By: Cristina Miralles / Contributing Writer
An important part of any work ethic is punctuality. One place where I think professionals should be punctual is at colleges and universities. Here at the University, I have seen many professors that walk into their class rooms about 10 to 15 minutes late and then complain when some of their students occasionally walk in late.
Tardiness is not only annoying, but disrespectful. Professors find it wrong for a student to walk in during their lecture, but I find it disrespectful for a professor to keep their students waiting. I believe that they think they have all the power, so they do not care if they have us waiting.
Having lack of respect and being tardy shows me that the teacher has no interest in what they do. If there is one thing I cannot stand, is when I am sitting in a room ready to learn, and then I only get 45 minutes of lecture time instead of the full hour and 15 minutes. I pay for my courses and I expect to get my money’s worth.
I have a professor this semester that usually arrives late, and that angers me. I always show up to class early, sometimes up to 15 minutes before class begins, and not once have I seen my teacher there. Last time I checked, according to her syllabus, one thing she does not tolerate is tardiness.
I have kept track of how late she comes in each time. The latest she has walked in was 12 minutes after class is supposed to begin. After coming in late, she still has to put up her Power Point and figure out why the projector is not working correctly.
Several students experience this dilemma themselves. Matthew Wittyngham, junior, journalism said, “Multiple professors in the school of journalism have accused us of not caring for their classes by showing up late. However, they respond the following class session by showing up 10 minutes late and lecturing for only 30. It is an odd phenomenon that occurs for the sheer fact that it is hypocritical of them to do so.”
If a teacher shows up late to class, then he or she should not complain about students occasionally being tardy. I have had teachers who are punctual, and if they did show up late a couple times, they were generous with tardiness.
I think that professors should always arrive on time. They should be there a few minutes before to prepare for their lecture. If a student is late, then it is their responsibility to push themselves to arrive at the proper time next class.
“The common image is that the professor [should show up] early so that we may have the full period to learn, not be lectured on etiquette from someone who doesn’t know it themselves,” said Wittyngham.
In any job, employees, including their employers, are supposed to arrive on time. Arriving late more than once could result in being fired. The same thing goes for professors in any college or university. If their boss receives many complaints from students, it could result in having evaluations of that professor and they could soon be fired.
Tardiness and disrespect are intolerable in any work situation. Whether you work in an office or at a university, you should follow all the rules, in which being late is definitely not one of them.
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