If you take a stroll through the halls of Cranford High, you’ll find students rushing from AP class to sports practice, club meetings to volunteer opportunities, part-time jobs to internships, and countless other commitments. For many students, a busy day has become the norm. Being involved in various things is often viewed as a sign of ambition, determination, and even intelligence. But as students continue to strain themselves and take on more responsibilities, a question arises: Are we doing too much?
High school is a time of exploration. Making mistakes, experiencing new things, and finding interests is the general appeal of high school. Students are encouraged to try new things, and pursue new activities in order to prepare for their future. These opportunities are incredibly valuable. Clubs teach leadership, sports teach discipline, and rigorous classes teach students how to grow academically. All that being said, there is a fine line between being involved and being overwhelmed.
Why do students feel the need to be so involved? College admissions, societal expectations, and even personal goals can all contribute to the belief that doing well in school is simply not enough anymore. Students feel obligated to join as many clubs as possible, participate in athletic activities, volunteer, have a part time job, all while maintaining a certain GPA. Not to mention standardized testing or even allotting time to relationships. Achieving all of these activities may be rewarding, but they are physically demanding and mentally draining.
The consequences of being overly involved are seen throughout the entire student body. You’ll overhear conversations about staying up late to finish assignments due to clubs or sports after school. Nowadays, stress, burnout and even exhaustion are treated as a normal part of being a successful high school student. Keeping busy has become a sort of status symbol, as if the more responsibilities someone carries is reflected by how accomplished they are.
All this is not to suggest that students should stop challenging themselves or get rid of their extracurricular activities. Involvement is one of the most meaningful parts of the high school career, because of the friendships and connections one makes. However, there is much value in recognizing that overproductivity should not come at the expense of well-being. Students should never feel pressured to compromise their health, relationships or happiness to keep up with increasingly impossible expectations.
Perhaps the issue is not that our students are overexerting themselves, but that our definition of success has become too shallow. Success should not be measured by the number of clubs on a resume, or the number of hours spent working. Success is measured by how one can balance all parts of their lives and still grow as a person while enjoying the experiences that make high school memorable.
As another school year comes to a close, students should reflect on this past year not only on what they have accomplished, but if they have left enough room to simply be a student. After all, being busy does not equal being successful.
