Entering the 9th grade at Eau Gallie High School in Melbourne, Florida, I was intimidated. I felt excited about entering this massive building with taller students hustling and scurrying to be everywhere at once, textbooks in hands. Yet, my excitement quickly faded when my best friend inquired about my classes. She gave me this look of concern, and as she told me about her "more respected" courses, a prerequisite AP course. She explained how in the future I would not be accepted to a prestigious university or be given any recognition or admiration.

I brushed off her comments. Nevertheless, when I met my guidance counselor later in the year and he saw my academic strength, he almost begged me to challenge myself with harder classes. 

Coincidently, I met a junior who I became very close friends with. She used to walk around the school with me and give me advice on what classes I should take and also about the endless clubs. She was so friendly, but each and every day that passed, I could see her eyes sag more, her mind drift off. She was exhausted. I told her that she looked beat up and advised her to take a much needed rest. Needless to say, she had so much homework from her dual enrollment classes with Eastern Florida State College and her AP classes in our high school that she had no time to rest, hang out with friends, or even eat a proper meal. She told me she stayed up until 3am completing homework each night!

In the 9th grade, I did not feel proud of myself because of that perception of what intelligence and academic commitment were, and because those taking dual-enrollment and AP classes, whom I knew since kindergarten, always gave me this condescending look each time I walked past them. However, I had something priceless; I had time. I had time to hang out with my neighborhood friends, time to relax, time to attend school football games, and time to explore my town and roam free. According to Katelyn McAdam from College Raptor, if a student takes a dual enrollment class, they will "be expected to spend 9 hours each week, on average, on just this single class." This includes 3 hours of in-class time and 6 hours of studying and homework. On top of all the other classes you register for. " My junior friend was taking 3 dual enrollment classes as well as 3 Cambridge classes, so it is understandable she was so mentally abused and physically worn out.

Not surprisingly, according to Cameron Surratt from the newsletter Courier-Tribune, "Many students who take academically advanced classes find that they are more stressed than their peers." They might be able to balance their social and academic lives, but not many feel overly confident in that. " I can relate to this stress since in my junior year I took a UConn English course. I spent 2-3 hours on homework every day just for that class to make sure I exceeded the curriculum expectations, and I barely held on to a B average. I was dissatisfied with my abilities and had little time to think about or do anything else that made me happy.

High school is a time where teens are entering this phase of understanding responsibility and creating guidance in their lives, but college is really when that true responsibility happens. High schoolers need to be committed to their grades, yet, they should also have time to participate in their desired clubs and be present in their social group while also respecting their mental and emotional needs. Ultimately, a student should decide for themselves how much of a workload they can handle. For those that feel they are not ready for AP classes, they should not feel the pressure from their peers and teachers to take them. They also should in no way feel inferior to those taking AP classes and school should never place AP students on a higher pedestal than those taking those “regular” classes.

Works Cited

McAdam, Katelyn. “Should You Take Dual-Enrollment Classes in High School?” College Raptor, 1 March 2022, collegeraptor.com/find-colleges/articles/tips-tools-advice/46495/. Accessed 13 May 2022.

Surrat, Cameron. “Tougher classes could be related to high school stress.” Courier-Tribune, 23 November 2017, courier-tribune.com/story/news/education/2017/11/24/tougher-classes-could-be-related-to-high-school-stress/16968353007/.  Accessed 13 May 2022.