Opinion: Is Thanksgiving Break Really a Break?
posted by Breasia L. Williams | November 27, 2023 | In News, OpinionFor the past few years, each time Thanksgiving has rolled around, I ask: “Didn’t Thanksgiving used to be a week-long break?” I struggle to finish several assignments while attempting to enjoy the “break” at the same time.
Some people say yes, and some people say no. For some people, Thanksgiving Break is a week-long and for others, it can be as short as 1-2 days. I understand that the length of one’s Thanksgiving Break depends greatly on what college they go to, what school district they attend if we are talking about grade school children, or what job they work at.
However, each year I have pondered this question from a place of frustration.
When I was in grade school, Thanksgiving Break was absolutely a week-long break. I had to look this up for clarification and to prove that I wasn’t going crazy to some who disbelieved me. Furthermore, since I have gotten to college, I have experienced a Thanksgiving Break that consisted of Thursday-Sunday, and never feels like an actual break.
For college students, most of our assignments are due on Sunday, which means that we must work to complete them in the days beforehand. This causes students to end up doing schoolwork on break. This is especially true as we approach final exam season and have an influx of major assignments for our final semester grades.
To this, some may say: “Complete the assignments before break starts.” But it is not that simple, for when Thanksgiving Break approaches, most of us have not had a break since our Fall Break a month before (which is often in the same ineffective format as Thanksgiving Break, Thursday-Sunday). Because of this, students are usually backed up and in a consistent cycle of doing work all week to meet the Sunday deadline for several classes. Even with the absence of physically going to class, students are no less stressed during this time.
At the same time, students are told to enjoy their break, focus on their families, and eat a lot of good food. I know a lot of students who don’t even go home for Thanksgiving Break because it is too short, and not every student’s home is a quick drive away.
So, let’s be real, we should recognize Thanksgiving Break for what it is. Not a break, but rather, a few days of canceled class.
Stock photo generated by DALL-E
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