Student wants better class flexibility at night
Steven Saus
Issue date: 2/20/08 Section: Opinions
Wright State faculty, staff, and administrators: Stop fooling yourselves. It does not matter what time the class ends. Classes beginning before five in the evening should not be counted as evening classes.
It is possible to find "day shifts" that end by four o'clock - though that ignores transit and parking time at Wright State. But more importantly, the American Time Use Study indicates that 67.82% of Americans with full time jobs are still engaged in work-related activities between four and five o'clock.
For students trying to attend Wright State and still hold down a day-shift job, a class at 4:10 might as well be offered at 12:30. Counting these as "evening" classes creates the cruel illusion of serving adult and non-traditional students, while effectively denying them access to post-secondary education.
Individual professors may work with students, provide independent study, or proctor directed readings. Individual professors have aided - and continue to aid - me in each of these ways.
While I am extremely grateful to those professors, I realize that many non-traditional and adult students do not have the cultural capital to take advantage of these resources.
These alternatives are also a poor substitute for the core classes in a discipline, some of which are rarely offered even in the 4:10 time slot.
Adult students - far more than either traditional or other types of non-traditional students - are forced to choose a post secondary institution based on location and price. For a four-year degree in the Dayton area, that has historically meant Wright State.
Older students are a third of college undergraduates nationwide. To effectively serve these students it is necessary to be able to take all the classes to complete a degree outside of the traditional daytime class schedule.
This goal could be met through more online classes or through classes offered in evenings or weekends. The only way to fail is to assume that there is no diversity in the schedule requirements of the student body.
Central Michigan is currently running advertisements aimed specifically at adult students.
Is it wise - or even ethical - for Wright State to let out-of-state branch campuses serve local residents who are far more likely to remain in the area?
It is possible to find "day shifts" that end by four o'clock - though that ignores transit and parking time at Wright State. But more importantly, the American Time Use Study indicates that 67.82% of Americans with full time jobs are still engaged in work-related activities between four and five o'clock.
For students trying to attend Wright State and still hold down a day-shift job, a class at 4:10 might as well be offered at 12:30. Counting these as "evening" classes creates the cruel illusion of serving adult and non-traditional students, while effectively denying them access to post-secondary education.
Individual professors may work with students, provide independent study, or proctor directed readings. Individual professors have aided - and continue to aid - me in each of these ways.
While I am extremely grateful to those professors, I realize that many non-traditional and adult students do not have the cultural capital to take advantage of these resources.
These alternatives are also a poor substitute for the core classes in a discipline, some of which are rarely offered even in the 4:10 time slot.
Adult students - far more than either traditional or other types of non-traditional students - are forced to choose a post secondary institution based on location and price. For a four-year degree in the Dayton area, that has historically meant Wright State.
Older students are a third of college undergraduates nationwide. To effectively serve these students it is necessary to be able to take all the classes to complete a degree outside of the traditional daytime class schedule.
This goal could be met through more online classes or through classes offered in evenings or weekends. The only way to fail is to assume that there is no diversity in the schedule requirements of the student body.
Central Michigan is currently running advertisements aimed specifically at adult students.
Is it wise - or even ethical - for Wright State to let out-of-state branch campuses serve local residents who are far more likely to remain in the area?
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 4
Meg
posted 2/19/08 @ 10:06 PM EST
My college has proper night classes that start at 6, 7, and 8. Weekend and online classes, too. But we don't get the same amenities as day students. Amenities like heat in the winter and a/c in the summer. (Continued…)
Frank
posted 2/20/08 @ 6:19 PM EST
I wonder if it depends on which College at WSU you are in for this. For example, in the Raj Soin College of Business I have been able to take exclusively night classes since getting a full time day job two years ago. (Continued…)
Steven S.
posted 2/21/08 @ 11:21 AM EST
@Frank: There's definitely differences between both college - and degree program. I have an emphasis (not quite a minor) in one of the disciplines at Raj Soin, and there is a vast difference in the selection of classes between day and night classes. (Continued…)
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