Advice
This class will go very smoothly if you complete lesson materials before attending class and actively participate in the small group discussions. The most important thing you should know coming into this class is that a large part of the lecture is DISCUSSION! You will not be able to discuss with your classmates if you don’t complete the lesson materials beforehand and not only is that frustrating for your peers, but it prevents you from learning as well! I found out that the best way for me to absorb the material and have questions ready for discussion was to take notes over the readings/podcasts that were assigned. In my opinion, simply reading/listening to the materials will not be enough to prepare you for a good class discussion and definitely won’t adequately prepare you for the exams.
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I think the thing that helped me the most in this class (and especially to prepare for the exams) was to write down the study guide for each lesson and define/give explanations of each of the terms or phrases as I went through the lesson materials. This made sure that I had the definitions in front of me to refer to during class and it also cut back the amount of time I would have spent searching for those terms when studying for the exams.
Chances are, this class is probably not what you are expecting…it certainly wasn’t for me! With this in mind, I encourage you to enter into each lesson with an open mind. You are definitely going to encounter terms and ideas that you never thought could be connected to religion or that you didn’t even know existed. It is likely that you are going to feel uncomfortable and confused at some point because the topics that we discuss in this class are complicated and carry a lot of weight, but that is okay! Luckily, Professor CJ is very understanding and genuinely wants you to succeed. Throughout the semester, he constantly asked us for feedback, was willing to extend deadlines for individuals who needed it, and took every opportunity to make sure we understood the topics.
My favorite part of the class was probably Unit 1 which introduced us to Religious Studies as an academic field and discussed what religion and religious studies is and isn’t. I found that a lot of things I thought I knew about religion were incorrect and I shared in many of the common misconceptions that are out there. This class provides a great framework for critical thinking that can be expanded beyond one academic field and applied to pretty much anything in your life. I promise you will learn a lot!
