Last year, the 4-day class policy was implemented by the University, leaving Friday as the free time for students to do research, homework, etc; and in return, on one way or another, conserve energy. Though students were divided on this issue, whether they see this as their vantage or not, still many students can’t help it but say “Thank God it’s Friday”.
The new class policy indeed gave the students the chance to have a free day to do whatever they wanted to do and made their weekend longer. The students were not only given the time to do academic related activities but also on extra-curriculars as well. Aside from that, it gave the students more time to rest and prepare themselves for another week ahead.
But behind these wonderful things was the fact that the students can’t deny. Four days of classes a week made schooldays more stressful and many subjects are actually crammed in one day. Aside from the jam-packed days, there was also an issue on lack of classrooms or laboratory rooms because all were utilized almost every hour of the day. As a result, most likely, the number of students in every block was increased to solve the problem. And obviously, the larger the number of students on a class, the harder it was for the instructor to cater each of their needs. And so with all the hassle, no wonder why students wanted to say “thank God it’s Friday”!
The University must have observed these situations because they came to a decision to implement the 5-day class policy back. Yes, this year, the old policy is back and for sure, some students are complaining on this matter, especially those students who find Friday very useful for them, to flee and go home than do research or to practice for presentations. As we all know, a lot of projects and practices are scheduled on Fridays but some students neglect them and do other stuffs instead. What should have been a productive Friday turned out to be an excuse for students to be latent. And let’s be true to ourselves, Friday served as the flee day to most of the students in the University. Nevertheless, this is not true to all. There are still students who utilized Friday to research and conduct activities for their organizations inside or outside the campus. However, we cannot ignore the fact that there are students who abuse this free time for unwanted leisure. Relaxing or resting is just fine. After that tiring and stressful week, who doesn’t want to unwind? But too much is not right.
Well, having the old policy back should not be a fuss. In those days in the 4-day class policy, many professors request for make-up classes on Fridays to cope up with the demands of the subjects. This might be one of the reasons why they re-implement the old policy, because obviously, it does not follow the policy at all and forfeits its aim to conserve energy.
Having the 5-day class policy might not be that bad as it appears. Just think about the amount of pressure and stress that you’ll get rid off. Besides, by having the old policy, we are not only helping ourselves but also the professors that are experiencing same pressure and stress from a jam-packed day. And well, if we’ll think it over, this is for the welfare of the students. Let us just be positive on this and see what changes it can do.