Many changes are occuring at Mishawaka High School (MHS). From the new technology to construction, there’s a lot of adjustments that have to be made. Students have to get used to the new rules, technology, and structure school this year. The question is, how are students being affected by these changes.
MHS counselor Katy Buda said, “ The number one word that comes to mind for students is confusion. Right now there’s a lot of confusion... “ When it comes to the change in the new structure of the school, Buda said, “You know 99 percent of kids can roll with that and maybe after a couple of days of complaining, just move on and be like ‘ well that’s what it is now’. I have had a couple of kids come in my office with some very serious stress about the changes, but I think that more than anything that’s the exception and the majority of kids have been rolling with any new changes and new building rules pretty well.”
Most students aren’t affected negatively. “ I think there are some serious positives because of all our ninth graders learning how to use iPads, which can be really beneficial,” said Buda. However, “there have been incidents of misuse… which is a new initiative that is mostly working all the time, but I think there are pros and cons to any introduction…”
The changes aren’t just teaching lessons in the classroom, though. Buda said, “I think even if the kids don’t know it yet, it’s benefiting them because this really is the way of the future , and while it’s maybe been off to a rocky start… I think there’s even a lot to learn from what it means to have a rocky start to something and still persevere through it… despite the hardships, it’s good. The number one thing I want to tell kids is, stay patient. Stay patient with computers and/or questions that they may have because I know that a lot of people are working hard to make it better.”