With the first semester of classes finished, upperclassmen may have noticed a change in the end of last semester. As upperclassmen, we knew class evaluations to be a long list of questions every professor passed out as the end of the semester drew near. Most professors would assign some form of extra credit to students willing to take the time to fill the evaluations out honestly. But this year brought changes to the course evaluations with the installment of an electronic version. This new version includes both pros and cons.

Living in the technology-fueled world that we do, almost everything is progressing to an electronic form. Overall, this is far easier and environmentally friendly. While online course evaluations are certainly greener, the system has its drawbacks. The biggest con for many students is the loss of bonus points. Many if not all students will leap through hoops to obtain any form of extra credit their professor is willing to bestow. Many professors no longer offer extra credit for students who fill out course evaluations because they are now completely anonymous and not shown to professors until after the semester. By doing this, PC is losing a large population of extra credit scroungers.

Most students have also participated in or at least heard of Assessment Day by now. If any of you have not yet experienced Assessment Day, come March 11 you are all required to take part in this PC “tradition.” Basically, it’s a day of no classes, but if you’re unlucky you may still have to be up at nine in the morning. You could also be one of the unlucky individuals who has to write an essay. But a day of no classes kind of makes up for any minor hardships you may endure.

By participating in Assessment Day, not only will you be able to register for the upcoming semester classes, but you will be helping your alma mater become even better. If you want your diploma from here to mean anything after you graduate, you’ll think again about skipping out on this event. This day keeps our accreditation, which keeps us and the administration happy.

It will be interesting to see the future of course evaluations and Assessment Day. Will course evaluations stay electronic or will we see paper and extra credit make its way back into our classes? Could Assessment Day turn electronic? If so, might we soon see the fall of our beloved class-free holiday if we are instructed to complete the assessment on our own time? May the odds be ever in our favor that these days are in the far future.