I hate school. We wake up super early in the morning, teachers drill information into our heads, and we deal with annoying people. After staying in school for eight hours, you get to go home, but guess what? You have to do your homework now, and you better study for your next few tests so you don’t fail. Now, I know everyone who is reading has either been to school or is currently in school. Not everyone hates it to the extent that I do, but school isn’t perfect either. It has many issues, but some can be changed. Here are some problems that may have ways to fix them. These may not be the best solutions to these problems, but are just some suggestions that can be considered.

1. Amount of Homework

Homework is an essential part of teaching students, I get that. But I feel as if sometimes the amount of homework I get is just unreasonable. Sometimes, it feels as if a teacher doesn’t realize that we also get homework from other classes, too, not just theirs. I have a few friends who have a hard time managing their homework with other activities outside of school. It can be difficult to attend all your clubs and sports meetings (just some examples) when that day your teacher hates you and decides to give you a fat packet for homework. I remember a year ago, my friend was complaining about his homework. He participated in the table tennis club but also had a piano class afterward. By the time he got home, he didn’t have much time to get his homework done. Giving a reasonable amount of homework can make any student’s life a lot easier. My current civics teacher is great. She prioritizes teaching important information in class and making sure we learn there but gives us less homework. As long as you pay attention in class, you can get an A. I’ve been managing my grades fine in my classes, but I sometimes have to stay awake late at night to get my homework done. This has impacted my and other people’s sleep.

2. School Lunch

In the middle of a grueling, long day at school, you get a single period to relax a bit: lunchtime. The one time to hang out with your friends. Lunch is great for someone with lunch from home, but what about a student without one? They get lunch from the school. Wow, the school is providing lunch; that’s so great. But there are some problems there. One of them is the school lunchtime. Lunchtime at some schools isn’t long enough for every student to finish their food comfortably. They have to wait in a long line with other students before they can eat. Now, my school used to have the same problem. By the time I got my lunch, there would only be three minutes left for me to eat my food. On a bad day, the bell would ring before I even got lunch. My school knew this was a problem, so they added six lunch lines, all working at the same time. That way, students could get lunch and still have a good amount of time to eat or talk with their friends. However, getting lunch isn’t the only problem; the quality of the food is also one. Now, I know this isn’t as important, but as a picky eater, it’d be nice. Not all of the lunches are bad, but some seem like there was no effort put into them. I remember seeing a glop of mystery meat being served. I did not eat lunch that day. Even if this isn’t a life-threatening problem to make food taste better can make the life of a student easier. What’s the point of making a super healthy and nutritious meal for students if they taste inedible? A full stomach is better than an empty one.

3. Phone Use During Breaks

Now, here is a big one. Phones. These are the nightmares of all teachers. They just can’t deal with sticky-fingered kids always staring at their devices while scrolling through social media. That’s why phone policies are very extreme. No phones at all, not until school is over. As one of these sticky-fingered kids, I think a little phone use can make school just a bit more bearable. However, you shouldn’t be staring at your phone when your teacher is teaching, you deserve to get caught. But during the day, we have study periods to do whatever we want, and lunchtime to hang out with friends. At our school, the teachers are super lenient during their studies. As long as you behave yourself and stay quiet, they don’t mind you playing on your phone, at least in my studies. But I’ve heard of my friends getting their phones taken during their studies, even if they were using it for educational purposes. Study is a time to get your work done or chill out. Why not use phones in all studies? As long as they behave, that shouldn’t be a problem. Using phones lets us take our minds off of the overload of homework and projects we have to get done. Lunchtime is also supposed to be a break from learning. Don’t think about homework; think about the food on your tray. Sure, if they are misbehaving, then take them. But at least let some of the better-behaved kids have some time on their phones. It’s gotten to a point that they created Yondr pouches, little pouches used to keep your phones away from you. You stuff your phone inside, and they close it. It can’t be opened unless you have a specific metal, which they hand out at the end of the school day. However, this seems unnecessary. Why create these if a student can just lie? “Oh, I left my phone at home.” Even if they use the pouches, there’s going to be a lot of traffic at school when the day is over, with all the kids trying to open the pouches.

School is an important building block for when people begin to work and live their own lives. Everyone has either gone to or is currently attending school. Think about the past; we used to have segregated schools. Now, in the present, we’ve moved up one step further by allowing all kids to be educated equally. We can continue to improve schools for all kids in the future. Like I said earlier, school isn’t perfect. But we can take small steps ahead towards perfection.

This article was written in partnership with Steppingstone.