Stress from grades


Days after days, weeks after weeks and there was still no success in the class of 7ACu. There had been mounds of pressure put on top of children about getting good grades. There had been some complaints from students just about certain subjects like Math where there was for some reason a lot more pressure to succeed in. Of course, some students in this class had no problem because they naturally excel in academics. However, for some it was getting to the breaking point.

A survey showed that only 5 people out of the 21 in this class had parents that were satisfied with their marks. On average there were only 3 people that would get above the grade expectation during assessments and unit tests. There are always some teachers that are sympathetic and don’t put pressure on kids by not even talking about grades.

“We don’t like to talk about grades in this class, its always about how you can improve” stated Jabiz Raisdana, an English teacher. However, a lot of teachers do put a lot of importance in getting great results. All this stress causes anxiety in the students heads and leads to bad grades on tests.

Why do grades matter at such a young age? Its not just parents and teachers that put emphasis on grades, it’s also peers. Everyone likes to do as well as their friends on tests so they can compete with them. Parents think that if their children do well during middle school, it will help them in the future and so instead of actually doing well, the kids feel the load mount on top of them and don’t do as well. This is all really insane because what happens in middle school has nothing to do with high school, let alone the future.

Teachers say that everyone should take the mistakes from their fails to succeed next time, but students see a bad grade and think that it’s over because their parents are gonna punish them. Well all that never happens, all they concentrate on is about how they’re going to get a bad grade in their report card. On top of studying for about 1 test every 10 days, students have to complete homework for 3 out of 4 subjects per day, extra work that is given by parents. When do they have time to chill out and relax? Middle school should be enjoyed and savored as in high school, there aren’t many opportunities to unwind and loosen off.

Even when children want to study late and finish homework, they aren’t given much time at all by parents. Students have to balance out their time between leisure time, sports, academics and service. The parents still want their children to sleep for a good 9 to ten hours.

Just one in every three students gains a grade that they are satisfied with. Obviously some families and students have higher expectations. This shows how much students want to improve their grades but are not able to. Low grades have cause so much concern for some kids so that they don’t even show their parents their test results.

Always something to consider when your kids aren’t getting consistent good results.

Friends. Can you trust them?

A girl was walking past tent plaza. Meanwhile, all the kids under the tent are watching while eating their food. Staring at her. She gets the jitters and walks faster. They turn and and start talking to one another. The girl then runs of to her friends who are sitting far away from tent plaza.

1 out of 4 people in grade 8 feel they are true friends. That is true in many cases. Many people think of themselves as true friends and many don't. But in the end, everyone is friends. Everyone is brought in at UWC. There are people who are friends with other people but are always nice to others. This 1 out of 4 people may feel as if they are friends but they might not actually be true/good friends. Feeling is when you have a thought and then have an emotion after it.

Dr. Sanjay, psychiatrist in Lilavati Hospital in Mumbai, says that people get overwhelmed when they think they are popular. When asked what types of friends are there, Dr. Sanjay replied "There are many types of friends. There are BFF's, Good Friends, Acquaintances and many more. All these are just statements but in the end, true friendship lies between you and your connection with your friend." A new 8th grader shared her story. "So last year I was in an accident and my face got really messed up so I thought no one would accept me for who I was. After I came back from the hospital my friend called me. I thought I should tell her since she didn't know. I was going to hang up but she insisted I show her how I looked. Once I showed her she didn't laugh, give me pity or anything she simply started saying I don't look as bad as she thought I would. Basically she cheered me up. She made me feel really happy being accepted. She was the only one who accepted me after I went to school. All of my friends made fun of me they bullied me for being in the accident."

Helen Keller once said “I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light.” Everyone should have friends who do this. Many famous actors and superstars have friends next to them to help them when they need that help. If it means you need to step back a bit then that it is what you do. Dr. Tucker, as doctor working in Mount Elizabeth Hospital, says. "When you are in stress, or you need some help, your friends would be the first person you would go to." he said "Middle Schooler's always go through this phase and when they need friends a lot. But in times like this, people often forget about their friends"

This is a story that really makes us go "What could I have done to help?" Well this brings us to the next steps into the future. What you could do is try to reach out to people when they need help such as a new girl at school. Go out and give your hand by helping them go around. Small things can be done and you can be a better friend. Thats what true friendship is all about. When someone is in need of you help, you go out to help them. That is exactly why we should have friends. They are always there for you like when you are troubled or need help yourself. Like the quote goes 'A friend in need is a friend indeed'. You can help the new students from feeling out of place and alone by just talking to them and being their friend as that can brighten their day.

When you are down, go talk to a counsellor or someone to clear your problems. Your friends might not be the best people to talk to as they might go behind your back and talk mean things about you. Share your feelings with someone you know you can trust and know that they can keep a secret. Your parents are really good people to talk to as they have been through middle school just like you and so they may know how to deal with it. You can also talk to your pets as pets really help you feel better.

Remember, never let others control you and you should be able to pick your right friends. Always be yourself and try not to please others because you want them to be your friend. They should appreciate you for who you are. 

Rock and Roll Is Dying

Rock and Roll Is Dying

Picture an average person walking on the street, with headphones on. He is most likely listening to mainstream modern music. This is not necessarily a bad thing. But old Rock and Roll is slowly dying. People don't listen to rock as much as people used too. There may be reasons for this.

Out of a Survey of 18 people, 15 said that artists of Modern mainstream music do it for the money and fame, and not because of their passion and their love for music as an art. The ways of getting famous were different back when rock was a big thing. Bands like Nirvana started off as garage bands that played with old instrument. For this reason, people put more of their love and effort into making the music, and also because they loved it. “Now it’s different. People have to get a record label, and make up some lyrics” says Samar Zia, who is an avid music lover. Basil Haider stated that “ Music used to be an art, music used to passion. Now music is a job, a way to make money, and artist’s don't care how the music sounds.”

Gene Simmons, the famous KISS rocker made a statement that “Rock and Roll is Dead” He quoted while talking to son Nick Simmons “The death of rock was not a natural death. Rock did not die of old age. It was murdered. And the real culprit is that kid's 15-year-old next-door neighbor, probably a friend of his. Maybe even one of the bandmates he's jamming with. The tragedy is that they seem to have no idea that they just killed their own opportunity — they killed the artists they would have loved.” This statement from Gene Simmons has some deep meaning. Rock and Roll did not die because people didn’t think it was old or not cool. It’s probably the fact that there was so much garageband's in his time, that it became hard to get into mainstream media. Bands can't get their fame as easily as it was before.

Another reason why rock and roll is slowly fading is because of music piracy. CD’s are becoming obscure, because it is so easy to pirate music, rock artist are not able to make money by selling CD’s. Also old rock artists don't have as much merchandise to sell as their counterparts in the pop and rap industry. Rock artist can't make money anymore. Their passion for music won't necessarily pay their bills. They can't make money anymore because they are losing sources of money.

Now record companies that would have given them money and published their music won't jump to rock because now its old music. They do the same thing for pop and rap, but rock is fading for this reason. Gene Simmons quoted “ There was an entire industry to help the next Beatles, Stones, Prince, Hendrix to prop them up and support them every step of the way. There are still record companies, and it does apply to pop, rap and country to an extent. But for performers who are also songwriters, the creators, for rock, for soul and the blues, its finally dead. Rock is finally dead” Record companies have left the side of rock to go towards new music, and rock is now left in the dust.

How will this be fixed? There is no complete solution. But stopping music piracy will help the music industry as a whole. Also people should give rock more love. They should no completely disregard. But of course, its a persons choice what they listen to. But rock should not be left in the dirt

Insomniacs

Have you ever been trying to sleep while tornadoes of thoughts crash through your head? oh no! I forgot to hand that assignment in, I don’t even know why she would say that, I really need to study for the science test, I wish I had done that too, maybe later, he’s just so annoying, what does that even mean? Whenever you are about to drift off to sleep a new thought pops into your head, demanding attention. So you try to sleep but you have so much going on in your head it’s almost impossible. Sound familiar?

If this does sound familiar you shouldn't be surprised, roughly one out of four people are affected by sleeping issues sometimes too. Insomnia can affect anyone and over any amount of time, you could have it for one night, one week or for over a month. If you have recurring Insomnia for over three weeks it is referred to as chronic insomnia but if you only get it occasionally its called acute insomnia.

He yawned and taped the silver alarm clock sitting on his bedside table. The clock lit up, neon green light piercing the darkness and illuminating his bedroom, telling him that the time was 2:40 AM, just three hours and twenty minutes before he had to get up for school. He groaned remembering that he had gone to bed at 11 because he was studying for a math exam that he had the next day. Rolling over, he closed his eyes and tried to get back to sleep again.

Waking up several times during sleep is one symptom of Insomnia. Other symptoms include not feeling refreshed when you wake up - no matter how many hours of sleep you get, feeling tired and falling asleep during the day and one of the most common symptoms is having trouble falling asleep at night.

Lots of things can cause and affect the amount of insomnia you suffer from, one of the biggest reasons that teens have insomnia is due to the amount of pressure they receive socially, mentally, through school work and from their parents. This pressure can lead to stress, anxiety and depression which in turn affects Insomnia.

Another reason some people suffer from Insomnia more than others is due to pain and disease. Disease (whether mental or physical) can help to create bad sleeping habits, also some medications can keep you awake and alert so its harder to get to sleep. Pain can also affect your sleeping habits as obviously it makes it harder to relax and sleep. The sleeping habits and patterns that you have are very important because if they are insufficient they can lead to Insomnia, other sleeping disorders and sickness. So what exactly are bad sleeping habits?

Lots of things can turn good sleeping habits bad into bad ones, some more surprising than others. For example, would you expect that not getting enough exercise or using a TV, Computer or mobile device in bed could lead to a sleeping disorder ? Well they can and so does going to bed at different times each night, napping in the day, spending lots of time in bed while awake, working evening or night shifts and finally having a poor sleeping environment (too hot, cold, bright etc.).

Overall having poor sleeping habits can be very harmful in the long and short run, getting enough good sleep without being affected by Insomnia or being disturbed is extremely important and beneficial. Studies have shown that not only can a lack of sleep slow down your responses and concentration, putting yourself in potential danger or at a disadvantage, it can also lower your athletic ability and your ability to solve problems creatively. Lack of sleep can also affect your moods and grades negatively. So next time you have a test or sports match, make sure you get enough Inssleep the night before!

Be Yourself

The anxious, scrawny looking boy gazes intently and keenly as the buff, popular boys pose like big, oversized, intimidating gorillas. Skinny and slim girls can also be found twirling their hair as they challenge and flirt with the boys at UWC Tent Plaza during lunch time. But why is this popularity contest such an huge and important thing between teenagers?

According to G.M Williams, the image of being popular is a person who is considered and believed to be important, happy, liked and supported by school. To be popular is to be adored, adulated and loved. To be popular is to actually be somebody, like an entity.

But being popular doesn’t only give out positive vibes. It has its share of negative as well. Some of the popular kids are disliked by other students. But this may be because of envy and jealousy but also because the standout teens can be bullies or part of the mean girls clique.

Cristie is often called a malicious girl who often feels inferior to herself. When interviewed, on the behavior of Cristie, a shy introvert expressed that she often feels that Cristie judges her and the introvert claims to feel her self-esteem go down, almost like an instinct.

Another interview with a talkative and chatty bystander suggests that Hunter is a really funny and witty guy but he often makes fun of him while joking. He also adds that Hunter’s actions and behavior have a high contrast when he’s with the ‘cool kids’ and when he’s with the so called ‘un-cool kids’.

Still, the big question is, what does being popular in middle school tell us about the world outside the bubble of adolescence? Why does being popular matter to the students? Does it matter?

According to Professor Allen, who is using the criteria of likeability to define popularity, his studies indicate that the more the popular the teens were, the more likely that they get into trouble with wild deviant and quirky behavior, like shoplifting or vandalism and drinking and smoking. According to him, its the one way to signal to their peers that I’m not doing what adults want. To indicate that I don’t listen to anyone. I am independent and an antagonist.

But another story of 13 and 14 year olds found that teenagers who perceived themselves as well liked and comfortable with their peers were just as socially successful over time as those who were deemed popular by others. This internal sense of social acceptance, the study’s authors said, may be as or more important in the long run than the number of friends you have.

But one of the questions which races into my mind is, so why isn’t popularity of any significant value?

The idea that someone is better just because they own an ‘posh’ car, an expensive wardrobe and have an alluring or a pristine body is just absurd. Hear me out readers. No one is better than someone else. We all were born equal and because of those senseless and ludicrous rationales, treating others different is again, just absurd.

Most of the people are convinced by that fact that popularity leads the way to happiness and contentment all the time. And of course, and some of that might be true. Lots of popular kids are contemplated as more happier, just because they are admired and because they are surrounded by lots of friends with whom they have fun with. But on the other hand, there are the unpopular kids who aren’t very happy but they have a good, loyal set of friends which make each other happy.

So, popularity doesn’t control or determine your happiness but instead, what you do and what you make of your life does. Whether or not everyone in your class or grade is fond of you shouldn’t determine your middle school experience. You should be able to control your happiness by who hang out with the people you love and doing the activities in which you take pleasure in. Be yourself. Being popular isn’t important. It is as straightforward as that.

Time Management

Kids stay up late, finishing homework which really should have been done hours before they started. The reason for this? Well nothing other than distractions such as the addictive world of social media. Picture this, you come back from school tired and wanting to rest. You lay down, open your laptop to start your homework, but your computer welcomes you with the sight of multiple different social media sites. Its tempting to chat with friends and browse the internet, and the temptation gives in. Soon after, procrastinations takes over as you ignore the time you said you would start homework. A few hour go by, and your parents storm into your room, demanding you to get off. By then, its 8 o'clock and you have to study for a science quiz the next day, along with humanities, math and english homework. Its going to be a long night.

You go to school the next day, with bags underneath your eyes bigger than the one you're carrying, all thanks to the fact that you stayed up late attempting to finish your math homework. Although, you got carried away by your phone buzzing away with snapchats. Just pray that your teachers do not ask to see the homework that was assigned. As you walk into your math classroom as your teacher gives you a look. It almost seems he has a sixth sense of knowing who hasn't completed their homework. “ Where is your homework?” asks your teacher. Your heart drops as you scramble to make up a better excuse than the one is true. but you can't think of anything.

By this point, you wish you had your homework complete by this point, and regret your poor time management. Joel Anthony says he has had terrible trouble with time management in the past, but has greatly reduced it. “I have made a timetable for everything that goes on during my day” says Joel. “I am very disciplined to stick to my timetable, and it helps me a lot with my time management. Before I had this, I would not prioritise my home work and everything was just a big mess.” Having a timetable is a good strategy for time management, as it lets you plan ahead and gives you specific times for activities. Amin Haidan has admitted that he has tried to use this strategy, but has failed. “ sports, activities and social life just take up too much time and it cannot be predicted. My schedule is always changed without notice and it always gets in my way of completing work” Stated Amin Haidan. “ I do complete my homework, but does get completed last minute. I do this by putting myself in a quiet space without any distractions and stay there until my work is complete”.

Putting yourself in a quiet environment can help you get quality of work out of your time and lets you focus on your work, although it must be done properly without any distractions around you. Infomation gathered from thelifeoasis.com has shown that the average person gets distracted 1 minute for every 8 minutes that pass. The cause of this is distractions and poor time management and it can be easily avoided. Poor time management also have many side affects on your daily life such as procrastination, poor punctuality, Impatience, rushing, lack of energy, indecisiveness and many more. From a student's standpoint, this can result in poor grades, late nights, late homework and not prioritizing what is most important. Students spend countless hours on social media and electronic devices, and leave school work to the last minute.

These problems can be overcome with a few solutions. To first have time available to complete work, you must organise your time well. This can be completed with a timetable or agenda, with specific adequate times for work to be completed. Another option is to prioritise what work is important and needs to be completed first. This way, the right work that needs to be completed on will be worked on. Prioritising what is important can be done by noticing all work that needs to be completed, and starting the most important. During your studying/ homework short breaks should be taken around every half an hour for the best effect of studying and concentration. Teenagers do struggle everyday with time management. It affects their daily lives, schooling and can only be improve with discipline. Just as Michael Altshuler one said “The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” So be sure to steer your time management in the right direction.

The Popularity Division

Take a look around. A good look around. Look around to find them, because you will. Somewhere, in every school there is always that group. The boys that hang out with those girls, and those girls that hang out with those boys. But not just any boys and girls. The boys and girls that deem themselves higher than all else. The girls with layered makeup, and the boys puffing out their chest. Boys hitting one another and girls giggling foolishly. Because they will be there. This is the social segregation.

The lunch bell rang and there was that usual commotion as everyone ran downstairs to que up. Everyone went to their normal places but for one boy who stood, playing around the long table in the centre of the cafe. A couple walked up to him holding hands and dropped off their bags giving him look of surprise and indignation mingled with disgust. ‘He’s at our table?’ They thought. Walking away without another look back he was left alone standing in the middle of all this bedlam, shunned away from all else.

In all schools around the world there is always a divide. A segregation between many similar to Apartheid that divides between different people who deem themselves more popular than others. First lets talk about the word, What does Popular even mean? The dictionary defines it as people who are admired by many people or a particular group. But why? Why does this mean you are different from others? Being deemed popular or trying to get to that stage changes so much about who you really are, From where you hang out to your dress sense, to how do you things just regularly. You become a different person under the influence of this social pressure.

Not only does it change your physical self but it undermines your personality and who YOU truly are. Its not about what you want anymore or what you do. Its about what the people want.

Sweating nervously he sat looking across the plaza. All the girls were huddled to together, all whispering looking at him every couple of seconds. Tapping his feet, he looked around to see the other boys all crammed around discussing the situation. Should I do it? Pressure waves kept running through him. It was too late to back out now.

Social pressure is also a sad thing that relates to how people change. There is always that pressure that is put on you by others, A pressure that grow’s and grow’s varying with the matter. Like a disease, It spreads engulfing you in the need to do what you have been pressured into.

A great example of this pressure is asking someone out. You yourself might not really want to, but remember? It’s not what we want anymore. Its what they want. Its not really like you have a choice either, to be perfectly honest. You do and everyones happy, however if you back down your looked down upon, and your ‘levels’ just drop like the NASDAQ.

Sitting up slowly, he took a look at what he saw. He was not happy with what he saw. Questions kept running through his mind, ‘Would she like it?’ Would they like it? Subconsciously he began putting wax in his hair to try and make it look good. Same old, same old routine ‘yikes’ He thought, hopefully people wouldn’t think to much about him today.

You see? Popularity has become a thing that makes even boys insecure about yourself. It’s all about how you look, how your image is portrayed. How people will think of you. It all comes back to the same question all the time. How will will my image be portrayed? Will I be popular enough?

‘I always tried to change for them’ A source wishing to remain unidentified tells us. ‘The way I liked to dress was no longer important. It was about the trends that were going through at the time which I eventually keeled to.’

Popularity is something that changes who you are. not the only what is underneath but the layer above, the one that everyone see’s.

Amongst other things, one of the things that ‘Popularity’ does change is what society deems you should be good at. Passions now should be something masculine, cool rather than something that you enjoy. An unconfirmed source tells us ‘Something that I am really passionate about is Dance. But I have been bullied about this in the past. Its not good enough, its Macho. Its not what everyone else wants to see. I tried to get into something else, Football, Rugby, Tennis. None of them I really enjoyed, It was Dance that was my passion.

Those football players, those rugby Jocks, those kids are the cool ones. Making the team, well that just your levels rocketing like product shares of apple when the first iPhone came out.

If there is one thing that you do after reading this, is just be prepared, be wary that their are all these different people in the world out there. They might not necessarily be bad, but what they do do is create an influenza in society, where everyone is engulfed in this need to become great.

Procrastination Problem

At lunch time, students can be seen scrambling to finish homework. But why? why do students rush to do their homework? Why did the not do their homework at HOME? This is known as procrastination.

Procrastination is a problem that many middle school students face. Procrastination is basically like time wasting. Students may delay their homework till the last minute. Then they will scramble to make sure that the homework is completed on time. But why does this happen in the first place? Samar Zia, a student from Grade 12 said that “ Kids may procrastinate because of a lack of self control, because I procrastinate all the time.” When a teacher was asked, Mr Raisdana said “ I procrastinated in grade 8, and I still do. Many of my friends did it as well.” When asked why he procrastinated, he said that “ You are not interested in homework, and you don't really care about it. You dont put your heart into something you dont care about.” www.education.com said that “If you’re a parent, the likelihood is you have a child who procrastinates. Why? Because procrastination is part of the human experience. Most people procrastinate because they are not enthusiastic about a task, or because there’s no shortage of more interesting, exciting, or pressing things to do.” Dr Joseph Ferrari, a Psychology professor at the DePaul University said that “Everybody procrastinates, but not everybody is a procrastinator,”

`Procrastination can come in different forms. Most times, its just ignoring homework entirely. One way of procrastination can be multi tasking, and not concentrating on the work that has to be finished. Also a lack of concentration can be a factor in procrastination. Procrastination can happen with adults as well, although not at such a large scale. But how do people stop procrastination? Its such a big problem, but what is the solution. The answer is, there is no specific answer. There is no way to stop people from procrastinating. There are strategies to stop kids from procrastinating. One of the strategies is to feed kids tasks in small proportions. Also when kids do work, parents should keep regular tabs on their kids. But nothing can be force fed to the kids. They must chose to not procrastinate.

But people must really understand why do kids procrastinate. The Dictionary definition of the word procrastination is “the action of delaying or postponing something.” Kids find homework boring, because there is so much more they can be doing that is much more fun, that homework can become very mundane, monotonous and ultimately not very fun to do. A study by Dr Barbara Klein gave 8 (4 are going to be listed) reasons why gifted children have trouble doing homework

1. Homework is not important to smart kids.

Maybe the homework is too easy or too boring, and they are not interested in doing it. Kids don’t understand that homework is their personal responsibility. One way to help children learn how to do things that are boring is to give them responsibilities at home that they are not interested in completing. They need practice at doing boring things.

Many kids, including the gifted children, may not understand that homework is training for real responsibility, which may be why the procrastinate while doing homework.

2. They can get away with it.

This is a parental problem with not setting limits and consequences. Smart children are always very compelled to outsmart their parents, even if their behavior is inappropriate or self-destructive. Parents need to establish rules that their child can manage to follow. Being too strict or too permissive gives your child permission to not listen to you.

Smart kids will want to be able to outsmart their parents because they want to prove their intelligence, and because it makes the feel intelligent.

3. Gifted children have fun when they aggravate their parents.

No matter how wonderful of a you are, gifted kids love to argue. They are “know-it-alls” to the core. Challenging mom and dad and teachers can be a sport for them. Try and communicate with them that you are not interested in every argument they start. Teach them to respect your authority.

Again, kids want to prove intelligence, so they may argue with parents to prove that they are right, and that they are not in the wrong

4. They get used to negative attention and thrive on it.

Gifted kids are challenging and stressful to raise. Parents normally and naturally get frustrated and angry. Kids pick up on their parents’ anger and learn how to react in the most annoying ways. Parents need to get better at understanding and diffusing their frustrations.

Intelligent kids can pick up anything, whether it is good or bad. These kids can see the negative attention that they get from their parents and then they pick it up and use it in their everyday life.

These are just some of the reasons gifted kids procrastinate. This means that the average kids will almost always procrastinate. This means that kids will have to try to stop procrastinating themselves. But the parents must also help the kids, by making a positive atmosphere and making sure that the environment is good so that they can finish work on time

Flawless Is Impossible

“The hatred of your own female body has become normalised to the point that listing things you hate about yourself is a perfectly normal conversation. Telling the lady at the store that you can’t wear that dress because you hate your upper-arms or discussing weight-loss with a complete stranger are everyday happenings. In fact, it’s even a way for young girls and women to bond. You see, in girl world, hating yourself can be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”- Anonymous Source. In nowadays society, what the media says, how celebrities look and the way society judges you has just become a normal way of life. Obviously, everyone has different views on what is beautiful, informed by gender, culture, religion, age group, family and peer group. Even living environments can influence body-image views. Even so, “beauty” in media and society is viewed as being slim, fit, and flawless. The fact is, nobody thinks that they’re flawless. You could see someone and think “they have everything” yet inside, there are still things they wish to change about themselves, even if they’re small things.

“I was walking down the plaza on a blazing hot lunch-break yesterday” says Rachel Driver, a student at UWCSEA “I overheard a conversation between two girls. This day was a free dress day, so one of the girls came dressed in long pants. The other girl asked her why she was wearing long pants, on such a hot day like this, and she simply replied that she thought her legs were ugly. I didn’t think much of it at the time so I just went about my business and moved on.” Although this conversation doesn’t seem like a life-altering problem, it can be. Body image and body hate is a huge problem, and something as small as thinking your legs are ugly can often have an extreme impact on your life. This includes mental diseases such as depression, anxiety, anorexia. The list goes on and on.

“Once I was in the girls changing room and the girls next to me were talking about celebrities. I heard them talk about how skinny all these girls were, and how they were never going to be able to live up to those standards of looking like the girls/women they see in the media…after hearing this I looked at my own body and thought about what they said. I only see girls and women that are skinny with a tiny waist, slender legs, flawless skin, big eyes, perfect lips and nose, and dressed in designer fashions or next to nothing at all” says one source, whose name is kept private. Flip through any magazine, watch any movie or commercial and the (usually female) person on the cover will be slim, fit, and flawless. “I saw a watch commercial in a magazine the other day, it featured a woman lying naked on a bed with a watch on her wrist, it wasn’t even the main focus on the magazine. It was a tiny image on an even tinier wrist of a woman.” In many cases it seems as though woman exist for no other reason than to be an object to make things look good and for sex.

“Well I think that mass media provides really unrealistic expectations for young people on what their bodies should look like. It also can make someone feel like they won't be able to achieve anything or ever be good enough unless they look that way” Says Akanksha Shukla another student at UWCSEA. Mass media is designed to reach large audiences through technology. Its purpose is meant to give information we need to function as a society. Mass media is everywhere, there is no escaping from it. From the moment you wake up until you fall asleep you are bombarded with media especially now everyone is on-line, all the time.

Almost every home in Singapore has at least one television, access to the internet, and cell phones.“You would think that the media is for entertainment, understanding current events, or to catch your eye. Now however, I suppose it does catch the eye, but in a different way. The media shakes you up and pushes you down. As if you were taught to despise yourself, all for not looking like something that no one truly has” - The Fab Master

The media has a wide impact on people, particularly in female teens and children. A 2012 a study showed that even girls at the age of five aren’t happy with their body and begin dieting at the age of only eight years old. In the same study 47% of girls in 5th-12th grade felt that magazine pictures of women influenced them to want to lose weight, and 69% of girls in one study said that magazine models influence their idea of the perfect body shape. Another study in 2013 in America, showed that 50% of all commercials aimed at women/girls, spoke about physical attractiveness, while none of the commercials aimed at men/ boys did the same.

The media portrays what is considered to be normal for how a female acts and looks, and therefore affects what women in society feel they should look and act like. The media's portrayal of body image affects women negatively through using stereotypes, encouraging thinness, and promoting unnecessary products. One figure which is constant in every form of media is the woman. Not just any woman, but a woman who possesses a “perfect” body. She has a tiny waist, slender legs, flawless skin, perfectly sized and placed eyes, lips and nose, and dressed in the latest fashion or next to nothing at all. Is this woman real, does anybody know this woman in real life? The answer is no, she is a photoshopped person. The media portrays what a "normal" body should look like, when in reality it’s not real.

A study in America in 2012 states that eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness for women, and that in 2012 ten million women in america have eating disorders, and 20% of people suffering from anorexia will prematurely die from complications related to their eating disorder, including suicide and heart problems. Another study in Australian high school girls, 76% of the girls wished they were thinner, 50% have tried to lose weight, and only 16% were happy with their body weight. In the same study, more than one in five young adolescent men say that body image is their number one concern. Many young girls go to great lengths to achieve these unrealistic standards of thinness and “beauty”. Dissatisfaction with your physical appearance is viewed as a core feature of eating disorders. A negative body image is also commonly paired with depression. There appears to be a link, although unclear, between depression and a poor body image.

“Fairy tale after fairy tale tells us that what matters is being beautiful “on the inside” but what does that really mean? It means submission, obedience and the suppression of one’s own desires. Don’t be haughty and proud. Clean the hearth. Kiss the frog. Love the beast. Suck it up when you’re replaced by a younger model. Sure, you may look fine, but you mustn’t feel fine. You mustn’t be vain. You mustn’t be angry. All fury and pain must be turned back on itself. That way you’ll be a real princess: silent, fragile and never threatening to challenge the status quo.”- From feminist blog Glosswatch.

The Homework Problem

Homework was a big problem. Could you imagine working all day five times a week without doing anything else? For students at UWCSEA, it was worse. Some had to stay up till 12:00 and wake up at 5:00 just to complete the homework. People were doing homework that was due the same day in school. There were some teachers that were sympathetic and were more relaxed with due dates but some were very strict. All the marks and deadlines were causing anxiety and pressure on the children to not only get the work done but actually get a good mark.

“All the homework put on top of students is too stressful for us, we need a balance” stated eighth grade student Vedant Grover. Who also happened to be a former OFS student and is aware of the incident that happened there. While students at UWC are able handle the pressure, a student from OFS had burned up his homework and set fire to a part of the school.

A kid named Neil was a grade eight student and had an above average grade, but one day he just snapped. He wasn’t thinking at all. He set a shower cabinet on fire and alarmed the whole school. He was suspended from the school after he came clean himself. There were a lot of rumors going on about him but he apologized in the end and things went back to normal. The schools reputation might have been ruined but Neil was definitely forgiven. However, back at UWC, one student was pushing limits to get his work done.

“This is impossible to finish!” thought Arvish in his head as he frantically tried to finish his math sheet. He was in the library during lunch, ten minutes before class was about to start. There was no way that he would be able to complete it. So in the end while his friend Joel was in the bathroom he wound up copying his work with Joel finding out. He was struggling with all the load. He couldn’t find time to do anything apart from studying and homework. He could hardly even finish copying before class was about to start. Joel came out of the bathroom and took his bag away and went to class. Now Arvish was in big trouble. He could feel the tension in the library. Two minutes were left before class and he still had to get there. His teacher had already told him that if he didn’t get the assignment finished he would be emailing his parents.

“Joel, wait for me!” screamed Arvish across the main plaza.
“What?” Joel replied
“Can I see your math homework?”
“No, sorry."
“Come on I’m already two lessons late, Mr.Tsang is gonna kill me!”

With one minute left, Joel had a very tough decision to make. He was torn whether to help his friend and risk getting in trouble or stay safe. He quickly whipped out his math book and showed Arvish the answers. He could live another day. They arrived in class two minutes late and got a lecture from Mr.Tsang.

The test was next lesson and Arvish was no where near finished preparing for it. He had one more day to practice at home. Now the pressure was really getting to him. He was afraid from all the anxiety given by his teachers, peers and especially from his parents. He felt like he wasn’t allowed to fail. He had to get a 6 or more. As he was studying he couldn’t focus on the work, all he could think about were the consequences if he didn’t do well. He sat there contemplating the situation when he realized that he had to get it done no matter what and that his parents wouldn’t understand.
Arvish was probably one of the few students that was this far behind but teachers had to learn when to stop with the homework. The stress was getting too much for the children.

Homework Management

Homework! As soon as homework is assigned to students, they feel depressed and are in a bad mood for the remainder of the day. They would have to work for the entire day if they got so much homework. They would want to spend time by themselves and not want to interact with anyone for the rest of their day at school. Students whose ages range from 7 years to 15 years do not enjoy doing homework and the only place where they think that they have to work is at school and they do not have to work at home which means that they are free at home. Why do students think like that?

Homework is very important for students in Middle School and High School. A very key skill that helps students with their homework is Time Management. If students are able to manage their time well, they will be able to finish all the homework assigned to them. On asking a student by the name of Arnav Gupta about how he manages his homework, he mentioned, “ I go home and organise my homework for that day according to the subjects I have the next day.” The best way for students to manage their homework is by making a timetable that states all the work that they have to do everyday. If they make a timetable stating the work they have to do each day, they can finish all the homework that has been assigned to them.”

Certain sources say that students receive lots and lots of homework that they spend the whole day doing homework is a website that gives students ideas on how to manage their homework time. Since students recieve so much homework, they do not have time to interact with their friends and family. Students should spend about 30 minutes a day doing homework in order to have more time to themselves. According to a student of UWCSEA East by the name of Joel Antony, his school asks him to spend only thirty minutes a day doing homework. He mentioned,”I spend only thirty minutes doing homework and that gives me time to play cricket with my friends during the evening and I get to spend more time with my family.” Many schools try to reduce the stress on students by giving them less homework. On asking a parent by the name of Elizabeth, she mentioned, “ If students manage their time properly, they can finish all the homework assigned to them and they should not postpone the homework assigned that day.” If students work on their homework till the early hours of the morning, they go to school feeling lethargic and drowsy the next morning and that will ruin their daily routine. It is very important for students to have a good night’s sleep in order to feel fresh the next day.

Children whose ages range between 7 years and 15 years, prefer spending time with friends and family rather than doing homework. Schools should try to reduce the pressure on children by giving them less homework. When will students take less stress on homework? When?

Pressure On The Rise

One page, then another, then another, the pages weren’t ending as a drop of sweat came riding down his cheek. “Come on” he thought, “I have been practicing this for so long, how can I not remember. Looking around the exam hall in despair, a former grade nine student raced through his mind and tried to find the information he was looking for. As the sweat started to increase, his brain felt that it was going to explode. At that moment his eyes felt like closing and his head hit the table and he fainted. He just couldn’t cope with the pressure.

“Absolutely, I have students coming to me for that issue all the time” says Rose Weima, a middle school counselor of UWCSEA East Campus, Singapore. “Its a rising issue especially for middle schoolers”. “They can’t cope with the curriculum and they’re parents are putting too much pressure on them.” They end up lost and see the world as an isolated space and then find their way to me. Weima initially started working as a math teacher but as she enjoyed the connections she made with her students, she decided she wanted to become a school counselor to further more explore the issues and experiences with her students.

Indeed there are many people who are suffering with academic stress but are too afraid to talk to anyone about it as they often feel they will end up being humiliated or embarrassed. They end up being lost because they can’t talk to their parents because most of the time, they are the ones causing this pressure. Parents don’t understand that what they expect of grades from their children, might not be the best for them and all that really matters is if they are trying their best. Studies show that prolonged academic stress can cause diseases such as obesity, depression, heart diseases and

In most cases, grades (rather than education and learning) have become the major focus of many students. “Grades nowadays don’t reflect what students get out of the class, they get in the middle of learning.” quotes English teacher Jabiz Raisdana. “If we can have a system where student invest their time in learning more about a topic they are curious about and less about what grade they will get, then it will benefit everyone. What readers may not understand is that teachers don’t like giving out grades and that these are just the education system requirements.

According to Mental Health America’s estimates, 20% of teens are clinically depressed which means for our community that we are putting too much pressure on our future generation meaning that they don't enjoy what they are doing. This statistic also reveals that teens these days are not being treated and just being “expected” to lead a healthy life. Students need to be helped and paid attention at for them to not take grades as a pressure but just a measurement.

What do grades actually mean? They are just a number on a paper and mean nothing else. The issue that is rising now is that why do students and parents care so much about the number and not what is determines and what it actually means. The pressure of grades reduces the actual value of learning and knowledge. If a student is found with a grade of D, he will be seen regretting and crying about his grade. He will not be worried about why he got a D and what that means about how he needs to improve to at least get to what is expected. He will be worried about the number D and how when he tells his friends and parents, he will feel embarrassed and to avoid this embarrassment students often cheat.

Instead of having a growth mindset and thinking “oh wow that wasn’t good, next time I will practice more for the test” they have an attitude like the found in 80% percent of students found through a conducted survey “oh no why do I always get D’s how I am I going to tell my parents.” This often leads students to ask their friends for answers and try to cheat which is in fact harmful for them. According to Stamford University cheating rates have gone up to 86%. Students are now more concerned about grades than the actual learning and now they are willing to do anything to find out the answers just to get a good grade. That won’t always work though. Parents, teachers and society need to stop putting pressure on students so that they continue to do their best, don’t cheat and preserve the value of learning and knowledge.

Parents should stop caring about grades and stop comparing their children with other children’s marks. They should just care about if their child is doing their best and how they can improve and get better instead of comparing their child's grade to that of others. It is only not parents all the time though. Students need to to take matters into their own hands and face their problems. If they are not able to cope with the curriculum, they should go to the counselor, talk to their parents, do something instead of waiting for help to ring the doorbell. Experts show that a good way to subside academic stress is through mental ways such as yoga and meditation. Students suffering should take away at least 30 minutes in a day to do whatever they like to do and enjoying themselves. Students need to take matters into their own hands and face their problems and know that grades aren’t everything.

Stress Students Face

When you walk in the middle school halls, you will see different types of students from different grades that all have different expressions. Some look relieved, some look relaxed, some have no apparent emotions and some look stressed. They might be stressed for different reasons, some might be stressed due to homework and others could be nervous because of an upcoming test. Students all have to deal with stress and they all deal with it in a different way.

You might wonder what students are thinking when they feel this way. On an ordinary Monday morning, two eighth graders were talking to each other. “OMG, I’m so not looking forward for the math test today!” says one of the girls who was frantically shuffling through her papers, touching her hair rigourously. Her friend who also looked distraught said “ I have a strong feeling that i’m going to fail the test. I seriously don’t understand math at all.” As she was talking, she was scrolling through her notes and tapping her pencil anxiously on her messy notebook, trying to understand what she was reading.

The two girls later go to their mentor class for mentor time. After a pleasant 40 minutes, they slowly went to math class where their math teacher is patiently waiting for them to take the test. The two girls both have sweat rolling down their face and have a distressed look as they enter the room. The teacher waits for all the students to arrive, and once they all arrive he hands out the tests and wishes them good luck. Once the two girls both have their test, they look at each other. One tries to mouth out the word “help” while the other ignores her. They focus on the questions and skip the ones that they don’t understand. Once they finish the test they quietly leave the classroom. “How did you do on the test? I personally found it so difficult like I skipped so many questions!” the other replies and blurts out, “Ugh don’t even get me started on it! But now I’m really scared and stressed for the results”. They both have a somewhat relieved look.

A few days later they enter their math class and get their test back. The two girls did quite poorly and they both have to do a retest. We can see the sad look in their eyes as they hear the bad news. And the cycle starts again, they stress out. Will they do better when they take the retest and have more time to study? or will they do as badly?

In conclusion, stress does affect the way you work and the less you stress, the better you will do

That's What Friends Are For

There are many types of people here in this world. There are family, friends and many more. But there are only a couple of people in our lives called friends. The definition of friends according to the merriam-webster is "a person who you like and enjoy being with" but the meaning of friends is so much more than that. Friends are the people who are always there for you. When you need help, you seek your friends and so vice versa.

There are many types of friends. There are BFF's, Good Friends, Acquaintances and many more. All these are just statements but in the end, true friendship lies between you and your connection with your friend. This friendship should last for a long time and when we grow up, we can recall all our memories with our friends. Both good and bad.

There is only one way we can describe our friend that we don't like. Our Enemy. Enemies are people who bully and who treats you badly and doesn't accept you for who you are. A new 8th grader shared her story. "So last year I was in an accident and my face got really messed up so I thought no one would accept me for who I was. After I came back from the hospital my friend called me. I thought I should tell her since she didn't know. I was going to hang up but she insisted I show her how I looked. Once I showed her she didn't laugh, give me pity or anything she simply started saying I don't look as bad as she thought I would. Basically she cheered me up. She made me feel really happy being accepted. She was the only one who accepted me after I went to school. All of my friends made fun of me they bullied me for being in the accident."

That's what true friendship is all about. When someone is in need of you help, you go out to help them. That is exactly why we should have friends. They are always there for you like Dr. Tucker says. "When you are in stress, or you need some help, your friends would be the first person you would go to." he said "Middle Schooler's always go through this phase and when they need friends a lot. But in times like this, people often forget about their friends" Like when you walk through the middle school hallway, you will see a lot of people there but not alone. they have their friends with them. They hang out together in the pods and the tent plaza.

So in conclusion, "Friends are the treasure in the ocean. You need to delve down and find it." Says an anonymous grade 7 student.

Procrastination!

A student scared walked following his teacher who was holding him by the hand
to the head of grade’s office as the student had repeatedly been forgetting to do the homework.

Procrastination! Its a common word in UWCSEA middle school.Teenagers these days often procrastinate as they are exposed to all forms of technology.Students repeatedly ask each other for homework answers and projects.Recently a student in middle school was spotted asking her friends for the homework,when asked why she said that she was extremely tired the previous day and so she wasn’t able to finish the homework.A few reason why students procrastinate are when they are stressed or they have a fear of failing and many times even lack of motivation.

According to the Oxford Dictionary procrastination means ‘Delay or postpone action; put off doing something’.People usually procrastinate because they are overwhelmed with something or even stressed.Procrastination can lead to stress and homework problems.Which is why parents and teachers always say that you should not procrastinate

Some people procrastinate because they don’t have to give in the homework in the next day.Some people procrastinate because they are lazy and sometimes even think that they can come up with a silly excuse like “I wasn’t feeling well yesterday” or “I did not get any time” .People get stressed out because they procrastinate. Some children also say that they forgot to bring their notebook so that they can get away with their homework not done.

Procrastination can lead to health problems.If people procrastinate too much then they get stressed out which can be really bad for one body.In a single academic year.Student had shown evidence of compromised immune systems as more colds and flus,more gastrointestinal problems which involves the gastrointestinal tract.A few symtoms are bleeding.bloating.constipation,nausea and vomiting and heartburn.Procrastinators are likley to experience sleeping disorder ‘insomnia’ Procrastination can also effect teamwork in the workplace and private relationships.

According to Dr.Joseph Ferrari who is a professor in DePaul University, “Everybody procrastinates but not everybody is a procrastinator.”

Teenagers always have a temptation to procrastinate.The ruse of procrastination is adding pressure to demands and delaying them.If one put off what they dread then worrying about the work will only make one feel worse.

A student at the library was spotted on the 24th of september after school at 4:30 pm watching videos,spending time playing games and socializing with his friends.When he was asked how much work he had to complete for the following week. He said, “I have to give in a project for science but I will do it tomorrow before class starts or I will tell my teacher that I did not understand it.”.This shows that the student is procrastinating.He is wanting to keep all the work for last minute. 

A few tips manage time and stop procrastinating.Create a timetable which will tell you what you have to do over the course of the day.Download an app called iProcrastinate on your laptop which will you organize yourself for homework and you can also tabulate the google calendar, you can change your environment as the environment can be distracting and talk to people and you can ask them on how they manage their time.

In conclusion the antidote to procrastination is determination and motivation and working hard.When the motivation is increased the level of effort and commitment is higher.

Stand Up For Yourself

‘Don’t listen to what other people say, if you want to do something just do it..’ says Matt.

“Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one’s definition of your life, but define yourself.” – Tim Fields.. Basically, just be yourself even though others might judge you. You should not care of how others perceive you as long as you know who you are.

Hidden and alone Larry was always at the back of his group of friends. Larry was in a group of five. Larry shared his story of peer pressure. He was always mistreated and misunderstood by his friends. Even though he was always bullied, he endured the pain. He stayed in the group because he was too scared to be alone. It did not help that everyone in his grade hated all five of them.

One day, Larrys friends started cornering him. They threw Larry on to the ground and started kicking him. The bystanders around them did nothing but laugh at Larry. No one left to go get the teacher. He could hear the dark voices in his head going: ‘What a loser!’ ‘He is so weak’. Some people even started thinking that Larry was a bad person. All of the sudden Larry cracked under pressure.

‘Stop!’ yelled Larry. Silence fell in the corridor only raindrops could be heard. One of the bullies spoke ‘Do you really think we will? A loser like you don’t get to speak up to us.’ One mississippi: ‘You are just a parasite.’ the bully continues . Larry stands up. Two mississippi: ‘A parasite who leeches of every-’ Larry stops the bully by punching him in the face. Three mississippi: Silence again…‘What are you doing?’ yells an infuriated teacher. A teacher showed up at the right place but at the wrong time. Once Larry came back to school after his suspension, he was never bullied again instead people treated him with respect. He felt like Rosa Parks; Fighting for what he wanted.

Peer pressure and bullying are the worst types of influence. ‘People want to destroy your dreams and ruin your life, thats how people are, so ignore them and keep doing your thing’ comments Alex. If people do not stand up against bullies then the bullies will feel more empowered. People get bullied in many different ways and no one sees nor realizes the pain victims go through physically and emotionally.

George wanted to share his story with the reporter. George’s classmate would always kick him or slap him at the back of his head. One day George had enough, he threw the bully onto the ground and started kicking him. After that day the bully stopped bothering him.

George adds ‘I used to do judo before, I am still good at throwing people down. Use your strength or learn martial arts to fight off the bullies.’ It is really helpful to block or fight the bullies because most of them just stop after getting their own medicine. You can defend yourself and others from being bullied.

‘If you see someone being bullied,help them, if you ignore the bully; The bully will keep bullying them and others’ says Derek. ‘If no one stops the bullies then who will?’ adds Derek. Victims should have the courage to fight against bullies even if the bullies are their own friends. It is better to be alone than to be suffering by emotional and physical pain. What people do not understand is that if you stand up for yourself against the bullies, they will actually stop bothering you. Its much better to voice your opinion against the bullies especially in anger and the emotions you feel inside. They will then finally understand how they made you feel.

An 8th grader shared her story with the reporter. She had 6 friends who bullied her both physically and emotionally, one day she finally had enough and stood up to ‘the leader’. The 8th grader’s close friends were on the bullies side they never supported the 8th grader. She would always pick fights with them. But, she never separated away from them. When she did, it was because her close friends also started getting bullied by ‘the leader’. ‘I still regret I didn’t leave them earlier..’

“You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.” –Winston Churchill

If you do not stand up for yourself then you will never be free. Take your chance for freedom now or be the fool..

Video Games Good or Bad?

As he plugged in his charger and connected it to his computer he sits down at the table and plays for hours. Forget about homework, He is an Over Gamer. Gaming can be good or bad. It all depends whether the person is playing for a short amount of time or a long amount of time.

Gaming may be computer games or console games, some of the types games are Real Time Strategy, 

First Person Shooter, Racing, etc.
Worldwide gamers can suffer from over gaming. A few Grade 8 students at UWCSEA say that “If you end up over-gaming it causes the stress of not only the kid but the parents as well.” What is revealed here is that kids will want to spend more time playing video games and not want to do any work. Their parents will then put pressure on them to do well in school.

It not just at people in other schools people are struggling at UWCSEA. In UWCSEA the most amount of hours a student has played video games has been for 4 hours straight. Added to the previous evidence this suggests that people at UWCSEA play too many games.

This is a quote from a parent whose son over games. A quote the unknown source says “I want to ban devices for life for my son and I am at end of my tether, It alienates us we never talk and If I had my way I would throw every Gadget in my house off our balcony.” Underlying these words suggests that the source doesn’t like their son to play video games.

Video games are often accused of leading teens to violent behaviour and anti social behaviour. According to an expert “It turns out that playing video games can actually make you smarter and help you to develop important skills that are necessary to succeed in a 21st century.” “Gamers always believe that an epic win is possible and that it's always worth trying, and trying now. Gamers don't sit around.” Jane McGonigal

According to Kids Health some studies have shown certain video games can improve hand-eye coordination, problem-solving skills, and the mind's ability to process information. But too much video games will lead to health problems. It can also affect friendships and kids who play violent video games might act more aggressively. According to Kids Health a total amount of games you can play in a day is 2 hours which includes TV, Phones, etc.

Sanjay Shah was interviewed about Video Games here is what he said:

Video games are both good and bad. Good because they help improve coordination, mental skills and reaction times. Some games are also very educational. Bad because they cause a lot of distraction and are addictive to the point where other work does not get done. In addition they are bad for the eyes and disrupt one’s sleep patterns. Finally video games do not help improve social skills.

Many of the games on the market are actually very educational and can help teach many things. Unfortunately, most of the times, it is not these games that are popular. However, teaching can also come in many forms - all video games help teach coordination, and hone mental skills and improve reaction times.

I always pressure my son to get good grades, especially if these grades are at the expense of over-gaming on the computer — which seems to be the norm these days with children. My son has got an addiction with video-games and sometimes homework and reading slips as a result of spending too much time gaming.

The solution to cut down on video games should be that they are only played on weekends and that are for a limited time only. There are many other hobbies or sports options that children should explore which are just as enjoyable and are probably more healthy both to the mind and body then sitting on the couch playing video games.

Don’t think that just because there are some bad things about video games you should stop completely but what you should do is limit you time to a maximum of 2 hours a day. Ask your parents, if your parent say you playing too much don’t get angry at them maybe you could finish the homework you have and then play video games. Mostly parent put pressure on their kids to get good grades that is true but if you are struggling go and talk to someone about how you feel and then maybe then you parents will see that they are putting a lot of pressure on you.

The community in UWCSEA EAST has a lot of people who play games some of the games maybe Real Time Strategy, First Person Shooter, Racing, etc they all probably have some pressure that they are facing. Some of them maybe cutting down on the time they are spending playing video games and they maybe studying. This doesn’t mean stop playing it just means do other things like: Reading, Math, Science, Football, Swimming, Cycling, etc.

“But at the end of the day It’s all about the game” - SGT. Ernie Calhoun

~By Nikhil Shah

Society doesn't need to tell you who to be. You need to tell yourself who to be.

Darkness fills the whole street but inside the light of *Arabella’s room, but it is the darkest and most painful room of all, with open wounds and fresh scars,tears streaming down her face, blood from her hands, trembling she opens her laptop, and returns to her escape. Her dashboard is filled with both motivational messages and depressed messages. She wipes her tears, silently crying just like how she struggles, peering into her laptop she scrolls. All because she is different from the rest. She looks at the mirror and repeats to herself like every other painful day ‘no one will know, and no one will find out’ she washes her face and cuts and puts on a plastic smile. She whispers to herself ‘no one will know, and no one will find out. 

And we finally understand the words.'funny when you’re dead, how people start listening’. Finally, after years of wretched life she, like many others gave up. And family and friends are shocked they should of helped when they had the chance, but let it slip right through their hands. Now everyone thinks she the most beautiful girl and wished they were there to support her but they are too late. And to all the bullies, they are in some way a cause for their death, and it will haunt them forever. And just like that a life is gone from a teenager killing herself with negativity because of the standards that say they will never be ‘good enough. 

Every day around the world, millions of teenagers are pressured to be like others and be what society wants them to be. People are often caught between who they want to be and who they have to be to fit in. And no matter how hard they try they never fit in, they’re killing themselves with negativity.
This is something everyone faces at one point or the other. And mostly this change you and how you think of yourself and how you think others see you. A simple case is how media suppress the truth, though photoshop and lies. Girls are lead to believe that they need to be a size ‘0’ have a thigh gap, need to have a light skin tone, flawless skin, blonde/hazel hair basically a perfect girl, only she is unachievable. This makes girls feel like they are worthless and will never be good enough.This leads to zero self esteem and deeper issues like Depression, bullying,seizures, panic attacks and self harm.

This isn't only for the issue of women's body image these side effects are for everything that causes people to feel like they aren't ‘good enough’,people are afraid to express themselves as they think their peers are going to judge them and mock them. Some communities and schools aren't accepting and teenagers have to resolve into hiding their sextuality, just to fit in. They have been repeatedly told by others and themselves that liking the same sex is wrong! Who are egoistic, half baked (straight) teenagers, to judge a peer for being with someone their heart desires. Furthermore, parents (and adults) must stop being insensitive and telling their child that something is wrong with them just for liking the same sex.

Often times teenagers try to get through this pressure by doing things that harm them even more a common reliefs are drinking, smoking or doing drugs, this can start at the age of 14 or 18, though, who can blame them for giving themselves misguided advice, they are only children who have lost their way. And though those are extremely common reliefs people resort there are more and one of the most painful and self wrecking relief known to teenagers, Self harm.

As it is often misinterpreted self harm isn't just cutting, it is also burning, scratching, banging or hitting body parts, interfering with wound healing ,hair-pulling and the ingestion of toxic substances or objects and eating disorders,most of these actions are done out of suicidal intentions but it is more than that. It is when teenagers feel like they aren't good enough and their life is messed up , to a point where is can never be good again, and the only thing they have control over is their body.

They feel like they aren't good, they feel frustrated and annoyed that they can never do anything right and they start hating themselves, and mistreating their body because, at this point they feel that is the only thing they have control over. And yes, teenagers do die of this as they aren't capable of treating their wounds. Also, there is an increased risk of suicides on a person who self harms, self harm is found in 40% to 60% of suicide cases.

Although teenagers resort to things that hurt themselves, they only want to be heard out and want people to understand them. Because teenagers are the most misunderstood people, they are treated like kids, but are expected to act like adults. It’s not just girls (women) suffering from this tons of boy (men) do unheard or overheard by the loud speaking macho men. And very ones have their problems.

And most often times when consulted with an adult, they think that teenagers' lives are easy and they don't have any real problems, but that's what makes us feel like no one understands them even more! Honestly, teenagers just want to be heard out. To help teenagers being heard and understood several websites have been created for this purpose like http://www.7cupsoftea.com and https://www.imalive.org/, Also, there is a lifeline 1–800–273–8255, for teenagers who want to, tell people what they are going through and just have someone listen for once.

Though everyone wants to be heard out and understood, it's easier for some people than others. Some people don’t like pointing out all the flaws in their lives to people, they rather do it to a close family member or friend, but often times they are misunderstood and many teenagers go through this struggle in silence. And most times this struggle leads to suicidal thoughts and sometimes you completely lose. Often people have just had enough of being compared and being bullied, they block everything out forever.



*Fake name

Bullying Should Become A Major Concern To Kids and Should Stop

What has made school a living dungeon to some kids? Why have some kids come home, anxious about the next day? An anonymous source expresses his feelings to a reporter and says, “I feel depressed when people call me names, I don’t feel as if I should go to school the next day after I get teased.” Another victim of the issue says, “I try to ignore it as best as I can, I feel so defenceless that I have to make fun of myself when other people make fun of me.” These victims have had issues with being a victim of bullying and aren’t the only victims in the world that are being bullied.

Picture this, a dark night at Katong Park. This wasn’t the right time and environment for a fight to start. However, the wind and the silence was broken when a friendly kids soccer game turned into a living horror. Two teams were going against each other, one of the teams were called Homies FC and the opponent was BSFC. The team captain of Homies FC was found scrambling with bruises on his head after a fight with the opposing team members. A witness of the fight says that the team captain of Homies FC was found scratching a teammate on the opposite team. It was after a violent argument of teasing and cursing that the argument led to dripping blood from the opposing teammates lip. The dripping blood from the opposing teammate led the older brother to vigorously smack the team captain of Homies FC. The hard smacks to the head and a blow to the stomach left massive bruisings, it was only when the brother was out of breath that the whole team of BSFC made a run for it. The wet ground and the dark clouds watching over the fighting victims only made the afternoon more horrifying. With an unpleasant environment, the night couldn’t have gotten any worse.

Victims of bullying have said that they would sometimes come home and start crying in their rooms, just like how a boy named August would always end up crying about how he is always teased at school about his demented face. Bullies and victims of bullying usually have trouble focusing on their school work as the bully usually feels as if he or she are too cool for school. According to ABC news, either 30% of students are bullies or victims of bullying. There are an estimated 4,400 deaths per year due to suicides, among every suicide of young people, there are at least 100 suicide attempts due to bullying. Kids who are bullied can experience negative physical, school, and mental health issues.

Kids who are usually bullied are more likely to experience things such as depression and anxiety, increased feelings of sadness and loneliness, changes in sleep and eating patterns. They will even have a loss of interest in hobbies they used to enjoy, these issue most likely to follow up into the child’s adulthood. They will even have health complaints. An organisation known as “Stop Bullying.gov” says that bullied children are most likely to have decreased academic achievement-GPA and standardized test scores-and school participation. They are most likely to miss, skip, or drop out of school. According to the website against bullying, they say that bullied children may use violent actions. In 12 or 15 school shooting cases in 1990, the shooters have had a history of being bullied. This is just like how Roy, a boy who cares about a group of owls in a construction sight is bullied by a boy named, Dana Matherson. As Roy and Dana have been fighting since the start of the school, it only ended until Roy took action by punching Dana in the face on a school bus, this breaking Dana’s nose.

Bullies and bystanders are also affected. Bullies are most likely to engage in early sexual activity or be abusive toward their romantic partner, spouses or children as adults. Bystanders are also affected as there will usually be an increase use of tobacco, alcohol or other drugs, increased mental health or may miss or skip school.

Bullying affects almost everyone involved, these clear reasons are why bullying is an issue to be concerned over. With people like August, a kid with a demented face who are treated as outsiders, we all have a reason to be concerned over bullying. Treated as an outsider, he was always dealing with bullies and popular kids. He would always be called names like “Ogre” or the “Hobbit”. Only lucky to have his friends to defend him like how they defended him at an environmental camp, without them, he would be toast. With a negative or violent output towards the result of everyone involved in the bullying activity, it is crystal clear reason why bullying has no benefit and there isn’t any reason why bullying can literally burn someone from the inside forever. Some people get bullied everyday, for racial color to facial disorders.

Bullying happens on an everyday notice, it even happens to the major characters of books, like Katniss and how she has to deal with the bullying of the capital, or how August has to deal with the bullying of people at his school. Bullying is a detrimental reason why kids are afraid and scared everyday, and for that reason, bullying has to stop, no matter how easing it is to do it or no matter what reason it is for bullying the victim. Bullying is like cancer, destroying the soles and heart of everyone involved.