Well I’ve finally started the college application process. It’s something I’ve been preparing for and anticipating for a while now, but the one thing I didn’t anticipate was the fact that I am going to have to rely on others to do their part in order for me to accomplish my goals. This complicates things very much because now problems can arise that are beyond my control.

My main problem comes from the counseling office. I am applying to mostly private colleges and universities, which all require a counselor evaluation. I knew far in advance that I would have to have some evaluations completed by my counselor for college, but I did not expect it to be such a complicated process. After all, this is why the counselors are there, right?

Read the rest of this entry »

I would like to briefly respond to Katy’s post, “Summer’s Over,” by saying that overall it has been an OK first three days of school. I might even say it’s been good.

There are negative and positive aspects to the beginning of this year. Something positive: The scheduling crisis isn’t nearly as bad as it was last year. Something negative: It’s still bad. I’ve experienced some problems concerning my schedule, as well as a lot of other students, but I have hope that things will clear up soon.

I know I should be more upset with the current situation or depressed at the fact that summer is over, but I find that I can’t wait to go to school every morning. Read the rest of this entry »

Hello everyone! While I may not be keeping my mind stimulated by taking summer classes such as some of the other bloggers, I have been doing a lot of traveling, which has stimulated my mind in a completely different way. Traveling really makes one aware of all the endless possibilities the world holds, and during my trip I did a lot of contemplating about my plans for the future, more specifically next year. This is where I could use your advice.

On Monday I returned from a three week long trip to Germany and Spain. I flew over alone and visited family (I am half Spanish). While there, my Spanish family proposed that I spend a year in Spain, in between high school and college. My first thought on this was “No way, I’m going to college directly after high school.” This of course has always been my plan, but my Spanish family thinks it is important that I spend a year in Spain to learn the language (I do not speak fluent Spanish), and the culture. Their proposal was that I live with family or on my own, while taking some courses at the local university. Read the rest of this entry »

I must say, summer has been pretty relaxing compared to the hectic school year. Although I have been catching up on some much needed sleep and “being lazy” time, I have also found ways to keep my mind stimulated, my teachers made sure of that.

For the AP English class I will be taking next year I have a summer assignment to read three books: All The Pretty Horses, Wuthering Heights, and Sula, as well as do some analysis for each book.

College application time is also just around the corner, and its something that I’ve been thinking about a lot this summer. Where do I want to apply? Do I stand a chance?

I was lucky enough to be chosen to be a part of a college prep program this summer, Experience Berkeley, and it has really eased my anxiety. Through this program I went to a three day college workshop at UC Berkeley where I got to stay in the dorms, live like a Berkeley student, and learn about what Berkeley had to offer. Read the rest of this entry »

After visiting my counselor today to change my class choices for next year I was reminded of the incompetency of the OUSD. Don’t get me wrong, OUSD has its positive qualities, but these are found in the classrooms, away from the administration. When it comes to bureaucracy, things can get very frustrating.

My counselor informed me that they were not making any class changes until they finished the “master schedule” which will likely not be done until after the end of this school year. This means I will have to go change my classes in the beginning of next year, amid all the confusion of the beginning of the year, and not to mention all those other students like myself who were unable to change their classes.

From the looks of this, it seems as if there may be a repeat of the scheduling crisis we experienced earlier this year. Read the rest of this entry »

About a month ago Katy posted a blog about Zachary Cataldo, a first-grader at Piedmont Avenue Elementary who was severely hurt by another student. This brought up the issue of bullying, a topic that my English class has been studying extensively for the past month.

Our assignment was to research the topic, come up with a solution (in this case a code of conduct, which is lacking at Skyline) and then present to various groups throughout the school (parents, teachers, students, faculty).

We presented last Wednesday and Thursday in groups of about 5, and now that I am more knowledgeable on the subject, I thought I’d share.

One thing I learned through this project is that bullying is hard to define and identify. My group presented to teachers and one point we discussed was that although bullying is obviously a problem at Skyline, it is hard to differentiate between bullying and “playing around” specifically in the hallways during passing period. The type of bullying I am speaking about and the type that is most common at Skyline is “sexual bullying” or sexual harassment. Read the rest of this entry »

This headline caught my attention today when I got home from school and glanced at the front page of the San Francisco Chronicle. It interested me because this decision will have a big impact on myself and others my age; and the headline picture consisted of students protesting at the state Capitol.

The picture reminded me of a previous heated debate over a blog entry about students protesting at the Olympic torch relay.

These possible budget cuts would raise the already high college tuition and also require colleges to cut down on spending, which sounds like bad news to me. As a junior in high school, college is constantly talked about, encouraged, and expected of me. I have no doubt that I will be able to get into a good college, but paying for it is another thing. Read the rest of this entry »

About every month or so in my U.S. History class we have class discussions, or what we call “open forum” about the book we are reading. The book is called “A People’s History of the United States” by Howard Zinn, and we basically spend the entire class period voicing our opinions about the recent chapter we read; whether or not we agree with Howard Zinn’s thoughts on certain aspects of our history.

A couple of days ago we had one such discussion. Someone brought up a very interesting assertion that Zinn makes, and it made me think about school. About why we go to school and why school was created. Now I’m warning you, at the end of this blog you might think me a skeptic, but I ‘m simply just throwing some questions out there. Read the rest of this entry »

There has been a rumor spreading around Skyline High School recently. The administration is thinking about enforcing a uniform policy next year, and both students and teachers are doubtful.

I first heard about it through a student in leadership (student council) but didn’t take it seriously until I found out about a staff meeting held to discuss the idea. I don’t have many details about the proposed uniform policy, but I have heard from some teachers that Ms. Green (Skyline’s principal) is not encouraging staff to think about how on earth it would work, but rather if they think it would be a good idea.

Personally, I don’t think uniforms would be all that bad. I would no longer have to think about what to wear in the morning, and as long as they were not too hideous I wouldn’t have a problem with it. Some argue it reduces conflict within the school, makes students more focused, or gives the school a more organized, disciplined appearance.

But in reality, does a simple change of clothes really have this much of an effect? Can it solve all the problems at Skyline?  Read the rest of this entry »

Meet another student blogger, Isabel Rodriguez-Vega, who discusses the merits of her public school experience.  -Katy

My name is Isabel Rodriguez-Vega, I am 17 years old, and I attend Skyline High School as a junior. I have been in the Oakland Unified School District all 11 of my academic years. First Montclair Elementary, then Montera Middle School, and now Skyline.

We were asked to write for the blog to give a student perspective on life in the OUSD, and I personally think it’s a great idea. The students are rarely asked about their views or experiences, but who would know better?

I know parents, teachers, or just people in the community all have questions about the education system in Oakland because, lets face it, it doesn’t have the best reputation. In all honesty, however, I wouldn’t trade my educational experience in the OUSD for the best education system in America. Well, I don’t know about that, but I do feel I have received a very good education in Oakland. In my opinion, better than any of my friends who attend private school. To me, private school deprives students of real life experiences or interactions that you would get from a public school.

For example, at the beginning of the year there were some serious scheduling mix-ups and it became the students’ responsibility to fix their own problems. Although administration problems within a school are not a good thing, it forces the students to develop problem-solving skills because we are pretty much on our own. I guess one could say life in the Oakland Public Schools is like life out in the real world, or close to it.

What comes to mind when thinking about Oakland Public Schools? Read the rest of this entry »