Just when students thought this school year couldn’t face more change, a new schedule enters the picture. School assemblies previously meant lost class time; this year, however, the RBHS administration is trying to avoid seizing teachers time to teach by adding the “like days” scheduling.
The homecoming assembly is Friday, Oct. 25, an A day. On Monday and Wednesday, there will be no Bruin Block and a shorter lunch for juniors and seniors. Each block will be longer than usual to compensate for the class time that will be lost for the assembly. Tomorrow, RBHS will follow the assembly schedule, meaning no Bruin Block and students’ lunch shifts will depend on their second hour class.
The schedule will be an adjustment for both students and teachers.
“Basically what a ‘like day’ is, it means that whatever day the assembly is, A or B day, the days that are like that, so also A days or also B days, we do not have Bruin Block,” director of student activities David Bones said. “For example, the homecoming assembly on the 25th is an A day. That’s a ‘like day’ schedule that week, so we don’t have Bruin Block Monday or Wednesday, which are the other A days. Tuesday and Thursday are B days, so they’re the same schedule as always.”
The Columbia Area Career Center schedule will also be different next week, although it will not follow the “like days” schedule. CACC teachers will lose time in class on Friday but will not get it back. Although it’s not necessarily ideal, broadcast journalism teacher Joe Wittman is understanding of the assembly scheduling.
“You just adjust things, you move things around. You still get the same stuff done, you just have to do it in a different time frame,” Wittman said. “I don’t see it as a big deal. I think it’s a valuable time for kids’ to have their own time to do homecoming events, which are important. School events are kind of what high school’s all about; kids having fun, being with their friends.”
Juniors and seniors are used to having an hour for lunch now; next week, they will switch back to having only about half an hour for their lunch break. They’ll have to plan their lunch period accordingly to make it back to class on time. The “like days” schedule means students used to their long lunch won’t be able to spend it doing what they may normally prefer.
“I’m upset about the schedule because instead of maybe going to the media center for lunch to get some extra homework done. I won’t have the time to do that and eat,” senior Erin Concannon said. “Also, I won’t be able to hang out with my friends for long during lunch when it’s the only time I can hang out with some. The classes are longer, so I think the teachers are going to get bored, and we won’t have as much to do [to fill the time] during those classes because we’re already used to the usual timing.”
For underclassmen who are accustomed to having Bruin Block every day, this change requires similar adaptation. Bruin block provides the underclassmen time to take a break and not really be in a class. Next week, they will have to stray from their normal routine on Monday and Wednesday.
“I’d rather have Bruin Block than have extra time in classes,” said sophomore Reece Adkins, “because in Bruin Block we don’t have to learn new things really. That would just be too tiring if you add more time on to other classes.”
By Molly Mehle
What do you think of the proposed schedule?
