JAN 185 - The Place of the University: Oxford

As more and more of life moves online, contemporary higher education faces an important, live question: what is the purpose and meaning of place? This phenomenon could be addressed as related to work ( why have offices?), to the homelessness crisis (what is a home?), but as we at Saint Mary’s are all gathered around the particular place of our College we will study this problem as it relates to higher education. Is the physical nature of higher education-its buildings, human proximity to fellow students and professors, etc. essential to the goals of higher education, or of secondary importance and consideration? To investigate this topic we will read from “self educated” authors and authors who emerge from traditional institutions. Most of our research will focus on a single case study: the University of Oxford.

Oxford is one of the oldest Universities in the world, in continuous operation since the eleventh century. Across disciplines, Oxford boasts leading thinkers who have made historic impact. Could these leaders have emerged just as well from the local public library, or from a basement with a high-speed wifi connection? By reading about the history of higher education in Oxford, influential works by eminent Oxford scholars, educational theorists, and studying the city and the more than 40 individual Colleges, we will hope to answer these timely questions. It is our hope that these learnings will guide us even as we return to the place of our own College and homes and future jobs, concerning why these physical places exist, their enduring importance today, and how we can better engage there together.

Instructor(s): Colin Redemer & Gary Vanderpol
Email:  Cr6@stmarys-ca.edu
 

Prerequisites & Notes
Prerequisites:  ENG 005 (B or better), SEM 002  or 102 and 103 (B or better). At least one of: AH 190, or AH 193, or ART 176 or ATC 117, or ATC 180 or PHIL 111 course (B or better) or by or permission of instructor. And to have filled out a google form questionnaire which asks students to read a poem and reflect on it, talk about the liberal arts relative to the material arts, and think about a building.
Course Fee:  4200
 

Credits: 1