As we near the end of 2023, students and teachers look forward to the holiday season. November and December bring plenty of events everyone could be thankful for, including school vacations! Some of our favorite holidays, such as Christmas, Thanksgiving, and New Year’s are all celebrated during multiple breaks of school. Not only does this allow students to spend quality time with family and friends, but the opportunity to refresh from academics comes from vacations.
School could become incredibly stressful for students in the latter half of the year. Statistics from Research.com show that 31% of U.S. students identified finals & midterms as their “top source of stress”. It’s evident that around the end of a full year, there’s much that students have to worry about. Academics are at the forefront of many overwhelming feelings that can negatively impact a student. Senior Angel Jimenez says “I do feel stress at the start, but near the end of Finals Week, I feel a sense of relief because I know I have those few weeks of break to rely on for rest.”
This is another indication as to why breaks are essential. Throughout the school year, students are never going to always be at 100%. Personal issues, school workload, or conflicts at school are difficulties many students face head-on. Just like a job, people need rest days. It could become very hard for a student or teacher to maintain consistent work if there were no days off. That’s why November and December are the months when many students and teachers enjoy a well deserved break from their academic activities. These breaks can help them recover from stress and fatigue from long hours within the school day. They can also use this time to pursue their hobbies, spend time with family and friends, or travel to places around the world.
Even though many of us only look at school vacations for their positives, they’re meant to benefit those negative feelings that may transpire during the school year. That is why the majority of students and teachers drastically look forward to these one to two week breaks. Overall, the morale of everyone shows to increase and also improves the chances of successful returns for the second semester. So, when you’re enjoying your holiday meals, make sure to save some time to rest and regroup!
Link for Importance for School Vacations video HERE.
Statistics findings: https://research.com/education/student-stress statistics#:~:text=Finals%20and%20midterms%20accounted%20for,for%20the%20past%2012%20months.
