Upon first glance, strict deadlines can be great motivators for productivity, over a long period of time, however, can they prevent students from developing good work habits?

Preceding the COVID-19 pandemic, most, if not all classes implemented strict deadlines and penalties for overdue assignments. For the first full year back, some of the most noticeable changes in the gradebook were extended deadlines and no late penalties for late work.

Teachers are allowed to take points off for assignments but are not encouraged to. Deadlines have been extended to interims or until the end of the grading quarter.  

According to Entrepreneur.com, time pressure can lead to sloppy work. It is easy to become focused on completing an assignment or project in time to get full credit, however, it can result in messy work that does not reflect its full potential and create an environment where mistakes are more likely to occur. 

Instead of prioritizing the completion of every aspect of a rubric, time constraints can strictly limit the motivation to do so, especially since students are told that a late assignment is better than no assignment. With a time crunch, the goal for a student becomes to turn in a completed worksheet or assignment, regardless of its accuracy or not.

Deadline anxiety can cause heaps of stress upon students, building on already existing stress-inducing responsibilities. For many seniors, that can include college applications and scholarships on top of AP exams. 

When a due date approaches, accuracy can be exchanged for speed which can result in poor judgment and decision making, according to Psychreg.org. 

Time management is a challenging skill to learn, no doubt even more difficult for students. Juggling heaps of course load for seven classes that are seen all five days of a week is not easier when there is so much overlap between deadlines for multiple courses at once and can often lead to procrastination. It becomes infinitely easier to push off assignments.

An extended deadline, like one that lasts until midterms, gives students opportunities to perfect their projects and assignments without the worry of prioritizing tasks over others. 

Strict deadlines can invoke harmful working habits that are difficult to get rid of. One is procrastination, when the stress of meeting a deadline results in an individual pushing it off until they have no choice but to complete it. 

Chronic stress as a result of procrastination is proven to kill brain cells and can reduce the size of the brain. Shrinking in the areas of the brain responsible for memory and learning can occur, according to Touro University Worldwide. 

This unhealthy cycle results in the excretion of natural caffeine sources in the body and can induce caffeine addiction to provide the same result when there are heavy loads of work to manage, according to Psychology Today. 

While many are traditionally used to meeting strict deadlines at jobs, in schools and in the real world, they are not healthy ways of completing assignments and tasks. Learning different ways to create one’s schedule and managing their time without the use of time pressure can create effective and healthier means to being productive.