Six to four - students lose

October 12, 2010

Last year after several school board meetings and arguments, the high school schedule was voted on and changed from a four block schedule to a six period schedule.

Instead of having four eighty-five minute classes everyday, totaling eight credits per year we now have six fifty-five minute classes everyday, which in turn can total to six full credits each year.

Although the class time is different there is more homework because there is less time for the teachers to go through each lesson in the shortened amount of time. But totaled together there are about 3,000 more minutes of classroom time throughout the year with this new schedule compared to the previous one.

There is still a lot of change to get used to though. Friday October 15th will be the end of the first card marking, and for kids playing sports, it time to crack down on the books instead of the field.

Comparing the work load of six classes and a sport to four classes and a sport equals a lot more late nights of doing homework after games and practices. Without seminar there is a lot more time spent at the high school in general, getting help on a math problem or a study session for history, all has to be done before or after school, rather than during.

I suppose that everyone can see why it was necessary, but it is still a big change for students and teachers to get used to, especially handling the two extra classes that we didn’t have last year. It means more books, more binders, more tests and quizzes. This in turn creates more stress for students, especially those in AP classes and activities that require time outside of school.

On a normal day I am only at school for the required amount of time, but on days that there are meetings and after school work nights for newspaper, I am at school until at least four or five o’clock, then I have to go home and finish homework. While the same thing might have happened last year, adding two more classes seems to have made the homework time double.

Overall the schedule changed was absolutely necessary, even though hard to get used to, and in the end I can see how it will be beneficial overall. So, if you are a student at Novi High or the parent of a high school, please, don’t freak out because of this change, it will be okay, it is just going to take some time to get used to.