When I entered high school I knew I wanted to do more at school than just any ordinary student. I wanted to get myself involved because getting involved in so many different programs makes the high school experience so much more enjoyable and memorable.
Now that I am a senior, I look back on the past few years and I know that I don’t have any regrets. Through my extra-curricular activities I have met so many friends, but I couldn’t have participated in these without the committment of my teachers.
Unfortunately within the past year, things have changed and not for the better. As a result of the Board of Ed’s decisions about the budget, teachers are once again not being paid the money they deserve. The result? Teachers drop the activities that they sponsor and chaperone, not because they want to, but because they want to send a message. The outcome? Students don’t get to be involved in things they enjoy doing and that provide a social and extracurricular outlet for them.
I want to be very clear that I don’t blame the teachers for their decision to eliminate and modify their programs . The heart of the problem is the Board of Ed.
If the men and women on the board would honor the contract teachers have, if the job i of a teacher was valued by those in power, students would not have to suffer.
For those who don’t think students are paying the ultimate price for the board’s actions, think again. For the first time in over 10 years, the drama 3 Blackbox plays have been cut. The point of Drama 3 is to rehearse and perform plays to put on for the public outside of school hours. So whats’ the point of having the class if we can’t have plays?!?
At other schools the art programs have been cut. For so many students getting up at the crack of dawn and knowing they get to paint or perform may be the only reason they drag themselves to school. Though these students might lack academically, they might be really talented in art or some other passion. Eliminating these programs only hurts the very people schools are supposed to nurture- the students.
For the first time in nearly 17 years, the well-known, one of a kind NH Peer Leadership Weekend will not take place. As one of the privileged students who was able to go to Peer Leadership Weekend two years ago I know what students are missing out on. The challenges and activities a student t faces on that weekend teaches them to communicate with others, work as a member of a team and provide healthy competition among the teams. These are life long skills that are valuable and necessary. The students at NH are missing a profoundly engaging experience and all indicators for why this event was cancelled point back to the board – again. The 16 teachers who attend the weekend VOLUNTEER 75 hours of their life for kids they believe in. And this year, those same teachers are taking a stand, not to penalize kids, but to shed light on the ever growing problems resulting from a board that doesn’t value the work they do, both inside and outside of a classroom.
Teachers are paid for the hours they work between 7:00 in the morning to 2:25 in the afternoon. Unfortunately, some of the most valuable learning and most important lessons are the ones students get to experience outside of these hours. Whether it is attending Peer Leadership Weekend, playing on a sports field, performing on a stage, painting a picture or helping the community through a school club, these activities teaches a student to become more responsible as they grow up. Whereas academics clearly takes precedence over anything else in school , these extra-curriculars need to still be offered. Without these activities it diminishes a child’s opportunity to become a well-rounded person to be successful as they go off into college and then into the real world.
I know that I am a senior; therefore, the problems within the county don’t really affect me because I am leaving within the next 6 months, but I have still have friends in the school, middle school siblings and hopefully one day children who will attend a Harford County school. I hope that one day they can attend Peer Leadership Weekend, participate in school clubs, play on sports teams and perform in plays, just like I did. But if Harford County continues to make poor decisions regarding contracts than I am afraid for those students who come behind me and what the future of this school system will look like.