Syllabus index benefits students and faculty

 One such change that has been proposed and passed by student government is a syllabus index. Essentially, the index is an online (or physical) database that contains the syllabi for all classes taught at Eastern. Imagine, being able to visit the index and get a general idea of how much time you will have to dedicate to studying and homework. Imagine being able to effectively meld your work schedule with your study schedule. Imagine not needing to pull all-nighters because you haven't had time to work on that presentation during your 40-hour work week.

This is a good thing, because the student body is no longer made up of just college graduates. Non-traditional students are a rising percentage of campus populations across the country, and especially here at Eastern. These people are going to school later than most for a variety of reasons; such as returning home from military service, trying to make a better life for their children or just trying to be more competitive in the job market.

In addition to non-trads, tougher economic times are causing even traditional students to get jobs while attending college in order to pay the ever-increasing tuition costs as well as their rising cost of living. The syllabus index allows all these students to plan out their schedules for upcoming semesters more accurately.

Sounds like a great idea, right?

Apparently not to everyone.

Faculty senate, the body of professors that votes to implement all of SGA's legislation, has repeatedly turned down the idea of the index. These instructors have said they wouldn't mind putting together an index, but instead of an entire syllabus each entry would only have a course description. But this information is already available to students in their course catalogs.

Now, we are sure faculty senate has good reasons for this. They aren't sitting around waiting for the next opportunity to ‘get' Eastern students, and we aren't trying to play it that way. In fact, we are  almost certain there is no maniacal laughter involved in the process of a faculty senate meeting. These people have experience in the professional field, and that experience has given them the opinion to reject the syllabus index.

But the thing is, this is a change that should happen, and it's a change that professors may not fully understand. The index is going to help people who would otherwise have a very difficult time juggling school, work and other responsibilities. Professors would be held more accountable for what they expect from students. On the other hand, students, having been able to see a general idea of their workload, would be held more accountable for the work they agreed to do. A great result of this will be lower drop rates that seem to plague so many courses. However, many teachers will look at the idea and immediately see an opportunity for lazy students to take the easiest route through their classes.

In response to that, we would like to make two points. First, students who are that lazy aren't going to put forth the effort required to do well in tougher classes anyway. Second, who cares? If people really do choose to take the easiest classes and not challenge themselves to learn more, that's their fault. The concern faculty senate seems to have for these people is admirable, but the policy toward this should be similar to grades. If students choose to screw themselves over when picking classes, that's their decision. And when they wind up burying themselves in the aforementioned crippling debt we receive as our parting gift from the educational system, they will have fewer skills than the people who chose to challenge themselves. Once again, survival of the fittest wins out.

Professors also seem concerned that the syllabus index will lead to students "class shopping" based on how easy or hard a professor appears. This is really a silly reason for saying no to something that would help so many people. The cold truth is, students already class shop. They do so by talking to their friends and hearing other people complaining about their professors. And those are instances no student even has to look for. For those who are more serious about their class shopping, websites like ratemyprofessor.com offer easy access to the many good and bad reviews people have for their classes.

In truth, professors should want the syllabus index when it comes to class shopping. Where is it better for students to get information about their classes before they choose them: the actual syllabus? Or an over-exaggerated bad review from a jaded student who had a bad experience? In fighting the syllabus index, professors are essentially encouraging students to rely more on exaggeration and rumors than cold hard facts.

This index is actually a great thing for both the students and the educators of the university. Sure, some people will stay away from classes because they are too hard. But the ones who do commit to those classes will be more serious about succeeding in them, and those students will have a good idea of what will be expected of them before they show up for the first class. Professors lose dead weight, while students lose the ability to complain about not knowing how difficult a class was when they signed up for it. And we all have a little less complaining to listen to from the people around us. See, now the index is solving societal problems, too.