Whether it’s due to pressure from parents, peers, or themselves, Ardsley students are expected -- and are therefore driven -- to succeed. Consequently, we can sometimes be tunnel-visioned here, focusing on one thing: our futures. With our futures constantly on our minds, there seems to be nonstop stress. Often times, we obsess over one bad test score and worry that it will affect the possibility of getting into the college of our choice. Reflecting on his own high school experience, Mr. Gutherman (English teacher) explained: “We went to school and lived in the moment.” Unlike the mindset of most Ardsley students today, “We never thought ‘wow this is going to change our chances of getting into X, Y, Z school.’”
Two years ago, Superintendent Dr. Schoenfeld had Ardsley High School students, staff, community members and administrators participate in The Challenge Success-Stanford Surveys of School Experiences. This survey was intended for high performing, rigorous high schools, such as Ardsley, where student wellness is a prevalent issue.
When the results came back, they revealed Ardsley students weren’t getting enough sleep and were under enormous amounts of stress. More curious than surprised, administrators, teachers, parents, and students gathered to form the Strategic Planning Committee, a committee dedicated to bettering student life socially and emotionally.
The results from the first Stanford Survey displayed the students who spent 4-5 hours a night on homework were shockingly not outperforming those who only spent 1-2 hours. “There’s a difference between the amount of homework and the quality of that homework,” says Ms. Baptiste, which is why many teachers have cut down on the amount of homework given to students.
The English Department, for example, has collectively agreed to lessen the workload at home. To this end, summer reading tests are no longer given to English Regents classes. Mr. Gutherman explains that in his AP English Language and Composition classes, he gives “a fraction of what was once assigned” to his students. He covers more information in class rather than creating at-home work. Ms. Baptiste no longer assigns weekend homework and avoids tests/quizzes on Mondays so students can “sleep in and take a break.” She explains that it requires her to plan out her assignments differently, but that it is a relatively small change in comparison to what she gains: “it helps form stronger connections with students as I feel like now I have their empathy.”
In the AHS Facebook group, “The Pack,” Juniors and Seniors were asked to rate from 1-5 (1 being the lowest, 5 the highest), how much homework, tests, college, and peers stress them out. The category with the most 5s, indicating the highest source of stress, was college (76.1% students reported 5), with tests coming in second as 65.2% of students reported 5s. Homework, which in the original Stanford Survey was what AHS students were spending a lot of time stressing over and doing, wasn’t the top cause of stress. However, 76.5% of students still seem to be stressed out in general.
At the start of this school year, students received a second Challenge Success survey. Many teachers predict some of the same issues such as sleep deprivation and stress will, unfortunately, continue to be present. The Challenge Success Committee hopes to use the data they’ll receive from the newest survey to make ongoing changes that will positively impact students.
With the effective change AHS has made, there’s still more that can be altered. The English Department is thinking of creating a project-based course (similar to science research), but for the humanities; students will have the opportunity to work for a whole semester on a topic of their choice.
The school is also working on possibly changing the current class schedule into a “drop schedule” with a unit lunch. Students would meet for 6 out of the 8 classes they’re enrolled for every day. In the morning, students would rotate through 3 out of their 4 morning classes. Then, there would be a “blocked” lunch period, meaning there would be no classes offered during lunch — ensuring everyone has a break. After lunch, students would rotate through 3 of their 4 afternoon classes. In this system, students won’t be as overwhelmed in school. It would make it impossible to have homework in every class each night, classes would be longer (about an hour in length) which would result in fewer transitions, and everyone would have a required, built-in break.
Some students have also made their own suggestions: we should have mental health days, later start times, and mandatory lunch periods. In regards to school work, students have said they want teachers to communicate with each other when tests are given so multiple tests don’t fall on the same day. Additionally, students want more study materials given to students by teachers, a shift towards project-based learning, and open grade books year-round (which is currently being discussed by the school).
There’s a great need to manage the amount of stress students are under at AHS, because as Mr. Gutherman says, “Students can’t learn and enjoy what they’re learning when they’re stressed.”