By Katherine Conner<\/p>\n
When students received their upcoming schedules mid-August, they were suprised to find their Catapult period, a study-hall like class, replaced with another course. These errors were due to T.C. Williams\u2019 administration\u2019s last minute decision to remove Catapult as an option for students.<\/p>\n
T.C. Principal Peter Balas acknowledged that Catapult was productive, but the 300 student, 10 percent increase in the T.C. student population eliminated the available classroom space for Catapult.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are using almost every single room every period of every day until the relocatables are built. So even if I wanted to [keep Catapult], I had nowhere to put [the students taking the course],\u201d said Balas.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, Balas admitted that because of the student population increase, each teacher is being used during every period of each day. \u201cThere are no extra teachers to teach [Catapult],\u201d said Balas.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I arrived on board [at T.C], the master schedule was a bit behind in the process,\u201d said Balas. Consequently, he was not informed of the Catapult scheduling conflict until mid-August. \u201cCatapult was removed from the master schedule a little bit late in the summer,\u201d said Balas, and as a result, there was a lot of \u201clast minute scrambling to reschedule.\u201d<\/p>\n
Had Balas known about the issues earlier in the scheduling process, he would have met with each individual student taking Catapult to explain and help them formulate an alternate plan. \u201cWe were so late in the game we did not even have that luxury,\u201d said Balas.<\/p>\n
While some students were given their second or third choice elective, Balas said other students were put into random unoccupied electives because, \u201cSo many of the electives are packed too. Literally everything thing here is packed.\u201d<\/p>\n
This argument is fair, but it presents students with a rigorous course load and extracurricular activities with two problems. Firstly, they lose an hour and half each day to complete a portion of their nightly homework. Additionally, they now have an increased workload from a course they lack interest in.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt this time there are so many other priorities, [for example] mathematics scores, getting the building under control, so Catapult is not something I am going to war for right now,\u201d said Balas.<\/p>\n
Though Balas empathizes with these students he said, \u201cTitans are resilient, we will get through it,\u201d said Balas.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, empathy and \u201cTitan resilience\u201d are not going to save students from staying up hours into the night to study and finish the homework they could have completed during the school day.vv While increasing attendance and test scores are important, it is unfair to prioritize a certain population of students and punish another.<\/p>\n
Not only was the option of a study hall removed from the master schedule, but Titan Time, a 25 minute study hall, was also eliminated.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t like the lack of Titan Time [..], the day no longer has a built in brain break,\u201d said Senior Annlouise Conrad, \u201cIt\u2019s 90 minutes per class non stop […] It\u2019s just a lot to deal with on a regular day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Titan Time was not just an extra class for free time or to get a head start on homework. This class was a daily designated time that allowed students to meet with their counselors, receive additional help from teachers, and complete make-up work. Many students have jobs, sports, and other commitments that prohibit them from completing these tasks after school.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the most part, what I found was [Titan Time] was not a very productive use of time here,\u201d\u00a0said Balas. \u201cOverwhelmingly, teachers did not like [Titan Time], because they felt that same disorganization [that I felt].\u201d Instead, students would spend the time disrupting classes by wandering the hallways. This\u00a0led to increased class absences and tardiness, and the eventual elimination of Titan Time.<\/p>\n
However, the solution to disorganization is not removal, but finding a better system that allows students to maximize this study hall period. Balas is not opposed to reinstating a study hall period. \u201c[Titan Time] could be a really good use of time,\u201d said Balas, \u201cthere needs to be a solid plan in [Titan Time]\u201d in order to make it a productive period.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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