When I first considered going to the debate on the potentially harmful nature of THON on student academic success, I wasn’t really sure what to expect.
Let’s be honest, I was only REALLY going because it counted for extra credit! But as a student who literally did not participate in THON at all and was therefore more exposed to the negative perspectives than the positives, part of me was interested to hear what they had to say.
In addition to this, the concept of a debate both excited and fascinated me. I always loved listening and participating in debates in high school, so the thought of a higher-level education debate sounded like a pretty intense and enlightening experience.
Sadly enough, the debate wasn’t entirely what I expected. Though this is not to say that it didn’t have its better attributes! I was however disappointed to find that the pro side of the conversation seldom actually touched on the issue from the correct perspective. Both sides also strayed from the actual discussion point of academic success, focusing more on the social consequences that THON has on those who do and do not participate in the event instead.
But still, the concept behind the idea showed bright and strong through the somewhat distracting and shaggy cloak of topic misunderstanding. The audience got very heated; they wanted to discuss this issue from both perspectives!
I guess to me, seeing that the campus populace was still willing to consider such a broad scale operation like THON in a less than positive light was heartening, especially since the cause is so wonderful. I don’t say this to be cynical by any means. It just can be a simple tendency in our society to view events and ideas like THON in a wholly positive light and ignore all the potential negatives.
Another part that I really liked was that afterwards, people still lingered and wanted to discuss the issue further. It’s events like this one that begin the slow process of stirring the pot; causing people to think about things that need to be pondered and begin to take steps to remedy the problems.
Overall, it was a super cool experience, and I’m glad I went!