As a way to help students pick their courses, the Bruin Block committee has created the Bruin Block Course Fair, which will be Jan. 22. The committee’s goal was to make registration more personal to each student.
Helping to organize the fair along with the committee, student support counselor Melissa Coil said the course fair would allow students time to talk to teachers about classes they are interested in taking.
“It’s time not rushed between classes or before or after school to really communicate and promote the courses they teach,” Coil said. “This way all kids at the fair get the same message straight from the source.”
Students attending the course fair will receive a map of all courses being presented. Guidance, the activities office and the athletic department will also have booths to answer enrollment and sports questions.
Having taught at RBHS for four years, Katherine Sasser, AP World teacher, will be hosting a general AP informative booth at the fair. One of the things she will be explaining at her booth, she said, is the difference between taking an honors class compared to AP courses, which is something some students confuse.
“I think it’s just helpful in clearing up any misconceptions that students have about certain courses and help connect with students,” Sasser said. “[I think it will help teachers to] really get more of an understanding of what questions students have when they are thinking about classes to enroll in.”
Sasser will also be addressing questions about AP classes like receiving college credit, what the course means, and exams. AP classes are much more fast paced and intensive compared to regular courses, she said.
For many teachers presenting, the of the most exciting part of the fair is the opportunity it brings students. Deanna Fancer, the My Cuisine and Child Development class teacher, will host a booth about the courses she teaches. During her presentation she will explain all the different things students will be doing in her classes whether that be cooking or learning how to be responsible.
She thinks the fair offers a great range of new opportunities for students, one of them being the information they can learn about courses they may take. Fancher also said the fair can help sort through any misunderstandings students have about how a class should benefit them.
“We know what we teach and what we need to do with our classes,” Fancher said. “I think you can ask students, but they don’t always have a really great idea of what we’re trying to teach them. [Yes] they get to eat, [but] there is a bigger purpose behind our classes than just getting to eat.”
Fancher believes the fair will bring exposure to courses students might not have known about. The CACC has something similar to the fair to promote their classes, like the CACC Showcase and the tour students take during advisory where they can meet teachers and learn about courses, while some teachers have to rely on word of mouth to get their class known.
Both Fancher and Sasser said they look forward to seeing the course fair again in years to come, and find it something everyone at RBHS can benefit from.
“I hope that it is going to be something that we continue to do,” Sasser said. “I think it will be contingent on teachers really taking it and getting excited about it and setting up booths that are appealing and interactive. [I think] it could be a really cool thing.”
By Grace Vance
Photo by Renata Williams
Are you looking forward to the Bruin Block Course Fair?