Every year in late April, students at Renmin University of China become the subjects of admiration and jealousy of their peers on other campuses in Beijing. Why? Because they get a week off in the middle of term, the so-called spring break.

每年四月末，中國人民大學(xué)的學(xué)生總能成為京城其他高校學(xué)子們羨慕和嫉妒的對象。原因何在？因為他們擁有一周的期中“春假”。

“It’s been a unique tradition of our school for a decade,” said Wang Yueran, 20, a journalism major at Renmin University, who organized a weeklong trip to Sichuan with 12 classmates last year.

“我們學(xué)校的這項獨特傳統(tǒng)已有十年的歷史了。”人大新聞系學(xué)生、20歲的王悅?cè)唬ㄒ糇g）說。去年春假期間，她和12位同學(xué)一起組織了一次為期一周的四川之行。

But having fun is just one dimension of the spring break. Field trips, voluntary work, and social projects are all on students’ to-do lists. Experts say the spring break is not just for students to enjoy a few days off, but for them to gain new experiences beyond the campus walls.

而吃喝玩樂僅僅是春假的一個方面。學(xué)生的任務(wù)清單還包括校外實習(xí)、志愿工作、社會實踐等等。專家稱，春假不僅是為了讓學(xué)生享受數(shù)日清閑，更是要讓他們走出象牙塔外，體驗新事物。

Push them out

將學(xué)生推向社會

The traditional Chinese belief of the exploration of knowledge and truth emphasizes “reading 10,000 books and traveling 10,000 miles”， which indicates the importance of experience as much as theory. But while Chinese universities have the tradition of spring outings, what’s the benefit of making spring break an institution?

對于探索知識和真理，中國傳統(tǒng)觀念強調(diào)：“讀萬卷書，行萬里路。”這說明經(jīng)驗與理論同等重要。盡管中國大學(xué)素有春游傳統(tǒng)，但春假制度又能帶來哪些益處呢？

Qin Jianguo, of the student affairs office at Shenzhen University, thinks the idea of the spring break in some universities in China comes from the intention of pushing students out of the ivory tower to experience more diversity in their lives.

來自深圳大學(xué)學(xué)生事務(wù)服務(wù)中心的秦建國（音譯）認(rèn)為，一些國內(nèi)高校之所以“試水”春假制度，目的是讓學(xué)生走出象牙塔，去經(jīng)歷多彩生活。

“Take traveling for example. A week traveling is a very different experience to a one- or two-day outing,” said Qin. “Students are expected to acquire the spirit of teamwork and compromise, and learn survival and communication skills when put out there in an unfamiliar context.”

“以旅游為例。一周的旅行與一兩天的短途游玩是完全不同的兩種體驗，”秦建國說。“學(xué)生需要具備團隊協(xié)作精神，學(xué)會在陌生環(huán)境中的生存和交流技能。”

Diverse approaches

多姿多彩的春假文化

Many countries have similar vacations in the middle of the semester for students to do things out of their own interest. Taking Japan as an example, instead of partying like their US counterparts, many Japanese students choose to work as interns or engage in study-related projects.

很多國家也會推行類似的期中春假制度，以便學(xué)生去從事自己感興趣的活動。比如：與美國學(xué)生春假期間派對不斷有所不同，在日本，許多學(xué)生會選擇去實習(xí)或從事項目研究。

“The spring break is an opportunity for many of our students to put their learning to use,” said Hiroshi Kanno, dean of the Graduate School of International Corporate Strategy at Hitotsubashi University, in the school’s description of a recent spring break project.

“春假是一個契機，學(xué)生們可以借此機會將理論付諸實踐。”日本一橋大學(xué)國際企業(yè)策略研究院院長菅野博史在該校最新春假計劃概述中指出。

As for Chinese students who take a week off around the Labor Day holiday, many tend to do volunteer work. Duan Zhipeng, a 22-year-old economics major at Renmin University, applied for a project to go back to his hometown in Jiangxi province to introduce his university’s enrollment policies and campus culture to local high school students.

很多中國學(xué)生會享有長達一周的五一假期，而他們中的許多人會利用這段時間來參加志愿活動。人民大學(xué)經(jīng)濟系學(xué)生、22歲的段志鵬（音譯）便申請參加了一項義務(wù)活動：回到江西老家，向當(dāng)?shù)馗咧猩榻B人大的招生政策和校園文化。

Not a trend yet

未成“氣候”

Apart from Renmin University, only a few other universities, such as Yantai University, have a spring break for their students. The concept in China is still far from the culture and norms built around it in the US.

除了人民大學(xué)之外，只有煙臺大學(xué)等幾所高校正在推行春假制度。與美國的春假文化及習(xí)俗相比，中國的春假還有很長一段路要走。

Wei Xiang, a professor specializing in holiday economics at Beijing International Studies University, said that the spring break is a good experiment for universities to make study schedules smoother in order to give students more options to arrange their own leisure and study activities.

北京第二外國語學(xué)院中國閑暇經(jīng)濟研究中心的魏翔教授認(rèn)為，春假是國內(nèi)高校在改進學(xué)生課程安排方面一次不錯的嘗試，可以在休閑與課業(yè)安排上，為學(xué)生提供更多選擇。