Regardless of the trials and tribulations of high school that we may face, the constant battle between responsibility and leisure unfolds. A certain crisis is sitting in the midst. Descending upon the students like a peculiar medical condition, this fatigue syndrome orchestrates its way through high schoolers. Commonly found in Seniors, the symptoms include laziness, mental fatigue, stress, and the common saying, “I’ll just do this later.” This is Senioritis—The unspoken pandemic.
“Senioritis is when you’re all tapped out for your senior year. It’s because I’m about to go to college. You know. You don’t care because you’re not going to be in high school anymore so why do work?” said senior DJ Lee.
The senior class of South High is no stranger to the term “‘Senioritis.”’ Many students at South have endured the trials of Senioritis since before they were in high school.
Senior Asher Owens is an example of it
“I’ve had Senioritis since middle school. Especially with work. It’s hard to keep up,” Owens said
Owens is not the only one who has to balance a life of school, work, family, and extracurricular activities. Many students suffer the same thing. Regardless of outside factors, students still are motivated to continue coming to school.
Senior Deea Anton puts her spin on what keeps her motivated.
“What keeps me motivated is first and foremost, My friends. And next semester is all the senior festivities. I don’t want to be stressed out to the point where I miss it. And honestly college. If you do bad you won’t be able to get into college,” said Anton.
Owens picks up where he left off, saying:
“What keeps me motivated is the fact that I’m going to college. This year, my GPA isn’t the best. So, I’m taking this year to boost my GPA,,” Owens said. Owens will attend Southeast Missouri State University in the fall, to study Multimedia/Journalism Writing.
At the heart of Senioritis, procrastination is a skill honed by seniors who face the reality of graduation and college. Assignments that may have once sparked an urgency are now met with shrugs, as the thoughts of carefree afternoons trump their urge to be academically prepared.
“I don’t feel like writing essays. Or doing work you know. I’d just rather chill,” said senior Abdimalik Abdi.
However, Senioritis isn’t just the feeling of not wanting to do work. It’s a dance between responsibilities and long-term leisure. It becomes a defining act during the senior experience.
“We’re just tired. We already signed up for college and got accepted. We’re just ready to move on and get up out of here,” said Lee. Lee is interested in studying Dentistry, and is deciding between Xavier in Louisiana and Jackson State.
Students aren’t the only ones who suffer from Senioritis. Teachers themselves struggle with kids who have lost all motivation for school. Math teacher Colleen House puts her perspective on it.
“I have a senior Ac. Lab. So I see a lot of times that students are not using their time wisely. So far this year, I’ve had seniors book tickets to Mizzou Homecoming games, and not a lot of homework getting done,” said House. “Junior year is a hard year. Applying to schools and stuff like that or fixing your grades so you can apply. It’s rough.”
