Dear Professors,
Whether it's drifting off to sleep or texting during class, there has always been a stigma about sitting in the back row. No matter the subject, or who the professor is, people always seem to assume that those students who sit in the back row could not be less interested in the class. As someone who has subscribed to the back row life, I feel that the negative connotation has been around for too long. There are plenty of reasons that a student could prefer to sit in the back row, and I'd like to try and shed some light, as well as clear the names of the kids with their backs against the wall ... pun intended.
Personally, I prefer to sit in the back row because that's where I have always felt most comfortable. There is no pressure to contribute if you don't know the answer, there is no awkward eye-contact with the teacher when he or she is looking for a student to further explain a point, and there isn't the weird feeling of having people behind you constantly looking at the back of your head. That last one might just be me, but you get my point. Students in the back may just prefer to see the whole board from a wide perspective, or may find that it's easier to hear the whole class discussion.
I've had teachers make jokes about the kids in the back row in multiple classes and after a while it began to bother me that before my teacher even took the time to get to know me or gave me a chance, I was already seen as a student who was just there for the credits.
Now I'm not saying that everyone in the back row is sitting straight up with their notebooks open and eager to learn. As someone who sits in the back row almost exclusively whenever possible, I have seen my fair share of students fall asleep, text on their phones, or just fill their papers with mindless doodles until the period is up. I once saw a kid watching Netflix on his phone for an entire period without looking up once or even pretending to be the slightest bit interested in what the teacher was saying. There will be kids like that in every class, and that's unavoidable, but that doesn't mean every kid in the back row is slacking off equally.
I'm undeniably not the best student - my pages are full of doodles, and my mind tends to wander from time to time, but I still find it unfair that the moment I walk into a classroom my seat choice determines my character in the mind of my teacher. The kids in the back row should be given a fair chance just like the rest of the kids entering the classroom, even if some of us really might just be there for the credit, that doesn't mean all of us are.
Sincerely,
A Kid Fond of the Back Row
