TEACHERS HOG HIGHLANDER TIME
OPINIONS
Teachers use students’ only break during school day to teach The staff editorial represents the opinion of the majority of The Highlander editorial board
H
igh school can be extremely overwhelming, and in our generation, stress levels are at an all-time high. At McLean, a student’s only break during the school day is being taken away from them by their teachers, which is completely unreasonable and must be addressed. “Highlander Time is a great way for teachers to review material, target specific skills to help students better understand content and provide support for students if they are struggling. It’s a great way for teachers to conference with students and check their progress,” assistant principal Jeffrey Barham said. While Highlander Time is very useful in these respects, many teachers take this too far. The purpose of Highlander Time is to give students a chance to catch up on work, meet with teachers individually or relax and take a break from their otherwise draining school day. According to Edutopia, students are easily distracted, but regular short breaks can help them focus, increase their productivity and reduce their stress. This is especially important at McLean, where many students
take on overwhelming schedules. Teachers who choose to teach through Highlander Time often claim that there isn’t enough time to cover all material in class, especially because of all the snow days we had during the winter. “If I’m teaching during Highlander Time it might be because we need to make up time, or to review material that I might ordinarily go over during class,” biology teacher Catherine Hott said. “I like it to be a time that I can work individually with students, but sometimes we need to use it to review material as a class.” If class time is used effectively, there should be enough time to cover all material. Fairfax County has built 18 snow days into the calendar, and less than half of them have been used this year. Even though some teachers abuse this time, other teachers choose to let students use Highlander Time as they wish, but are still available if students need individual help. “A lot of times, students go to other teachers to figure out when they can make up work or when they can get extra help, so if I’m teaching through Highlander Time, then they’re missing essential information in my class,” English teacher Bridget Donoghue said. According to the Fairfax County Youth Survey, an average of 42 percent of high
Reporting & page design by Emily Friedman | Comic by Jayne Ogilvie-Russell
school students reported high levels of stress in the past month. In addition to stress, 29.8 percent reported depressive symptoms in the past year. A break could give teens time to focus on how they’re feeling and destress.
“
STUDENTS PUT PRESSURE ON THEMSELVES WITH ACADEMICS AND EXTRACURRICULARS. HAVING THAT SMALL 30-MINUTE BREAK...IS EXTREMELY HELPFUL.” — BRIDGET DONOGHUE ENGLISH TEACHER
“I have to go see teachers a lot, especially meetings with counselors and administrators about things we can do around the school. I do that during Highlander Time, and it’s extremely difficult for me to get those things done when the teacher is teaching and I can’t leave,” freshman Atticus Gore said. A certain amount of material does need to be covered before SOLs and finals, but teaching during Highlander Time won’t solve this problem. If more material needs to be covered, then teachers can assign homework, which students can choose to do during Highlander Time. “Students put pressure on themselves with academics and extracurriculars. Having that small 30-minute break during the day is extremely helpful to let you guys socialize with your friends and have some fun during the school day,” Donoghue said. McLean students should stay on task during class in order to make sure teachers do not need to utilize Highlander Time to teach. In other words, Highlander Time should be a time that students can use however they want. If they choose to catch up on homework, then that is their decision, but the period should not be structured by a teacher. MAY | OPINIONS | 21
