By Korinne Phillips
Lifeatstart.com reporter
Recently, my school has been making many changes to our environment. After winter break we came back with a new set of rules that were being enforced. We are expected to follow these rules or suffer the consequences. Our new rules include not being able to wear book bags, lunch detentions for being late too many times, and having the basic dress code apply. This may not sound like a very serious issue, which to me it is not.
I have always been someone who follows the rules whether I want to stand by them or not. I would rather have to reroute how I do things over being suspended because I refuse to put my book bag in my locker. I have no problem with the rules they have set for us. My problem is with the excuses they are giving as to why we have these rules.
Last month, our assistant principal organized a meeting for the senior class, so that we could talk about these new rules being set. As we sit in this meeting, that is taking our class time away, they are sure to mention that we as seniors are now the “leaders” of our school. To them it is our job to help enforce these rules and make sure the underclassmen also abide by them. Our staff sat in our faces and told us that these rules will benefit our education. So what they’re saying is covering a hole on my knee is going to help me comprehend how to get the square root of a number? Is putting my book bag in my locker going to help my study habits? Is keeping me out of class for a whole day going to help me catch up on my school work? No.
Now, this has made me ask myself do they want to benefit the students or themselves? Our school was ranked at a D for academics and they’re more worried about making sure my shoulder is covered than giving us classes that can help us. Why are we required to take four math classes? Why are we required to take three social studies classes? I’m not saying we shouldn’t take any of these classes, but we shouldn’t have to take as many. The quadratic formula isn’t going to help me manage my money or learn how to buy a house. The classes that we have to take won’t take us far after high school, especially the kids that don’t go to college. We should have classes that teach us how to pay bills, buy groceries, or even fix a sink. We need classes that are going to help us get through life.
Not only do we need better classes, but a better staff. We do have a few select teachers that actually care about helping the students not only academically, but mentally. Other than them few, we have teachers who just sit behind their desks and watch us raise our hands and look back at their phones like we’re ghosts. We have counselors who go and visit other schools everyday, but can’t even send our transcripts out on time. We have principals who let the athletes with bad grades walk the same stage with the same recognition as the quiet boy with a 4.0 GPA. The district wants our school to change, but doesn’t even realize part of the problem are the people that are sitting right in front of them. They can blame the kids all the way for the way our school is viewed, but they have to open their eyes and see that maybe if they changed, we would too.