You are sitting in the library Tutorial, trying to finish that English reading, but the people at the table next to you will not stop talking. It seems like the second you start getting somewhere with your reading, one of them bursts out laughing and you lose your place.

With only 35 minutes for Tutorial, it is highly unlikely that anyone is getting any real work done, meaning that the time for Tutorial would be better spent as free time for socializing.

According to an article in The Muse, “This Is Nuts: It Takes Nearly 30 Minutes to Refocus After You Get Distracted,” by Stacey Lastoe, a study done at the University of California Irvine stated that if one gets distracted while working it will take 23 minutes and 15 seconds on average to refocus on the work they had been doing originally.

That means that, if you factor in 5 minutes of passing time, one distraction during Tutorial results in less than 7 minutes of work done.

So wouldn’t it be more beneficial to students to use these 35 minutes differently?

According to a 2010 article in the online edition of Harvard Health Publishing, “The health benefits of strong relationships,” creating connections socially has been linked to the diffusion of stress.

Converting Tutorial into a free half hour for students to spend socializing could result in less stress and better student relationships, leading to a more positive school environment.