Staff Writer
Paige Wilson

At the beginning of the school year all students came to see some changes at the school whether it was the new bell system or shorter water fountains. However for the class of 2011 changes began at the very beginning of their high school career.

The junior class was welcomed with a series of new changes right when they walked through the doors of Coppell High School. It started with the 4×4 plan which added the number of classes students would have to take.

When I was in middle school I envied my brother to the extreme during his senior year, his relaxed schedule of only three periods at the high school and sleeping late almost every morning was to die for. I couldn’t wait till my senior year. Even my friends who are seniors enjoy early release every day.

When senior year comes for my class it is more time at the school with extra math and science courses. The purpose was to help students be more prepared for college. It mostly just angers students of how close they were to the dreamy blow off year called senior year.
One good thing to come from it is no more senioritis. We will be too busy to even get a chance to think about it.

I guess I could understand the purpose of an extra year of math because it is a basic that we will use for our ongoing life. It might not be trigonometry or calculus but I will admit it does serve some purpose.

But science on the other hand I don’t see it serving any purpose in less you want to have a career in the science fair and if you were even planning on having a career in that field you would have already picked that course in the first place.

Not only do we have extra classes but, the classes we had to do such as Teen Leadership are not required for incoming students.

Maybe our class is just plain unlucky. The junior class seems to get stuck with unnecessary requirements by the state such as random TAKS testing.

Our class was the first to participate in new programs at the school. The junior class was to first to have the option to be involved in New Tech and International Baccalaureate. Maybe we are just guinea pigs for the district. Teachers can test new curriculum on our class and tweak from results.

Administration feels these changes are for the best. Principal Brad Hunt is egger to see how these changes will affect Coppell High School off of the campus.

“This will help Texas be competitive nationally and internationally,” Hunt said.

These changes were made to prevent to blow off year or how it is better known as senioritis. Students who take advantage of a “blow off year” have caused students to go through a struggle of adjusting to college life due to what was basically a year of summer vacation.

The changes have their benefits but, a relaxed senior year is almost in a way a tradition at Coppell. Why is it our class where it all has to change? The junior class is just unlucky. It had to change some year and unfortunately it was ours.

So whether we are guinea pigs or just purely unlucky we can kiss any dream of a blow off year good bye.