Crashing Class
Sarah Scribner
Par-oozing around the New York University campus on West 4th and Mercer I began to observe the scene. For a business education, or experience in management I would need a key(card). This is the key that would unlock the knowledge that keeps students in debt as they enter their alumni years in an economy without roles for an increasingly educated workforce.
If one can gain acceptance and have the financial stability to endure the cost of obtaining a masters degree in a dwindling economy then that extra term of education can be seen as a chance to wait for change. (Sorry for the anti Obama reference, I am into Obama, but that wrote itself). The noticeable problem those outside of this generation see is that 20-something's change their minds too fast to ensue a real career path. Partially related to the portrayal of 20-somethings on the HBO show "Girls" the reality of Lena Dunham's work has put a microscope on a generation. A group with a combination of willingness to adapt to challenges that come along, as well as the problem of choice. We have the ability to tune our talents towards so many outlets that we can continue in the cycle of spin at the laundry mat and be amused, as long as we have an iPhone and running shoes.
Pulling the student card is like opening a master card, the bill is bound to show up. Existing in Brooklyn in an era of expansive entrepreneurship due to living in a creation economy lead me to homeschool (which I had the experience of during 8th grade). For a day in the fall semester, I felt it best to pursue mathematics as statistically speaking, the mathematics building is the simplest building to crash.
The courtyard created by buildings on a block is where we find ourselves, back at the scene, school, a place my mother said in my post graduate haze is where, "education is wasted on the young." Each building with different obstacles to their admission, beyond the process of applying, for someone like myself looking to crash class. Business and management both require key cards which an alumni of Steinhart suggested, "could be obtained by offering one of the students a little cash." Not having cash to spare for this experiment I did what needed to be done, smiled politely and slid past security. Comparably the smile is the same one used to get into a party with a fake, one skill undergrads are sure to master. Once past the line there were elevators to take, hallways to explore and class schedules to figure out. There I found myself at a class on algorithms.
The New York Public Library branch on Jersey Street does not even ask to collect late fees. When spending the day downtown this is an ideal place as the transition to Cafe Columbe is a simple stroll up Lafayette. In one afternoon I can go from brushing up on Art History to reading Woody Allen's defense on insanity (The Insanity Defense). Using Penultimate, a fun application designed by Evernote, I can take notes with a stylus to help "study" for exams I do not have.
Uptown at Marymount, I crash Philosophy of Death, my notes on that are quite scribbled in my moleskin but a point I have taken away from my horrible penmanship is:
As we are the result, the reality of the environment we inhabit on the day to day. The observation of ourselves, our time, coincides that as we exist our thoughts divide into new boundaries of the mind. The essence of this totality of being - picking up debris as the sole of our shoes step in the street taking us to a place above two feet, as we accumulate days.
Hunter College is tight with security but once inside it is the holly grail of printing pages in a world that won’t have enough trees to produce paper for all the future readers. I would not trust the sushi bar, instead cross the bridge between buildings to take in talent the English department has teaching. A fiction workshop I dropped in on with a friend, has been a glimpse into realm of writing I never studied. Taking away advice without the commitment of staying in school to improve on my work has been inspiring to say the least. It also makes me tell the "kids" that they are really lucky and to, intern, travel and work well.
School often alludes to those tempted to break rules, such was the case of crashing class I was attempting to orientate myself into for a Film&Video education. A spring snow storm and the observation of mixed mediums at the Armory show delayed my F train departure to arrive late BRIC. Pleading to use the ladies room as leverage to be buzzed behind closed doors, concluded with me following signs to orientation. The security chick caught me as the professor discussed bending the rules, not breaking them. With a guilty grin I proceeded to leave not wanting to cause a scene in front of a cute classmate who left to complain about boring orientation to security as I begged to replace his now empty seat. In my formal education where funds fell to obtain a degree, tardiness was often overlooked, here I was unable to obtain orientation due to the F train and Andre Masson, thus I flunked.
Salman Khan created an Academy on the Internet using technics and his previous access to an incredible education at MIT and Harvard Business. Leaving work in finance to share knowledge beyond his family which inspired him to found a model which intends to act as a private tutor. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as well as Google was proud to stand behind this project to curate educational content. I am surprised not more are aware of this. As a Class Crasher (&general Celebration Crasher) it is strange to be telling public school teachers I am acquainted with about the possibility to use this as a tool to track students progress as they have limitations to time spent one on one with a child. It is formatted in a way digital natives will relate to as they can receive rewards of badges for work done. If crashing class is not your cards, the Khan Academy and Luminosity are applications downloadable direct to your iDevice. Luminosity will illuminate your brains ability as the program trains you to challenge your cognitive capabilities. If paying for a program will help to make it routine after the free trail then go ahead, games are played with a certain amount of satisfaction from the feedback. The experience will make you recall SAT’s as you are given your percentile in the BPI (Brain Performance Index).
My postgraduate education has simply reminded me of the way school is a model for life. While within that structure it can feel enclosed from the real world, but the correlation between class and corporation is evident. Adverts on the commute remind us of what keeps society turning as well as our community obligations:tax season is soon. Collecting change at the cafe reminds us why we can calculate without calculators. Email correspondence is communications, relying on language arts send a message as well as tally what isn't done on our to-do list. What is in(the)box, we must do. Morning news, is the morning meeting to ensure we are all on the same page. We take notes at work because we are dictated too. We form teams to break up what is due. We take tests because in life we are expected to give answers. So on and so forth this goes on in the streets where we are continuously schooled to the rules:regarding the signs, discussing and interpreting what is on our minds.
Photo Credit: Alina Mardirossian @ https://twitter.com/oneofusnewyork