Proposal would grant shorter days for seniors
Marion High School seniors who have completed most of their graduation requirements may be able to reduce their class load starting next year, Marion-Florence Unified School District board members heard Monday at their regular monthly meeting.
Seniors with enough credit and parent approval could enroll in five classes. This would give them two free periods.
The proposal is because there are too few elective courses available to students. Those students eligible would be better served by using that time for school work, taking college classes, working, or volunteering in the community, said Phoebe Janzen, counselor.
Board members took no action on the proposal but agreed to consider it in April.
Of the 67 students in this year's junior class, 53 would be eligible for the five-class option, Janzen said.
"There is a shortage of electives for students," Janzen said. "Many times seniors are forced into classes in which they have no interest and they fill slots within the schedule other students would like to have."
Janzen listed several advantages to the proposal:
More electives would be available to freshmen, sophomores, and juniors.
Seniors could become more involved with work or with volunteer projects, such as mentoring elementary school students through the Big Brothers/Big Sisters in Schools program.
Students would work as teacher aides or in work-study programs only where there was a need and interest. Currently, students may be assigned to more than one teacher aide, work study, or independent study period simply because there is no class available to them.
Seniors could use those free periods for homework or to do research, giving them more opportunity for extracurricular activities or work after school.
Students could take college classes during the day. Tabor College allows high school seniors to take six hours (two classes) for $25 per credit hour, a considerable savings over regular tuition.
It could improve discipline both by reducing the number of bored students in classes they don't want, and by providing an incentive to underclassmen. Only those who work hard and keep their grades up for their first three years of high school would qualify for the fewer class hours, Janzen said.
Concerns
Janzen said about 80 percent of teachers indicated support or no opinion on the issue, but about 20 percent opposed.
There were fears students may drop out of some elective courses in exchange for one or two free periods. Similarly, students may choose not to be involved in extracurricular activities in their free periods are in the afternoon, because they could stay at work or at home.
Some fear students may not take classes that could broaden their learning. Also, there were concerns students might get into trouble during their free periods. Another concern was that the sense of class unity might be splintered as students spend fewer hours at school.
"They're taking what electives we offer, but we don't have enough," Janzen said. Most students try at least one elective in each area (broadly defined as business, the arts, vocational, or agricultural classes).
Other limitations
Janzen said there were limitations besides lack of electives. Some classes can be offered only at specific times because of the middle school schedule. The high school and middle school have to share some classrooms. This means MHS often offers an elective only one time during the day. If a senior is taking a required course that hour, that elective is out as an option.
Also, next year's schedule calls for work study programs to be allowed only during the last hour of the day, to improve oversight. However, this eliminates the chance to assign more than one work study class to a student. Similarly, the number of teacher aide periods for credit is being reduced.
Janzen said those changes tie her hands even more. It means more seniors will end up in classes they don't want or in an "independent study" with little oversight or value.
More thought needed
Board members who commented indicated they weren't sure what was the best option.
Keith Collett said it might give seniors an "inaccurate representation" of work or college life. He preferred allowing the two hours off only if the student has a legitimate plan, such as scheduled college classes or regular paid or volunteer work.
Gene Bowers said "it ought to make for lively discussions at home" since parents must give their permission for a student to participate. However, the advantages it would give outweigh disadvantages, he said.
Rex Savage said he was in two teacher aide periods his senior year "that were a complete waste of time, but they needed to put me somewhere." He spent those hours reading in the library because the teachers he was assigned to didn't need an aide.
"I would have been much better off at work or taking classes at Tabor," he said.
MHS Principal Ken Arnhold said he had mixed feelings on the issue. He could see advantages, particularly in disciplinary issues, "but I'm afraid we'll have some students who take the short road out of school."
The school has seen several students drop out this year "for no apparent reason," he said. "I don't know where we're missing these kids, but they need to be in school."
