To study, or not to study: That is the question

By Christina Arzapalo | gargoyle@flagler.edu

Picture this: a student is almost late for English class and desperately needs to find an open computer to print out a paper that is due.

After frantically searching between rows and rows of occupied computers, the student realizes that no one is doing school work.

Computer screens displaying Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and other social networking Web sites are being browsed, while people who need to use a computer for academic reasons are left to look elsewhere.

This is the typical scene in Flagler’s Proctor Library on any given week day.

Now, I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t study as much as I should. I’m guilty of taking naps instead of writing papers, going shopping instead of studying for final exams and generally becoming a master at the art of procrastination.

I’m not the only student at Flagler whose study habits are lacking — we are currently number six on The Princeton Review’s list of schools that study the least. Because really, who wants to study in the library on a beautiful, sunny day when Vilano Beach is calling their name?

Of course, not all Flagler students perpetuate the stereotype of being lazy, unmotivated beach bums. Freshman education major Jennifer Kelly thinks she studies more than most other students.

“I spend a good amount of time studying and writing papers,” Kelly said. “I find myself doing schoolwork while my friends are out partying more often than not.”

God bless her. When I was a freshman, my main concern was how many hours I could spend tanning at the pool each weekend. It was usually far more hours than I spent doing homework, I’ll tell you that much.

The city we live in also makes it difficult to manage our time wisely. We can smell the sweet salt water of the Atlantic Ocean from miles away, and it’s difficult to pass by Scarlett O’Hara’s Bar and Restaurant without craving a tropical drink of the alcoholic variety.

However, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that studying and finishing my work is more important than becoming a sun-kissed goddess. In the end, graduate schools are going to be looking at my internships and extracurricular activities, and not paying attention to how iridescent my skin is when standing in direct sunlight.

Other upperclassmen in my communication classes have had the same epiphany, and figured out that we actually have to try in order to receive good grades as our classes get harder. Simply cramming five minutes before final exams doesn’t do anything for our grade point average.

The next time a student needs to get on a computer and do homework in the library, I hope they’ll have the courage to tell the absent-minded Facebook dweller to get lost. I’m sure their social life won’t be deeply damaged by not posting yet another status update before class begins, and making sure work is printed out is far more important.

If all else fails, we could always bring our books outside and do homework there. Just don’t let the warm sunshine or Frisbee players distract you.