Classes Basketball Players Take
Hi,
In the "anonymous" notes section of Feinstein apology referenced on the front page there was a note that I want to make sure people in America know isn't true, but I don't know how to do that. Ideas? The contention was that the basketball players get to work towards the "Sociology" major without having to take classes with regular Duke students. For the record, I had some athletes in classes I took at Duke 20 plus years ago. This person believes that since the sociology major is an "athletes" major it makes Duke the dirtiest program in the nation.
Perhaps this belongs as part of the "hatred" tsunami, but there are so many threads in there it becomes unwieldy to read. Where/When did people start getting the idea that Duke had special majors for student-athletes that were not the same as that for a "regular" student? Where did people get the idea, an idea Coach K dispelled at the Final Four, that student-athletes live in athletic dorms at Duke? Was there an article or was this some sort of fictitious fabrication by the anonymous poster on Feinstein's blog?
GO DUKE!
Comments on Feinstein's Blog
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Kewlswim
Hi,
In the "anonymous" notes section of Feinstein apology referenced on the front page there was a note that I want to make sure people in America know isn't true, but I don't know how to do that. Ideas? The contention was that the basketball players get to work towards the "Sociology" major without having to take classes with regular Duke students. For the record, I had some athletes in classes I took at Duke 20 plus years ago. This person believes that since the sociology major is an "athletes" major it makes Duke the dirtiest program in the nation.
Perhaps this belongs as part of the "hatred" tsunami, but there are so many threads in there it becomes unwieldy to read. Where/When did people start getting the idea that Duke had special majors for student-athletes that were not the same as that for a "regular" student? Where did people get the idea, an idea Coach K dispelled at the Final Four, that student-athletes live in athletic dorms at Duke? Was there an article or was this some sort of fictitious fabrication by the anonymous poster on Feinstein's blog?
GO DUKE!
The comments below the Feistein blog are definitely worth reading. They include somewhat literate "foaming at the mouth," such as the ones by Anonymous, and intelligent defense of K and Duke. Especially read the comment that points out that there are no sociology majors on the Duke team, which would seem to be a slight flaw in Anonymous's reasoning. :)
The other points made by Anonymous also suggest why he adopted the posting name he did. Sociology is not a major limited to athletes. And BTW isn't Cultural Anthropology a really tough set of courses? Moreover, one's major occupies only about 25% of the courses an undergraduate takes, unless things have changed since the full decade I spent on college campuses at Duke and at Rice. Moreover, athletes are mainstreamed at Duke, taking courses along with other students.
And why, for heaven sakes, is Duke being singled out for easy majors, when it does not offer Phys Ed, unlike Wake, or Recreation, unlike UNC?
And don't get me started on the Ivy League. No way do Ivy League athletes compete for admission with regular students. And BTW, why is American Studies one of the most popular majors at Yale? Hint: it isn't because of the academic challenge offered.
sagegrouse
'I am happy to see John F. recant about Krzyzewski. It was due, and I am tired of reading anti JF comments on this Board. JF has been a hugely successful sports journalist (in terms of money earned) BECAUSE he is controversial'
Can't Make Blanket Statements
I had a Cultural Anthropology class with Nate Dawg and Jay Williams...they were there, on time, every day, sat in front rows.
My frat also had a big party one night and Tricky Nicky Horvath showed up and ended up in my room checking out my roomie's books, or novels I should say, and asking for recommendations. Anyway, we loaned him one and made him an honorary member of the frat!
OTOH, and this is just to be fair, I was in a History of Warfare class that Casey Sanders was enrolled in. The teacher called role everyday and when he said "Casey Sanders" everyone laughed each time because there was always a long pause like the professor was expecting him to be there...I think the professor didn't know who Casey was and kept wondering why everyone laughed every time. Pretty funny. Furthermoe, it is embarrasing when one's phone goes off in class, but Casey actually answered it and walked to the back of the classroom to have a conversation...I would pay good money to see the look on that professor's face again. It was a large room in East Duke (I think that's what it was called) but there was no hiding. Granted this was right around graduation, kind of when on exam day the class size doubles.
I only post this because you have athletes who go to class and study. I even had a football star (he only Football star during my four years there, one who led the ACC in all purpose yards) he organized study groups and I must say was one of the brighter people in our little group, and very proactive on his own about getting people to share ideas and study together.
Point being, it all has to do with the individual. You can do the bare minimum and coast through college just like a regular student or you can take it serious and actually learn something. The main difference is 'coasting' at Duke is much much harder than your average State school. Cultural Anthropology was not as easy as people make it out to be...the only class at Duke that was easy was the History of Jazz with Paul Jeffries...everything else took serious work to get anything above a C.