It's a little annoying, because I get into bed exhausted and then my mind starts churning. So, tired as I may be, I'm suddenly wide awake and mentally alert. Pondering things of no immediate concern.
Like what college life will be like when Lynnaea is ready to go.
What started me thinking about this is that my friend Donna has recently been telling me about some of the goings-on at my former alma mater. While I cannot claim to know all he ins and outs of what is going on at the school where Spring Break never ends, I am intrigued -- and somewhat bothered -- by what she has told me.
It seems, more and more, the classes are going to online-only. Or, if you want an in-person class, you have to go to main campus. Perhaps they are trying to jump up their attendance at the main campus. I don't know. But even so... It bothers me. Because it's at least 17 years before Lynnaea will be attending school. What will school look like by then?
Now, before I jump up on my soapbox, let me say this: I think online classes are great. I know they meet the needs of a very important demographic (probably several of them, but there is one that comes to my mind immediately): mothers. Women who are raising their families, but who want to further their education to improve their own lives. It is hard being a full-time mom. As I've mentioned before, it's not a 40-hour per week job. There are no holidays. There are no "lunch breaks" or 15 minute breaks required by some government entity (yeah, you try telling your kid, "I get 15 minutes of me-time. The President says so." See how that works for you). It's a blessing, though. Hard as it may be, it's a blessing. It is all-consuming, practically. And it leaves very little time for going to school. And if you have to commute to school and sit there in the classroom for x number of hours... Well, that is not as easy for a mother -- especially a mother of more than one (which I am not yet). Online classes swoop in and help save the day -- and provide a way for many mothers to do what they otherwise may not be able. And I think that is amazing.
Also, I took online classes even when I was single and childless. So I can't really knock them anyway.
But here are some things I learned (coming from a slacker of a student, so do keep that in mind).
1. I got a whole lot less out of my online classes than I did out of my classroom classes. I took one online class for my undergrad degree. Never met the teacher. Don't remember anything about anything I read in that class. I think it was Modern Poetry. I can't even remember what class it was for sure. But I can remember sitting in Dr. Gusick's class making notes about Shakepeare's various plays. I can remember the nights I spent in classes listening to her and Dr. Belsches. I can remember the books I read, the papers I wrote, and, sometimes, the discussions we had. In graduate school, during one of my online classes, I was able to do it from home. And I actually took a shower in the middle of presentations. Look, I confessed to being a slacker from the start, so don't judge ;). The point is... I got a lot less out of the online class. By my own choosing, yes. But the opportunity was there for me to choose it.
2. I socialized more with people in the classroom. I took some online classes for my graduate degree. I worked in groups. And, unless assigned, I always tried to work with my friend April (if she was in the online class too). Why? Because she and I were friends from being in a classroom setting together first. And, okay, so it's bad, but we would have private chats during the online class (well, I hope they were private). But the point is, the only reason I really socialized in the graduate school online classes was because I already had a friend I'd met in person. And yeah... as high school as it may be, April and I wrote notes to each other in our classroom classes. While we sat next to each other. It was awesome and hilarious and some of my best memories. And I made one of my dearest friends through a classroom class. How said I would be to have never had the opportunity (well, I wouldn't know the difference, but still, it seems sad, knowing what I know!)
3. You know the teacher and the teacher knows you. I think there is value in being able to see a person and learn them. You are able to discern more that way. They become a person, not just a name.
Maybe there are more, but those are my biggies.
So, I appreciated being able to take online classes, because it allowed me to be a slacker more. And honestly, I was burnt out by the end of my graduate school stuff. I'd been working full-time and going to school pretty much full-time for a long time. I was ready to be done. I was ready not to be tied to the classroom at a specific time every day (or every other day). That was one thing that appealed to me about online courses: I could be at home (if I could access the internet). But I also know I didn't gain as much as I could have.
Also, sometimes the classes I needed were only offered online. So I did what I had to do, even if it wasn't my preference.
So, I a not saying online courses should be thrown out altogether. They have merit. I definitely think they are a good thing. And I definitely appreciated them in the past.
But I hope that, when it comes time for my babies to go to college, they have the opportunity to attend a classroom class. That they have the opportunity to make friends in this way. And to know their professor. And to put forth their best -- and not shower during the lecture ;).
And that is all.
And yeah, I know no post is complete without a picture of my munchkin. Even if nobody else is as anxious about seeing the pictures as my dad ;). So here she is!
She likes to brush her teeth :).
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