Overloading Highschoolers A Bad Thing?
Overloading Highschoolers in Today’s World
Overloading is more common than you think. Today in our society, it is more competitive than ever for adolescents and even kids to do activities to boost up their resume in preparation for college. It is not enough that Sally has started playing the trumpet, but she also has to continue with math league. She also has swimming practice every evening at 7. Many would say that it is important to keep kids busy with activities so that they do not waste time and learn how to be productive members of society. While I agree that structured time is important for adolescents, it can be damaging at the same time.
What parents have to remember is that kids are kids.
They deserve to have free time just playing and hanging around with their friends. It not only gives them a break from the stressors of school along with their extracurricular activities, but it can be an extremely important time for creativity and personal growth. Some parents feel like this is not vital, but burning out can happen to some of the most talented adolescents. If they are pushed too hard, and overloading themselves they could eventually reach their breaking point as they become super stressed with everything they need to do.
As a kid, my parents made sure that I was involved in various activities ranging from basketball to piano lessons. However, I never felt like I was forced to do anything. If I stopped enjoying something, I was given the option to try something new. It was important for my growth to attempt many different things to see what I liked. I always appreciated that about my parents because they were always open to new ideas. When I was in high school, I was interested in journalism, specifically sports broadcasting. Every summer, they would pay for me to spend a week at Boston University to work on my sports broadcasting skills. My parents could have easily denied my request to go there, but they always supported my interests. It was something I needed as a teenager to find what I wanted to do the most. It helped me succeed in college and beyond.
Parents should be regimented with their children, not overloading.
I am not disagreeing with that. Various activities are important for building up skills before going off to college. However, it is important to let kids and adolescents do what they want because eventually if you keep pushing them, they will fall over.
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