To Drop or Not to Drop

Bud Whitley

To drop or not to drop, that is the question. A survey preformed by M. Buechner of the Cosumnes River College in Sacramento, California shows that students drop classes because of ether work-related conflicts, or other issues that have nothing to do with the class itself. The survey, however, doesn’t consider the reasons why the students who do drop for academic reason feel they cannot continue in the class.

When debating dropping a class, students consider many things. They worry about the risks of not dropping as students don’t know how the rest of the course will handle and was issues may rise. Another thing to consider: many colleges implement grade replacement programs that allow students who fail a class to take it again and replace the grade. This “forgiveness” program may deter some students having trouble in one class from dropping. However, consider the students failing more than one? Should they keep both classes and hope to pull at least one up, or maybe drop one to work on another? Many students, mostly new freshmen, don’t quite know how they grading system works or how dropping a class will affect them. Professors need to draw more attention to the grading system and the consequences of dropping or not dropping classes. As an important aspect of student support, good professor communication is vital for students to accurately asses their situation. Teachers need to act friendly and approachable so that the students having trouble in a class can get assistance. Oh what grades my come as students face this predicament.