Roar writer on the types of people you will find in your lecture theatres.
After everyone celebrated Christmas with their loves ones and had a very happy new year, we might have a somewhat ‘normal’ 2022 after all (fingers crossed). And we (including the humanities students who have been left out) might finally have in-person lectures again! (Yay!).
Most of us haven’t been to a lecture theatre before and don’t know what to expect. We all know that we’d find ourselves in a large room with more than 200 people and one very knowledgeable human being in front of a massive screen with some very confusing slides on it. But we need to understand who those 200 people are, and how they will affect our lives. So, meet the types of people you will find in your lecture theatres:
1. The front-row-er: Why in the world would you even do that? Are you the teacher’s new pet? Thought we got rid of those in secondary school!
2. The competitor: This lecture attendee is someone you shouldn’t try to dance with. They won’t be forgiving when you challenge the complexity of their brain cells. They will not only challenge you, but they will challenge the lecturer!
3. The “what happens if it” goes outside of the scope of our course – er: We realise that you read the pre-reading, got bored, and read an entire research paper on the topic! Give us a break will you!
4. The ASOS-er: I really do not want to look at your shopping basket when I’m trying to take notes, but you have extremely bad taste. And we know you want us to know that you have money.
5. The one who asks for your notes when they were talking to you the entire time: “Oh hey, I’ll ask you to send me a copy of your notes later if that’s okay!”… No it is not okay! I haven’t written a word down because I was listening to how your flatmate interrupted a deep conversation about emotional intelligence between you and a guy you liked so much, who now likes your flatmate!
6. The leg shaker: Your legs sound like a ticking clock. It’s making me nervous. I swear to God I will accidentally drop my pret all over you if you do not stop!
7. Peckish Peter: Do you feel hungry? Forgot to have that week-old macaroni? Woke up late? Worry not! For Peckish Peter has food and he has a lot! But be wary of the munching sounds, you both shall put on a few extra pounds!
8. The late comer: It’s extremely dramatic when that one person walks in and the room is silent for literally three seconds when everyone’s eyes are on that person and then things go back to the way it was, as if that person never walked in…
9. The couple: There’s a new couple in class and everyone knows! They just pretend that they don’t and act like they aren’t upset by how their friend has forgotten about them, but this new couple will always sit right next to each other and run away to have their own cute little time and ‘work on the new assignment’ when you just want to ask your friend how their day was.
10. The one who stays behind to ask the professor a question: Yes! We get it! You actually understood something! But these days, we can email them questions you know? No need to disturb them during their lunch break!
11. The INCREDIBLE smeller: Oh is that a new perfume you’ve put on? I swear I’ve NEVER smelled it before!
There are many types of students that you will find in your lecture theatre, and it will be interesting to find more types of students and analyse their behaviour and understand why they behave the way they do. It might be due to sixth-form or high school trauma.
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