(or: Joining the Great Conversation)
by Daryl Culp
Studying the humanities involves you, the student, in a great conversation. The ideas in this course are intended to stimulate you to discover how others think but also to formulate your own opinion. The links displayed are intended to help you to summarize the main ideas discussed in the textbook and to start you thinking for yourself about the big issues that every human being confronts.
There are some basic tasks that you can do in order to understand these ideas better. First, look up the most important words in a dictionary. Don’t look up every word. You have to learn to identify the key words that are central to the topic. Then find a good, complete definition. Sometimes a concept requires several sentences to explain. Try a good online dictionary like the Oxford Dictionary (oxforddictionaries.com).
Summarize and paraphrase
Understanding ideas means linking them to other ideas in your own head and in the larger culture’s discussion of these ideas. In order to do this, you have to be able to express these ideas in your own words. Identify the main ideas and the basic supporting details that explain these ideas. You can do this in point form in order to remember them more effectively. You should also be able to write an explanation in your own words in a paragraph.
Respond
Thinking about these ideas requires you to ask questions. There are an infinite number of questions that arise when thinking about these ideas. Questions enable you to consider the implications of these ideas. In other words, think about what the writer has left out. What can you add to this discussion? Maybe you have another example (a situation that the writer has not thought about). Perhaps you have some background knowledge that can help analyze this issue. The most important thing is to think from your own perspective. Contribute your own thoughts and join the conversation.
Here are some exercises to help you:
Reading
Note-taking
Writing:
If you want to see some samples of my writing, go to the following page:
Journal entries. I wrote these short pieces in response to my student journals. Please notice that I quote them in order to give their exact words, to give credit to their ideas, and to respond directly to them.