Challenging the Status-Quo

So who would’ve thought that education could be so much fun, anti-establishment, and immersing all at once? The people at Prescott College, that’s who. I am now enrolled in my second semester at this school and am enjoying classes in Peace Studies and Image, Power, and Mass Culture. In Peace Studies we are learning about the effects that war has on society, as well as the peaceful non-violent movements that have accompanied most every war for the last 900+ years. From the Roman Empire to the revolutionary wars that came after the Industrial Revolution to the present day, conscientious objectors have used nonviolent methods to express pro-peace sentiments. The class ties in really well with my Image, Power, and Mass culture class because at the same time we are learning the influence that the mass media has on society and how it is used to push the agendas/spin the war crimes of the corporations involved in the ownership of these media outlets. Nothing about these classes tries to uphold the status-quo. They instead try to get students to look at alternative ways of thinking that may contradict former worldviews gained through education in a state-sponsored school system. The dialogue that grows from these lessons has the ability to change people, lives, and world views. Every day I look forward to the challenge or discussion that will arise out of a single class, and wonder what new ideas it will spark within myself or fellow class mates.