The last time the Add/Drop period was altered, the news was more of a shock. On Sept 25, 1969, Jim Mixter wrote an article titled, “Free Course Change Period Extended to Fourteen Days.” In this article, he notes three problems the extension was intended to correct. First, the adjustment was meant to “reflect the hope that students will look around more and have a better chance to decide what courses they really like,” according to Dean Read. Second, the extension held some professors and course structures’ progress in the first two weeks so that a student switching class would not have a difficult time catching up. Finally, students would be left with enough time to purchase all of the required books before significant reading was assigned.
My question now is: what is the true cause for the loss of two days to our Add/Drop period this year? Today, Wednesday the 16th, marks the end of Add/Drop for the fall 2009 semester. In the past, students could carry out their adding and dropping of classes for two more days. This change in policy has put some unnecessary stress on students because of the pace at which courses are now moving. For instance, uncertainty about getting into a lecture seminar that meets once a week on Wednesdays could have been much more easily dealt with had Thursday and Friday been open to get my Add/Drop sheet signed and turned in. If that class falls through, I will have no option but to accept a fine of $50.
Not to mention the workload. The book that I am assigned to read after the first week in another class would be tough to make up for someone dealing with a class deficiency. Of course, professors should lag the progress of the course during the first two weeks to accommodate the students who take advantage of the Add/Drop period by exhausting their right to audit other classes of interest, but that isn’t always the case.
The main topic at my long Val table this weekend was, “Does anyone have a class for me to pickup? Because the deadline is on Wednesday this year!” Does this mean that students are now relying on their peers to help find a class because they are unable to go check the class out themselves? Maybe the change is due to the late start in September. Perhaps this adjustment is temporary rather than permanent, but we can be sure that this issue is now in the records.
Small changes like this have probably been taking place under the radar for the last few years. Many questions arise when a significant change is made specifically concerning the new budget issues, but I am worried that other administrative adjustments may have slipped away. It is just a matter of learning changes in our past, or even having knowledge that they exist, to gain a greater understanding of how the College is run.