Top-Performer

Last Name 1

Student Name

Ms. Stringer

English 1302

25 April 2017

College Pressures

Throughout the recent generations that have come and passed, a certain issue has spawned and quickly become an issue to young adults. As high school seniors prepare for what they have waited for all year, graduation, most are struck by a struggle many teenagers go through during their junior and senior year of high school. They go through the tough decisions of making a college choice; deciding which place they think is best suited for them. However, that is not the only stress-worthy task they endure in their final high school year. The major problem many students have to deal with in their homes and schools is college pressure. Many students are pressured by their parents, teachers and society to go to college for multiple reasons. The reasons are endless; reasons like going to be successful, getting an education and even just to get the kids away from the house and living on their own. While going to college to get an education is a good step in life to lead people to greater achievements, research reveals that being pressured to do it can leave negative effects on the students and certainly change their minds about going. Experts have written about, discussed and studied this issue and they have concluded that students who are pressured too much, suffer from stress and in many cases anxiety from the thought of going to college. They feel as though the only way of succeeding in life it to get a star diploma from a top university, or the only way of pleasing their parents is to go to the college of their choice. The research goes on to conclude that the stress of many students piles like homework and can override them to the point of break down. Based on the information provided by experts, one should conclude that students should not be pressured like this because of the things pressure can lead to. Parents, teachers, as well as society force students all around the world to go to college, and although it is good to get into a great school, pressuring them only makes the situation of choosing a college worse. Therefore, students around the world struggle daily and this dilemma they all face should be known worldwide to make a change and stop the college pressure.

Ever since pressure became an issue, people around the world have had their say in what they think of it. Students, for the most part, like to tell about how they have been impacted by the pressure and strive to share to parents and society of the negativity that comes from it. They share their opinions in hopes of making a change and showing society, as well as their parents, that the pressures the receive as college gets closer, only drags them down, and a change needs to be underway. In Meghan Shiels article, “Is Society Putting Too Much Pressure on High School Students,” Shiels reveals that yes, indeed society is putting on too much pressure for young adults entering their next stage of life. She puts together three key factors in her article which are, taking the SAT, advanced classes and lastly college applications (Shiels). This is interesting because it shows how students during their last year of high school become stressed and pressured over the tasks to get to college. Taking the SAT is dreadful to many students because they do not believe that they can make the minimum grade they need to get into the college of their dreams. Just the thought of taking the test stresses many out and the pressure teachers put on them to take it makes matters worse. Advanced classes also put pressure on the students as well because they push students on the high educational level to do better than most students. They feel as though they have to be the best of the best in school to achieve. Lastly, applying for college really has to be the most stressful and pressuring of them all because the students are making a huge decision eventually that changes their lives. In her article, Shiels quotes that society, “is putting too much pressure on students [and] stressing out teens too early is building an unhealthy mentality that will accompany many young adults into adulthood” (Shiels). This is important because Shiels highlights the key factors that play a role in pressuring students. Since students are stressing and building onto unhealthy mentalities, the pressure they receive should be eradicated to prevent from further bad things. Her opinion on the pressure is not the only one that sticks out, however, Anne Holcomb also agrees with the argument and gives student examples in her article, “Are Teens Pressured Too Much to go into College.” In her online article, Holcomb receives input from three students that believe during their high school senior year, they were indeed pressured to go to college. A former student named Ariel VadenBosch quotes that because of the pressure teachers and parents have put on her, she feels, “indecisive, unsure, and even afraid of the future,” (Holcomb). Also, a student named Nick Mears at Comstock High School quotes, “The stress on this generation regarding advanced education is hazardous to their mental and physical well-being,” (Holcomb). This is important because the two students prove how they are pressured by society in the real world and how they have been affected by what they’ve been through. Students shouldn’t be afraid of what their future holds in college, and they also shouldn’t be potentially harming their physical well-being. Society, like the student’s families, want what’s best for their kids so they push them to go to college to get an education, but none of them realize the pressure they put on the current generation that is bringing them down. Therefore, the pressures need to be put to an end or brought to the public attention to the issue can be resolved and students not worry and constantly stress about the important decision.

As senior year goes by, for many high school students, there are multiple factors that lead students to stress out and feel pressure to go into college. As the day to apply and look at colleges gets closer and closer, students begin to dread the days rather than look forward to the drastic change within their lives. They begin to change their minds about college and want to do something else that doesn’t put so much pressure on them. In Rick Montgomery and Joe Robertson’s article, “Do Teens Face Too Much Academic Pressure” both argue the same, but talk about the things society does to the students that leads them to be both stressed and pressured. In the beginning of the article, the men discuss that in many situations, students are tending to have stress over college because many times they believe they will not do good enough. Many students are nervous about competition and the grades they get on the big tests needed to get into a university (Montgomery and Robertson). Therefore, because of the way high school students think of themselves, like they’re not good enough, it leads them to think they can’t handle going to college and the pressure to do their very best brings them down. They feel as though any grade they get isn’t good enough to get to the dream college, and ultimately, give up. Although both Montgomery and Robertson provide great evidence to their argument, Nicole Sheldon also does this in her short story, “College Students Face Increasing Pressures,” where Sheldon talks on the pressures many students face, not only in college but also high school, causing the students to fear even just the thought of college. With the challenges teachers and parents put on their former students and children, students have become more prone to not being interested in going to college because of the challenges and pressures that are put on them (Sheldon). Certain pressures she adds in are, “…to have stellar grades, be competitive, successful and not to make mistakes—and the list goes on...” as if to say that students have to be perfect to get into the college they want, which in reality, that really is how students feel (Sheldon). This is interesting because it gives true insight as to how real high school and college students feel. Students don’t want to feel as though they have to have the perfect grade to succeed in life; however, consequently that is how society is pressuring some of the students today. And because parents and teachers and so many other have done this, students around the world have turned away from college fearing they won’t be good enough.

Parents around the world have always wanted what’s very best for the child and many will strive to do just what it takes for them to achieve just that. Although it is certainly good to push their children to succeed, parents pushing them too far can lead to disaster. Parents around the world have become a problem when it comes to college pressure because they have pushed their child too far and caused their former student to lose interest in going to school. In Maureen Downey’s article, “Why Do Parents Want Their Children to go to College? Because Advanced Education Pays Off,” the author discusses why many parents want their children to go to college. Parents around the world feel in many ways that college is the best way to go for their child and urge them to go right after high school. They think that urging them will encourage their child to go to college and eventually be successful (Downey). This is interesting because it gives the insight into how the parents think they have their kids feeling, but really the kid’s feelings are the complete opposite of what the parents want. When the parents urge their kids to go and pressure them, kids become uninterested in college, when really most will need to receive an education. Many times kids hear that their parents want them to succeed and get a great education so college is the best way to go. Now while it is good for students to get a great education and get a great job in their life, parents should also understand that pressuring their precious kid to go to college too much can leave a negative effect on them. Therefore, many parents, teachers, and as a whole society needs to know of the affect they’ve made. In the article, “Why Parents Shouldn’t Force Their Child to go to College Right Away,” the author talks about some reasons why parents want their kids to go to college, but also he or she talks about why they shouldn’t force their kids to go. The author quotes, “The truth is college is a dream that most parents have for their children,” (“Why Parents Shouldn’t Force Their Child to go to College Right Away”). This claims that indeed parents do want their former student to have a bright future in the days ahead at college; however, the author also goes back in article to say that pressuring is not good on the student. Though it sounds rude, some parents even say they want their kids out for college because they want them out of the house, learning to live on their own (“Why Parents Shouldn’t Force Their Child to go to College Right Away”). Although it is preferred that a student lives on their own at some point within their life, however, pushing them too soon can lead them to fearing being alone for the first time and avoid going to college. In Richard Weissbourd’s online article, “The Overpressured Student,” Weissbourd spends a lot of time talking about how many parents he talks to in public speaking events, tend to put their kids in much competition. They like to compete with other parents to see whose child is the best at something academic, like say for instance the SAT (Weissbourd). They compare their kids tests scores, which really in the first place doesn’t make a son or daughter feel good, and pressures them to do better. This is interesting because it points out a key aspect of why a parent wants their kids to go to a university. They pressure their son or daughter to do their best, or even in some cases force them to study for the best, so later when the good grade comes in, they can brag to other parents about how well their child did. Parents who do this are wrong for it because they use their child for popularity, and it pressure the kid too much. Also in the article, Weissbourd quotes, “Children often feel the most heat to achieve—and more important, develop their understandings of what high achievement is and why it’s important—from their parents” (Weissbourd). The students learn just what achievement means from their parents, and what their parents define as achievement in school. This is interesting because, when the students learn what parents see as achievement, they can be pressured to prove they achieve. Various students in high school struggle with this and many times over pressure themselves to the point they struggle to keep trying. Therefore, many give up and move onto other goals. However, this should not happen; students should receive help and society should be informed of the dilemma. Finally, in Weissbourd’s article he quotes, “When parents treat children like performance machines or place their children’s academic achievement over other values, children not only are stressed but may also feel that their best personal qualities are not valued by others,” (Weissbourd). In no way is it good that a child feels as though their personal qualities are not valued, or that they’re not good enough. This quote is important because it claims that kids around the world feel like they aren’t valued enough or seen as good enough because they are treated like performance machines. Therefore, since they feel like this, they are pressured to do better to please society. Pressured to go to college to do better to appease the public eye. This problem of students and kids feeling pressured from society to achieve values and do their best is in drastic need of change. The public needs to be informed of the problem at hand, that is however, not known to many people. So, a change to inform people and stop the problem needs to be known so future pressures will not take over students and their dream to take on college.

The evidence provided from the articles clearly asserts that students do receive too much pressure from society as a whole, and a change needs to occur so further problems don’t arise. Parents, and teachers around the world need to be informed of the problem at hand that many do not recognize. So, when they realize the trouble being caused, the problem will not arise in the future generations. Parents need to be told not to pressure their kids to go to college, just to guide them when the time comes to apply to and visit colleges. Or, help when their child asks to make situations less stressful. Changes in schools also need to be taken place; things like more breaks for students that are in their senior year of high school so they have a good amount of time to find out which college is the best choice for them. SAT tests need to be portrayed and displayed in a different way; in a way that students can go in to take it with confidence, not fearing the test and expecting an automatic bad grade. Any change to relieve the pressure students receive needs to take place and it needs to happen soon for the sake of incoming freshman. That way future pressures are not present for the upcoming college kids. Therefore, a change needs to take place and society needs to know of the dilemma, so it can ultimately be solved and college students everywhere be content without worry of society pressures.

Works Cited

Downey, Maureen. “Why Do Parents Want Their Children to go to College? Because Advanced Education Pays Off.” myAJC. 5 July 2016, http://getschooled.blog.myajc.com/2016/07/05/why-do-parents-want-their-kids-to-go-to- college-because-advanced-education-pays-off/

Holcomb, Anne. “Are Teens Pressured Too Much to go into College.” MLive. 29 November 2008, http://www.mlive.com/opinion/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2008/11/our_turn_are_teens_pressur ed_t.html

Montgomery, Rick and Robertson, Joe. “Do Teens Face Too Much Academic Pressure.” TheSeattleTimes. 21 March 2016, http://www.seattletimes.com/nwshowcase/on- course/do-teens-face-too-much-academic-pressure/

Sheldon, Nicole. “College Students Facing Increasing Pressures.” Odyssey. 25 January 2016, https://www.theodysseyonline.com/college-students-today-face-increasing-pressures

Shiels, Meghan. “Is Society Putting Too Much Pressure on High School Students.” PSU. 7 September 2015, http://sites.psu.edu/siowfa15/2015/09/07/is-society-putting-too-much- stress-on-high-school-students/

Weissbourd, Richard. “The Overpressured Student.” EducationLeadership. May 2011, http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/may11/vol68/num08/The- Overpressured-Student.aspx

“Why Parents Shouldn’t Force Their Child to go to College Right Away.” TheGoodMenProject.

17 July 2014, https://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/parents-shouldnt-force-child- go-college-right-away-wrd/