Teens and Part-Time Jobs: At What Price?

by Joan Kuersten
National PTA Web Site

Parents may wonder at what price their sons and daughters are working part-time jobs.

Are their teenagers reaching their academic potential? Are they striking a healthy balance between homework, a part-time job, and social life, including the pursuit of interests? Do they need to work to help with household expenses? Or are they working to buy nonessentials such as cars, designer clothing, CDs, and concert tickets to keep up with their peers?

Although some experts in human development say paid work can be beneficial to teens—introducing them to the adult world and sometimes reinforcing what they learn in school—problems arise when young people work too many hours. Kusum Singh, an education professor at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia, conducted two separate studies on the effect of part-time work on high school students' academic achievement. She found that students who worked 15 or more hours a week while in school showed a decline in grades and performed less well on standardized tests. These students also were less likely to take more demanding courses, particularly higher level math and science courses. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, high school students ages 15 to 17 work an average of about 17 hours a week during school months, an amount that could jeopardize their school performance.

Not only can long workweeks have a negative impact on academic performance, but also they can take away from the opportunity to build friendships and explore interests that could enhance a teen's intellectual and emotional development. Teens have to realize their primary job is getting a good education, and it's the parents' job to see that their teens understand that, says Bryna Shore Fraser, associate director of the National Institute for Work and Learning in Washington, D.C.

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Advice for parents

Parents have the responsibility to establish the number of hours their teenager can work, allowing those hours to increase if he or she maintains good grades, according to Robert Billingham, associate professor of human development and family studies at Indiana University. Fraser agrees, recommending that parents limit their teen's work hours during the school months to 10 hours a week, with the majority of those hours disbursed over the weekend.

Fraser also advises parents to learn as much as possible about their son's or daughter's prospective job, including the type of work he or she will perform, employer expectations, and the pay. Although money may be one of the principal motivators for wanting a job, she says parents should emphasize to their child that he or she shouldn't take a job just for the money, especially if it's the first job to come along.

In addition, parents should help their teens manage the money they make on the job. Fraser recommends that parents suggest their son or daughter put a portion of each paycheck into a savings account, perhaps for college or for a desired item that requires a bigger expenditure of funds.

Once their teen has begun working, parents ought to remain alert to signs that the job may be having a negative impact. Such signs include diminishing interest in school or extracurricular activities, which formerly were sources of self-esteem and enjoyment, and spending less and less time with friends and family members. If signs such as these present themselves, parents need to step in.

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What schools can do

Fraser commented that schools and school professionals could do a lot to make jobs meaningful and educational for students, such as working with local businesses to provide students with jobs that have greater career potential. "Potential employers can be invited to mentor high school students and even to help develop a school-to-work curriculum," she said.

Teachers, too, can connect their students' work experiences to school, and vice-versa. For example, a math teacher might suggest students bring to class problems from their part-time jobs that require mathematical reasoning to see how the students solve them.

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Why teens work

A job may not always be a rite of passage to adult responsibilities. In the first half of the 20th century, most working teens contributed to household expenses and/or saved their money, according to Selling Out America's Children: How America Puts Profits Before Values—and What Parents Can Do. Not so these days. The book's author, David Walsh, writes that most of today's teenagers do not contribute to the family. Instead, they spend their money on entertainment and other personal items. Those who do save their money often do so to purchase a car.

Despite the fact that many teens work to provide themselves with disposable income, which many people frown upon, the reality is that a growing number of high school students are going to hold part-time jobs. It's up to parents and schools to make the work experience more manageable, educationally valuable, and ultimately more satisfying.

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