Dear Mr. President,

    No kids should have to stay up all night doing homework, unfortunately, some do. Although homework can help a student academically, reducing the amount for kids and young adults, from elementary all the way through college, could reduce stress and anger, causing them to pay more attention in school and spend more time with their with their friends and families.

    As I said before, homework can help students academically, but at the same time, it can also lead to negative effects on kids. According to Denise Pope, a senior lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Education, researched and found that too much homework in the upper-class California communities lead to great stress, reductions in health, and less time for friends, family, and other extra curricular activities.

    Research shows that over 90 minutes of homework is required for high school. When asked about it, 56 percent of the students considered homework a main source of stress. Forty-three percent of the kids viewed tests as a primary stressor, while 33 percent of the kids put the pressure to get good grades in that category. Only less than 1 percent of the kids said homework did not stress them. When kids were asked about effects of homework, many said homework would cause sleep deprivation, headaches, weight loss, exhaustion, and stomach problems.

    Kids can find it hard to balance between homework, extracurricular activities, and social time. Many of the kids researched and questioned said that “Homework is pointless and mindless.” As time goes by, young people are spending more time alone, leading to less time spent alone with their family and friends. Reducing the homework wouldnt only get rid of stress, but could also improve a kids behavior at home and at school. Students and parents aren't the only ones go got affected by this new plan. The Buffalo Academy of Scholars, a private school that has the no-homework policy, says their structure where students complete assignments under supervision by teachers during the day, gets positive feedback mainly from the parents of the kids.

    It may be hard to deal with the amount of homework we get, but our next president could just announce some of the statistics to try to inform and alert people about what kids, like me, have to go through daily. If teachers band together, they could try to figure out a way to deal with homework. Many schools, specifically one in Massachusetts, named the Kelly Full Service Community School, has decided to go with the no-homework plan, lengthening the school day and getting rid of all homework. This is due to the fact that their school is underperforming, this can/has been helping both students and teachers. The students are able to spend more time freely without having to worry about homework, while the teachers are able to spend more time with their kids and help them learn. Parents are also relieved by this method because they don't have to worry about their kids spending valuable family time doing homework instead of interacting.

    Our school systems should not rely completely on homework that causes stressed kids, tired teachers, and angry parents. People like you, Mr. President could and should influence and persuade the school districts to reduce the amount of homework kids like me get, and instead, allow more freedom at school, including more field trips and other fun outside activities instead of sitting at a desk for hours at a time.

   Sincerely,                                                                                                                                                                     Demetri Ladas