DROWNING IN A SEA OF MAKEUP WORK

By BROGAN JOHNSON

Every year families travel all across the world as an escape from the mundane routine of their daily lives.  While many families schedule their vacations around the school year to avoid having their children miss important lessons and homework, some take advantage of the cheaper airfare and hotel rates and pull their children out of school.  

BROGAN JOHNSON FOR THE WIZARD WEEKLY

Missing school always sounds like a good idea to overworked students at the time; however, playing hooky comes with a price.  Being absent for multiple classes can cause your workload to pile up extremely quickly, especially with WHS’ block scheduling.  The never-ending workload leaves students with two options: ask your teachers for assignments you will miss while away or wait until you get home to deal with the stack of papers.  

Art teacher at WHS, Mr. Strommer, stated, “The longer I have been teaching, the more lenient I have become with families vacationing during school.  I find traveling to a new country or city gives you the best learning experience and in the whole scheme of school, what’s five days anyway?”  While I believe traveling provides you with the most opportunities to learn, I do understand the concern of teachers and missing assignments.  

Gavan O’Brien, a senior at WHS, believes, “Whether you are sick or go on vacation, missing school is not an issue because you can always make up the work you missed.”  In such a technological world, the majority of missed assignments can be found online or if you have any questions on the assignment, you can contact your teacher within a matter of seconds.  O’Brien also shared, “Regardless of when you ask for your work, it will still have to be completed so you might as well enjoy your trip without worrying about work.”

Unlike Gavan, I would highly recommend talking to your teachers at least a week prior to your trip and see what you will be missing.  It is important to check in with teachers because many, like Mr. Strommer, “will be more than happy to give you assignments but refuse to extend deadlines.”  You may not be able to receive all the work you will miss, but having a jumpstart will be extremely helpful and should shorten your workload tremendously.  

Whether you travel to the Caribbean or the Jersey Shore, it is imperative you determine a way to balance the workload you will miss while also enjoying your fun in the sun.  No one wants to return home from a week of relaxation to a week of stress!