The eve of the first college-level chemistry course exam with all the anxiety, nervous tension, and stress that accompanies that realization, especially when coupled with the first college-level biology exam that preceded it at the end of last week and the procrastination on chemistry studying that accompanied said biology exam. Can we (or should we), as instructors, work to reduce and/or alleviate this stress or is it simply an unavoidable law nature whose effects must be experienced before other obstacles can be approached and surmounted.
A fellow senior faculty member once told me that it was my responsibility to make sure that the students successfully completed the course and moved on to the next one. While I strongly disagree, I also stop and wonder if I am doing everything I can to enable or promote their opportunities for success. Where do we cross over on the responsibility spectrum from it being primarily the instructor’s responsibility to it being primarily the student’s responsibility? What fraction of the population in a “normal” class should be expected to successfully complete the course and continue on in the discipline?
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Chemistry with Dr. Mark 