What do you call the five-day period at the end of every semester when students rush to finish up last-minute assignments, quizzes and projects? “Dead week” is the likely answer if you’re a student. In theory, professors are not supposed to schedule any major due dates during this “concentrated study period,” as the LSU academic calender calls it. But from the students’ perspective, the term “dead week” usually describes their feeling at the end of the arduous five days — dead. According to the LSU General Catalog, graded assignments like tests, quizzes and homework can take place, provided they don’t count for more than 10 percent of the course grade. In addition, no new material should be introduced during this time. There is an exemption made for assignments that count for more than 10 percent of students grades, as long as that assignment was announced on the syllabus within the first two weeks of the semester. Student Government also offers a printable complaint form on their Website, which was implemented to discourage overloading work during this time. These regulations seem justifiable, but they make us wonder — “why do we even have a dead week if we’re not going to utilize its purpose in the first place?” The common sentiment from students is one of anger and stress, as most are familiar with the looming deadlines usually falling on this week when assignments are theoretically taboo. While on paper students are supposed to utilize this time to study for the approaching exams of next week, in reality they are struggling just to make it to finals week. Dead week exists to provide students with a time to study, rest and prepare for the upcoming week of exams. But until professors actually recognize this, we should just call it as it is — the time when professors cram in everything they meant to during the semester and students scramble to complete the work they pushed off until the end.
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