By Nia Gallagher It’s 11 P.M. Papers are scattered all over your workspace. You did your math homework, you are wrapping up your English essay and you are prepared to cram for your science test tomorrow. It starts getting later and all you need to do is sleep, but you have too much school work to do. You have been working for hours, but finally decide to call it a night. Every student has had at least one experience like this. Too much homework is having a negative impact on students all throughout the world. It can affect the amount of sleep they get, their performance in school and their overall well-being. In addition, studying and copious amounts of tests in a single day can leave students more stressed than necessary. After having 176 Wilson High School students take a survey regarding homework and testing, there were some shocking results. 53.4% of students have a neutral stance regarding homework, thinking that there is neither too much nor too little. However, most of these students believe that homework is either busy work or comes at extremely inconsistent rates, leading 66.5% of the kids to agree with the fact that homework should be limited and more controlled. Freshman Kimberly Nguyen stated, “Most of the time the amount is pretty good, but then there are days where I’m drowning in work.” Fortunately, some teachers are aware of these struggles and have a reasonable approach to this issue. When interviewing I-STEM Honors Physics teacher Mr. Melograna, he said, “I do not believe in giving busy work. I only give homework when I feel it’s necessary because I know it can lead to more stress than needed.” Later in the survey students were asked if they felt quizzes and tests came around the same time. 82.4% of students answered yes. The majority of students said that the maximum amount of tests that they have had in a day was four, but there were a few who have had up to six tests in a day. It is nearly impossible to spend a substantial amount of time on each subject, leading to a drop in performance in these assessments. Wilson is also a district that strongly encourages participation in extracurricular activities. Practices and meetings can last a long time, so some students find it hard to complete all of their work on time. Jack Wagner, a freshman, says, “...many students, like myself, are student athletes [that] play more than one sport for the school and are exhausted everyday and we come home to a bunch of homework and tests.” Finding yourself in a situation like this will tremendously add to the stress of school. Of the students that took the survey, 70% of them get six to seven hours of sleep. Going to bed around midnight can take a toll on kids’ health. According to research from Nationwide Children’s Hospital, students need nine to nine and a half hours of sleep every day; however, on average, most high school students at Wilson get about seven to seven and a quarter hours of sleep. Not only is there an outrageous amount of homework in high school, but children as young as kindergartners are facing the same problem. A recent study shows that even elementary students are receiving three times the recommended amount of homework. Health Line says, “Kindergartners received 25 minutes of homework per night, on average. But according to the standards set by the NEA and NPTA, they shouldn’t receive any at all.” Already, at the age of five, we are making kids think that a world dominated by school work is expected and considered the norm, leaving minimal opportunities for fun and time to unwind. Although some people think that the lack of spare time has to do with time management issues and distractions, this is not always the case. When you have a stack of work to complete by the next day, it can become a struggle to get it all done no matter what. Others argue that homework is optional, so why waste the time doing it? Even though it is not required, an incomplete assignment reflects poorly on the student, making them seem irresponsible and lazy. On a scale of one to ten, 71.7% of kids said their stress level would be rated as a seven or higher. These stressed kids have began to associate school with words like, “overwhelming,” “stressful,” “ridiculous,” “exhausting” and “frustrating”. Is this really how we want students to feel at Wilson High School? If not then speak up now and help make school a positive learning experience. Photos Courtesy Of: flickr.com
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Elena Caputo
Hi! My name is Elena, and I'm a senior at Wilson and one of the Editors of the Editorial section. If you have any questions or ideas or if you want to write, email me at [email protected]! Olivia MonosHello! My name is Olivia and I'm a junior this year, and one of the editors of the Editorial section! I'm really excited to write for the Paw Print again this year!
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