I have been teaching freshmen for close to 17 years, and the majority of my students are Chicano/Latino, with many of them first generation college students. I spend the first weeks of my classes challenging my students to set the bar high for themselves, which means they have a rigorous weekly reading and writing load. I want my students to learn from the beginning that College is WORK and that they are building a new skill set as college students. Professors do not want to hear you complain and whine about the workload, something that high school students often do and get away with in the classroom.
Denise M. Sandoval is a Professor in the Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies at California State University, Northridge.
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