Whether it was through a game of harbor, a trip to the river or watching the Olympics, I found plenty of time during my Summer term for fun and distractions, and I ultimately had an amazing experience in part due to the NRO I used in one of my courses. So when I read that some professors were critical of the non-recording option policy, I immediately felt the need to come to the defense of one of the College's best policies ("NRO policy can detract, professors say," Sept. 25).
Many students and faculty justify the NRO by pointing out its ability to allow students to take a course that they otherwise may not. Certain courses are challenging or daunting depending on a student's skill set. I went to a very strict religious school, so while I wouldn't mind delving a little more into the sciences, I'm worried that Jesus isn't the correct answer to most of the problems on your average physics test. Similarly, many of my friends who are engineering nerds express interest in certain humanities courses but are deterred by the number and length of some of the papers. The NRO affords these students the opportunity to take these courses while allaying some of their fears.
The NRO also allows students to take a four-course term without fear of an emotional breakdown and subsequent trip to Dick's House. A three-course term is hard enough, but adding an extra class can turn what is already a time-intensive experience into more than a few sleepless nights. I love the courses at Dartmouth, and I know that I will take four courses during at least one term. The NRO gives me the opportunity to do this while not sacrificing my health and sanity.
However, there are other reasons to keep the NRO that I believe are overlooked. Dartmouth terms are a blur a proverbial sprint to the finish in which every student ends up wondering during breaks where his or her time went. God forbid that we actually have the opportunity to stop and enjoy this once-in-a-lifetime experience that will be over far too quickly. I was your uncommon freshman taking classes last summer, and as such, I didn't know many of the other students around me. Because the NRO afforded me extra time to not be in the library stressing over my courses, I was able to meet a lot of '14s, develop new, meaningful friendships and have many memorable experiences. Did I apply myself as stridently as I would have had I not utilized the NRO? No, but I maintain that this isn't necessarily a bad thing. Dartmouth is about more than just education in the classroom and the push to do as well as possible in each and every class.
This isn't to say that the NRO always diminishes academic engagement. In fact, it often does the opposite. This summer, I took an intensive language course through the Rassias Center. A wonderful professor had recommended the course to me as I always felt I was behind everyone else in my French classes. The course was 10 hours of language immersion each day for nine days straight. There would have been no way for me to be able to take this course without the NRO. However, my language ability is now on par with my peers, and I am determined to become fluent in another language. Whether volunteering, taking outside courses, doing research or any other activity, the added time that comes from using the NRO opens up a lot of opportunities.
Several professors interviewed in the article expressed concern that students wouldn't apply themselves as strenuously in classes in which they were using the NRO. While I have tried to make the case that this isn't necessarily a bad thing, I wonder if the concern is a little overstated. In the courses in which I elected to use the NRO, not only did I learn a lot, I also retained a lot of the material and developed a greater interest in the subject matter of the course.
To allay this fear, the NRO could be reformed to prevent students using it to only complete the bare minimum amount of coursework. One way to do this would be to set a grade range below the median that a student would need to attain to use the NRO. To eliminate the NRO policy altogether, however, would be a serious mistake.