As the school year starts up again for students, so does the stress of balancing a rigorous course load and what can feel like a never ending cycle of homework. For many who play sports or participate in afterschool activities, finding time in the evening to study or complete assignments is somewhat of a difficult task. But for those who budget their time wisely during school hours to get things done, the value in two hour-long academies each week is glaring. Even if it’s just a period to complete your weekly math homework or time to study for a test in the next period, academies play a monumental role in keeping students on track for their classes. But recently, the academy period has been taken over by numerous required events. Events that could easily be combined, moved to other times of the day, or made optional entirely have left students in a workload limbo.
Senior Joaquin Montero testified to the importance academies serve for students at Campo. “During my academies, I usually study, I’ll finish homework assignments that maybe are either due that day or catch up on work from a class. Sometimes I’ll use them to make up tests that I’ve missed or to ask questions about concepts.” Junior Ori Rogers added, “I often go to certain teachers if I’m in need of extra help, especially in APs. I also use it to study, get ahead on my homework, or to decompress after other classes.”
But recently, the academy period has been taken hostage by a number of administrative and leadership-organized events. Within just the first three weeks of school, students lost valuable time to a nearly hour-long fire drill, grade-wide information Academies, and the first rally of the year. Not to mention other mandatory academies for those interested in making a club or those retaking a test.
Junior Asha Spitzer said “It made it a little difficult to catch up on work and do things you’re kind of expecting during academy. And although I appreciated the rally, I feel like some things that happened were less necessary.”
Rogers added “I think it takes away a lot of time for students to properly understand certain content, especially in the beginning weeks…With all these rallies, we’re doing things that are just kind of useless, like rock paper scissors, and talks on things that we’ve already discussed.”
The mandation of school events like rallies can prove especially difficult for students with an over-occupied schedule that use Academies to get ahead of homework. Montero explained “I can totally see how it might be challenging if you don’t have a lot of time after school to finish all your homework, especially if you’re an upperclassman and you have a lot of homework.” And with a high rate of students participating in athletics at Campo, finding time in the evening to get work done can be impossible, especially given an over-achieving tendency among students.
One solution to the academy dilemma could be imposing opt-in measures for students to pick and choose what events they attend. For instance, a student who has a big assignment or test due in the next period could choose not to attend a rally or assembly and instead choose to study.
However, making events like rallies or assemblies optional does also open up the ability for students to simply choose not to participate. And with the sole purpose of bonding the Campo community, events like rallies would lose their energy. Therefore, perhaps it’s not about making things optional, but instead reconsidering when these events actually occur.
Rogers said, “I think some of the stuff is important, like knowing the current rules and any updates, but that’s something that we could do during Lunch or have a mandatory presentation during class. But during academy, it takes away a lot of valuable time.” By moving rallies to lunch, grade-wide assemblies to a few brief bullet points during students’ English classes, and safety drills to just a small sliver of the academy period, what was an issue of managing time during the first few weeks of school could have been entirely avoided.
Going forward, with this new set of propositions, the academy period has the potential to be revitalized and put back into the hands of the students – where it belongs. A period meant for students to study, catch up on missed work, or make up tests, is as Rogers says, “exactly what academies are meant for.”
