Phoebe Barr ’19
During the 2017-2018 school year, eighth-graders (the current freshman class) were introduced to a mandatory advisory block intended to create an open-ended activity period. Students had the opportunity to spend time and forge relationships with their advisor and peers, with time to collaborate and talk about how they were feeling about their classes or any relevant topics to discuss openly with such a small group.
With that said, without a concrete plan for the short 30-minute block, the time provided was substantially unproductive for the students. However, this year, when the Third Form was ushered into the high school, this advisory block changed drastically. Instead of sitting down and talking to their advisors, each freshman student now must watch different videos about stress, mental health, and topics of this realm.
This year, advisory is used to inform students about important ideas that pertain to their newly established high school lives. Students do understand the importance of these social health issues in our personal lives and recognize the impact this program has made. Because these topics are often overlooked in the class curriculum and in the general Episcopal environment, the time offers a respite from normalcy and is progressive. Moreover, this activity gives students the opportunity to grow as students and people, while learning about important subjects outside the classroom curriculum.
However, Olivia Corrato ‘22 said that she thinks the videos were helpful to the kids that needed it, but that she misses the time where she could build a relationship with an adult. With the introduction of this block, The Third Form, unlike their upperclassmen, are consequently unable to grow a relationship with the other children in their advisory and lack face-to-face time in another setting. In addition, Maddie Dennis ‘22 believes that the current advisories are more useful than they were in previous years, but they do not need to occur so frequently.
Another important aspect of the change in the freshman advisory block is the fact that most freshmen advisors have only just met their students and are not likely to be teaching them that year. On the other hand, upperclassmen are able to rank and choose and Advisory that will lead them to have a strong relationship with the group for the upcoming years. Alexis Fuscaldo ‘22 stated, “I feel like you do not get to know your advisor at all because it is as a homeroom not as an advisory … It is hard to go and ask them for help when you need it because you do not talk to them otherwise.” As a freshman coming into the Upper School, it is difficult to navigate the newness without the guidance of one teacher and creates a bigger bridge to cross when students feel the need to seek advice from them during such a pivotal school year. Jamison Monahan, Upper School Spanish teacher and advisor, said, “I do miss the ability to spend more time with my advisees, as I have not been able to get to know my advisees as well this year. I understand why they incorporated it, but I do think I preferred last years system where I got to interact more.”
Though positive results have come out of this advisory design, students have said that the videos shown have become repetitive and have lost their meaning. Considering the opinions of the members of the freshman class, we believe that there is a compromised solution that would satisfy both parties. With the objective of creating relationships with their advisors, most advisories could begin meeting like a traditional advisory. This would mean meeting in smaller groups with advisors and having personal discussions on how each individual student is doing. In addition, the videos would be showed maybe once a month, or as often as needed. The freshman would feel the collaborative environment with their peers and a teacher, and would simultaneously be supplemented with materials as are currently being shown. This would ensure that the students would continue to find meaning in the subjects and don’t lose focus or respect for the program.