Hello readers! My name is Alexus
Lopez and I am in my first year of college which has been very exciting and eye
opening. It has been 13 long years of school for me, and through these years I
have played many sports but my favorite has always been soccer. I actually play
for the college I am currently attending and we recently just went to Nationals
and received third place. Also, I have noticed my strength in college is that I
know everything is up to me and you can go at the pace the professor would want
you to go or you could go ahead and do assignments prior to when they are due.
I prefer going ahead so I do not have to be worried about falling behind. One
challenge I faced is trying to find time to do homework while a college athlete
because you’re either on the road, having practice, playing a game, or simply
planning to go to Nationals. I obviously had to find time, but it was
definitely a struggle to find a good schedule to balance everything out.
Ellen Bremen wrote a very intriguing
blog called “I’m Failing by One Point-and I May be the Target of
Discrimination.” This is a very touchy subject but she deals with it quite
well. For example, a student wrote to her stating they simply think they are a
target of discrimination, and he explains how there is another student in the
class which is of the same race but dresses different and he gets treated
better. Bremen then begins by putting herself in the instructor’s shoes stating
different reasons for passing or failing by one point. The student also stated
that he had learned so much and still had a poor grade to show for it. Bremen
agrees with the student stating that she has no doubt that the student learned
a lot, but the content and depth may not all be there since the student is
failing. For this reason, the student seems to think because he is failing by
one point and the instructor treats him different, that he is being discriminated
against. Bremen also states that it may be the student who is at fault. She
also says that if the student truly does think it is discrimination that they
are going to need some very good evidence to back it up when talking to the
department chair (Bremen Ellen).
Furthermore, it interests me when Bremen
was giving advice to the student. She stated that it is always very easy to
blame the professor for failing grades even by one point, rather than taking a
step back to see if the quality of your content is done correctly. This is true.
Many students would rather blame the professor for their failure rather than
taking full responsibility for their work. This does take people by surprise,
because they may think every assignment they submit is an A, but let’s be
adults about this and own up to what you have done. If you have an issue like
this one, do not always be so quick to blame your professor. Instead of just
blaming the professor or thinking you’re a victim of discrimination you could ask
to talk to the professor about any last minute extra credit opportunities
available if any. As a matter of fact, you could have always gone to tutoring
to help you understand the topic more, and it would help give you better
quality work. There are always ways to
fix things ahead of time and I completely understand that there is still
discrimination in this world, but it is harder to prove that point than asking
for help when you know you are on the verge of failing.
On the other hand, Bremen gives
great advice, which is extremely helpful in this student’s predicament. For
example, she put herself in different perspectives, because she begins talking
about her experience with discrimination and how it is almost impossible to
prove this with only your work as evidence. She also said that many students
will blame their teachers, which gives the student something to think about.
The main point she discusses is that discrimination should not be ignored and
if you feel discriminated against you could talk to a counselor (Bremen). This is
all great advice. Sit back for a minute and really consume everything Bremen
said, because she put herself in different situations and gave an example of
obstacles she has encountered. She explains why certain things would be
difficult to prove like discrimination. While also stating that if you do feel
discriminated against there is always someone there to listen when you need
advice or help, which in this case, is a counselor. Bremen gives considerable
feedback to this student to show she has compassion and some sternness with the
issue, and hopefully the student takes her advice.
Alexus Lopez
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