Nobody comes to college to be babysat, but try telling that to a professor. Often, professors feel the need to micromanage their students' educations, from requiring attendance to creating rules on whether or not they can be on cellphones in class. Others even micromanage the progress of homework. That kind of hand-holding might have been appropriate in high school, but it has no place in an institution of higher education.
As adults, students need to be treated with the respect and given the ability to decide for themselves how to live their lives-as long as those choices don't affect other students or aren't a reasonable requirement for the course.
Labs and discussions, for example, need attendance to have any educational value. But is it really the instructor's business whether or not a student shows up for a lecture? If they want to take their chance with the textbook, it's their risk. And allowing students to manage their own attendance would also mean less students sitting bored in class trying to hide that they're on their cellphones. It would mean more time for the professor to focus on the students who do want to be there.
It isn't necessary for a teacher to disrupt class by stopping their lecture to confiscate a cellphone or iPod if the student wasn't making any noise or interfering with anyone else's education. Sure, doing other things while a professor is talking is downright rude and disrespectful, and teachers have a right to be annoyed. But it's the teacher interrupting the class, not the student. And it would be avoided if instructors let students manage their own educations and not require them to be in class.
It's arguable whether most who skip class or play on their cellphones during lectures deserve to be respected as adults and students, but it cheapens the dedication of dedicated and passionate students to be treated like high schoolers.
Teachers also micromanage their students' assignments, and while that might result in more students turning in their work, it has no place in a college. It needs to be up to the student to be organized and be motivated enough to complete their projects-it's the teacher's job to be there for students who want to be engaged or want help. By wasting valuable time trying to help less motivated or lazier students, they're taking time away from the rest of the students.
Instructors just need to remember that while young, their students are adults and need to learn how to take care of themselves. An education is worthless if a student's hand was held the entire way.
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