Athletics affecting academics?
As the final bell of school rang, a DHS junior approached their math teacher. “I will be missing Friday for a water polo game,” the junior said.
The teacher replied, “You need to have someone else turn in your homework or turn it in on Thursday.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll get it done.”
DHS students have missed several days of school this month to compete in sporting events all across the county.
Sophomore Isabel Leamon has missed school for the golf team. “It affects my academic life a bit,” she said. But Leamon mentioned that she does homework early and talks to her teachers in advance.
Sports are fun, but she makes sure homework and studying is done first.
According to Leamon, teachers usually understand, but even so, “lifetime sports help a lot [with the free period].” It gives students a free period and more time to study.
65 percent of DHS students are athletes, so teachers are aware that students will be trying to balance school and sports. Head counselor Courtenay Tessler encourages sports because it teaches leadership and courtesy.
According to Tessler, students should let teachers know ahead of time and make up work and tests. “The kids that get in trouble [with teachers] are the kids who run in saying that they need to leave [now].”
“[Homework] is a high stress thing,” Tessler said. It’s hard for students, according to Tessler as they constantly try to balance academics and athletics.
Sophomore Monica Ferrera, a water polo player, adds that it’s “worth it to work extra hard for sports.” According to Ferrera, sports help students stay in shape and make new friends.
“Given the choice between studying for a test and practice, I’ll go to practice,” Ferrera said.
She tries to finish all of her homework in advance or studies at practice. Teachers will usually assign work ahead of time. She checks to see when tests and quizzes are, and then makes sure to get notes from a friend.
Michelle Rousseau, the director of Athletic Academic Advising at UC Davis, said “the drive to do well in sports can often translate to academic success. A determined athlete will typically make a determined student.”
She added that it is up to the kids to decide whether they will be “an intelligent athlete, or an athletic scholar.” They might even find that being in a sport will help them think and perform in school, according to Rousseau.
