In “Message to My Freshman Students”, Professor Keith M. Parsons essentially argues that majority of college freshman are unprepared for the major transition from high school to college. He attacks the the entire high school curriculum by saying it is merely a “test preparation service”. High school teachers seem to place extreme value on preparing students for taking standardized tests than they do on preparing students for taking responsibility for learning. Parsons reminds us that college professors are only here to provide students with the information they need. It is completely up to the students on whether or not they choose to receive that information because professors get paid whether students get an F or an A.
I agree with Parsons that high school teachers may put students at a disadvantage when they do not allow students to take full responsibility for their own learning experience. It’s a completely different world in college than it is in high school. Many high school teachers push students to maximize their effort in school is because they depend on the academic growth of their students, therefore, teachers are a lot more meticulous about their teaching strategies. However, some of the high school teaching strategies completely differ from the strategies of professors. For example, high school teachers give you study guides and tell you exactly what to study for the upcoming test. Professors, on the the other hand, expect students to read over their notes and prepare themselves for the test. High schools spend entirely too much time on preparing students for tests that they forget to teach students proper studying or note-taking techniques required for college. Professors expect you to be fully acclimated for the rigor of the course and will not spend time waiting for you to catch up.
Though, in college, it is ultimately the student’s responsibility to make sure they are learning the course material, it should also be in the interest of professors to help students along the way. Students can only do so much on their part. Without the cooperation of their professor, students academic success may become limited. I believe that as long as a student is putting their best foot forth the professor should work with them to help the student achieve their goal. However, according to Parsons, professors get paid whether a student gets an F or an A. If that is the case, in my opinion, I feel that is pointless to teach if you are unwilling to meet students halfway. Moreover, students should do everything in their power to get the most out of their learning experience and professors should desire to assist students who are putting in effort.
So what do you think? Are college freshman unprepared? Should professors put more effort into helping students? Are you college material?
So what do you think? Are college freshman unprepared? Should professors put more effort into helping students? Are you college material?