Image by tscpl.org By Sofie Tomlinson
Staff Writer High school students will no longer have to study massive vocabulary lists with obscure words. The new SAT is going to have easier words, that students often learn in class. It's going to have only five choices .”Everything in the redesigned SAT is knowledge and skills that kids are learning in class every single day.” Phil Pine, who runs the test preparation company, Capital Education, is telling his students not to be the first to take the new SAT because they are not used to it. The students have also studied hard to prepare for the old test. ”The challenge with the change in the test is that it basically just stresses people out," says Johnson, President of PrepMatters in Bethesda, Maryland. The last time the SAT was change was in 2005. Back then they added a written essay and changed the score scale from 1600 to 2400.In spring of 2016 there will be a new SAT. It will contain easier words, and the score will go back down to 1600.The test will contain evidence-based on reading, writing, math, and an optional essay. Many Students are saying the change for the SAT is going to beneficial for them.They have a better chance to get answers right, and get a higher grade. The College Board thinks the new change is going to be better for everyone and hoping students will like it. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.org By Emma Krauss
Staff Writer One city, one high school; Should the schools combine? Even though it might not happen for a couple of years or even at all, people are getting worried about what will happen to them in the future. Consolidation in only one of the three long-range ideas mentioned in the final facilities plan. The first vision of the plan is focusing on renovating current facilities. The second vision involves building two new schools while also performing repairs. The third and final vision proposes going from two high schools to one on the Lake Oswego High School campus and from two junior highs to one on the Lakeridge High School campus within 10 years. A lot of people are against this idea. Parents Maya and David Barba, who have four children that go to or will soon be going to Lakeridge led a rally to show their displeasure with the concept of the schools combining. Lake Oswego parent Cathy Lewis Dougherty said, “We moved here for the schools. Absolutely that’s the reason we moved. We lived in Los Angeles; I’ve experienced bigger schools. This is better.” Jordan recently posted on a new Facebook page called Save Lakeridge that he has started a petition drive at change.org in support of keeping two high schools. He said he plans to deliver the petition, which had 1,137 supporters, to the Lake Oswego School Board. There are more concerns about the schools conditions as well which is giving more reasons for these plans to happen. The condition of the school buildings, 8 out of 10 of which are in “poor” or “critical” condition. This could impact the future of the students as well as the community. Do you want the schools to combine? By Kody Oyama
Staff Writer Lakeridge Junior High School has recently announced the allowance of phones at lunch. This is not permanent yet because the staff would like to see how it goes for a number of weeks, but if it weren’t for the three students that made a petition for it, it wouldn’t have been possible at all. For a while, many students have wanted to be able to have their phones at lunch, but three students took it further by printing out their own petition and getting over 200 students to sign it. The staff was later informed and took the rule into consideration. After a month or two, the staff of Lakeridge Junior High told students that cell phones would be allowed at lunch and during break for three weeks, and if it goes well, the policy could become permanent. This rule doesn’t allow students to use phones during class, but encourages use during lunch and break only. Also, students are allowed to carry their cell phones with them to class, as long as they are powered off and tucked away. When students were told about this, they were extremely excited to try it out. Most teachers and students believe that allowing phones at lunch has been going well, but the staff will have to keep watching, and see if there are problems because of it. “It is great when they are used appropriately, but the problem comes when they are not,” explains Mr. Zurcher. A lot of the teachers agree with this, because if students misuse them, it can become a problem. Mr. Kelly, on the other hand, really likes the policy, but wishes that students were much more responsible with them. “My advisory class has 24 students, and I confiscated 15 phones, so this has to improve,” he says. It is clear that there are some problems with this policy, but if students follow the rules, it can display that students are ready for the responsibility. “I don’t want them to be taken away, but if we are using them incorrectly, they will be”, says Kayla Krueger, a 7th grader. Will students respect the rules? If they can do that, the policy will become permanent, an event most students desire. |
LJHSLakeridge Junior High School is an award-winning academic institution located in Lake Oswego, Oregon. Archives |