Although I enjoyed my four-month-long summer, my mind was idle for too long. As I returned to class last week, I was hoping to jump right back into my studies after what was a very long vacation, feeling invigorated and inspired. That didn’t happen. I instead returned to half-lectures, dawdling profs, and cancelled tutorials.
This is only my second year of university, and perhaps I am looking back too fondly on how much I enjoyed my first year of classes compared to high school.
But I was so disappointed by my first week of class, mostly because of laxness of professors and in some cases, a total lack of professionalism.
The amount of actual course content delivered to me was not nearly enough, and I don’t believe the first week of classes should just be a write-off. We are paying for the first class just like we’re paying for every other class this semester.
I don’t think any of us want to sit through the professor just reading the course syllabus and the week-by-week breakdown, with a short intro to the course for three hours. Professors need to expect more of their students and to hold them accountable. It is condescending for professors to assume we won’t read the course information ourselves. It’s a waste of everyone’s time.
In a study published by the Canadian Centre for Policy Awareness last Wednesday, it was stated that tuition in Canada has risen almost 300 per cent (adjusted for inflation) since 1991.
I want to get as much bang for my buck while I’m at York as possible. I paid almost $7,000 in tuition this year, and Ontarians pay the highest tuition fees on average in the country.
Frankly, I find it downright disrespectful to me when classes are cancelled, end over an hour early, or when a professor clearly hasn’t figured out how to use the classroom technology ahead of time and wastes 20 minutes to learn it. Get it together.
“I am here because I enjoy learning. I, like the vast majority of my peers, want to be in university. Why do profs treat us as if we don’t?”
As if coming to class is a chore that we would rather not complete? Last week, I was ready to hit the ground running. Why weren’t my profs?
Marileina Pearson
Photo Editor
