There’s no doubt that many Berkley students are devastated with the new policy that eliminated the option of reduced schedules. This all started last spring when an email was sent out to the BHS community informing everyone about the new rule regarding reduced schedules. Meghan Ashkanani, Berkley School District’s Director of Teaching, explained that the Michigan Department of Education had changed its guidelines and no longer allows students in Michigan to take less than six classes per semester. Berkley can only offer reduced schedules on a case-by-case basis from now on. While this will be a huge adjustment for many people, some Berkley seniors were interviewed as a way to help students navigate this new schedule change.
Some seniors have decided to take a direct study instead of their reduced hour. This is when a student chooses one teacher they want to partner up with to create their own class with a topic of their choice. First, senior Annalia Rayo was interviewed, who shared that she is “taking a directed study with Ms. Nixon all about plant sciences.” When Rayo was asked why she chose a directed study, she expressed that she “wanted to get another science in because I want to be a landscape architect, so since Berkley doesn’t offer any other sciences, I want to feel better prepared and learn about plants.” Rayo added that she is very happy with her choice because “I get to share my knowledge with others. I am excited to do my final experiment and show off everything I have learned.” Finally, when asking Rayo if she still wishes she could have a reduced, she said, “I am kind of glad I got to do a directed because I wanted my application to look more rigorous, I can also balance my AP workload, and I will be better prepared for college.”
Next, Madi Bonsall, another Berkley senior, was interviewed. Bonsall has a directed study with Jessica, the athletic trainer. When Bonsall was asked why she chose this route rather than an elective, she expressed that, “I chose to do a directed study with the athletic trainer because I am interested in physical therapy and thought it’d be good to learn how to work with athletes.” Bonsall adds on by saying that she “is very happy with her decision because I am learning a lot of different things like how to tape/wrap and what high school sports look like behind the scenes.” Overall, Bonsall is glad she took advantage of this opportunity because even though she didn’t get a reduced, “some days we don’t even have class, so it’s almost like a reduced. When we do have class, we practice taping and get supplies ready for football, volleyball, and swim teams. It’s a lot of fun!”
Online classes are another option that students can explore. Berkley offers many different online courses through Michigan Virtual, a nonprofit organization that provides online learning courses for students, teachers, and school districts in Michigan. Senior Aynsley Smith was interviewed, who is taking Anthropology through Michigan Virtual. She said that she “decided to take an online course rather than an elective because I wanted to take a different class that wasn’t offered at Berkley. I thought taking an online class would be a way to have something a little different in my schedule while still learning a new subject.” When Smith was asked why she chose to take Anthropology, she expressed that she “chose this class because anthropology and the evolution of humans has always been interesting to me.” Smith is very happy with her decision “because I still get a break in my day where I can go home, but still learn about a subject that interests me.” Although Smith still would have preferred a reduced, she revealed that she “is happy with this opportunity to learn about a subject that I would usually not be able to learn about.”
Senior Evan Haenick was also interviewed about his online class. He is taking Mathematics of Baseball because he thinks that “it is a good mix of baseball, which I like a lot, and learning about the stats and decisions that coaches make.” Haenick chose this route because “I wanted to take a class that sounded more interesting than the electives, and I also wanted to be able to go home for 6th hour.” Haenick added that he is happy with his decision because since it is an online class, “there isn’t a lot of extra work I have to pile onto my workload from other classes.” He also thinks that it is “cool to be introduced to a new subject that I wouldn’t normally be able to learn about.”
Finally, students are also able to choose from a variety of different options for electives. One unique option is Forensic Science, which senior Jessie Burns is taking. Burns chose this course “so I could be exposed to a class unlike any class I’ve ever taken. I think it’ll be fun to learn about crime and detect criminals.” She expressed that “this class is a bit easier because it’s a good balance, and I expect to have less work than my other classes. I like being productive in this class while not having much outside of school work.” Burns is very intrigued with this class and happy with her decision. She shares that even though she couldn’t get a reduced, this class doesn’t overwhelm her at all!
Another option for an elective class is weight training, which senior Gretchen Stief chose to take. Stief chose this class because “out of all of the other classes, although it may be one of the easier options, it is the most helpful because it will teach me how to exercise better.” Stief is happy with her choice because “I have a lot of my friends in it, and I like starting my morning off with a workout. It’s also helpful because it shows me how to properly workout where before I didn’t really know what I was doing.” Although Stief still wishes she could have a reduced, she is having so much fun in this class and can’t wait to see what else it will teach her.
Hopefully this article served as a guide to you about how to tackle this new schedule change. While you may still be upset about not being able to get a reduced, these are some really great options that you should consider exploring.
