Anna Voskuil | News Editor
Featured image courtesy of Jasmine Wiradharma
Imagine walking into your lecture, like you always do. When you see the front row of the lecture hall, what kind of students can you imagine sitting there?
If you’re like me, you’ll likely be imagining the students who arrive 20 minutes early to class; notebooks, pens, and highlighters out; complete, of course, with a laptop opened up to Moodle—these are the students who are ready to learn. They want to be engaged and get the most out of their education.
These are the students you’d expect to sit in the first three rows—I’ve painted the picture; it does make sense, doesn’t it?
Then why is it that so many of the last sorts of people you’d expect to find there—those who don’t want to be engaged with the lecture—end up choosing to sit in these front rows?
If the thoughts “why don’t they sit in the back so they’re not caught by the professor or unexpectedly called upon?” or, “why don’t they just leave the class? They clearly don’t want to be here,” are running through your mind right now, you’re not alone.
When I’m in class, I choose to sit in the front row because I want to pay attention; seeing the girl next to me shopping for clothes online or watching Netflix is extremely distracting. Yes, I do my best to look away, but the bright screens and loud ‘dings’ are hard to completely ignore when they’re practically almost in my face.
However, I can already hear these students now—“I’m multitasking, haven’t you heard of that?” or, “it’s so boring in class, who cares if I watch my movie in the front row?”
To some this might sound nit-picky, but I know there’s plenty of students out there who would agree with me.
I mean, look—we’re all adults, so of course I can’t sit here and tell you what to do. I’m simply asking that you make the courteous choice.
For those of us who genuinely want to learn, the flashing screens and loud pings from your Facebook feed can be irritating.
It’s all about having basic self-awareness and respect for those around you—if you’re bored and you know you’re not going to pay attention to the lecture, please just leave. No one is forcing you to be here.
Or at the very least, if you feel you must still be present, at least choose to sit near the back of the lecture hall. You won’t get caught in a class discussion you’re not prepared for, and, most importantly, you’re respecting the expectations that come with sitting in the first three rows.
At the back, you’re not expected to be engaged—what more could you ask for? The way I see it, if the front seats stayed exclusively for the people who want to pay attention, and the back rows for those who don’t, we are ultimately each respecting the other group’s wishes.
In the end, doesn’t everyone win from that?
