Cope with assignment being penny-a-line stuff
I believe the answer is:
hackwork
'cope with assignment' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this defines the answer.
'being penny-a-line stuff' is the wordplay.
'being' becomes 'hack' (hack is a kind of being).
'penny a-line stuff' becomes 'work' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'hack'+'work'='HACKWORK'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for hackwork that I've seen before include "(Literary) drudgery" , "Dull stuff written to order" .)