Class Teaches Nerds Social Skills

PeterAitch writes "According to Reuters, Potsdam University in Germany is now teaching social skills as part of their IT courses. This is intended to 'ease entry into the world of work'. The 440 students enrolled in the master's degree course will learn how to write flirtatious text messages and emails, impress people at parties and cope with rejection(s)." The class is taught by a superficial model, who will fall in love with the nerdiest student at the end of the semester after realizing that he is beautiful on the inside.

Comments

Funny - I thought my colledge screened for Soc. Sk

[olddotter]

I always thought my engineering school only allowed in students with no visible social skills. That seemed to describe 80% of the student body.

Nah Buy a Boat!

[Anonymous Coward]

I can't believe you fucking morons waste your life here. Listen, this is your LIFE. You need to be living with real human beings. You need to go find a girlfriend and spend time with her. You need to find happiness. Happiness is not in your online games or crappy manga books, it is in other people.

Do you really want to be 40 years old and look back to your 18-25 years and realize you pissed them away in fits of loneliness playing RPGs and crying yourself to sleep? I know most, if not all of you, had no real childhood or high school experiences because you were too busy being antisocial losers. Change that, now. How much greater would your life be now had you worked up the courage to talk to that one girl and go to the prom with her? Wouldn't high school have been amazing if you actually went out with friends on the weekend and saw movies? This is why you people love anime so much, because it portrays these perfect people going through high school living the lives YOU wish you could have lived back then.

Stop wasting your time on the Internet. Look outside and see the trees and the sun. Please. There is a world out there. There are interesting people all over. Why do you want to throw away what is left of your life playing fictional RPGs when real life is one big RPG with real consequences and relationships?

Are you just afraid? I mean, look at me, I own this NICEboat.

Re:Extracurricular activites

[plasmacutter]

I've heard of some other curious instances, like elementary kids being homeschooled for a few years and then placed into schools, where they nearly immediately assume leadership roles in their classroom and don't have the self-esteem issues from being picked on so much.

These people are obviously not jewish, catholic, or asian : P

There's also something to be said from learning social skills from adults rather than other immature kids.

someone needs to assume temporary residence in a city outside the coastal megalopoli.

Every city and county between new york and san francisco is filled to the ears with "adults" who never grew up. (that's not to say there aren't a fair share IN those cities, but the ratio is far higher in what is colloquially referred to as "middle america".

Ease entry into the world of work?

[Jason Levine]

They will learn how to "write flirtatious text messages and emails" and this is supposed to help them enter the world of work? Now I might not be the biggest social guy around, but even I know that writing flirtatious e-mails at work isn't going to help you out. In fact, it's likely to get you fired. Especially if they are directed at your co-workers. (And, no, I don't know about this from experience. In my single days, I made it a rule never to "dip my pen in the company ink." Not that I ever had the opportunity mind you...)

Adult ADD and tact.

[plasmacutter]

One of the lesser mentioned symptoms of adult ADD is the propensity to speak out improperly (otherwise known as a lack of tact).

ADD also tends to drive creativity and the capacity to make obtuse connections. This is generally what makes a nerd a nerd.

Get the right ADD medication and some paxil.

Re:Adult ADD and tact.

[plasmacutter]

ADD also tends to drive creativity [...] Get the right ADD medication and some paxil.

And lose my creativity? No thanks.

i was put on ADD medication, and while on it i'm just as creative, but better able to plan and apply that creativity.

I understand the apprehension, and have been a victim of improper medication, but if the meds are not targeting only the tact and distraction issues then you're on the wrong ones.

Another example: mood stabilizers will make a depressive functional, but they don't get rid of the depression or return interest or motivation.

Re:Extracurricular activites

[plasmacutter]

Ah yes. I can from your stat...wait...oh...wait. No statistics were provided. Hrm...

Would you like me to get the statistical analysis to prove the sky is blue too?

Class Teaches Nerds Social Skills

[moviepig.com]

Class teaches anyone social skills. Not sure you can learn it, though...

Re:Extracurricular activites

[TheBunnyGirl.com]

The only problem I ever found with my own home-schooling experience was an over inflated feeling of superiority when I am around my traditionally educated peers. After the feeling of disdain wears off (I eventually come to terms with the fact that it's not their fault), all I'm left with is pity. Statistically, home-schooled children are more inclined to not only go to college than their traditionally schooled counterparts, but tend to favor private or ivy universities. Or perhaps those schools just favor them. One thing is for certain... we usually speak with more of an adult's capacity of vocabulary at an earlier age. This may cause scorn and ridicule... but it's rarely been a problem as an adult. I'm not sure if it's exactly fair to be comparing the social habits of home educated children with geeks simply because geeks just have a different way of thinking and processing information. They/we do things logically versus emotionally on a large scale. You don't need to be raised in a cave to have poor social skills. It's subject to personality types in general, not actual social stimuli. Can this behavior be taught? I personally don't think so. Not going about it that way. A class on self esteem or the art of conversation would be far more helpful.

Re:Basic Supply and Demand

[kenp2002]

"Not all women are mercenary..."

Yes they are, some are just better at hiding it. I've seen a lot in my years and nothing, and I mean nothing, has ever shown me that they aren't. I've seen poor chumps dedicated for years get tossed aside the moment an upgrade comes along. I've seen good people trampled, kicked to the curb, and left pennyless and alone. Nope, I'd never go back to the single life these days, I'm just sickened how these post-70s "creatures" behave (men and women supposedly.) I wouldn't even call a fair number of people born in the 80s human based on their behavior... Mercenary, cuthroat, malicious, callous, cruel, malevolent, superficial, and total devoid of character. That pretty much sums them up.

I can't go a day sitting in an Applebees in Maple Grove, or a Chipotle in Saint Paul without overhearing some mercenary talking about who they are going to replace their current wallet with...

Just sad...