By Yujia Song
What awaits next year’s freshmen at Rockbridge County High School is not only a maze of long corridors and classrooms bustling with activity. As eighth graders from Maury River Middle School found out from their campus tour, academic expectations are higher as well.
The tours last week were one of the series of events designed to ensure a smooth transition to the high school, said Carol Phemister, a guidance counselor at MRMS. A former counselor at RCHS, Phemister said the tours were introduced by the high school guidance department at least a decade ago. They give rising ninth graders a chance to familiarize themselves with the high school. Seniors act as guides, taking eighth graders through a wide range of elective classes from automotive technology to family and consumer science.
What leaves the biggest impression on the visitors is perhaps the sheer size of the school.
“I’m afraid I’m going to get lost the first day of school,” said Nikki Kyer.
Thomas Rivera, on the other hand, was a little worried about fitting into a whole new environment.
“Everything’s going to be different,” he said. For one thing, he had to care about “what other people think of me.”
His friend Mac Smiley had a different attitude, saying, “I like to go to a bigger place [and] meet new people.” The only problem was that he was not looking forward to the homework.
While some can shrug their shoulders like Clinton Kile and say, “I’m fine with it,” others may find the transition less than seamless. And teachers have good reasons to be concerned.
As RCHS is the only high school in the area, it combines students from all three middle schools in Rockbridge County and the City of Lexington.
According to eighth grade math teacher Lee McLaughlin, the number of students in one grade level increases from about 130 at MRMS to between 300 and 350 at RCHS. Getting to know all the new faces can be daunting.
Moreover, the break between classes would be “four minutes of mayhem,” McLaughlin said. And a student may need to go from one end of the building to another amid the chaos in such a short time.
Classes are also shorter at the high school, which means they are more intensive, said McLaughlin. At MRMS, each block of class lasts 90 minutes, allowing ample time for instruction and even homework. But the 55-minute classes at RCHS are conducted at a much higher pace. Students have to rely a lot more on themselves to complete their work, said McLaughlin.
With at least four core classes out of a total of seven every day, students will receive more homework than before, said Bryan Tolley, an eighth grade science teacher at MRMS.
Furthermore, it is not as easy to make it to the next grade level as before. At MRMS, a student can still be promoted if he or she fails a few classes, said Phemister. But over at RCHS, a minimum of a five credits is required to attain the next grade level. On top of that, students have to pass certain core courses before graduation.
Competing for students’ time is a vast range of extra-curricular activities offered at the high school. Apart from 28 athletic teams, there are clubs and organizations representing all kinds of interest from music, art to business and technology.
“There are so many more things to do,” said Tolley.
Precisely because teachers anticipate these changes for eighth graders, schools are working together to prepare the students for the transition. Taking place alongside the tours is the course registration process. Each student has to discuss the selection of ninth grade classes with Phemister.
Earlier on, a guidance counselor from
RCHS, Sarah Blackburn, came to MRMS to talk about the academic and
social aspects of high school.
Parents also help the children make adjustments. Some of them, like Sarah
Cunningham, attended the pre-registration night at the high school,
visiting classes and meeting with teachers.
Cunningham encouraged her daughter, Jenna, to participate in the summer
school PE program at RCHS. She said the experience of her two older sons
proved it an effective way to get to know the school.
Another parent, Cleive Adams, said the family often discusses his sons’
education together. Besides talking about the course selection, he said
he wanted to “put a purpose behind why [they’re] going to school.”
But after all, the next four years is in the hands of the rising ninth
graders. As their future guidance counselor Blackburn said, they are
expected to be more independent and responsible, and “take ownership of
[their] education a little more.”
Produced by Washington and Lee journalism students.
Lead supervisor: Prof. Claudette Artwick
Reporting supervisor: Prof. Doug Cumming
Editing supervisor: Prof. Pamela Luecke
Technical supervisor: Michael Todd