Tutor profile: Avery B.

What skills can one learn by writing an academic essay?

Ah, yes. You were just assigned to write a 10 page paper about a subject you are completely uninterested in. And you have to write out 8 citations?! Why would a teacher do this to you? What do you even get out of it as a student? As someone who wrote these sort of essays every week for three years, boy howdy you learn much more that you expect! Writing academic essays requires researching your assigned topic; you must comb through archives to try and find primary sources, or read articles in academic journals. Being able to research is a skill that you will most likely need once you enter the workforce! Further, being able to write a great paper will help you better communicate with others, make you more persuasive, and help you make informed arguments in the future.

Is studying literature just reading boring old books?

Nope! Surely a teacher can assign you to read boring old books, but I won't. Literature is an extremely broad topic, which allows one to learn about so many different topics- some that can be quite surprising. For example, when I was in college, I took a class about Viking Literature! One of the most thrilling parts of studying literature is learning about the time period when the book was written, as well as the personal history of the author. Literature helps us learn what people were thinking during revolutions; how people felt after lavish imperial parties; or the thoughts of the person they love. Literature is all about an author's response to something, which makes it a beautiful subject!

Is "Gender Studies" a subject in which one studies solely mainstream conceptions of gender?

No, Gender Studies is a very broad topic. One does not only study gender, but how gender intersects with race, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, disability and more. Our world is a place where issues are interrelated and must be studied together.