Academic integrity takes another hit

From the very first day of our orientation here at Penn, the concept of academic integrity is beaten into our heads. Don't even think about violating the hallowed code, lest you face the repercussions. If you cheat on a test once, you face suspension and possible expulsion. Dare to cheat a second time? Penn steals your first born. Or something like that.

But I would argue that academic integrity is a two-way street. It's not just the job of the students to uphold the highest standards in their further pursuit of knowledge. It is the job of universities to provide them with the best possible opportunities for academic enrichment. It's integrity of a different sort. Sadly, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte has failed to uphold these standards.

A press release from the university announces that, starting in January, the school will offer a course entitled "Examining American Idol through Musical Critique." Perhaps it's an homage to their most famous alumnus, Clay Aiken. Starting next semester, students will have the opportunity to "watch the show twice a week and devise [their] own system for rating contestants," CNN reports. The final's a real killer too. It's a lengthy treatise on the most fundamental of educational concepts: Who should win and why? CNN further quoted assistant professor of musicology Jay Grymes (or Grimey, as he's known to his friends), the course's founder, as saying he believes the course can serve as a springboard for serious discussion about the art of performing music and the craft of critiquing it.

It's hard to understand how a school can present a straight face to the world and offer this class for academic credit. But UNC Charlotte isn't alone. Fox News reported last year that Cerritos College in Norwalk, Calif., offers an intellectually challenging course called "Words and Magic: Harry Potter and Vocabulary."

There's nothing inherently wrong with using popular culture as a means to some further academic end. However, when it's patently obvious that that end is made up, you are left with no choice but to accept it with a huge grain of salt. How can we take professor Grymes seriously when his final project is who will win and why? American Idol is a hugely successful show, but it's nothing more than a glorified popularity contest. The show produces not true musical talents, but manufactured pop stars with good voices. In fact, it is perhaps the worst way to judge how the music industry chooses to evaluate its talent. That's why Simon, Randy and Paula don't make the final decisions. The public does, and if you've ever taken an introductory marketing class, you know that the public at large is inherently stupid. Don't try and justify this class as anything more than what it really is: a ridiculous attempt to allow college students to watch TV for credit.

OK, I'm done venting.

Classes like this do a huge disservice to the world of academia. The role of a university education should be twofold: to enrich the students' overall academic experience and to prepare them for the challenges that they'll face in the real world. This UNC Charlotte course does neither. It's great that this professor really enjoys watching Simon Cowell berate a bunch of singers -- most of whom aren't very talented -- but that doesn't mean that he should be allowed to teach a class on it. I watch SportsCenter religiously. Perhaps we can have a class devoted to "The Art of the Catchphrase." Final exam: Examine the origins of "Booyah!"

There's a reason that schools have extracurricular activities. Colleges recognize that there is value to events that take place outside the academic realm. That's where this idea belongs. Have a party at night and discuss the show all you want, but don't try and pass this lame idea off as an academic exercise. If we continue down this sad road, perhaps years from now someone will say, "I majored in reality TV with a concentration in Survivor."

If UNC Charlotte wants to discuss American Idol in a quasi-academic setting, then perhaps they should look to Philadelphia for a way to do it. Penn has a great way to pursue these types of ventures: They're called preceptorials. For those unaware, the preceptorial Web site describes these sessions as "short, small, non-credit seminars generated by students and led by some of the University's most-lauded faculty." There are no tests and no grades, just discussion of a topic that a group of students find interesting.

Students can explore various interests that don't fit entirely in the realm of the academic. Examples of interesting ones offered this fall include "Introductory Glass Blowing Workshop," "The Tedium of Immortality" and my personal favorite, "General Tso's Chicken -- What's That?" This university recognizes the opportunity that these preceptorials provide students. It also recognizes their appropriate role in the academic environment.

Those responsible for the academic curricula at Penn understand their job in upholding the school's academic integrity to the students. It's disappointing for the world of academia that UNC Charlotte does not.

Craig Cohen is a Wharton junior from Woodbury, N.Y. He Hate Me appears on Fridays.

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