<p>sseamom, no, the West coast Huskies. 
University of Washington. I saw the “sea” in your name and assumed.</p>
<p>I don’t doubt that courses on popular culture can be interesting and worthwhile.
Are they becoming numerous enough to displace courses that take a broader perspective on people, places, and cultures far removed from our own? If they are web based, do they still provide ample opportunities for Q&A, discussion, and challenging writing assignments that the professor returns with written feedback?</p>
<p>I agree with others who say we’d need to hear more about the specific course. Still, parents are right to take an interest in the content and rigor of college courses. The other day I was looking over the anthropology course offerings for a pretty respected LAC. Yes, it’s easy to read too much into course titles or even the descriptions … but there did seem to be a strong bias toward contemporary, trendy stuff. The only cultures that seemed to be well represented were contemporary Asia and Latin America (with lots of emphasis on modern material culture). I did not notice a single course in archaeology, physical anthropology, linguistic anthropology, or ethnographic field methods.</p>
<p>The planet is big. Human beings have been on it for a long, long time. Contemporary popular culture represents a teeny tiny slice of the human experience. </p>
<p>tk, as a former anthro major, I just have to say that when you’re choosing an anthro program you have to be very careful about where you pick. All professors have their specializations and they should really only be teaching about what they know (their specializations). </p>
<p>My large, top 100 research U had very limited course offerings on linguistic and physical anthro because that just wasn’t the faculty they hired. Which is fine, I wanted cultural anthro and they had that in spades. If I had wanted to focus on linguistic anthro, I would’ve gone somewhere else. </p>
<p>This is why it’s important to not just “fit” with a college, but to make sure that whatever it is you want to study (if you have an idea) is offered there- and that you check out the courses and faculty, not just the program overview. </p>
<p>LasMa-I do live in Seattle now, and my H is a UW grad, but I started out back east. UConn being only a couple of hours from NYC made it possible for our prof to bring in these amazing guest speakers.I’ll have to ask H and the UW version of the class.</p>
<p>Seems like a legit humanities course. </p>
<p>OP - To me, one fluff course in the semester is not a big deal if there are 3 or 4 other meaty courses. It’s good that you remained calm </p>
<p>OP, I don’t know if you’ve seen it, but someone piggybacked on your concern and asked the parents here what “fluff” courses we took in college. We have survived and thrived despite taking classes such as:</p>
<p>Advanced Surfing
The Biology and Appreciation of Companion Animals
The Fairy Tale
Lost Tribes and Sunken Continents
Relaxation (in which the students lie down for an hour)
History of the Horror Film
Pocket Billiards
Flower Arranging</p>
<p>It’s OK to take a few fun/easy classes in college. :)</p>
<p><a href=“OK, Parents--What's the "fluffiest" course YOU took in college? - #31 by ucbalumnus - Parent Cafe - College Confidential Forums”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/1692113-ok-parents-whats-the-fluffiest-course-you-took-in-college-p3.html</a></p>
<p>I would have less problem paying tuition for a fluff course than paying room and board for an on-line course. :)) </p>
<p>In my experience, after a certain number of credit hours each class does not really add to the tuition bill at my school. For example, if you are full time student taking 12 hours (3 hours per class) then taking an additional one credit ‘fluff’ class does not cost any additional money. In a situation like that, it is silly to complain about ‘fluff’ classes ‘wasting money’ since you are not out any extra money.</p>
<p>Now, if the fluff course is what separates you between full time and part time or costs additional, then I may have qualms.</p>
<p>Regardless, it’s not as if ‘fluff’ courses are new or somehow poison the entire academic experience. Taking underwater basket weaving or the history of the Beatles might actually stick with you for much longer than the calculus class that you took first semester of freshman year and completely forgot about the day after the final exam, but no one says that learning calculus is useless.</p>
<p>Everything’s relative, depending on student aptitude and preparation, and the way a given course is taught. </p>
<p>The time to worry in our house was when one of our kids decided that fluff courses and “easy A” courses were a waste of tuition money, and crowded (overloaded) their schedule with courses that required LOTS of prep time. The result was not pretty, to say the least. </p>
<p>If your student is already taking three “meaty” courses or classes well outside their comfort zone, you probably want them to take a class that is relaxing or requires little preparation, even if only to bring them up to full-time status. </p>