Lexi Rosas | editor-in-chief

At this point, just about every senior has checked out; they are skipping classes and ignoring homework, but the majority of us spent the past years focusing on grades and managing to keep our heads above the metaphorical water that is school. Yet many have beaten us to the punch-this time. It’s those that came into the school system checked out. They’re still among us, mingling with the population of doers or have-done-ers, the kids that never did (and won’t) get class or school or homework quite figured out.

First, let us discuss the way a classroom works. The teacher is the leader and we are his or her underlings. They lead, we follow. They are (essentially) the experts and we are there to learn. To question a bit of information in an attempt gain clarity, is encouraged and even necessary in a classroom environment, but to ask nonsensical questions with no plausible answer or to endlessly attempt to outsmart the instructor proves fruitless…unless your goal is to turn every member of the class against you.

Homework, I know that it can be wearing-especially as a senior, but I am acutely aware of its value and it’s weight in a class. Are you? Or, were you that student that has always and will always refuse to turn in that simple worksheet or two paragraph response?

Expert Tip: Turning in your work is the easiest way to boost your grade and get the teacher to stop acting like a leech- constantly pestering you and reminding you of your failure.

Finally, it is time to decipher this machine we call school. You wake up and go to your first period (8:45 am for most of us), you take the notes and do the assignments and then you have a whole five minutes to get to the following class. On occasion, there will be assemblies or meetings, but for the most part the system requires you to muddle through eight classes until the final bell at 4:05 pm. For the majority of the student population, that five minute passing period becomes something that is innate- a biological timer. For the others, that timer is still not in sync; it is a time for sonic trips and naps. And guess what – showing up ten plus minutes late to class everyday is an act that gets old. Your classmates will stop covering for you and even the sweetest of teachers will stop turning a blind eye to this endless cycle.

College is a good time to be better, it’s a good time to change. Take that to heart and good luck.