COLUMN: Finishing the year strong requires plenty of attention
Students are preparing for their summer plans, whether it be jobs, internships or fun vacations. But what they need to realize is that class is still in session, and although summer is an exciting near-future thought, we must focus our attention on the present challenges we are facing.
Springtime can provide a perfect excuse for friendly games of softball, late afternoon walks and even cat-naps in the sunlight.
However, the arrival of spring means summer is just around the corner, and this thought completely derails the mind of a student from thoughts of academics to daydreams about those three months of boat rides and bonfires.
Midterms are over at last, and students’ minds are finally free to think about things other than test grades and teetering GPAs. So naturally, we all think about and look forward to summer for the blatant fact that school will be finished for three and a half months and books and calculators will be replaced with sunscreen and colorful shorts.
Although summer is just around the corner, it is not here yet. It is in fact only the beginning of April, which means there is still an entire month of brutal tests, surprise quizzes, endless papers and late nights of studying to endure before we are cut loose. Not to mention the giant nemesis that is the week of final exams.
There are still plenty of hurdles and obstacles to overcome before May 3 arrives, but these hurdles and obstacles are often overshadowed by the impatient desire for summer vacation.
After almost an entire semester of diligent work, many students embrace spring as a chance to “check out” of school and put their brains into pilot mode. Although tempting, I urge everyone to avoid these actions. It may seem like a grand, stress-relieving idea right now, but in the end, your grades will reflect upon it, which will be anything but stress relieving.
The harder students work in this final month of school, the better their grades will be and the more enjoyable the long vacation will be.
Don’t let the inevitable promise of summer take away from your focus on academics. I realize it’s easy to get lost in thoughts of sunnier days, but these thoughts need to be pushed to the back of students’ minds until the final test is taken. In the end, this advice will be widely appreciated.
Summer break is wonderful, and holds a lot of promise and adventure, but don’t let the anticipation of it crush your GPA.
