- Nov 2017
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engagements2017-18.as.virginia.edu engagements2017-18.as.virginia.edu
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It is at that age of aptness, docility & emulation of the practices of manhood, that such things are soonest learnt, and longest remembered.
Agreed. In times of learning, say in college for instance, there will be particular aspects of school that we will never forget, and this is because we are still in our learning stage. Our brains are still developing and trying to figure out how to do certain things. When learning how to become a grown man, or woman, we take what we learn habitually and hold it in our minds forever if it sticks with us.
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To enlighten them with mathematical and physical sciences which advance the arts & administer to the health, the subsistence & comforts of human life
I appreciate this statement because the founders were right in putting their observations of education on these aspects. They included math, science, and health, and these aspects cover much of what the world needs to have solved. They focused on which subjects would be the most beneficial to human life, and I appreciate their thought process with this.
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To instruct the mass of our citizens in these their rights
The founders of this University had the goal of making their students outstanding citizens. The list included above shows us today what a "citizen" was thought to be back then. A lot of what the Commissioners thought of as the tenets of a good citizen are thought of in the same way today, however now days many of these things are learned before or without a college education. Today higher education is more about advancing one's knowledge and getting a job than becoming a good citizen. The goals of and reasons for attending college are much different today than they were when this university was founded, but I believe that today's graduates become better citizens without that goal in mind.
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Spanish is highly interesting to us, as the language spoken by so great a portion of the inhabitants of our Continents, with whom we shall possibly have great intercourse ere long
The Commissioners thought it important to speak Spanish so they could interact with the societies around them. It's important for those in positions of power to be able to communicate with others in similar positions in different countries. This will make for better foreign relations, as it is easier to communicate, and a sign of respect to speak in the other's native tongue.
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- Oct 2017
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engagements2017-18.as.virginia.edu engagements2017-18.as.virginia.edu
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It will form the first link in the Chain of an historical review of our language through all its successive changes to the present day, will constitute the foundation of that critical instruction in it, which ought to be found in a Seminary of general learning
It is particularly noteworthy that the authors thought to use Anglo Saxon to teach about the development of language over time. Since this was the language spoken by most of the prospective students, tracking its changing history would provide an engaging demonstration of the dynamic nature of language. In other words, by using Anglo Saxon, students would be able to identity their own contemporary role in the timeline of an always developing language. Having this knowledge, students would (perhaps unconsciously) attain an understanding of how all art, not just language, can change meaning over time. This could help students in time grasp the developments occurring to their university which is, in many ways, a work of art in itself.
-Joe S.
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To enlighten them with mathematical and physical sciences which advance the arts & administer to the health, the subsistence & comforts of human life:
I believe this sentence very accurately characterizes the intentions and the foundations of the New College Curriculum; The New College seeks to provide students with a core knowledge of the arts (especially how they are applied in our society) that can be further strengthened and complemented in studies of math and science should students so choose in the future. This sort of foundation, outlined in both the document and the mission of the New Curriculum, is important because it can allow students to examine a wide range of academic fields before studying concrete methods of applying those fields practically. Since I am taking the Art: Inside/Out Engagement, I also sought to interpret this sentence in taking "arts" literally to mean art in its various expressive forms. In this way, this sentence helps develop the important concept that art and maths/sciences in no way exist in conflict with each other; while many believe these two subjects to be on opposite sides of an academic spectrum, this section of the Rockfish Gap Report helps to remind that art and science can freely interact and engage with each other to work for the benefit of both.
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- Sep 2017
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engagements2017-18.as.virginia.edu engagements2017-18.as.virginia.edu
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They will be more advanced than we are, in science and in useful arts, and will know best what will suit the circumstances of their day.
This sentence kind of stuck out to me. I thought it was very Jeffersonian. When creating the US Constitution, Jefferson wanted the people to revise it every 19 years, so each generation could change aspects of the government according to their time. He brought the idea of changing institutions to better fit generations to his university, because he could not make it work in his country. The commissioners put their faith in the future generations, hoping that the university will keep the same basic principles through a changing world. -Tessa
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To develope the reasoning faculties of our youth, enlarge their minds cultivate their morals, & instil into them the precepts of virtue & order
I find it interesting that the University made it a goal to cultivate the morals of the students attending their school. They also stress how they want to instill the precepts of virtue and order. They want to achieve this, yet they based the location of their school to be around the centrality of the white population. I do not believe this is cultivating the morals of their students. This is narrowing their viewpoints, and not expanding on the multitude of cultures that lie within the United States.
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that to secure Ourselves where we are, we must tread with awfull reverence in the footsteps of Our fathers
This University was founded by one of the "fathers", at a time when the revolution was not the country's history, but part of one's personal past. The ideals of the founding fathers were ingrained in the people at this time, so it makes perfect sense that the commissioners would want to align themselves with their ideas of liberty and equality. However the word choice is kind of strange. The way it's worded makes it seem as if the commissioners had not purposefully aligned themselves with the founders, their university would not survive. This university seems to have been founded with great consideration to the government- not how one may want it to be. If a university and government are tied together, how can things change and progress? -Tessa
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The tender age at which this part of education commences, generaly about the tenth year, would weigh heavily with parents in sending their sons to a school so distant as the Central establishment would be from most of them
The University set out a goal for the parents of young boys to begin their studies of the ancient languages at the year of age ten. This is an extremely young age, considering that the boys would be going to college eight years later. The minds of the young boys seem to be too young to be able to grasp this form of art. This correlates to my Engagement, Art Inside/Out, by focusing on the art aspect. Latin, Greek, and Hebrew are forms of art in the language aspect. This piece of art is powerful and intriguing; however, it may be too complex for the minds of ten year olds who are still trying to develop.
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