The two-week period when sophomores and juniors select their courses for the next year is an important time at the Upper School, as students look ahead and consider what they want their remaining time at the school to look like. Prior to junior and senior year, most students have had little choice as to what classes they get to take, aside from a few electives each year. Everyone takes the same history, the same English and the same science. As upperclassmen, however, those set courses go away. All of a sudden, students have a choice as to what type of history class they take, which science subject they focus on and the English course they enroll in, in addition to other elective offerings. When navigating those choices, it can be easy to give in to pressure from parents, friends or siblings to take classes that they believe would look good on a college application. In the end, it is the student, not their parents, friends or siblings, who will take the courses, who will meet with the teachers at lunch or after school and who will sit through 75 minutes of class every other day. It is important for students to select their programs of study authentically — students should take time to consider what they enjoy learning about and choose courses that set them up to approach school with joy and curiosity.
The great thing about the school is that, because of its size and resources, it offers students an extremely wide and deep range of courses. In the humanities, there are classes dedicated to subjects ranging from Shakespeare to comparative government to intermediate German. In STEM, students can take economics, bioethics and marine biology. Sometimes, it can feel like there is pressure to be just one thing: an English person or a science person or a history person or a math person. When we box ourselves into one academic identity, we deny ourselves the chance to take advantage of all the amazing opportunities that the school has to offer. Someone who has locked themself into the idea that math is their ticket to a college acceptance letter might not take a language course they know deep down they are really interested in. Someone who thinks being great at French is the thing that will distinguish them from the thousands of other applicants at their dream college might opt out of taking a certain history class, even though they are fascinated by that period or region of the world. Rather than falling prey to peer and parental pressure to narrow one’s focus, students should let their course selections be led by their interests as opposed to a desire to curate their academic profile.
Making authentic academic choices means choosing courses because you think they seem interesting. Taking classes out of your own interest makes doing the homework and listening to the lectures not only an enjoyable experience but also an experience that you have ownership of because you made the decision to be there. When students make intentional decisions about what they want their curriculum to look like, they will try harder in their courses because they feel more of a connection to the class. The best thing to do is to take the classes that make you excited to come to school. Not only will you get a better grade in a class you actually care about because you will approach assignments and class participation with enthusiasm and genuine interest, but beyond grades, transcripts and college, you will also get that much closer to knowing what you want to learn, think, read and talk about. And what is the point of school if not to explore the breadth of your intellect and curiosity?
