Arrowhead students have jobs, extra curricular activities, and on top of that, homework. Students, along with having to complete homework, also have to study for quizzes and tests. Homework is a part of the curriculum at schools all over America, but recently whether the amount of pressure it puts on adolescents is too much has become a topic of discussion.

According to CNN, students are receiving three times as much homework than is needed. This excess amount is interfering with student’s mental health. CNN says this then results in high levels of stress, and of course, less free time for students to be kids, socialize, and enjoy other activities.

At Arrowhead, how teachers decide to deal with homework is up to them. Many teachers have a homework category in Skyward (Arrowhead’s online gradebook) that is weighted 10% of the total grade. Some teachers consistently check and grade homework assignments given. Other teachers don’t grade homework, but simply assign it and hope students will do it in order to succeed in the class and fully grasp the material taught.

In James Hessler’s pre-calc class, the homework for multiple lessons are all due on one due date; so the students have the decision of either spacing out their work for a lesson a night, or waiting until the night before to do five or so assignments from the book.

AP (advanced placement) classes are, according to the Arrowhead course guide, more rigorous with more rigorous homework schedules ranging anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour of homework a night per. AP classes require more homework because they are college-level courses.

Elizabeth Mcshane is a senior at Arrowhead who takes AP classes and is involved in many extracurricular activities. She says, “With academics, athletic events, clubs, and religious commitments being able to succeed and fully commit to all of them is nearly impossible. I really think my grades suffer ue to the work loads expected by teachers.”

Students at Arrowhead take seven to eight courses per semester and each of these classes’ teachers can assign homework. Students additionally, spend time staying after school to finish labs, make up work, test or quiz corrections.

This year, Arrowhead switched to Canvas, a virtual course management system. Many teachers use Canvas to assign homework and activities.

According to Tom Loveless, a writer for Bookings.edu, “Homework typically takes an hour per night. The homework burden of students rarely exceeds two hours a night. The upper limit of students with two or more hours per night is about 15 percent nationally—and that is for juniors or seniors in high school.”

Olivia Gillette, a senior at Arrowhead, says, “When I get home from school, I usually have an hour or two of homework to do. On top of that, I also have to study for quizzes and tests. This is a tough balance because spending time studying versus completing homework often becomes a question.  School is eight hours of hard work and I think we shouldn’t have even more work and stress on top of that when we get home. I have little downtime and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed especially if homework isn’t completed and I fall behind.”