This is an article that I wrote for my journalism class at my high school. Unfortunately, the article got cut from the issue, but I wanted to post it because I feel it really embodies the growing controversy as to whether adminstrators' should require high school students to fulfill their CTE and Fine Art requirements in order to graduate high school.
M-A
currently offers Fine Art classes that range from orchestra and band, to drama,
digital photography, ceramics, guitar, and the visual arts, such as drawing and
painting. Whether a student chooses one of those or turns to the CTE (career
technical education) classes, such as AP computer science, journalism, or video
production, they are given a variety of options to choose from. Although the
students have that flexibility, many find an area of interest they want to
stick with throughout high school, and find it discouraging when that class doesn’t
fit into their schedule because they have to fulfill their other credits too. “People don’t want to put
the time into a zero period, so they have to spread getting certain credits out
over multiple years,” states junior Emmett Lee. “For me, I’m already done with my one year of CTE and Fine Art
but it’s hard to do other classes unless I take a zero period, which I don’t
want to do.” Many students feel the same way; the requirements placed upon them force them to
choose classes that they would prefer not to partake in, while they miss out on
opportunities to do what they love.
Despite these consequences of having
to take both CTE and Fine Art classes, many students enjoy being exposed to
both fields of study. Junior Erin Perrine concurs; she believes the purpose of exploring both is “To encourage a creative
outlet and [possibly] lead students to pursue a university degree in that
field.” Despite the possibility of not being able to take a class that you are
interested in more than once, many students are able to find a way to fit these
classes into their schedules to maximize the enjoyment of their school days.
So, whether you spend your period walking around the M-A campus
with a camera around your neck or learn about programming in AP Computer
Science, M-A is known to offer the best variety of classes that allow students
to fulfill their CTE and Fine Art credits. Many of the upperclassmen who have
already had experience taking these classes or are currently enrolled in them
now believe that they are not worthless; on the contrary, “There are a lot of practical
applications for each [both CTE and Fine Arts] so they are both beneficial.”
Although some days can be extremely tedious and boring, some students find
these classes beneficial, as they can spend their time doing something they
love during school instead of outside of school. Sure, these classes can be
eye-opening for freshmen or even a useless period that upperclassmen only take
in order to graduate. But with both controversy and preferences for Fine Art or
CTE classes, an important question arises: Why take both CTE and Fine Arts and
not one? The answer is simple: to encourage students to enroll in classes that
will trigger interests and to maximize the satisfaction of their school days.
