Strage Presentations at Northwestern

When I went home for spring break last week, I was pretty out of the loop in regards to current events in Chicago. There were elections for a new mayor, a giant snow storm who many referred to as the “Snowpocalypse,” and gas process soaring well over $4.00. While looking at the newspaper to catch up on some current events, one very strange story about Northwestern University caught my eye.

After reading through the article, I was in shock. At this university, a psychology professor allowed his students in his Human Sexuality class were invited to watch a guest presentation after their class ended. This presentation, however, was not lecture. Instead, it was a live sex-toy demonstration in front of 100 Northwestern students. Although the students were told they were going to be spoken to, they were not informed that the lecture would really be a live demonstration.

Northwestern University, however, defended the professor and the presentation because they said it was educational. Many students did not object to the presentation as well, even though the general public seemed outraged by such a scandalous presentation on a college campus. Other professors also believed that this act was pushing beyond the limits of what was acceptable for a teacher to allow in their classroom.

So why is this issue so controversial? The students were in a Human Sexuality class to begin with, so wouldn’t it be assumed that topics like this would come up in class? Why didn’t the students object if they were uncomfortable or leave the demonstration? Maybe it is just older generations that don’t accept this type of knowledge and learning. There are many factors that contribute to the ongoing outrage of these guest speakers. I believe that generational difference really attribute to the outrage. Modern TV shows are plagued with sexuality and so is our music unlike many of the past. We seem to be an open generation and maybe that is why the students were so accepting of this presentation.

I was shocked by this article myself. I don’t think that I’d want to see this type of presentation on Penn State’s campus, but it seems that other students are accepting of this controversial type of learning.