For many high school students, giving an in-class presentation is an approach to their growth. Teachers will call up students, one by one, to present their work in front of the class, and, though it is often tense, many people say it has helped turn them into more confident public speakers. Some educators also credit it with building leadership skills and increasing students’ confidence and understanding of materials.

But in the past few years, students have started calling for an end to in-class presentations as they show discrimination against those with anxiety. This week, a tweet posted by a 15-year-old high school student declaring “Stop forcing students to present in front of the class and give them a choice not to” received more than 130,000 retweets and nearly half a million likes.

In fact, being a high schooler nowadays is more stressful than ever. Students are burdened with extra hours of homework. They stay up every night till 1:00 a.m. finishing homework on their third Red Bull. Anxiety is increasing at a faster rate than depression (抑郁) as the leading mental-health issue affecting teenagers, a recent study in the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics found.

These students want more options. They say that every student has unique strengths and that they should be allowed to present their work in ways that speak to those strengths. This might mean presenting alone in front of the teacher, or choosing between several alternatives like producing a piece of art or an essay for private judgment instead of presenting their work orally.

Educators have begun to take it seriously. They agree teachers should listen to students and hear their voices and respond to that. If students’ feelings are ignored, they might just walk away. However, not everyone is convinced. Some hold the view that pushing students out of comfort zones is a big part of what they should do as some students are deathly afraid to do it.

“Look at the little dog!” a girl shouted from across the street. “She’s got rain boots (靴子)!” I smiled and waved. I would never have put clothes on any animal I owned, but Velma wasn’t my dog. I’d just offered to walk her this morning because my friend, Arlene, fell ill. When Arlene had asked me to walk Velma, I’d been happy to volunteer. But I was less pleased when Arlene made me spend 20 minutes putting on Velma’s raincoat and four tiny rain boots. Once outside, I had expected to walk Velma around quickly. But with all the people stopping me every few minutes to talk about the little dog, it was taking me a long time. It was a moment of letting my unhappy feeling away to get her back home. I had done my good deed (行为) and could finally go off to work before I was late.

As I turned to go, Arlene said at the door. “Thank you so much. I’ll see you again at noon.” “Wait, what?” I was shocked by her words. “That’s when Velma gets her next walk,” Arlene said as if I’d somehow agreed to a whole daily schedule, “I’m sorry, Arlene,” I said. “I have to be at work.” “Oh,” Arlene said, “I guess we’ll see you at six then.” “Great,” I said, making my escape. 10 minutes later I realized that I’d just agreed to walk her dog again at six! How had I let that happen? I agreed to do things I really didn’t want to do.

That day was just the beginning. All the next week, Arlene “reminded” me to walk Velma at various times throughout the day. “Velma loves you,” she said one evening when I came to get the dog. “Sometimes I think she likes you better.” That sent a shake down my body. Was Arlene trying to make me Velma’s long-time dog walker? God, what have I gotten myself into?

How to Deal with Pressures at School

As a high school student, if you are feeling stressed out or frustrated by teachers, classmates,or schoolwork，it is important to know that you aren't the only one． Believe it or not，everyone has these feelings at some point， and everyone should learn how to deal with them properly．

First of all， you need to keep a positive attitude and not take things to heart． That someone got a better grade than you doesn't mean that they are smarter—perhaps they studied longer or knew the material more． It's easy to become frustrated if you are not doing as well as your friends， but being optimistic will help you deal with future similar situations．

Secondly， if students at school are bullying you， know when to stand up for yourself． Don't let other classmates make you feel that you are not good enough． They are simply insecure and do not know how to deal with the pressures of school． They are just trying to make others feel bad， so they can feel better about themselves．

Lastly， it is necessary to keep things correctly． For any situation that is stressful， take a second look from a different point of view． When I look back to the frustrations of my high school days， I notice that many of them seem very unimportant to me now．

It's not easy to be confident when there are so many students who seem like they "have it all"，but try to realize that you, too, are good enough. It’s not a competition about who is smarter, more beautiful—everyone is different—so believe your individuality.

I'm very happy to know _____________________________________________________________________

Welcome to our school！Hope to see you soon.

Yours，

Li Hua