Athletes Deserve a Break
Student athletes should be able to balance sports and academics effectively, but the stress of juggling both can be daunting. After a long, hard day of school with copious amounts of work,
student athletes head to the locker room to change for practice which ends about six and sometimes even later. Then, after practice, waiting to get a ride home, changing and showering, we have homework to do.
Student athletes are tired after the school day and should be allowed extended time to complete assignments. Leniency should be extended to us because of the physical and mental toll of sports and school. There are a number of teams that have long practices. Sometimes, basketball practice doesn’t end till seven at night. As a soccer player, our practice tends to extend till about six. Sports, especially football and soccer, can be especially excruciating. Unlike other students, most athletes don’t get home before three. After our games or practice, we have homework to do which we usually don’t finish till after ten at night. According to kidshealth.org, most teens need about 8½ to more than 9 hours of sleep each night. The right amount of sleep is essential for anyone who wants to do well on a test or play sports. Unfortunately, many student athletes don’t get enough sleep because they are busy trying to keep up with sports and their schoolwork.
Our parents and teachers argue that we should be treated like everyone else. They say we come to school to learn, not to play sports. School is our number one priority, not some sport that probably might lead us nowhere. They also argue that that we don’t have to play sports. We’re the ones that choose to be cheerleaders, soccer players, volleyball players, football players, and etc. We’re the ones that choose to place the additional stress on ourselves and on our bodies, not them; therefore, we should be able to handle all that we’re getting.
As student athletes, we know that we have to balance school and sports. Some of us try our best, especially those that play sports and take rigorous AP classes. Yes, there are athletes that don’t care
about their education, but not all of us are like that. Some of us actually care.
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