open campus

Open campus is very common in many different high schools for upperclassman especially seniors. It is popular mostly for seniors because it is a good way to give them the college class experience because at college you will have breaks in between your classes or maybe even have one class a day. High schools mainly debate about open campus for the bad reasons. Burlington is one school that does not have it and I think that starting it would be a good idea. Many teachers do not like the idea because they believe students take advantage of it. In some cases I can agree because some arguments are that kids will just leave and not come back. But if that is going to be a main issue then teachers should make stricter rules and regulations on having open campus. For example when students leave for having open campus that period the next period they should have to sign back in the office so the school knows they came back. There are many rules that can be made off of it. I think it will be a good idea because it helps students with getting the hang of what they are going to be doing for college. Also, seniors mainly have enough credits. They take all the required courses from freshman year. If there are students who choose to not go to class or do not have enough credits then they do not have to have open campus, open campus can begin to be a privilege for some individuas. I think open campus is a mainly good idea for high school kids and I think that Burlington should consider to put it in our schedule.

Cellphones In School

Many schools have discussed over the years that cellphones for students should be banned. A lot of schools have followed through, but in Massachusetts many schools are still able to have cellphones. I don't think banning cellphones is a good idea. Teachers are worried that many students are getting distracted by them, in which some cases are true but others not. Some teenagers in high school tend to think they can do whatever they want whether it's obeying the rules or not, and if they are banned i'm sure a lot will still continue to use them. Many teachers don't allow students to use them, but yet every day i continuously see the majority of kids on their phones. In some ways it is a distraction, but as you get older, you know what information you should be paying attention to and when not to have your phone out. Another reason why teachers are worried is because of cheating. Cheating through texting is a main problem, but i think that there are other ways to resolve that problem. For example, during test days teachers could collect phones so there won't be an issue with that. I don't think banning cellphones completely is a good idea, but a solution to this issue could be a lot stricter rules and restrictions of usage during school.

Facebook Blog

I have mutual feelings about this article. Being a teenager i know that facebook is put to use for communicating with friends and family. The majority of high school kids have facebooks and use them daily. Facebook would be a good way to keep up with assignments and assesments just as said in the article. For example, number five on the ten ways gives good ideas about snow days. If students are unaware of their work due you will be able to check the teachers page and get an assignment. That way can really help students and teachers progress with their materials throughout the semester or year. On another hand, i feel that this could also have some downfalls. Kids are kids and sometimes do not think before doing things. A lot of uneccessary things get posted on facebook but kids including pictures, statuses, comments and ect. Some don't think before posting, or think that there will be no consquences for their actions which is wrong. If people are posting things that shouldnt be posted but have no business to a teacher or anything to do outside of school, they could still be punished if a teacher happens to look at their page and see something. I feel that some, but maybe not all, might take advantage of being facebook friends and turn it into personal issues instead of keeping it school related business. In my opinion, this could be a two way argument, and could be helpful, but also some downfalls along the way. If this was to happen many things on facebook would have to change from kids perspectives.