An Ineffective System
One of my first memories of Notre Dame was choosing my classes. The day I met with my counselor to create my schedule, my feelings were jumbled. I was thrilled with the variety of classes available, nervous I would choose wrong, and confused by the many acronyms (VAPA? STEM? AP?). Mostly, I was grateful I had my counselor there to guide me. Such guidance was not unique; each freshman meets with their counselor before school begins to choose their classes and to gain “comprehensive support,” as the Notre Dame website states. This effective method of choosing classes does not continue beyond freshman year, however, which can cause confusion and disappointment for many students.
In the current system, students are given presentations in mid-January by their teacher in each subject. Science teachers talk about next year’s science options, English teachers talk about next year’s English options, and so on. Around the same time, a PowerSchool portal opens that allows students to choose what classes they want to take. Though students are informed as to what classes are offered, this advice does not consider students individually, nor does it take into account the classes they actually will be able to take based on the requirements.
After students submit their class requests, their counselor reaches out to them to go over the schedule they have debated over and settled on. Unlike the freshman meeting, students go in with a plan and a hope for the classes they want to take. This system often sets up the students for disappointment though, because their counselors may have to upend those plans because of an overlooked graduation requirement or prerequisite. Since students aren’t able to openly communicate about their plans with their counselors until the end of the process, they may get their heart set on schedules that aren’t actually attainable for them.
Why must this happen though? The system of choosing classes in tandem with counselors works well with the freshman class. Students are already meeting with their counselors, so there would be no extra time demand — It would just require these meetings to happen in the beginning of the process, so that students can make these decisions with the counselor, not on their own. This would greatly decrease the number of students and counselors who find themselves at an impasse, fostering more effective communication without the extra challenge of working around student’s pre-solidified expectations. Our counselors have an immense job, and they strive to give personal attention to each of the numerous students they counsel. At least one function of their job could become much more effective, if we just change this system.
