Vim Quietude

Take an acting class.

No, seriously. I don't care if you're too shy or think you'll never be able to act. We all put on masks and act out different versions of ourselves when placed in different situations yada yada and so on.

The short of it is acting helps you relate to other people because you learn how to sympathize and understand what the character you're playing is thinking. This in turn is good for dealing with people, because while you may not be able to fully understand you can at least be more open to thinking differently. This means you can sympathize with people who aren't you.

With this in mind, I think acting classes should be REQUIRED in school.

I mean, have you seen what teachers (at least good ones) have to learn in order to teach in this country? Lots and lots of studies on multiculturalism as well as different degrees of psychology and sociology. The reason is that any given class can have a myriad of cultures mixed into it, which means several different ways of thinking based on culture. You don't want any child left behind, especially if they're making an effort. But some things are impossible to learn without learning culture.

So if the teachers have to make that kind of effort (at least the good ones) then I think students should be required to make that kind of effort too. If teachers need it to teach, then students need it for group projects as well as simply getting along with each other. And obviously, this will help them out later wherever they live, unless they can find a place where everyone is just like themselves.

posted by Deriser @ 10:56 AM