These past two semesters, students have been through a lot. This year, thus far, has left so much uncertainty for everyone, including myself. As a senior, I plan to graduate this year, and I am worried about what this pandemic will do to my life post-graduation.
Most recently, considering the pace, exacerbated by the fact that classes meet every day, the module system hasn’t been the easiest to deal with, to say the least.
To combat the academic challenge of keeping up with the module system, students have been given an extended choice to have a credit/no-credit option for the grades they earned this semester.
Giving the students the option to have a credit/no-credit is helpful and essential because it can provide extra comfort for some students who might not have done as well in their classes this semester as they had hoped. Considering all the things that are going on with the pandemic and multiple changes on campus, students had a hard time getting by on a daily basis, let alone acing their classes.
Credit/no-credit can be a helpful option because, with the spread of the virus, students may have more personal issues outside of the pandemic. For example, their families may be struggling financially or their mental health may be harder to deal with. Additionally, all of the changes the colleges have made and the way in which Albion is communicating those changes may affect work and satisfaction with the school altogether.
Students may have felt negative impacts on their mental health not only because of the world around us but because of the pressure to succeed in a college environment. This could have been exacerbated by how hard their classes were and the stress over how their class grades can affect their overall GPAs.
The credit/no-credit option, however, gives students the benefit of more leeway and room to pass a course without negatively impacting their GPAs. I am not advocating for students to not work hard, but going the extra mile can be difficult in a semester like this.
Having that flexibility with the module system and grading protocol gives the students a voice and helps alleviate stress.
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