Depending on how you look at it, flex is either a blessing  or a curse. For some students and teachers, it provides them with the  opportunity to catch up on material, but for others, it sometimes seems like a waste of time. However next year’s flex proposal will likely satisfy those who are currently happy with flex, and those who are not.

The  proposal for next year creates a  25 min. W4 class, followed by an hour of “atom time”. During “atom time” students in good standing, meaning that they do not have Ds or Fs, will be able to go anywhere in the school. Students in bad standing, meaning those  with Ds or Fs, will have remediation with a specific teacher.

It is difficult to grasp this new version of flex, especially for a rising senior such as myself who has had a love-hate relationship with flex for 3 years. The most important question, though, is whether or not the new flex plan will be the best possible change for the students.

New Paragraph saying something about how students can get remediation if they need, and not have to waste their time. tie in this sentences: Students have an obvious need for remediation if they have not been doing particularly well in a subject,

This does raise concerns about how students who do not need remediation will spend their time, and how teachers will track the “atoms of good standing” and discourage them from skipping class.

There is also concern that dividing the student body into two groups could have negative implications, and lead to  increased prejudice or favoritism. This division could potentially  increase the gap between achieving and struggling students.

Still, the new flex proposal is promising, and it’s good to see the administration actively trying to meet the needs of the students in the best way possible.

While the details are not  yet completely ironed out, the added flexibility of flex will be valuable to high-achieving students. As most IB Diploma candidates know, time management is everything, and extra time to complete work is always a plus. There is also the potential that the added flexibility for achieving students could serve as a motivating factor to encourage struggling students to keep working diligently.

When I asked people what they thought of the flex proposal, they were full of hope and very excited. They thought that the  addition of a consistent homeroom for the entirety of students years at AHS would definitely be more stable than the tumultuous and amorphous flex schedule.
Students were especially excited about the new freedom that the flex change would bring, and the opportunity to go to any class that  they want for extra guidance.
The only thing that could seal the deal for this new proposal would be the ability of students to have class meetings and participate in clubs during “atom time.”  A major disadvantage to  the after school activities is the students’ difficulty in securing rides home. With late buses only two days per week, the added meeting times during “atom time” could be invaluable to clubs.

There are still a many questions to answer and details to finalize, but at least for now, next years flex proposal will likely bring about many positive changes for the students.