Recently, a petition for the administration to allow a pass/fail grading option for students has been circulating campus. Last year when students were sent home because of COVID-19 and classes went virtual, the administration gave students the option to choose a pass/fail grade for their courses since Zoom was new to most students and there was also a concern that some students may not have the resources at home to create a good learning environment. This semester, the administration assumed that students would have the hang of Zoom and figured that if students didn’t have access to technology or learning materials at home, they had the option to come to campus. However, there are many other influences that the administration failed to consider.
1. Zoom fatigue is real
For me personally, and likely other students as well, even though I am on campus, all four of my classes are remote. I spend the majority of my day sitting at my desk in my 10 x 7 foot dorm room.Yes, we learned how to use Zoom last semester, but that doesn’t mean the difficulties associated with using this as a learning platform go away. Staring at a screen for hours on end, while trying to retain enough information to pass my exams, is absolutely exhausting. By the end of the day, I have a splitting headache and my eyes hurt. Zoom never gets easier.
2. With the current circumstances, it’s extremely difficult to stay on top of mental health
Usually we have parents’ weekend and October break to see family and reset mid-semester. However, this semester we have not only not had a break to take a few days off from work and focus on taking care of ourselves, but we also are extremely isolated. Social events are far and few between, and it’s easy to fall into a downward spiral of negative emotions and loneliness. With all of these feelings, staying motivated and doing well in classes is even more challenging. Having a pass/fail option would allow more leeway to focus on mental health equally as much as we have to focus on our grades.
3. Many remote students are juggling drastically different time zones
There are a handful of students taking their classes remotely, with a 12-hour time difference from the students on campus. Imagine trying to get an A in a class that you have to take each day at 2:00am – this is very unfair. The pass/fail grading option would allow for more equality in the grading system, especially for those who are at a disadvantage due to remote learning time differences.
4. Students are already under tremendous stress with worrying about a global pandemic… at least take some stress off of us by providing a pass/fail option
Many have lost family members or friends to the virus, have family members or friends currently fighting the virus, or have family members at home who they have to worry about because it isn’t a safe environment from the pandemic. In a time with so much uncertainty and stress about the fear of contracting the virus, a pass/fail option would help to take off an additional layer of stress.
5. Sometimes things are lost in translation over Zoom…
It can be a bit harder to ask questions during a Zoom call, or to stop the professor if there is something you don’t understand. Usually professors will read the room for confused glances, but not only do glances go unnoticed on Zoom, there is also a chance they will miss your raised hand in the sea of faces in the Zoom gallery. Along with this, some professors are not as easily accessible to meet with for extra help, because we can’t just find them sitting in their office as we would in a normal year. The pass/fail option would help to lessen the impact of these various bumps in the road.
I have struggled to find a current Colgate student who would not greatly appreciate the pass/fail option. At a time when many students’ mental health and stress levels are at their very worst, this grading option is exactly what we need.