STAFF EDITORIAL: New Year New Schedule
New bell schedules frustrate, disrupt learning
For the past years, Monarch has never ended school at the same time.
Every year for the past six years, Monarch has had a different bell schedule for one reason or another.
For the past three years, Monarch has started, but never ended school at the same time.
In 2018-2019, Monarch ended school at 3:00, which sounds amazing. However, the next year school ended at 3:30. Both 3:00 and 3:30 were reasonable, but then—once again—Monarch made a change.
2020-2021 was difficult to adjust to due to hybrid learning.
School in 2020-2021 ended at 4:00. No one understands the real reason behind the change.
Students tried their hardest to adapt to online learning, however the block-based schedule was the last straw for many students.
The 2021-2022 school year seemed to be another bright, new beginning, but then there was another schedule change. School ended at 3:50, which was a plus for many of the students. We enjoyed the class length and the opportunity to still do activities outside of school, without it being too late in the evening.
The classes may have been a little shorter, but many of the students found they were still able to learn and absorb everything in the time given.
Summer ended, and we returned to the most “normal” year we’ve had in the past three. When our schedules were released, we were excited to see our friends, but our happiness quickly drained after viewing the new schedule.
The passing periods are really short and getting from point A to B takes extremely long time.
— Mateja Rowton ‘24
It’s just annoying to have a different schedule every year.
— Medora Peltier ‘23
It’s a lot like less free time at lunch.
— Jonah Schwinnen ‘25
Students were expected to go along with the change, but do we really agree with it?
We just don’t get it. What’s been wrong with the schedules that have made them change them so many different times? We find it interesting that every year the school seems to find something to dislike about the schedule.
Many people disagree with the shorter lunches. People prefer when there are longer lunches, especially on block days, so they have extra time to get homework done, and to leave campus for lunch. But now, students barely have time to eat.
The schedule was also disruptive to their day-to-day life. Many people find the start and end times of the classes unusual, resulting in them being late to class.
While we do understand why the school extended our release time by 30 minutes last year, we find it odd, seeing as that the student feedback was extremely positive for when school ended earlier.
How many times can a new schedule be put in place before one is finally suitable for everyone?
