From Sept. 6, the CBNU Dormitories have been conducting a trial run of abolishing the dormitory curfew. The curfew was previously from 1:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. However, for the duration of the trial run, it won’t be enforced. The idea is to accommodate students’ self-regulating academic activities. The trial run will end on Dec. 19, when dormitory operation for the second semester will be ended. There are, however, some precautions in place during the trail run. Penalties may be given, for example, for major damage due to late entry, heavy drinking, unnecessary noise at night, accompanying outsiders, lending student cards and access cards, also causing damage to the property of other students. Additionally, the trial run will come to an end on Dec. 19, when the curfew will be in place again. After a short trial run during the first semester, a longer trial run was instituted for the entire second semester. The question on everyone’s mind now is whether this operation is going well? A CBT reporter met a team leader, Yeon Je-bun from the CBNU Dormitory to grasp the present condition of this operation. 

  The trial run conducted in the first semester was about 10 days, and it was judged that the duration was insufficient to determine whether the dormitory rules should be revised. As a result, a second, more comprehensive trial run will be implemented in the second semester of the year.

  The trial run will be sufficient and the results will be reflected, but the revision of the rules will be carefully determined by reviewing its proper and adverse functions in detail. As the test operation has given more autonomy to students, I would like to ask for active cooperation in the future by grasping the responsibility and acting considerately in the common living space.

  According to a student dormitory official, there haven’t been sufficient major or continuous complaints to suspend the trial run, and the final decision will be carefully made after the trial run. This CBT reporter met not only the official, but also a student living in a dormitory who is experiencing this operation directly.

  Seo Ah-hyun (Dept. of Management Information Systems, 21, living in Gye Yeongwon)

  I approve of the trail run. The most attractive aspect of it is to be free to enter and exit the dormitory without time constraints. I can concentrate entirely on the tasks at hand without being concerned about time when I hang out with my friends, go to a cafe or work in a study room on my tasks and assignments.

  In addition, “time constraints” create boundaries of restricting activities on a certain time out of 24 hours. This happens to be the time when I can do a lot of work, so I think it suppresses the freedom and experience of college students who are adults. People usually wake up in the morning and go to bed at night, but there are quite a lot of people who do their work at dawn and spend their remaining time as they please. I think it’s important to respect the individual’s freedom to manage their time as they please.

  As I mentioned earlier, I strongly approve the fact that abolishing the curfew respects one’s time. I also approve of the benefits which students may enjoy. However, it’s significant to attempt actively to prevent damages or inconveniences fellow students may have to endure. Simply preventing a problem DOES NOT solve it completely. It is time to make efforts to foster community awareness, such as through simple education, to prevent further problems caused by abolishing the curfew.

  I approve of the trial run, but it’s not all positive. I usually go to bed between 1:00 a.m. and 2:00 a.m., but that is when students return to the dormitory after drinking. I live in a room which faces an emergency staircase, and I sometimes have a hard time falling asleep because some students laugh out loud on the stairs or in the corridor. It can’t be said that abolishing of the curfew is an essential problem, but I think perhaps the result of the curfew being abolished is that the notion of time is blurred and some negative things occur.

  It can be seen that this trend appears due to the pressure and hassle of the curfew itself. However, dormitories are essential facilities that many students share, and if damage continuously occurs due to the abolishing of the curfew, larger problems will arise. Therefore, students should do their best, while dormitories should also impose the necessary restrictions. Students should try not to make trouble and to keep in mind that living in a dormitory is a community life. Furthermore, dormitories should penalize and sanction those who fail to comply with the rules. If all actively work together the trial run may prove to be a huge success.