By Edgar Gonzalez, Staff Reporter
Instructors can help students during offices hours, not only with school problems, but with other kinds of problems a student may face on a daily basis, said English major Todd Rodie.
The first time a student goes to get help from an instructor the process can be a little awkward but it gets easier as the student meets with the instructor more often, he said
“Once you are there they may talk about other random things, instructors are pretty cool,” he said.
All students would benefit from going to office hours which are offered by CNM instructors for students if they need extra help, said Nursing major Carlos Corona.
That is exactly why I think people should go to office hours, just to build a better relationship with their instructors, he said.
Although it can be very helpful to visit instructors it is also very intimidating, Rodie said.
People mostly go and do their own work and try to do things themselves, said Welding major Robert Quesada.
“There are a lot of reasons why students do not come, they are shy, or the office hours come in conflict with their schedules, said John Rogers, full-time instructor.
At first students seem a little shy but they tend to relax after a while, he said.
Some students do not attend office hours because they do not need the extra help, or they have other resources they can use to find what they are looking for, said Criminology major Danielle Romero.
“My instructors have told me about office hours but I think most instructors help people in the class better,” Quesada said.
Most of the material is covered in class, but most students would benefit from attending office hours for a little extra help, Rogers said.
Some students might email their instructors when they have questions, Romero said.
Rogers gets some emails from students but they are mostly for makeup exams not really for help on any particular subject, he said.
“There is another reason why I do not receive many students at office hours, most of the time it is because they catch me and ask questions before or after class,” he said.
Some students are just too lazy to go out of their way and go to the instructors’ office hours, Corona said.
Some students might be too scared to visit office hours as well and some instructors might even discourage students from getting help, he said.
Since office hours might interfere with some of the students’ schedules, they probably look for other help, like their friends, Quesada said.
Students do not take full advantage of office hours, Rogers said.
There are some things that can be changed in order to increase student attendance in office hours but it is still up to the student to go, Romero said.
Most students who decide to attend office hours will gain something from the experience, Rodie said.
