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 Class cancellations too common

   By Jessica Carver
   IV Leader Staff, Nov 9, 2006

    “Mom, I don’t feel well. I don’t think I can go to school today.”
    This is a statement that was popular in grade school and junior high, when all we thought about was getting a day out of class. Now, we as college students usually pay our own way through school. Because of this, we now have an urge to attend school more often in an attempt to get our money’s worth.
    Sometimes, we come to school on our specified days and go to our classrooms. We walk to the room, and on the door is a pink slip saying that the day’s session of class is cancelled. Reactions vary.
    If it is for a class important to our major, we may feel disappointment.
    For most classes, though, a cancellation inspires happiness or relief. Then we realize that we are paying to be here, to have class in session, and to learn.
    I have five classes this semester. The total cost of tuition and books comes out to around $1,500.
    In other words, I am paying $300 per class. If I have to pay that much for my education, then I want to get my $300 worth of learning.
    It is understandable that professors get sick; they are people too. One cancellation, maybe two over the course of a semester, is acceptable.
    The same applies to students — we get sick, emergencies come up. But when teachers cancel two, three, even four times by the time the semester is halfway over, there is a problem.
    There are extenuating circumstances, I am well aware. But when I only have class two days a week, it is vital that all the classes are in session.

 

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