[arnoldsoccer4]

Our AP government teacher is on our district's improvement board (don't know the specific name) and has asked us for criticisms and recommendations to improve our school. I go to Plainfield North high school in Plainfield Illinois, and the other two high schools in our district are on academic probation from NCLB.Our school is on the way, we just can't be on probation yet because our school is only 5 years old. The school is about 2000 students total.

It seems that our school is not adequately preparing us for college from the perspective of most students. I went to high school for two years at a good California public school,and to be honest I believe I was receiving a much better education there. Our classes were challenging, even the non-honors courses (there were no science honors courses available). At my current school? Not so much.

For example, I am currently taking AP Biology. This is by far my easiest class of the day except for PE. The class consists of, come in, take notes on a packet that is given to us, do this daily, on Fridays take an open note quiz, and every month take a unit test that is the quizzes we have already taken copied and pasted exactly. I currently have around a 98, and I will not be taking the ap exam because I am not going to teach myself biology, I don't have the time. The average class is way too easy, many classes are along the same lines of my Biology class.

Also, I do have 2 challenging classes right now, AP Calculus and AP government. Both teachers that teach these classes are excellent, but looked down upon by the teachers of the "normal level" classes. I was permitted to sit in on a normal level class one time and quite frankly it astonished me. All guided notes and the homework assigned was coloring, which is unacceptable for a senior class.

So my recommendations at the moment are to strengthen up class difficulty, and one other. Our school hasn't done much in the way of colleges. Yes we have recruiters visiting but the school administration has done nothing, and if anything has given students false hope. I have heard 3 kids in the last week say they were applying to Northwestern with ACT scores of 21,22, and 24, and thought that they were going to be in easily. What happens to these kids when they don't apply to any schools they actually have a chance of getting in to?

So, any recommendations for my school, or the high school system as a whole? My AP Government teacher is a very convincing person and is working in conjunction with my AP US history teacher from last year, who is probably the best teacher I have ever had (he truly challenged us, hard grading, brutal homework, surprise quizzes to keep us in check).

 

[-=Germania=-]

I think that you have the right idea here.

What you should do is get one of your teachers to sponsor you and make a group of other students to come together and really bring this into fruition. My high school was decent, but after doing this there was a lot of improvement done my senior year.

Your friends applying to NU with those scores don't have a chance. You need a 31-2 to get a good look these days and the athletes are kept pretty much to the same standard.

 

[egosumdoomd]

Personally as a senior my self in semi-urban(less than 2 miles from downtown) school, I've seen the same kinda of situation in schools besides mine,which is a college prep school with an entrance exam and mandated minimum grades and the inability to take non AP/IB classes for core subjects.

One idea is to use quarterly or yearly (random)standardized test to measure individual student's knowledge of the information they need to know for classes, and if they don't measure up find out why they don't measure up and fix the problem(s). But that brings into the problems of standardized test used in that fashion, E.G. teachers that teach for testing and such. Also this approach would take a few years to fully affect the school itself.

Also one source of the problem could be the teachers themselves, while most teachers work for the students benefit but some just give up and stop teaching, and give out mindless busy work, which leads to many problems in the end.

Not all solutions are directly the school but the students themselves, if the students don't apply themselves then they wont improve which would make and work in the end meaningless, so to simply put make it so the students want to learn then things can improve.

I know I didn't really give any really useful solutions but some ideas that you can use.

 

[Happy Camper]

Bring back the whippin.





I always thought memorizing to pass tests was the wrong way to learn anything. I may have passed but I didn't learn the topics unless I was interested in them. Our schools need to accept different ways of learning. I think there are teachers and schools that do for the talented but not for the common student. That means finding out how each child learns best and fit them into a program that lets them succeed.

Education today is too structured to move the masses through the system to keep the money coming in. Way too many kids are being left behind.

 

[arnoldsoccer4]

Germania, on an unrelated note, do you think my 32 on the act and class rank of 14/558 would be adequate to get in to NU?

 

[Uncle Erik]

First off, I think it would be a good idea to teach yourself bio and take the AP test. I got out of undergrad in seven semesters - do you know how much you'll save on books and tuition? It's worth it.

As for changing a high school... not to be a pessimist, but inertia is strong in school systems. If there ever is any meaningful change, it will happen after you graduate.

If you have a community college nearby, enroll. Nothing says that you're ready for college than having successfully completed a few classes. If there isn't one nearby, enroll somewhere accredited that has online classes. If you can get a semester or two out of the way before you graduate, you'll be in good shape.

 

[arnoldsoccer4]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uncle Erik /img/forum/go_quote.gif First off, I think it would be a good idea to teach yourself bio and take the AP test. I got out of undergrad in seven semesters - do you know how much you'll save on books and tuition? It's worth it. As for changing a high school... not to be a pessimist, but inertia is strong in school systems. If there ever is any meaningful change, it will happen after you graduate. If you have a community college nearby, enroll. Nothing says that you're ready for college than having successfully completed a few classes. If there isn't one nearby, enroll somewhere accredited that has online classes. If you can get a semester or two out of the way before you graduate, you'll be in good shape.

I don't know that financially college will be an issue, I already know that at U of Alabama (and possibly others) just based on my act and gpa I will get full tuition (and my family doesn't struggle financially). I would teach myself biology, but, I am busy doing other homework nightly, and work at least 4 nights a week, typically from 3-9.

 

[-=Germania=-]

It doesn't hurt to apply!

 

[arnoldsoccer4]

I most likely will, I'm just not sure if I really want to stay in the cold cold north.

 

[Wmcmanus]

I hope they made your buildings stronger than they made the last high school in Plainfield! When I was in law school in DeKalb, there was a tornado that ripped through Plainfield and completely destroyed the high school. Or nearly so, at least. I spent several days in town helping with the clean up activities, and bringing carloads of 'stuff' for people (food, clothes, anything that people in DeKalb were willing to give).

Gotta love Wiki: It happened on August 28, 1990. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plainfield_Tornado

"Around 3:30 P.M., the tornado directly struck the Plainfield High School, killing three people, including a science teacher preparing for classes the next day and two maintenance workers.[3] Students who had been out practicing for the fall sports programs ran into the high school to take shelter. They took shelter in a hallway, and once the tornado had passed, that was the only hallway left standing in the building."

 

[arnoldsoccer4]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wmcmanus /img/forum/go_quote.gif I hope they made your buildings stronger than they made the last high school in Plainfield! When I was in law school in DeKalb, there was a tornado that ripped through Plainfield and completely destroyed the high school. Or nearly so, at least. I spent several days in town helping with the clean up activities, and bringing carloads of 'stuff' for people (food, clothes, anything that people in DeKalb were willing to give).

We actually had a microburst last year that tore down the memorial at Central to the tornado, and nothing else (Old Plainfield high school, now Plainfield central). I believe they have built our school a little bit stronger, because the new school they are building is the exact same architecture as ours.

 

[myinitialsaredac]

Arnold,
You ACTs are super strong, I only got a 30 (then again I took it blind and didnt bother to retake it xD) and feel I can get atleast a glance from recruiters. Your in the 99th percentile for the ACTs and if your grades are good (assuming so since your in the top 3 percent), along with some strong co-curriculars (tutoring, civil service etc.) and can compose yourself a decent essay you should have a nice chance.

As far as the schooling goes, I too have hit this bridge, my schools courses teach me less than a few moments on the computer. As far as I am concerned they need to implement stricter curriculum and get teachers who can both teach and care about their students. Adding in the plan test and PSAT is also a good idea to give kids a real idea of what they are like, and discuss with them what their scores are in the real world (as in a 30 wont take you that far anymore). New methods of learning should also be looked into, taking notes and quizzes do nothing towards your "education". I may be able to state the 50 presidents backwards or know the date of every civil upset in Korea, but this does not make me any smarter than I currently am. Thats the awesome second hand effect of classes like calculus. I remember when I took calculus how many uses I sought to put integrals towards. The idea of what they can do is just astonding and I came to this realization because my teacher didn't focus on the math. He simply would put up a situation on the board (for example find the volume of a pond of differing depths) and we would have to think, truly look at the problem from every angle and apply what we learned, not simply bubble in sheets asking whats the derivative of x.

Or you could be like me and take your education upon yourself and conduct awesome experiments with professors at nearby colleges. Now I just need to get my AP bio teacher to agree to letting my grade be based on that and I'm set =P.

Dave

 

[Wmcmanus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by arnoldsoccer4 /img/forum/go_quote.gif We actually had a microburst last year that tore down the memorial at Central to the tornado, and nothing else (Old Plainfield high school, now Plainfield central.

Most amazing! Who would have thought...

The days I spent there were both rewarding and extremely sad/frightening. I had never seen anything like it before (or since for that matter). There was mass destruction and complete chaos, and yet as hard as the survivors were taking it, they were just happy to be alive. Such a small community and such a large scale disaster.

Everyone was affected either directly or indirectly by the loss of life and destruction of property. Yet, they were all so thankful for what little we could do for them. Surprisingly, there really weren't many volunteers to lend a hand (maybe a couple hundred at most) so those of us who did show up and say, "What can I do?" were greeted with smile amidst tears and shocked looks. We brought a crew of 8 law students in two NIU vans. We worked 3 straight 18 hour days and then just had to get out of there.

 

[arnoldsoccer4]

Quote:

Originally Posted by myinitialsaredac /img/forum/go_quote.gif Arnold, You ACTs are super strong, I only got a 30 (then again I took it blind and didnt bother to retake it xD) and feel I can get atleast a glance from recruiters. Your in the 99th percentile for the ACTs and if your grades are good (assuming so since your in the top 3 percent), along with some strong co-curriculars (tutoring, civil service etc.) and can compose yourself a decent essay you should have a nice chance. As far as the schooling goes, I too have hit this bridge, my schools courses teach me less than a few moments on the computer. As far as I am concerned they need to implement stricter curriculum and get teachers who can both teach and care about their students. Adding in the plan test and PSAT is also a good idea to give kids a real idea of what they are like, and discuss with them what their scores are in the real world (as in a 30 wont take you that far anymore). New methods of learning should also be looked into, taking notes and quizzes do nothing towards your "education". I may be able to state the 50 presidents backwards or know the date of every civil upset in Korea, but this does not make me any smarter than I currently am. Thats the awesome second hand effect of classes like calculus. I remember when I took calculus how many uses I sought to put integrals towards. The idea of what they can do is just astonding and I came to this realization because my teacher didn't focus on the math. He simply would put up a situation on the board (for example find the volume of a pond of differing depths) and we would have to think, truly look at the problem from every angle and apply what we learned, not simply bubble in sheets asking whats the derivative of x. Or you could be like me and take your education upon yourself and conduct awesome experiments with professors at nearby colleges. Now I just need to get my AP bio teacher to agree to letting my grade be based on that and I'm set =P. Dave

The co-curriculars are actually admittedly quite weak, possibly due to the fact I moved between sophomore and junior year. I played soccer freshman and sophomore year, moved, then started working instead, however I do have quite a few hours (probably 100 in 4 years) volunteering at an elementary school in Tennessee and probably another 100 hours doing church volunteer work in Tennessee. (If anyone could shed any light on where I could go on a full ride, or where I could get in to really challenge myself, or has any advice on a college to choose it would be greatly appreciated.)

I think the thought process learned from Calculus is just as valuable, if not more, than the actual math learned. I would do awesome experiments, but instead I have awesome debates. The other problem with our school is simply that probably 40% of teachers are either first or second year, just because we are a new school. That will fix itself over time but right now it is hurting us. And yes, any efforts we make will be felt much later than when we graduate, but they will still be worth it if that many more kids are actually prepared for college.

 

[arnoldsoccer4]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wmcmanus /img/forum/go_quote.gif Most amazing! Who would have thought... The days I spent there were both rewarding and extremely sad/frightening. I had never seen anything like it before (or since for that matter). There was mass destruction and complete chaos, and yet as hard as the survivors were taking it, they were just happy to be alive. Such a small community and such a large scale disaster. Everyone was affected either directly or indirectly by the loss of life and destruction of property. Yet, they were all so thankful for what little we could do for them. Surprisingly, there really weren't many volunteers to lend a hand (maybe a couple hundred at most) so those of us who did show up and say, "What can I do?" were greeted with smile amidst tears and shocked looks. We brought a crew of 8 law students in two NIU vans. We worked 3 straight 18 hour days and then just had to get out of there.

Yes Plainfield was tiny back then from what I have heard, now that it has been built up there are a lot more people available to help in case something to the same degree happens again. This in itself is a blessing and unfortunate, in that there are more people to help but at the same time if such a tornado were to go through again many more would be killed.