For some students, there is nothing better than knowing that they get another opportunity, another chance. Others like the idea of having a change of pace. Second semester provides them with these things and more.
One of the parts about second semester is being able to start completely blank again. It doesn’t matter how well or poorly a student did in the first two marking periods or on their exam. Everyone has that one bad test early on in the beginning of the year that just seems to hold them back from achieving their desired grade. The good news is all of that is worthless now. To some students, this can be a very refreshing thought.
“It’s cool to think that there is nothing from first semester lingering around, that cause me to work that much harder to get my grade back to where I want it to be,” junior Jason Chang said.
Second semester also gives students the chance to set or raise standards for themselves. Depending on if a student did poorly or well in a class first semester, they can make personal goals. If a student did well, their goal could be keeping their work ethic up and maybe challenge themselves even further by pursing a more difficult or time requiring role in that class.
On the other hand, if a student looks at their first semester grades and are disappointed, knowing that they could do better, they can use the second semester as a trial and error period, where they adjust their habits in order to improve their grades. For some, this could be going in early to get additional help from teachers, or simply being in class, paying attention and doing their homework.
“Looking back at it, there is some things I could have done differently,” junior Mark Debney said. “Hopefully I can change those things which will make my life a little easier and less stressful.”
Other students like the change in pace. Students have been going to same classes, having to deal with the same teachers, Monday through Friday since early September. This routine can get boring and make students unmotivated to work, especially if a student doesn’t like a particular teacher or their teaching style. For a majority of students, second semester brings a change in schedule, where they could get classes at different hours, or new teachers, or a new semester class. This is a good thing because it prevents students from getting back into the same routine after break.
“I’m excited for next semester because my schedule is changing and all my hard classes are going to be at the end of the day,” junior Kevin Scott said. “This is good because I’ll actually be awake when I need to be.”
Seniors stereotypically view second semester as a time to slack off before college. They don’t see the point in working if they have already been accepted into the college of their choice. This, however, is not the case for senior Joseph Yarosh. Even though he is already been accepted into his school of preference, he continues to work hard and challenge himself because he doesn’t see the point in slacking off.
“I don’t understand why students would want to take second semester as a joke,” Yarosh said. “Why would anyone want to develop bad work habits that they are taking on with them to college?”
Second semester can mean a lot to all kinds of people. Each one of them look at it differently, depending on where they are in life and what their personal goals are. The one thing they all agree on is one of the best things about second semester is knowing that they‘re that much closer to summer vacation.
