BCAT News

For students, summer break is supposed to be a time to relax after a long school year filled with homework, exams, sports, and stress. It is often imagined as two months of freedom: late mornings, vacations, beach days, and spending time with friends late at night. However, for many students today, summer no longer feels like a real break, but rather two months of “slower school.”

Between summer reading assignments, AP and honors work, practices, games and tryouts, camps, jobs, and pressure to stay productive, students are finding less and less time to actually recharge from the long school year.

Although AP and honors students often receive the most noticeable summer workloads, even students in regular-level classes are expected to complete assignments before the school year begins.

Many schools require summer reading projects, and students worry about assignments based on the books they read when they come back to school after the summer ends. While these assignments may seem manageable on their own, they are added on top of already busy summer schedules.

One student, Addie Cicolini, explained that summer feels much more stressful than people assume. According to her, many students spend the entire summer trying to balance school responsibilities with everything else they are expected to do. Whether it is preparing for classes, attending sports practices, traveling, or working, students often feel pressure to stay busy instead of fully unwinding.

“I tend to be really stressed, just because over the summer I procrastinate a lot thinking about all the work I have to do and balancing my job and volleyball,” Addie said.

For athletes, summer can be especially busy. Many sports teams hold practices, training sessions, camps, and workouts throughout the break to prepare for fall seasons. Students involved in competitive sports may spend hours every day practicing, leaving little time for rest and practically none for busy summer assignments. Others attend academic camps, volunteer programs, and other activities that are meant to help strengthen college applications, adding more school-related work to their summer.

At the same time, many teens also work summer jobs. This can be very time-consuming, and students often work to save money for college and other expenses, or simply to gain experience. Balancing long work shifts with school assignments and other responsibilities can quickly become exhausting, even with two months off. Even when students are technically on a “break,” many still follow packed schedules every day.

Another student who previously took AP United States History shared how difficult it was to balance AP summer work with the rest of her summer responsibilities. Mia Boucher described the workload as time-consuming and said it was constantly sitting in the back of her mind throughout the summer, even during vacations or time with friends.

“The work honestly made me regret my choice of taking APUSH and made me dread the whole class. But it did give me a good insight into what the class would be like,” Mia said.

Over the summer, Mia and every other student taking AP U.S. History were required to read and annotate a 350-page book to prepare for a graded discussion when school began again. They were also expected to answer three short-answer questions about the book, read five chapters of a textbook and create an outline for each of them. Finally, they had to complete more worksheets and graphic organizers.

Mrs. Weeden, one of BHS’s health teachers and a mental health advocate, believes that students need time to recharge during the summer. She explained that many students return to school already feeling stressed because they spent much of their break completing assignments they did not want to do. According to Mrs. Weeden, this can make students anxious about the school year before it even begins.

“I think that it’s not enough time to be able to enjoy summer and also be prepared for the upcoming school year,” Mrs. Weeden said. “Whether it’s academically, athletically, or socially, it’s too much to balance on one student’s plate.”

The debate over summer work reflects a larger issue surrounding student life today. Many students feel pressure to constantly stay productive with their already busy schedules. Social media can often add to this pressure as well, making students feel like they need to have a productive summer filled with achievements, activities, accomplishments and fun things to do with friends.

As expectations and goals rise, students are left wondering whether summer break is still a real break at all. While summer assignments, jobs, sports, and camps may help students prepare for the future, many still believe there needs to be balance. Students need time not only to do well academically, but also to relax, spend time with family and friends, and return to school feeling refreshed rather than burnt out.

For many students today, summer is no longer a break for relaxation. Instead, it is another thing to balance with activities, expectations, and the pressure to always stay busy.

By Falak Biscuitwala