Tough Being A Teen

Question: The teenage years are the best years of one's life. Discuss.

Answer:

I do not agree with the statement. At least in the local context, the teenage years are definately not the best years of one's life.

To begin my arguement, I'd first like to provide a defination for the terms 'teenage years'. In short, 'teenage years' actually refer to the period of time from between 13 to 19, where most teens would either be schooling in secondary schools or junior colleges.

In recent months, there have been many newspaper reports about the alarming increase of teenagers who resort to self-multilation such as slashing themselves, where they have also attempted to commit sucide, writing down their sucidal attempts. There have also been a significant rise in the number of teenagers who face Net addiction when they choose to take refuge in the fictional world online to escape their problems. The actions taken bythese modern troubled teens to "release" themselves, clearly reflect on their immense unhappiness and the torture they feel within them.

Indeed, as compared to the older generations, we are definately far more fortunate than them. As the economy of Singapore transformed from a vulnerable to a vibrant one over the years, gone are the worries of not having enough to eat or even not having a roof over our heads. Equipped with practically everything, many wonder about the problems faced by local teens. Yet, the challenges that awaits the youths of the 21st century are more than what meets the eye.

In an academically oriented country like Singapore, where university qualifications are viewed as a vital tool towards securing a stable and high-paying job when youths enter the working world, there have been an overemphasis on good grades so as to survive in this competitive society. On an individual level, an average youth usually end school in the late afternoon. Not only is there a need for them to cope with their schoolwork-revising daily as well as to complete the homework given, there have also been a recent emphasis for youths in both secondary schools and junior colleges to take part actively in Co-Cirricular Activities, so as to obtain a good CCA record or a portfolio,which can aid them in entering a prestigious junior college or a local university. Many of these activities take place after school and end mostly in the late evenings. As a result, students are exhausted mentally during the weekdays, having to work till late hours at night just to rush out their homework. The weekends are definately not a time for students to relax as they have to catch up with their work. Between juggling their schoolwork and their CCAs, the students barely have time to sleep, much less indulge in entertainment to soothe their minds. Deprived of a social life, where most of their time is spent burying themselves in books, and memorising countless facts, how can the teenage years of the youths in Singapore be deemed as fufilling or even "the best years" of their lives.

Besides the stressful lifestyles they lead, youths nowadays also face pressure from their parents. As mentioned earlier, the overemphasis on good grades, has led to parents' constant reiteration for the need to work hard so as to perform well academically. Not only so, youths too face societal pressures of being deemed "useless or worthless" if they are not capable enough to enter good institutes of education. Besides keeping up to the expectations of their parents, they also have to compete with the recent influx of foreign students, who are vying with them for places at the various institutes of education. These youths might be under the impression that even if they are amongst the best in Singapore, they may not be the best in the world, adding to the pressure for them to work twice as hard to perform better than their peers. The constant pressure they are in might add to their stress mentally. The stressful environment they exist in takes the fun out of being a teenager, making it hard for youths to claim that their teenage years are the best years of their lives.

Lastly, the youths of Singapore always seem to be under the scrutiny of the media. Just last Sunday, there were several newspaper reports comparing the abilities of Singapore youths, in areas such as debating as well as academically, to various foreign students. Not only are the academic abilities of the youths under the scrutiny of the media, the behaviour and actions of local youths seem to be closely monitered by the media. Once in awhile, there have always been publications of newspaper reports, critising the behaviour and actions displayed by local youths. e.g local youths being weak mentally, not being able to withstand hardships, local youths not being considerate and many more other instances where the youths are being pin-pointed at by the various medias. This might result in youths being restricted, and not having sufficient freedom to do whatever pleases them for fear of further criticism. This unnecessary restriction creates additional pressure on these youths, contributing to the stressful envuronment they live in

Constantly under great pressure from be it their parents, the society and the media, where these youths should be able to lead a carefree life, making use of their youth to pursue their interests, they are instead burying themselves in books, constant memorising and constantly being on their best behaviour, making it hard for them to to experience the thrill and fun of being a teenager. With few beautiful memories of their teenage years, how can this period of time be considered the best years of their lives? Hence, in the local context and in my opinion, the teenage years are not the best years of one's life.