Too little free time

Young people dissatisfied with “school-life balance”

Young people would like more comprehensible explanations, fewer exams, more practical relevance and a later start to school.

(Bild: Valerii Apetroaiei - stock.adobe.com)

Many high school students are dissatisfied with their "school-life balance" - on average, they only give it five out of ten points. Too little free time, pressure to perform, incomprehensible grading and health problems are a major burden for young people. 

Three quarters already felt unfairly treated, mostly by teachers. Above all, they would like more comprehensible explanations, fewer exams, more practical relevance and a later start to school.

• On average, sixth form students spend as much time at school as adults do at work. However, according to a survey, many young people are dissatisfied with their "school-life balance". On average, respondents rated the compatibility of school and private life with only five out of ten points. 27 percent stated that they had a very poor "school-life balance".

• The proportion was even higher among respondents with few friends (31%) and young people with poor school performance (48%). One fifth, however, reported a very good school-life balance. In terms of school grades, young people would give their school life a three and their life as a whole a two.

Half feel they have too little free time
Half of the young people questioned in the survey cited too little free time as a problem. Four out of ten complained about nonsensical work assignments from school, with boys even naming this as the number one thing that makes life less enjoyable.

• For 66 percent, incomprehensible grading is the number one problem at school, followed by unannounced repetitions, too little time to study and poor grades. Too much learning material, exam and learning stress, poor teaching of learning material and pressure to perform at school also put a strain on more than half of those surveyed.

• According to the survey, three quarters have felt unfairly treated at school, mostly by teaching staff. Only 15 percent address such incidents directly, according to an online survey of 900 high school students by the tutoring institute LernQuadrat.

Headaches, insomnia 
More than half of those surveyed have been so stressed by school that they have reacted with headaches or insomnia. According to the survey, only 16 percent have never had health problems due to school stress. A good half of the young people also report that they are overtired due to the stress of school, remember less or find it difficult to concentrate. Four out of ten state that they have already reacted by blacking out during exams.

• In order to improve school life, the vast majority of respondents believe that better explanations, fewer exams, more practice and more up-to-date topics in lessons are needed. 

• More than half of those surveyed would also be in favor of a later start to lessons, fewer lessons and more feedback on individual performance. Only 44% of respondents would be in favor of abolishing grades, while a third would be in favor of smaller classes.