I like a good challenge. Whether it be in a sport or a class, I enjoy the extra push; though, I constantly find myself unable to keep up with what I consider the challenging amount of homework I am assigned.

On good days, I will only have about 3 to 5 hours of homework and on the worst ones I could have over 7 hours. Calculate in after school sports, clubs, and dinner I do not get to bed until about 10:00 if I am lucky.

Like all students, I wake up at 6:00 am to do it all again the next day. I have grown tired of being held to such a demanding schedule, trust me the last thing I want to do when I get home from a 7 hour work day is to do another 7 hours of work.

I take a lot of challenging courses and I know that requires a lot of work; however, I feel that if I am going to spend time on homework students should be provided with a positive constructive experience rather than busy work.

In fact, a study last year showed that the impact of excessive homework on high schoolers included high stress levels, a lack of balance in children’s lives and physical health problems such as ulcers, migraines, sleep deprivation and weight loss.

I have begun to notice that even my weekends are packed with work. All day Sunday I am stuck inside working for what is usually 6 or 7 hours rather than enjoying what little time I have off of school.

Even elementary age students are subject to inappropriate amounts of homework. CNN reported elementary students receiving 3 times as much homework recommended by the National Education Association.
In my opinion, curriculum change could benefit work loads. Shifting the focus of classes away from testing and more towards truly understanding the topics themselves would impact not only the amount of homework but the pointlessness of it.

I do not have the answers to fixing the issue with homework; however, the amount of work I receive now is not at all suitable for a student my age and much less those younger than I.