Catherine Dangel's "Expectations vs. Reality" Reflection Essay

     My high-school vision of college was quite faulted when it came to predicting the reality of what my education would look like after high school graduation. The major differences between what I imagined in the past and what am I currently going through are mainly linked to the overarching challenge of Covid-19. As I'm certain everyone knows, Coronavirus became a cause of concern for the United States in the beginning of 2020, also known as my senior year, and I spent the three years prior to my senior year fantasizing about my college experience. Being trapped at home and completing modules on Canvas for hours each day was not what I initially had in mind.
     I would say that there was an occasional disconnect between UMD's completely virtual students and the professors for quite a few courses. In addition, there were times in the semester when I would have so many assignments and exams due in the same week that I would have barely any time to enjoy my life. It's not that I expected college to be easy by any means; however, I feel like the mass amounts of content I was receiving each day were seemingly unreasonable. Personally, I felt that the most unorganized, inefficient, and all around unfair course that I enrolled in this semester was CHEM132V. There was a lack of communication about grading requirements between each of the TAs and the professor, and that would negatively impact the grades I would receive for the labs. I would consistently get points off without any explanation and it took very long for the grades to even be released. The videos were low quality, video and sound wise, and I felt taken advantage of in this class. Every other class seemed a bit more accommodating and adjusted to virtual learning, except this one for some reason. I expected that due to the circumstances of there being a national pandemic that there may be some leinancies on technical difficulties, of which I had quite a few, but the CHEM132V TAs and professor didn't seem to care about the students. Although the college courses I was enrolled in this semester were seemingly more difficult and different than what I was initially expecting, I feel like I did learn new material virtually, with an exception to the CHEM132V course.
     This semester of CPSG has been filled with many amazingly intriguing lectures that I have been able to really connect to. A lecture that I did not fully expect was the Science Fiction lecture; however, it turned out to be my favorite one. I loved hearing about the persuasive and effective mechanisms that sci-fi shows and movies employ in order to deliver information about science. In most cases, sci-fi media uses pseudoscientific ideas to make the theme of the stories more entertaining to the audience. I thought learning about all the different genres of sci-fi was something that I found interesting, yet didn't expect to learn in Science and Global Change. I was expecting to have a lecture about preventative measures that we, humans, can put into place to mitigate the effects of climate change on society and the world as a whole. I am fully aware that this is the focus of a later semester of CPSG, but when I was picture Science and Global Change in my mind, prior to actually being in the program, I expected information immediately about this topic. After going through the course, I understand the method by which this class is organized and appreciate it. Because of the virus running rampant, I have only been able to complete virtual outside-of-classroom activities. I feel as though the virtual nature of these activities are about as enjoyable as I was expecting; however, I, as many other people do, wish for a time when activities can be in person once again.
     Connecting back to my first paragraph, I do live remotely at home currently and am completing school on my computer. It is quite tough to maintain focus amongst all the distractions around me. My house is a loud place, so I find myself struggling at times to accomplish all that I need to in the evening times, when my family is home from work. I think these living challenges are harder than what I was expecting going into college because I feel forced to abide by certain hours of work time, even if they don't align with my productivity time. I don't really feel like a University student when I'm at home; I just feel like a more stressed high-schooler, if I am honest.
     One piece of advice that I would give to future SGC students is to make sure that you are taking care of your mental and physical health at all times. Occasionally throughout the semester, I felt as though I were being sucked into an academic abyss where my happiness would only revolve around my grades. Go easy on yourselves because college is hard, even without it being virtual. Enjoy life (responsibly) and stay true to who you are. You can do it!

Last modified: 14 December 2020