John Walker
Opinion Editor
As I sit in the newsroom and listen to my colleagues argue about the NCAA tournament and from the open doors the sound of students practicing for All-Campus Sing drifts in, I start to remember why I enjoy spring weather so much.
The warmth and the activity that warmth brings out in both people and on campus is almost overwhelming.
Here we go fellow students. It’s time to break out of your hibernation and take the campus back. Come read in Quad or listen to the music students practice on the steps of Lovett.
Spring is the most youthful time of the year. The blooming of flowers and trees and the sound of all the birds returning is more than I can stand. Being stuck inside is the worst possible situation this time of year, which brings me to my main point.Professors, if at all possible, find a way to take your classes outside this semester and let your students enjoy the weather.
Being outside is not only pleasurable, but changes up the daily grind of being under fluorescent lights and looking at computer screens while trying not to fall asleep to the slideshow lecture.
In recent years there have been plenty of studies to show the benefit of operating in a more natural environment. According to a study by Kirk Warren Brown and Tim Kasser titled “Are Psychological and Ecological Well-Being Compatible? The Role of Values, Mindfulness and Lifestyle” responsibility in nature and a person’s well-being can be complementary.
“That is, happier people were living in more ecologically sustainable ways,” the study shows.
The study goes on the say the more we are able to find ourselves involved with our natural settings the more we will appreciate our planet.
“The present findings are hopeful in pointing to a mutually beneficial relation between personal and planetary well-being, especially given that such supportive factors as mindfulness and intrinsic values can be cultivated,” it reads.
So please find a way to get outside and see the world around you. All classrooms are the same, but even moving over a few feet outside can change your entire perspective on the world around you. And for those instructors who decline our invitation to the great world outside I encourage their students to come out. Take the hit to your grade if you wish, I have done it plenty of times throughout the years.
One enjoyable day with friends and great weather is worth a thousand being stuck in the classroom. So there is your choice, it’s time to make it. Hope to see you outside.