Quote:
Originally Posted by Karthik
Not that I agree with the implementation of a hard limit, but it worries me that all the posters in this thread think the only two things to be juggled are robotics and school. Every teenager should strive to have a well balanced lifestyle that has time for socializing, exercise, school and a variety of extracurricular activities. There are far too many students in FIRST who only focus school and robotics, and for lack of a better characterization are socially deficient.
I'm not saying a hard cap on robotics hours is the answer (at least half of the 1114 students would blow past the 200 hours by week 4), but I think we need to remember that there's much more to a healthy lifestyle than just FIRST and school.
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And as one of those students who has focused just on school and robotics (this was the first season that I focused on other things, such as a job and friends, too. Still a bit over-constrained, but that's a different problem entirely), I mostly agree with this. I don't believe that I've become socially deficient, but it does take a huge toll both physically and psychologically. There are plenty of people who can attest that I've had many late nights, crammed many projects and papers in at the last minute, have broken down in tears because of stress, and have had extreme bouts of pessimism over the past three years, particularly in the winter months. My grades suffered. And it really sucks. It's also a hard trap to get out of, which is why I haven't escaped yet. You would think that being sick for three consecutive months would convince me to never do it again, but it doesn't work like that.
A hard cap could do some people (like myself) a lot of good, and prevent what's happened to me from happening to others, but it's not for everyone. We have a minimum requirement for hours, but the only reward for racking up that many hours is getting to travel with the team (we assumed that parents wouldn't want to drive their kids 6 hours up to Traverse City if they could just as easily have gotten a ride with the team). Minimums are good, maximums...not always. There will never be a policy that will work good for everyone. I think that we can all see where the administration is coming from, and it may be a drastic difference from what you're used to, but you'll have to adjust to them. If you can prove to the school that your team is mature enough to handle the change respectfully and understandably, maybe in a few years you'll be able to convince them to allow your team a little more flexibility in hours.