Fourth quarter is coming up, marking the last weeks of high school for seniors. Classes are finishing up and deadlines for college decisions are approaching for those who have not already committed.
According to senior Meg Ridgway, her motivation has been a little low, but she is looking forward to finishing out the year.
“I’m very excited, and I’m ready to be done,” Ridgway said. “I’ve been a little less motivated, but I’m sticking in there strong.”
Senior Daniel Zilka said the last quarter will be more stressful for him.
“It’s kind of the last step-the final straightaway until I graduate,” Zilka said. “It’s been a little stressful.”
According to math teacher Anson Opara, he has been noticing students start to lose motivation as they start to get into colleges. He said this may tempt students to slack off as high school comes to a close.
“As students are getting accepted to colleges, a lot of them are not working as hard,” Opara said. “A lot of kids are not really concerned about finishing and have a false sense of security about school.”
Ridgway said this quarter will be different from others due to spring sports and the end of AP classes after the test.
“Because of lacrosse, I will be a lot busier,” Ridgway said. “I like to think that after AP tests I’ll basically be done.”
College decisions are coming to a close and that forces students to make important decisions about their future. According to Zilka, the last quarter will feel faster and impose more pressure on many seniors.
“Being a senior, it’s a lot more rushed even outside of school,” Zilka said. “We will be making our final college decisions.”
Opara said the presence of social events such as prom or spring break may also make this quarter different for seniors than others. Many seniors use spring break as an opportunity to vacation or spend social time with friends and family.
“Kids are more concerned about spring break and social stuff, which is understandable,” Opara said. “They are not really concerned about finishing school.”
Many seniors at Park participate in PSEO classes, resulting in them spending less time in a physical classroom. Ridgway said only spending a few class periods at school per day opens up her schedule.
“I’m only at school two periods per day,” Ridgway said. “It keeps my day a bit shorter and I can do more things within my day.”
It can be hard for seniors to stay motivated as the year comes to an end. According to Zilka, he stays motivated in school because he is an athlete who has to keep his grades up.
“Mainly it’s about my grades in the class because I am a track athlete,” Zilka said. “I need to keep my grades up in order to participate.”
According to Opara, his final advice to his senior students is to live out the end of their senior year. He encourages his students to find a good balance between social time and fulfilling their academics.
“Make sure you enjoy it,” Opara said. “This is the end of it.”
