SUBJECT: STUDENT LOANS AND LEISURE
PURPOSE: This briefing note is a recommendation for changes in policy pertaining to the administering of student loans.
ISSUE: There is no regulation on the allocation of student loan funds for leisure expenses.
Background:
Leisure can be defined as the use of free time for enjoyment. The reason people spend this time is to be able to recuperate after long periods of strenuous activity such as work or school. Leisure can be in the form of hanging out with friends, partying, playing videogames or joining a club. The importance of leisure cannot be denied because people use this time to relieve stress. Stress is a state of mental and emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or demanding circumstances. Going to school is a main stressor for many youth in this modern day age. The demands of academia on students cause many to take long breaks in between semesters or to drop out. School stress according to a National Public Radio Poll conducted with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Harvard School of Public Health is a leading cause of concern as 40% of parents reported that their high schooler is experiencing a lot of stress from school. Furthermore, a survey from the American Psychological Association found that nearly half of all teens, 45% said they were stressed by school pressures. Stress comes in the form of tests, attendance and punctuality, assignments and due dates, studying etc.
Considerations:
Canada in 2015, according to statistics ranks 7th in Science, 3rd in reading, 10th in mathematics and overall 7th. It is proven that the quality of life people have affect their grades in schools which is likely the factor in Canadas score. Therefore, by providing a leisure allocation to student loans, Canada can improve the quality of life of students. It is said that some stress can be good even cause students to be more motivated. However, too much stress can also act adversely. This can result in panic or anxiety disorders. Stress can also cause social problems and headaches. The goal and objective of students should be to maintain a balance between charity, business, work, school, family and leisure. By looking at this from a six sided perspective we can begin to fully understand the modern university student.
Options:
Option 1: Have a schedule for the allocation of leisure funds from the student loans program
We will first examine the most complex case which are students that classify as experiencing all 6 activities simultaneously than we will go over a sample or iteration of a possible permutation. This student is likely to have more stress about their six activities than those that are experiencing less because they have more activities that they partake in thus they would need more leisure money as a reward or compensation in order to be able to absolve their high situational stress levels. However, the stress they experience is not as a result of the circumstance or scenario rather their high situational level activities, thus in this case the need for leisure is totally dependent on the tolerance of the individual and their situational activity level. Therefore, it is subjective. For the purposes of this brief and for simplicity we will say that this person is likely to experience the most stress related to their situational activity thus more money is needed so that he or she can experience the risk to reward ratio that is suitable to his or her subjective need. Not all monies should however come from student loans, this student has other sources of income such a business and work and those are enough personal resources to be able to afford such leisure. Therefore, student loan funding for leisure should be capped and this person should receive the least for leisure allocations. It is also safe to say that this student is established and likely doesn’t require the support of his or her family. Further, it is safe to say his primary source of stress is his situation such as has he or she donated to the food bank this month or where can he or she invest his or her monies or has that customer paid or has he or she submitted the homework or has he or she called his or her brother or should he or she spend some time to drink beer. The situation encompasses activity from all categories. Thus, his stress is as a result of the quantity of activities he is partaking in. He also doesn’t display as much need as those experiencing less thus less circumstantial stress. If we break this down to situation, circumstance and scenario we will see that this student experiences more situational stress because he or she is fully engaged in all activities. Less circumstantial stress because he or she is well off and can afford necessities such as food and rent do to various sources of income and lastly the same scenario as all other students with stress related to activity such as school, specifically tasks such as homework and exams. Clearly there could be different scenarios per each category however we will focus on the school scenario. It is also important to note that people create a balance in which to manage their funds thus some months they will spend largely on items such as clothing, others such as equipment or gadgets at the expense of food and other necessities.
Next let us look at the student that classifies as experiencing five of the six. For this permutation we will say that he is experiencing business, work, school, family and leisure. It becomes clear that this student has not developed enough to be able to provide charity on his free time thus, his focus is primarily attentioned to the five categories he is engaged in. Thus, he is currently focused on ascertaining the necessary resources to move up to experiencing the six categories and therefore less situational stress. Similar to the previously mentioned student, this individual is likely not to require the aid of his parents resulting from income sources such as business, work and unearned income student loans. This person would thus require the same leisure funding as the previously mentioned student. As mentioned there should be a cap placed as these two students will receive the least for leisure as they have other sources of income. From a circumstance standpoint it becomes evident that he is managing his funds to support the expansion of his business so he can participate in social responsibility efforts. Thus, he is likely to offset funds from one activity to another to be able to keep the boat from sinking.
Next, we will break down the third student who is experiencing four of the categories. For simplicities sake we will say that he is experiencing work, school, family and leisure. It is safe to say that with consideration that he is working under someone, he is on a pursuit to ascertain his autonomy so that he can create his own business. He will not have that source of income as the previously mentioned students. Thus, it is likely that he will earn less from his activity. However, what is important with this student is that he displays need. Need can be defined as a requirement of something because it is essential. It is likely that this person has expenses that he or she is working to pay off such as rent. The former two students had more sources of income but higher situational stress levels which evidently required more personal leisure expenses but less leisure funding from student loans. This current student unlike the other two displays a need factor which therefore should result in more circumstantial demands. This student resulting from a lack of situational activity, and an increased circumstantial stress along with the scenario stress of school should receive a higher amount of leisure funding than that of the previously explained students because circumstantial stress is related to the survival of the individual. All students explained herein experience the same scenario based stress from school.
The fourth student lives with his single mom and taking a degree but is unemployed. This student has less situational stress as they are experiencing only three of the six activities that are mentioned herein. This person has school, family and leisure. He or she has high circumstantial stress resulting from a single parent who is supporting the family thus more student loans should be granted to this student as a social leveler. This individual, do to less mobility, has the tendency to experience an increased amount of boredom, therefore a higher amount for leisure funds should be allotted by the student loans program.
The remaining two student’s ones experiencing family and leisure (fifth) and family (sixth) are not under the scenario of experiencing education whatsoever therefore the need for this type of funding is null.
Providing a schedule for the allocation of leisure expenses by the student loans program will allow students to partake in society thus giving them equity. This option is the most sustainable because it concerns the well being of the student who is the primary way by which our country can ascertain a progressive skilled task force. This will ensure the mental well being of students as they have channels or outlets by which to express themselves. This option is also somewhat feasible however, more research needs to be done on how to allocate the budget. The government needs to look for resources to be able to fill the potential deficit this may cause.
Option 2: Standard allotment of leisure funds
This is more feasible than the previous option because a standard allotment will be sent with the student loan. Doing it this way is the easiest method the government can take to ensure that each and every students psychological well being is being taken care of. As mentioned in the previous option this will serve to increase the equity achievable by each student because they will be more likely to be able to participate in society. Further this option is the most considerate of equality as each and every student will receive he same amount. This option is also feasible, see above.
Option 3: Education
This option is very feasible as the government can provide pamphlets each semester to be able to educate students about stress relief. This option, however, doesn’t really solve the problem of students lack of leisure options as this will only provide suggestions on how they can manage stress. By not having an allotment for leisure in student loans funding, the government is not looking closely enough after its investment, the students. Studies show that a certain amount of stress is healthy and can cause an increased productivity but too much is going to hamper the student. This is not a sustainable option because it neglects to consider the students perspective of needing rest periods in between school tasks such as studying.
Option 4: Status quo: Not working which is why we have options.
This is the most feasible option however, there is an increase in school related stress as cited earlier in the brief. That only explains high school. College level or university level stress is much worse. For example, there are med students that medicate using pharmaceutical drugs to boost productivity levels. Their perspective is that if they take these neurological drugs, they can enhance their attention span and thus better study. The government needs to allocate funds for leisure so that students can take a rest period here and there. Rather than taking those drugs perhaps these students can be encouraged to do less risky activity such as a beer or a glass of wine. This option is the least sustainable as it will create a professional community that is strung up and stressed which will result in activity such as malpractice and or negligence to name a few. The government should look to ensure they create a foundation by which the psychological well being of students are looked after. This would therefore assist in longer and more fulfilling careers for our future students.
Recommendation:
Option one or two is recommended.
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