Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Retroviruses (and STI's) in Retrospect

This class was exactly what I thought it would be. There were no surprises about the covered material; it was all very straightforward. I didn't think there would be in-depth coverage of the immune system, but I think learning about it is pretty important when dealing with sexual health. I also didn't expect to have a speaker about the social systems of oppression usually covered in women studies classes, which I thought was really interesting. I liked all the guest speakers--I think they gave lots of new perspectives on different subjects, especially HIV+ Bob Skinner.

The most useful information we covered was probably the systems of oppression because dealing with them is one of the first steps toward a healthier population not just in the US but all around the world as well. I can't think of anything particularly useless that we learned in class because everything pretty much had to be brought up, from the different STI's, transmission, treatments, social systems, countries around the world, America's progress, practicing safer sex, the list goes on and on. It all had something to do with AIDS and STI's and leaving them out wouldn't really have any positive aspects.

Something that could be changed next time is the format of the lecture. I liked watching the few videos we had, and it would be nice to have less powerpoint lectures and more activities or other modes of teaching. I definitely think this subject needs to be taught at the university level because I didn't learn even half as much as I did in middle or high school. This subject is easier taught in front of more mature, open-minded students who actually have an idea of what is being talked about. I really enjoyed this class.

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