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，中國人民大學的學生總能成為京城其他高校學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.
“我們學校的這項獨特傳統已有十年的歷史了。”人大新聞系學生、20歲的王悅然（音譯）說。去年春假期間，她和12位同學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。學生的任務清單還包括校外實習、志愿工作、社會實踐等等。專家稱，春假不僅是為了讓學生享受數日清閑，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，中國傳統觀念強調：“讀萬卷書，行萬里路。”這說明經驗與理論同等重要。盡管中國大學素有春游傳統，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.
來自深圳大學學生事務服務中心的秦建國（音譯）認為，一些國內高校之所以“試水”春假制度，目的是讓學生走出象牙塔，去經歷多彩生活。
“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。“學生需要具備團隊協作精神，學會在陌生環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，以便學生去從事自己感興趣的活動。比如：與美國學生春假期間派對不斷有所不同，在日本，許多學生會選擇去實習或從事項目研究。
“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，學生們可以借此機會將理論付諸實踐。”日本一橋大學國際企業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。人民大學經濟系學生、22歲的段志鵬（音譯）便申請參加了一項義務活動：回到江西老家，向當地高中生介紹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.
除了人民大學之外，只有煙臺大學等幾所高校正在推行春假制度。與美國的春假文化及習俗相比，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.
北京第二外國語學院中國閑暇經濟研究中心的魏翔教授認為，春假是國內高校在改進學生課程安排方面一次不錯的嘗試，可以在休閑與課業安排上，為學生提供更多選擇。
