Two years ago, a rumor of switching to semesters was floating through the halls of Groves High School. This year, the rumor became a reality. Upon arriving at school on the first day, Groves Falcons were faced with many new changes. Our beloved X-Block periods on Tuesday and Thursday mornings were discarded and replaced with advisory periods, built into students’ schedules after second hour. Now, instead of having a later start at 8:25 on two days of the week, each day starts at a consistent time of 7:50. Since start times have shifted, our lunch periods have also been altered. Both A and B lunches are now starting significantly later than last year. Another major change is the jump from five longer classes to six shorter classes each day. This change in the number of classes caused another shift in the Groves daily schedule: we now have five minute passing time between classes instead of eight. This six-class, two-semester year has limited the amount of classes students can fill their schedules with. Instead of 15 classes a year, students now only have room to take 12. As students and staff adjust to this, there are differing opinions about the switch as a whole, and each group of Falcons focuses on different factors.
The switch to semesters was very well-received by Groves faculty and staff members; a view more focused on the good of the school in the long run, rather than how these schedule changes are specifically affecting daily life now, gives us insight into the positives of semesters. Counselor Sharon Adams expressed why being on this schedule is beneficial to Groves as a whole.
“I think it has its good points, especially throughout most of the Michigan community. Nearly every school is on a semester basis. We’ve heard from universities that are really happy that we’ve moved to semesters,” Adams said. It’s not a secret that most other high schools and colleges across Michigan have always used semesters. Now that Groves is on the same schedule as most other schools, the college admission process has been made simpler.
Principal Othamian Peterson also discussed the many advantages of the change.
“I feel like it will present a number of good advantages in terms of consistent teacher-student interactions,” Peterson said. “It will help spread some things out so students continue to learn at a more reasonable pace.” While we had trimesters, there were times when students would not have a core class for an entire third of the year, and then when they had it again, they had to remember content from the beginning of the year and be tested on it. With semesters, students consistently have classes throughout the year, making for a more smooth learning experience and relationships with teachers.
However, the student’s opinions were the opposite of the staff’s. 73% of the students polled preferred trimesters over semesters. By popularity, the poll’s responses concluded that this preference is because of trimesters’ eight-minute passing time, X-Block period, and more class opportunities. The passing time has been shortened to five minutes to make room for a sixth class, and X-block has been cut for the same reason. Fortunately, we now start at 7:50, which happens to be the most popular response for what students like about semesters. While the class catalog hasn’t been cut, there has had to be less variation in students’ schedules due to classes staying the same across semesters, instead of varying from trimester to trimester. Furthermore, going from 15 classes to 12 classes in a year, there is less space for students to take electives and try new things. While quarter classes were put in place to combat this, not all classes offer quarter versions, and they vary by hour.
“I would prefer to let us play around with different electives, because I feel like the electives are what help us choose our career path for the future, and when we are stuck with only eight classes, what are we supposed to do?” Antonia Pancoast, a senior at Groves, said. Having the trimester schedule for the past three years, she still prefers trimesters after the switch. Another struggle many students have is when they are taking a language and a music course while trying to fit in AP classes. There is not only limited space in your schedule since it doesn’t vary from semester to semester, but there is only one class for a lot of the options. Many times, important classes overlap. Similar to how classes stay the same across semesters, so do teachers. This was implemented to enable teachers and students to build a better relationship instead of switching teachers every trimester. Unfortunately, this can also backfire.
“Imagine if you have a teacher you don’t like and you’re stuck with them the whole year. Personally, I have a teacher whose teaching style doesn’t work for me whatsoever, so I’m really struggling in the class,” Lynn Meradi, a junior at Groves, said. If you happen to have a teacher where this happens, it could cost you your grade in the class, and since there’s no room for variation in the schedule, there is no chance of getting a different teacher. In addition to not having other chances to understand the content with a different teacher, students can no longer get the help they need due to the removal of X-block.
“X-block was very helpful to a lot of people. I know some people didn’t use it, but I think a lot of people did, and now with advisory, you can’t go to your teacher’s classroom and have them help you one-on-one. Instead, you have to stay in the classroom,” Mariella Hartman, sophomore at Groves, said. Though she had only one year of trimesters, she prefers them. The testing center is open before and after school, so retaking tests is still an option, but it’s not in the same room as your teacher, so you can’t ask them a question if you need to. Without X-block, students are forced to set up time with their teachers to meet with them一 such as in the morning, during lunch, or after school一 if they have questions.
“The hardest thing is getting help from my classes because I’m taking three APs and one of them I’m struggling in, and I just need that help for it, but I can’t really get it,” Meradi said. Time is now essential during the school day, and there is no time between classes to ask a couple of questions. It can’t happen during class because teachers are trying to fit their class plans into a much shorter schedule.
“Having six hours is fine because we have shorter classes, but it doesn’t feel like we get anywhere in class, because once we start learning and taking notes, we are left with 10 minutes left of class,” Pancoast said. While we do have more time over the course of the semester to get more material in, it certainly doesn’t feel like it. What students don’t finish in class most likely becomes homework, adding more to the already struggling student’s plates.
Overall, semesters have been perceived differently throughout the Groves community since their implementation. Staff view the switch in a positive light, as it allows us to have a more consistent schedule that matches with other schools around us. On the other hand, students are currently having a hard time adjusting to a new schedule that is completely different from what they have been used to in past years. While this might just be due to needing time for adjustment, students’ opinions suggest this change could be more harmful than helpful.
