Students express concern about classroom environments
By Allie Kopp
TMI UMD is a new concept that will explore the pet peeves, rants, random things heard around campus and other discussions about UMD life. In case you don’t know TMI stands for “too much information.� In TMI UMD’s first article, we will explore the different pet peeves and concerns that students express about learning in the classrooms and lecture halls.
“Psssst! Pssst!� This whispering in lectures is a huge pet peeve of UMD freshman, Kristy Boyd “I hate that horrible non-whispering people do all throughout lectures,� said Boyd. “I think if you are just going to come to class to talk, then do not come at all! I pay thousands of dollars a year to hear the professor lecture, not to hear what you did this weekend.
Classroom and lecture pet peeves are a common conversation starter around the UMD campus. Mention anything irritating about the people in your last lecture and you will get others talking.
Freshmen, Jodi Craven, speaks out about her classroom concerns.
“I hate when people’s cell phones go off in class. It is common courtesy and sense. Turn them off! I also hate that my laptop will pick up other’s cell phone waves and it will make this funky noise and then the person next to me will get a text. So irritating!� Craven said.
Speaking of laptops, Craven finds them distracting as well.
“I bring my laptop to strictly take notes. I turn my wireless internet off so I’m not tempted to go online. But I do find myself being distracted by other student’s laptops. When a student is in front of me playing an intense game of Solitaire, I will be behind them trying to figure the game out for them,� Craven said.
Angie DeCuffa, another UMD freshmen, feels as if she is going to catch a horrible cold when she is in class.
“I think that UMD should offer a basic course on etiquette, manners, and cleanliness. It is so disgusting when someone in a lecture just burps, farts, doesn’t blow their nose, slaps their gum around, or lets out a nasty sneeze. I wish people knew how to cover their mouths. I feel as if I need to be in a safety bubble in class so I don’t catch anything!� said DeCuffa.
It is obvious that each UMD student has their own opinion about the annoying things that go on in lecture halls and classrooms. It is also a given that all college campuses are similar to UMD when it comes to classroom courtesy. How do you know this? Everyone is going to get bored and start a pointless game of Solitaire or check their Facebook for the five-hundredth time that day.
Also, people are going to forget to turn off their cell phone ringer, talk to their friends, and cough. It is just a tough fact of life that we have to deal with. That is what TMI UMD is for- all your rants and raving.