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The Green from the Tower Room

Last term, I was pleasantly surprised when my transition from gapper to freshman was way smoother than I imagined. I was anxious and not necessarily looking forward to being back in the classroom after being a fully autonomous, independent learner for an entire year. But I quickly realized I could still stay in charge of my own learning even in formal academic settings. Thanks to Dartmouth's flexible and rich liberal arts curriculum, I can learn how to be a better writer while exploring avant-garde movements, question the faults of the current education system, and uncover the mysteries of the brain in a single term. Here are my winter term classes and what I am looking forward to in each of them.

ENGL 07.47: Tales of the Avant-Garde

After taking my first-year writing class in the English department in the fall term and seeing how much my prose improved, I decided to take my writing seminar from the English department too. Though the classes are just beginning to gain speed, I am already happy with my decision. What I love the most about this class is certainly the readings. We have already read avant-garde manifestos from the first half of the 20th century that I have found fascinating both from a literary and historical perspective. The first novel we have read, The Moon and Sixpence, is now among my favorite works of fiction. It's so refreshing to read fiction for a class amidst all the heavy nonfiction reading we've been doing for other classes. That's why what I am looking forward to the most is the assigned readings for this class! 

PSYC 6: Introduction to Neuroscience

I am not really the greatest STEM person out there, but here I am: considering whether I should major in neuroscience. I was always fascinated by human behavior and thought processes, and this class is kindling that interest even further. It's so satisfying to see how what I am learning in this class complements my knowledge of psychology. We are currently learning the anatomy of the nervous system and molecular neuroscience. I can't wait to learn more about higher-level brain functions involved in decision-making and problem-solving. Who knows, I might find myself deciding to major in neuroscience when that day comes. 

EDUC 20: Education Issues in Contemporary Society 

I have always questioned the shortcomings of the education system in Turkey, but I knew very little, if anything, about the American public education system. This class allows me to think critically about the big-picture policy questions regarding the education system in the US while inspiring me to think about how education fits into our broader socioeconomic context. I also love how I can build upon what I learned about systemic inequity in my Sex, Gender, and Society class by taking this class in a completely different department. Not to sound like a total nerd, but the prompt for our first memo was one of the few special assignments that got me excited to write a paper for a class, which asked us to evaluate our formal schooling based on our definition of education. I look forward to discussing and writing about such thought-provoking questions related to education and society.

 

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