Some of our fondest memories come from those days of old when we were in High School. It would only stand to reason that we expect our children to have the same experiences. Unfortunately, sometimes this is not necessarily the case.
Students today face many challenges, from peer pressure (unlike anything we knew) to challenging classes (just how many levels of English are there anyway). If we want to help our children succeed and keep away from the peer pressure of drugs, alcohol and sex then we try to keep them as busy as we possibly can. Unfortunately this can lead to a whole new set of problems. I have personally witnessed teenagers having nervous breakdowns due to pressure to perform well in both studies and sports. They were so busy that something had to give and it did. It ultimately was a good thing as the teens got a chance to let it all out and then get on with life.
Peer pressure is something that parents need to start teaching about at a very young age. You see, it is different today and we need to grow with the times as parents. We need to learn what is out there and how to combat it. Public High Schools are very over-crowded these days and they do not have the time nor the resources to correctly deal with this problem. Gangs are everywhere in schools. In addition drugs, weapons and sex is all too prevalent. We cannot blame the teachers, we have to take a stand ourselves to combat this problem.
It has been said that in order to combat some of these issues and also in an effort to better ready teenagers for college the schools have added more vigorous classes to the curriculum. This is good for those students that can handle it. The verdict is still out as to whether it is actually worth it. These classes seems to over-run themselves. For example in English; you have College Prep English (regular English class), Honors English, Advanced Placement English, and finally IB English (International Baccalaureate). Many wonder just what the reason is behind this. It is, in the opinion of many, just too much of one class.
Resources in public High Schools are being spread entirely too thin and the ones who suffer are the children. I have interviewed many people who have had their children in the IB program in High School and most of them report that those programs did not help their children get into the college that was their first choice. Children in these programs are so busy with their nose in the books that they forget to have a life.
Then again, there are children in regular classes who maybe have too much of a life and do not spend enough time studying. I have been informed that Colleges look for students who have a well balanced resume with outstanding academics along with extra-curricular activities. Most also prefer students that have performed some sort of community service. So what is the answer? Nobody knows at this point.
My daughter is an honor roll student in her High School. She is involved in sports outside of the school arena and her classes at school are all Honors classes. She is heavily involved with the youth group at our church and for the most part is a pretty busy girl. I try to stay involved as much as possible with her school work. I do think that teachers should be more open to talk with parents. I realize that some parents are into their own world working and paying the mortgage that they really do not have the time to participate as much as they would like. On the other hand, when a teacher has a parent calling or emailing them, they need to communicate with that parent.
Homework can be another challenge and probably the biggest one. My daughter will spend upwards of 4 hours a night on homework, and that is just in honors classes. This is on top of everything else she has going on in order for her to become a productive member of society. Sometimes I do not know who is more frustrated with the amount of homework, her or me. At any rate, there is too much homework. Most of the time this homework consists of "busy work" in the form of projects that really does not teach them anything. Projects seem to only frustrate the parents and cause discord in the home. I can see science projects that are done once per year but every other week? It is not up to teachers to keep our kids busy at home. That is our job as parents.
If some of these challenges can be addressed and remedies found, then one day we may see the American High School of old that we were blessed to enjoy. Our grandchildren may be able to enjoy the pursuit of happiness that we did if they are not so stressed out.
