University of Virginia Library

Optional Classes

On two occasions in 1968 the administration
felt it was necessary to declare that
classes on a given day were to be "optional."
These were the day of Martin Luther King's
funeral and the Wednesday before Christmas
vacation. We feel that the administration was
certainly justified in taking such action on
each occasion (assuming that the flu was
indeed as rampant as it appeared to be in the
latter case), but the problem is that no one
seems to know exactly what "optional"
classes means.

In cases such as the funeral, when the
announcement can be made a little in advance,
there is usually time for each professor
to let his class know what "optional" means
to him. Even then, though, neither he nor the
class can know how much freedom there is for
either to decide. And when the announcement
is made the night before classes are to be
optional, no one knows what to do.

The confusion Tuesday night before Christmas
vacation certainly attests to that. Innumerable
hour exams were scheduled for Wednesday,
and when classes were made optional
near pandemonium broke out. Some professors
received so many calls that they
resorted to taped responses to the questions.
The confusion was confounded as some
quizzes were held while others were called off.

A simple clarification by the administration
of what it means when it declares classes
"optional" would be very helpful. Are they
optional for professors, such that it is their
choice whether or not to have class? Are they
optional for students, such that it is their
choice whether or not to attend? And what
about tests scheduled on those days - are
they automatically postponed, or is it a
professor's prerogative to hold his test even if
classes are optional?

A policy statement of what is meant by
"optional" classes would save a lot of confusion
if the occasion for them arises again.
Our suggestion is that "optional" classes be
understood to mean automatically that no
tests may be held and that it be the choice of
the individual, student or teacher, whether or
not he goes to class. We would hope, of
course, that as often as possible professors
would be able to make themselves available
for the students who decide to attend unless
they have informed their students previously
that they will not hold class on optional days,
and that as many students as possible would
attend if they knew their professor were going
to make himself available.