Petition Letter
Dear Associate Dean (Studies),
I would like to appeal to drop the following two fall semester courses, HLTH 101 (Fall, 2015) and GNDS 120 (Fall, 2015).
I am appealing to drop these courses for many particular reasons, which have resulted in the decision to transfer schools, and live at home. The most important reason being that I have found that the blended learning courses are not working well for me with my learning disability, ADHD and anxiety (IEP, Psychiatrist report and other important documentation included). I am finding it very difficult not having as much class time with the professor; this limited class time has resulted in the feeling as if I have had to teach myself most of the course material, instead of learning it in lectures. I feel that because of the short lectures the professor is rushed to get all the information out, sometimes not even finishing the entire prepared lecture. As well, a lot of the material does not get covered in much detail, and personally, alongside my learning disabilities this is not beneficial towards my success in earning my undergraduate degree. With my disabilities lecture time with professors is imperative, as detailed information makes it possible for me to learn and understand within the class, without so this was not possible at Queen's. With all my difficulties I had to start preparing and studying for exams far in advance. I found that even with all the hours I had put towards studying, I still lacked the long lecture hours with the professor, and detailed information and notes, and felt that because of this my final marks would suffer. It was important that I do well, in order to be able to transfer schools, as my offer would be conditional based on my marks from Queen's. This way I could be at a school that does not have blended learning, but I felt in a way that I was in a sticky situation, to me this seemed like a vicious circle. No matter how much I studied, and using different study methods, I felt as if I was missing important time from lectures, but to get out of this situation I had to well on my exams. It was as if I had been set up for failure. A week before exams I decided to drop my courses and be accepted based on my high school marks. This was the only way to guarantee that I would be able to remove myself from the situation, so I could continue at another school that would work better for me. I did see the disability services a couple times for my anxiety and also told them of the situation, but they did not provide much guidance or advice and I was not made aware of all accommodations available to me, so this was not very helpful.
My decision to transfer schools was not only due to the blended learning situation, but also my personal issues, being my anxiety. Ever since I left home, and came to Queen's to study and live on residence, I feel that my mental health has suffered severely. My anxiety has become much worse since I have been here and has brought on panic attacks, and feelings of depression. This has swayed my work ability, because I found that a lot of the time I would be in my room for days without eating and speaking to anyone, unmotivated and feeling depressed. I think being somewhere where I feel I have no support system is not the right atmosphere for me to be successful. I am glad to say that I have been able to experience Queen's University, but I feel that my mental health should not have to pay the cost in order for me to go to school here.
I did enjoy both HLTH 101 and GNDS 120, and would like to continue my learning in these fields, but I think that Queen's was just not the right fit for me.
Sincerely,
Alexandra Mann
10191860
I would like to appeal to drop the following two fall semester courses, HLTH 101 (Fall, 2015) and GNDS 120 (Fall, 2015).
I am appealing to drop these courses for many particular reasons, which have resulted in the decision to transfer schools, and live at home. The most important reason being that I have found that the blended learning courses are not working well for me with my learning disability, ADHD and anxiety (IEP, Psychiatrist report and other important documentation included). I am finding it very difficult not having as much class time with the professor; this limited class time has resulted in the feeling as if I have had to teach myself most of the course material, instead of learning it in lectures. I feel that because of the short lectures the professor is rushed to get all the information out, sometimes not even finishing the entire prepared lecture. As well, a lot of the material does not get covered in much detail, and personally, alongside my learning disabilities this is not beneficial towards my success in earning my undergraduate degree. With my disabilities lecture time with professors is imperative, as detailed information makes it possible for me to learn and understand within the class, without so this was not possible at Queen's. With all my difficulties I had to start preparing and studying for exams far in advance. I found that even with all the hours I had put towards studying, I still lacked the long lecture hours with the professor, and detailed information and notes, and felt that because of this my final marks would suffer. It was important that I do well, in order to be able to transfer schools, as my offer would be conditional based on my marks from Queen's. This way I could be at a school that does not have blended learning, but I felt in a way that I was in a sticky situation, to me this seemed like a vicious circle. No matter how much I studied, and using different study methods, I felt as if I was missing important time from lectures, but to get out of this situation I had to well on my exams. It was as if I had been set up for failure. A week before exams I decided to drop my courses and be accepted based on my high school marks. This was the only way to guarantee that I would be able to remove myself from the situation, so I could continue at another school that would work better for me. I did see the disability services a couple times for my anxiety and also told them of the situation, but they did not provide much guidance or advice and I was not made aware of all accommodations available to me, so this was not very helpful.
My decision to transfer schools was not only due to the blended learning situation, but also my personal issues, being my anxiety. Ever since I left home, and came to Queen's to study and live on residence, I feel that my mental health has suffered severely. My anxiety has become much worse since I have been here and has brought on panic attacks, and feelings of depression. This has swayed my work ability, because I found that a lot of the time I would be in my room for days without eating and speaking to anyone, unmotivated and feeling depressed. I think being somewhere where I feel I have no support system is not the right atmosphere for me to be successful. I am glad to say that I have been able to experience Queen's University, but I feel that my mental health should not have to pay the cost in order for me to go to school here.
I did enjoy both HLTH 101 and GNDS 120, and would like to continue my learning in these fields, but I think that Queen's was just not the right fit for me.
Sincerely,
Alexandra Mann
10191860