School days are very long, due to that students don't get to spend enough of their own free time. A standard school day is anywhere between 6-7 hours and that takes up almost one third of a students day. So why should students take another 1 or 2 hours to participate in extracurricular activities? I believe students don't need to participate in after-school activities because they should spend their free time however they want, they may also have issues to take care of at home, and not everyone likes the extracurricular activities.

These activities may also not suit everybody. For example, participating in sports,working on the yearbook, and serving on the student council may not fit somebody who is a musician. Students have a full day of school and want to hangout with friends or have fun in there free time, so these activities can also make people get out their comfort zones, some people may not be very social, while maybe somebody has basketball practice 3 times a week. Not everybody has the time for these activities, I know personally I like to spend time with my parents since they're at work all day and I'm at school all day. So you might not be able to talk or connect with your family a lot. It's the students free time they should pick what to do with it. I still think if you would like to participate in these activities, why not. Although not everyone has to participate in these after-school activities. I think also kids might be getting tired and want to go home, instead of staying and waiting at school all day.

On the other hand people may think that having one extracurricular activity will help students be more happy and it's better for them. After-school activities can help you meet new people, socialize, have fun and many more things. Although this only works for some students that's why it should be voluntarily. Because, for example, Some students could be very stressed out with school and need a break and that's what they use their after-school time for. So it's not good for the school to come and interrupt their daily schedules. There are also plenty of various problems students face like being bullied or having mental issues, so the best place for them would be home. Many students also have busy schedules and schools want to interfere with it.

In conclusion, students may be busy, the activities don't interest them, they don't spend enough time with family, or have many other problems. So the school shouldn't interfere with that and doing extracurricular activities should be voluntarily chosen. You should also be able to choose what to do with your free time, because you just had a whole day of school and need to have fun and relax. It's not healthy to be stressed out that's why after-school you should use it as a relaxation time. That's why I believe students don't need to participate in after-school activities because they should spend their free time however they want, they also may have issues to take care of at home, and not everyone likes the extracurricular activities.