The current COVID-19 pandemic has cased all courses at San Francisco State University to be taught and administered online for the rest of the Spring 2020 semester. Though this may seem like a relatively simple or easy process, the current situation has only made most SFSU student's lives harder. 

Once the University switched to all online learning, it quickly became clear that this situation became more than an "all-online-class" semester. Many students do not have resources to receive an adequate and reasonable education remotely. I want the San Francisco State Administration & Academic Senate to think of all of the students who lack their own computers, who lack a stable internet connection or are simply trying to find a way to support themselves or their family financially due to the immense wave of lay-offs and furloughs. This is a reality for many of my peers. 

We also have to consider this from the professor's point of view. Many have had to adjust their whole pedagogy for this situation while also learning how to use online resources that they are unfamiliar with. Many professors are encountering the problem of administering a fair exam or assignment. Looking at our Science & Engineering Professors for example, how can they assign experiments that we are supposed to perform with equipment on campus when students cannot access them? If they replace this with a video or other assignment, did the students really learn the material? As a Mechanical Engineering Student myself, I understand that some things are just learned by doing them. Also, what if a course solely depends on a computer program that is accessed on campus? Even more so, what if your internet cuts off while you are taking your exam? Suddenly, this becomes a big issue for many students across all disciplines. I believe this is where a Credit or No-Credit grade seems equitable. There are many challenges the students are facing to learn in a reasonable fashion. On the other side, we see our professors finding how to administer reasonable assignments & exams while giving fair grades in the process.

My final point to summarize: 

We as students simply did not sign up for this. It is obliviously understood that nobody saw a pandemic in foresight. However, when we pay tuition as students, we sign up for much more than just classes. We expect to have resources such as the library, access to computers with specific capabilities, access to a gym, healthy study/learning environments, and much more that the university provides. However, many of these resources are not available, and there is much more we as students are enduring that is hindering our ability to learn because of this exceptional situation. Most importantly, we as students should not pay the penalty of delaying our graduation from the educational hindrances this pandemic brings. All classes taken with the Credit/No-Credit Option this semester must account for graduation and major requirements, this is essential. 

Please know that San Jose State (SJSU), Stanford, & Berkeley have already proceeded with this course of action. If they did, then we should too.