Academy Releases Findings of Student Time Management Study

By JOONYOUNG HEO, MAX MANTEL and ROXANE PARK

Following weeks of investigation, the Academy administration released to the community on April 4 the results of a study on student time management. The Exonian reached out to several members of the faculty for more details and future plans.

The study drew largely from the student survey conducted this past fall and was supplemented by Shadow Day, when volunteers from the faculty were selected to “shadow” Exonians through a normal school day. The findings were published online and shared during advisory. 

Among other data points, 69 percent of students reported dropping an activity or hobby because of schoolwork; 61.8 percent reported their workload “frequently” or “almost always” kept them from time with family and friends; and 71 percent reported “frequently” or “almost always” being stressed about their academic experience. Further, students spent an average of 3.9 hours on a typical weekday doing homework and a 5.7-hour average on weekends. In terms of sleep, Exonians averaged just under 7.0 hours on nights prior to a first format class, 7.6 hours when they did not, and 9.1 hours when there were no classes at all the next day. The most frequently reported major sources of stress were academic assessments (88.0 percent), overall academic workload (80.0 percent), and a specific class or classes (72.5 percent).

As part of the study, a number of students took part in a pilot schedule that made for longer class periods meeting fewer times per week. Their reactions varied; one student who preferred the pilot schedule said that “meeting three times a week helped the class be more energetic and not burnt out,” while another preferred the conventional Exeter schedule “because it felt more consistent, and classes aren’t as long.”

The Academy administration initiated the study to discover how Exonians grapple with the current schedule. “For many years there has been uncertainty about how Exonians use their time and what drives the pace of life here,” Director of Studies Scott Saltman said. “We know that there is no easy answer, as every student is different and things evolve year by year. But we wanted to look for major patterns. Additionally, knowing that class time and homework time are major time commitments for all students, we wanted to better understand student perception of how those are part of the learning process.”

Their interest also extended to understanding students’ mental health in relation to the Exeter environment. “We wanted to understand better how students spend their time, how much sleep they are getting, how they are experiencing their time here, and other factors bearing on their health and well-being, as part of our ongoing efforts to support student health and well-being,” Principal William Rawson said.

Director of Institutional Research Kari Hart mentioned similar motivations. “The study sought to provide greater perspective about the daily experiences and time usage of students at the Academy,” she said, “and to inform ongoing community conversations about the daily schedule, academic calendar, and student well-being.”

Members of the administration were open about their reactions to the findings. “I think the results overall were informative and helpful — I would not necessarily say they were surprising,” Rawson said. “I think there is more to be learned, such as how elective student activities contribute to students’ joy and sense of belonging at Exeter, and the impact of these elective activities on student pace, sleep, and total workload.”

For her part, Hart approached the study with an open mind and let the data tell the story: “It’s important to avoid relying on preconceptions when conducting student research,” Hart said. 

Among the student body, the survey results were met with a mix of both surprise and agreement — a testament to the diversity of experiences with workload, engagement, stress, and time management at Exeter. 

To senior Jessica Huang, the results were shocking but also enlightening. “It was not so much because of the stress part, but because of the sheer amount of work,” she said. “I was surprised to see the average time that it takes for total homework because I’ve never timed it before.” 

Lower Claire Han, on the other hand, found the results to be very relatable. “I honestly wasn’t at all surprised by the results and was anticipating many of the answers to be what they were. For the most part, I thought they accurately represented my own schedule and workload.”

Others discussed feeling underwhelmed by the study. “The results were a bit short on the hours I spend studying every day, especially on the weekends,” lower Nicholas Li said. “However, I think it’s a consensus that students our age need to be getting more sleep and time away from the computer or desk.”

“The results may also show a discrepancy between the ideal amount of sleep and the amount of sleep we get, but it didn’t fully reflect to the administration what the student body thought about it,” Li continued.

Despite mixed opinions about the personal applicability of the results, it was generally agreed that the workload and subsequent lack of sleep indicated were frustrating. “I know we enrolled in this school to be academically challenged,” upper Indigo Ogiste said, “but at the same time, we are 15 to 17-year-old children, and the amount of sleep we get is quite literally not healthy. I feel like the school doesn’t really take into account how we don’t get time to rest, in the sense of sleep, but also to take a break.”

“I think the Academy should start to realize that although we are ‘Exonians,’ we are still teenagers,” Han said. “Even though we made it to this school and endure higher academic pressure than most students, we are still the same as any other adolescents and have lives outside Exeter. The label ‘Exonian’ shouldn’t be used to justify the high expectations of teachers. We are not machines that don’t need sleep to work hours on end.”

“I think the Academy should start to realize that although we are ‘Exonians,’ we are still teenagers.”

“Unfortunately, I feel like Exeter has a culture where it makes you feel like it’s not okay to not be doing work,” Huang said. “You feel you have to keep doing work.”

Prep Tiffany Sun credited this mindset to a combination of mounting teacher expectations and the high-achieving nature of Exeter students. “As for time spent on homework,” she said, “teachers should adhere to the homework time limit policies for each class. For example, even if a teacher says a student can stop doing their homework after 50 minutes, students at PEA all want to perform well in classes, making it hard to simply ‘stop’ after the allotted time.”

Yet even here, there was some disagreement from students. “I think it’s just the price you pay for going to Exeter,” senior Enzo Nakornsri said. “What separates Exeter from a normal high school is you work that much harder, and you reap the rewards. I feel that’s how things are supposed to be here.”

In terms of future surveys, students had a few suggestions. “We should have surveys for teachers and more specific questions, such as exactly which subjects take up the most time,” lower Byran Huang said. “I think it accurately depicted our schedule and workload, but I feel like the different years could have also been more distinguished.”

Others agreed. “They could have been more specific,” Nakornsri said. “They took everything else into account, but they could’ve given us the entire report so we have a better idea of the breakdown. Who’s struggling — is it the preps? The uppers? It would be helpful to know.”

For the time being, Rawson was unable to offer specific details as to how this survey will affect the Academy schedule. “I think the results are still being examined, and I know Dr. Hart only recently shared results with students and faculty to hear feedback. It is important to understand the limitations of studies like this, as well what they do tell us. It is premature to say how the results might affect decisions about schedule, but we do continue to look for ways our schedule might be improved to support teaching and learning at Exeter,” he said.

This sentiment was echoed by other faculty. “The first step was to gather the information and understand the findings,” Assistant Principal Karen Lassey said. “As is usually the case in researching a question, we often uncover more questions that prompt us to dig deeper to gather more information. We are in that important process now.”

While potential changes to the schedule are still under consideration, the faculty expressed that they are open to having similar studies in the near future. “Without a doubt, more could be learned about how students spend their time and how they feel about their experiences here, and I suspect further studies will be undertaken,” Rawson said. “Our experience with this study also might help inform our approach to surveys in the future and lead to refinements in the questions we ask and improvements in the information we gain.”

“There are many areas in which we would like to gather student input, in addition to time use,” Saltman said. “We are also trying to avoid ‘survey fatigue,’ so we have to prioritize what we do and when.”

“The Academy will continue to use research to make informed decisions in support of institutional priorities,” Hart said. “For example, an all-student survey focused on health behaviors and well-being will be administered during Advising on April 26. The survey will be administered with an external partner, Authentic Connections, to ensure anonymity and allow for comparisons with peer institutions.”

Change is not set in stone, and much is still up in the air, but the broader study into student life and its ties to the Exeter schedule will certainly continue.