Should I take Chemistry honors or Chemistry? Would this class help me in the future? I want to take this class but some have told me to take this one because it’s “better”, which should I take?

Registration is hard for all students, especially for those who have doubts about what classes they want to take. Not everyone has a career in mind, which makes it almost impossible to know which classes will help you in the future. Since registration is on the minds of most students at the time, this way too common struggle is why we asked West high students their experiences with registration.  

Many of the students that we interviewed talked about the hard decisions they have to make when registering as many don’t know what classes will most benefit them. 

Gabrielle Moniza is a sophomore currently and will be a Junior this fall. So far, they are getting in as many required classes as they can, but as they enter their Junior year they must choose courses that reflect the major they would possibly like to go into.

“Choosing what you want to do your junior and senior year decides what you want to do with the rest of your life,” They say.

Although this is the path many students take, Miguel Cohen Suarez 22’ recommends students to take a wide range of courses for their first two years of high school so that students can figure out what they’re most interested in, which makes the process of choosing a major easier, if they choose to pursue higher education.

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“West gives a broad spectrum of classes so just take what interests you or a variety to get a feel of what you like and what you don’t,”  Suarez said.

They also recommend others to take courses that intrigue them. Multiple students can recall taking classes because they have been told that they were good by other peers or counselors even if they were at a difficulty level that the student was not comfortable with. 

Selene Filerio 25′ plans to take some honors and AP courses later on in high school as they have heard that they “look good on a[college]

resume”.

Many of the students we interviewed have told us about the pressure that there is at West High to take higher-level classes and many have given the same advice to help combat this.

“The school puts a lot of pressure for students to take an ap class and that shouldn’t be; you shouldn’t feel that you need to take an AP class if you know that it will be too much…only take one if you are passionate about the subject,” said Gabrielle Davis 23’.

Although there is a push to take AP and Honors classes at West High higher-level elective courses aren’t talked about as frequently.  Courses such as AP Art and Design as well as AP Music Theory are known to students as well as AP and Honor classes that are a part of the core curriculum. 

Rudy Medina 24’ regrets not taking as many electives their freshman and sophomore year. They wish they had known more about the different electives offered here at West. 

Moniza and Suarez believe that students would take more electives if they just had more information on them, Because Suarez recommends others to take a variety of classes he believes students should take electives to help them branch out more and take some of the stress out of the school day by having a class or two that will be enjoyable for them making their high school experience more fulfilling and fun.

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