Over the past few years, the issue of homework has emerged as a worldwide concern, both for teachers and students alike. Recent studies indicate that the average amount of homework assigned to students has increased by 3.1 hours per weeknight.

Unfortunately, this has led to several conflicts, as students are often overloaded with homework, causing them to experience stress, sleep deprivation, and conflicts with other priorities. These issues can have far-reaching consequences, and it’s important to address them thoughtfully and constructively.

There has been a recorded jump in stress and anxiety levels among students. According to Healthline, there has been a significant increase in stress levels among individuals worldwide from 35% to 40% between 2019 and 2020. This means that 190 million people are feeling more stressed than the previous year. While some may argue that students’ stress is a result of poor time management skills, it is important to acknowledge that some teachers may have unrealistic expectations that contribute to their students’ stress levels.

It is important to address this issue and establish a supportive learning environment. It has been observed that the amount of homework assigned by teachers is sometimes beyond the capacity of students to handle. Students have different learning paces, and the time needed to complete a given task may vary from one student to another to produce the same quality of work. It is worth knowing that homework is a main source of stress, including 56% of teenagers recorded in May 2014.

According to research conducted by the American Physical Therapy Association, high school students require between 8-10 hours of sleep each night to feel fully rested. However, only 9% of students can achieve this recommended amount of sleep. A significant majority of teenagers report sleeping an average of only 6.5 hours per night. Studies have revealed that completing assignments close to bedtime can lead to overstimulation and difficulty falling asleep, which can significantly impact the quality of sleep.  Equally giving time to receive the correct amount of sleep and complete assignments can be complicated for students to handle.

Numerous extracurriculars are affected because of the amount of homework given. “Statistics on School Sports” reminisces on the 57% of student-athletes in high school and how they have less time to spend quality time with family, and friends, or have a social life. More than 70% of student-athletes say that they don’t finish their homework because they don’t have the time or are tired from their curricula and school. Students are given seven hours after school till it is time to go to sleep to fully get 8 hours.

According to Afterschool Alliance, 10.2 million students have 2-3 hours of practice or after-school activities and finish around 5:00 or 6:00. It’s possible that some people have two different sports in one season, which means that their practices might be scheduled in two separate time slots – one from 3:00-5:00, and another from 5:30-7:30. Students are often exhausted after practice and prioritize getting ready for bed over homework.

Many teachers may say that homework gives students time to learn time management, a resource that every student needs, but given homework, sports, family time, and social life, that results in stress levels shooting through the roof. It seems that many students are struggling to manage their time effectively, as they try to balance school activities and outside-of-school activities. This often leads to increased stress levels and a feeling of being overwhelmed, with students jumping from one activity to another without any clear schedule.

As a result, they may find it difficult to prioritize tasks and feel they have no control over their time. This can lead to stress and even breakdowns, making it even harder to manage their responsibilities. Homework is a conflict because of the overload given to students which causes stress, because of the load of priorities given at a young age, sleep loss, and conflicts with other priorities.

As a result of the homework being given by teachers with some unattainable expectations for students to complete with numerous priorities, some of the assignments could be done in class. Instead of having a new lesson every day, make one class every week or 2 surrounded by going over homework to fully obtain everyone’s knowledge and keep every student on track.

The workday can be very beneficial for every student who may have little to no time to complete homework assignments at home.