Wayne State: Math Out Diversity In

I just read that Detroit's Wayne State University has decided to add a diversity class to their general education curriculum and drop a required math class.

Does this sound right to you?

The Michigan Capitol Confidential new site is reporting about this interesting development.

A Wayne State University facility committee is quotes in the article stating:

These courses will provide opportunities for students to explore diversity at the domestic level and consider the ways in which it intersects with real world challenges at the local, national and/or global level. This decision was made largely because the current (math) requirement is at a level already required by most high school mathematics curriculum.

Don't you think that more math classes will better benefit the student?

The executive director of the National Association of Scholars, Ashley Thorne, was also quoted in the article stating:

Colleges and universities use general education requirements to ensure that students learn the subjects it deems most important, Wayne State University’s decision to drop math and add diversity to its requirements reveals that its leaders do not have their priorities straight.Mathematical ability is an objective and practical skill that will serve students the rest of their lives, which is why it has traditionally been a core part of college curricula. ‘Diversity’ is not an academic subject. It is a concept invented to classify people by their social identities. Focusing on individuals’ race, ethnicity, sex, and sexuality in this way has been demonstrated to lead to racial animus, segregation, stigmas, discrimination, and poor academic performance. It also politicizes education.

We are told by education experts that America students lack mathematics skills when compared to the rest of the industrialized world. If that is true why drop a required mathematic's class for a diversity class. Sounds like an agenda driven decision to me, how about you?

Let’s talk about this tomorrow on The Live with Renk Show which airs Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to noon. To let me know your thoughts during the show please call (269) 441-9595.

Or please feel free to start a discussion and write your thoughts in the comment section.