So what does this mean to an incoming freshman who has no off-campus apartment knowledge , or smarts about living off campus, knows no one else going to his college. I just don’t feel good about about that being the start go his college career.
Anyone else in the same place?
Why is it more of a shock to go from an LAC to online learning…versus…going from a larger university to online learning? How would we even measure this? I think this is a catastrophe for everybody.
Kids at larger schools are very social…relationships with peers, lunches with professors, class discussions (even lecture halls), research groups, volunteering, clubs, dinners etc. There is a tremendous amount of social gathering going on.
I suppose if you are a student who lives off campus…commutes from home etc…and you simply go to class and return home, then perhaps (?) it’s less of a shock? I honestly don’t know…
I just don’t see how it’s more of a shock to transition to online learning in your kitchen if you attend Williams rather than Cornell.
Outside of these forums, most college students do the latter – commute to a local college, go to class, go back home (or to work). The college experience or college life has much less importance relative to the academic offerings and effect on post-graduation outcomes for most college students, unlike on these forums where the college experience or college life is apparently the most important factor besides maybe cost in choosing a college (this seems especially true for those considering or choosing high-end LACs).
Of course, changing to online distance education may not work out well for everyone, since some, even in the majority group of commuters who are purely there for the education, do better in-person. But some who have work, family, or other scheduling constraints may find online distance education more convenient if they can “attend class” in a time-shifted manner around their other time constraints, despite losing the limited interactive capability they could get in real time.
Yes I agree…most students commute from home and don’t have the traditional college experience.
I think it’s a shock for those students who don’t have a stable home to return to. A few of my D’s closest friends in college came from homes where they went without electricity for weeks at a time due to finances. Those are the kids we really need to worry about.
perhaps some hope.
@bluebayou do we think he’s talking about colleges, though, or K-12? It seems those are two different situations. Not clear to me that he meant college
If K-12 goes back to regular classes, I don’t see why colleges can’t resume too. I get there is the whole dorm situation but would private boarding schools be excluded from going back then too?
@twogirls well maybe I’m wrong and I’m not saying at all that kids at larger schools aren’t missing out. It’s just that kids who choose a small school are choosing the intimacy of a small school and everything that goes with that. It’s hard to translate that to online.
And kids at LACs can be social. That was an interesting comment. They have full social lives - it’s just different than the big energy at a larger school.
Kids at a larger school are missing different things and most families with kids at a bigger school are not paying $73k per year.
Depends what the definition of a bigger school is. Cornell is quite large and has that kind of price tag.
I also want to point out that some of the students at the larger publics are in honor colleges or living learning communities which are very intimate.
I think there are always a lot of generalizations about larger schools that simply aren’t true.
yeah, I agree that he was probably speaking of k12, but to me, they are two sides of the same coin. If millions of kids can go back to school, I don’t know why college students could not go back too. (Normally, I’m not so optimistic or maybe today’s term is ‘aspirational’.)
@bluebayou, this is the first time I have disagreed with Fauci (did Trump make him say this?). I love the guy, but I don’t think there will be widespread school openings in fall. Perhaps some small K-6, 7-12 schools in remote areas, but all colleges? No way. One student in a dorm gets it, boom, dorm is on lockdown. Cafeteria worker gets it, no soup for you. One student in lecture hall gets it, class lockdown. Many Profs are 50-70 years old and will protest the loudest about in person classes. One student at 50,000 fan football game gets it, school lockdown. Bars, clubs, fraternity parties - what social distancing? I can just imagine the second guessing the college administration would take. Now if by “opening” Fauci’s implying online courses everywhere…. sure. “College” is in about 125 days. Covid will still be around. I’d love to be wrong.
Hmmm…
I was not implying that kids at LACs are not social…of course they are. My apologies if I came across this way as that was not my intention. And I agree that paying $75,000 per year is a lot of money. I also think that $50,000 a year is a tremendous amount of money for many families…$15,000 is a fortune for many families.
I agree that LACs are very intimate…not arguing that at all. I know you won’t believe me but larger universities can also be intimate (although different than an LAC). There are many, many opportunities for students at larger universities to break off into smaller gatherings…whether it’s through clubs, volunteering, intimate dinners, research, smaller classes, etc. Being different than an LAC (and they are…I won’t argue) does not mean four years of an impersonal experience. I fail to see how eating meals with professors, tutoringtbeir kids, etc…can be viewed as anything other than intimate.
Again…my apologies if I came across as suggesting that LACs are not social. I think we can both agree that the transition to remote learning is tough regardless of school.
Let’s not turn this into whose experience is worse…it’s all pretty horrible.
I’ll be really annoyed if K-12 goes back but not our college. College kids you would think would be a lot more responsible with hygiene and social distancing than grade schoolers. Especially when you factor in all the parents that send questionable health kids to school because they don’t have alternative care.
Your thoughts have been mine for weeks savvy, i.e., no way anyone was going back for fall. So, I was really surprised to see Fauci say this (assuming it wasn’t taken out of context). Like I posted earlier, some good news (hopefully).
btw: no, I don’t believe at all that Fauci was told by anyone to say this. Think about it: he’s a world class immunologist with a unrivaled reputation. He’s 79 and can retire or just step away from the camera at any time with his reputation intact if he doesn’t like his boss’s directives. (The boss needs Fauci more than Fauci needs a paycheck.)
We keep discussing the virus and when we think lockdown will end (June is my guess). That’s only half the equation. How many people will be out of jobs? How many business will close? Will the supply chain be able to make-up all the losses? Healthcare professionals still can’t get masks. Many lab supplies, chemical, and drugs will be diverted to Covid research. Lots of schools donated their supplies to healthcare. Will schools be stocked up for labs by August? Will they have enough cleaning supplies and TP? Will they be able to get a stable supply of food?
I hope I’m wrong but I think the odds of all schools getting “the band” back together for fall semester is slim to none.
It is easier for k-12 to go back of course. No moving back and forth if there’s an issue. No one is flying in from another state to bring the virus to a place where it’s been dormant.
A few things have happened today that make me think college kids might be going back. One, a top LAC (not Bowdoin and I don’t want to say which one) told a group of alumni today that there will be no discounts on tuition. This was straight from the president of the college’s mouth to a friend of mine’s ears. So these schools really want kids back on campus so they don’t have to deal with parents wanting discounts or kids taking breaks. This president also talked about a few ways life could change - closed campus with no visitors, no large events, maybe athletic teams wouldn’t be traveling or at least not traveling anywhere that required overnight stays. Pair this knowledge with the Fauci comments.
I’m now thinking schools will go back. Likely summer will be showing very few people with the virus. Colleges know they can react and send kids home for online if they have to and, if it happens during fall, they likely don’t have to worry about packing dorms up since kids may be able to return after a winter break.
Are forced triple dorms (which can could occur if yield is higher than expected at state flagships)
more or less like cruise ships? Are boarding prep schools more or less like cruise ships?
Are folks expecting to book cruises, or trips to Wuhan, London, Milan, Paris, NYC, Paris, etc. etc., in August?
@Hippobirdy watch the video of Fauci. He explains how things “could be” in fall.
@homerdog I hope you’re right but sounds a lot like wishful thinking.
Realistically, how is locking down a campus with no visitors or no events even possible? Sounds awful.
“Welcome to freshman orientation. You are allowed no visitors. There will be no parties, concerts, or sporting events and any gathering more than 5 people will be broken-up. Enjoy studying.”
I’m sure all schools want the kids back on campus so they don’t have to “deal” with issues but again what would be the blowback on having to send kids home early for two semesters in a row? I think you’d have a lot of kids and parents throw in the towel and transfer to a local school or the state flagship at that point.
Locking down the campus may work for a rural school, like UConn. But how does that work for an urban school, like NYU?