All school and no rest can harm pupils’ mental health 

unidentified school children
Some schools require pupils to attend classes 7 days a week. (Photo: Ina Skosana)
unidentified school children
Some schools require pupils to attend classes 7 days a week. (Photo: Ina Skosana)

In parts of the country, it’s not uncommon to see pupils in school uniform attending classes on weekends. But education psychologists are sounding the alarm about the detrimental effects extended schooling hours has on their mental health.

Dr Daphney Mawila, a lecturer and education psychologist at the University of Johannesburg, warns that schooling without rest increases the risk of stress, depression, anxiety and other mental health issues. Poor mental health is already high among young people, with anxiety and depression being particularly common.  

“[Going to school] seven days a week could result in burnout and fatigue among pupils, which could lead to mental illness. This, in turn, increases the risk of suicide, risky behaviours and substance abuse,” Mawila says.

She stresses that adolescents already face numerous adversities, even without the added stress of being in a classroom for seven days a week.

“Healthy coping mechanisms are often lacking among pupils. Attending school daily could increase their vulnerability as they will have limited time to balance their lives,” warns Mawila. 

Extended school hours are tiring 

Onelisa* (17) recently passed Grade 11 and has started Grade 12 at Tolweni Senior Secondary School in Mount Frere, Eastern Cape. She says spending more time at school is depressing.

“I wake up at 5 am to get to school at 6:40 am and only get home after 8 pm. It gets tiring because I hardly have time to do anything for myself. On Saturdays we are at school from 8 am till midday and then go back to school from 5 pm till 8 pm,” she says. 

By the time Onelisa gets home from school she still has to cook and do homework. 

“It’s too much. But the extra classes help a lot because my marks have improved,” she says. 

Noluyolo* (18) a Grade 12 pupil at Nelson Mandela High at Philippi in Cape Town says she started attending classes seven days a week last year when she was in Grade 11. 

“At first I was excited as it helped in the subjects I struggled with. However, as time went on it became too much. To always be at school and yet have to do homework and chores left me with a lot of anxiety. Even though I needed a break, I was also scared of failing,” she says.

“I think a couple of hours of extra time a week is fine. But attending seven days a week is a bit too much.”  

Overloaded curriculum doing more harm than good

National Association of School Governing Bodies secretary general, Matakanye Matakanye, argues that schools that require pupils to be in class for seven days a week are only concerned about producing good results.

“This seven days a week is happening at schools nationwide because provinces compete for excellence at the expense of the pupils. Attending classes for such a long time impacts their mental and physical well-being,” he says. 

Experts warn that pushing too hard might have the opposite effect. According to Mawila, overworking leads to fatigue, which leads to poor working memory.

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“Mental fatigue negatively impacts concentration, information processing, complex thinking, and imagination, which is important for innovation. These have a direct impact on students’ creative, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills, which could result in poor school performance,” she says. 

Not one size fits all

But the effect isn’t the same across the board. Dr Carmelita Jacobs, an education psychologist and senior lecturer at Stellenbosch University, says it depends, to a large degree, on the pupil and their levels of intelligence, tolerance and resilience. 

“A pupil who is gifted and thrives when they have an opportunity to learn might thrive in an environment where they go to school seven days a week. A pupil who struggles with social interaction might also thrive in an environment where they work independently or spend more time learning. There are cases where it could be good,” she says. 

Jacobs emphasises the need to consider an adolescent’s environment and how this may affect academic performance. 

That said, downtime is also crucial. 

“Playing is an important part of skills development. Academic learning and cognitive engagement is just one aspect of learning. Such a seven-day school programme should incorporate structured downtime and structured time for emotional and social development, and not only focus on pure academic development,” she says. 

In addition, Mawila highlights the importance of a balanced lifestyle where adolescents have time to socialise and cultivate relations with family and friends. 

“These relationships are key to our fulfilment in life and provide a sense of who we are, and where we are going and serve as pillars of support and overall functioning. Attending school seven days a week limits opportunities to connect with significant people in their lives, which could compromise their quality of life,” she says. 

Education policies on time spent at school 

The South African Schools Act emphasises the importance of not overburdening pupils with too many hours of schooling. The department encourages schools to ensure that pupils have enough time to rest and participate in extracurricular activities. 

Education spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga tells Health-e News that it’s not the department’s decision to have pupils attend classes seven days a week.

“Schools discuss the learner support programmes they wish to implement in a given year with parents and teachers. Some schools suffer delays in teaching because of community protests. This results in a loss of teaching time which affects curriculum coverage. As a result, schools are now forced to come up with catch-up strategies,” he says. 

“The department’s philosophy is that ‘no child should be left behind’. All schools are required to demonstrate, in real terms, how they support pupils to succeed in their academic work,” he says. – 

When asked how many schools required pupils to attend classes seven days a week, the department said it does not have this data. – Health-e News 

*Not their real names 

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