Snow poured down across Central Illinois on Tuesday night into Wednesday. As class schedules were forced to be altered, February got off to a chaotic start for schools across the region. Bradley was no exception, as the university shifted to online learning for classes on Feb. 2 and 3.
The Scout believes that Bradley made the correct decision, as travel for faculty and commuter students would’ve been treacherous with upwards of 10 inches of snow falling around Peoria. However, the decision to go forward with classes online was a head-scratcher for many students.
The 2021-22 academic year featured a return to entirely in-person learning for most students, after most classes were online due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-21. Students had largely readjusted to the flow of face-to-face instruction.
While shifting class online is convenient in the sense that it prevents disruption of course schedules, the instruction may not have been all that effective. By this point, most professors are familiar with the sight of lecturing to a wall of names on a Zoom screen as class discussions suffer from prolonged periods of awkward silence.
Students and instructors alike are burnt out from online classes, so why not cancel classes altogether?
Additionally, the last weather-related adjustment Bradley made to classes was on Feb. 16, 2021 due to extreme cold temperatures and snowfall up to six inches. With most classes already online, the university canceled all classes – online and in person.
Why wouldn’t the university go the same route this year?
While many students were hoping for a throwback to their elementary school days with true snow days (much like the ones Illinois State students received), they got a less pleasant throwback to attending classes behind a screen.