HIGH SCHOOL can be a rough transition or it can be one of the easiest transitions. Some junior high students wince at the thought of high school while others don’t worry. At Granger High School, freshmen came from junior highs such as Valley, Granite Park, West Lake, and so on. The first year of high school can be somewhat rough, as some experienced students would say.

When third quarter comes around and counselors go to the junior highs to register incoming freshmen, many emotions are felt. These include excitement of the new classes, but also the feelings about going into a new school with new people such as teachers and peers can be hard.

Some freshmen were worried and nervous when going into high school.

“When we were registering for our classes, I was a little nervous. I didn’t know anyone at Granger. I’m kind of social. If a teacher puts me with someone, I can get along well with them. However, it’s different starting in a new school with lots of other teens,” Mark Calderon (9) said.

While many have felt something somewhat close to Calderon’s experience, others had a different opinion.

“I didn’t really care about going into high school. I had lots of friends that were already in high school, so going there just meant we all got to be together. Plus, my friends from other junior highs were going to go to Granger, so we were all going to be reunited,” Jordan Thomas (9) said.

The transition to high school is just the first part. The other part is being able to get through high school with a comfortable experience, meaning trying to get the grades where they want them.

“I’m not doing too well academically,” Calderon said.

Many other freshmen can relate. The first year of high school can be rough to adapt because classes are harder than they were in junior high. The pace feels a little faster for those who have a hard time processing and remembering the concepts for a specific subject.

Not only that, but statistics show that approximately 40 percent of high school students are chronically disengaged from school, according to a 2013 article on the forbes.com website.

A lack of motivation for all classes can lead to credit recovery, summer school, and even a failure to graduate. Unfortunately, lots of freshmen have failing grades. They will have to do either credit recovery or summer school if they plan to graduate.

“Lots of these freshmen aren’t taking ‘Skills for Life’ seriously, which helps them in the long run. The time that’s provided for them on Mondays and Tuesdays is supposed to help them catch up in classes that they’re behind in. Instead they’re too busy talking to their friends and playing around,” Mr. Timothy said.

In other words, freshmen are falling behind in their classes and not putting in an effort to make up their grades.

All excuses aside, teachers believe in their students. If the students wanted to make up their grades, teachers would try their hardest to help. For students, success means going after school, putting in more work and effort—then they’ll get the result they’re hoping for.

At Granger, there are on average about 30-40 F-grades throughout a class of 30 students. That averages out to more than one F-grade for every student, which isn’t good. Some students try to get their grades up, but others see an F-grade and let it be.

Hopefully, freshmen will realize that they need to keep their grades up and just try their best.