Midterms

Week Six - In the upper floor of a university hall, adjacent to a major stairwell, lay a small collection of seats and tables. This is an area is perfect for a moments rest between classes, a short period of study, or a small gathering of students partaking in a noon lunch.

An influx of students can be noted in the upstairs alcove this week. Traffic in this area has steadily been increasing lately, most likely due to a number of midterm exams being handed out this month. Students looking to form last minute study groups occupy this area and this once tranquil location is now a bustling music hub. Choir students work on vocalization in one corner, while a collection of other students gather around a computer listening to sound bites for their ear training classes in another area of the alcove. A third group resides between these two clusters of students and are busily chatting away.

The choir students seem to be practicing the lyrics of a few sections of music. The foreign nature of these lyrics and the verbal mechanics associated with the language the students are attempting to sing in would seem to be what is giving the group trouble. There are three students in this group, all sitting behind a single desk evaluating a few sheets of music. The students are sitting approximately six feet away from one another and are solely concentrated on their sheet music. These students do not have their phones out, nor any other form of distraction.

The mingling group in the middle is more widely dispersed than the previous group. These seven students are sitting anywhere from two feet to four feet from one another and holding a collective conversation. The student’s phones and laptops are out, however these devices are not being used as distraction as seen in previous note entries. Instead, these devices are being used to cite news articles so that the group can hold an informed conversation.

The third group is gathered around a single laptop. The owner of the laptop will begin by making a few keystrokes on his laptop’s touchpad, a short collection of synthesized notes or drumbeats will play, and the cluster of students surrounding him will then begin to loudly argue amongst themselves. It would seem that these students tend to continue their argument to the point where they forget what they had originally heard. At this point the computer operated has to once again play the sound bite in question, and the arguing begins again. There are five students here, all standing or sitting close enough to be touching. The amount of space between them is so small that when they turn to face one another when arguing, they have to lean there torsos back in an effort to create enough room for gestures and other body language. Like the first group, these students are completely concentrated on their arguments and the operator’s computer. No phone or other electronic device is out at the moment.

Two students from the choir group, realizing that they have just finished their work for the day get up and begin to dance distractingly in the middle of the alcove. At this point I pack my things and leave, as I too have midterms to study for.