As soon as students returned from April vacation, there were Chromebooks set up in every classroom with the SmartPass system up and ready for students to use. While the change itself was minimal, the effects were great.
“It’s definitely working, people definitely go less and it’s way less crowded,” said junior Ben Mazzucca, “but it is really annoying. It limits the amount of time I can spend in the bathroom and makes me rush.”
The rush is a real issue, with the four minute limit sometimes being an enormous time crunch. Including the walk to and from some further classrooms, students are upset with the lack of time they are given.
“Sometimes people need extra time in the bathrooms, especially girls, and it’s not fair or hygienic to make such unrealistic time limits,” said junior Kathryn Weiler.
Besides the limited time to really use the bathrooms, students feel as though their ability to just take a breather is being infringed upon by these time limits.
“Sometimes people need to walk to clear their heads or just take a break from the screens.” said junior Julia Itao, “Kids leaving classes doesn’t affect anyone but themselves, so the pass system is just hurting the people it wasn’t put in place for.”
The teachers, on the other hand, are loving this new system. They think that it is helping so much more with efficiency and students maximizing their time in class.
“There is more accountability for students to leave class only when they need to, and return as quickly as possible, so they are not missing instruction or practice” said Señora Sharkey, “I can focus on teaching my students, instead of worrying about who left and how long they have been gone”.
The data that teachers and admin receive is the best part on their end. Not only does it help them become aware of potential problems, but it also helps them make students aware of things they don’t know themselves.
“I would sit in meetings with them and I’d be like, ‘Hey, how much time do you think you’ve been out so far, like, how many hours?’, They’d be like, ‘hours? oh, one or two’, and I’d be like, ‘21’”, said Mrs. Neely, ”It gives us a lot of granular data, and that shocks them. Because [students] really have no idea how long they’re out.”
Although most teachers love this system for these very reasons, they are also aware of how it’s not perfect for all students.
“I like the system, though I feel like there are still a few things we’re working out as a school; for example, adding time for trips to first floor classrooms” said Mrs. Makrinos, “I am interested to see how the system continues to develop with the needs of the school.”
In order for this to develop, administrators are asking for as much student feedback as possible. While admin is loving this new system, they understand that students may feel different, and want to know what students are thinking to make everything the best it can be for everybody.
“If you give us feedback, we’re gonna try to make it better. This isn’t supposed to make your life worse, it’s supposed to make things better for everybody.” said Mrs. Neely, “And so the more feedback you guys give us, the more we can work to try to fix it and like, you know, improve the system.”
