Is This Higher Education?

Hey Everyone!

You may have noticed that this is my second post in one night. If you did, congratulations on being observant. If you didn't notice, that's ok too :)

Note: I did NOT type both of these posts tonight. They were each drafts that I worked on for little bits of time over the weekend, which was slightly crazy. I am taking a little bit of time to polish both of these up and get them posted.

I wanted to post this blog on some observations I have about college. Remember, I am a total college rookie (almost one semester done) but I am starting to see some problems with the whole higher education system in general.

1) Plus / Minus Grading System-

This will be the bane of my GPA this semester. Anything beneath a 94% is considered an A- and only gets a 3.7 GPA. I believe I have two classes above the 94 mark. The rest are right in between 90-94. Essentially, the plus/minus system just screwed everyone who was going to get an A by giving them a fake A and penalizing our effort. Note that there is not an A+, only an A-. There is a B+,C+,D+, and I think there might even be an F+.

As an A student, I hate this system. I understand that this will likely help people who would have had all C's now have a C+ instead. That doesn't seem like a fair trade off to me. Those who work the hardest are being penalized, while those that don't work as hard are catching a break. What is the benefit to this system?


2) Academic Liberty-

This is what the University gives the professors to let them teach classes how they think is best for the students. What really happens is that students began picking teachers instead of classes.

Let me give you an example of this. As a Pre-Med student, I am taking Chem 1 this semester. Much like every Chem 1 student across the country, I pack into a crowded lecture hall every week and learn essentially the same concepts.

My professor makes us take quizzes online and open book. We get up to four tries to take these quizzes, and our last score counts. Also, he divides our quiz grade by .85 at the end of the semester, giving us a 15% boost (basically). He also drops our lowest exam grade.

Another chem professor on campus gives random reading quizzes that are nearly impossible, writes terrible exams, and can't stay on topic when lecturing.

I will most likely get an A in my chemistry class, but I might not have if I would have taken the other course. Now extrapolate this to every Chem 1 class in the U.S and we have such a wide range of teaching styles, grading rubrics, and other factors that it would be very difficult to say who a better student is based on their grades. Someone who gets a B in a harder class may very well be a better student than me, even though I got an A in my class.

Now for Pre-Meds, the MCAT is a standardized way to judge science proficiency.

3) Not Equipping Students for Success

I went to college expecting that they would actually remotely care about my success in school. I am (sorta) paying a large sum of money and spending four years of my life on this campus, and I think that they need to make sure they have the right facilities and resources available for their students to succeed.

NASCAR pit crews don't send their drivers out with flat tires.
Thomas Kinkade doesn't start painting with his fingers.
Tiger Woods doesn't use any random golf club.
Football players don't go onto the field without pads or helmets.

You get the idea.

So why doesn't our campus have a Chic Fil A on it anywhere? Nearly 20,000 college students are being deprived of basic daily needs (although some may not have realized that they need CFA) and are suffering. We are forced to commute for nearly 20 minutes to the nearest CFA, and consequently we can't go more than once a week (twice if we are lucky).

My BSTC (Blood Sweet Tea Content) has gone waaaaay down this semester, which causes me to be less satisfied, more stressed, and less productive. If the college truly cared about our needs, they would bring CFA to the student union.

If you just read all that and think I am a total nut, you probably aren't far off. Don't worry, I'm not actually that crazy about CFA, but it sure would be great if we had one on campus.

All the same..doesn't this look awesome?



Thanks for reading, and have a great day!

Adios

P.S. Thanks to chickfila.com for the pictures