One of the central tenets of Brown's Plan for Academic Enrichment is to improve undergraduate education. As we see the plan beginning to be executed, it seems the university will make most of its academic changes in interdisciplinary areas. Brown has made clear its intent to focus on interdisciplinary learning: the Plan for Academic Enrichment cites it as one of its 11 principles. But will this course of action benefit the most students?
One of last year's biggest donations was for the creation of the Institute for Old World Art and Archeology. Other projects include a creative arts building, a center for computational biology and a new building for cognitive and linguistics sciences. The new Science Cohort, a program billed as "uniquely Brown," will also have an interdisciplinary focus. All these projects display a trend that favors interdisciplinary subjects as opposed to standard, traditional disciplines.
Certainly, one thing that makes Brown special is its unique courses of study. What Brown should not do, however, is concentrate practically all of its re-sources solely on these interdisciplinary studies. "The Fiske Guide to Colleges" reports that Brown's "strongest" departments are comparative literature, creative writing, applied math, religious studies, geology, history and classics. This is great for students interested in these subjects; they're lucky that Brown offers obscure disciplines ignored at lesser colleges. But students attracted to more traditional areas, such as biology, psychology, english, philosophy, art history or political science, will find their curriculums lacking. These bigger and more standard departments traditionally draw larger numbers of students and majors. Students interested in more traditional subjects often find themselves frustrated with deficient departments and course offerings. And nothing has been done so far to improve them.
Most of Brown's class offerings also emphasize an interdisciplinary approach. Most departments offer numerous specific classes that focus on one narrow aspect of that particular subject, yet offer few "core" classes to provide students a broader focus on the discipline. Later on in a student's course of study it can be useful to have a depth of knowledge in one area, but it will not be helpful if this area is too specialized or the student has no basic foundation. Concentrators and non-concentrations alike looking for a broader base of knowledge complain when the scope of a class is so specific.
The new concentration requirements of the English department reflect this pattern. Instead of taking several survey courses, concentrators must instead take additional specialized classes. It is commendable that the department wants to improve its concentration, but there is a great benefit to having all English students come away with a certain base of knowledge. A Brown education should not be lacking in crucial areas.
It is not fair to Brown's students to spend most of the newly acquired resources on smaller departments, which invariably will benefit fewer students. Brown should address the academic problems in larger departments that sorely need the resources. The Fiske Guide stated that psychology, sociology and math were lacking departments; students also complain about the quality of traditional departments like philosophy, english and art history.
Traditional departments are not more important than interdisciplinary ones. Interdisciplinary and multi-disciplinary subjects, however, are by definition narrow in scope. When we enter the real world, certainly it will be more useful to arrive with a broad collection of knowledge rather than a small base of very specific information. At the very least, traditional departments deserve equal billing with less traditional departments.
Brown prides itself on its interdisciplinary strength, but not every Brown student wants to study these subjects. By narrowing its academic scope so greatly Brown is disappointing so many students who come here hoping to study in traditional de-partments. If Brown continues this way, it will cease attracting students who seek strong traditional departments. If Brown keeps pouring time, money and faculty into interdisciplinary areas only, it will alienate the majority of its students.
Sarah Geller '09 wants a simpler Course Announcement Bulletin.
