According to the 2014 DGN course registration guide, a student must wait four and a half weeks into a semester until he or she is able to drop a class. While the current policy suggests that the extended time is meant for the student to thoughtfully evaluate the decision, this counterproductive process forces a student to sit in a class disengaged and unwilling to participate.
Instead of waiting a month to make a decision, the student should make a careful decision, turn in the proper paperwork, and either pick up a study hall or another class all within a week or two. Waiting a month is useless when students are absolutely sure of themselves. Although the wait period could be used to properly adjust to the class and seek help for some, a policy allowing students to drop a class at any time would benefit students intent on dropping by preventing them from wasting their own time as well as the teacher’s.
Administrators should consider the strain the policy puts on the teacher. Instead of a teacher devoting his or her attention and time to a student who plans to drop the class in a month, he or she could be helping a student who is struggling and plans to be present, both physically and intellectually, all year.
When choosing courses for the upcoming school year, it is often difficult for one to feel entirely confident that each selected course was the ‘right decision.’ Oftentimes, students fail to carefully read the description of the course in the registration guide. When I heard the name “AP Environmental Science,” I assumed that conservation, climate change, and Al Gore’s green party would be topics of conversation.
However, the first two weeks of class consisted of viewing PowerPoints on water brine and a scientific notation math quiz. I thought that it would be best to drop the class during the first week of school and enroll in a business or marketing course, as it suits my career interests. Unfortunately, I sat uninterested and bored in a class that I clearly did not belong in for a month.
A student should be able to immediately withdraw from the course once the discrepancy is realized so he or she does not have to sit in an elective class uninterested and unwilling to complete work or study for tests that will not even appear on a transcript.
In the first couple weeks of school, a variety of incidents occur that may influence a student to drop one of his or her classes. Too many extra curricular activities, a schedule packed with six AP courses, or a lack of genuine interest in the subject matter are just a few of the reasons a student can provide on his or her drop request form.
Teachers and administrators might support the current policy because it prevents students from dropping classes core classes recommended for graduation. Students may fail to read the fine print of the course description and have to deal with the consequences of their decision.
In order to save time, administration should consider creating a flexible policy allowing students to drop a class at any time throughout the semester using a formal withdrawal process.
Nicole Williams | Editor-in-Chief
