Eight hours a day. Five days a week. Students are asked to put education first. 

However, at the end of the day, there’s more.  Studying for tests, doing homework, playing sports; it never ends. We often find that 24 hours a day is not even enough.

Students struggle everyday with stress due to their tests and workloads they just don’t have the time or energy for. 

“During the past month, because of the AP exams happening, I have been stressed a little bit every day which has had me studying every day and finding less free time,” Sophomore Siena Schreiber said.

She takes AP US History, AP Biology, and AP Chemistry. Despite the stressful workload, they are beneficial and mentally stimulating. 

So far I have taken AP US History and I would agree that the workload is a lot to handle, but it was well worth it to push myself and test my abilities in a challenging class.

“AP classes are difficult, but I believe they are extremely rewarding and teach a lot of information that will stay with me forever,” Schreiber said.

A balance must be found that allows students to understand the topics effectively without overwhelming us. Simply adding more assignments to students’ plates does nothing to help.

When I get more assignments piled on my shoulders, I rush through it in the hope of having more time to myself, which hinders the actual learning that comes out of it.

“I think teachers and administrators should check in with each student individually and help them find the proper resources to study. Everyone learns differently and the review source that worked for some people may not work for others,” Schreiber said.

Everyone needs time to relax, unwind, and spend time with family and friends.

Why don’t students get that privilege? 

We do school work all day and the majority of us do sports, clubs, and work after school hours.

I am on the swim team and practice after school every day and I have friends that do that as well, but also work on top of it.

But what comes after that? Homework.

School overflows into the time that students should have to themselves and it’s not healthy.

The We Work Remotely organization says that people can only work productively for about two hours and 53 minutes a day without taking breaks. 

When you work for too long, you lose concentration and focus, hindering your ability to produce good results. A lack of breaks or free time increases stress.

“The main cause of my stress is the pressure to get a good grade and study as much as I can. I know that if I get a grade below my expectations I’ll be angry and frustrated that I didn’t study more,” Schreiber said.

For me, that leads to more time doing practice problems and review, which stresses me out more. The pressure I put on myself is the main cause of my stress.

According to Healium, a program to self-manage anxiety and stress, homework can be linked to disturbed sleep patterns that can lead to further mental issues. 

In addition, students wake up way too early in order to be at school to repeat the whole process every day.

“The stress I experience has me studying more which takes away from family time. My sleep schedule usually gets distorted when I’m stressed with later bedtimes which results in me being drowsy throughout the day,” Schreiber said.

An increase in stress can also lead to physical disadvantages such as a weakened immune system, changes in hormonal levels, and nausea.

Eventually stress can lead into anxiety or burnout which could evolve into depression.

Yet the cycle goes on despite awareness of the high levels of this in our generation.

Academic performance can be affected by stress. Healium states that stress leads to weakened motivation, exhaustion, and flat out uninterest.

The rise in AI usage among students is a result of the lack of motivation because, sometimes, it is just too much to handle everything to the best of your ability. I do my best to stay away from AI, but I understand its popularity.

Much of this stress comes from school. It turns into a vicious cycle.

A teacher’s frustration when students neglect their work is understandable, but teachers should understand in turn that too much work is counterproductive.

There are 24 hours in a day and it isn’t enough. 

It’s time that students have the opportunity to put their own health first without the nagging worry of an unfinished assignment.