The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

Students prefer long weekend to Friday class

Those who prefer spending quality time with their pillows on Friday mornings can feel a little sympathy for students at Syracuse University.

Syracuse students accustomed to forming their class schedules with a three-day weekend are facing a rude awakening — mandatory Friday classes.

Syracuse is in the process of moving 700 classes to Fridays. The administration received several complaints after posting the proposed change.

“Student response has been vocal,” said Maureen Breed, interim registrar at Syracuse. “The challenge in creating a class schedule is developing one that addresses all of the issues, not just some of them.

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A committee was formed to determine a schedule and tried to consider the preferences of both faculty and students, she said.

“We know that students and faculty have a wide range of preferences, but a class schedule that best addresses the issues cannot be based on preferences,” Breed said.

Several reasons back up the change at Syracuse.

Some believe additional class time means a higher information retention rate.

A University of Colorado study determined that students in class for three to four days a week retain less than students in the classroom for five.

Alcohol on campus was another factor in the move, Breed said. The university is hoping Friday classes would reduce alcohol consumption on Thursday nights.

Syracuse’s Department of Public Safety reported that its calls increase before days where students are in class for a limited amount of time. On a typical “weekend” night, Thursday through Saturday, the department receives an average of 256.3 calls, compared to 153 calls per day, Sunday through Wednesday.

“The students who responded indicated that scheduling Friday classes would hinder their ability to travel and work on Fridays, and would not solve the drinking problem,” Breed said.

Marquette has yet to follow in Syracuse’s footsteps.

Mary Foley, associate registrar in the Office of the Registrar, noted that it appears scheduling for Fridays may actually be going the opposite way.

There is an increasing trend in classes meeting on only Monday and Wednesday for longer periods of time, allowing students to keep their Fridays open.

Freshman Andrea Greufe sees Fridays as a deserved break after a week of rigorous classes.

“It’s the end of the week and people feel as if they deserve a break to relax,” she said.

Janet Boles, professor of political science, offers a different perspective on another possible reason that more classes should not be moved to Fridays.

“I think the faculty that teach Monday-Wednesday classes want to emulate their colleagues that teach Tuesday-Thursday classes, and want to free an additional day for research,” Boles said. “In my opinion, when you come into campus on those days that you teach, you shouldn’t expect to do anything else. It should be faculty’s choice if they want that extra day.”