Students lack school-life balance: Column

Since school started this month, my 15-year-old son, Zak, has been having trouble sleeping. He's been waking up in the middle of the night, worrying if he's finished everything on his to-do list.

Compared to many students in our San Francisco neighborhood, Zak has a "light" schedule. He goes to school, participates in jazz band and does his homework. By design, he's not the classically overscheduled child.

And yet, Zak's daily routine of school-band-homework still manages to eat up most of his day. When Saturday finally rolls around, he's not the carefree teen I wish he could be. Instead, he's anxious, calculating whether he has enough time to get together with friends in between weekend assignments. Like many adults, he can't find the "off" switch.

In 2009, I produced Race to Nowhere, a documentary that told the stories of students who were burned out and overworked by our pressure-cooker education culture. While the film has had more than 7,500 public and community-hosted screenings, and inspired changes in some schools around the country, it's clear that we are still in need of a greater cultural shift.

On the fifth anniversary of the documentary's release, research continues to show the harm we're doing to our children by overpacking their schedules in the name of productivity, achievement and competition. And I am seeing this again firsthand with the youngest of my three children, Zak.

Studies show that over the last 30 years, children have seen their free time evaporate.For example, young people today spend half as much time playing outdoors as they did in the 1980s. In some places across the country, the frantic pace of modern life has even trickled down to kindergarten, where students are already bringing home piles of homework. It's hardly a surprise that young people nationwide suffer from alarming rates of anxiety, sleep loss and depression.In the most recent Stress in America survey by the American Psychological Association, more than one in four teens reported feeling "extreme levels" of stress during the school year.

What's more, all this pressure may continue to hurt students far beyond graduation. Studies of childhood stress have shown that unchecked anxiety in children is linked not only with adult mental health troubles, but also with disruptions of brain development, higher rates of disease, and even altered epigenetics.

In a further ironic twist, some researchers have suggested that overpacked schedules could be to blame for a growing "empathy gap" among students. One study found that students entering college after 2000 had empathy levels 40% lower than students who came before them. Our "busy" school culture may be setting our children up to be less caring and compassionate about others as well.

Research also suggests that all that stress doesn't pay off in great grades or excellent time-management skills or notable leadership. A recent study from researchers at the University of Colorado-Boulder, found that children who spent more time engaged in less structured activities were far better than their peers at setting and accomplishing goals. Conversely, recent academic research at the College of William and Mary shows that kids whose daily schedules are overpacked are significantly less likely to score well on tests of creative thinking.

As Zak's mom, I want his educational experience to foster curiosity, independent thinking and his own sense of personal agency. More than that, I want school to be just one of many forums in which he can explore personal passions, participate in his wider community, and connect with friends. I don't want the classroom to be the place where Zak's enthusiasm and creativity goes to die. I don't want "busyness" to win out over balance.

Last month, the American Academy of Pediatrics correctly urged schools to implement later start times, which better align with teens' natural sleep cycles. But as the AAP pointed out, the pressures of homework, extracurricular activities and other obligations are also reasons our kids aren't getting enough sleep at night.

These many concerns drive me to ask my fellow parents, teachers and administrators to help me give Zak back the time he needs to learn, grow, and interact. The crazy demands schools place on our children's time need to be scaled back -- for their long-term health and emotional balance as much as for the optimum development of our children's minds and the meaning they find in life.

Vicki Abeles, a filmmaker, speaker, and advocate for children and families, is producer of Race to Nowhere,to air on national public television Thursday through Saturday.

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