Academic Struggles, Social Conflicts, and Institutional Challenges

School is often seen as a place for learning and growth, but for many, it’s also filled with challenges, drama, and difficult experiences. These school stories highlight the struggles students face, from academic pressure and social conflicts to teacher issues and administrative failures.

Some of the most dramatic school stories involve students struggling to keep up with overwhelming workloads, dealing with unfair grading, or navigating conflicts with teachers or classmates. Whether it’s a student being overlooked or a disciplinary issue blown out of proportion, these situations can turn a simple day at school into an emotional rollercoaster.

Other stories focus on the systemic issues within schools, including outdated policies, lack of resources, or bullying that goes unaddressed. These experiences can leave students and parents feeling frustrated and powerless, turning what should be a place of learning into a source of stress and anxiety.

If you're interested in the drama and challenges of school life, these stories of academic struggles, social conflicts, and institutional failures offer a candid look at the realities of the education system.

Im going insane
School Stories

Im going insane. Im losing my mind. I am over complicating everything. My head is full of all these negative hateful awful feelings about people in my life and i know that its my brain projecting stress and irritation onto them and they havent done anything. I know that. Yet still my head is full of these awful thoughts and im just so upset. And i keep talking about it to people and i actually need to shut the fuck up because i am going to make everyone hate me because im talking about it too much. All the good things in my life are like drowning in little ittt bitty bad things. There are SO many good things in my life. So so many more happy exciting things. But then these little things that are upsetting me are just burrying those good things. But its all my fault everything is my fault. My problem. My actions. My ignorance. My choices. My procrastination. Everything is on me amd how my brain works and what im doing and saying or not doing. Im really really fucking tired.

It is currently 2:30 AM and i have an essay ahead of me that I am still yet to write. It's not because I forgot about it - it's all I have been thinking of this day, but for whatever reason, I'll get side-tracked any time I start doing it. It's almost like I am allergic to getting work done. I always make an effort to do it, but it's almost like I make a counter anti-effort in a burst of inspiration for literally anything else. I feel awful writing it, and wish to be doing something else, which is why I am always doing something else instead. I'm past the point of being mad over this, because this isn't a first occurrence, instead I'm making the calculations that.. yeah i'll get a maximum of 2 hours of sleep today. Headaches, here I come!

I study international relations at university, and every day I feel like I'm not smart enough, I feel stupid. It's hard for me to read and understand the material, it's hard for me to learn English (and after all these years of studying it, I still don't fully understand how to use different tenses, etc.), it's hard for me to gain the knowledge that I will need in the future. I can't read and memorize material, I have some kind of concentration problem I don't know, and any noise distracts me. I read the material, but it doesn't stick in my head. I don't know how to write reports properly, I use artificial intelligence and hate myself for it, I want to stop, but I don't know how, I was never taught this, and I don't know how to learn to write them myself. I don't have time for anything. The last time I allowed myself to really relax was in the summer, almost two months ago, because since September I've been completely immersed in my studies. I spend all my time studying, and even so, I get minimal results. I have a group of friends, and for the second year (because I've been studying here for two years), I feel like the dumbest one in our group. I always get lower grades. They have more knowledge, and they study for free because they scored high on the national test, while I failed it, and now my mom has to pay for my education, and I feel guilty about it because I let her down, since she is the only one who earns money. Today we had to pass a document (we had to translate excerpts from the UNESCO Constitution from English into our native language and vice versa). I prepared for this as best I could, considering the amount of other homework I had. I tried very hard, and I was so exhausted that for the last few days I started crying over anything, especially because of fatigue. I thought that I would pass this test today and be able to relax with peace of mind over the weekend, finally letting go a little. But I failed. 7/10, although I really hoped that the teacher would give me an 8,( I don't think I translated that badly). What also upset me was that he said in front of my classmates that he wouldn't give me an 8 because, frankly, I did much worse than Vika (my classmate who doesn't like me very much and we are like rivals). I was so ashamed, I begged him, humiliated myself, asking to retake the exam, take another test and translate, anything, just for an 8. But he said to try my luck next week, on Thursday, with the other part of my group. I left so upset because this had already happened in my first year — I got a 7 and had to retake the exam (I could have stayed with that grade, but I have a perfectionist syndrome kinda, partly because of my family, so I also spent my time then in hysterics over that grade). Then I saw that my friend had written in our friends' chat that she had gotten a 9/10. That broke me. I'm happy for her, really, I just don't understand why I can't be the same. I don't understand why I couldn't get the same satisfactory grade, why I'm doing something wrong, why I'm never good enough, why I always come across as stupid. And I'm sick of how they (my friends) try to convince me otherwise. When they always get everything right. Never once did they needed to retake the exam. And then they tell me that the grade doesn't describe me. I would say the same thing if I had such knowledge, such grades. I don't want to talk to them now, I start crying when I go into the chat and read how great my friend feels now after the exam and how good she feels, how everyone congratulates her on her good grade, when I spent the day crying and thinking why I couldn't do the same. Did I not study enough? I don't get enough sleep because of my studies, I'm not hanging out with my friends (on the internet, we usually got together to watch a movie) because I'm busy studying all day long. And now I not only have to be ashamed next Thursday and retake the exam, but also do piles of homework. There is really a lot of it, every single day, and even several pieces, and now I can't take the burden of this document off my shoulders. I am very tired, in fact, I want to rest, I want to sleep well, I want to enjoy my life, but I can't. I no longer believe that I can achieve anything in life, that this is for me and that I will be successful, I no longer believe in anything. And I don't want anything. I pray to God every day that he would just take me while I'm sleeping, or even not necessarily while I'm sleeping. I just can't take it anymore, and I don't understand how others do it, how they manage. And now, even now, I can't relax, I'm doing my homework, and on the weekend I'll be doing work for the institute. And we don't have vacation until January. I don't know if I'm strong enough to handle this.

me and my friend have been friends for years ever since I first met her we have been inseparable. Honestly it was amazing since all my friends before that had bullied or ghosted me. Now it has been years and I made another friend who is suffering abuse I support her but she ignores me and doesnt care about me or this friendship when a year ago we were close friends have I done somthing wrong now my old friend we were still inseparable I do so much for her I sat with her when she was incredibly sick I stould up for her we did most things together I made sure everything was good for her. And what she does in return I'm joking around she threatens me, she hits me a lot in painful ways it just well it was usually there when I got irritating but now her and my other friends have been hanging out without me lying about her being at the library which i respected and I just found out and she even once I didn't want to be friends with someone but didnt feel ready to say it I told her that she still told them. she not only calls me weird but also I view her as a sister at this point but shes cancelling playdates and ghosting me and when we talk she is usually in class. I just want my friends back she also sided with my old bully who gave me self harming thoughts years ago which I still feel sometimes over me

I've just started at college and met a lot of new people and made a few friends.

I also feel like I don't fit in / like I'm the odd one out .

by that what I mean is I spend all lunch and brake in a separate room to everyone else as I find the noise really overwhelming and overstimulating and generally struggle in noiey inviroments.

will I ever find e anywhere I truly fit in. I also have Adhd and Anxiety. 💛😔🫶

Why are people mean?
School Stories

why do people insist on being so cruel??? i swear, it's like they see someone enjoying their life and doing what makes them happy, and BOOM!! suddenly, they become their personal target board. i'm 17 and have always been a fan of Pokémon. it's like my haven, a place i escape to when the real world gets too insane to handle. catching Pokémon on my phone or swapping cards with friends is my way of destressing, yet all i get is judgment and mockery from the "cool" crowd at school. they just can't seem to comprehend the joy it brings me, so they mock what they don't understand. frankly, it's exhausting.

is it that hard for people to mind their own business?? everyone is always yapping about how young people should be free to express themselves but then turn around and bash us for the very choices we make! it's incredulous, really! collecting Pokémon cards might not be their thing, but why rain on someone's happiness parade??? what's the point in belittling others for their harmless passions??? i just can't wrap my head around it. life is complicated enough without people making it even worse by tossing judgmental comments around like confetti. it seems they'd rather wear masks of scorn than a simple smile of acceptance.

but even so, i'll keep my head high and continue loving my Pokémon world! it's not going anywhere, and neither am i. at the end of the day, it's not their approval i'm seeking!!! if anything, their constant negativity has only made me more resilient... i'll have you know that i've got a Charizard that could burn all naysayers to ash if it were real! and who knows?? someday they might realize the importance of being open-minded and accept that happiness comes in varied forms. for now, i'll let their words roll off my back like water off a Psyduck and stay hopeful for a more understanding future.

age problems?
School Stories

I think I'm such a fool. I'm going through a weird phase in my life. My grades are bad, I'm so insecure about my weight and appearance. My friends are acting weird towards me. My mom fights with me every day. School is so boring. Nothing's fun! In 10 days, I'll be turning a certain age for girls, but I don't feel happy. What's wrong with me? I don't feel like I have the right to feel sad or bad. I should be grateful for the life I have, right? And I also can't stand caring about what other people think. What if I fail physics? I think those are just girl problems. I don't know how to feel better. I think reading would be good. Are there any good books for 15-year-olds? I have to go, but I hope I'm not the only one going through "problems."

so their is a boy in my year and I've tried to be nice to him but he hates me for a mistake I made years ago ( I think maybe 3) and he is rude and tosses me around, now I have had a weird feeling it feels like crying but I stop breathing and my heart goes way to fast he worked with a main bully lets call him Osman he made me think I was horrible

also sorry I wont use punctuation

he told me I was a failure

I'm a weak trusting person

so all over the years people have left me or bullied me. because I have little things of skill

I am male btw its important because im friends with some girls all my male friends left so now people say I'm trans ( which is fine btw its just my school is homophobic) so I change my personality a lot too fit others but I'm still hated

and so everyone hates me bc I'm weird

so the bully Osman he comes gets a major which is the biggest problem 3 = expulsore basically

'so I remove that now he's nice to me but the other bully isn't he tosses my books around hurts me and its fine I tell a trusted adult

who is kind now today

the bully and osman I accidently sent his birthday invite to the year bellow us and that was a mistake I didn't mean it he didn't he attacked me and I ran of my friends ran to me saying they were hunting me down they had snithced to the trusted kind adult who new the bully was bullying me

Osman who after a year were friends with me betrayed me

and the teacher told me I did stuff wrong and to rub salt in the wound after knowing

the bully had

- nearly tossed my chromebook out the window which would have cost me to pay the school 700

- attacked me for years

- bullied me for years

- made me have self loathing for years

she called him a nice boy

I feel as if my artistic vibe and energy is going, for drawing? I'm focusing on a doll, but I don't even draw a bit now. I only drew for school projects, a friend, and now for a poster, but not personal reasons like earlier, and I'm working on a doll of mine. What's happening? And for 3 months earlier I stopped drawing at all, and rarely did it, so what's happening? Am I losing my ability? Am I losing interest in the one thing I was good at? Am I gonna end up like my dad who's jaded with art and now he's into speakers and more on work? Is my imagination gonna go away, just like dad says his went away? Am I just gonna become as jaded as an adult, and not like anything creative? I'm only creating a doll! It's not drawing, it's just a doll! With eye's I made which look weird! If I had UV resin, a silicone mold, and decal pupils, it would've ended up better, but I used clay and paint, and it looks so weird. Man, I'm not even good at the new thing. And when I sealed her face paint with liquid glue because I didn't have varnish, it looked fine, but near her mouth she had open spaces and it looked like pimple scarring...it was a plastic doll from the stores, since I can't find even the doll the main artists use in my area (Monster High) and when I do it's too expensive, and the head was some material (vinyl). Maybe I'll just ditch the doll and become an adult with 0 imagination. I may be doing the wig, but it's trash. I don't even have all the hair colors. Isn't growing up just realizing that these hobbies won't help you in the future, and that no adult does art. No serious adult does that, they do taxes, work 9-7 (where I live), hunch their backs, binge coffee, reminisce about their wasted life, marry their spouse out of obligation and same with kids, drink beer, smoke, work on a computer job, argue. I guess in India Out 2, Joy is right, she's right when she says, "I guess when you grow up, you feel less joy." Heck, even my dad's only hobby is speakers, but even then he says he lost interest in his art and just focused on work. And all I see him is slog, have neck pain and shoulder pain and, drink coffee, yell with colleagues, and sleep. And if this is adult joy, I won't hesitate to kill myself at 18, because we all have the same ending, death. I'm just saying, suicide is justified, don't we all die at some point? And if you have any ideas, wanna help me smoothly do it so at least it doesn't hurt?

Im about to graduate highschool and so of course I constantly get asked "what are you doing to do next". And somehow i manage to talk about my future in a way that I even start to believe i have it figured out. But as soon as the conversation ends I realize that i really dont have my shit together. I thought I had it all planned out, ill get an apprenticeship, go to college for the course ill need to move up in my field, make better money, and all will be good. But as much as I talk about it i cant figure out where to start, I know what i should do but i dont know how to do it, i get stuck in a loop of thinking I know what im doing and then have it hit me that i have no clue where i am. Im not stupid, i can do well in school, infact ive been keeping my grades high 80s and 90s but my last year was rough and its going to make it hard for me to get into a good school with those stains on my transcript, I dont know how to start but i know i have too soon. If i can get this figured out eventually im going to make a book to tell people what to expect, because i can only wish i had a book to guide me through all of this now. I will figure it out, even though i feel like i cant right now. I just wish i was actually as organized as i make people believe i am.

dance class
School Stories

Me and my friend (nickname Poppy) were very close friends but she started saying mean things. we were in the same dance class together and I approached her. I tried talking until she told me to shut up. so i did. i left the dance class and she didn't even notice. when my mum picked me up, i told her everything. she said how i should ignore her, but i'm not very good at that. especially since we were eachothers bffs and only sat with eachother so i felt bad. Eventually I had to go to her birthday party. that was the final straw. I walked in and her friend showed mugs of me that she was sent by "Poppy". I secretley texted my dad to come and pick me up. My girlfriend was also coming and Poppy wanted us to play spin the bottle. She said whoever it was we had to kiss them. I didn't feel comfortable kissing someone who wasn't my girlfriend, especially seeing as she wasn't there because she couldn't make it but her cousin was there.

Starting School at 16
School Stories

Hello. My english isn't that good and I don't know where to start so I'm sorry if this sounds confusing but I just really need to let it out my heart

My dad told me that school will be starting in 6 days. I'm nervous?

In my whole years of living, Ive only went to school for 2 years but that stopped when I was 12. Ever since then I haven't went due to stupid idiotic reasons. Reason number one being I was too anxious because the whole thing was new to me. I wasn't used to people I was only used to my family. Reason number 2 was because I didn't want to waste money

When I go, it'll be my first time actually meeting people my age. Or actually meeting anyone other than my family in years. Yeah I go out but I'm not allowed to go out alone so I rarely ever speak to anyone other than my family and it's always going out to the same places constantly, I'm grateful but you can imagine the boredom.

I just look really bad right now. In 2024 I was really miserable so I kept eating so much and now I gained so much weight. I planned to lose it and prepare myself for school with studying at home but I was too busying being an idiot, too busy being miserable. I told myself so many times "Ill start tomorrow" without realizing the day is so close

I know looks don't matter, I'm just really insecure because of the way people have treated me my whole life just based on my weight.

I can read pretty well but I'm so slow at it so I'm nervous at starting school

I'm not blaming my dad but sometimes.. I wish he actually warned. Actually taught me, instead of just throwing the decision to go to school on a 12 year old who doesn't know anything but "I feel anxious" again I'm not blaming my dad. This is my fault

I can't help but wonder what's the point of going? I'm 16. I don't really see the point in me going to school now to study a grade that isn't even for my age. And I never will get to the grade my age should be in and it breaks my heart, never having any normal school experiences, or any nice experience. Other than reading my favorite webcomics and watching cartoons. I keep seeing such cool and awesome teenagers having fun together and I can't get that. The only thing I get is my father telling me "too late to be like the girls your age now". The only thing I find comfort in is pathetic which is the character " Steven universe" because I feel like me and him are alike in many things. Like when someone asked him what grade he was in and he said "16th...?" Because he didn't know what to say other than his age. But he's just a character. I'm stuck in my own fantasy world to escape the truth about reality and I'm stuck in it everyday imagining mage stories and that's really the only thing keeping me happy but the happiness feels off. I know I can just "get up" and get my life in order. I'm aware that time doesn't stop for anyone and I'm aware that me just pacing around my room for hours everyday being upset won't do me any good but I just can't help it. I really can't help it

Anyway, just because I don't see the point in me going to school doesn't mean I won't go. I'm still gonna go because what else can I do? I'm just going to study, go to school, do what is needed to do and that's all.

I'll still feel my heart break whenever I remember the days when I would stay at home changing diapers and cleaning while my siblings came back from school talking about their friends. I'll still feel resentment about how I'm expected to act like an adult meanwhile my siblings get to have a normal life with no expectations of acting like a mother or a housewife or a aunt or an adult

Theres really nothing remarkable about my life. It's just the same day constantly

But that's just life and there's nothing I can do about it no matter how hard I try to think of a solution I can't

But it's okay. I haven't even lived 2 decades yet there's still time and I'll still keep my head up and study

And yes I know this is all my fault. I'm very very aware, this isn't meant to blame my dad or anyone else. Im just talking about my feelings to let them out

Its of course, a stupid problem. Which makes everything even worse. Like many people, I'm in the first week of my semester. And I swear EVERY teacher has to have an opinion on how I take notes and how I structure papers. And a grade on it.

I hate annotating. So of course I got a teacher who makes us annotate everything. I am actually excited for when she starts adding more requirements than "annotations present", because at least that's some structure.

On the other hand, I have a teacher who went overboard with structure and gave us a god damn style guide of how he wants the outlines for our reading formatted. He wants headings. He wants full sentences. He wants us to separate out the thesis statement and write a conclusion. Not that the chapter HAS a thesis statement. It jumps directly into its first point. It doesn't help that the book is nearly 20 years out of date.

I'm so angry I can barely see straight. I can't focus. I'm tired. I want to go to bed. But I need to get this done now or I wont get it done and these god forsaken outlines are a major part of our grade. Like, I get penalized twice if I don't do well on this first one, because he will CAP A LATER OUTLINE AT A B-. The man can't explain anything to save his life either: I had to google how to do an outline, and I still have zero idea how to take the broad topic assigned for my final paper (Due in October. But at least I wasn't part of the third of the class who has to turn it in at the end of September!) and condense it down into something I can actually research.

Hey guys, I’m 21M and something has been bothering me. It’s stressing me out to the point where I feel like I’m losing myself, even though I seem okay to people. I’m stressing about my future and life. I’m still dependent on my family, and I’ll be graduating next year (2018). That thought is making me depressed.

I wouldn’t say I’m bad at academics, but I never give it my all, and even though I manage okay, or some I know I could do better. I always tell myself that one day, at some moment or event, I’ll start giving my best(not only for academics but for my life) but while waiting for that moment, I feel like I’ve been drowning. Zoning out has become normal for me I can’t even fall asleep or walk without zoning out. If I start thinking about my life, I just get stressed.

What’s made this even worse is that I used to be religious I’d go to church, read the Bible... but now I don’t do any of that.

Am just clueless right now and had no reason that I pursue.I’m just here to ask you, what’s something that kept you working hard? What was the moment or reason that made you want to change or to want more in life?

I’m just so overwhelmed. I’m sick of English, math, civics, stem, Spanish. In every class I’m stuck with work and I’m just so confused all the time. It’s only the second week and I’m already stressed out and just can’t handle this anymore, it honestly is making me suicidal?? I feel myself scratching at myself for longer periods of time and doing it on purpose. Not even that I’m itchy but it just feels good to hurt myself?? I don’t know it’s just I can’t understand math and it’s making me feel like a failure, I’m already in a “special class” but it wasn’t doing jack. And my parents are going to divorce and it’s just small things piling and it’s making me just lose my mind. I’ve already told my mom but she won’t do anything to help me so I’m just.. so over my life at this point I was begging my mom not to go to school and I know damn well it’ll just make things worse. My head hurts so bad. And my throat just keeps tightening..

And I have a big state testing going on soon and I’m having 4 tests and quizzes next week and it’s really making me want to kill myself. I’m just so sensitive that everything puts me off.