It’s not just former students who think that high school is incredibly strange—some teachers are flabbergasted, too. For example, Michael De Main has been teaching in secondary schools for 16 years and he thinks that a lot of teachers accept things that are downright weird.
In Michael’s opinion, it’s bizarre that different high schools can choose to start and end classes at different times. So while one school might open at 8 AM, another might decide to start classes 15 minutes later. The same weirdness extends to periods that can last for 40, 50, or even 75 minutes, depending on school policy. Don’t even get us started on how breaks are not the same length, either.
Teacher Michael also questions whether we still need roll call—isn’t that time better spent, you know, actually learning things? Not to mention playground duty where a teacher has to stand around, watch the students play, and make sure that they don’t get into any trouble. And who can forget about toilet duty? Sure, teachers need to make sure that students aren’t getting into any trouble, but all of this seems a bit over the top, don’t you think?
However, according to Michael, the weirdest thing about high school might just be the students themselves who are hard to figure out even with all the experience in the world. Finally, let’s not forget about the basics: furniture. Some students still have to sit on uncomfortable chairs and use tiny desks, so it’s no wonder that some of them can’t pay attention!
When you look at everything, high school sure is a weird place. But I sure could go for some chocolate milk and a slice of pizza right about now.
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