Seniors Being Exempt From Finals

 

A much debated topic on whether senior students should be exempt from taking finals happens every year as seniors finish off their last week as high school students. Senior year of high school is the most exciting but stressful year of all.  During the first semester seniors start to send out applications for colleges and figuring out what they want to do for the rest of their life. Towards the end of the school year when things start to slow down and many seniors get a bad case of “senioritis” which is a disease that includes laziness and repeated absences. Finals count as 10% towards the overall grade for that class. Most seniors have been accepted to one or more colleges or universities. It should be a reward for seniors that have achieved a sufficient grade in their class.

When second semester starts to roll around all the students have already checked out and are ready for the warm weather. Finals count as a huge grade of the average grade for class, which can affect their grades immensely. Luckily for seniors their second semester isn’t being looked at by colleges. Erin Kennedy states “Considering the fact that your work of second semester doesn’t go towards your GPA, you shouldn’t have to be tested on it with a final.”  There shouldn’t be a finally if it’s not going to count towards something for the real world. A student from Norton High School Ryan Iannotti says” Yes, cause what’s the point for them to them at all? They’re already accepted into whatever college they’re going to, so who cares” Not saying that all seniors should be exempt. If some students are not meeting the state requirements in order to graduate high school then they should have the option to take the final or not.  

At most high school seniors are exempt from finals when they have reached a satisfactory grade in their class. Students should require to get an 80 average or above to be exempt. Also students should get an option to take the final if they want to improve their overall average, but it shouldn’t be mandatory.  A junior at Norton High School, Nicole Kiley, says “Yes (seniors should be exempt), they worked hard all year and shouldn’t have to spend their last few days in school taking finals!” Seniors work their butts off all year trying to get their GPA up and getting good grades in general. Summer is coming which means that they are almost done with school. They shouldn’t have such a stressful test on their shoulders. Some students are preparing for college life, pre graduation parties, and all the festivities of just being a senior.

However seniors at Norton High School are already being exempt from finals exams so it’s not a big deal in Norton. The only catch is that if seniors have an average of an A- or above. I believe that it should be lowered to a B- or above. Some underclassmen say that it’s not fair for seniors to be exempt and that they are required to take it no matter what their grades were. Underclassmen don’t have a say in anything that seniors do because they haven’t been there as long as the seniors have. Underclassmen’s opinions don’t count because they are underclassmen and haven’t been through the stress of applying to colleges, taking SATs and trying to maintain a high GPA for colleges to look at. It’s safe to say that after four years of high school it should be a senior privilege. 

Associated Press

I strongly believe that the government acted properly in the case of the AP obtaining two months of phone records of their reporters and editors. The government has the right to seize journalist’s records in the matters involving terrorism because it looking out for the safety of its people. We don’t want something like 9-11 or Boston bombings to happen again and people are saying that now but when something happens they’re going to blame the government.

One Tree Hill Review

A well known teen drama series, One Tree Hill, had a successful nine seasons over the past nine years. One Tree Hill follows four teenagers through their life in high school. There is a lot of partying, nudity, sex, parenthood, divorce, and romantic dramas. On the flip side it has positive messages and role models. Its’ just the whole package. Tree Hill is located in North Carolina. Its a small quiet town, but not quite like the people in it. Two half brothers that grew up separately because their father, Dan Scott, only acknowledge one child existence while the other lived a total opposite life with his mother. Basketball ties in the series all together. Lucas Scott(Chad Michael Murray) who is an outsider that is very shy but has an amazing  street hoop player. Fate compels him to play with his brother, Nathan Scott(James Lafferty), who is a jock and part of the high school basketball team as one of the best players that has ever played. Love triangles formed fast throughout the first season. Lucas falls for Peyton Sawyer(Nathan’s girlfriend). Brooke Davis(Peyton’s best friend) falls for Lucas, while Nathan falls for Haley James(Lucas’s best friend). The show shows ideal teenage situations like drinking and sex. These topics are taboo but they do happen. A character, Haley James, didn't believe in sex before marriage but the other did. Brooke Davis, captain of the cheerleading squad who is boy obsessed is all for sex and loves the attention which she doesn't get at home. Brooke is a lonely girl whose parents are always vacationing and never had any adult figure to watch over her. Nathan was the typical “jock”.  He partied and never really cared about his girlfriend and hooks up with random girls. Later on in the season Nathan tried to get back at Lucas for being on the team by getting closer to Haley to make him jealous. Who knew after a while that he began to fall in love with her? The show is not all about drama. Life lessons always play a major part of the script in each episode. One Tree Hill gives teens somebody to relate to and makes them to think a different way than they normally would. And shows kids are not alone in their situation.

Boston Marathon Bombing

On Monday April 15, 2013 one of the world’s best known road racing events, The Boston Marathon, had a tragic ending. As the elite runners crossed the finish line two bombs went off. The first explosion happens at 2:50 p.m. The second explosion happened ten seconds after only 550 feet away. Three were killed including an eight year old boy and over 260 people were injured. The two suspects of the Boston were Tamerlan Tsamaev,26, and Dzhokhar Tsamaev,19.

      In President Obama speech he said "Boston is a tough, resilient town and so are its people.” He couldn’t have said it any better. The Bruins hosted the Sabres in Boston’s first professional sporting event since The Boston Marathon bombing. Rene Rancourt came out and sang the national anthem. The whole crowd at the game took over and sang with so much heart. It was one of the best and bone chilling anthems I’ve ever heard. Everyone seemed so proud to sing along. Five days later there was a shooting in Watertown with the Boston Bombing suspects. Tamerlan Tsamaev was killed in the shoot off with the police. Dzhokhar Tsamaev was found later on that Friday night. After a long day of the man hunt that happened. Watertown was under lock down. No one could go to work or leave their homes. Police from all over the state and some surround states came over and helped with the man hunt. They set up a 20 block perimeter in Watetown and searched through every house. A resident from Watertown went outside that night and saw that there was blood on his boat. He checked what was causing it and he found Dzhokhar Tsamaev wounded in the neck. He contacted the police and they took thermal photos to see if Tsamaev was in there. They took a robotic cane to remove the top of the boat off.

I thought that the federal government shouldn’t have been involved of the manhunt for Dzhokhar Tsamaev because they were all the way in Washington D.C. They came and took over the jobs of the Boston police. The federal government set up a 20 block perimeter while the suspect was found on block 21. The person who found the suspect wasn’t even a police or any type of authority. It was a citizen who was checking on his boat. During the ban no one was allowed to leave their homes it shows that Boston people are stubborn but get things done. If the Federal government wasn’t involved then other countries would think that the United States doesn’t care about its people.

Powerpoint

http://prezi.com/jnqmd1urayjk/copy-of-copy-of-untitled-prezi/?kw=view-jnqmd1urayjk&rc=ref-11794045

Same sex marriage debate

The latest news story that has been buzzing around is the same sex marriage bill in the United Sates. Since same sex marriage has been in the politic radar for a while now the Supreme Court decided to take a hearing in the same sex marriage in December of 2012. Massachusetts was the first state the legalized same sex marriage.  California legalized same sex marriage on June 16, 2008, but by the Supreme Court of California it ended that year on November 5 due to an amendment violation. 38 U.S states have banned same-sex marriage. The majority of Americans who are younger than 30 seem to be more supportive of the same sex marriage than the elders. With the younger generation of kids homo sexuality has became an accepted lifestyle nowadays. A 17 year old senior at Norton High School Brittany Kenyon says, “Yes I feel that the Supreme Court should legalize same-sex marriage in all the states. I believe that the couples should have that decision of being married not the states.” Many celebrities have been open about their sexuality like Ellen DeGeneres. Kenyon says, “People shouldn’t be so judgmental all the time. If Massachusetts passes the same-sex marriage then the rest of the states should. I have an uncle and brother who are gay. They’re the same person to me. I still love them the same even though they like different sexes. I support their decisions. Young people grew up with a protest and are unfazed by gay marriage.”

 “Hopefully gay marriage will pass because it’s for the better. And some people’s attitude will change about gay marriage. One day it will change,” Says the 17 year old. Most elders do not support this movement. They grew up religiously or don’t think its “normal” for two of the same genders to like each other.

 A 50 year old elder said, “I think that they shouldn’t pass the same-sex marriage. I was raised up to believe that marriage should between a man and a woman. And not any other variations of that. In the bible we have been taught that God wanted men and women to be together not.” The 50 year old year grew up with going to church every Sunday with his family. “I feel like it’s a waste of time because nothing is ever going to change. This is not normal for the same genders to like each other.”  Statistics show that same sex marriage as grown.  “I do know people who like the same sex but I don’t associate with people like that a lot,” says the 50 year old.  Later he adds “These relationships are not supporting the family values that we have all been taught.  Since they have a non ability to reproduce naturally.” It only takes a matter of time until something gets changed because the statistics are going up

School Uniforms

School uniforms have been a raging controversial topic for ages now. The trend had started in many public schools since the late 90’s. They have a many pros and cons. Can uniforms be more of a good or bad thing? In my opinion having uniforms is an excellent idea. For most teenage girls picking out an outfit in the morning is one of the stressful things to do. There are so many clothes to choose from and making sure that everything goes together. It’s hard to dress to impress. This helps reduce judgment of students because everyone are wearing the same outfit.  It releases stress and saves time in the morning because there aren’t a lot of clothes to choose from. A sophomore student from Coyle Cassidy High School, Gianna Fistori, says. “They’re easier because I don’t have to pick out outfits and it’s less stress because everyone looks the same and no one is getting judge for what they wear.” In the economy we’re in now it would help break down the social barriers at school. Economically speaking parents less money on their children’s clothing compared to school supplies. It would be easier if they just bought uniforms it would save more money. Some students feel that they are pressured into buying designer brand clothes just to fit in with their friends.  Statics show that when Long Beach, CA adopted school uniforms in 1995 the overall crime rate dropped by 91%. As of 2009 in the United States, 21 states with public school systems require their students to wear uniforms.  A survey of Teachers regarding the implemented use of school uniforms shows that 95% of the teachers “Agree” or “Strongly Agree” that uniforms have promoted positive student behavior. Also according to statistics 81% of teachers “Agree” or “Strongly Agree” that it has minimized disruption and distractions. Having uniforms might not be such a bad idea. It depends how strict the dress code is because some schools are. Most school allows students to accessorize. Schools let students wear any type of shoes and accessories that they want. That’s where individuality would come in. Everyone is wearing the same thing, but they can be different by little things. A junior at Norton High School, Erin Kennedy, says “I wouldn’t mind them cause they take no time to pick out in the morning but I must be allowed to accessorize!” Overall, uniforms might not as be as bad as people make it out to be.