When students think of summer, they think of hot weather, late nights, the beach and hanging out with friends, while they try not to think about the summer work assignments that are due by the first day of school.

For MCVSD students who work in honors classes all year round, the question of whether or not summer work should be mandatory is debatable. New Jersey laws does not require summer homework.

According to the New Jersey Commissioner of Education, it is at the School Board of Education’s discretion to assign summer homework, and that it is “based upon the unique needs and characteristics of the students, parents, and the members of the community who are served by the district.” 

It was further stated that summer homework is suitable to serve the academic needs of the students in the District, strengthen their learning during break and prepare them to transition back into the school year next September. 

Summer homework does help students continue students’ work ethic over the break as well as strengthen their reading and writing skills. 

Sophomore Kaitlin Brice of Wall Township believes summer homework is a good idea.

“I think it helps keep my brain thinking, especially over summer. I’m not doing that a lot. It definitely helps me stay in the school mindset, and it’s easier when I do go back to school,” Brice said. 

English teacher Anne Kelterborn has a strong opinion about summer reading.  

“My belief in regards to reading is that students need to be reading everyday, so I do believe that assigning a summer reading assignment is beneficial,” Kelterborn said. “But, I do want kids to have a choice so I try to give them some choice as far as the books they read. I think it helps them build stamina and fluency to be reading regularly.” 

This also begs the question of if summer homework should only be the typical summer reading, or if there should be work for a variety of classes. Senior Ainsley Lang of Shrewsbury said how helpful her math reviews over the summer were. 

“For something like calculus, actually doing all the reviews helps me in the long run for the beginning of the year.” But, while Lang said she thought summer homework was beneficial, she also explained that her mind is not motivated and not willing to learn during the summer break. 

However, it does seem that math work over the summer would be helpful for students because it is not as common for summer homework as summer reading is. Almost all students continue analyzing texts and writing over the summer, but math work is a more rare occurrence.  

“I definitely notice it’s harder in math class like coming back to it,” Brice said. 

Many CHS students are in agreement that they leave their summer homework assignments until the last minute. During the summer, it is easy to procrastinate and forget there are school assignments, which causes many students to complete their work at the very end of the summer. 

Freshman Thomas Tilton of Monmouth Beach said, “I usually push it off until August and then I’ll do it midway through August and then the final part the last day before school starts.” 

The way students complete their summer homework does not matter greatly as long as they get it done. However, the students may retain the information more if it is not done at the last minute. 

While summer homework is sometimes an annoyance during a time of relaxation, it is still helpful to the students to keep up their work ethic and learning capabilities.