Review and Reflection

Another year has come and gone and while each time it's different, it's important to sit back and reflect on what was accomplished. For this final blog entry please discuss, from your classes point of view, what it was like to go through Leadership? What were the challenges? What came off as easy? Did you experience any growth here at De Anza in the last year? Please include a picture that you feel best represents this year to you. Go Dons. Due: June 7th, 2016.

HARD WORK PAYS OFF

Personally, I'd say that the moral/attitude around the sophomore class is that we're all pretty stressed and just ready for the year to be over. With Midterms done, we're all just exhausted and able to breathe a bit more even though homework is starting pile up. We're focused on finishing the rest of the year as strong as we possibly can even with all the adversity that we face. But at the same time, we are trying to enjoy our high school years. Everything in life will pay off with the hard work we put in now.

As the class of 2019 we are not taken seriously by upperclassmen and administration. Besides that, our environment is amazing. Working with it to do many things. We gained leadership and so much experience. Even though the classes we take are easy (according to the upper class). We are stressed over the work we have and the pressure there is to do well in high school, but it is just the beginning

Being a freshman you do many new things, you learn to get out of your comfort zone. Finals and PSAT were our new experiences, among with other things. People teach you new things that not just help you with school, but additionally to life. Building confidence in yourself happens when you enter your freshman year, also getting comfortable with your surroundings. Overall, freshman year is absolutely amazing, and possibly one of your best years of high school. You will gain maturity and become a new person throughout your years in high school.
                                                                                                      -Adrienne Villacorta

    If I could use one word to describe pretty much how everyone is feeling right now, I would say STRESSED. We are all at that point in the school year where we just can't wait for it to be over but the sad reality is that, it only gets tougher from here. This is the time when all the exams grow near. Not only is AP testing only a few months away but other big tests such as the SAT and ACT come into play and we must also prepare for finals. As we are all still reeling from mid-terms, the cramming begins once again.

    This is the time when the Seniors are enjoying their last high-school everythings: last high-school games, last high-school dances, last high-school rallies, etc. Not to mention college letters are beginning to trickle in. While the Junior class is packing in as much information as possible to prepare for the tests whose scores could affect our futures. Regardless of the grade level we can all agree on one thing. We can't wait for school to end and summer to begin.

This is how it is

The Class of 2017 is known to be mostly competitive. There is a wide range of us, from the nonchalant ones to the perfectionists. Each of us has set a precedent for how we should perform because frankly only we know what's best for us and what we can handle. Everyone is just doing their own thing whether the minimum or maximum. People tend to gravitate to those who are similar to them and that is why there seems to be a line between the two sides. Obviously, school isn't everything, but it is a lot.

One thing is for sure: we all just want to pass in order to graduate. Junior year is the time for tightening up and making sure you're on the right track to graduate. Many people are trying to make up classes or take the extra mile. Some are just trying to get things over with. This past semester has played a pivotal role. Many students are balancing school, jobs, and sports as well as other extracurricular activities. We all know that semester grades are important for college and that they may break us or make us. Unfortunately, most of us are really caught up and drawn over grades. We must get the best grades and GPA possible! We must do more! There is also a lot of stress because this is testing season... SBACs, AP tests, SATs, ACTs, and of course finals. The competitive drive comes from how we all want to do well. Sure some are actually in it for competition, but majority is for survival. We aim to challenge ourselves as the saying goes, it's for hard workers. Now, we all have to grind and work even harder than before. STUDY. STUDY. STUDY. PASS. PASS. PASS. Ultimately, we are trying to do the best we can (or feel like) to make the rest of the year count one way or another.

The end of the year is getting closer and many of us don't feel ready to become seniors just yet... College applications and whatnot are right around the corner! Things are just getting started...

Personally as Seniors most of us feel a nonchalant climate around us due to the fact that we all agree that we just want to graduate. When you spend four years in a school that is transitioning throughout each year you tend to feel lethargic about being here. The climate changes just about every year but this year we all collectively feel ecstatic to move onto things other than being in high school. Although we have had many great opportunities presented to us throughout the years, we are all glad to be moving onto a new chapter in our lives. Even though we're leaving it would be nice to see a few changes at the school. Diversity would be the change that is most desirable since the school's community seems mostly segregated. All the students who take ap classes only reside with other students who take ap classes and vice versa. This leaves the school community as a mostly segregated place since certain people don't feel welcomed in different areas of their own school. Although our school is indeed a very diverse, that doesn't mean that we truly have different diverse groups. The graduation rate has significantly increased and we have been deemed a "gold ribbon school" so for us as students to treat our peers as if they are below us is unforgivable because every cog in the system helps make the clock go round.

Mid-Term Blog

   The year so far has come and gone and with it so have we all gotten older, a little wiser, and are, at this moment, probably pretty sick of finals. For this final blog entry of our first semester your class is responsible for answering the following question:

"How is moral around you? How are you feeling?"

   Please remember that this question must be answered as a representative of your class. Discuss this question among your group to get a really good idea of what the "climate" is like. You must also decide what your frame will be for this question. Is this how your Leadership class feels? Leadership on its whole feels? Your entire class in the entire school? Good luck, make sure it is at least 2 paragraphs minimum and please ask clarifying questions if necessary.
Be honest too, for it makes the blog even better.