School is back! This year, there have been multiple changes in things: teachers, homework, grades, and activities. With all this change in the school year, I wanted to take this time to ask students what they thought of this year and how it would be for them. In all the responses, I found both negative and positive results. When asking other students what exactly their thoughts were about this year, some said they didn’t want to be here because of all the change and new rules. Some said they liked how the years were before with more freedom at school because of the new cell phone policies and clothes rules. Others said they were excited for this year since there is so much change and that there are more events, and new teachers give them new experiences, thoughts, and new ways of learning, It’s a new year and they can make things better.
The most excited and enthusiastic students were freshman and juniors, and the less caring were the sophomores and seniors which I found interesting. When asking the students how they thought this year would go, a majority of them said they thought the year would be the same as the last while others said it would only get worse this year because of the changes. After asking if the students thought they would enjoy this year or completely hate it, I got mixed responses. Some thought that they would enjoy as well as dislike this year because “I have some good classes so far and some horrible ones I didn’t ask for, but I’ll put up with.” Another student said, “I don’t think it’ll bother me much, It’s going to be normal; its school.” A third reply: “I’ll probably hate this school year because of the classes I got and the people who are in them.” Most of the students are content with how the school year will go. While others don’t even want to be here or think about going to school. Most said that the things that were different were the healthier lunches and the electronics policy, which they were not very keen about, but they said they have no choice but to obey the rules.
When it came to if they were excited about the year, they were excited because they’re older and know what to do this year. The students seem to believe with the rules this year that the teachers play favorites with the rules this year or that the school is too strict. One person was very specific, “The rules still suck because the school has always played favorites on students, and I’ve seen short shorts, tank tops, and yoga pants. I know if I were to wear shorts even just a little under length I’d still be made to change!”
I asked multiple students what was something different they want to do this year. The main response I received was, “I want to improve my grades this year and try harder to be to class on time.” Most students agreed with this response, but one individual replied, “I’ll make an effort by myself.” Another student said that he would do nothing different this year because “every year I go by the same way I’ve always done school.”
The main question that stumped a couple of the students was: “Where do you see this year taking you in the real world with the classes you’re taking?” The responses included: “I think they will lead me to scholarships to get into the best colleges honestly.” Also, “Since I have to take the ACT test this year, I see it helping me get to a college-ready state.” In all this research for back to school, I see that there are students who don’t care much more than they did the year before and those who actually are excited to give this year a chance.