Eliza Barstow understands the impact honors courses can have on exposing students to new perspectives.
Barstow – a senior instructor in the School of History, Philosophy and Religion at Oregon State University and the 2023 Margaret and Thomas Meehan Honors College Eminent Professor – began her own journey with honors education during her undergraduate years at the Schreyer Honors College at Penn State University. She recalls how her favorite honors courses changed her perception of the topics they explored. “I particularly loved an honors class on astronomy,” she notes. “Like many students, I was not enthusiastic about the need to take courses well outside of my area of study; for me, that meant I was not thrilled about science courses.” However, upon taking the class, Barstow overcame her initial skepticism and became engrossed in the subject. “I subsequently took another more advanced astronomy course — one that involved a significant amount of math — because I had enjoyed the first one so much.”
Another class, on Shakespeare, similarly transformed her perception of a challenging topic. Though Barstow did not initially “really love Shakespeare,” she emerged from the course with a newfound admiration. “I now enjoy Shakespeare quite a bit,” Barstow accounts; in fact, she recently visited a live production of Macbeth, which she highly recommends. “Students reading this article should know that tickets to Oregon Shakespeare Festival performances are only $25 for students!”
Barstow now explores the capacity of honors classes to open students up to new topics as a teacher. Since beginning her career at OSU in 2016, she has developed several honors colloquia courses, including Race, White Supremacy and the State of Oregon and the Handmaid’s Tale and American Religious Diversity.
Her newest honors colloquium is called Difficult Conversations. This class aims to equip students with the dialogue skills necessary for bridging divides and seeking common ground amongst individuals with differing views.
The inspiration for Difficult Conversations came from Barstow’s observation of “an increase in people’s willingness to exist in social or political bubbles — writing off folks with different perspectives on political, religious and cultural issues.” She believes in the importance of seeking to rectify this division, “because it can hinder the process of finding solutions to problems.” She adds, “Our goal in these conversations is not to ‘win,’ but rather to learn.”
Barstow explains, “while there may be a certain satisfaction people garner from surrounding themselves with like-minded individuals, problem solving also necessitates working with people who hold diverse viewpoints. Humanity is unlikely to find workable remedies for climate change or work towards resolutions for wars if people do not first practice dialogue.” Students enrolled in Difficult Conversations will practice dialogue skills by pairing up with other students and leading conversations on a topic of their choice.
Barstow’s overarching goal for students in this class is that they “feel more confident talking to folks with different viewpoints.” She also hopes to see them become proactive leaders who teach these skills to others. “My dream is for the students who take this course to start dialogue groups within their communities, for instance, in libraries, on campuses and in their homes.”
The Honors College is offering Difficult Conversations as a one-week, in-person Summer Extension Course from June 17 – 21, 2024. It will also be offered during the coming fall term.
Register for summer HC classes today, and explore HC Summer Extension and Ecampus course offerings at beav.es/cgr.
By Shion Britten, Student Writer
CATEGORIES: All Stories Courses and Faculty Homestories