Homework is arguably the most essential part of being a successful student in modern-day school, but it comes at a cost. Homework can cause loads of stress and pressure that is not necessary.
It can be hard balancing homework, a part-time career, extracurricular activities and sports. Personal growth, social skills and pursuing interests and hobbies can be tough to work on when students invest two to three hours of their day just in homework. It often comes down to choosing between one or the other: academics or activities.
School is an essential part of a student’s life. While it can build students’ character and work ethic, it can just as easily put large amounts of pressure on students. Adding in homework practically stretches out the school day and reserves the time after school that is supposed to be a student’s free time. This makes it difficult for students to adapt and grow. It is especially difficult to participate in extracurricular activities and sports when expected to have finished the hours worth of homework that a student might have built up during the school day.
OHS math teacher Ms. Marcia Anderson said, “Homework is hugely important but shouldn’t take too much time.”
It can be argued that the amount of homework is influenced by students choosing their own classes. Students are able to select the difficulty of their courses. For example, one may choose AP Early American History or standard Early American History. Junior Stephen Sennott said, “Because all of my classes at the moment are college or AP, occasionally I do miss a practice for academic reasons. Ultimately, I believe it’s up to the student’s academic rigor.”
Homework can be a huge help academically, but it comes to a point where it is too much for some to handle while balancing other things. Although students choose their amount of homework to an extent, homework causes too much stress on students, while they also need to focus on extracurricular activities.
