by Victoire Meinnel and Felix Meynis de Paulin
Saturday morning DST become a part of a La Tour student’s life as soon as they enter high school, a sort of welcome present on behalf of the school. They have existed for many years and multiple generations of students have had to live through them, an inevitable rite of passage. This however does not exempt them from many wholehearted opinions from the students.
“Give us back our weekends!” says a 2nd student. Those tests not only take up students’ Saturday mornings but also Friday nights with last minute revisions, studying and the inability to go out with friends. Weekends therefore start Saturday at 12:30, and one would expect students to be happy and free, however this is not the case. “I have to take the metro for forty-five minutes, eat and then I’m just too tired to do anything.” With only one school-free day left in the week, it is hard for students to get their required amount of sleep, and exhaustion makes their way into their mind easier. Furthermore, exams tire the brain faster with the combination of excessive thinking and stress.
“We are tired”, a sentence heard in almost every interview about this subject. Saturday morning DSTs generate a rather important number of problems to the students in the La Tour high school.
Some complain about their excellence in sportive activities being compromised. Many find themselves directly following their 4 hours long DST with training, leaving no time for rest. This factor leads to people abandoning their activities in favour of the DSTs. This has happened yet again this year: “I’ve had to quit handball because I just didn’t have time for practice and studying. A choice had to be made.” says a 2nd student. Indeed, it becomes more and more difficult to balance both parts of life as they each become more demanding, and the time simply does not exist to be perfect in both.
In anglophone countries, such as England there are weeks known as “final weeks”. These are equivalent to “épreuves groupées” at La Tour, a week where all exams for each subject are grouped together. Although it means most of their trimester grade rests on their excellence during that week, they are, often, stress-free during the rest of the trimester. Here, students have that pressure constantly, every Saturday, as well as during “épreuves groupées”, therefore, all year long.
While many have lived through those times and sometimes even succeeded in finding the perfect balance, others have not. It remains very important to learn from those who thrive, however we must not forget those who don’t, and learn how to help them and others to come, not repeat the same mistakes. While it may not come soon, students keep hoping for a change, and will never stop doing so.
Ajouté le 23 déc. 2022
The Tower Times Blog 