Many of Elizabethtown College’s first-year students find the transition from high school to college challenging. One of the most stressful aspects is the workload, particularly the requirements for the first-year seminars. All first-year students should realize that in-class requirements account for three credit hours of the first-year seminar, but out-of-class requirements account for the fourth credit hour. The College requires all first-year students to attend seven out-of-class events and reflect on them in a journal document in order to fulfill the fourth credit hour. Events that students may attend for class credit include panel discussions, lectures and fine arts events such as plays or concerts on campus. The most popular of these events are the educational sessions on Wednesdays at 11 a.m. in Leffler Chapel and Performance Center.
It is common for new students to wonder why they have to attend these events. Some believe that they are just a laundry list of things to do. I think it is important for any student to realize that they are thought-provoking experiences.
When I was a first-year student, my favorite events to attend were the films shown on campus as part of the College’s Diversity Film Festival, a film series that promotes strong moral values and social justice. One of the films shown was Sidney Lumet’s 1957 film, “Twelve Angry Men,” one of my favorite movies of all time. Since studying film is a passion of mine, I took advantage of this opportunity to watch the film for class credit. But I watched it solely from a filmmaker’s perspective. I missed the point of why the College was showing the film—to explore the issue of social justice. By reflecting on the film through this new perspective, I gained a deeper appreciation and love for the film beyond how it was made.
Dr. Jeffery Long, professor of religion and Asian studies, reflected on his experiences as a college student by saying, “I had wonderful courses in college, but some of my more memorable experiences were the talks I went to by outside speakers, or cultural experiences like plays and films; those are equally educational.”
In years past, the College required all first-year students to go to the same events. Over the years, the College has improved the first-year experience by allowing students to choose the events they would like to attend. Long believes that “with more flexibility and freedom, you get more valuable experiences.” Long created a list of 18 events for the students in his first-year seminar to choose from. Long’s students can receive credit for attending seven of these approved events. Long supports his idea by saying, “I have picked events that I think are valuable to them. I assign things because they are things that I would be excited about doing, and I would hope that they would also benefit from that.”
Perhaps the most stressful aspect for students is reflecting on events to prove that they actually learned outside of the classroom. Sophomore Jaclyn Farrell said, “I enjoyed the OCLEs last year. However, sometimes I felt that during the events, I found myself scrambling down notes and worrying about writing the analysis, to the point where I was unable to enjoy the events as much I had hoped to.”
Dr. Michael Swanson, associate professor of theatre and dance, believes that students should focus on the events rather than taking notes. “I know that if I want to best remember an event that I am attending, I take notes on it,” said Swanson. “I have to remember that in doing so, to not focus on the notes; that is secondary to the event that I am watching. If I sit here all the time with my head bowed down looking at my notepad to take notes on, I’m not watching the event; I’m only hearing it.”
Unfortunately, many students only attend these events because the College requires them to do so for first-year seminar credit. Some may also feel that they have nothing to gain by attending these events. Swanson posed the question, “How could you possibly know until you go?” Swanson then explained, “We learn by experiencing things with others. Since this campus provides so many opportunities of ways to learn by doing so, we should subscribe to them.”
Perhaps the College should not require students to attend these events for class credit. However, many students might not take advantage of these opportunities if they were optional. Dr. Long believes that students who skip these events “miss out on what could really be an enriching experience. The whole point, especially in the context of the first-year seminar, is to get people excited about college, and college isn’t just classes. College is all of the experiences you have.”
Since the College puts so much time and effort into organizing these events to provide students with fulfilling experiences, students should take advantage of them. The four years a student spends in college is a time to develop a deeper interest, understanding and passion for what they are learning. The out-of-class events are excellent outlets for students to develop their interests as well as to gain a much better understanding of the real world.
