It’s essential for students to broaden their academic circles
When the winter semester rolls around, most students are normally confident with the university experience. The fall semester is for gaining one’s bearings after a lengthy summer break, but the short time afforded for winter holidays is not nearly enough time to lose the grip on university life. Classes and professors may be unfamiliar, but lectures, readings, tests, and papers are no longer entirely foreign concepts.
In spite of the ease associated with the winter semester transition, some students never learn an important lesson: meeting with professors outside of class is an integral part of university.
Interestingly enough, one of the most common complaints levied against universities is not the steadily increasing tuition fees, but the increasing size of classes. Students entering or continuing their tenure at post-secondary institutions around the country are frequently cited as crying out for smaller classes and more attention from professors. For most students, the transition from high school to university is marked by simultaneous amounts of large personal and academic freedom.
Contrary to popular belief, however, professors are not inapproachable nor are they disinterested in their students. Professors and teaching assistants at university simply expect students to show initiative by coming to them during office hours instead.
For some students, the thought of speaking directly to a lecturer seems daunting – but the benefits of asking questions and seeking clarification far outweigh any potential embarrassment.
Stephen D. Powell is an Associate Professor of English at the School of English and Theatre Studies at the University of Guelph. He explained that students regularly contact him by email asking for further guidance.
“Students contact me a fair amount by email, and I do regularly have students come to my office hours,” said Powell. “But, there are consistently some students in every class whom I will never see or hear from outside of class.”
“Students who come see me seem to benefit especially when they have specific questions, or are concerned about specific issues. I’ve talked to lots of students over the years, and I find that I can answer most of the questions they ask me.”
Powell explained that his answers “may not always be perfect, but they can open up a dialogue that can result in a solution to the student’s problem down the road.”
When asked why he thinks students don’t speak to their professors, Powell offered one of his own experiences from his undergraduate career.
“Back when I was an undergrad, I was having trouble in a computer science course, and, after several days of beating my head against the wall, I went to see [my professor] for help,” said Powell. “He sort of shrugged and said I should just keep trying.”
“It was lousy advice – I was quite good at programming…and I really couldn’t figure out how to get it done.”
Ultimately, Powell dropped his computer science course due to the professor’s failure at providing any aid. Powell was quick to clarify that not all professors are unhelpful.
“[In] my years as a student, he was the only [professor] I got that kind of reaction from,” explained Powell.
A lesson all students eventually learn is that professors are people too. Bad weather, troublesome traffic, and unreliable computers are all annoyances that students and professors share. However, at the root of professorship is the desire to teach and aid others; asking professors for help is sometimes the only thing needed to be done to achieve one’s academic goals.
“I recommend that students come see me – or contact me one way or the other – whenever it feels right to them,” concluded Powell.