Stressing Over School
School is a place where students learn information and life skills to help them in the future, but is school doing more harm than good for the students?
When students are asked how they feel about school in general, many respond they feel overwhelmed with the amount of work to do for each of their classes. They express that trying to complete schoolwork on top of participating in extracurriculars is very challenging.
An article on developmentalscience.com, “Our Teens Are More Stressed Than Ever” written by Diana Divecha, Ph.D., says, “The American Psychological Association (APA) periodically surveys for stress in the American public, and since 2013, teens have reported higher levels of stress than adults. In the 2018 APA survey, teens reported worse mental health and higher levels of anxiety and depression than all other age groups.” If you do not believe that this is true, you need to take a good look at the students while they walk through the halls. Sometimes you can feel the anxiety surrounding them.
Emma Bess, junior, can attest to such anxiety. When she was asked for her opinion on school she answered, “A lot is expected of us, it feels like I can never catch my breath,” She further stated, “The stress that I am put under, it’s like I’m stuck on a Ferris wheel, and every time I think I’m close to being done and getting off, we go around again.”
The way that students are learning in school is different now due to the covid pandemic. When asked how covid has affected the school year, Gracie Friedrich, junior, says “Ever since covid started there has been an additional stress on top of studies, because not only do you have to worry about assignments being done on time, but you now also have to worry about the risk of getting quarantined.”
Students are stressing more than ever; they are trying to meet nearly impossible due dates for assignments, striving to do the best that they can in after school activities, and taking on so much responsibility. The question on every student’s mind is, when will this Ferris wheel finally stop?
