The second semester has rolled around, and there have been some changes to the expectations in LTHS. One of the newest, and most controversial, changes is the banning of Compass passes.
It happens to the best of us: 12am rolls around and you realize that you forgot to sign up for your math teacher’s Compass. Normally it wouldn’t be a big deal, but you wanted to sign up to get help before your math test.
In previous years, this wouldn’t have been a problem. You could just go to your homeport Compass teacher and ask them to write you a pass to math. However, with this new rule, your teacher is not allowed to write a pass, and you’re stuck in the class you previously signed up for, or your homeport. Unfortunately, this means you’re out of luck.
“I think that not being able to go to Compass without signing up has a negative impact on students because sometimes, due to sports and extracurricular activities, we forget to sign up the night before, making it hard for students to get help,” explains Abigail Laird, a sophomore here at LTHS. Every day, students’ days are filled with homework, extracurriculars, and other obligations, where signing up for Compass sometimes slips their mind.
“Not being able to get a Compass pass is frustrating because mistakenly not signing up the night before can prevent you from getting the help you need,” agreed sophomore Reagan Judge. She explains how sometimes she wants extra help from teachers, but now is unable to receive this if she makes a small error.
Sadly, it is true that some students ask their teachers to write them passes just so they can walk around the halls or hang out with their friends. As students, we can assume this abuse of passes is what led to the current restriction. This change allows administration to track and distinguish between students who utilize Compass time, and those who are just abusing it.
Although now it is much easier to keep track of where all of the students are without teachers writing passes or emails, the general amount of kids messing around is significantly less than those who are seeking help. The elimination of Compass passes hurts students who want to maximize their time by seeing two teachers in one Compass if the work allows for it, or if they realize in periods 1 or 2 that they need help before the next day.
It is unfortunate that because some students were abusing the passes, it ruined it for the rest of the school. Instead of taking away this opportunity from students seeking help, hallways should be monitored closer to restrict those using the passes for the wrong reasons. With this being said, LTHS should consider reinstating the old rules and allowing teachers to write passes for their students to go to a different Compass class, allowing students to get the help they need.
