Barriers to Student Play: Impact on Performance and Stress - Essay Sample

Introduction

Plays comprise different activities that engage the entire body, mind, and soul hence affecting the emotional and thinking level of the students (Gray, 2011). However, participating in plays is faced by different barriers that hinder the achievement of their impact. Such barriers include poverty that strikes the low-income and affluent children. Although affected by poverty, play is an important aspect that plays a critical role in enhancing students' performance and lowering their stress and depression levels.

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Part 1. Barriers to Play

The drive for success is a crucial barrier to play among students. Abeles (2016) posited that a lot of expectations are placed on education that children engage in nothing else but teaching. Many students participate in school homework and weekend-consuming assignments that erode their health and underlying potential rather than empowering them to thrive. Affluent students engage in substance abuse such as alcohol consumption, smoking cigarettes, marijuana, and hard drugs, consequently increasing their depression and anxiety (Luthar & Latendresse, 2005). Engaging in homework denies students time to sleep since it pressurizes them to perform better. However, rather than performing better, they end up suffering severe psychological problems, stress, and depression.

Other barriers include over-scheduling, too many entertaining screens, lack of appropriate play environments, and over-supervision (Entin, 2012). Besides, the schools where poverty-stricken children study exposes them to less access and recess but more of educational activities. Co-curricular activities such as physical education programs, music, and school-based creative arts are minimal. Due to the limited spaces and the safety of their neighborhood, poor children have less access to outdoor play spaces. They tend to confine themselves in houses, watching television, and video playing games (Entin, 2012).

Lower-income families possess few play-related resources; hence children have limited or no resources to play. Also, parents are not available to play with the children since they are engaged in a demanding workplace. These barriers have taken much of children’s time and spaces that they would have utilized to engage in play.

Stress and play are two interrelated factors among students. According to Abeles (2016) and Gray (2011), when students engage in play reduces the rates of depression and anxiety considerably. Depression arises since lack of play implies that student participates in other activities such as excessive watching of television, and Internet activities and video and computer games that affect their mental health (Entin, 2012; Gray, 2011). When mental health is affected, the children start having depression and increased anxiety. Play gives the participants quality time for interaction, thus helping to reduce stressful thoughts and causing relaxation.

The readings imply the failure of the policymakers to regulate and create a balance between education and play in schools. Besides, the policymakers and implementers have failed in eliminating substance abuse that afflicts many students in the suburbs.

Part 2. Covid-19 and Impacted on Play

The onset of Covid-19 has led to the closure of schools and social gatherings, where people engage in sporting activities. Although schools expose students to the massive amount of homework and assignment that take up their time for play, children and their parents are isolated in their homes where they are prone to sedentary life such as watching television, video games, and social media (Guan et al., 2020). Children sleep more, eat more, spend more time on screens, and engage in less physical activities in their limited spaces (Hammami et al., 2020). Such activities and small spaces expose children to myopia and mental health issues that induce stress, depression, and anxiety.

According to Guan et al. (2020), several resources can be bought to enhance play among children; however, middle- and low-income families lack the money to purchase them. Such families mostly depend on the outside spaces for the play activities, and isolating in their rooms implies lack exposure to play. However, high-income families can afford to purchase play related resources that children can use to engage in play and lower their stress.

Reflection

I was an over-scheduled child as I grew, and this hurt my social life. While some students focused on social activities and spirt activities, I saw education as the only thing that could make my life brighter. I committed myself to studies and could spend much of the time reading, and my homework could extend towards midnight. Reflecting on my school that dominated my childhood growth shows that lack of free time impacted a lot on my social outcomes

Conclusion

In conclusion, play plays a critical role in enhancing the health of a student and improving school performance. While overemphasis on education increases stress, depression, and anxiety, play helps in reducing them considerably. Overemphasis on education compels the students to spend less or no time in play, which negatively affects their mental capacities and social life. The emergence of Covid-19 has led to an increase in sedentary life that has overtaken play hence increasing stress and depression levels among children.

References

Abeles, V. (2016). Is the drive for success, making our children sick?. The New York Times. Retrieved 20 May 2020, from https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/03/opinion/sunday/is-the-drive-for-success-making-our-children-sick.html?_r=0.

Entin, E. (2012). Recreational play can be far more important than academics. The Atlantic. Retrieved 20 May 2020, from https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/01/recreational-play-can-be-far-more-important-than-academics/251150/.

Gray, P. (2011). The decline of play and the rise of psychopathology in children and adolescents. American Journal of Play, 3(4), 443–463.

Guan, H., Okely, A., Aguilar-Farias, N., del Pozo Cruz, B., Draper, C., & El Hamdouchi, A. et al. (2020). Promoting healthy movement behaviours among children during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health. https://doi.org/10.1016/s2352-4642(20)30131-0

Hammami, A., Harrabi, B., Mohr, M., & Krustrup, P. (2020). Physical activity and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): specific recommendations for home-based physical training. Managing SportaAnd Leisure, 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1080/23750472.2020.1757494

Luthar, S., & Latendresse, S. (2005). Children of the affluent. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 14(1), 49-53. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0963-7214.2005.00333.x

Luthar, S., & Latendresse, S. (2005). Children of the Affluent. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 14(1), 49-53. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0963-7214.2005.00333.x