A recent study shows high school students working more than 20 hours a week may earn them cash but cost them classroom engagement, and in some instances, even some overtime in detention.
"It's difficult on a Tuesday night -- having worked four to eight hours -- to spend time on school work," said High School College Counselor Phil Trout of Minnetonka, Minn. "It's a hard task."
The University of Washington, Temple University and the University of Virginia conducted the study published in the Child Development journal. The results contradicted multiple studies which found no ill effects on students from working intensive hours. The latest study re-examined data from the late 1980s, using advanced statistical measures.
It found that working more than 20 hours a week in high school is associated with decreased school engagement and increases in problem behavior.
Tenth and 11th grade students who worked more than 20 hours a week had lower scholastic goals, lower school engagement, higher levels of substance abuse, and other problem behavior.
The same students did show more autonomous decision-making and had slightly higher grade point averages than teens without jobs.
Students working long hours tend to take easier classes, which may account for the GPA increase and less time spent on homework, researchers believe.
Trout said that, in his experience, a 10-12 hour per week job is a nice balance for teen students, although he concedes that in many circumstances, some must work longer hours to help pay family bills or save for college. Unfortunately, he said many of those students end up missing out on extracurricular activities.
"The student who needs to work three to four hours a day after school is the student who can not be in sports, pursuing leadership activity -- can't be in play," Trout said.
The study also found that students working long hours experienced negative outcomes up to a year after quitting or reducing hours. The study's authors advise that working long hours for a year or more of high school could have even greater negative effects.
High school students can rest assured the study is not conveying that they shouldn't work at all, as in today's economic environment, many need to work part-time to help their families or save for college.
The authors say they found virtually no evidence that working fewer than 20 hours a week has negative effects on students. Most kids don't work more than 20 hours during the school year, but amid the recession, students are feeling pressure to work.
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Study: Overworked High School Kids Suffer in Class: MyFoxTWINCITIES.com
