Student Stress and Mental Health during Covid-19 (Additional Blog 5)

Today, more than 150 US colleges and universities have adopted a pass-fail grading system in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Realistically, this was the easiest option for professors to evaluate students in their classes. Many of these classes have traditionally been in-person classes. Some of them have NEVER been taught online before. In the midst of tying to convert in-person labs and lectures into an online format, leniency is needed for both the professors and the students. Switching to pass/fail just made sense.

Some institutions have even made pass/fail mandatory in an effort to protect students with fewer resources who are suddenly thrust off campus and away from resources that the university supplies (internet access, computers, textbooks and other books, a quiet place to study, meal plans, etc.).

To reduce the stress on these students and the pressure to get an A, switching to pass/fail allows students to focus a bit more on their family and their health, vs. stressing about their courses. Instruction is still vital, but we need to shift the mindset in the face of this global pandemic.

In addition, some graduate level classes have also made the switch to pass/fail. Since graduate students are under the added stress of writing a thesis, completing research and now trying to do so while being unable to do so due to the stay at home orders and restrictions on personnel allowed in the lab. On top of this, graduate students are facing more mental health issues now than ever. With many of us unable to be on campus, we're forced to work from home. Because we're unable to do much else, we feel obligated to be more productive with our new found time. But, many struggle to be productive at home. I, myself have always been someone who is more productive when I work somewhere else. I go to the library, the office, a Starbucks, anywhere other than home so that I am not tempted to get off task at home.

I've seen hundreds of posts from graduate students who are being hard on themselves for not being "productive" during this time. Now, more than ever, we have to ensure that we are offering mental health services to everyone during this difficult time.