Students react to homework over break

Hopkins undergraduates are notoriously studious, but even the loftiest intellectuals must close their books sometimes. Most students strike a delicate balance of work and downtime, living in anticipation of school holidays like Thanksgiving and spring break when they can finally relax. But vacations aren’t always the stress-free breaks that they should be, especially when schoolwork piles up. At Hopkins there are currently no administrative restrictions regarding the assignment of schoolwork over breaks.

Other schools have recognized this problem, and at Cornell the administration has proposed to ban assignments over breaks in an effort to limit the stress placed on their students. Hopkins does not have a ban like this, but a number of students would like to see it implemented.

Sophomore Meghan Kellett, a biology major, said that she recognizes the importance of protecting student’s mental health. “We shouldn’t have anything due right after break. People need downtime to recoup,” she said. In Kellett’s case, she has a large assignment that has been looming for weeks and one that she will most likely have to work on over spring break.

“It wasn’t specifically assigned over break, but it’s a twelve-page paper due the Monday after,” said Kellett. She insisted that she didn’t really mind, though. “I’m not going away, and I’d rather it be due after break than having everything due this week.”

However, not everyone feels similarly.

“Last Thanksgiving break, I spent the entire time at the library,” Sophomore biophysics major Bijan Arab said. “Even though there’s a break, you get no break from schoolwork.”

Arab said that he would rather have all his assignments due before break, giving him some actual relaxation time. He insisted that he didn’t mind work piling up beforehand. “You know the schedule at the beginning of the semester, so if you’re cramming, it’s your fault anyway,” said Arab. “It’d be nice to actually enjoy break for once.”

For Jess Strull, a freshman chemistry major, a ban like this would give her an actual vacation. Presently, she has a physics test scheduled for the week after spring break. “I definitely think I’m going to have to be studying and doing the homework problems over break to make sure I have time,” Strull said. She supports a ban and thinks that having a real break would enhance the overall quality of her work. “You won’t put as much effort into studying or writing a paper over break if what you want to be doing is relaxing,” she said.

Students aren’t the only ones in support of a ban. The English department’s Professor Mark Thompson says that, even though he isn’t aware of any official policy about work over breaks, he makes it his goal not to overload his students. “I don’t ever assign a paper due when students return, and I don’t ever have a test. I think that is too much,” Thompson said.

However, Thompson doesn’t expects his students to stop working altogether. “Over break, you have the opportunity to get a lot done. So the assumption is that you’re working. Reading assignments, I do tend to increase,” he said. Thompson added that if a ban like this was implemented, he would be happy to follow it. “If in fact it is a detriment to students’ health. We want them to be healthy, and if this is one way of doing that, we should support it,” he said.

Professor Joseph Harrington from the economics department echoed Thompson’s concern for the well-being of his students. “Everyone needs a break — that’s why we have them!” Harrington said. He would be in favor of a ban, but questions its enforceability. “There is a lot of independence among instructors. I’d expect less than full compliance,” he said. However, even if a ban wouldn’t work, he still thinks that the issue is important, and would like to see some action taken. “I’d be in favor of an e-mail coming out of the Dean’s office telling professors to please try to avoid assigning work over the breaks,” Harrington said.

Professor Harrington isn’t alone in his ideas about how realistic such actions would be at Hopkins. Junior psychology major Carrie Grady laughed at the proposal. “Yeah, because the reading week ban worked so well. I had an exam during reading period last year,” she said.

Grady detailed how her workload always packs her vacation full of schoolwork. “My professors usually assign a long-term project due right after the break,” Grady said. “It’s not a surprise, but I always have so much else to do beforehand that most of my work ends up falling during the break.” As she contemplates her situation, Grady warms to the idea of the ban, and despite her initial skepticism, says she would not be opposed to it. “I guess it’d be good if they actually did it!”