Guilford College has undergone many changes over the past couple of months in terms of renovation, scenery and renovation. However, one of the biggest changes that this school has experienced so far is the development of the new and improved Guilford Edge. One of these changes in particular was how the schedule worked for every future semester. 

Now, for the first three weeks of the fall semester and the last three weeks of the spring semester, every student takes one class a day for three hours every day of the week. Then, after a short break, students resume with the twelve-week course for the rest of the semester, where they take three classes often with lengthened class times. Of course, like anything new, it took some time to get used to, but the students took it all in stride.

I thought that it was going to be difficult at first, but after experiencing the three-week semester first-hand, I can safely say that it was pretty easy. Because not only did I only have to worry about one class, I was also able to take a big interest in it as well as find time for other things. 

The class I took for the first three weeks was Shakespeare & Film, where we not only read about Shakespeare, but also saw some movies about some of the plays he wrote. We saw the original adaptations and some that took place in a more modern setting. This class lasted from about 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., which I considered to be an improvement because we would have loads of time to get things done, like more time to read and talk about Othello, to talk about different filming techniques and so on.

The rest of the day after class was usually the best part, because afterwards we could do whatever we pleased. That is after we get all our homework from our respective classes done, of course. This is why I believe the three-week semester is a good idea, because having only one class to worry about for the first three weeks of college is a way to help us get settled into the new year, and to get us reacquainted with some of our friends. Not only that, having a class like this for three hours made me realize that we can get so much done in one class in one day with that amount of time.

With how the first three-week term at Guilford went this year, I can safely say that the one coming in spring will be smooth as well, albeit with a few bumps on the way. I feel that the Guilford Edge should keep this new curriculum for future students because like I mentioned earlier, it could be a way to help students settle into a new year at college with having only one class to worry about.

They have time to acclimate to campus life and to try something new for a while, while they have extra time. They can even have the choice to head home for a bit after the three-week semester ends to recharge, or to see family and some old friends again. So, with the way the first three-week semester went, I can honestly say that it was a true success.

Editor’s note: This story originally was published in Volume 106, Issue 1 of The Guilfordian on Oct. 4, 2019.