I am pretty sure that if I asked any college students what they learned in high school, they would tell me that they learned that “The Mitochondria is the Powerhouse of the Cell” or how to solve a crazy math scenario about Peter who decided to by 5632 bags of Cheetos. Both these topics might be interesting, but how are they relevant? Now I am not saying that everything we learned at school is irrelevant. It’s important for us to know how to do simple math problems and know a bit of science. It’s also important for us to learn proper grammar and how to properly formulate our thoughts. It’s also important for us to know our history as well. However, many of the topics we learned throughout grade school are not necessary, and many of us are not taught what is useful. 

For instance, many college students know nothing about finances. Finance, proper budgeting, loans, mortgages and many other topics need to be mastered when becoming an adult. Instead, we learn how to solve lengthy word problems, which have no real-world application.  

So, what can schools do to help students adjust to college and the real world? Now, scraping the while curriculum is not necessary, and would be detrimental, since some of the topics we learn are actually necessary. However, these real-world topics could be incorporated into classes. Math teachers can include a topic on finances, and history teacher can include a topic on civic duty. 

Another way of addressing this problem is to imbed a new course into the curriculum. Like how many of us had to take health class for one year, an adulting 101 class could be added, which only needs to be taken once during senior year. Some schools have already incorporated this idea. My friend’s school has a course called senior study, which is mandatory for all seniors, and they work on college applications and teach students “how to navigate the real world.” 

An example of a topic relevant, but not addressed in high school.

Some argue against this because they believe that these topics should be taught by one’s parents or the student should learn themselves, since that is the adult thing to do. However, for some people, they might not have the resources or a guardian to teach them properly. For instance, my parents are immigrants, so I had to figure out FAFSA and college applications all on my own.  

All in all, there is a lot wrong with the American school curriculum, which I won’t really get into detail because there would never be an end, however a slight change in the curriculum will be a step in the right direction.  

Ways to improve the math curriculum.

The coronavirus has taken this world by storm. I mean look at us right now, all of us were forced to go home and participate in online school for our spring semester as freshman because of the coronavirus. I know the change can be very stressful especially for us because we are literally going from learning in a classroom setting to online school in the span of a week. So, is this online school system working? 

Now I know many of us are a bit fearful about what’s going on and how the transition is going to happen. I interviewed a few people in my African American studies course, and many of them expressed concern. Many of them agreed that there is a difference between online class and an in-class environment. They all agreed that there is a special connection that you lose in online classes. We also lost access to different on campus resources. For instance, we had high tech computers, printers, advisers, writing workshops and TAs, that we no longer have access too. This has left many students fearful for their quality of education. 

Now these are some valid concerns that many of us, including myself, have. However, Penn State has done a great job at trying to make this switch from in person to online class. There is canvas, ZOOM and piazza to keep discussions going. Many professors, TAs, LAs and advisers are now holding meeting with students via ZOOM. As Penn State students, we are definitely lucky compared to other schools, who do not have the infrastructure for online school.  Some colleges extended their spring breaks for two weeks to set up online learning. Many public schools do not have the resources to offer online school, so they gave their students a two-week break instead of online school.  

Zoom, which offers video calls and messaging. Available on computer as well as phone.

So, these next few days might be a bit stressful and many of us are worried about our quality of education. Thankfully, even the Penn State administration agrees about the stress and now the University has also offered a pass/fail option. So, now students can focus on learning rather than maintaining grades. So, all in all, Penn State has done a decent job at transitioning to online school. However, not everyone is lucky, especially students who are in Labs or Studio classes. This has led to fear, but the University has put in effort to reduce our fear. As of now, there is not much we can do, and we cannot tell how online school is going to affect our education. So, rather than stressing about school, stay safe. We will all get through this somehow.  

An example of a typical zoom class.

I think almost all of us can agree that college is a completely different environment compared to high school. Back in high school most of our classes consisted of 20 or 30 people, but now we attend lectures with more than 200 or 300 other students. So, how do we get the most out of our education? Well, universities have done a great job at trying give students a more individualized education. They have hired Teaching Assistants (TAs) and Learning Assistants (LAs). Recitations and other concurring courses can also be taken that will help break up large lectures. This gives students more individual time with TAs.  

An average lecture at Penn State.

In reality what I have learned at Penn State so far is that in lecture classes, the professor really only goes over the material once and introduces you to the topic. The TAs and the LAs are the ones who actually help you comprehend and learn the material.  For instance, in my chemistry lab there is one professor who runs the chem labs, but TAs are the ones who teach the class. So, my TA explains all the experiments we do and grades us.  

Obviously professors are doing a lot to help with our education, and we should not devalue them. However, we also have to value our TAs and LAs. A lot of people, including myself, would not be doing as well in certain classes without the TAs and LAs. However, even though TAs and LAs are so important, why are they not earning more money? 

An example of a more individualized TA session.

On average TAs make around 15k to 20k, compared to some professors that make more than 100k. TAs and LAs are vital to our education, but they do not get the money that they deserve. Some believe TAs deserve the pay they get because they are not as educated as professors. Others argue that it is expected, since TAs are still students, so they should focus on their education rather than earning a salary. 

Others argue that TAs deserve a higher salary because they are doing the actual teaching in some situations. They can determine your success in a course. Other will argue that TAs should not make as much money as professors, since they do not have the proper education, but they should get paid more than they do now, since they are doing most of the grunt work.  

Now the obvious solution to this problem could be to just increase TA salaries, but that could also lead to a raise in tuition costs, which some students are not willing to pay. In the end TAs and LAs are very important to our education. So, next time you’re in class, try to be a little nicer to them. Hopefully, in the near future, TAs and LAs are properly compensated.