers, Spring 2011
Style, as it is affectionately or un-affectionately called (depending on who you ask), is the first TPC class I took. It’s an all-online class, and it’s not only a TPC class. It’s also cross-listed as an English class.
Regardless, Style and Mechanics changed how I thought about writing. It taught me that good, clear writing can be taught. The ability to write well is not simply a gift that some people are born with and others are not. Sure, some might naturally have more writing skill than others, but you don’t come out of the womb knowing what a nominalization is.
You learn that in Style. The class focuses on teaching clear, cohesive, concise and coherent writing. But, again, it also opened my eyes to the broader idea that good writing can be taught.
In some respects, the class was not the most exciting TPC class I’ve taken. Because it was online, there was no face-to-face interaction with other students. The homework was quizzes. No life-changing projects here.
But the ability to write clearly that Style taught me is one I use every day.
Zack Anderson 