the digital burden
by erineldridge'17
In this shiny new age of technology that we live in today, school has begun evolving toward a paperless model. Despite the endless limbo of paper that exponentially accumulates without fail in my binder every year, teachers are making an effort to convert their assignments to an online format. Google Drive, Google Classroom, and Turn It In have all created a new relationship between students and homework. While it is convenient to be able to turn homework in as soon as you finish it and not have to worry about leaving it at home or printing out Word Documents, this new electronic shift gives teachers the opportunity to create unrealistic expectations of students.
I can still remember back in fourth grade when you got one typed assignment for the entire year and it was accompanied with a printed paper that specifically outlined alternative options if you didn't have computer access to complete the assignment. Seven years later, I happen to notice an email in my--seldom checked--school inbox, with no explanation but a title and a due date and I am expected, no exceptions, to perfectly complete it by the specified time. Some teachers are great about giving notice for online assignments, but it's happened more than once that I've had to hear about Google Classroom work from an outraged friend and hurriedly whip up something to satisfy the requirement from my phone before class. As my parents and many other digital strangers argue in regards to texting and other electronic media, communication isn't always interpreted correctly, but many teachers refuse to give leeway for miscommunication. The same thing goes for online calendars. Teachers will often update their calendars assuming that all students will see it. However, I don't check online calendars unless I'm told to in class or I forgot the homework that night. We are the generation raised by agendas and have suffered the consequences of forgetting to write down an assignment, so I don't rely on technology to tell me my work after it was already told to me. Time and time again it seems, we are punished for this habit by the cursed phrase, "You should have checked my website."
Google Classroom and its satanic time specification have all but rendered managed time useless. Whenever early birds see 11:59 written anywhere they will twitch in horror for the rest of their lives, remembering late nights and trying to frantically change the time on their computers hoping to meet the deadline. Why any teacher intends to begin grading at midnight is far beyond me, honestly. On nights when students have a lot of homework and have to meet that 11:59 time, it's not always realistic. We've all had a night spent crying over a textbook to get the reading done by the next morning, but Google doesn't even allow the luxury of that anymore. I've had a teacher set a time limit for 9:00 pm arguing that we shouldn't be doing homework any later than that. Between sports and a job and all the other subjects I have to worry about, sometimes I'm lucky if I can start my homework by then! You may not have that class until the next day and you know sure well that your teacher isn't going to even glance at your assignment for another 24 hours, but you have to complete your paper by midnight and as a result spend your managed time doing nothing in order to get a glowing green check next to your name. How are students supposed to manage their time if they are given limitations that they can't work around? Shoutout to the teachers who set the time limit as the beginning of class.
These online tools also allow teachers to break the format of block scheduling. They can now ask for homework to be due on days that you don't even have class. Just a few weeks ago, I was in class and the teacher gave us a classroom assignment for homework. It seemed completely normal to me until I realized that the due date was set for that same night. Not even the next day! I wasn't even given 24 hours to finish my homework. This is the definition of cheating the system.
The internet has accomplished amazing things, don’t get me wrong. And of course it has its benefits in the classroom, making all of our lives so much easier, but what happens when it’s not so great, and not so helpful? Stress. That’s what happens.
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I can still remember back in fourth grade when you got one typed assignment for the entire year and it was accompanied with a printed paper that specifically outlined alternative options if you didn't have computer access to complete the assignment. Seven years later, I happen to notice an email in my--seldom checked--school inbox, with no explanation but a title and a due date and I am expected, no exceptions, to perfectly complete it by the specified time. Some teachers are great about giving notice for online assignments, but it's happened more than once that I've had to hear about Google Classroom work from an outraged friend and hurriedly whip up something to satisfy the requirement from my phone before class. As my parents and many other digital strangers argue in regards to texting and other electronic media, communication isn't always interpreted correctly, but many teachers refuse to give leeway for miscommunication. The same thing goes for online calendars. Teachers will often update their calendars assuming that all students will see it. However, I don't check online calendars unless I'm told to in class or I forgot the homework that night. We are the generation raised by agendas and have suffered the consequences of forgetting to write down an assignment, so I don't rely on technology to tell me my work after it was already told to me. Time and time again it seems, we are punished for this habit by the cursed phrase, "You should have checked my website."
Google Classroom and its satanic time specification have all but rendered managed time useless. Whenever early birds see 11:59 written anywhere they will twitch in horror for the rest of their lives, remembering late nights and trying to frantically change the time on their computers hoping to meet the deadline. Why any teacher intends to begin grading at midnight is far beyond me, honestly. On nights when students have a lot of homework and have to meet that 11:59 time, it's not always realistic. We've all had a night spent crying over a textbook to get the reading done by the next morning, but Google doesn't even allow the luxury of that anymore. I've had a teacher set a time limit for 9:00 pm arguing that we shouldn't be doing homework any later than that. Between sports and a job and all the other subjects I have to worry about, sometimes I'm lucky if I can start my homework by then! You may not have that class until the next day and you know sure well that your teacher isn't going to even glance at your assignment for another 24 hours, but you have to complete your paper by midnight and as a result spend your managed time doing nothing in order to get a glowing green check next to your name. How are students supposed to manage their time if they are given limitations that they can't work around? Shoutout to the teachers who set the time limit as the beginning of class.
These online tools also allow teachers to break the format of block scheduling. They can now ask for homework to be due on days that you don't even have class. Just a few weeks ago, I was in class and the teacher gave us a classroom assignment for homework. It seemed completely normal to me until I realized that the due date was set for that same night. Not even the next day! I wasn't even given 24 hours to finish my homework. This is the definition of cheating the system.
The internet has accomplished amazing things, don’t get me wrong. And of course it has its benefits in the classroom, making all of our lives so much easier, but what happens when it’s not so great, and not so helpful? Stress. That’s what happens.
λ
ʋ