MISSION SAN JOSE HIGH SCHOOL
VOL. 50, NO. 8
In-Depth Report:
Class Scheduling
Count course tallies
The system reports how many students have signed up for each class, and the number of sections of each class are based off this. According to Assistant principal Carli Kim, the master schedule is student driven. It is built around student requests because they are indicators of interest in core and elective courses.
Early March
Counselors and administrators go to Hopkins Junior High to talk to incoming freshmen about signing up for classes. Students turn in forms, and counselors process the classes and enter them into the system over a week.
Early April
Incoming freshmen
Pre-registration talks
The counselors hold pre-registration luncheons in C-120, during which they discuss guidelines for class selection. Administrators visit classes to talk about registration.
End February
Teacher and section projections
So, what would prevent all students from getting the classes they signed up for? The master schedule is largely student driven, but there are some unchangeable factors that do affect it. The limit on teachers, number of teachers in a department, and section counts determined by the district are primary reasons. Here are two situations in which students would not get all the classes they wanted.
Based on the projected enrollment for the next school year, FUSD determines how many teachers and sections MSJ will get. The teacher projection is based on the contractual limit for student-teacher ratios that has been agreed on between More sections the Teachers Union and the School Board at the district of a class are level. The number of sections that MSJ is able to offer is requested determined by the district as well. On average, each section than staffing can accommocosts $15,000-$20,000, and so district-level budgeting date. limits the number of sections a school can offer. See IR NEWS Page 2
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New Open House concept “MSJ Spring Expo” to make its debut May 21 By Gelsey Plaza Staff Writer This year, MSJ is implementing a new structure for Open House. The event’s slogan is “MSJ Spring Expo.” Open House will be on May 21 from 6-8 PM. This student-centered event will create a much more active and engaged environment than in past years. Journalism Adviser and English Teacher Sandra Cohen is the chair of the Open House Planning Committee. She says, “The goal is to showcase everything that’s great about this school and the students who go here; not only their academics but also all their extracurricular pursuits. So this is a chance to get interactive with all the different de-
partments and really see and hear and feel what it is that the students do at this school.” The committee, which includes 18 staff members, hopes for Open House to feel like an interactive event. It will be set up with departments located in venues around campus. A mini Maze Day will allow numerous clubs to showcase their work to current as well as incoming students. Guests will be given flyers detailing a schedule of events and their locations on one side and a map of the school on the other side. There will be student leaders around campus as emissaries to guide visitors. Musical groups, such as choir and band, will greet people coming in at the entryways. Instead of teachers staying in their classrooms, as in past
cif award winner
japanese speech contest
Senior Roshni Iyer was chosen from 760,000 candidates as one of two recipients of this prestigious Spirt of Sport award.
MSJ students competed in a Bay Area speech contest, and placed first in all three categories.
today
today
Draft schedules sent
The schedules only confirm the classes that the students put down on their pre-registration forms. The classes on the draft schedules are not the final ones that the student will receive on MAZE day. Students might still be placed in their alternates, due to scheduling Departments create sub-schedules conflicts. Each department creates a minischedule based on student requests, determining which teachers will teach which classes.
Mid May
Early March
Current freshmen, sophomores, and juniors get forms through their English classes. Some teachers sign off on classes and make recommendations to their students on which classes to take. The staff has been notified about important procedures and policies, like prerequisites, so they can make sure students take classes that are good fits for them.
Forms are submitted, and counselors and administrators spend a week entering the course selections into the system.
End March
Pre-registration forms distributed
After registering for classes in February, students tend to forget about their schedules until Maze Day. Behind the scenes, however, MSJ’s administrative staff and counselors are working carefully to create the master schedule and ensure that as many MSJ students as possible get to spend their year in the classes they choose. In this in-depth report, the Smoke Signal explores the various steps and requirements that factor into the approximately 2200 schedules delivered to students in August.
Students submit pre-registration forms
Mid March
By Sarina Chitre, Harshita Gupta & Annie Tang Staff Writers
Mid February
May 1, 2015
41717 PALM AVENUE, FREMONT, CA 94539
There
1
45 students sign up for a class, but the class maximum is is between 32 and 34.
aren’t enough students to offer an additional section of that class, and two cannot be offered because the class size comes down to 20. Classes with 20 students may not be offered because of insufficient staffing and the restriction on total number of sections. One more of Class A means one less of Class B. Assistant Principal Carli Kim says, “That’s when you have to make some of those tough decisions about, ‘Can we offer this class?’
If there is only one credentialed
‘But how many students requested class A?’ ‘And so do we want that section to go to class A with low enrollment?’ ‘Or
teacher to teach class A,
do we want it to go to class B with more enrollment?’
and eight sections are
‘How many students requested one class over
requested, not all eight
the other, because we can’t split it
can be offered.
into two.’”
years, the event will take place in centralized areas from the horseshoe for food trucks to the amphitheater. Venues include all cafeterias, the library, main gym, among others. Each department is assigned a venue, and students will have the opportunity to demonstrate their accomplishments. For example, the English department will be holding poetry slams in the library, with students reading their own works of poetry. Additionally, students will be performing excerpts from famous literary works, and family members can participate by trying to figure out which book or play they are performing from. Virtual invitations, School Loop messages, and flyers will be sent out to students and incoming freshmen parents encouraging them to attend the Open House. Flyers will promote “This Is Your Mission.” MSJ is the first high school in FUSD to pres-
boys’ golf
MSJ’s Boys’ Golf team recently took first place in MVALs and had the third lowest score in MVAL history along the way. today
ent an Open House like this. FUSD School Board Vice President Ann Crosbie says, “I think the community has a very narrow idea of all the things that are happening at MSJ. This is an opportunity to showcase the variety of things going on at [the] school.” Guests are urged to come early, as there will be food trucks in the horseshoe beginning at 5:30 PM, as well as some special surprise performances. The administration and staff are looking forward to the new Open House concept. Principal Zack Larsen says, “The students and programs at Mission San Jose are remarkable and first rate. The public deserves an opportunity to get a glimpse into the life of our students and the opportunities they have at our school. Open House or Spring Expo features all of the opportunities public education can afford students at this award winning high school.” ▪
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VISIT www.THESMOKESIGNAL.ORG