Dieter Seltzer
While many people register for classes, they consider what type of professor will teach the curriculum.
Some students prefer professors who give them room to learn in their own ways, with little direction concerning assignments. These professors typically assign only a few grades during the semester, while providing students ample time to complete assignments.
I, on the other hand, prefer a different, more rigid, class structure. Education makes more sense this way and allows me to learn more.
Professors with a relaxed teaching method often ask broad questions on tests and assign projects with a multitude of potential topics and methods, giving students freedom and room to strengthen their argumentative skills.
But when professors give clear directions for assignments and test students on specific content from class, they too help develop students' abilities. And students are also able to prove that they interacted with class materials. Isn't the whole point of choosing certain classes to learn specific content on a topic?
Furthermore, I think rigid professors are more effective teachers, at least in my experience. Listening to a professor lecture while taking notes on the key points is the best way I learn. When professors turn a discussion to the class, it often goes off-topic, and students only talk to receive participation points.
I am also more successful in a class with multiple, coordinated assignments. In classes that require only a few assignments, overall grades take big hits. Instead, when many assignments are scheduled throughout the year, which go along with readings and lectures, students can interact with the content. This allows them to learn more since they are given more opportunities to prove they understand the content. Also, if a student doesn't score well on one assignment, it isn't as big of a deal as in a class with less assignments.
In addition, I am a college student, and therefore very busy, so I tend to procrastinate on much of my schoolwork because the organizations I am involved in oftentimes take priority. So when a professor gives me weeks to work on a big project, the time typically goes to waste. But when weekly or bi-weekly assignments are due, I don't slack off. Rather, I work on these consistently throughout the semester, taking a lot of stress out of my life.
Overall, I prefer professors who are organized and give clear directions. Balancing workloads from five to six classes is a tough job. Specific instructions from professors offer students a better chance to succeed in the classroom, further preparing them for the workforce they will inevitably enter in coming years.
Gabi Seltzer
The beginning of a new semester brings a host of unfamiliar settings that students must adjust to. These can range from different living environments, new classes and maybe even a changed major. But an adjustment all students can relate to is acclimating to a new set of professors.
Having a new — or mostly new — slew of professors is not necessarily bad. The fresh faces can even be stimulating for students. However, depending on their teaching styles, different professors can pose significant challenges.
Initially, some professors strike students as fun and engaging, while others seem boring and unpleasant. But there is another type of professor — the worst kind. These professors cannot seem to view their college-aged students as remotely responsible adults and treat them accordingly.
These professors even have mandates for every interaction with their students. They tell them where to sit, what they are allowed to do before class, what materials to purchase and what kind of homework procedure to follow. Some go as far as telling students in certain organizations that they must sit in certain parts of the room. What if someone else wanted to sit there?
These professors make misguided generalizations about students — that we are wholly irresponsible and incapable of completing assignments on our own. However, they then proceed to treat us as if we are 11-year-olds who are attending middle school for the first time and cannot remember our locker combinations.
Frankly, this kind of treatment from professors — especially in upper-level classes — is insulting to students. It is understandable for a teacher to hold a middle schooler's hand. But college students, on the other hand, have been around the block once or twice.
Almost all college students are 18 or older — of age to vote and serve their country. Many of us are legally allowed to purchase alcohol. We can drive, own property, get married and even become parents. So why can't we handle a college class?
To answer this question, these professors might say something like, "Every semester I have students who wait until the last minute to complete assignments and e-mail me frantically asking for help, and it's really annoying." Fine, there are some irresponsible people attending Virginia Tech. But there are irresponsible people in every setting, whether it be collegiate or
professional.
The point is, not every college student is careless. There are many of us who work hard and stay on top of our schoolwork. Professors who assume that all their students, no matter what they have accomplished, cannot handle themselves is extremely
frustrating.
It is also irritating when controlling professors ban their students from taking notes in a certain format — in a way, they are also manipulating how students learn the material. By the time students enter upper-level courses, they usually understand what note-taking and study habits are most successful for them.
I must be mistaken, but I thought that one objective of a college education is for students to learn how to handle responsibility on their own. After all, this will be required of them in the work force or graduate school. If college students are able to live on their own, then they can learn on their own. Students are the ones wasting time and money if they fail, right?
I would like to offer some friendly advice to these professors — please give your students the benefit of the doubt. Most of us work hard and understand that we alone are in charge of our success. I understand punishments for irresponsible actions such as not turning in homework or failing to attend class. But try to give students even a modicum of trust. If you don't let us be responsible for ourselves, how can we prepare for what's ahead?