Are High Schoolers Overworking Themselves?

Most high schoolers would agree that their workload is overwhelming at times. There is a huge amount of stress on students shoulders throughout their high school years with classwork, extracurriculars and for some, work. With such a full schedule, does this negatively impact students?

A lot of students have a hard time knowing how to split up their time. Senior Taylor Brumage, explains, “Time with family and friends is a big thing for me. So definitely trying to fit everything in and make things run smoothly is the hardest part.” Brumage is involved in both band and choir, as well as working between 20-28 hours a week. When students get free time they can be torn between social hang outs, sleep, and homework. According to nationwidechildrens.org teenagers need about 9 hours of sleep, but most only get about 7 hours. Junior Abby Quirino, stated, “Between my clubs, stage managing for theatre, and managing the speech team, I usually get home late, and spend weekends working on stuff for those activities and also my homework.”

Being over involved can also cause a students grades to drop. With this, students get frustrated and start to think negatively about both the activities they are involved in, as well as school. Brumage said, “It [her workload] can impact my grades specifically during marching season… Having a busy schedule makes me not as motivated to get things done once I get home from work, because I’m usually exhausted.”

Principal, Chris Stallings, said, “There is tremendous value in being heavily involved in your school but at the same time I do believe there can be cases where a student is too involved.” He goes on to explain that you can’t blame just one thing for stress. It’s the combination of homework, practice commitments, club and work duties that contribute. Stallings believes that students need time to evaluate their involvement level, and make sure they can handle everything on their plate.

Some tips for any student who is overly stressed is things such as rest, self care, eating right and regular exercise. Stallings explained, “Maintaining a positive attitude is crucial. By holding onto that positive outlook and the belief that you can handle all of the activities and tasks heading your way each week I feel that you are less likely to reach that stressed out point.”