Now, Later…Or Never?

Caitlin Bohaboy, Social Media Manager
December 7, 2011
Filed under Columns, Opinion, Student Life

We’ve all been in this situation: drowsily squinting at a blank Microsoft Word document at eleven o’clock at night, trying to stay awake in order to finish writing an important essay. And throughout it all, we’re downing multiple cups of coffee, and in our heads regretting wasted time, and thinking “Why didn’t I do this hours ago” or “was all that time spent watching TV really worth it?”

The teen years, as most of us already know, are some of the hardest years of our lives. The pressures of grades, society, and college admission boards are weighing down on almost every highschoolers’ shoulders. We have our parents in one ear, telling us to make good choices and get good grades, and our friends in the other, obnoxiously chanting for us to do what we want and please others. The teenage years are a lot like crossing a beam, it’s long and you have to stay balanced in order not to fall, but if you make it to the end, it’ll be worth it.

How much time a teenager gets to spend on homework usually depends on when they even start it. Alli Knapp, a junior at Woodside, said of her homework habits “I start my homework around 7 because I either have dance practice, softball practice, or I ride my horse every day after school. Then I come home, eat dinner, shower, etc, before I start my homework.”

As far as procrastination, Alli knows she can’t afford to waste time, especially with all her extra-curricular activities and AP classes eating away at her after school hours. “I don’t have much time to procrastinate, but if I do, it’s because of things like texting and Facebook” confessed Alli, of her usual distractions. Although, Alli seems to manage her time very well, my proof being that she can juggle all this and still take part as a member of CSF.

In today’s society, with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and other endless amounts of social media, you’re almost guaranteed to always find teens with some kind of Internet device on hand. Since Internet is the essence of life and communication for our generation, it somehow jumps its way to the top of most teens’ priorities. Taylor Willis, a junior at Woodside, said that she spends “a little less than three hours a night” on just Internet and social media. And with this being her most important year of high school, Taylor knows to stay focused on school and sports, and not to procrastinate too much, which is more than a lot of teenagers can say.

Every day at school, we see our friends rushing to complete homework before the bell rings, scanning through books to try and cram all its content into their brains before a big test, and panicking about visions of a terrible grade. Excuses fly; “I had no time,” “my computer broke,” or even the classic “my dog ate my homework.”

I’m not blaming Internet or social media for our school work troubles, I’m blaming us. We are all at fault for the procrastination, distractions, delaying, etc. It’s all a choice of where we decide to spend our time. So go ahead, try to plan ahead as far as where you spend after school hours, hide your laptop to avoid distractions, play music or even lock yourself in a quiet room maybe. Whatever you do, remember it will all come down to the choices we make. Making time for what’s important is the key to eliminating procrastination!

Tags: facebook, homework, Internet, procrastination, sports, Students, tumblr, twitter

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