Sometimes I think that there should be a legal maximum amount of homework a student can have per night. This past week I have been extremely bogged down with an array of projects, papers, quizes and tests. Is it necessary??
When entering high school a few years ago I recall that the most important thing I was told was to "get involved." Whether this was sports, drama, journalism or any other type of activity it was highly reccommended. I keep myself extremely busy with 3 AP classes, lifeguarding, teaching swim lessons, swimming and school. Its when the homework load gets extremely heavy when its very hard to manage.
I often wonder if teachers ever think about the fact that on average all of their students have another 5 classes in addition to their own. This means five other classes to get homework in. Is it necessary to assign so much work out of class? I really dont think so. When kids are supposed to be involved and keep up in multiple classes it makes it nearly impossible to complete assignments for every class every night!
For example, this week I have had to write an essay analysis, write two papers, read and take notes for multiple classes, study for a chem and U.S. History test, study for a math quiz, do math problems, study for spanish and many other things. This is on top of going to work, swimming and working out. I have averaged between 5-6 hours of sleep each night. For many high schoolers this is probably normal but according to the National Sleep Foundation, "Teens need an average of at least 8 1/2 hours of sleep per night." There is no way I will be getting that anytime soon.
So which is it? Am I supposed to keep my grades up and excel in school or am I supposed to get involved and experience life outside of a textbook?? I just wish there could be a happy medium of living life and still performing well in school....including getting an acceptable amount of shut eye.
No comments:
Post a Comment