As students scramble to finish mid-terms and turn in papers,
their eyes are on one goal: Thanksgiving break. But students would
be more focused, and less stressed, if Thanksgiving break were an
entire week.
It’s not just a lazy student’s dream ““ it
makes academic sense. Many schools offer fall breaks and a lengthy
Thanksgiving holiday. Granted, most operate on the semester system,
but the need to give students time to travel and catch up
mid-quarter should translate here as well.
UCLA already has a strange schedule. We start later than almost
any other university in the country, and our two-day Week 0 feels
like a complete waste by the time the quarter ends. UCLA is also
one of the only schools to recognize Cesar Chavez day, further
complicating our calendar.
So as strange as the schedule already is, it seems like it
wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to tweak it just a little
more.
Rather than having the useless zero week, UCLA should start
three days earlier, have a full week of classes, and give students
a full Thanksgiving break.
For students who have classes that meet only once a week, it
would ensure they don’t miss out eighth week. And for
everyone else, it would be a chance to relax after almost an entire
quarter without a single significant break. Most students already
observe a longer break ““ UCLA should reflect that reality in
its academic calendar.