By Kate Hamilton, Online Editor-In-Chief

The A/B day schedule was created this year to have maximum flexibility for students and teachers. It was intended to make more challenging classes easier by having them spread out over the year. While it may seem like a great concept, it doesn’t work.

When you are a senior, you look forward to that easy schedule and a free period. But due to the A/B day schedule, these two things are not in reach for many seniors. 

Being dual-enrolled through the College of the Albemarle requires students to sit in the library while they complete their classes unless they have a modified schedule. You can only request a modified schedule if you have COA classes at the beginning or end of the day. That means if any student has these classes during second or third period, while also having a first and fourth period in the building, they are required to stay the entire school day. 

The reason for this is due to a new protocol that now requires students to enter the school building once a day. 

For COVID-19 precautions, the school wants to make sure kids wear their masks all day and promote social distancing. Yet students can spend up to three and a half hours in the library when they could easily be completing their work at home. 

Some students have completely different schedules each day. This is leaving students at school all day for one day, and then with one class the next day. This is confusing and complicated. 

This new schedule could make it easier for some students who have more rigorous courses to have some of their classes spread out in a whole year, but it shouldn’t be required for all students to do this schedule.

Some students are now forced to take a class year-long that they know they could easily take in a semester. They are now dreading attending the class and learning the material over the next year. 

The teachers have also been impacted by this new schedule. They have to keep track of the different days and make sure they have all the materials for each class. Students have witnessed teachers flustered by the different class schedules and figuring out what students they will be teaching each day.

Along with the teachers, the students have to keep track of the schedule and make sure they are going to the right classes that day. Walking into the wrong class is embarrassing on its own, but now it’s a more frequent event because of the new schedule. 

In past years, we had a regular 5-block schedule. This didn’t leave teachers confused with what materials they needed for each class and students were confident with what class they needed to be in each day. It was a schedule that was consistent and easy to follow.

Why try to fix something that wasn’t broken? Our previous schedule was convenient and much easier. We don’t need more change after a crazy past year. 

Senior Kate Hamilton can be reached at 22hamiltonka86@daretolearn.org.