A seating situation
January 13, 2020
As the cafeteria crowds up during lunch periods and students have blended hours, they are forced to work in the loud, overcrowded lunch room. With the hub filling up quickly and other areas of the school being blocked off, they have no choice but to sit by their loud peers and hope to be productive.
As someone who is blended during periods 4,5, and 6, I like to sit down in a quiet place and get my assignments done. This school year sitting at the tables by door 27 and the PAC is not allowed during lunch hours. For students like me, these periods are beneficial for getting assignments done.
In the cafeteria, not only is it loud and overcrowded but you also have no service or WiFi. Why should students be forced to work in a loud environment but also not have any source of WiFi?
“The only tables that have been removed are those by door 25. The commons areas at the top of door 27, and the top and bottom of door 26 are still available for use,” Assocaite Principal Tom Kempf. “The East end is closed during lunch do to lack of available supervision in the space. That space is also not designed to handle food waste and that contributes to why the East end is closed during lunch periods.”
The administration has eliminated these areas during these class periods due to the lack of supervision and to not have food being brought over because they are lunch hours. But for students who need that time to study in a quiet environment and don’t cause trouble, why should the privileges be taken away from them too?
“I think that it is unfair to the students who do use their time wisely in that area to work on school work. That area is nice because it’s quieter than the commons area but you are allowed to talk so you can also work with other students. It is a good place to work quietly but also collaborate with others,” senior Casey Deak said.
Are removing these areas to study actually beneficial to the student body? Students who are hardworking and dedicated find these areas to benefit them for getting work done throughout the school day. We should not be punished for the students who do not use their time wisely or cause trouble.
Marcus Belin • Jan 16, 2020 at 4:19 pm
Good article! I still struggle with some of the things you bring up because I agree with some of the issues you identified. I do not want this to be a punishment or a response to the negativity that has persisted in these areas. We need to encourage our school community to self report things they see are going against the expectation. Students holding other students accountable IS a thing! We have to not continue to rely on putting a person down there to make sure kids follow the expectation. Holding fellow students accountable by self reporting is just not done. Students don’t do it at all or if it is done, it’s not done often enough to make an impact. Use the tip-text to alert us what is going on so we can investigate and find the offenders.
I want the building to be accessible to students and not have closed off spaces hinder the opportunity for students to focus on their academics or have quiet places to work and collaborate.
I am open to solutions on how we change the culture to get students to hold each other accountable. If I put the tables back by door 25 in the west end, right now, I am not convinced we will meet the expectations that are set for that space.
What do we need to do? Open to student input and suggestions to make a change.