I am a full-time student, and most of my time I spend on campus or in classrooms. The campus is designed beautifully. There are many cozy places on green, manicured lawn under tall shady trees. Roses, Narcissus and other colorful flowers grow everywhere. Even restrooms are decorated with flowers. Classroom, in contrast, are ugly and dirty places. It seems too many of the rooms in buildings are filthy. I have an impression that most rooms have never been vacuumed or dusted. While writing students wipe dust from their chairs off their clothes, what can they do about the walls and floors? The walls are an institutional white, which over the years has become a sickening shade of yellow. There are occasional marks from tape ripping off the paint, students kicking out in despair, or equipment running into it. Much of the equipment is so old that the lens falls out of the overhead or the arm slides down so that it becomes impossible to use effectively. Similarly, the floors have not only stains upon stains but rips and tears as well. The dirt is so prevalent that it is difficult for students to keep a clear mind. The lack of temperature control also shows the level of disrepair. Another problem in the rooms is air-conditioning. Not one air-conditioner works properly. In some rooms conditioners aren’t working at all. This summer session, the conditioners were shut down for two weeks. It was almost impossible for students to concentrate on assignments and for teachers to explain material well. Headaches, high blood pressure, and tiredness were common symptoms that both students and teachers experienced. Now that it is fall, the heaters are the issue. Sometimes rooms are so cold that students’ fingers are too stiff to take notes. It is mistake to think dressing warmly will help. At those times rooms are so hot that even wearing shorts would not be bearable. No classroom is livable in any predictable way. It is doubtful which air-conditioners are worse, however, those that are adding to the heat or cold or those adding to the noise. In room 101 in the science building the air-conditioner works so noisily that students hardly hear their teacher no matter how desperately the teacher tries to compete with it. The most booming professorial voice could not carry over the droning, clattering noise of the ventilation system. If a student has a question, his voice won’t carry to the front of the room. This causes one of two uncomfortable situations. The student can rise to his feet to project as he re-asks the question, or the teacher can walk up next to him to hear it. Obviously, the least painful approach is to not care whether you know the answer. Therefore, I believe the college needs to pay more attention to the internal structure of the classrooms to make its goal of learning possible.
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