Here’s a newflash: the easy life of the second semester senior is a lie. I’ve been doing mountains of homework since year one in high school, and it looks like this won’t end anytime soon. Is this fair? Should high school be like this? I find myself exploring two sides to this question and it ends up looking something like this:
Meredith #1:
We don’t have enough freedom to study what we really want! We have way too much work and it feels like no one cares!
Meredith #2:
What?! You have so many freedoms. Just like Principal Egan mentioned, you can go off campus, you can express interest in things like Computer Science or coding and Luhtala has a whole army of student-teachers in the makerspace. Honestly, our school is so much better about these kinds of things than other schools!
Meredith #1:
Not to be that person, but we shouldn’t settle for something just because it’s better than average. There are so many things I am interested in that I simply don’t have time to do. Does NCHS even care about me beyond my ability to work hard at things that I, frankly, will not use later in my life? Isn’t there a way to learn interesting things without the insane amount of busy work? I feel like I’m jumping through hoops with all the tests I have to take.
Meredith #2:
Okay, so, I would point out one thing, how is this specific to NCHS? Don’t all students have to take tests and have hours of homework? How is the administration going to fix this, how are the teachers going to fix this?
Meredith #1:
True! I had it all wrong before… NCHS is a great school, it’s just that its problems reflect a greater trend in the education system. We take this awesome concept of learning and fit it to a factory-like model. Some kids just can’t learn that way.
Meredith #2:
Why are you criticizing something that you have no alternative to? How can we learn without grades? Maybe spending time on things that don’t really interest you is just a part of high school. We kind of need Common Core to make students into well-rounded people…
Meredith #1:
Well-rounded I understand. I get it. I may do work that is simply boring to me, but the thing I don’t get is the sheer volume. On the surface, it would never look like too much, but then factor in that most teens can’t fall asleep until eleven (for me, it’s more like twelve), then I’m waking up at six, getting six or seven hours of sleep even though the recommended for teens is nine, then I go to school for seven hours, factor in clubs, sports, any outside activity, and I get home at four or five, totally exhausted. Then, the homework that would normally take four hours or less can take six or seven hours simply because I can’t focus. That leaves us at ten, eleven, or twelve at night and guess what? If I want to get my restful six hours I would need to go to bed right then.
Meredith #2:
Yeah, but how much of that time is spent procrastinating?
Meredith #1:
To some extent, but, a lot of that is simply because my brain is too exhausted. I need those breaks before I launch into my homework. Regardless, school is a lot of work, but I wouldn’t mind all the work if I just loved doing all of it! If those 5 or 6 hours of homework was super interesting to me then I wouldn’t be upset that I didn’t have time to explore “outside” interests because they would be “inside” my workload.
While my two Merediths continue to battle back and forth about whether or not the high school system makes sense, I’ve come to a conclusion from the short term: you won’t avoid being buried in work. It happens. It sucks. So, focus on your passions and let go of the idea of perfection. There are students here who seem to be literally flawless, they do well in every class, get all their work done, and are sociable and well-rested and involved, but maybe high school just works for those people.
Some aspects of the American education system are so deeply engrained in our culture and structure that it will take decades to change them. There are people trying to do that, but, for now, learn what you can from the difficult parts. Get involved in clubs you love, put in the extra mile in classes you love, find people you love and use all the hard work to find your identity and find your place at NCHS. It’s good to note that this system… it’s not for everyone. And that’s okay.
Get involved, accept that you may not excel in every class and above all learn to respect yourself. Pay attention to your mental and physical health and realize that while acing that test or finishing that lab is great, these aren’t the kinds of accomplishments people put in their epigraphs, so learn to let go a little.
