Addiction Drug Use Marijuana Does Marijuana Affect School, Sports, or Other Activities? Weed Effects Learning, Sports, and Judgment By Buddy T facebook twitter Buddy T is an anonymous writer and founding member of the Online Al-Anon Outreach Committee with decades of experience writing about alcoholism. Learn about our editorial process Buddy T Fact checked by Fact checked by Emily Swaim on January 14, 2021 linkedin Emily is a fact checker, editor, and writer who has expertise in psychology content. Learn about our editorial process Emily Swaim Updated on January 14, 2021 Print Hero Images / Getty Images There are three main areas in which smoking marijuana can affect the daily lives of children and teens. They include learning, participating in sports, and making judgments. Learning Kids who are disengaged from school may think it is a good idea to smoke a bowl and do their homework, but research shows that the opposite is true. Because marijuana has negative effects on attention or memory, smoking weed makes it difficult to learn new things or do complex tasks that require focus and concentration, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Complex Tasks Some young people believe that they do complex tasks, like driving a car, better when they are stoned because they think their ability to focus is increased. While sensory perception can feel temporarily heightened after using marijuana, perception is not the same thing as attention. Research shows marijuana users have trouble both maintaining concentration and multi-tasking throughout driving and similar tasks. Sports Smoking weed can harm a teen's athletic performance because it affects their timing, movement, and coordination. If an athlete's abilities are impaired even slightly, it can make a big difference in the outcome during the heat of a sports competition. Judgment NIDA-funded studies show that, like most other abused substances, smoking marijuana can alter a person's ability to make sound judgments. If a teen's judgment is impaired, they are more likely to become involved in risky behaviors like having unsafe sex or getting behind the wheel of a vehicle while under the influence. Smoking weed can cause problems in these and other areas of a child or teen's life because it can cause a loss of coordination, impaired thinking and problem-solving, distorted perceptions, and problems with memory and learning, the NIDA reports. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Learn the best ways to manage stress and negativity in your life. Sign Up You're in! Thank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up. There was an error. Please try again. What are your concerns? Other Inaccurate Hard to Understand Submit Article Sources Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. National Institute on Drug Abuse. Marijuana Research Report. Updated July 2020. Hartman RL, Huestis MA. Cannabis effects on driving skills. Clin Chem. 2013;59(3):478-492. doi:10.1373/clinchem.2012.194381