Current Events by Hannah Rose

Current Events by Hannah Rose - June 2018 Scholarship Essay

In my opinion, an elective that should be a required class is Current Events. Although I participated in this class during my middle school years, I was unable to continue it throughout high school as it was discontinued as course offering. I believe that this class should be required because not only is it informative and interesting, it is history in the making and therefore, just as important as any other history or social studies class.

The first benefit one can gain from taking this course is that they will be exposed to a variety of cultures and world issues. They will be able to gain world knowledge and experience by just attending class everyday. One of my favorite units while enrolled in this program was the history of China and how its history is intertwined in its culture. Our teacher made us do a project where we all selected a nation and we created a project based on its culture--in that project we included traditions, information on the government/school systems, language, and music. These monthly projects were a highlight of this time for me because it was like a crash course on a country, its culture and the political and social problems that plagued it.

Another reason why this course should be required is because it can be used to incrementally get students accustomed to watching and reading the news. Over time, this practice makes one inevitably more aware of the world around them and better informed on social issues. As a generation, younger students will be more informed--not only regarding their own geographic area--but on the world in general. If this course was required, children in schools would be well-educated and cultured and that translates into better educated and more informed adults. This would make us more informed as a nation and more empathetic towards other countries because we understand and respect their culture.

One final reason that Current Events is important is because it can show the “effect” part of history. If it is taught in tandem with required history courses then students will have the opportunity to learn about and study the world’s cause and effects first hand. This can provide a whole new learning experience that is not available to most students at most traditional school settings.

By incorporating this course into the curriculum, students will be given a world history education that comes full circle. Consequently, we can raise a more empathetic, informed, and diverse group of students than we ever have had before.