Transparency Item: The Perspectives section of the Graphic is comprised of articles based on opinion. This is the opinion and perspective of the writer.
Since returning to school after COVID, I have submitted many of my assignments online.
An extensive amount of unique deadlines have followed from this development, including the infamous 11:59 p.m. deadline.
In high school, I was shocked by deadlines outside of class when my school went online during COVID.
When I had solely turned in assignments physically, deadlines were always set during class time because that was the only time the class was able to turn in the assignment.
Even when we returned to a normal school schedule, my teachers continued to establish assignment submission deadlines outside class time and working hours. This became a common practice, and I began to encounter more obscure deadlines set during days class was not held, weekends and breaks.
In the short term, the ability to ask questions during class and then submit the assignment that night is helpful. For example, I was able to ask my English professor a question about my paper after class and submit the paper later that night.
That being said, in the long term, I do not think this convenience is worth the trade-off of normalizing working at obscure hours.
Some may argue that deadlines outside of class promote the responsibility and time management that students will need in the workforce.
While some jobs may require additional time outside of working hours, they usually are given additional compensation, according to the State of California Department of Industrial Relations.
Perseverance and strong work ethics can be created during regular school hours and after-school homework assignments. I believe that working outside of agreed-upon hours is not a skill students have to learn for their futures.
Others may say that students are already expected to work outside of school hours on homework and studying. How is adding a due date outside of school hours different from this?
Students schedule completing out-of-class work by themselves. While requirements for homework are set within class time, due dates invade students’ privacy as a teacher’s expectation must be met while a student is at home, usually late at night.
I think due dates outside of working hours disadvantage students because students become used to doing additional work at obscure hours.
If students are primed to work around the clock from elementary school to college, I imagine this pattern will continue into the workforce.
This sets our generation as prime candidates to be taken advantage of by future employers. In 2015 alone, there were 8,871 wage and hour lawsuits filed, according to the Washington Post.
Some may argue students are not forced to do this, it is simply an option. They can submit an assignment at the beginning of class or during working hours.
I often wait to submit an assignment in case a professor gives additional directions or guidance during class time that will cause me to edit my assignment.
Although I am not forced to submit my assignments after working hours, I am incentivized to submit them after working hours so I can gain additional directions.
All of that being said, there is an important distinction between deadlines outside of working hours in high school and college.
While high schools usually have explicit start and end times, creating explicit working hours, colleges usually do not, according to King’s College.
Students are expected to spend the same number of hours in class working on assignments and studying outside of class, according to Pepperdine University Academic Policies. Determining how these outside-of-class hours should be distributed is up for interpretation.
Additionally, most colleges offer night classes, where class time itself goes beyond traditional 9 a.m., to 5 p.m., working hours.
I believe high schools should make assignments due within class time because of the clear working hours.
As for college, in my perfect world, assignments would be due within class hours. However, since students gain full-time status because of work outside of class, I understand the argument for deadlines outside of class time.
I think a fair compromise would be for college professors to set deadlines during working hours of 8 a.m., to 6 p.m., unless the hours of the class do not fall into that time period.
Setting deadlines outside of working hours promotes unhealthy work patterns that I imagine will follow students into the workforce. Setting deadlines within working hours allows students to plan their schedules, create healthy boundaries and enjoy much-needed breaks from school.
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Contact Caitlin Murray via email: caitlin.murray@pepperdine.edu or by Instagram: @caitlin_murray36
