Your most useful class

[forever_town]

In the opposite vein of the most worthless class thread, of the classes you took in high school or college, which one was the MOST valuable to you in your career or your later life? No matter whether you aced it or barely passed it, if you still use stuff you learned from that class in your later life, which class fits the bill?

The one that immediately comes to mind for me was a class called Editing and Document Design. I got a "C" in it (and I think I had to work hard for that), but I learned a lot of skills I use today in copy editing. I also picked up some design principles that I was able to impart on desktop publishing students in a class I was TAing.

 

[Idaho]

Non J-School division: Football Coaching Methods.

I think I was the only non-football player in the class and it was taught by the assistant coaches with the head coach as the 'official' instructor. It was very low key and taught spring semester, but I was actually covering the team at the time for the Big City Daily News and I learned a ton about football in the class and even got a few recruiting scoops in the process

 

[buckweaver]

High school technology. Not because of the material, most of which is outdated even less than a decade later, but because of what I learned from the instructor:

He taught me how to think.

 

[Angola!]

High school - Keyboarding. I had to take it to fill an elective and I am glad I did because now I can type very fast with few mistakes, which obviously helps in this business.

College - American Authors of the 20th Century (or something like that): It was the class that caused me to change my major to English and eventually led me to this profession. It also gave me a bunch of people to talk to who liked to read as much as I do, which was nice.

 

[ink-stained wretch]

Escape and Evade.

Techniques have worked very well on editors will brilliant story ideas they picked up at the country club or the last seminar.

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

Typing! Took it in 9th grade, got a C (one of only two in HS) and now type nearly 100 wpm.

 

[outofplace]

Angola, thanks for mentioning keyboarding. I was about to put something else, but I had pretty much the same experience as you. I still don't know how some people get by with the hunt-and-peck method, but I have seen them do it.

 

[Angola!]

Angola, thanks for mentioning keyboarding. I was about to put something else, but I had pretty much the same experience as you. I still don't know how some people get by with the hunt-and-peck method, but I have seen them do it.

I have had lots of co-workers in my time in the business that type like that. I can't imagine the errors they make and how long it must take them to type stories and agate.

 

[buckweaver]

Until my sixth-grade keyboarding class, I was very, very fast at the hunt-and-peck. Being stubborn as hell, I didn't think that typing "correctly" would make me faster. Well, it did.

 

[trifectarich]

Freshman year of high school -- Typing I (on a MANUAL machine).

 

[cougargirl]

Typing! Took it in 9th grade, got a C (one of only two in HS) and now type nearly 100 wpm.

Agreed. Typing, which I took in the ninth grade. I hated that class but I've certainly made the most of it.

In college it was either public speaking or "women in the workplace." The former because we learned not only to deliver a speech but the importance of delivery, arguments, organization and using facts to support our arguments. The latter because it was a class of six students with a male professor who insisted we debate/discuss instead of spoonfeeding us information, so participation in the course was critical.

 

[Big Buckin' agate_monkey]

Senior year of college, I took a class in which we discussed life after college. It wasn't supposed to be that, but he took about 6 weeks to discuss things like job searching, interviewing, proper follow-up techniques, how to negotiate an offer, dressing for an interview, dressing for a job, 401(k), health benefits ... and a bunch of other stuff similar to the last two items that you don't learn about in college otherwise.

 

[DanOregon]

The first history class I took in college. It was always my favorite and best subject, but the textbook, one of Doug Brinkley's first efforts, gave a warts and all look at some of major events of U.S. History and explained how our country has sometimes moved forward by accidents, screwups and twists of fate. It made the subject and historical figures much more real to me and told me that many "average Joes" have made a positive impact on the nation.

 

[KYSportsWriter]

High School: Oral Communications, English IV -- Had the same teacher for both. Not only did she teach us everything she knew, but like buck-dub, she taught us to think. Oral Comm was a fun class because we did the school play that year.

College: Public Speaking/Intro to Interpersonal Comm/Journalism 101 -- Had the same teacher for PS and IIC. Loved IIC because the class had 13 females and 2 males. The females were divided half young, half older, and I learned and grew a lot from that class. Even met a cute girl, who I'm still damn good friends with to this day.

Public Speaking got me out of my shell, so to speak. I hated speaking in front of the class, but this one was different.

Journalism 101 was my easiest class because none of the other kids in the class had any experience in the field like I did. More or less, I became the teacher's pet because of that and could miss class whenever I wanted due to "work reasons." :D

 

[Norman Stansfield]

Athletic training. My basketball coach taught it, and it ultimately saved me hundreds, if not thousands in doctor's bills over the years as I treated my myriad ankle sprains with the old faithful RICE method.

 

[silvershadow1981]

I have two

Lifetime fitness and wellness; A trumped up way of saying gym class, but the professor's enthusiasm and quirky life quotes somehow motivated me to lose 46 pounds since the class started in January, when I was having trouble after I lost the first 35 or so.

African American Experience, 1865-present; For me, knowing my history was my main purpose in taking this class, but Dr. Yohuru Williams, who will go down as one of the most brilliant people I've ever met, gave me the courage and confidence to speak up and have an opinion and not to back down if you truly know your stuff. That last thing has made me somewhat of a smart-ass, but it was better than being quiet, intimidated neurotic SS like I was from birth until 22.

 

[Ace]

High school

Shop -- I learned to sit quietly, do nothing and respect authority

College

Hmmm. Well, I guess Journalism I. I was an English Lit major, so usefulness wasn't high on the list of why I was taking classes.

 

[audreyld]

HS: Debate
Uni: Editorial Writing

Both taught me how to formulate sound logical arguments.

 

[rallen13]

Band. Because my band director was the only one, family included, that ever thought I was worth a sh*t or would amount to anything. And he kept telling me that until I actually believed him. Years later, I worked in the same scholl district with him and saw him every Friday and Saturday at the football games. Lost a true friend when he passed away.

 

[Tom Petty]

physics