Pressures of life are real and here to stay. These pressures affect students every day, every year. As children grow up, they are conditioned from the first day of school that there is a need to be great. They are taught to work hard and study so to get ahead in life, but what adults and teachers think are encouraging can actually having negative affect on a student.

Armijo students have often felt pressured and constricted by all the work and responsibility put onto them. Cynthia Silva said, “I face pressure by having to come to school every day for eight hours and still having to go home and do homework.” Some researchers have found that students from elementary to high school are receiving excessive work to complete at home.

Too much homework leads to negative health effects, including an increase in anxiety and stress. Gurpreet Kaur said, “Parents are related to my stress.” Parents have a big impact on their children, even when they don’t realize it. A comment can shape their way of thinking and make them do things they would not normally do. Parents want what they think is the best for their children, but it doesn’t always work out.

Telling children “You should be grateful you have the opportunity to study for free” or “The one who doesn’t study, does nothing with his or her life” may actually have the opposite of the intended result. Those “encouraging” words can put undeniable pressure on children to do something with their lives to please their parents. That often leads to students becoming overworking because they feel obligated to become something they might not want to do.

A new way of talking about school and stress should begin. Start today with you peers, teachers, and yes, your parents.