High school is an excellent opportunity for teenagers to acquire study skills and try to formulate a plan as to what they want to do with the rest of their lives, but a valid question to consider is if four full years are really necessary. At Athens Drive, beginning at freshman orientation, older peers and teachers explain to incoming freshman that the choices one makes in high school will affect their college plans, career ideas and future life goals. High school is built towards working towards the future: if high schoolers generally know where they are headed senior year, should they stay and continue planning for the duration of the entire school year?
An impressive number of high school seniors have plans to attend a college after they graduate. Other seniors decide to start working immediately after completion of high school. Many universities notify early action applicants of their admissions decisions by December. The regular decision applicants and deferred students hear their fate by March. If seniors have to submit their GPAs, SAT or ACT scores, lists of extracurriculars, etc. by October or January, is there truly a point to second semester of high school, especially for those students later planning on attending a college?
An argument can be made both ways. On one hand, it is important that all seniors uphold the strong work ethics that they have created and perfected over the past three years. If students are planning on attending college, they need to make sure they do not fall out of practice of their impressive academic motivation. Second semester also provides some rewards to graduating seniors. Athens holds a senior breakfast, a senior show known as “Gradman,” opportunity to go on a senior trip, senior picnic, and the list goes on and on. A time for celebration is apparently in order to congratulate these individuals.
However, some seniors fall into a certain lull and question why they are still at school everyday, if they are already technically enrolled in a college for next year. Have students already worked hard enough and deserve some time off? Is it pointless for individuals who already know their after-high school plans to have to wake up at 7 a.m. every day?
The decision is made available to every student, with certain conditions met, if they would like to graduate a semester early. Many students, as well as adults, say that the last semester of high school is unnecessary and thus that all seniors should graduate early.
If a student has a plan in mind as to what he or she will do after high school, which students should have, I see no reason as to why they should not graduate early and start working towards that goal. If students are only coming to school to get a “check” in the attendance book, maybe all seniors should graduate early.
