Registration for classes next year has already begun.
The Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) made many changes in this process. Among these changes are MSHSAA changing eligibility requirements, as well as the counselors’ changes in the registration process.
MSHSAA recently changed the number of required credits from two and a half credits to three credits. If students want to be eligible for sports or other school-sponsored activities, they must be enrolled in at least three credits of classes per semester.
“For making appropriate progress for graduation, students need three credits a semester,” Associate Principal Dan Gutchewsky said. “Students need more than two and a half credits a semester in order to fulfill the graduation requirement of 24 credits. Two and a half credits per semester won’t have you graduate on time. Three credits do.”
Last year, registration was completed online. This year, the school counselors are using the old-fashioned pencil and paper method to sign students up for classes.
“We don’t have a scheduling Naviance anymore,” counselor Alice Morrison said. “This is because we decided to switch to pen and paper. We are comparing the two systems, and then we will determine which one is a better fit for CHS students.”
According to Gutchewsky, the online process was more complicated than it should have been last year.
“CHS has multiple courses, as well as teacher recommendations and prerequisites that just made the online registration program inefficient,” Gutchewsky said. “The sheer time encompassing every situation required more manual work than handwritten work. It seemed easier just to do it using a paper-based method.”
Junior Moira MacDougal likes the pencil and paper method better than the online system, as there were multiple problems that occurred when she used the Naviance program.
“The online system just didn’t work,” MacDougal said. “There were problems with adding honors versus non-honors, and zero-hour classes. This caused a lot of stress for me, so I’m really glad that I was able to physically plan and write out what I wanted my schedule to be next year. I need to be able to mess around and plan out my desired schedule on paper. That’s just how I work. I understand the desire to have a quicker, more environmentally friendly method of registration, but it has to be a better, more user-friendly system.”
Sophomore Xiaoya Wu likes the pencil and paper method better than the online version since she is more of a visual person.
“Although the online version was faster, the pencil and paper way actually lets you visually see your schedule rather than having a bunch of drop-down lists,” Wu said. “Since I am a visual person, it’s easier for me to see the placement of the classes when they are on the same sheet in a grid in front of me.”
Junior Gabrielle Morris is glad that the counselors made the switch to the old-fashioned pen and paper method as well.
“Online registration was okay, but sometimes it was confusing,” Morris said.
However, sophomore David Mayer takes a more neutral stance of choosing between the paper-based method and the online version, but he thinks that altogether the new method is less confusing.
“I think that using the papers instead of the online system didn’t change much,” Mayer said. “If anything, it made it easier, since one of the classes I want to take next year might be an independent study class, so I was able to write that down on paper, whereas with the online sign-up, I may not have been able to do that.”
This year, teachers were given two days to recommend classes to students, a change.
“Teachers wanted to give students all the possible options for next year,” Morrison said. “CHS has a student-run schedule. Whatever students sign up for is what the teachers teach. If a lot of students sign up for a class, we have to gear up for it. If no one is interested in a class, we don’t teach that class. Teacher recommendation day is important because it not only shows you classes for upcoming years; it also the day when students choose what is being taught next year.”
Freshman Emma Riley is grateful that CHS offers so many unique classes that are taught based on student interest; in this way, teacher recommendation day was important.
“There’s such a wide array of classes,” Riley said. “I feel like I can start anywhere. In fact, I always wanted to learn piano, and now I get to take it in school. I’m really grateful because I know that not very many schools can afford to offer students such a wide variety of classes.”
Morris is glad there were two days for teacher recommendations, because the registration process is more important as an incoming senior.
“Seniors don’t get to drop classes,” Morris said. “If they do, they have to inform the colleges and talk to the college counselors. It’s really important that the teachers give students a chance to talk about all the subjects.”
MacDougal agrees that scheduling classes is really important as an incoming senior, so she appreciated the guidance given to her by her teachers on teacher recommendation day.
“As a senior, I want a course load that is challenging, interesting, but one that wouldn’t burn me out,” MacDougal said. “I needed guidance on how much homework my perspective classes would be giving, and how challenging they were. Since I am looking to apply to very specific programs within colleges, I also need to develop a portfolio of my work. As I’m applying to colleges, I want to know that I have the perfect schedule that shows off my interests and strengths. Having the input of teachers who have gotten to know me and my needs as a student is really invaluable.”
Sophomore Marguerite Daw also thinks positively about the teacher recommendation day.
“You get to know what the best class for you is,” Daw said. “The teachers know your strengths and abilities, so they’ll recommend the best fit for you. You also get to see your whole schedule planned out, a plus.”
Mayer agrees with Daw’s view on teacher recommendation day.
“It was pretty helpful, even though I knew most of the classes I was taking next year,” Mayer said. “I was also able to learn a little more about the possible choices I had.”
Sophomore Matt Mikesic thinks differently, taking a much more neutral point about teacher recommendations and their influence in his class choices.
“Teachers already know in their heads if you are going to the higher or lower level classes,” Mikesic said. “To me, it didn’t make much of a difference in my class choices for my schedule next year.”
Freshman Hanna Park agrees with Mikesic’s neutral point.
“Teacher recommendations were something I had to do,” Park said. “They weren’t exactly helpful or unhelpful for planning my classes. I already knew what I was going to take, and my teachers were okay with my choices.”
However, Morrison warns that teacher recommendation day is important when deciding for next year’s classes.
“When students change classes, it throws off what we planned for,” Morrison said. “Students should be aware of that and plan their classes accordingly.”