# good classes to take in college



## SteveW (Jul 30, 2007)

what are some good classes to take in college that can help you practice social skills or at least give you opportunities to talk to lots of people. I'm mainly referring to classes that would have a lot of class discussions or a lot of work you have to do with other people in the class. I mentioned in another thread I was thinking of taking a speech class I'm just looking for other ideas on what classes I should think about taking.


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## ANCIENT (Aug 9, 2005)

philosophy classes do a lot of class discussions.


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## nightmahr (Jan 2, 2008)

Some of my language classes were like that--group discussion and small activities with a few presentations. I loved my german classes. Everyone was so friendly and relaxed in them and after I kind of fell apart those were the only people I could talk to.


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## vicente (Nov 10, 2003)

I like your bravery and how you're willing to take on your fears head on.

Language classes are good.


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## SADFighter (May 4, 2007)

Yep, language classes. I don't know about you but for me I always have less SA when I'm speaking French. There's not as much pressure and if I'm "quiet," who cares? They just figure I don't understand them or don't know that many words.


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## nightmahr (Jan 2, 2008)

Wow I completely forgot about that. I have no anxiety whatsoever when I speak in french. I was the most talkative person in my french lit class. I even got to talking a bit about my problems because they related to romantic poems and such.

If you can get to where you're somewhat competent in a language like that--it's so liberating. You can see what you might have been like. I know not everyone's like that though.


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## ANCIENT (Aug 9, 2005)

some here. when i was taking japanese i remember going in front of class to talk in japanese and my anxiety wasn't that bad and sometimes i didn't feel any anxiety at all.


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## Prism (Dec 17, 2004)

Debate and Argumentation is the perfect class for you my friend. I took it I my second semester at college. Once you get through a debate class you can handle just about any kind of speech. Plus it can be fun if you like politics or discussing current events.


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## Shy One (May 21, 2005)

I took a digital photography class that you had to do a lot of discussion in but I loved it. I didn't have any anxiety in there. It's kind of hard to figure if a class will require discussion or not. Debate definitely will LoL. Otherwise, Psychology and Sociology require a little bit of talking. When I took American Lit we had the option to do a lot of talking but it wasn't required. I had a Cultural Diversity class that required us to get into groups every class. I hated it though.


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## Shy One (May 21, 2005)

Wait... I have another one. LoL. Biology... or any kind of science with a lab. You will probably have to have lab partners from time to time. I hated that too, but that's what you're looking for.


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## ardrum (May 13, 2007)

You have a ton of good options available. In general, smaller classes might involve more interaction.


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## mjatte (Feb 10, 2007)

smaller classes have a lot more interaction...but have been bad for me cause they haven't helped me, and I really stood out a lot more as a quiet person, and many professors have come right out and called me quiet, and said I should participate more...that is real hard for me..


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## xi (May 9, 2006)

Definitely foreign language class. People are more relax and therefore more friendly to you.


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## ardrum (May 13, 2007)

Yeah, I noticed people were very empathetic in my foreign language classes. I think everyone was a bit nervous to talk, so there was a lot of understanding.


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## Shy One (May 21, 2005)

I took two Spanish courses and I don't think I ever had to talk. Weird.


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## ardrum (May 13, 2007)

Seriously?? Wow. 

We had mandatory speaking and exercises all the time in my Spanish courses. I had to say things every class. I hated taking Spanish at the time!


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## srschirm (Jun 25, 2006)

Public Speaking 101. I regret not taking it.


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## ardrum (May 13, 2007)

srschirm said:


> Public Speaking 101. I regret not taking it.


Yeah, I took that one as well (and got an A!).

I worked my way up to actually starting an informative speech with something like, "I can frequently be found out along the bike path at night getting high. (short pause) Today I'm going to talk about what is sometimes referred to as the runner's high."

That bike path was known as a hotspot for weed smokers, and that opening was actually well received by both the class and the instructor. It definitely got their attention, and people seemed genuinely interested in the speech.


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## endtroducing (Jan 6, 2008)

Wow to everybody who's suggested taking a language. I've taken plenty of language classes (German, Italian, French) and I still hate them. They're very stressful for me, especially if it's a small sized class. Being put on the spot, choosing partners, surprise oral presentations...AHH!!

I suggest sociology or psychology.


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## srschirm (Jun 25, 2006)

ardrum said:


> srschirm said:
> 
> 
> > Public Speaking 101. I regret not taking it.
> ...


Congratulations! That's an awesome opening line! I wish I were that witty...

As far as Endtroducing's suggestion, yeah I'd go along with it, if only because my degree is in Psychology! It's a very interesting subject, no doubt.


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## X33 (Feb 13, 2005)

srschirm said:


> ardrum said:
> 
> 
> > srschirm said:
> ...


yeah that's a very good opening line. My presentations, on the other hand, are boring from start to finish. I would do anything to become witty. I would even trade my SA for wit. HA HA HA
But seriously, how to become witty? I think one approach I am going to try is to work through lateral thinking puzzles. opcorn


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## ardrum (May 13, 2007)

I remember one guy was a hockey player on the school's team, and he simply brought a video of fights he got into and talked about them. :lol

I don't know what his grade ended up being, but it was an entertaining presentation (although it relied more on his video than his talking/elaborating, so that probably hurt him).


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## jaayhou (Jun 20, 2007)

I have to agree with the opinions on taking language classes if you're looking for opportunities to interact more with people. I had to take a year of language (Spanish), and was forced to speak often. A possible plus is that not speaking well is forgivable since you're speaking a new language, which sort of levels the social playing field. However, you get no practice speaking English. 

I didn't enjoy the forced interaction so much. Toward the end of the year, we had to pair up and create a sort of introduction speech followed by questions on a topic of our choosing. The class would then have a "conversation," stating their opinions and responses to the questions.


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