BY CATHERINE GERKIS

Summer is a season associated with sunshine, carefree behavior, and of course, no school. However, prior to the start of the school year, students often have to complete numerous assignments that will be collected and graded upon the moment of return in September. This situation usually applies to juniors and seniors to whom AP courses are made available. While summer homework in these classes is often necessary, as the teachers must cover a whole year’s curriculum before the mid-May test dates, many students drop courses they find difficult at the start of the year, and in some cases, students are forced to drop certain classes due to scheduling conflicts.

Unfortunately, nothing can be done to alleviate students’ burdens in finishing large quantities of summer work, but there is a solution to solve discord caused by scheduling. Students sign up for their respective courses in early spring, and yet they do not receive their finalized schedules until a couple of weeks before the start of the school year. Counselors are then bombarded with issues brought to them by distraught students unhappy with their less-than-perfect academic agendas.

Scheduling is a fairly large undertaking, and no matter what time of year it is performed, there are bound to be numerous problems and conflicts. However, if students were to receive their schedules for the following school year before the beginning of summer, many of the issues associated with scheduling could be resolved quickly. Students would know exactly which courses they would be taking and with which teachers. Also, problems that arise when a student is trying to fit a class only offered one or two periods a day into his or her already packed schedule could be dealt with more easily. And if the end result is that a class must be dropped, the student will be made aware of this before summer starts and will not have to do the homework associated with said class.

Although a perfect scheduling system would be impossible to come by, many conflicts caused by the scheduling process could be settled before summer begins, which would lessen stress placed on students, guidance counselors and other faculty members. For students, the outcome would be an adoption of an even stronger easygoing attitude than before and a sure notion that all summer homework being done is serving its correct purpose.