school is expensive

I just found out that I have an outstanding balance of $41 on my school account even though my tuition for fall term was paid in full three months ago. I called the Accounts Receivable office to ask them why there was a hold on my account (preventing me from registering for winter term) and why there is an outstanding charge in the amount of $41 after I already paid.

Apparently, this is a new charge, documented as a "Rec Center fee" which students now have to pay each term to subsidize the new buildings that are being constructed on campus.

I didn't sign up for that.

I definitely understand the need for suitable learning environments, but that will be an additional $164 a year that I have to pay on top of the already costly tuition. I guess it's just a bitter pill to swallow because at this point, I am not even setting foot on campus because of my remote learning situation. hmph!

I guess it's a necessary evil..paying for the upkeep of the campus, but for some reason I feel like that money should not come out of my pocket or any students' pockets.

Here in Germany, university is free. Well, there are some nominal costs involved, but it's not at all like handing over several thousand dollars every few months.

Doesn't it make a lot more sense for learning to be free!?

***

On a different note:

I worked in my friend's 7th Grade English class today and she was using a great writing strategy she just learned about at a conference for international schools in Hamburg last week. The acronym STAR is used to help students in the revision process. This teacher used a piece of chart paper with the letters S T A R written across the top, each with its own column underneath.

The letters in STAR stand for

Substitute/Replace

Take out

Add

Rearrange

When I came in, they had already been working on this strategy and had listed different examples under each category. The goal is for students to get rid of boring useless words that don't serve a true purpose in their writing and add vibrant, significant language that is powerful and has an impact on making their writing meaningful and entertaining.

She had also written on the board:

Rule #1

Don't fall in love with your first draft.

This strategy comes from a book called Teaching Adolescent Writers by Kelly Gallagher. I only know what I saw/learned today, but it seems like a great strategy that I would enjoy learning more about. It is really important for writers to understand the value in editing, revising, and working on a piece of writing until it is ready for publishing.