How could the course registration process at Sherwood be simplified?

How can students become more informed about offered classes?

With the first semester coming to a close, students will begin to look ahead to next school year. One of the most important decisions to be made is which classes to take. The course registration process at Sherwood seems simple, but there are actually multiple components to the process, some of which are flawed.

All non-seniors are given a course registration card to circle 14 course codes that create a schedule of seven classes per semester. However, it is difficult to construct a good schedule when one has no idea what some of the classes are. This is the case with many electives. Often, students will not even consider taking a certain elective because they are not informed on what the class is really about. Thus, students often overlook and miss out on taking an elective that they may find interesting and enriching. The current system places the responsibility of informing students about courses on a course fair that nobody really knows about and a course packet that students don’t even take the time to read. The ineffectiveness of these sources is likely attributed to their lack of advertisement and inconvenience.

A better way to inform students of various courses would be to create an online course catalog similar to what colleges do. The classes would be organized into their respective departments and teachers could provide a description of each class. Students could easily access the website and even view course syllabi. Another option is to make use of the morning announcements to inform students of various electives. Teachers could come on “Warrior Wake-Up Live” every once in a while to give a brief synopsis of what their class is all about and to whom it would appeal. Most students view the morning announcements daily, which is why it is a convenient platform for informing students of classes. If students have an easy access to information, they are more knowledgeable about their choices. Therefore, the course registration process becomes much easier.

Flaws also exist regarding counselors helping students pick classes. Because there are so many students and tasks to accomplish, counselors do not have the time to get a gauge of their students’ capabilities and interests. As a result, counselors often push students to take a course load that they cannot handle. Counselors encourage students to take AP classes because it will look good to colleges, but sometimes students are pressured into taking too many AP classes, and thus their grades suffer. Again, a website with class descriptions and catalogs could solve this problem. Students could read up on AP classes they are considering taking, and determine whether they feel they can be successful in the class or not. In addition, students could have the opportunity to take advice from peers who have already take a course. The site could have a comment section where students could interact and explain what they thought of a class or teacher.

The flaws of the course registration process are obvious but easy to mend. In general, the school must educate students on courses through a more convenient and credible source.