Everybody’s felt it: the frantic typing of keys, the heavy environment and the feeling of being burnt out as the clock begins to countdown the final minutes of class. Then comes the dreaded words, “Turn it in before class ends or it’s late.” 

While educators intentions behind “end-of-hour deadlines” may be good in trying to help with procrastination and ensuring students stay on task, the reality is that this practice prioritizes a rushed assignment over a quality assignment that shows understanding of the materials. It’s time we as a whole rethink “in-class deadlines,” for the sake of students’ well being, along with academic quality. 

Some people may say that they like these tight deadlines and often say that they keep you from wasting time, but there is a big difference between staying focused and working in a panic. 

The constant rush also has a high cost. It leads to students being burnt out much faster than big projects with more time to finish. When you’re rushing to finish by the end of the hour, you’re bound to make typos, miss facts and misuse logic.  

Moreover, when everything is due immediately, it creates a culture of anxiety where people may be afraid, or not have time to look over their work before submitting. This doesn’t only hurt the work, but also the people doing it.

End-of-hour due dates may also take a serious toll on a student’s mental well-being. When you’re constantly worried about turning in an assignment within 50-60 minutes, your brain puts most of its mental power onto monitoring the clock, which ultimately makes you less efficient. 

Overall, end-hour-long deadlines should be used for exit tickets as well as tests and quizzes, and not a daily routine. When educators demand instant work, as a whole, we shouldn’t be shocked when students’ work feels rushed and incomplete.