Scholastic Pressure to Maintain

¶ … Stress of Academia Actually, as a student my work environment contributes a considerable amount to the sort of stress that I face in my life. Perhaps if I was working fulltime like my parents, my work environment would contribute much more stress than it does now. Regardless, I am almost certain there are ways in which my status as a student and the environment I am in as a consequence adds to the sort of stress that I feel and surpasses that of someone in a traditional working environment.

At least those people are able to specialize in what they do, whereas facets of some of the general requirements for students does not enable the latter the same luxury -- at least not until later on in one's academic career. My academic environment contributes to my levels of stress in the sense that because of it, I am tasked with doing certain things that I would never do otherwise. I have been fortunate enough to take many different classes in my career, and some of them I have enjoyed.

However, I had a very difficult time taking subjects in math and science for general requirements. In fact, taking those classes had a significant (and decidedly negative) impact on my grade point average. Maintaining my grade point average is another source of stress that is directly related to my scholastic environment as a student. Many people have jobs in which they can simply perform them, regardless if they do so poorly or exceptionally.

As a student, however, I have had to endure a seemingly limitless number of years in which every grade, quiz and paper merely compounds upon the last one and plays some contributing role to my future. It always feels as though if I slip up just one time, all of my other efforts will have gone for naught. Perhaps that assessment of the situation is not exactly accurate, but it certainly feels that way sometimes.

That is because the constant need for testing and evaluating a student's capabilities is the most stressful part of that work environment, and constantly tries me. In all honesty, the sources of stress in my environment are predominantly the teachers. Some of them are actually fairly congenial, and are more adaptable in their methodologies than others. Other teachers, however, seem to care little for individual students or the effect that their instruction, assessments and their assignments might have on students.

Many of the latter type of teachers are well aware that the demands for their classes -- when considered in conjunction with those for other classes -- are considerable and are stressful for students to endure. They seem to have some sort of antiquated attitude in which they believe that just because previous students suffered through such a workload (possibly including themselves, at one point), that overburdening students with scholastic responsibilities is acceptable. Doing so, however, certainly adds to the sort of stress I feel from my work environment.

Another source of stress in my environment is the way that much of education is administered in contemporary times. Even some of the students that I know that take classes in a physical setting are still frequently required to utilize the internet for some way. Whether or not doing so involves researching a particular assignment, going to websites to detect plagiarism, or even accessing resources and communicating with teachers via this medium, it feels as though I spend a great deal of my time merely staring into computer screens.

I think if my education were more hands on and accessible in the physical world it would reduce my stress because it would provide a welcome relief from all of the constant connectivity that sometimes feels as though it is consuming my life. There is supposed to be a degree of convenience associated with the instant access of online communication, but when it is demanded from one all the time it can add to one's stress.

My fellow students and I cope with stress in a number of different manners, some of which are more efficacious than others. One of the chief means by which we were able to cope is merely by talking and interacting with one another. It really does not matter if doing so takes the form of a late night cup of coffee, a spontaneous instant message, or a heartfelt phone conversation after dinner. It always helps to.