Milford High School offers many electives in subjects like art, to band, to physical education. However, many people feel that the current amount of electives isn’t enough to satisfy the varying needs of unique classes for students. There has been debate as to whether or not Public schools should offer more electives.

The changes in the federal requirements for graduation standards have made it more difficult for schools to offer classes that are not considered “core.” Consequently, this greatly affects the type of classes schools can offer to meet these benchmarks. Students are now required to pass a standardized test which, while it is meant to motivate students to try harder in school, may have the opposite outcome. Many of the electives that students may have looked forward to are eliminated which very well might be the reason kids try less, or attend school less by losing that one class a student may enjoy.

The question remains as to where does Milford stand on this issue?

Many students said they wish the school could offer more.

“I wanted to take Programming this year but found out that they don’t offer it anymore so I had to fill my schedule with a class I had no interest in,¨ Stated Kyle Thompson, a Milford senior.

So what do those students do if they take classes that don’t interest them? They are less motivated.

In fact, most of the students interviewed had similar opinions. This reveals a pattern that can not be overlooked.

“I have had to take classes that are totally irrelevant to my interests or desired field I want to go into because of the fact that the school didn’t offer enough classes that  I wanted to go into and there was a scheduling conflict,¨ Said Riley Simlar, a junior at Milford High School.

That adds another issue; What do students do if they cannot take a desired class because it is only offered in one hour? For example, say a student wishes to take Leadership and Interior design, Which is perfectly fine except for the fact that the school only offers that class during the fifth period of the school day. The student is now forced to pick and choose which they’d rather take.

“I think that the way that classes are currently offered at the school makes it hard for me to take all the classes that I want to take so I end up taking a random class to fill my schedule,” states Courtney Fortin, a sophomore at Milford.

Teachers, as well as students, have claimed to think that adding more electives would be beneficial.

“I think this is a good idea due to the fact that most students have required electives and it important for students to have a break to be able to discover their own personal interests. Many of the electives that are required may not interest a student which leads them to only be able to take 1 desired course per semester,” stated Mr. Ehrlich, a Milford teacher.

A possible solution to this issue would be to offer more classes by possibly making each class shorter and making the school day consist of 7 classes instead of 6. This will open up more possibilities for students to find electives that interest them and help keep them motivated in school.

Wherever you stand on this issue it is clear that there is definitely a conflict when it comes to students and their ability to take classes they enjoy. Many private schools have already made this switch and had received positive feedback from students. So what do you think? Should public schools follow suit?