We are silent once Lecturer Ask, Why???

Students Passivity in Class

Assalamu’alaikum, Cuy.

Hi guys, long time no see. For this one let’s discuss about something so interesting. I will not talk about the way and my experience to enter my campuss of PKN-STAN LOL. Sometimes I feel too preachy to tell about my way to study in that campuss. Stop talking about that one, and let’s start about what become “Dementor” in my head. Wow? What kind of Dementor entered my head? (For you guys who haven’t known yet Dementor, just take a second too google it. It is not a point actually. Lalala) I use the term of Dementor because My head is just full of so complicated thought. As if a dementor took my thought of happiness. Wow, sorry for being that cheesy. Here we go, I want to talk about my opinion related to the student’s passivity in class.

So, for the first I want to tell you the story of my classes started from the first semester until my fifth one during I studied in college. As I was acceped in my College, I thought that my college was a great campuss with full-of-question students. Actually, It is not different with my classes in high school. We came to class just to fulfill our obligation as a student: Come, Sit down, Listen, Write it, and Exam. Even some of those students replaced some points  what I have told you before with: Play games, Open Instagram account, Sleep, or even Daydream. I am not totally judging anyone because I was one of whom.  But my spirit in the first semester was so on the cloud to study. Honestly, at the time I was one of GPA oriented (You know GPA right?  Grade Point Average? IPK).  At the time I still recognized myself as a high school student who was a star-of-class-wannabe. At the time I still had so much energy to ask wheter I hadn’t understood about the materials or just an idea about my curiousity. I was used to answering all of my lecturer questions. To be honest, the action of my asking and answering was not about to get a high scores defeating anyone else. I was really inspired by a brilliant Hermione granger. Even until now, I still remember and able to say word by word of her spell and her explanation about “Mandrake”. I just wanna be a good student. But at the time I felt so different with the others. I felt like, Oh God am I the only one here? Am I too different here? Am I too ambitious? Even I had a negative thinking that my friend would judge me as neard that wannabe a teacher or something else then they don’t want to be my friend. Time flew so fast. At conclusion, I gave up to try to be a Hermione because of both being tired, weird, and phsycological problem.

Started in the second year, it was Semester Three, I was totally different me. In addition I tried to join somewhat like organization and activities. Those changed my mind that I would not be a brilliant anymore cause it hurted. It was so much fun to not listen to my lecturer in class and often had a conversation about Youtuber with my friend while my lecturer was explaining. Besides I was still able to get high scores in test by study-one-night-system/SKS. What I realize now is that I actually got good scores, but It killed me too much inside because when I woke up then I knew I had to go to class, it was like “oh my god, I’m so lazy to do this. If I could sleep well on my bed why I had to go to the class to sleep as well?”. What become the point is I had no motivation to go to class. I had no question to ask, I had no words too answer when my lecturer spoke in class, I had no intention to do. It was totally different with the previous me. But at this point I started to be grateful of getting a good short run memory to Allah then my study-one-night-system ran so well. But I think it deeply, alone, peacefully, that I am not happy inside because I got nothing. My communication skill even stuck because of my passivity, then I can not enjoy my process of studying in class.

My story was still running in the Semester 5. I tried to comeback to be the previous me but it was hard. My passivity in the Semester 3 and 4 couldn’t be stopped because it blended as a habit. I felt like I was lazy to be a good student. Some of my friends really have a good principle to keep asking and answering in class. Actually, that is what makes my class alive. I was aware that I am not being myself, but I felt so fine in the same time. 

From the story I have, I am trying to write down what makes the student passive in class. I will deliver some points purely based on my opinion.

1. Teacher stands there, The students sleep here. I don’t say that whole of classes I have are totally failed. Some of classes I have do succeeded to involve the students in the learning process. And the way teacher teachs by speaking and preaching while standing stuck in front of class is so old school. Then how about the teacher or lecturer who speaks while sitting? Honestly, 90% that is one of uninteresting thing for me.
    
2. Teacher asks opinion the wole students, who does have to answer? Sometimes my lecturer asks something to the whole students in class. The response are just fifty-fifty: wheter students answer together and makes chaos noisy or being silent together. But  When a lecturer asks only one student, how?  it will create an awkward moment. See in the point three.
3. It feels so awkward both for students and teachers when a question rises. The lecturer will feel awkward because no words is answered by student. The student will feel awkward because they don’t answer because it will be hurting, they will get a laugh from their friends or feel ashamed when the lecturer judge that the answer is so wrong or irrelevant. I got this cases from my friend. Her lecturer said that her answer was a stupid answer. Then she wondered ever after how the teaching system run.
4.  Indonesian laugh when a person does a mistake. Guys, this is so rude. It will not make any other person get better rather than we get a fun while we are being stupid as well .
5.  Star Class Wanna Be. Personally, in My college I am so afraid about issue star-class-wannabe when I ask many question or answer in class. It seems like I will get judged as “seducer” or “attention seeker” for the purpose of getting intention from my lecturer. This case rises because sometimes there is a student who have a good GPA and continues collecting scores without giving any chance to other student who has the lower GPA to develop. What become my concern here is not about being active to get scores, but how students make the class alive.
6. Students think that scores is the main point of any teaching-learning process. I do have the same paradigme. Because when I can not get any joy of my learning process in class, So I interprete that “this is just about passing the exam”.
7. Students think that listening is the best way to study, because it is prerequisite for sleeping. No, I am not rude at all judging myself and students. 
8. We are afraid speaking wrong argument. This circumstance exists because mostly argument are valued based on a static structure of sentence, not the main idea of argument. Even if the argument actually is so rubbish then like a bad trash, couldn’t we just listen to first and not laugh?

All of those points are purely based on my experience as both student in college and teacher. I teach a group of high school student in a class about 6 until 9 hours per week. And I found all of those problem. That I write this topic is not for purpose to make anyone else agree, I just wanna evaluate myself actually and want to get some argument from you guys.

I just want to have a good spirit when I wake up to go to class. I want to get involved in any argument-creating. And I just want to fix all of the problems. Finally, I promise that the tomorrow me will not be the same with today me and yesterday me.

Wassalamu”alaikum, Cuy.

 

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