Thoughts on the Change of Schedule Scheme of Xavier University

This change of schedule scheme is I think the most contentious and significant change of policy the student body has faced in recent memory. Even my facebook shout out announcement on the matter indicated its gravity by generating the highest interaction to date in my wall.

Needless to say, every single student will be affected by this and the culture perhaps of the campus will also be affected by this. The question in all of our minds now is this: “Will it generally benefit or harm the university?” At initial glance, there are so many factors we can consider in gauging its effect on our welfare. There are the factors of order in terms of classroom assignments, there is also on energy consumption, waste management and class “readiness” considering we now have a full day of rest in Wednesday. On the other hand, we are also anxious about its weight on our attention span, our learning process, and also the potential stress a 1:30 minute class will do to us.

In a personal note, I welcome this setup since it offers a new rhythm in campus life. However, like any other new policy, I have some apprehensions. One in particular is the issue of class time. This issue opens a need to review a whole volume of scientific study on how our mind absorbs and process information. This, I guess is very critical since it will in the long run affect the academic performance of the students. The faculty therefore should be challenged to not just be “creative” in their approach per se but they should have a deeper understanding of the variables at play in the course of their 1 hour and 30 minute classes. They should be masters of communication control and creative intervention.

Atop of that, Xavier has an above average number of units required especially for the freshmen. This can facilitate a problem. Continuous classes with minimal break will just be too much for us. Therefore administrative guidelines should be implemented to cap the number of classes to be allocated in a day. Also this will most likely affect the morale, the productivity and even the sanity of the students if not controlled properly.

This issue has indeed opened a lot of concerns. I guess what is important is keeping this intelligent conversation going about the merits and demerits of this policy. This is also a chance for the next student body leadership to really make full use of their representative powers and apply the truest meaning of governance.

I have included some links that can help shed light on “attention spans” scientifically.

http://www.ntlf.com/html/pi/9601/article1.htm

http://gradschool.about.com/od/collegeteaching/p/How-To-Lecture-Teaching-Tips-For-Graduate-Students.htm