I have mentioned before that I could ask the registrar for a special favor to schedule my classes at a specific time, and it would happen... because its a small school and that affords some flexibility. The downside of that is that students also get some flexibility.
Its not unheard of that our students triple major and still graduate in four years. Part of that is because students are allowed to enroll in conflicting classes. For example, in a course I co-teach, we are scheduled to meet MW from 2:40-4:30. Since its a 3 credit hour course, we actually don't meet the fourth hour often. We meet, for instance, 2:40-3:30 on a Monday then 2:40-4:30 on a Wednesday. There are 2 students enrolled in this class that have another class from 2:40-3:30. So often they can only come for one class period of three. Moreover, that is typically an activity period instead of a lecture.
These are typically seniors who are fulfilling senior-level required courses for their two or more conflicting majors. I'm pretty sure only strong students are allowed to double book. The two examples I'm currently thinking of were in the top of the class's test scores.
Its a minor hassle for us, since the students must take their quizzes and tests at another time than the rest of the class.
I guess the idea is just foreign to me: taking two classes that meet simultaneously. I double majored as an undergrad, but didn't finish in four at my huge state school. But there's a beeeeg difference in the cost of a semester at SRU than at my alma mater, perhaps that makes all the difference in the world.
So that's why I sometimes get requests to take my class at the same time as another class in which the student is enrolled. I have always been offended at the notion that one could take my class without showing up half the time.
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