First and foremost putting in ample time to go read through the coursework thoroughly is
important as this helps with retention. This was tough for me at first as I was getting used to
managing my time better. Reflecting and applying the knowledge that you have learned in your own
life helps you see the value of the material you are learning. For example, learning how to take a
step back and reevaluate a situation while gathering more information to address it as effectively as
possible is valuable in every area of life. These well-formulated thoughts should help improve your
own creativity, work performance, and better your relationships. The best advice I can give them
would be to find a topic that is of interest to them. Studying a topic that engages you will make the
time go by quicker as you will be enjoying what you read. It gets tough when you are studying
something that does not capture you. Also, reach out for help if you need it, I should have taken my
own advice sooner than later. Overall, what I learned is that humanities are about how you
interpret works that have been done and what those works make you feel emotional and even
physically and the human connection is at the centre of it all. I found that to be the most helpful
method for me, because it made it easier for me to write about it. Approaches I found most helpful
as to jot down notes and questions for myself so I could go back later and remember to work on
something specific and so I would not forget questions I needed answers to. One recommendation
that I would like to give for next term's humanities students is to stay focused on the bigger picture.
Not so focused to the point of self-exhaustion. There is a lot of reading and a lot of writing. But it
pays off in the end. Keep your thoughts open and allow for new growth. This course offers much of
it. The approaches I found helpful in mastering the course concepts were to remain positive and
optimistic. Staying positive helped me keep an open mind and focus on the result. Staying optimistic
helped me not overcrowd myself with too much work at once. Scheduling your time and workloads
are so important!
For the next term’s humanities students, one recommendation that I would like to make is that they
must approach the discipline with an open mind. Since the humanities area is quite vast in nature,
they must be willing to learn the topics in a comprehensive manner. By entering the class with such
a mindset can help them to mentally prepare to grasp as much knowledge as possible (Beckmann,
2020). Furthermore, it will also help them to have an enriching learning experience. When I was
studying humanities, I adopted a similar approach and it helped me a lot. Another important thing
that I ensured was that I always covered all the topics individually that had been covered in the
class (Beckmann, 2020). This approach further enhanced my overall insight into the humanities
discipline because I did not have to go through the topics at the very last minute. In the dynamic
academic setting, it might be a major challenge for the learners to focus on all the subjects and
remain updated with the latest topics and concepts that have been covered in the class. However, it
is vital to manage time in an effective manner and ensure that they give high priority to self-study.
It can ensure that they do not burden themselves at the last moment. The next term’s humanities
students must keep these things in mind while they start their journey in the vast humanities arena
so that they can find the subject to be both interesting as well as enriching.
A recommendation I would give to next term's students is to listen to yourself-your body and mind.
Whatever strategies work best for you, do them. If you need to write down everything or ask a lot
of questions, do so. If you feel drained, take a break, and relax in whatever way you do. Something
that always helped me was walking away from something I was struggling with and coming back to
it an hour later. This gave me time to get out of work mode and focus on what I needed; I always
came back happier and prepared. It is okay to take breaks! Make sure to always work hard but do
not drain yourself. People do not always talk about the struggles of mental health while
simultaneously trying to succeed in school. Try your hardest, because the feeling of knowing you
put in your best efforts always pays off, but make sure you take care of yourself. For an individual
looking to dive into this very interesting course next semester:
HAVE FUN & FOCUS ON THE BASICS
Along with a lot of reading, you will have a lot of writing assignments. This is a course that one must
actively be engaged in to reap all the benefits embedded within. Do not try to reinvent the wheel,
however, DO try to use it in different ways
USE YOUR HEAD
There was a lot of critical thinking involved with most assignments, and it is truly impossible to
"B.S." your way
I would recommend for an individual to complete tasks in a place of solitude--somewhere with
minimal distractions
BE PATIENT
You must be proactive with your writing to convey the most effective messages. After all, you are
being graded on the demonstration & conveyance of your individual opinions of what you have just
learned. To be the most effective, you MUST be willing to make changes and challenge your
convictions
REVISE, REVISE, REVISE
This coincides with the last recommendation, because there is a requirement for discipline as well
as patience to take the time to look over your work and make corrections
SLEEP ON IT
Again, coinciding with the last two points. I made it its own recommendation because truthfully, I
never truly experienced its effectiveness until this class. Making revisions and then "sleeping on it"
allowed me to return to the assignment with a clear mind and make my papers THAT much better. I
think a good recommendation for the next class is to really focus on the textbook and take time to
make sure you understand it all. There were times throughout the course where I did not end up
having enough time to finish the Soomo questions because of lack of time management. One thing I
would try and do if I could re take this class is space out the soomo learning assignments. They took
a lot more time than I thought so making sure they know the workload is a good idea. I think also
planning times of study and homework rather than trying to cram it in all at once could help. I have
been able to do most of my school towards the end of the week, but with this class I learned about
halfway through that I need to space it out to avoid stress. I enjoyed being in class with all of you. I
think that having an open mind and asking questions when something is not clear. Be open to
learning something new. At first it would not make sense how studying humanities relates to your
currently chosen degree. However, as you navigate through the course, you realize that humanities
are around us and mastering it will assist you in personal and professional life. For example, being a
better communicator, open to new ideas and having an open mind when it comes to other cultures
will bring our globalization that much closer and teach us something new as an individual. I had fun
doing this course and learned something new about the impact humanities has on our everyday
lives. Studying the humanities is no easy task. There is a lot of reading and knowledge retention
involved in the course, and I have a few recommendations for next term's humanities students.
First, make plans as the modules are extended, and keep in mind that you will need the reading
material to be successful and advance throughout the modules and in the class in general. For
example, this will help you submit on-time assignments and avoid procrastination.
Second, do not hesitate to contact your professor and ask any questions or share any concerns. For
example, I was not attracted to any of the artifacts mentioned in the course, so I contacted my
professor to ask if I could change them. Fortunately, he said yes, and I must admit that doing
something of my interest kept me motivated and engaged through the course.
Third, use the resources available to you, such as The Shapiro Library and Tutors, to help when
doubting yourself about your works. For instance, even though the course lets us share our
thoughts and perspectives, we must explain how we got to such conclusions, so having reliable
resources is essential to support our opinions and views.
One of the approaches I found helpful in mastering the course concepts was to manage my time to
go through the modules with enough time to comprehend the information accurately. Another
approach I found extremely helpful was keeping an open mind to help me understand better the
concepts of the course because this course teaches you about different cultures, times, and
perspectives.
My biggest piece of advice is to choose something that you are passionate about. It is one thing to
pick something because you must and give a stiff presentation filled with stats and citations, and
another thing entirely to pick something you want to, to have opinions based in research, and to
breathe life into every statement because you mean what you say. Humanities is about expression,
and to succeed, you must get in touch with your own feelings and express yourself through your
work, no matter what it may be. I would just say to make sure you have adequate time and making
sure you stay consistent with your work. c Just get started early on your work and stay on top of all
the readings. I would say try not to focus too much on the fact that you may not have all the
information because so much of this course is done through your own point of view and a lot of
times there is not right or wrong solution. c Put your best effort into your work and keep moving
forward. c I would say that I would reach out to your professor if you find yourself needing help, this
is something that I wish I would have done. c Lastly, read your peers discussion posts thoroughly so
you can get a good feel for all the different perspectives. One recommendation I would give to the
coming term’s humanities students is to find the fine line between patience for oneself and
procrastination. I am not afraid to admit that I procrastinate my work, even to the point of being
late at times. So, when you receive the warning to give yourself more time, it is highly
recommended to listen, as, with any other class, the work will pile up. When I was going through
my assignments, I found that I was truly encapsulated by the humanities I examined. Giving yourself
time to look freely at the arts and explore them to your heart's desire is just as much of a reward as
getting a good grade.
One recommendation I suggest is to pick a final project subject that you will want to learn more
about that will keep you wanting to stay intrigued. Humanities is a great course; I have learned
many things. Another suggestion, stay focused and read everything! There is a lot of material and
sometimes key components get lost. My recommendation for next term's humanities students
would be to pick a topic for your presentation that you are passionate about. My topic is something
that is so close to my heart so when I was working on my presentation it was enjoyable. I felt
inspired to work hard on it because I wanted it to turn out well. My advice I would give to the
students who take this class next would be to take notes and keep an open mind. Be open minded
about what you see, hear, and read. The knowledge from this course can be used in your everyday
lives. Taking notes has helped me through my entire life. Writing down anything from a grocery list
or taking notes from a course has been helpful. I do not have the best memory, but I have noticed
that if I write it down then I have a better chance at remembering what I needed to. I say be open
minded, because if you do not have an open mind, you will not learn everything that you need to
master this course. There is some interesting information in this course. I hope that this advice may
be useful to the next students in this course. I also wish my classmates the best of luck in their
upcoming courses. If I had one recommendation for the next humanities class, it would be to
approach the class with and open mind with the will to learn. Coming into a class like this with that
mentality will help you to succeed and learn new things. That is the main approach I took for this
course. Another approach I took was spacing out my work as much as I could so that I would not
have to cram at the last minute. This let me take things in and spend more time gaining an
understanding of the material. What advice would I give to someone taking this course? That is an
interesting question. It has the protectional for multiple answers. I would say that from an
educational stand point it is important to find a good schedule and keep it. If that means not
spending time out, then that is what you do. c From the standpoint of piquing interest then the I
would advise that you find what you love and follow the research from there.
I personally had a hard time with my schedule as I work long hours at the hospital. It causes me to
be so exhausted that I sometimes miss getting things done when I am wanting to. I love to learn and
studying the past is something I really enjoy. I had a very easy time finding information on one of
my artifacts as I was already so familiar with the historical content it came from. I have taken
several courses that have written papers so knowing how to research for a school project was easier
for me to understand. For next term's humanities students, I would recommend they make sure to
figure out a schedule to balance school, work, and down time. I thought I could manage on my own
without developing a schedule, but I began to struggle with the amount of coursework required for
this class without one. I also think it is important that people have an open mind throughout this
course. I started this class off with little to no interest in visual art, but I feel that it has become
more intriguing to me. If I had to think of one thing that would be useful for the next class of
humanities students, it would be to make sure you stick to your study schedule and try not to let
other things going on in your life interrupt you on your journey to higher education. The class load
can seem large at first glance but if you take the time to do it, it turns out not to be so much after
all. I found approaching this class with the understanding that I know far from it all and the
willingness to learn things through the perspectives of others made it far easier to understand the
materials.References
Beckmann, N. A. (2020). The fragmentation of a discipline: how diversity elevates and undermines
ire’s normative potential.
