On top of having to purchase expensive textbooks, many college students are burdened with paying for access codes. (Courtesy of Flickr)
By Margarita Artoglou
Last semester, I took several classes where the assigned readings were almost all available as PDFs on Blackboard or ARES. In fact, other than a couple of small, used books, I barely purchased any reading materials at all.
I would have spent under $50 that semester, had it not been for my Spanish class’ required digital access code.
Anyone who has taken Spanish here at Fordham understands the torture that is MySpanishLab — a seemingly innocuous program that becomes the bane of any Spanish student’s existence by the end of the semester.
The pain is magnified when you remember that you have spent close to $100 for the program.
Sure, the access code is packaged with the specially-made-for-Fordham textbook, but the physical book is so flimsy that it is impossible to imagine the cost of production is anywhere near the sticker price. The real cost is for the MySpanishLab access code, which is not supplemental nor shareable — every student needs his or her own unique code in order to complete the homework, which counts for part of the final grade.
Digital access codes are required in every sense of the word. When I see required books on my syllabi, I usually do a bit of searching for the book in the library or for a free online version. On one occasion, when only a couple of chapters were needed from a particular volume, I asked a classmate if I could borrow his or hers. I do everything in my power to not have to drop a ton of cash on books.
But I could not work my way out of buying access codes. No Fordham student can, because the homework assigned on these online platforms usually accounts for five to 10 percent of one’s final grade. These codes are usually required for core curriculum classes as well, so they are unavoidable.
These codes do not come cheap, presenting a problem for students who already face sky-high costs. Colleges should move away from access codes, especially when they do not have any clear purpose other than to increase revenue for the campus bookstore.
There are so many ways around these digital access codes. Instructors usually assign homework from the book anyway, which is often more helpful than the online homework.
MySpanishLab was often more of a headache than a help. In my Spanish classes, we never went over the homework that had been done on MySpanishLab. Instead, we discussed assignments from the textbook and additional sources. Sometimes, the preset assignments on MySpanishLab would fall out of sync with the lessons we did in class, resulting in assignments I was unequipped to complete that were due at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday night, despite the fact that I would not learn how to conjugate in the particular tense necessary for the assignment until Friday.
Even if the codes are used to the greatest of their ability, the payoff is low. All of the actual learning happened in the classroom during discussions and lessons, while the online homework assignments were a way to practice what we learned. However, the assignments were short and redundant. They were simple and not revolutionary in any way. I still ask myself why it was necessary to pay $100 to do a few weeks of Spanish fill-in-the-blanks.
Some might argue that $100 for an access code is a mere drop in the bucket compared to the cost of other academic materials, tuition and residential fees. While that might be true, access codes are completely unnecessary, since the class focus is almost always on book material rather than online material.
Getting rid of access codes would make it financially easier on college students and would also allow instructors to focus on one kind of assignment instead of trying to split their attention between online and on-paper grades.
Access codes are probably not leaving anytime soon, especially because students cannot buy these school-specific materials on Amazon or Chegg and are forced to drop some cash at the campus bookstore. If schools are going to be insistent about access codes, there should be a compelling reason for doing so.
So far, my Spanish classes are the only ones that have required an access code, but other students have not been as lucky. In order to justify such high price tags, Fordham and other schools that implement access codes should find programs that truly improve the course and the learning process.
Margarita Artoglou, FCRH ’18, is a communication and media studies major from Queens.
