Rather than requiring students to participate in "general education" courses, as most colleges do, Otterbein instead has a program called "Integrative Studies." It's mandatory, and is part of every student's curriculum. Some of these classes are completely absurd, and will serve no purpose in life. Every once in a while, however, you come across an IS class that you know you will never forget. The class I'm currently enrolled in is one of those classes. This class, Intro to the Western Experience, (Western Civilization) sounded like it would be the most mundane, torturous class ever offered, but has turned out to be quite the contrary. As a fan of History, I am glad to be able to take this class after almost 3 years sans History class. So, that's a plus. However, that's not my favorite aspect. The best part of this class is my professor. Dr. Keith Pepperell. He's a middle-aged Englishman, who is as crude and inappropriate as they come. He explained that he sometimes does stand-up comedy outside of teaching, but he definitely isn't cautious to keep it outside the classroom. As he's teaching about Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt, he's cracking jokes and puns as if they're written in his lesson plan. (Which I don't doubt is actually the case.) Most of his humor is brilliant, and my class responds as if they're in the audience at an under-ground comedy club. Once in a while, though, he'll tell one of those jokes that makes you want to show your distaste by saying "ewwww." Still, those horrible jokes come across just as funny, and we still laugh. The way I describe this class to my friends is by telling them that it's like watching Monty Python (or, rather, a Monty Python cast member) talk about Civilization in 3,000 BC, all while drawing completely inaccurate pictures of ancient structures, and spending a bit too much time talking about sheep. Awkward.
Anyway. The way Dr. Pepperell teaches actually keeps the students interested, and by the power of humor, we're actually learning things. From my perspective, this is exciting. A professor who can keep a heavy class moving and on point, all while relating to it's students through humor is definitely a respectable man.
On the down side, the class is 2 hours long, and is in the part of the afternoon that is best described as "The Nap Zone." Hopefully, through the power of humor and caffeine, I'll be able to avoid drifting into the black hole that is the nap. Wish me luck!
later days.