A class about the world by Athena

A class about the world by Athena - February 2022 Scholarship Essay

Today there are so many electives to choose from that all teach you a variety of different skills. But, if I were to create and choose an elective that would be beneficial to students I would create an elective class that learns about different cultures and gets involved within them. I do not know if a class like this exists already, but at least in my school it does not so that is why I am creating it.

I do not know what I would call this class, maybe something like a culture class or travel class. Because it would invite people from various cultural backgrounds to come to class and share their family traditions, and the clothes that they wear, and the food they eat, and a little bit of history about the country on which their culture came from so in that sense that is why it would be called cultural class. Not only would it invite people to share about their culture but also invite people to learn about other people’s cultures so that way they can take some knowledge with them about others. The curriculum would include learning about a new culture every couple of weeks, and having a student help the teacher present it or the teacher can solely present it. They would embrace the music and literature and traditions of the culture, and take home recipes to cook in their free time, and make art work that symbolize and appreciate the cultures.

The beneficial factor that this class will have to students is the stuff they will learn. They will learn to be more open and appreciative to other cultures and get to experience first-hand some interesting things from the cultures. It will also teach kids on the difference between cultural appreciation and cultural appropriation, which is a key thing in today’s society. This is all very important for the students because it is good to go out into the world with an open mind and knowledge of how other people live their lives, and to not be stuck within a small bubble and only seeing how they live but not the others around them.

That is why if I were to create a class that is not already in the school system, it would be a cultural class. That would leave students with knowledge of other cultures and a new found appreciation for them that they might not have had before they took the class. And the class would teach the kids about the world, and to encourage them to one day travel and see the different cultures with their own two eyes. I think that the class would be a great success because I personally love learning about other cultures and would one day hope to travel the world. That is why I leave you with one question: If you were to take the cultural class, what culture would you like to learn about the most?