In my three years at Southeast, I have always dreaded the five (previously six) minute passing periods between classes. The hallways are always so jam-packed full of students that I’m constantly dodging people as I make my journey to my next class. I, being rather quiet and introverted, find these five minute increments of time to be painful as I try to walk in halls that are busy, loud and well, annoying.

There are many things that fellow students could do that would make passing time less of a hassle and more efficient for the people who are actually trying to get to class. These include the following:

1. Walk on the right side of the hallway (as opposed to the left side, or all over the place).

Like roads, traffic in hallways moves much easier and more efficiently if as a whole, students walked on the right side of the hallway. It’s extremely awkward and insensible when someone walks against the “current” of the majority of people in the hallways.

2. Don’t congregate in large groups of people.

One thing that clogs up hallways is when people gather in groups of ten or more on one side of the hallway, which then leads to their group spilling into the middle of the hallway. This creates a huge congestion, and makes it even harder for people to reach their destination.

3. Keep walking (or move out of the way).

When you’re in a mass movement of people, the right thing to do is to keep going, and not stop in the middle, which causes a pile up. When one person stops, the person behind them stops, and so on. If for any reason you need to stop, move to the side of the hallway or into an adjacent hallway.

4. Don’t yell, or use vulgar and/or obscene language.

For most of us, yelling in a crowded hallway just doesn’t make much sense, but there’s a small handful of people who just can’t grasp the concept of talking with a normal-level voice, and instead scream across the hall at their friends or just yell to yell. Not only does it not make sense to yell, it also makes a lot of people uncomfortable.

5. Walk at a reasonable pace when in a group of people.

We all walk in groups of people at some point, but it becomes a problem when this said group of people walks slowly, and then they cause everyone behind them to be stuck, because they can’t go around them. My advice would probably be just to be conscientious of people around you, and adjust your actions accordingly. We’re all trying to get to our next class, and it’s frustrating when we can’t because people do things that prevent us from doing so.