{"id":139793,"date":"2022-05-09T14:03:32","date_gmt":"2022-05-09T12:03:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=139793"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:26:16","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:26:16","slug":"empty-lecture-theatres-make-higher-education-more-appealing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2022\/05\/09\/empty-lecture-theatres-make-higher-education-more-appealing\/","title":{"rendered":"Empty lecture halls: \u2018Make higher education more appealing\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Online teaching became customary during the coronavirus pandemic, and now that classes are taught on campus again, a remarkably large number of students still fails to show up for classes. It\u2019s not because students are lazy, says Joshua de Roos, vice-chair of the Landelijke Studentenvakbond (Dutch Student Union), in an\u00a0opinion piece<\/a>\u00a0published in De Volkskrant<\/em>. He says it is more about the \u2018passive and individual nature of our higher education system\u2019.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRonald van den Heerik<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

You wrote in your opinion piece that there is hardly any room for in-depth discussions and personal guidance by the lecturer in lectures presented to large groups of students. But isn\u2019t that what seminars (rather than lectures) are for?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cCertainly, and there is room for that in seminars, but there\u2019s not enough of it yet. At the same time there\u2019s a trend for lectures to be taught to larger and larger groups. I\u2019m arguing in favour of more room in higher education for interactions in smaller groups.\u201d<\/p>\n

How many students are actually attending seminars on campus now that the coronavirus restrictions have been relaxed?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWe hear that seminars, too, are drawing fewer students. There may be more students in attendance than at lectures, but fewer than before the pandemic. Universities and universities of applied sciences are trying to halt that trend by imposing mandatory attendance requirements. I think we should actually be asking ourselves why students are not attending these classes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Doesn\u2019t it mean that students aren\u2019t very interested in seminars either, despite being given the opportunity for interactions and discussion there?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI do think they need them, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, some students don\u2019t really understand what they\u2019re missing out on when they don\u2019t attend any in-person classes. They have got used to focusing only on those things they need to pass their exams. They can generally get all the information they need from books. And there are many seminars that are basically a rehash of the subject matter, while ignoring the interesting ethical debates that should be had.\u201d<\/p>\n

Is knowledge on the subject that is being discussed during the seminars no longer interesting to students, then? I mean, they did pick their own degree programmes, didn\u2019t they?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cStudents do sometimes pick a degree programme because it will get them a good job, and not necessarily because they\u2019re interested in the subject. But that knowledge is definitely important for students, because they need it in order to get their degree. I just think classes are more motivating when they are about more than just that knowledge transfer. It would be good if they were tied in more with personal growth and if they paid more attention to students\u2019 mental wellbeing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lecturers are busy people. Don\u2019t you think that such attention [to subjects other than the subject matter] would be detrimental to students\u2019 understanding of the subject matter?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cMuch personal growth can be achieved by relating the subject matter to your own life, your own personality and the world in which you live. I think those things go hand in hand. If we incorporate more personal growth and opportunities for interaction into our classes, they will be more fun and more interesting. As it is, students no longer feel close to their university or university of applied sciences, and that\u2019s why so few of them are coming to campus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Isn\u2019t it a bit of a chicken-and-egg situation? In other words, don\u2019t students feel closer to each other and to their lecturers when they actually show up for seminars?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, students have some responsibility of their own in this matter. But I do think they will be more interested in in-person classes if the classes are taught differently. I\u2019d advise students to be critical of their seminars and indicate what they want. It\u2019s good to engender a debate about that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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