bipoc

GHAZI | Silence Is Participation Too

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Whoever first said to think before you speak evidently never took a course that graded their participation. Before I came to Cornell, I dreamed of college classrooms with endless conversation. Now, in my final semester, my learning usually happens when I’m silent — truncated by empty comments born from the hollow frames of other empty comments. 

A word salad of unprofound buzzwords emerges when an unprovocative reading meets a room of seasoned skimmers who yearn for an A. Participation may count for 25 percent or more of a final grade, leading to a performance to cushion it. Participation for the sake of participation wastes tuition dollars, time and a professor’s expertise. We must swap our limited definition of participation for one that rewards silence, encourages listening and steers us to material that cues discussion on subjects worthy of contention.

Columns

BHOWMICK | The Rest Is Silence

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The flipside of being aware and constantly thinking, questioning and critically analyzing everything we come across is the sheer anxiety it translates into. As someone who has struggled with a mind that does not believe in quietude, I have been thinking deeply of silence of late. Silence is powerful. Yes, it makes us uncomfortable but embracing silence makes a world of a difference. This is especially relevant in our microcosm on the Hill.