NEW FALL SCHEDULE AT WEST SEATTLE HIGH SCHOOL

[GOFOR4WSHS]

Concerned Citizen:

West Seattle High School parents have you seen the rolling 6 period day schedule for next year??

Monday and Friday students have 15 or 20 minutes between 1st and 2nd period for “office hours and Frosh advising. I taught at Garfield HS for 8 years and worked in a schedule like this one that was vetoed after 2 years of ciaos. Students are instructed to use this time for study hall and tutoring with teachers. Guess what, they go off campus, socialize in the halls and rendezvous for drugs and fights. Did someone forget that we are dealing with young people who still need guidance and do not have higher level thinking to decide that staying at school and getting help is the responsible thing to do?

Here is another example of a 6 period day that will cause problems. Both Semesters the students have too much free time between classes and not enough class time. Why is it that 3rd period is 60 minutes, 3 days per week but the other periods are 50???

This schedule is goofy and irresponsible. Many events can happen in 20 minutes to teens especially those with cars.

The former 4 period day was the responsible and smart schedule that is not longer viable? What is this schedule going to do?? Who is watching this fiasco? Stay tuned 6 period day people we are watching this unfold.

Parents wake up and start asking questions. Your kid’s future is at stake.

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[JanS]

I’m not sure what to say here, being as my daughter graduated in 1999, under the 4 period day. One of her periods, she had NO CLASS, and spent it off-campus at a coffee shop during her senior year. This didn’t help much with her education either.

I also live one block north of the highschool…across the street from Safeway, an alley in the back of my apartment bldg. A 6 period schedule will do nothing to the kids who are cutting class as early as 9am, and hanging out in the alley, drinking..well, now it’s pop, used to be alcohol…or the students who sit on the stoop of my building at 10am smoking a pipe of something that doesn’t even come close to smelling like weed (60’s hippie here).

It isn’t being addressed in the 4 period day, and yes, it’s happening. I think the 6 period schedule needs to be given a chance…if it doesn’t work, then go through the right channels to change it. If you are truly an educator, you know how to do that. It’s done…give it a chance. I doubt that there will be any more students that are not in class next year than there are now.

Then again..perhaps a closed campus would work? just wondering?

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[Jerald]

My understanding re the closed campus idea, is that it’s not possible because of the small size of the cafeteria. They need to let the kids out at lunch to find food. It’s not a new thing,we ate “lunch” at Baskin Robbins in the 70’s quite often.

Some kids will use that 15 min. twice a week for good purposes. They’re often told to see their teachers outside of class time, e.g. to find out what was missed on a sick day or to discuss problems with a class. But it can be really difficult to meet up with a teacher, especially if the kids ride the bus and can’t come early or stay late.

If they’re really strict about tardiness, they might have fewer wandering away during that short break.

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[JanS]

I understand about the cafeteria….staggered lunches? I have no idea what the logistics would be, I just know that when I was in high school..way back before….well, never mind – lol..we had staggered lunch times depending on our schedule, some of which were also staggered.

My ex graduated from WSHS in’70, and I remember the stories about hanging out outside, etc. It’ll be interesting to see how the new 6 period schedule plays out.

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[celeste17]

When I went to school (class of 1982) we had 6 periods. Each class was 50 minutes and you had 10 minutes to reach your next class. We had staggered lunch periods also. We could go across the street to Lou’s (I went to Cleveland across from Boeing Field). If we cut a class it was reported to the vice principal and he threatened to call home (I admit to cutting one class) :). If we needed to see a teacher we either did it before school or after. Or if we had a free period and the teacher was available we could see them then. I guess things were different then. I know we had our fair share of trouble makers back then but I guess because the area wasn’t so commercial we didn’t have as many problems.

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[LyndaB]

I graduated in 1995. After three years of the six period, this was something amazing to us. Something new and fantastic. Of course, we escaped the WASL and the senior project. I can hardly remember what the lunch schedules were like but when I had questions I’d stopped by after school or wait after class. Nowadays kids have email so they can email their teachers. Is that right? ;) In any case, I was disappointed to hear the schedule being switched back. It was a delight to be part of a new process of learning. No matter what your schedule is going to be…you’re always going to have kids hanging outside. Let’s have higher expectations when they’re in diapers. Before you can lay a hand on a cellphone, you need to master algebra.

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