Pioneer is swarming with freshmen. The halls and classrooms are full of newcomers. They might seem like every other person in their grade but behind their exteriors are completely different people, each dealing with a big new school in their own way.
The general idea of high school that people see in the movies and TV is rarely true, and that can bring surprises for freshmen. “High school was a bit different from what I imagined,” said Pioneer freshman Ellie Chu.
Many students say they had expectations of lots of homework and tests to the point where it would be overwhelming. This hasn’t been the case for a lot of freshmen this year though. There are also various differences from high school and middle school, which has its own positives and negatives for the class of 2028.
A positive for the freshman is they say they are more focused because of what feels like an increase in school’s importance. “I think some kids have realized that they need to mature and concentrate and not disrupt class unlike middle school,” says Mia Castaneda.
But this perceived increase in importance can also make everything feel that much more difficult. “High school classes are harder and the teachers expect more from you,” said Tia Jabr, a freshman at Skyline High School.
A big difference that has affected all high school students is the presence of smart phones. In middle school people were allowed to keep their phones with them but they had to be put away — and it was generally strictly enforced. In high school, the phones often are required to be in a designated area within the classroom. Ellie Chu says, “In middle school we didn’t have phone caddies and we could just have our phones with us.”
Yale News recently reported a nationwide survey of 21,000 U.S. high school students and found that 75% of them had a negative attitude towards school. The work load, and perhaps the cell phone policies, as well as the perception that high school is high stakes, has made some freshmen say they understand that, “At the beginning of a school day I feel overwhelmed because of all the work,” says Tori Sutton, a freshman attending Huron High School.
Some students say that high school is more boring than middle school. There aren’t as many funny, light moments where the entire class will laugh, they say. Because of the seriousness of getting good grades, there isn’t as much goofing off from students. “Back at Tappan (Middle School), I feel like we just goofed around and then a teacher gives an assignment, you just do it and you get a grade,” said Zoey Wang.
There’s also a widely known assumption that high school is big and menacing and complicated, full of people that are strangers, and it’s easy to get lost in what is seemingly a maze on the first day of school. Veronica Herrold, a Community High School student, agrees. “Everyone’s nicer than I thought they would be and it was easier to find all my classes, especially with other people’s help,” she says.
Hard classes and not enough time to finish them go together in high school. At least, according to Camilla Martinez. “The classes in high school are a bit more difficult,” she says. “Also, you have less time to work on assignments.”
Some freshmen also find that it is harder to get to know teachers and staff in a bigger school.
“I feel like in high school I don’t have as many bonds with the teachers and staff compared to middle school,” says Chu. It could be because there were fewer students in middle school, but other freshmen say they often feel the same anonymity. “I had a deeper bond with the middle school teachers,” Chu said. “I’m pretty sure none of the teachers here know my name.”
Making friends is a high school experience that is at least somewhat stressful for everyone. Castaneda is new to the area, having recently moved from Florida, so meeting new people was doubly hard. “It’s been scary making new friends,” she said. “It’s very nerve wracking and you have the constant question in your mind of ‘should I have said that?’ It’s terrifying.”
For others, though, the opportunity to meet new people has been fun. “It’s been great making new friends and socializing,” Tia Jabr says. “Everybody is so nice and I have made so many new friends in the first week.”
Being tired and not getting enough sleep is seemingly becoming a norm for high school students, something freshmen learn early. “At the beginning of a school day, I’m really tired, said Zoey Wang, “but at the end I feel like I have more energy than in the morning, but I still feel tired.”
Martinez agrees that the mornings tend to be more tiring, but at the end of the day there is more energy than before even though she still feels tired. “At the start of the day I am very tired and still waking myself up,” she says. “But by the end of the day I am more energized but still a little tired from the long day,” she said.
According to Education Week, having insufficient sleep can lead to a higher rate of anxiety and depression. Around 42% of high schoolers reported they feel depression and around 27% said they have anxiety. Combined, this means that approximately 70% of high school students have either experienced depression or anxiety symptoms. Many of those symptoms can be at least partially caused by insufficient sleep, according to some experts.
Still, the workload and the fatigue doesn’t stop students, including freshmen, from being optimistic about their futures. Many of them have goals they hope to achieve and accomplish by the end of high school, as well as by the end of freshman year. Community High School’s Herrold may not be going to Pioneer, but her goals align with most other high schoolers.“ I want to work hard to get all A’s at the end of freshman year and try my hardest on school work,” she said.
Huron High School’s Tori Suton has goals around the relationships she makes. “I hope to achieve a healthy relationship with my friends and teachers,” she says.
High school is definitely a different experience for everyone, but these freshmen intend to make the best of it. “High school is definitely more fun than what I thought it would be,” Jabr said.