T he L og thelog@taboracademy.org
Tabor Academy’s Student Newspaper Volume 91, Number 5
April 2017
A Change of Pace What to expect in next year's daily schedule by Lillie Lovell and Abby Mottur
The way Ms. Marceau believes we can be more in control of our well-being is by decreasing the “amount of time we spend walking around campus transitioning both mentally and physically.” This will be achieved next year through the lengthening of classes and reconstructing of the academic schedule. When we return to campus in the fall, the academic schedule will consist of four 75-minute class blocks a day with the exception of Wednesdays, which will continue to have four 50-minute class blocks. There will also be a break between every class block that is at least 10 minutes long, again with the exception of Wednesday, and the classes will be on a seven-day cycle rather than the five-day cycle we have currently. The administration and department chairs believe that this will help diversify the types of learning and activities students will do in the classroom as well as give teachers the time to really go in-depth without the concern of running out of time. Ms. Marceau believes this “saner pace” will lead to more time for reflection, deeper learning, and greater engagement in and outside the classroom. The new schedule is specifically designed with the student experience in mind and will hopefully lead to less homework each night as students will only have to prepare for, at most, four classes the next day. This change in the homework cycle as well as the fact that all academic days begin at 8:30 am will give students an increased opportunity for sleep.
Another big change in the schedule is the shift from semesters to trimesters. According to Ms. Marceau, the new trimester system will provide a clear break between terms, as well as synchronize the academic and athletic schedules, allowing students to manage their time more effectively. This trimester system also benefits seniors applying early to college as they will now be able to send official Trimester 1 grades to early schools rather than progress report grades. The trimester structure also allows students to take greater advantage of the many
DAY 1
A
DAY 2
8:30
E
DAY 3
8:30
B
DAY 4
8:30
F
DAY 5
8:30
C
DAY 6
8:30
G
WEDNESDAYS (50 min/class)
DAY 7
8:30
D
8:30
8:30
9:20
9:45
9:45
9:45
9:45
9:45
9:45
9:45
9:30
Community Time (Chapel, All school, Meetings, etc) 10:20
B
10:25
F
10:25
C
10:25
G
10:25
D
10:25
A
10:25
E
From the Course Catalogue.
For many people at Tabor, life is frantic. Think about how much time you spend being stressed or running around trying to balance school, sports, hobbies, and a social life. Ms. Marceau describes these actions as being on “a hamster wheel.” In the health survey we took last year, many students reported this feeling along with a significant amount of sleep deprivation. Therefore, the academic administration has decided to make changes for the better.
10:25 10:30
11:20
11:40
11:40
11:40
11:40
11:40
11:40
11:40
11:50
11:50
11:50
11:50
11:50
11:50
11:50
11:30
C
G
D
A
E
B
F
12:20
12:20 1:05 1:05 1:35
12:20 1:05 1:05
1:35
1:35
12:20 1:05 1:05
1:35
1:35
12:20 1:05 1:05
1:35
1:35
12:20 1:05 1:05
1:35
12:20 1:05 1:05
12:20 1:05 1:05
1:35
1:35
1:35
1:35
1:35
1:35
F
2:00
C
2:00
G
2:00
Open Office Hours
D
2:00
3:15
A
2:00
3:15
E
2:00
3:15
B
2:00
3:15
3:15
3:15
3:15
unique classes Tabor has to offer because students can take up to three electives per yearrather than two. Currently, students have projects and finals after senior graduation, but with the new trimester system, students will instead sit for finals at the end of the second trimester and have the school year end right at graduation. The new schedule has been thoughtfully engineered to have a positive impact on the entire community.
Tabor’s Special Olympics Club A look into our partnership with a national program by Hannah Frisch Tabor’s partnership with Special Olympics in Massachusetts has been a tremendous success, with the goal being to provide year-round sports training and competition for children and adults with intellectual disabilities. Molly Bent ’16 created the Special Olympics Club last year with the help of Mr. Cleary. Mr. Cleary was especially passionate about the formation of this club because he had worked with the Special Olympics program throughout his middle school years and in college, as well as at his previous secondary school. He sees a symbiotic relationship between Tabor and Special Olympics: not only do the Special Olympians benefit from sports, exercise, and competition, but the student volunteers experience their own benefit in “growth and valuable learning.” When forming the club, Molly and Mr. Cleary created a student board made up of eight to ten people to help decide on programming throughout the year. When Campbell Donley ’17 was asked why she wanted to join the board, she enthusiastically noted Molly’s passion for the program, and said she was inspired to “…help in any way [she] could.”
World News, p. 2. Please recycle this paper.
Winter Sports Highlights, p. 5.
Currently, with over 100 volunteers, the Special Olympics Club hosts a number of events each year. These events include basketball tournaments, a Young Athletes program, R-word campaigns, a soccer clinic, Spring Field Day, and the Polar Plunge. The most recent event, the Polar Plunge, was a resounding success with the Special Olympics Club doubling their fundraising goal.
As for the coming years, the Special Olympics board members wish to “…maintain but expand in meaningful growth.” They hope to continue to grow their volunteer base and add more frequent events to the schedule. All students are encouraged to volunteer. Mr. Cleary pointed out, “I don’t think we have [had] any volunteers [who] have only showed up once.” For many students, the best part of volunteering for this club has been watching the kids succeed. As one student volunteer said, “It is gratifying to see their smiling faces, especially after witnessing how hard they have worked to reach their goals.”
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram!