By Isabella Keats
With January coming to an end, our second semester is about to start. The TDSB has stated that for our second semester, starting February 3rd, we will have a new schedule. Our new semester system will include four classes a day, two in the morning and two after lunch. We will consistently have the same four classes until the end of the semester. For grade 11 and 12 students, this system of four classes a day will be a familiar schedule. For grade 9 and 10 students, this system will be new.
I am currently in grade eleven and decided to interview some of my fellow classmates. Most of my peers feel the same way about this change; they don’t mind it and even like the idea from an educational standpoint. One student mentions how our current semester system feels counterproductive. “I feel like I was forgetting a lot of what I was learning in one week, and the teacher would spend a day going over what we talked about two weeks ago.” A common theme between interviews is that our current system has a lot of relearning between weeks and that this new system will be a lot easier on students and teachers.
However, one student views this change from a safety standpoint rather than an educational standpoint. They focus on how this change feels like a rush back to normal life and could potentially make our lives harder. “More people are now going to be exposed to one another, basically just harder to do case tracing and more kids will get sent home.” With our current system, it is significantly easier to contact trace two classes a week versus the new four classes a week.
Both views are very important and should be looked at. While we want the change due to its educational standpoint it's also important to keep the safety portion close in mind. The overall feeling was that even though no one really knows what we are doing, there is still a preference for the change in the semester system.