By: Sienna Ma (284)
“Ugh!” The bell had just rang, signifying that I am now late to class. “But how was I supposed to get to class when expected?” Thanks to the limited time allotted between classes (just a measly three minutes!), crowded hallways, and the use of lockers, the task of getting to class on time is a difficult one. With students trickling in several minutes past the start of class, learning is delayed. As a student from Central High School, it’s easy to say that this is a problem that affects most individuals.
Considering Central’s expansive student body of roughly 2,500 students, it’s no surprise that every corridor and stairway is PACKED with kids. Not only that, some consecutive classes can be on different sides of the building and even on different floors! Three minutes is not enough time for students to get to where we need to be. When asked for opinions, interviewee Lisa Pinto (284) states, “Some teachers are strict and mark us late over something we cannot control.” I entirely agree. Traffic jams of students are not easily avoidable, nor is there a proper way to keep individuals aligned.
While Central is revered for its academic rigor, this puts loads of heavy textbooks on students’ shoulders. Having to squeeze in time to use our locker is extremely tough, especially when they can be located on floors we don’t even have classes on. While discussing the topic, Sadie Batchis (284), brought to light that some students cannot use their lockers because of damage or even having the time to do so. She specifically expresses, “We have to lug around our heavy backpacks, which slows us down.” This caught my attention as I have realized there isn’t an ideal solution to this complication other than allowing more time.
Now, you may be wondering, “How do we convince the school to adjust the schedule?” I have interviewed Ms. Snyder, the roster chair, and Dr. Scott, an assistant principal, who both had similar responses and perspectives. When asked if they believed students were given enough time to get to their classes, the assistant principal responded with, “No, I do not think three minutes is enough. I, myself, have tried traveling between classes, but could not because of busy hallways.” Even the roster chairperson added, “During the virtual year, students were given more time in between classes.” Despite the fact that school was online, students had five minutes to get to each class.
At school, Lancers traverse extreme foot traffic and often must stop at their lockers to swap out books between classes– struggles that do not impact students virtually. Having to travel throughout the building is clearly much more of a hassle than a couple clicks on a digital device, so why is it that we receive less time in person? Keeping in mind the downfalls of our current 3-minute-system, and examining the benefits of instituting more time from period to period, the solution seems clear: Central students must advocate for a different system that better accounts for our needs. There is no harm to increasing time in between classes. In fact, it seems beneficial in multiple ways, and can definitely make our experience at Central a lot more trouble-free.
The Centralizer 