62% of students at Harwood Union High School for the 25/26 school year participate in sports. Many of them also juggle a job on top of their schooling and sports. But is this sustainable?
The majority of Harwood students juggle at least school and a sport, with many others also working on the side. Commmonground investigates how students navigate the demands.
For decades kids have juggled school, sports, and work. With increasing pressure as the years go on, has it become too much on a student’s shoulders?
It is exceedingly clear that the expectations have become too much for students. When a fellow classmate Julia Cyr was asked about this, she admitted she saw it often, primarily in her physics class.
“Most people in that class do athletics and we have problem sets due every week. Lots of students are weeks behind because they are on sports teams, they definitely do struggle.”
Cyr stated she spends about eight hours a week on homework while also working about 16 hours a week. Soon she will start having softball practice again, five days a week, 1 hour and 45 minutes each, and then games multiple times a week.
Later on, another peer, Claire Nagurney, was asked how much time she spends on school work outside of school. Nagurney disclosed that she spends 6-7 hours on homework on a easy week and ten hours on a hard week. She wakes up everyday at 6:40 to work on her homework.
Why do you work?
When Nagurney and Cyr were asked why they work, they revealed the real reason so many school kids work.
“In Vermont you 100 percent need to have a job. There is [also] no access to transportation so you need to have money and get a job to [be able to get a car so you can get around],” stated Cyr.
Cyr later further emphasized the need for a car in Vermont. With the state’s infrastructure being so spread out, you need to drive to far away places frequently.
Nagurney also mentioned how essential it is to have a car in Vermont. She acknowledges that though she doesn’t have to pay for a car or gas, the majority of her peers have to out of necessity.
How does school affect your mental state?
The effect of school on a child’s mental state has been a prominent topic for a very long time. Naturally with stressors come bad habits, breakdowns, and burnout.
When this topic was brought up, both Cyr and Nagurney had a lot to say. Both students expressed that it isn’t necessarily the school work that causes stress and burnout, but the stressors surrounding school.
“I get really overstimulated especially because I do a lot of volunteering. [when I get overstimulated it] causes me to get overwhelmed and burnt out. I stack everything on top of one another and [then it suddenly] all hits me at once.” Cyr addressed.
Final Thoughts
“If I didn’t do sports even the most amount of homework I get would be fine, but almost everyone does sports so why are we not factoring that in?” asked Nagurney
Many students share this question with Nagurney. If the majority of students do sports, why do teachers not factor the time student athletes potentially spend on sports when assigning work? Many would think this is an important component to assign school work, no?
