Student Stress
Our problem is the level of student stress and its subsequent consequences. Compared to previous generations, stress is increasing for teenagers. The increase of student stress is directly correlated with the rising rate of teen suicide, decreasing amounts of sleep, and the stress that this places on mental health centers in universities. For Americans of a higher socioeconomic status, there is a higher rate of substance abuse compared to Americans of a lower socioeconomic status. Our data reveals that stress is a major problem at Ridge and it reflects an increase in stress for teenagers at all socioeconomic levels. The research that we conducted at Ridge was jarring and eye opening. Only 21% of students surveyed said that they experienced no anxiety going to school. About 78% percent of student said that they feel stressed all the time, frequently, or almost all the time. Large amounts of homework and lack of sleep are factors in student stress. Only 6.4% of Ridge students sleep for eight hours or more (the recommended amount for teenagers is 9 to 10 hours). 45.9% of students have more than three hours of homework daily, while 68% of students say that they spend more than three hours a week on extra curricular activities. Societal and parental pressures are major factors in the increase of student stress. Students at Ridge or similar high schools are expected to juggle rigorous honors and AP courses while being active in a variety of extracurricular activities. Getting into prestigious universities is viewed as the major goal of life, and a rejected application is viewed as setting a person on the path to disappointment and failure in life. The suicide rate among 15 to 24 years old is rising compounded with suicide clusters at prestigious universities such as Penn and Cornell or competitive high schools in Palo Alto. Students, parents, and local government must take action to solve the issue of student stress or face consequences down the line.