NSU added new Bachelor of Arts degree requirements in 2015, including six foreign language credits. Yet NSU doesn’t offer any additional help to students who may struggle with learning a foreign language, as there are no tutoring services for foreign languages on campus.
Why put students at a disadvantage when they are paying thousands of dollars to get an education? Pupils and parents have entrusted their hopes, dreams and money into this educational institution with hopes that it will provide an excellent education, but NSU requires that students learn a language that may be foreign to them and doesn’t provide the tools to be successful at it.
NSU currently has twelve foreign languages courses, including various levels of Spanish, French, Arabic and Chinese. While the Tutoring and Testing Center offers tutoring programs in mathematics, biology, English, chemistry, physics and computer science, there are no tutoring services to assist students who are struggling in their foreign language courses.
NSU cannot expect students to pay thousands of dollars in tuition and an additional student services fee and not deliver. If NSU cannot provide adequate tutoring services, then these new requirements should be null; these requirements should only be compulsory when students have access to the right tools that will aide in their success not only in the classroom but also when they graduate.
Failure is not an option; it should not be in any one’s vocabulary. However, if NSU continues to make certain subjects mandatory without providing services to assist students in those classes, then failure may be inevitable for some.
Sure, students struggling with their foreign language courses have the option to hire a private tutor, but private tutors are often expensive. Why pay for a private tutor when many students pay close to $25,950 a year in pursuit of their education ― that’s close to $12,975 a semester. According to CollegeCalc.org, a website that provides pricing for higher education, NSU’s tuition is 3 percent more expensive than the national average for private, non-profit four-year colleges, and it is 86 percent more expensive than the average tuition for four-year colleges in Florida.
President Hanbury’s “Realizing Potential” campaign is asking for members of the NSU community to invest and help students realize their potential to help the university grow, not only for this generation but also future generations. One hopes that, in the future, NSU students will be able to see the money collected via this campaign going toward what matters most.
NSU is a relatively young school, and it aims to be innovative, unique and forward-thinking. While NSU embodies these characteristics, it should pay particular attention to being proactive and taking everything into consideration when implementing a program or degree requirement, including tutoring services. The end of the term will be here sooner than one thinks, and as students prepare for finals, they will need all the help they can get. Sadly, NSU is failing its students who are forced to take foreign language courses on that regard.
