In a time when academic competitiveness is at an all-time high, the amount of time students have to work on an assignment can make or break their grade.
Many students struggle to juggle homework, studying, sports, and other extracurricular activities, so they rely on study hall to help them stay caught up with their school work. Cavalier Morning, or Cav Morning for short, is a thirty minute period after first period, where students have an opportunity to do homework, study, or meet with teachers for additional help.
Prior to the 2023-2024 school year, Clover Hill’s schedule had Cav Morning every Morning. However, this schedule was reduced to only Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
English teacher Wanda Kline has taught at Clover Hill for nearly 30 years and has noticed how the reduced study hall period has affected her students.
“[Having Cav Morning everyday] is more consistent, and again it opens up that time for students who are busy after school, [and are] involved in school events. A number of students, as they get older, have jobs. And trying to work around that is difficult,” Kline said.
A significant change has been noticed in the students by Mrs. Kline, specifically their academic and studying habits.
“I think there’s a sense of ‘oh no, if I miss school, when am I gonna make this up?’ so it complicates everybody’s schedule,” Kline said.
She also spoke about possible changes to the schedule as a whole.
“Maybe not for this year, but maybe next year, we need to go back to Cav Morning everyday,” Kline said.
Kline provided some insight as well on what went on behind the decision for Cav Morning to be changed.
“The administration made the decision to not have Cav Morning everyday. Their reasoning was that people were abusing the system and the liberty that the free period gave them, [and] not being in the places they should be,” Kline said.
Other than the effect on herself, Kline mentions she noticed how this chance affected the student body.
“I see students struggling to make up work without it when they miss days. Sometimes students will have to make up work the next class period, causing them to miss the lesson or even another assignment as they have to do two things at once,” said Kline.
One student this change has affected is Kenneth Criss, a senior in the Math and Science program here at Clover Hill.
“I was a fan of having Cav Morning everyday because it allowed more opportunity to do my homework, and I feel like having it every other day, it’s harder to meet with teachers,” said Criss.
Cav Morning is something that is very useful to students to catch up on work and just be productive in general.
“I was using Cav Morning everyday to meet a teacher before tests, essays, stuff like that,” Criss said. “A third of the time, I was probably using Cav Morning beneficially.”
Criss spoke about the change, its effects, and how the current situation is with being able to move around the hallways.
“I think it’s allowed for less opportunity for students, especially with the new e-hall pass, it’s harder to get into those classes. I think having only three fifths of the days for Cav Morning [it’s] harder,” said Criss.
He commented on the reasoning behind the change.
“I guess like admin, the principal, [were behind the change] because like, some students would use it to roam around in the hallways. So some students don’t get to use it [now]” said Criss.
A schedule change is likely not in the future, although the new administration at Clover Hill this year could change that. Until then, students and teachers alike will have to make do with the current schedule and adjust as needed.
